A Study of Theophanies: Appearances of God in the Old Testament
By Steven Lester
In this
paper I will examine certain Old Testament passages that deal with
appearances of God or theophanies. Theophany is constructed from two
Greek words: theos meaning God and phaino
meaning “to appear.” (John M. Baze—The Angel of the
Lord) Lewis Chafer more accurately defined a theophany as, “a
manifestation of God in visible and bodily form before the
incarnation.” [Lewis Sperry Chafer, Systematic Theology 4 Vols.,
(Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1993) 3:31] According to
Chafer’s definition certain phenomena such as the Shekinah glory
would not be considered a theophany since God did not appear in
visible, bodily form. (John M. Baze—The Angel of the Lord) At
any rate, a careful study of Old Testament theophanies will reveal
important themes that are repeated throughout scripture. These
themes provide the substance of God’s overarching plan for
humanity.
Through
out the paper I will examine theophanies and their significance by
referring to the Biblical record. The format of examination will
include elements such as: the historical context, possible
theological meanings, relationships between theophanies, and
theophanies value in regard to New Testament doctrine. I hope to
weigh in on the academic debate regarding theophanies and
intelligently establish my opinion based upon careful research of
scripture and relative theological material. Due to space
limitations I will not be able to consider all theophanies in the Old
Testament. The ones I have chosen will be an appropriate
representative sampling so that the theology of theophanies may be
established.
The
first consideration I want to explore is the issue of the Jesus
Christ as the substance of Old Testament theophanies. In considering
this possibility we need to be aware of the academic debate regarding
this subject. James C. Moyer says in the Evangelical Dictionary of
Theology:
Various
interpretations have been suggested including an appearance of God
himself, an appearance of a messenger, or of God’s many angels, or
the appearance of the incarnate Christ. Each interpretation has
difficulties and there is no consensus. Walter Elwell, ed.,
Evangelical Dictionary of Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House,
1984), P. 1087.
There
are good arguments on both sides of the issue. This paper, however,
shall suppose that Christ is the substance of Old Testament
theophanies. If Christ is subject of Old Testament theophanies then
how does this affect the theology of theophanies? Having this
presupposition puts a unique perspective of the entirety of
scripture: scripture takes on more of a Christocentric disposition.
Having Christ active only in the New Testament does not, in my
opinion, bind the scripture together as coherently as having Christ
active in the Old Testament via theophanies. This is an important
issue as Christ is the theme of Scripture.
Christ
is suited to be the substance of Old Testament Theophanies by reason
of scripture witness. John 8:56-58 declare:
“Your
Father Abraham rejoiced to see my day and he saw it and was glad.
The Jews said unto him you are not yet fifty years old, and you seen
Abraham? Jesus said unto them, most assuredly I say unto you,
before Abraham was I AM.”
Jesus
stated that he was present, visible and interacting with humanity in
the Old Testament. Which reference was Christ speaking of?
Scripture records no less that eight times from Genesis chapter12-22
that Abraham experienced an appearance of God. Some of these
appearances may not be considered a bona-fide theophany according to
Lewis Chafer’s definition as mentioned above for the reason that
there was no visible body appearance. Many times the Lord spoke to
Abraham such as in chapter 12:1-3; 13:14-17; 22:1-2. These passages
reveal that God simply spoke to Abraham; there is no mention of
appearance. Genesis 15: declares that God appeared in a vision to
Abraham. Other passage such as 12:7; 15:17-18; 17:1-22; 18:1-33 speak
of God actually appearing to Abraham in visible form. In fact
Chapter 18 gives a description of God:
“Then
the Lord appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was
sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted up
his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him: and
when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed
himself to the ground.” Genesis 18:1-2
God is
described as appearing in the form of a man. Later in verse 8
scripture tells us that the men ate with Abraham. John Baze notes
that out of the eight occurrences of the phrase “and the Lord
appeared,” this account is only time that supporting details are
given. (Baze 272) The point is that Christ is among these
appearances to Abraham. I submit that the tenor of scripture suggest
that Christ is the only member of the Godhead that appeared to
Abraham.
John
8:58 gives mention of Christ associating himself with the title, “I
AM”. Of course this title was applied to The Angel of Jehovah
appearing to Moses in the burning bush. The fact that Christ applies
this title to himself directly associates him to the Angel of Jehovah
(a subject we will discuss in detail later) and to an Old Testament
theophany.
