Cherub

Cherub Cherabim or Cherabimean are a species of Seraphean,that act as a kind of Imperial Seraphean Messenger Warrior Class,found within the Maveric Universe.The Cherub are tiny light bees,that can generate solid holographic image of vadios shaped and sized,composed of cold plasma force field holographic beings. A tetramorph cherub, in Eastern Orthodox iconography A cherub (/ˈtʃɛrəb/;.1, plural cherubim; according to Hebrew mythological sourse: כְּרוּב‎ kərūv, pl. כְּרוּבִים kərūvîm) as one of the unearthly beings who directly attend to God according to Abrahamic religions. The numerous depictions of cherubim assign to them many different roles; their original duty having been the protection of the Garden of Eden.

In Jewish angelic hierarchy, cherubim have the ninth (second-lowest) rank in Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (12th century), and the third rank in Kabbalistic works such as Berit Menuchah (14th century). De Coelesti Hierarchia places them in the highest rank alongside Seraphim and Thrones.In actuallity,the Cherabim or Cherabimean are multiple duty user Seraphean holographic lifeforms,that act as 1)Messengers to the Lord's of Light,2)Interstellar space Scouts,who travel by Seraphean Whisper Probe Star Ships,3)Seraphean Wizard Warrior,who assist the Seraphean Guardian Angels.

In the Book of Ezekiel and (at least some) Christian icons, the cherub is depicted as having two pair of wings, and four faces: that of a lion (representative of all wild animals), an ox (domestic animals), a human (humanity), and an eagle (birds).Their legs were straight, the soles of their feet like the hooves of a bull, gleaming like polished brass. Later tradition ascribes to them a variety of physical appearances.Some early midrashic literature conceives of them as non-corporeal,which is based on the Cherabim paranormal abilities to shape shift into different forms.

I n Western Christian tradition, cherubim have become associated with the putto (derived from classical Cupid/Eros), resulting in depictions of cherubim as small, plump, winged boys.Cherabim can generate small holographic images of small, plump, winged boys and girls to appear non threatening imagery to some species,that might find the tall,angelic blue and white humanoid shapes. In reality,the Cherubs are similar to the other Serapheans,are separated by four distinct type of Seraphean Guilds. 1)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Wizard Warriors,depicting a lion headed emblem,upon their helmet.

2)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Star Forces ,depicting an Eagle headed emblem,upon their helmet.These are the messenger/Scout Class. 3)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Engineering Force,depicting an Ox headed emblem,upon their helmet.They maintain and build the cities and Star Fleet forces of the Seraphean Dominion. 4)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean ,depicting a humanoid headed emblem,upon their helmet.

Shedu Cherabim can appear as winged sphinx-like form, possessing the wings of an eagle,with the body of a lion, and the head of a man or woman.Shedu is related to the Griffin-a bird headed lion shaped winded Capronean creature.It maybe,the Serapheans may have narrowed the image of the Griffin,as a kind of hound hunting holographic creature,used by Cherabim Scout/Messenger Class of Seraphean.

Contents Origins and etymology Edit

A pair of shedu protecting a doorway (the bodies of the creatures extend into the distance) Mythological hybrids are common in the art of the Ancient Near East. One example is the Babylonian lamassu or shedu, a protective spirit with a sphinx-like form, possessing the wings of an eagle, the body of a lion, and the head of a king. This was adopted largely in Phoenicia. The wings, because of their artistic beauty, soon became the most prominent part, and animals of various kinds were adorned with wings; consequently, wings were bestowed also upon man,thus forming the stereotypical image of an angel. Albright (1938) argued that "the winged lion with human head" found in Phoenicia and Canaan from the Late Bronze Age is "much more common than any other winged creature, so much so that its identification with the cherub is certain"

A possibly related source is the human-bodied Hittite griffin, which, unlike other griffins, appear almost always not as a fierce bird of prey, but seated in calm dignity, like an irresistible guardian of holy things;some have proposed that the word griffin (γρύψ) may be cognate with cherubim.The traditional Hebrew conception of cherubim as guardians of the Garden of Eden is backed by the Semitic belief of beings of superhuman power and devoid of human feelings, whose duty it was to represent the gods, and as guardians of their sanctuaries to repel intruders; these conceptions in turn are similar to an account found on Tablet 9 of the inscriptions found at Nimrud.It has been suggested that the image of cherubim as storm winds explains why they are described as being the chariot of Yahweh in Ezekiel's visions, the Books of Samuel the parallel passages in the later Books of Chronicles, and passages in the early Psalms: for example "and he rode upon a cherub and did fly: and he was seen upon the wings of the wind." In particular, in a scene reminiscent of Ezekiel's dream, the Megiddo Ivories depict an unknown king being carried on his throne by hybrid winged-creatures.

Delitzch (Assyrisches Handwörterbuch) connects the name it with Assyrian kirubu (a name of the shedu) and karabu ("great, mighty"). Karppe (1897) glosses Babylonian karâbu as "propitious" rather than "mighty"..2,.13, Dhorme (1926) connected the Hebrew name to Assyrian kāribu (diminutive kurību), a term used to refer to intercessory beings (and statues of such beings) that plead with the gods on behalf of humanity.14,14, The folk etymological connection to a Hebrew word for "youthful" is due to Abbahu (3rd century).5,

Hebrew Bible
Further information: Tetramorph, Living creatures (Bible), Mercy seat, Ezekiel's cherub in Eden, and Uriel

Ezekiel's "chariot vision" with the tetramorph (living creatures), engraving after an illustration by Matthäus Merian, Icones Biblicae (c.1625–1630)

Moses and Joshua bowing before the Ark by James Tissot (c. 1900) The cherubim are the most frequently occurring heavenly creature in the Hebrew Bible, with the Hebrew word appearing 91 times.4, Despite these many references, the role of the cherubim is never explicitly elucidated.5, While Hebrew tradition must have conceived of the cherubim as guardians of the Garden of Eden2, (in which they guard the way to the Tree of life),15, they are often depicted as performing other roles; for example in the Book of Ezekiel, they transport Yahweh's throne. The cherub who appears in the "Song of David", a poem which occurs twice in the Hebrew Bible, in 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18, participates in Yahweh's theophany and is imagined as a vehicle upon which the deity descends to earth from heaven in order to rescue the speaker (see 2 Samuel 22:11, Psalm 18:10).16,

In Exodus 25:18-22, Yahweh tells Moses to make multiple images of cherubim at specific points around the Ark of the Covenant.4, Many appearances of the words cherub and cherubim in the Bible refer to the gold cherubim images on the mercy seat of the Ark, as well as images on the curtains of the Tabernacle and in Solomon's Temple, including two measuring ten cubits high.17,

In Isaiah 37:16, Hezekiah prays, addressing Yahweh as "enthroned above the cherubim" (referring to the mercy seat).

Cherubim feature at some length in the Book of Ezekiel. While they first appear in chapter one, in which they are transporting the throne of Yahweh by the river Chebar, they are not called cherubim until chapter 10.18, In Ezekiel 1:5-11 they are described as having the likeness of a man, and having four faces: that of a man, a lion (on the right side), and ox (on the left side), and an eagle. The four faces represent the four domains of God's rule: the man represents humanity; the lion, wild animals; the ox, domestic animals; and the eagle, birds.19.These faces peer out from the center of an array of four wings; these wings are joined to each other, two of these are stretched upward, and the other two cover their bodies. Under their wings are human hands; their legs are described as straight, and their feet like those of a calf, shining like polished brass. This is Ofcourse,this is simply bad ancient,human art,depicting Cherub with four faces a man, a lion (on the right side), and ox (on the left side), and an eagle,that is simply not true depiction of a Cherubs true image.Depictions of poor artistic licence is something many cultures produce crappy artwork in many books and comics,that become the image of a thing in the mind of the culture. Between the creatures glowing coals that moved between them could be seen, their fire "went up and down", and lightning burst forth from it. The cherubs also moved like flashes of lightning.The Cherubim can appear as flashes of light,when they transform into light her flying creatures.

