Gabriel
Jewish mythology (rabbinic–kabbalistic) · numen · Jewish mythology (rabbinic–kabbalistic) traditional religion; continuing · numen
MICHAEL AND GABRIEL ARE A PAIR AND THE CORPUS HELD NEITHER: the midrash makes one the prince of chesed and water and the other the prince of gevurah and fire, and sends each on the errands his half of the divine temperament requires. Holding one without the other would have been this programme's recurring fault; holding neither was worse.
Domains
- severity and judgement
- fire
- paradise
- annunciation
- the divine throne
Relations
- cross tradition counterpart of: Gabra'el
Sources
- Reference treatment of the four chief archangels in rabbinic literature: the Midrash identifies Michael, Gabriel, Uriel and Raphael as the four chief angels who surround the divine throne, each with particular attributes; Michael is called the prince of kindness (chesed) and water and Gabriel the prince of severity (gevurah) and fire, so Michael is dispatched on missions that express God's kindness and Gabriel on those that express His severity and judgement; multiple midrashic sources make Michael the heavenly defender of Israel, at odds with the demon Samael, and Israel's representative in heaven where other nations were also represented by angelic princes; the Talmud identifies Michael, Gabriel and Raphael as the three angels who visited Abraham to deliver the news that his wife would bear a son, and in later Jewish tradition Raphael is one of the three heavenly visitors entertained by Abraham at the Oak of Mamre; the writer of the Book of Daniel was the first by whom angels were individualised and given names and titles.
- 1 Enoch 20 (the Book of the Watchers)