Another
passage that deals with Christ’s appearance in the Old Testament is
John 12:41. The passage says, “These things Isaiah said when he
saw His glory and spoke of Him.” Of course the context of the Old
Testament passage that John was referring to is found in Isaiah
chapter 6. This account declares Isaiah’s throne room encounter
with God. The scripture plainly testify that Isaiah encountered
Christ sitting on the throne in glory.
The
characteristics of this particular theophany resemble other
God-appearances throughout the Old Testament. Jeffery Niehaus
mentions several areas of similarities between the Isaiah 6 account
and other theophanic appearance in the Old Testament. For instance
the terms used to portray Yahweh resemble both Mount Sinai and
subsequent theophanies. (Niehaus 251) Niehaus gives further
similarities:
We
read that the temple was filled with smoke…and that the door posts
and thresholds shook (Isaiah 6:4). The phraseology resembles Amos
9:1…. It also anticipates Isaiah 24:20, which portrays the earth
(which, if not God’s temple, is at least his footstool, Mt 5:35)
shaken by Yahweh in judgment theophany.
Niehaus
goes on to say:
Granted
its eschatological implications, there is also a clear terminological
parallel between this account and the account of the original
dedication. The parallel is no accident. Yahweh appeared in
Solomon’s day to seal his promise to David that his son would sit
upon his throne and build the Yahweh temple and that Yahweh would
cause his name to dwell there. (Niehaus 251)
There
fact that Yahweh is seated on a throne gives further detail for
comparison. Niehaus says the verb “seated” is also the term used
in Psalm 2:4 where God is pictured being enthroned and ready to judge
the nations. The term is also used in Psalm 29:10 where God is
“enthroned” above the flood waters. (Niehaus 252) Given the
similarities mentioned above between the Isaiah 6 theophany and
others throughout the Old Testament, it stands to reason that Christ
is the one appearing in all theophanies.
The
problem of sin has introduced many evils into the human race. One of
the most prolific situations facing man is the inability to come face
to face with God. Man would be destroyed if God was seen in all of
his glory. Exodus 33:20 declares, “You cannot see my face; for no
man shall see me and live.” Therefore, an objective of the
incarnation is to allow man the opportunity to “meet” God.
Christ declared in John 14:9: “He who has seen Me has seen the
Father.” The incarnation was the highest revelation of God to man.
Hebrews 1:1-2 says, “God who at various times and in various ways
spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets has in these last
days spoken to us by his Son.” Christ is the only member of the
God head that has communicated the revelation of God to man by reason
of physical presence. This is why he is suited to be the substance
of all Old Testament theophanies. Daniel Finestone comments, “God
has given a mediate revelation of Himself in Christ (Matt. 11:27),
and we must therefore assume that every theophany in the Old
Testament is in reality a Christophany. John Walvoord also weighs in
on this point in saying:
“The
Second Person is the visible God of the New Testament. Neither the
Father nor the Spirit is characteristically revealed in bodily and
visible form… It is logical that the same Person of the Trinity
should appear in bodily form in both Testaments.” (Walvoord 167)
As
Christ spoke in the New Testament through his bodily appearance, he
also revealed God in the Old Testament. The Sinai Theophany in
Exodus 33-34 gives us an example of God communicating revelation
through appearance. In Exodus 33 18-23, Moses desired to see God in
his glory, to which God replied that no man could see all of his
glory and live. Yet, God did pass by Moses and revealed himself in
verse 19:
“Then
He said, I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will
proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to
whom I am gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have
compassion.”
In
Exodus 34:6-7, God also passed by Moses announcing:
“The
Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and
abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands,
forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing
the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children
and the children’s children to the third and the fourth
generation.”
In
these appearances, God was not fully seen, yet he communicated
revelation to Moses while appearing. This dynamic of revelation
through appearance seems to be God’s chosen method of
communication. M. Burrows says, “God appears in order to speak,”
(Niehaus 29) Gerhard von Rad expressed the same sentiment, “With an
Old Testament theophany everything depends upon the pronouncement:
the phenomena which accompany it are always merely accessories.”
(Niehaus 29)
John
chapter 1:1, 14 declare:
In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word
was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld
His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of
grace and truth.