In Ezekiel chapter ten, another full description of the cherubim appears with slight differences in details. Three of the four faces are the same – man, lion and eagle – but where chapter one has the face of an ox, Ezekiel 10:14 says "face of a cherub." Ezekiel equates the cherubim of chapter ten with the living creatures of chapter one: "They were the same creatures (חיה) I had seen by the river Chebar" (Ezekiel 10:15) and "These were the living creatures I had seen under the God of Israel on the banks of the river Chebar" (Ezekiel 10:20). In Ezekiel 41:18-20, they are portrayed as having two faces, although this is probably because they are depicted in profile.4,

In Judaism Edit
The figures painted on the walls of the Herodian reconstruction of the Temple are called "cherubim" in the Babylonian Talmud.=,

Many forms of Judaism include a belief in the existence of angels, including cherubim within the Jewish angelic hierarchy. The existence of angels is generally accepted within traditional rabbinic Judaism. There is, however, a wide range of beliefs within Judaism about what angels actually are and how literally one should interpret biblical passages associated with them.

In Kabbalah there has long been a strong belief in cherubim, with the cherubim and other angels regarded as having mystical roles. The Zohar, a highly significant collection of books in Jewish mysticism, states that the cherubim were led by one of their number named Kerubiel.2,

On the other end of the philosophical spectrum is Maimonides, who had a neo-Aristotelian interpretation of the Bible. Maimonides writes that to the wise man, one sees that what the Bible and Talmud refer to as "angels" are actually allusions to the various laws of nature; they are the principles by which the physical universe operates.

For all forces are angels! How blind, how perniciously blind are the naive?! If you told someone who purports to be a sage of Israel that the Deity sends an angel who enters a woman's womb and there forms an embryo, he would think this a miracle and accept it as a mark of the majesty and power of the Deity, despite the fact that he believes an angel to be a body of fire one third the size of the entire world. All this, he thinks, is possible for God. But if you tell him that God placed in the sperm the power of forming and demarcating these organs, and that this is the angel, or that all forms are produced by the Active Intellect; that here is the angel, the "vice-regent of the world" constantly mentioned by the sages, then he will recoil.– The Guide for the Perplexed II:4

For he .the naive person, does not understand that the true majesty and power are in the bringing into being of forces which are active in a thing although they cannot be perceived by the senses... Thus the Sages reveal to the aware that the imaginative faculty is also called an angel; and the mind is called a cherub. How beautiful this will appear to the sophisticated mind, and how disturbing to the primitive." – The Guide for the Perplexed II:6.

Maimonides says that the figures of the cherubim were placed in the sanctuary only to preserve among the people the belief in angels, there being two in order that the people might not be led to believe that they were the image of God.21,

Cherubim are discussed within the midrash literature. The two cherubim placed by God at the entrance of paradise (Gen. iii. 24) were angels created on the third day, and therefore they had no definite shape; appearing either as men or women, or as spirits or angelic beings (Genesis Rabbah xxi., end). The cherubim were the first objects created in the universe (Tanna debe Eliyahu R., i. beginning). The following sentence of the Midrash is characteristic: "When a man sleeps, the body tells to the neshamah (soul) what it has done during the day; the neshamah then reports it to the nefesh (spirit), the nefesh to the angel, the angel to the cherub, and the cherub to the seraph, who then brings it before God" (Leviticus Rabbah xxii.; Eccl. Rabbah x. =).

In early Jewish tradition there existed the notion that cherubim had youthful, human features, due to the etymologization of the name by Abbahu (3rd century). Before this, some early midrashic literature conceived of the cherubim as non-corporeal. In the first century AD, Josephus claimed: "No one can tell, or even conjecture, what was the shape of these Cherubim."(Antiquities:8:73).5,

A midrash states that when Pharaoh pursued Israel at the Red Sea, God took a cherub from the wheels of His throne and flew to the spot, for God inspects the heavenly worlds while sitting on a cherub. The cherub, however, is "something not material," and is carried by God, not vice versa (Midr. Teh. xviii. 15; Canticles Rabbah i.

In the passages of the Talmud that describe the heavens and their inhabitants, the seraphim, ofannim, and living creatures are mentioned, but not the cherubim (Ḥag. 12b); and the ancient liturgy also mentions only these three classes.

In the Talmud, Jose the Galilean holds22, that when the Birkat Hamazon (grace after meals) is recited by at least ten thousand seated at one meal, a special blessing, "Blessed is Ha-Shem our God, the God of Israel, who dwells between the Cherubim," is added to the regular liturgy.

In Christianity

Baroque-era cherub from Scharten church, Upper Austria, Altar of the Crucifixion (1667).

Depiction of the "cherubim of glory shadowing the mercyseat" (χερουβιμ δόξης κατασκιάζοντα τὸ ἱλαστήριον) of Hebrews 9:5 (Julius Bate, 1773) In Medieval theology, following the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius, the cherubim are the second highest rank in the angelic hierarchy, following the seraphim.

Cherubim are regarded in traditional Christian angelology as angels of the second highest order of the ninefold celestial hierarchy.24,De Coelesti Hierarchia (ca. 5th century) lists them alongside Seraphim and Thrones.

In Western art, cherubim became associated with the putto and the Greco-Roman god Cupid/Eros, with depictions as small, plump, winged boys.

Artistic representations of cherubim in Early Christian and Byzantine art sometimes diverged from scriptural descriptions. The earliest known depiction of the tetramorph cherubim is the 5th-6th century apse mosaic found in the Thessalonian Church of Hosios David. This mosaic is an amalgamation of Ezekiel's visions in Ezekiel 1:4–28, Ezekiel 10:12, Isaiah's seraphim in Isaiah 6:13 and the six-winged creatures of Revelation from Revelation 4:2–10.25,

What Kind of Creatures Are the Cherubim?
A tour of the multiple interpretations given over time, including the latest iconographic and archaeological findings.

Raanan Eichler

Brown Kruvim (Cherubim) resized YoramRaanan.com ©

The centerpiece of a typical temple in the ancient world was a statue of a god. The tabernacle (משכן), which is first described in Parashat Terumah, is different in that it does not have such a statue. What it does have are two golden statues of cherubim (כרובים) who spread their wings over the kapporet, the lid of the ark of the testimony (Exodus 25:18–20 ≈ 37:7–9). Above the kapporet from between these two cherubim, Yhwh meets with Moshe and speaks to him (Exodus 25:22 ≈ Numbers 7:89; cf. Leviticus 16:2).

