10 reasons why Jesus cannot be
Michael the Archangel.
By
Robert Skynner BD (Hons).
Scripture
mentions Michael five times at: Daniel 10:13, 21, 12:1, Jude 9 and
finally at Revelation 12:7. However, none of these verses states
openly or even hints that Jesus Christ is Michael. The Watchtower did
once teach that Michael wasn’t the Son of God (Zion’s Watchtower,
November 1879, page 48), but this position has subsequently been
reversed; (Watchtower 15th February 1979 on page 31).
1.
Hebrews 1:4 states that Christ isn’t an angel, for he’s: “so
much better than the angels.” The explanation is given in the
previous verse, where the image of an image stamped by a seal in hot
wax is made, to illustrate the fact that Christ and the Father share
the same divine nature. So this is why he’s superior to the angels.
2.
At Acts 17:31 and 1st Timothy 2:5 Christ in his post-resurrection
state is described by the apostles Luke and Paul as still being ‘a
man!’ Indeed, Acts 17:31 even states emphatically that it will be
as a man and not as an angel that Jesus Christ will judge the world,
at the judgement at the consummation of the age.
3.
The angels refuse to accept worship see Revelation 22:8-9. And yet at
Hebrews 1:6 God the Father here directly commands the angels to
worship his Son; Jesus Christ. “Let all the angels of God worship
him” (Hebrews 1:6, 1961 NWT, and all other translations).
4.
Michael was unable to rebuke Satan, and instead said; ‘the Lord
rebuke you’ (Jude 9, TEB), also translated as ‘may Jehovah rebuke
you’ (Jude 9, NWT 1961 edition). Yet Jesus Christ rebuked Satan,
and clearly did so himself at Matthew 4:10, where the 1961 edition
NWT states that Christ rebuked Satan by stating: “Go sway Satan!
For it is written, ‘it is Jehovah your God you must worship, and to
him alone you must render service.’ ”
5.
At Daniel 10:13 Michael isn’t identified as God’s Son, and
neither is he spoken of as unique in any sense. For Michael is
identified in the plural as “one of the chief princes.” So as
Michael is only one angel amongst a company of fellow senior angels
as Daniel 10:13 so clearly states. Then Christ, who is uniquely the
‘only Son’ of God (John 3:16, 1st John 4:9-14), and that by his
ontological nature (Hebrews 1:3), cannot also at the very same time
also be Michael, a mere archangel, and one angel amongst a company of
similar angels.
6.
At Hebrews 1:13 God the Father makes a direct quotation of Psalm
110:1 specifically with regard to Jesus: “But to which of the
angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine
enemies thy footstool?” Now if Christ were really Michael the
archangel, then this verse wouldn’t make any sense. For the entire
purpose of this passage is to convey that Christ only sits at his
Father’s right hand, which in Jewish terminology means a position
of authority and rank, purposely because he isn’t an angel at all,
but because he’s God’s Son.
7.
We read at Hebrews 2:5 concerning the world to come, which Jehovah’s
Witnesses must interpret as their promised paradise earth that it
will not be a world which will be in subjection to angels. However,
at Hebrews 2:8, in this age to come we notice that all things, which
must include the entire earth itself will be complete subject to
Christ. So Christ therefore cannot be an angel.
8.
How can Jesus be Michael the Archangel, when according to John 14:9
to see Jesus is to see God the Father: “He who has seen me has seen
the Father.” But how can a mere archangel, who is someone other
than Yahweh God, reveal God the Father (Yahweh) to us? For only
Yahweh God can genuinely reveal himself, and it’s utterly
impossible for someone other than God to reveal God to us. Could you
the reader for instance reveal God to me by the force of your own
will, can this be achieved by effort and determination? Of course
not, and for the obvious reason that because you yourself are not God
therefore you can’t reveal someone or something that you are not.
One final point, Jesus’ use of the Greek verb for ‘see’ which
is ‘horao’ means that he wasn’t claiming that he (Jesus) was
God the Father as modalists such as Oneness Pentecostals and
Branhamites will claim. If he had wish to imply this, then Jesus
would have here used the Greek verb ‘blepo’ instead of ‘horao.’
9.
When Christ returns at his second coming, we’re specifically told
at 1st John 3:2 that at our own resurrection that “we shall be like
him.” But, the Bible states at Acts 17:31 and 1st Timothy 2:5 that
Christ in his post-resurrection state is described by the apostles
Luke and Paul as ‘a man!’ (Greek: anthropos). There’s no
mention of Christ being Michael the Archangel. However, if the
Jehovah’s Witnesses do indeed believe that Christ was recreated as
an archangel, then because we’ll be just like him, if he’s now an
archangel, then that would mean that in their paradise earth, all
Jehovah’s Witnesses will also lose their own human natures and be
made into archangels, just like their own false Jesus!
10.
1st Corinthians 6:3 speaking of God’s people, states that they will
soon judge angels: “Know ye not that we shall judge angels?”
However, if Jesus Christ is the Archangel Michael, who became this
angel once again after his crucifixion, when his body dissolved into
gasses, but was then recreated by Jehovah as the archangel Michael.
Then to be consistent shouldn’t Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that
one day they’ll judge Jesus Christ?
©
Robert Skynner 16th June 2006. Duplication and posting of this essay
online is encouraged, provided that this work isn’t edited or
changed other than stylistically. My e-mail address should anyone
wish to contact me is: [email protected]
I’m a former Oneness Pentecostal now saved by grace rather than by
my own works.