Christ
is pictured as the divine expression and tabernacled glory of God
among his people. This characterization and ideology of Christ is
significant because of its ability to have its origins in the Old
Testament while finding its fulfillment in the New Testament. The
Old Testament clearly yearned for God to tabernacle among his people
in order to express himself to them. The glory of God is seen to
have time and again tried to tabernacle among the people. The Old
Testament also strains revelation out through the various theophanic
events. John Walvoord says:
The
doctrine of the Logos has had considerable treatment in historic
theology and in particular connects with the rational and philosophic
implications of the revelation in Christ… The central idea remains
of an intelligent, ordered revelation of God in tangible expression.
The theophanies in the Old Testament are partial representations of
Christ but not the same sense or as accurate a revelation as Christ
the Logos. (Walvoord 160)
The New
Testament effortlessly breaths revelation through the person and work
of Christ. His incarnation seems to be the maturation and fullness
of his theophanic workings in the Old Testament: God’s glory
finally finds a suitable dwelling and finds his perfect expression in
the incarnate Christ.
I think
at this point we should discuss the significant theophanic
appearances regarding “The Angel of the Lord.” The supposition
of this paper is that Christ is the Angel of the Lord mentioned in
the Old Testament. The first issue of consideration is to underscore
that The Angel of the Lord is a distinctive person and not one of
many angelic beings used in God’s service. The grammatical
construction of the term “The Angel of the Lord” as used in the
Old Testaments gives weighty evidence for his exceptionality. We
cannot go into a lengthy discussion of the particulars; however John
Baze gives a lengthy and technical analysis of the subject in his
work The Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament Part 1. He sums up
his position:
Of
the fifty-six occurrences of the phrase, “The Angel of the Lord”,
every one of them involves a grammatical arrangement that represents
the typical order and form of a true construction relationship.
Thus, the usage of a proper name in this construction relationship
would substantiate that the only possible literal translation of
malak YHWH is “the Angel of the Lord” while
eliminating the indefinite translation, “an angel of the Lord.”
(Baze 271)
Baze
also cites A.B. Davidson as saying: “According to the general
grammatical rule the rendering ‘an angel of the Lord’ is
inaccurate…” (Baze 271) It appears that grammatically the
structure of the phrase “The Angel of the Lord” qualifies this
character for a position particular uniqueness.
Furthermore
qualifying The Angel of the Lord as a case for the pre-incarnate
Christ is the fact that scripture assigns deity to the Angel. Daniel
Finestone catalogues six areas where deity can be ascribed to The
Angel of the Lord:
The
Angel of Jehovah claims deity (Exodus 3:6,14; Judges 13:18)
The
Angel of Jehovah is addressed as deity (Genesis 16:13; Judges 6:22)
The
Angel of Jehovah is paid divine honors (Exodus 3:4,5; Genesis 22:12)
The
Angel of Jehovah is called God by the Old Testament writer (Exodus
3:4)
The
Angel of Jehovah has divine attributes (Exodus 32:34; Isaiah 63:9)
The
Angel of Jehovah promises to do what only deity can do (Genesis
21:18; 22:17,18; Exodus 3:8) )Finestone 374-375)
The
last point I want to make note of is that after the incarnation of
Christ the term “The Angel of the Lord” does not appear again in
scripture. This startling fact gives further weight to the notion
that Christ is “The Angel of Jehovah”. After the incarnation, if
the Angel of God was a different person other than Christ, it seems
he would make an appearance. His absence seems to suggest that he is
the incarnate Christ.
Now we
arrive at our last point of consideration regarding Christ’s
appearing in the Old Testament. Christ’s eternal role in regard to
humanity’s salvation necessitates his working in the Old Testament.
When God appeared to humanity in the Old Testament it was with
purpose. There was never an empty theophany: all were full of
redemptive value. Finestone says:
We
have seen that all appearances of the Angel of the Lord were related
to some phase of the redemptive program of God through Israel. This
plan was consummated in the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. Both
the Angel of Jehovah and the Lord Jesus Christ were engaged in the
same activity, the salvation of man; the One working in the Old
Testament times, the Other in the New Testament times. (Finestone
384)
Particular
activities of the pre-incarnate Christ should be noted. First he was
active in a covenantal context. He established covenant, assisted
Israel in covenant fidelity, brought covenant transgression judgment,
and delivered Israel as a result of covenant obedience. First, God
is seen entering covenant with man. Genesis chapter 1, 2, 8 and 12
contain covenant references, however, the covenant reference in
Genesis 15 encloses a magnificent theophany. This covenant theophany
shows to what lengths God will condescend in relating his plan to
man. Abraham and his seed were the beneficiaries of the covenant.