The impression given by our parashah, that cherubim played a central role in the earliest stage of Judaism, is reinforced by references to cherubim elsewhere in the Tanakh:

Statues of cherubim, of a somewhat different form, also spread their wings over the ark in the Jerusalem temple (1 Kings 6:23–28 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:10–13; 1 Kings 8:6, 7 ≈ 2 Chronicles 5:7, 8; 1 Chronicles 28:18). Two-dimensional representations of cherubim decorate surfaces of the tabernacle (Exodus 26:1 = 36:8, 26:31 = 36:35) and the temple (1 Kings 6:29, 32, 35; 7:29, 36; Ezekiel 41:18, =, 25; 2 Chronicles 3:7, 14). Living cherubim are associated with the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24; Ezekiel 28:14, 16) They are, apparently, described as being with Yhwh as something he rides or sits upon (2 Samuel 22:11 ≈ Psalms 18:11; Ezekiel 9:3; 10:1–22; 11:22). Cherubim constitute a component in an epithet of Yhwh, which can be translated provisionally as “the cherubim sitter” or “the cherubim dweller”:1, י(ו)שב הכר(ו)בים / ישב כרובים (1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:2 ≈ 1 Chronicles 13:6; 2 Kings 19:15 ≈ Isaiah 37,16; Psalms 80:2; 99:1). What, specifically, is a cherub? In other words, what form or forms of creatures does the word כרוב designate?

Winged Child
The first recorded attempt to identify the form of the cherub was made by the amora R. Abbahu of Caesarea (ca. 279–3=), who employed a midrashic reading of כרוב as כרביא, which can be translated from Aramaic as “like a lad,” to assert that the cherub resembles a child (b. Ḥagigah 13b, Sukkah 5b). However, the cherubim are said to have wings (Exodus 25:20 = 37:9; 1 Kings 6:24, 27 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:11–13; 1 Kings 8:6–7 = 2 Chronicles 5:7–8), and winged children are not attested in the iconography of the Land of Israel in the biblical period.

This identification is likely prompted by the erotes and cupids, the oft-winged boys that personified amorousness in the Greco-Roman art of R. Abbahu’s time. This conclusion can also explain the existence of several peculiar talmudic homilies attributing an erotic aspect to the cherubim of the Jerusalem temple (b. Yoma 54a–b).

Winged Adult
An anonymous sage in Midrash Hagadol asserted that the cherub resembles a human in all respects except that it has the wings of a bird; the anonymous exegete, unlike R. Abbahu, did not specify an age and presumably had in mind an adult.3, This view was endorsed in part by Radak (ca. 1160–1235) and Ralbag (1288–1344).4,

The identification of cherubim as winged humans, whether adults or children, found early expression in Jewish and Christian visual art. For example, an illuminated Hebrew manuscript from northern France, dated to 1277–1286, shows the tabernacle ark cherubim as childlike creatures with six wings each, as influenced by Isa 6:2 Figure 1,.

Child six wings cherubim Figure 1,. British Museum, add. 11639

It is now known that the winged adult human is a common denizen of ancient Near Eastern iconography, and several modern scholars have identified the cherub with it, including Carl F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Robert Pfeiffer, and Louis-Hugues Vincent.5,

Bird
cherubim birds Figure 2. British Museum, add. 14759

Rashbam (ca. 1085–1158) and Hizkuni (thirteenth century) stated that cherubim are birds. This identification enjoys visual expression in a fifteenth-century drawing by the prolific Jewish illuminator Joel b. Simeon Feibush showing the biblical ark surmounted by two pigeon-like birds Figure 2,. In the modern era, François Lenormant expressed the same idea regarding the tabernacle ark cherubim, writing that they were probably birds fashioned in the Egyptian artistic style.

Human-Headed Birds
An intermediate position between this view and the preceding one was taken by Abraham b. Moses Maimonides (1186–1237), who suggested that the ark cherubim in the tabernacle had human heads and faces and avian wings, bodies and feet. He admitted the speculative nature of the suggestion and adduced no arguments in its favor.

Winged Bovine

Rashbam’s student Joseph Bekhor Shor (second half of the twelfth century), whose name means “firstborn of an ox” – coincidence? – along with Isaac of Vienna (ca. 1180–1250) and other tosafists, proffered the view that typical cherubim are “angels in the image of oxen.”, Later scholars, such as the seventeenth-century Protestant polymath Hugo Grotius, promoted similar views.10, One reason for this suggestion is the fact that the word “שור” in Ezekiel 1:10 is replaced by “כרוב” in Ezekiel 10:14, implying the terms are synonymous.

By the end of the eighteenth century, material evidence was adduced to support these views: the human-headed winged bull colossi of Persepolis, which were known from a drawing and description by Dutch traveler Cornelis de Bruyn Figure 3,.11, Later, the publicity received by colossal human-headed winged bulls in Assyrian palaces excavated in the mid-nineteenth century Figure 4,, along with the mistaken belief that the Akkadian words kirûbu12, or kāribu13, designated these beings, boosted the view that cherubim shared the form of these colossi.

human-headed winged bull Figure 3 (wikimedia) Figure 4 (British Museum ME 118872)

Griffin
Doubting the association of the cherub with the human-headed winged bull, the nineteenth-century biblicist August Dillmann preferred to connect the cherub with the griffin, or raptor-headed winged lion.15, The griffin appears in ancient Levantine iconography; for example, on a thirteenth-century bce ivory plaque from Megiddo Figure 5,.

Cherubim GriffinFigure 5. University of Chicago Oriental Institute

Winged Sphinx
The prevailing opinion in current scholarship is that the cherub is a winged sphinx, i.e., a human-headed winged lion, such as that depicted on the sarcophagus of the late second-millennium bce Phoenician king Ahiram Figure 6,.16, However, numerous indications found in the descriptions of the sculpted cherubim over the ark (Exodus 25:18–20 = 37:7–9; 1 Kings 6:23–26) reveal that their authors presupposed upright creatures.17,

Winged Sphinx Cherubim
Cherub Cherabim or Cherabimean are a species of Seraphean,that act as a kind of Imperial Seraphean Messenger Warrior Class,found within the Maveric Universe.The Cherub are tiny light bees,that can generate solid holographic image of vadios shaped and sized,composed of cold plasma force field holographic beings. A tetramorph cherub, in Eastern Orthodox iconography A cherub (/ˈtʃɛrəb/;.1, plural cherubim; according to Hebrew mythological sourse: כְּרוּב‎ kərūv, pl. כְּרוּבִים kərūvîm) as one of the unearthly beings who directly attend to God according to Abrahamic religions. The numerous depictions of cherubim assign to them many different roles; their original duty having been the protection of the Garden of Eden.

In Jewish angelic hierarchy, cherubim have the ninth (second-lowest) rank in Maimonides' Mishneh Torah (12th century), and the third rank in Kabbalistic works such as Berit Menuchah (14th century). De Coelesti Hierarchia places them in the highest rank alongside Seraphim and Thrones.In actuallity,the Cherabim or Cherabimean are multiple duty user Seraphean holographic lifeforms,that act as 1)Messengers to the Lord's of Light,2)Interstellar space Scouts,who travel by Seraphean Whisper Probe Star Ships,3)Seraphean Wizard Warrior,who assist the Seraphean Guardian Angels.

In the Book of Ezekiel and (at least some) Christian icons, the cherub is depicted as having two pair of wings, and four faces: that of a lion (representative of all wild animals), an ox (domestic animals), a human (humanity), and an eagle (birds).Their legs were straight, the soles of their feet like the hooves of a bull, gleaming like polished brass. Later tradition ascribes to them a variety of physical appearances.Some early midrashic literature conceives of them as non-corporeal,which is based on the Cherabim paranormal abilities to shape shift into different forms. In Western Christian tradition, cherubim have become associated with the putto (derived from classical Cupid/Eros), resulting in depictions of cherubim as small, plump, winged boys.Cherabim can generate small holographic images of small, plump, winged boys and girls to appear non threatening imagery to some species,that might find the tall,angelic blue and white humanoid shapes. In reality,the Cherubs are similar to the other Serapheans,are separated by four distinct type of Seraphean Guilds. 1)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Wizard Warriors,depicting a lion headed emblem,upon their helmet.

2)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Star Forces ,depicting an Eagle headed emblem,upon their helmet.These are the messenger/Scout Class. 3)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean Engineering Force,depicting an Ox headed emblem,upon their helmet.They maintain and build the cities and Star Fleet forces of the Seraphean Dominion. 4)The Imperial Cherabim or Cherabimean ,depicting a humanoid headed emblem,upon their helmet.

Shedu Cherabim can appear as winged sphinx-like form, possessing the wings of an eagle,with the body of a lion, and the head of a man or woman.Shedu is related to the Griffin-a bird headed lion shaped winded Capronean creature.It maybe,the Serapheans may have narrowed the image of the Griffin,as a kind of hound hunting holographic creature,used by Cherabim Scout/Messenger Class of Seraphean.

Contents Origins and etymology	Edit

A pair of shedu protecting a doorway (the bodies of the creatures extend into the distance) Mythological hybrids are common in the art of the Ancient Near East. One example is the Babylonian lamassu or shedu, a protective spirit with a sphinx-like form, possessing the wings of an eagle, the body of a lion, and the head of a king. This was adopted largely in Phoenicia. The wings, because of their artistic beauty, soon became the most prominent part, and animals of various kinds were adorned with wings; consequently, wings were bestowed also upon man,thus forming the stereotypical image of an angel. Albright (1938) argued that "the winged lion with human head" found in Phoenicia and Canaan from the Late Bronze Age is "much more common than any other winged creature, so much so that its identification with the cherub is certain"

A possibly related source is the human-bodied Hittite griffin, which, unlike other griffins, appear almost always not as a fierce bird of prey, but seated in calm dignity, like an irresistible guardian of holy things;some have proposed that the word griffin (γρύψ) may be cognate with cherubim.The traditional Hebrew conception of cherubim as guardians of the Garden of Eden is backed by the Semitic belief of beings of superhuman power and devoid of human feelings, whose duty it was to represent the gods, and as guardians of their sanctuaries to repel intruders; these conceptions in turn are similar to an account found on Tablet 9 of the inscriptions found at Nimrud.It has been suggested that the image of cherubim as storm winds explains why they are described as being the chariot of Yahweh in Ezekiel's visions, the Books of Samuel the parallel passages in the later Books of Chronicles, and passages in the early Psalms: for example "and he rode upon a cherub and did fly: and he was seen upon the wings of the wind." In particular, in a scene reminiscent of Ezekiel's dream, the Megiddo Ivories depict an unknown king being carried on his throne by hybrid winged-creatures.

Delitzch (Assyrisches Handwörterbuch) connects the name it with Assyrian kirubu (a name of the shedu) and karabu ("great, mighty"). Karppe (1897) glosses Babylonian karâbu as "propitious" rather than "mighty"..2,.13, Dhorme (1926) connected the Hebrew name to Assyrian kāribu (diminutive kurību), a term used to refer to intercessory beings (and statues of such beings) that plead with the gods on behalf of humanity.14,14, The folk etymological connection to a Hebrew word for "youthful" is due to Abbahu (3rd century).5,

Hebrew Bible Further information: Tetramorph, Living creatures (Bible), Mercy seat, Ezekiel's cherub in Eden, and Uriel

Ezekiel's "chariot vision" with the tetramorph (living creatures), engraving after an illustration by Matthäus Merian, Icones Biblicae (c.1625–1630)

Moses and Joshua bowing before the Ark by James Tissot (c. 1900) The cherubim are the most frequently occurring heavenly creature in the Hebrew Bible, with the Hebrew word appearing 91 times.4, Despite these many references, the role of the cherubim is never explicitly elucidated.5, While Hebrew tradition must have conceived of the cherubim as guardians of the Garden of Eden2, (in which they guard the way to the Tree of life),15, they are often depicted as performing other roles; for example in the Book of Ezekiel, they transport Yahweh's throne. The cherub who appears in the "Song of David", a poem which occurs twice in the Hebrew Bible, in 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18, participates in Yahweh's theophany and is imagined as a vehicle upon which the deity descends to earth from heaven in order to rescue the speaker (see 2 Samuel 22:11, Psalm 18:10).16,

In Exodus 25:18-22, Yahweh tells Moses to make multiple images of cherubim at specific points around the Ark of the Covenant.4, Many appearances of the words cherub and cherubim in the Bible refer to the gold cherubim images on the mercy seat of the Ark, as well as images on the curtains of the Tabernacle and in Solomon's Temple, including two measuring ten cubits high.17,

In Isaiah 37:16, Hezekiah prays, addressing Yahweh as "enthroned above the cherubim" (referring to the mercy seat).

Cherubim feature at some length in the Book of Ezekiel. While they first appear in chapter one, in which they are transporting the throne of Yahweh by the river Chebar, they are not called cherubim until chapter 10.18, In Ezekiel 1:5-11 they are described as having the likeness of a man, and having four faces: that of a man, a lion (on the right side), and ox (on the left side), and an eagle. The four faces represent the four domains of God's rule: the man represents humanity; the lion, wild animals; the ox, domestic animals; and the eagle, birds.19.These faces peer out from the center of an array of four wings; these wings are joined to each other, two of these are stretched upward, and the other two cover their bodies. Under their wings are human hands; their legs are described as straight, and their feet like those of a calf, shining like polished brass. This is Ofcourse,this is simply bad ancient,human art,depicting Cherub with four faces a man, a lion (on the right side), and ox (on the left side), and an eagle,that is simply not true depiction of a Cherubs true image.Depictions of poor artistic licence is something many cultures produce crappy artwork in many books and comics,that become the image of a thing in the mind of the culture. Between the creatures glowing coals that moved between them could be seen, their fire "went up and down", and lightning burst forth from it. The cherubs also moved like flashes of lightning.The Cherubim can appear as flashes of light,when they transform into light her flying creatures.

In Ezekiel chapter ten, another full description of the cherubim appears with slight differences in details. Three of the four faces are the same – man, lion and eagle – but where chapter one has the face of an ox, Ezekiel 10:14 says "face of a cherub." Ezekiel equates the cherubim of chapter ten with the living creatures of chapter one: "They were the same creatures (חיה) I had seen by the river Chebar" (Ezekiel 10:15) and "These were the living creatures I had seen under the God of Israel on the banks of the river Chebar" (Ezekiel 10:20). In Ezekiel 41:18-20, they are portrayed as having two faces, although this is probably because they are depicted in profile.4,

In Judaism	Edit The figures painted on the walls of the Herodian reconstruction of the Temple are called "cherubim" in the Babylonian Talmud.=,

Many forms of Judaism include a belief in the existence of angels, including cherubim within the Jewish angelic hierarchy. The existence of angels is generally accepted within traditional rabbinic Judaism. There is, however, a wide range of beliefs within Judaism about what angels actually are and how literally one should interpret biblical passages associated with them.

In Kabbalah there has long been a strong belief in cherubim, with the cherubim and other angels regarded as having mystical roles. The Zohar, a highly significant collection of books in Jewish mysticism, states that the cherubim were led by one of their number named Kerubiel.2,

On the other end of the philosophical spectrum is Maimonides, who had a neo-Aristotelian interpretation of the Bible. Maimonides writes that to the wise man, one sees that what the Bible and Talmud refer to as "angels" are actually allusions to the various laws of nature; they are the principles by which the physical universe operates.