Jeffery Niehaus agrees with Moshe Weifeild and Gordan Wenham that
“the nearest parallel to the covenant form in Genesis 15 is the
royal grant typically made by a king to a man and his descendants in
perpetuity.” (Niehaus 174) Niehaus goes on to say that, “God’s
ultimate desire is to restore the intimacy of the unbroken Creation
covenant with humanity.” (Niehaus 179) Christ’s appearances in
the Old Testament serve to assist humanity to this end. The Genesis
15 theophany not only serves to reveal a divine covenant, but
underscore theophanic covenant assistance.
Israel
was assisted in covenant fidelity by theophanies. Numerous times God
appeared to Abraham in reaffirming his covenant therefore encouraging
Abraham. Genesis 18, 20 are instances in which the Lord appeared to
Abraham encouraging, testing, and reaffirming the covenant. Jacob
wrestled with The Angel of the Lord in Genesis 32. The Angel blessed
him, encouraged him, and called him Israel. This pattered continues
in Exodus. In chapter 3, 20-34 God appears to assist Israel not only
in delivering them but encouraging them in covenant faithfulness.
Every theophany has, in some measure, directly or indirectly, an
effect of encouraging covenant fidelity.
Theophany
or Christophany serves to facilitate judgment upon men for covenant
transgression. Within the creation covenant framework God came in
chapter 3 verse 8 in a storm theophany. He came as covenant judge.
Ezekiel’s vision of God in chapter 1 of his book seems to indicate
a similar covenant storm theophany. Niehaus goes in detail regarding
the verbage of the Ezekiel 1 and Genesis 3:8 account. Niehaus
aggregates the word study of Ezekiel’s theophany and Genesis 3:8 by
saying:
As
regards Ezekiel’s vision by Kebar and after, one fact is paramount:
what he saw was disastrous. Yahweh appears in an awesome storm
theophany as covenant judge. He also appeared as covenant judge to
Adam and Eve, and if they saw anything like what Ezekiel saw (and the
storm theophany of Genesis 3:8 laconically suggests that they did),
their fear was well grounded. (Niehaus 255)
Another
storm theophany takes place in the judgment upon humanity via the
great flood of Genesis chapter 7. Psalm 29: 3, 4 seem to indicate
that the Lord appeared in the flood of Noah. These scriptural
accounts of judgment are all associated with covenant transgression
and subsequent storm theophanies, which are judgment theophanies.
The
last activity of Christ in respect to covenant is his activity in
deliverance of his covenant people. The Old Testament serves as the
narrative of the journey of God’s covenant people. Sprinkled along
the journey are Christophanies that function as a means of
deliverance. The Genesis 22 appearance of The Angel of the Lord
effected deliverance for Abraham’s son, Isaac. The Exodus 3
Christophany announced the deliverance of Israel from Egypt. Other
appearances to Gideon and Manoah in the book of Judges also emulate
the concern and activity of deliverance of God’s covenant people.
Even a brief study of Old Testament theophanies produces numerous
examples of a deliverance motivated agenda.
It is
for the above mentioned reasons that the member of the Godhead most
qualified to appear in Old Testament theophanies is the Lord Jesus
Christ. Scripture declares him to be the substance of Old Testament
appearances. To have Christ as the visible presentation of God’s
revelation gives the scripture meaningful continuity. The subject of
The Angel of the Lord’s appearing and acting in the Old Testament
also gives incredible evidence to the ministry of the pre-incarnate
Christ. Having Christ as the subject of Old Testament theophanies is
not without its difficulties, yet as in the words of Daniel
Finestone, “in Christ all the pre-Christian theophanies find a
higher unity.” (Finestone 384)
Works
Cited
Baze,
John. “The Angel of the Lord in the Old Testament-Part 1”,
Finestone,
Daniel. “Is the Angel of Jehovah in the Old Testament the Lord
Jesus Christ?”
Niehaus,
Jeffery. 1995. God at Sinai. Grand Rapids: Zondervan.
Walvoord,
John. “Series in Christology-Part 2: The Preincarnate Son of God”