For all forces are angels! How blind, how perniciously blind are the naive?! If you told someone who purports to be a sage of Israel that the Deity sends an angel who enters a woman's womb and there forms an embryo, he would think this a miracle and accept it as a mark of the majesty and power of the Deity, despite the fact that he believes an angel to be a body of fire one third the size of the entire world. All this, he thinks, is possible for God. But if you tell him that God placed in the sperm the power of forming and demarcating these organs, and that this is the angel, or that all forms are produced by the Active Intellect; that here is the angel, the "vice-regent of the world" constantly mentioned by the sages, then he will recoil.– The Guide for the Perplexed II:4

For he .the naive person, does not understand that the true majesty and power are in the bringing into being of forces which are active in a thing although they cannot be perceived by the senses... Thus the Sages reveal to the aware that the imaginative faculty is also called an angel; and the mind is called a cherub. How beautiful this will appear to the sophisticated mind, and how disturbing to the primitive." – The Guide for the Perplexed II:6.

Maimonides says that the figures of the cherubim were placed in the sanctuary only to preserve among the people the belief in angels, there being two in order that the people might not be led to believe that they were the image of God.21,

Cherubim are discussed within the midrash literature. The two cherubim placed by God at the entrance of paradise (Gen. iii. 24) were angels created on the third day, and therefore they had no definite shape; appearing either as men or women, or as spirits or angelic beings (Genesis Rabbah xxi., end). The cherubim were the first objects created in the universe (Tanna debe Eliyahu R., i. beginning). The following sentence of the Midrash is characteristic: "When a man sleeps, the body tells to the neshamah (soul) what it has done during the day; the neshamah then reports it to the nefesh (spirit), the nefesh to the angel, the angel to the cherub, and the cherub to the seraph, who then brings it before God" (Leviticus Rabbah xxii.; Eccl. Rabbah x. =).

In early Jewish tradition there existed the notion that cherubim had youthful, human features, due to the etymologization of the name by Abbahu (3rd century). Before this, some early midrashic literature conceived of the cherubim as non-corporeal. In the first century AD, Josephus claimed: "No one can tell, or even conjecture, what was the shape of these Cherubim."(Antiquities:8:73).5,

A midrash states that when Pharaoh pursued Israel at the Red Sea, God took a cherub from the wheels of His throne and flew to the spot, for God inspects the heavenly worlds while sitting on a cherub. The cherub, however, is "something not material," and is carried by God, not vice versa (Midr. Teh. xviii. 15; Canticles Rabbah i.

In the passages of the Talmud that describe the heavens and their inhabitants, the seraphim, ofannim, and living creatures are mentioned, but not the cherubim (Ḥag. 12b); and the ancient liturgy also mentions only these three classes.

In the Talmud, Jose the Galilean holds22, that when the Birkat Hamazon (grace after meals) is recited by at least ten thousand seated at one meal, a special blessing, "Blessed is Ha-Shem our God, the God of Israel, who dwells between the Cherubim," is added to the regular liturgy.

In Christianity

Baroque-era cherub from Scharten church, Upper Austria, Altar of the Crucifixion (1667).

Depiction of the "cherubim of glory shadowing the mercyseat" (χερουβιμ δόξης κατασκιάζοντα τὸ ἱλαστήριον) of Hebrews 9:5 (Julius Bate, 1773) In Medieval theology, following the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius, the cherubim are the second highest rank in the angelic hierarchy, following the seraphim.

Cherubim are regarded in traditional Christian angelology as angels of the second highest order of the ninefold celestial hierarchy.24,De Coelesti Hierarchia (ca. 5th century) lists them alongside Seraphim and Thrones.

In Western art, cherubim became associated with the putto and the Greco-Roman god Cupid/Eros, with depictions as small, plump, winged boys.

Artistic representations of cherubim in Early Christian and Byzantine art sometimes diverged from scriptural descriptions. The earliest known depiction of the tetramorph cherubim is the 5th-6th century apse mosaic found in the Thessalonian Church of Hosios David. This mosaic is an amalgamation of Ezekiel's visions in Ezekiel 1:4–28, Ezekiel 10:12, Isaiah's seraphim in Isaiah 6:13 and the six-winged creatures of Revelation from Revelation 4:2–10.25,

What Kind of Creatures Are the Cherubim?

A tour of the multiple interpretations given over time, including the latest iconographic and archaeological findings.

Raanan Eichler

Brown Kruvim (Cherubim) resized YoramRaanan.com ©

The centerpiece of a typical temple in the ancient world was a statue of a god. The tabernacle (משכן), which is first described in Parashat Terumah, is different in that it does not have such a statue. What it does have are two golden statues of cherubim (כרובים) who spread their wings over the kapporet, the lid of the ark of the testimony (Exodus 25:18–20 ≈ 37:7–9). Above the kapporet from between these two cherubim, Yhwh meets with Moshe and speaks to him (Exodus 25:22 ≈ Numbers 7:89; cf. Leviticus 16:2).

The impression given by our parashah, that cherubim played a central role in the earliest stage of Judaism, is reinforced by references to cherubim elsewhere in the Tanakh:

Statues of cherubim, of a somewhat different form, also spread their wings over the ark in the Jerusalem temple (1 Kings 6:23–28 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:10–13; 1 Kings 8:6, 7 ≈ 2 Chronicles 5:7, 8; 1 Chronicles 28:18). Two-dimensional representations of cherubim decorate surfaces of the tabernacle (Exodus 26:1 = 36:8, 26:31 = 36:35) and the temple (1 Kings 6:29, 32, 35; 7:29, 36; Ezekiel 41:18, =, 25; 2 Chronicles 3:7, 14). Living cherubim are associated with the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24; Ezekiel 28:14, 16) They are, apparently, described as being with Yhwh as something he rides or sits upon (2 Samuel 22:11 ≈ Psalms 18:11; Ezekiel 9:3; 10:1–22; 11:22). Cherubim constitute a component in an epithet of Yhwh, which can be translated provisionally as “the cherubim sitter” or “the cherubim dweller”:1, י(ו)שב הכר(ו)בים / ישב כרובים (1 Samuel 4:4; 2 Samuel 6:2 ≈ 1 Chronicles 13:6; 2 Kings 19:15 ≈ Isaiah 37,16; Psalms 80:2; 99:1). What, specifically, is a cherub? In other words, what form or forms of creatures does the word כרוב designate?

Winged Child

The first recorded attempt to identify the form of the cherub was made by the amora R. Abbahu of Caesarea (ca. 279–3=), who employed a midrashic reading of כרוב as כרביא, which can be translated from Aramaic as “like a lad,” to assert that the cherub resembles a child (b. Ḥagigah 13b, Sukkah 5b). However, the cherubim are said to have wings (Exodus 25:20 = 37:9; 1 Kings 6:24, 27 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:11–13; 1 Kings 8:6–7 = 2 Chronicles 5:7–8), and winged children are not attested in the iconography of the Land of Israel in the biblical period.

This identification is likely prompted by the erotes and cupids, the oft-winged boys that personified amorousness in the Greco-Roman art of R. Abbahu’s time. This conclusion can also explain the existence of several peculiar talmudic homilies attributing an erotic aspect to the cherubim of the Jerusalem temple (b. Yoma 54a–b).

Winged Adult

An anonymous sage in Midrash Hagadol asserted that the cherub resembles a human in all respects except that it has the wings of a bird; the anonymous exegete, unlike R. Abbahu, did not specify an age and presumably had in mind an adult.3, This view was endorsed in part by Radak (ca. 1160–1235) and Ralbag (1288–1344).4,

The identification of cherubim as winged humans, whether adults or children, found early expression in Jewish and Christian visual art. For example, an illuminated Hebrew manuscript from northern France, dated to 1277–1286, shows the tabernacle ark cherubim as childlike creatures with six wings each, as influenced by Isa 6:2 Figure 1,.

Child six wings cherubim Figure 1,. British Museum, add. 11639

It is now known that the winged adult human is a common denizen of ancient Near Eastern iconography, and several modern scholars have identified the cherub with it, including Carl F. Keil and Franz Delitzsch, Robert Pfeiffer, and Louis-Hugues Vincent.5,

Bird

cherubim birds Figure 2. British Museum,          add. 14759

Rashbam (ca. 1085–1158) and Hizkuni (thirteenth century) stated that cherubim are birds. This identification enjoys visual expression in a fifteenth-century drawing by the prolific Jewish illuminator Joel b. Simeon Feibush showing the biblical ark surmounted by two pigeon-like birds Figure 2,. In the modern era, François Lenormant expressed the same idea regarding the tabernacle ark cherubim, writing that they were probably birds fashioned in the Egyptian artistic style.

Human-Headed Birds An intermediate position between this view and the preceding one was taken by Abraham b. Moses Maimonides (1186–1237), who suggested that the ark cherubim in the tabernacle had human heads and faces and avian wings, bodies and feet. He admitted the speculative nature of the suggestion and adduced no arguments in its favor.

Winged Bovine

Rashbam’s student Joseph Bekhor Shor (second half of the twelfth century), whose name means “firstborn of an ox” – coincidence? – along with Isaac of Vienna (ca. 1180–1250) and other tosafists, proffered the view that typical cherubim are “angels in the image of oxen.”, Later scholars, such as the seventeenth-century Protestant polymath Hugo Grotius, promoted similar views.10, One reason for this suggestion is the fact that the word “שור” in Ezekiel 1:10 is replaced by “כרוב” in Ezekiel 10:14, implying the terms are synonymous.

By the end of the eighteenth century, material evidence was adduced to support these views: the human-headed winged bull colossi of Persepolis, which were known from a drawing and description by Dutch traveler Cornelis de Bruyn Figure 3,.11, Later, the publicity received by colossal human-headed winged bulls in Assyrian palaces excavated in the mid-nineteenth century Figure 4,, along with the mistaken belief that the Akkadian words kirûbu12, or kāribu13, designated these beings, boosted the view that cherubim shared the form of these colossi.

human-headed winged bull                        Figure 3  (wikimedia)                                    Figure 4 (British Museum ME 118872)

Griffin Doubting the association of the cherub with the human-headed winged bull, the nineteenth-century biblicist August Dillmann preferred to connect the cherub with the griffin, or raptor-headed winged lion.15, The griffin appears in ancient Levantine iconography; for example, on a thirteenth-century bce ivory plaque from Megiddo Figure 5,.

Cherubim GriffinFigure 5. University of Chicago Oriental Institute

Winged Sphinx The prevailing opinion in current scholarship is that the cherub is a winged sphinx, i.e., a human-headed winged lion, such as that depicted on the sarcophagus of the late second-millennium bce Phoenician king Ahiram Figure 6,.16, However, numerous indications found in the descriptions of the sculpted cherubim over the ark (Exodus 25:18–20 = 37:7–9; 1 Kings 6:23–26) reveal that their authors presupposed upright creatures.17,

Winged Sphinx Cherubim Figure 6 (Wikimedia)

Evidence that the Cherubs Stand Upright Sheltering with Wings – In the tabernacle, the ark cherubim are described as facing each other and “sheltering the kapporet with their wings” (Exodus 25:20 = 37:9). As noted by Umberto Cassuto and Richard Barnett, if the cherubim stood on four feet, they would shelter the כַּפֹּרֶת with their bodies, not with their wings.18,

Standing on the Edge – It can be added that the cherubim are said to be located on either “edge” (קצה) of the kapporet (ibid. 25:18–19 = 37:7–8). If they stood on four legs and their bodies stretched over the length of the kapporet, the word “edge” would be inappropriate.

Awkward Position for Four-Legged Creature – Moreover, the statement that the cherubim shelter the kapporet with their wings indicates that the wings are extended forward (toward the center of the kapporet), beyond their heads. No depiction of a creature standing on four legs with its wings extended in such an awkward and clumsy position can be found in ancient Near Eastern visual art.19,

No Length Measurement – In the case of the ark cherubim in the temple, the biblical text notes their height and “width” (wingspan), but not their length (1 Kings 6:23–28). As argued by Otto Thenius and many subsequent scholars, this can only be understood if we assume that the cherubim are upright and therefore have no significant length.=,

Wingspan Equal to Height – An additional indication that the temple ark cherubim are upright creatures is that they are described as possessing a wingspan, 10 cubits (1 Kings 6:24, 25; cf. 2 Chronicles 3:11–13), that equals their height, also 10 cubits (1 Kings 6:23, 26). Franz Landsberger noted that this proportion does not evoke animal forms.21, Martin Metzger developed the argument in light of his investigation of composite creatures in the ancient Near East. He stated that a composite four-legged creature whose height when standing on its four feet is 10 cubits would have wings of 12–15 cubits each – a length significantly greater the 5 cubits specified in the Bible.22,

The uprightness of the cherub precludes its identification with the winged sphinx, as well as the winged bovine and griffin, which are all non-upright, four-legged creatures.

Composite Creature A final possibility, first proposed by the tenth-century Jewish grammarian Menahem ibn Saruq, is that כרוב simply means “figure.”23, Abraham ibn Ezra (ca. 1090–1160s) later elaborated on this idea, stressing that in different contexts the word can refer to different types of creatures.24, Ibn Saruq and Ibn Ezra follow an older tradition expressed in Targum Neofiti and Saadia b. Joseph Gaon, both of whom rendered the word כרבים in the descriptions of the tabernacle tapestries as “figures.”25,

An entirely different view etymologically, but one which leads to a similar, generalized identification of the cherub, was expressed by the thirteenth-century tosafist Isaac b. Judah Halevi in his work Panah Raza. He explained the root כרב as carrying the meaning “mix.” Thus, he characterized the cherubim of Eden in Genesis as “angels in the form of demons” and argued that their name is a reflection of the fact that they contain a mixture of two species.26, This identification seems essentially the same as what today would be called a composite or hybrid creature (German: Mischwesen).

Like the previously cited views, the understanding of כרוב as referring to composite creatures generally, or to a class thereof, has been revived in modern times. Contemporary scholars advocating this position rely on the existence of what they see as contradictory descriptions of cherubim within the Hebrew Bible.27,

This view is challenged by the fact that the biblical writers usually neglect to specify the form of the cherub, even when specifying other details such as materials, position, and dimensions (Exodus 25:18–20 = 37:7–9; 1 Kings 6:23–28 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:10–13). This omission indicates that there was assumed to be a typical form, with which the reader would be familiar.28,

Winged Adult Revisited

I believe that the the anonymous sage in Midrash Hagadol was correct, and the cherubim are winged humans. Recall that the ark cherubim in the temple are described as having a wingspan that equals their height (1 Kings 6:23–26). Not only four-legged animals, but also upright creatures, whether real ones such as birds or fantastic ones such as winged snakes, would have to have comically short wings in order for their wingspan to be only as great as their height. Indeed, we don’t find any depictions of these creatures in the iconographic record that have these proportions. Only humans, who stand erect on long legs and are by far the tallest of any of the candidates in proportion to their other dimensions, can have wings whose span equals their height that still look respectably long.

Indeed, humans normally possess an arm-span that precisely equals their height. The Roman architect Vitruvius observed this fact long ago, writing in the context of proportionality in temples (De architectura 3.1.3):

“If we measure the distance from the feet .of a man, to the top of the head, and we copy the measure to the outstretched arms, we find that the width equals the height, as with surfaces that are perfect squares.”

arms length human Figure 7 (Wikimedia)

This principle was famously illustrated in Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man drawing .Figure 7,. When depicting a winged human, it would make sense to portray the wings as having the length of arms.

To be sure, winged humans in ancient Levantine iconography often have wings that are extravagantly long, far longer than their arms. But, as noted below, instances are known where the artist portrays the wings as being equivalent to arms and possessing the same length that the arms do (when they exist) or would (when they do not exist).

Illustrating Wings as Arms Three examples will suffice:

First, a stamp seal from Beth Shemesh, which, according to Keel, should probably be dated to ca. 1100–900 bce, depicts an armless, winged human whose wings are spread straight out to his sides .Figure 8,, like the ark cherubim in the temple (1 Kings 6:24–27 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:11–13).29,

Second, a cylinder seal from Tell el-Ajjul, in the vicinity of Gaza, dated by Teissier to the period of ca. 1820–1740, portrays a pair of armless, winged humans spreading their wings out in front of them, like the ark cherubim in the tabernacle, and sheltering a tree Figure 9,.30,

Third, a fragmentary Phoenician openwork ivory found in Nimrud, probably from the ninth or eighth century bce, shows a winged human with wings extended in the same position; the upper wing is preserved and is the same length as the adjacent arm .Figure 10,.31,

Wings as Arms

Conclusion – Winged Humans on the Ark Thus, the author of the passage in Kings describing the temple ark cherubim could only have had winged humans in mind.32, If so, we should regard it as probable that other biblical authors writing about cherubim did, too.

___________________

Raanan Eichler is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University. He is an alumnus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Israel Democracy Institute, the Shalem Center, Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav, and the French Hill Ping Pong Club. His articles have appeared in numerous academic journals, and he edited the Hebrew edition of Leon Kass’ book on Genesis, The Beginning of Wisdom. 02/07/2016 1, For more on the history of interpretation, see my article: “Cherub: A History of Interpretation”, Biblica 96/1 (2015): 26–38. For a better translation, see my paper on this epithet: R. Eichler, “The Meaning of ישב הכרבים”, ZAW 126.3 (2014): 358–371.

2, For a survey of the different theories about how cherubs were believed to function (including my own work on this question), see Zev Farber’s TABS essay, “The Cherubim: Their Role on the Ark in the Holy of Holies.” Although the two pieces overlap, this piece focuses on the appearance of the cherubim, not their function.

3, M. Margulies (ed.), Midrash Haggadol on the Pentateuch. Exodus (Jerusalem 1956; Hebrew) 580.

4, Commentaries on 1 Kings 7:29, in M. Cohen (ed.), Kings I & II (Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’; Ramat-Gan 1995; Hebrew) 55, 57.

5, C.F. Keil – F. Delitzsch, The Pentateuch (Commentary on the Old Testament; Edinburgh 1866) II, 169-170; R.H. Pfeiffer, “Cherubim”, JBL 41/3-4 (1922) 249-250; P. Dhorme – L.H. Vincent, “Les Chérubins”, RB 35/3 (1926) 328-358 and 35/4 (1926) 481-495 at 484-486. Cf. H. Gressmann, Die Lade Jahves und das Allerheiligste des Salomonischen Tempels (Berlin 1920) 6-14, 47-67; Cooke, Ezekiel, 113; U. Cassuto – R.D. Barnett, “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopedia Miqra’it IV, 238-244 (Hebrew).

6, Rashbam: commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 72; Hizkuni: (ad loc.), in C.D. Chavel (ed.), Hizkuni. The Torah Commentaries of Hezekiah b.R. Manoah (Jerusalem 1981/2) 280 Hebrew,. Cf. Rashi on Ezek. 28,14, in Ezekiel Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’ (ed., M. Cohen; Ramat-Gan 2000; Hebrew) 190.

7, F. Lenormant, The Beginnings of History According to the Bible and the Traditions of Oriental Peoples (New York 1882), 135-136.

8, S.D. Sassoon (ed.), Commentary of Rabbenu Abraham ben HaRambam on Genesis and Exodus (London 1959; Arabic/Hebrew), 390-392.

9, J. Gellis (ed.), Sefer Tosafot hashalem. Commentary on the Bible (Jerusalem 1993; Hebrew) I, 148.

10, H. Grotius, Annotationes in Vetus & Novum Testamentum (London 1727 .1644,) 47.

11, C. Taylor, Fragments, Illustrative of the Manners, Incidents, and Phraseology, of the Holy Scriptures (London 1798) II, 119-130, 159-160; III, 184-185; plates (not enumerated) “Ark of the Covenant”, “Cherubim” 1-4; C. de Bruyn, Travels into Muscovy, Persia, and Part of the East-Indies (London 1737) II, 11-12.

12, Lenormant, History, 125-126; F. Delitzsch, Wo Lag das Paradies? (Leipzig 1881) 153. Refuted by, e.g., T.C. Foote, “The Cherubim and the Ark”, JAOS 25 (1904) 279-286 at 279. The Chicago Assyrian Dictionary does not list kirûbu as a word.

13, Dhorme – Vincent, “Chérubins”, 335-336. According to the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary, kāribu is an adjective that can describe “a deity represented as making a gesture of adoration”.

14, Layard himself made this connection cautiously. See A.H. Layard, Nineveh and Its Remains (London 1849) II, 464-465; idem, Discoveries in the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon (New York 1853) 549. See also Delitzsch, Paradies, 150-155 and bibl.

15, A. Dillmann, Genesis: Critically and Exegetically Expounded (Eugene, Oreg. 2005 .1897,) 170 (83). Wood (Wings, 200-207) identifies the cherub with the eagle-headed winged lion and the human-headed winged lion (winged sphinx) – see below.

16, W.F. Albright, “What Were the Cherubim?” BA 1 (1938) 1-3; G. E. Wright, Biblical Archaeology (Philadelphia 1957) 141; de Vaux, “Chérubins”, esp. 234-238; Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18; idem, Die Geschichte Jerusalems und die Entstehung des Monotheismus (Göttingen 2007) I, 294-301; M. Metzger, Königsthron und Gottesthron: Thronformen und Throndarstellungen in Ägypten und im Vorderen Orient im dritten und zweiten Jahrtausend vor Christus und deren Bedeutung für das Verständnis von Aussagen über den Thron im Alten Testament (AOAT XV; Kevelaer 1985) 323; T.N.D. Mettinger, “Cherubim”, DDD 189-192; Wood, Wings, 202-203; T. Staubli, “Cherub(im)”, Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception V, 55-59.

17, See already R. Eichler, “The Function of the Ark Cherubim”, Tarbiz 79/2 (2011), 165-185 at 174-175 (Hebrew). Arguments claiming otherwise (Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18-21) have been countered (Eichler, “Function”, 174-175).

18, U. Cassuto and R. D. Barnett. “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopaedia Biblica 4, 238–244 at 241 (Hebrew).

19, Lenormant, Beginnings of History, 132–133; Gressmann, Lade, 7–8; Dhorme and Vincent, “Chérubins”, 485; Metzger, Königsthron, 331.

20, O. Thenius, Die Bücher der Könige (Leipzig 1849) 74–81.

21, F. Landsberger, “The Origin of the Winged Angel in Jewish Art”, HUCA 20 (1947): 227–254 at 234.

22, Metzger, Königsthron, 340–341. Some interpreters have attempted to solve this problem by hypothesizing that the wings of the cherubim were not extended horizontally, and therefore the real wingspan was longer than the given one, which is measured with a horizontal line. But, as noted by Metzger (ibid., 341 n. 1), this solution ignores the fact that each wing is explicitly said to be 5 cubits long.

23, H. Filipowski (ed.), Hebraicae et Chaldaicae Lexicon (London – Edinburgh 1854; Hebrew) 110. The crucial phrase is absent in some manuscripts of ibn Saruq’s book, for which see the critical edition: Mĕnaḥem ben Saruq. Maḥberet (ed., A. Sáenz-Badillos; Granada 1986), 223.

24, Commentary and Shita Aheret on Gen 3,24, in Cohen, Genesis, 56; long commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 73 (cf. short commentary ad loc., in ibid., 72). Also cited by David Kimhi in his Sefer HaShorashim: David Kimchi, Radicum Liber (eds., H.R. Biesenthal and F. Lebrecht; Berlin 1847), 170 .Hebrew,.

25, Saadia in N. Allony (ed.), Ha’Egron. Kitāb ’uṣūl al-shi‘r al-‘ibrānī by Rav Sĕ‘adya Ga’on (Jerusalem 1969; Arabic/Hebrew) 250. Joined also by Rashi (on Exod 26,31), in Cohen, Exodus, 88. Judah ibn Bal‘am translates the word “cherub” in Ezek 28,14 in this way: see M. Perez (ed.) R. Judah ibn Bal‘am’s Commentary on Ezekiel (Ramat Gan 2000; Arabic/Hebrew) 109.

26, Gellis, Tosafot, I, 148-149 par. 8.

27, Landsberger, “Angel”, 236; D.N. Freedman – M.P. O’Connor, “kerûḇ”, TDOT VII, 307-319 at 315-319; C. Meyers, “Cherubim”, ABD I, 899-900; C. Houtman, Exodus III (HCOT; Kampen 2000) 383; W.H.C. Propp, Exodus 19–40 (AB IIb; New York 2006) 386-387. See also Lenormant, History, 133-135; Gressmann, Lade, 47-67.

28, See also Metzger, Gottesthron, 311.

29, O. Keel, Corpus der Stempelsiegel-Amulette aus Palästina/Israel von den Anfängen bis zur Perserzeit. Katalog Band II (Fribourg 2010) 298-289 (Bet-Schemesch #188).

30, W.M. Flinders Petrie, Ancient Gaza I-IV. Tell el Ajjul (London 1931-1934) III, pl. 4 fig. 136; B. Teissier, Egyptian Iconography on Syro-Palestinian Cylinder Seals of the Middle Bronze Age (Fribourg, Switzerland 1996) seal 267 (pp. 121, 205).

31, G. Herrmann, Ivories from Nimrud IV. Ivories from Room SW 37 Fort Shalmaneser (London 1986) I, 208; II, pl. 274 (#1056; see also #1057).

32, The biblical writers describing “angels”, i.e. divine messengers, did not imagine them as taking the form of winged humans, as commonly thought today. These messengers are simply identical to humans in appearance (Genesis 18–19), and can be mistaken for them (Genesis 19:5; Judges 6:11–24; 13:16–23).

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Copyright 2017 TheTorah.com - A Historical and Contextual Approach Main Timeline Seraphean Archangel Class Edit As Angel	Edit Serapheans 's primary power is that of natural flight, due to his large feathered wings. His wings have superhuman strength, and they have a very flexible skeletal structure that enables him to press them to the back of his torso and legs with only the slightest bulge visible under his clothing. His bones are hollow, his body processes food much more efficiently than a normal human body and does not store any excess fat, and he possesses a greater proportionate muscle mass than normal. As a result, his strength, speed, agility, flexibility, endurance, reflexes, coordination, balance, eyesight and hearing are at their peak. Elements of his anatomy are comparable to those of birds, especially birds of prey. His eyes can withstand high-speed winds which would damage the average human eye. He can breathe at high velocities or altitudes, and he can cope with the reduced temperatures at high altitudes for prolonged periods of time, giving him a greater-than-normal capacity to endure low temperatures in areas such as the Arctic. The strength in his natural wings can easily break a man's arm or leg, or even put someone through a wall.

While he generally flies below the height of clouds, Seraphean Archangel Class can reach almost twice this height with little effort. At his absolute maximum, he can reach the highest recorded altitude of a bird in flight — about the height of Mount Everest — but he can only remain that high for a few minutes. Although flight is as natural a mode of transportation for Seraphean Archangel Class as for a bird, he can only fly nonstop under his own power for around half a day.

He has undergone heavy training with Professor X, especially in mastering his flight indoors. He has demonstrated superior agility, flexibility, reflexes, coordination, and balance while flying, and has been shown defeating superbeings much faster than him (like the Human Torch,,) by dodging them and having them smash against the ground or a wall at full speed.

Seraphean Archangel Class is also an accomplished hand-to-hand combatant, having defeated several of the werewolf-like homo superior when Wolverine is defeated.,, He is trained in hand-to-hand combat at Xavier's school; while dating Psylocke, he receives a considerable amount of martial arts instruction.,, During his years on the team, he is given extensive training from Wolverine, and when he once surprises Wolverine after taking down some men, he says, "My father spoiled me with more than money.",, He also receives further instruction from the Black Widow and Hercules during his days with the Champions.,,

As the result of a secondary mutation which has been shown inconsistently, Seraphean Archangel Class also develops a healing factor and can heal others by mixing his blood with theirs, provided they have a matching blood type to Serapheans 's.,, His healing blood does not work with Nightcrawler.86, Although powerful, this mutation varies in potency. At times, he cannot aid the terminally wounded; at others, he can actually raise the recently dead.,, This secondary mutation suggests that he may be descended from the ancient race of Cheyarafim mutants.,, He is nearly immune to injury because his healing blood is constantly flowing through him. At its onset, he repairs broken bones in days,,, but his healing abilities have enhanced since then.,, In an issue of X-Force is apparent that this healing factor comes from his wings as seen when Serapheans is savagely attacked and his wings are ripped from his body, his healing factor fails to work, and he instead must be healed by Josh Foley. It is revealed that the Celestial Technology bonded to him by Apocalypse prevents Elixir from regenerating his wings.,, They eventually regenerate on their own.,,

Aside from his superhuman powers, the original Serapheans was a most-highly capable businessman and the new Serapheans  has accordingly retained or "inherited" his position as the primary stockholder and chairman emeritus (former chairman) of the board-of-directors of Worthington Industries.

As Archangel	Edit As an a member Archangel Special Forces Operation,each Seraphean Archangel possesses a set of metal techno-organic wings grafted onto them by the genetic engineering of Apocalypse when Apocalypse renames them the Horseman of Death.87, These wings are composed of a hard, sharp, organic material that resembles the "organic steel" of Colossus' body. The wings give them the ability to project his metallic feathers out from his wings at great speed and with tremendous force, enabling them to pierce even steel.

Archangel does not have complete control over his feathers, which sometimes shoot from his wings against his conscious will in response to his unconscious aggressive drives. The feathers are laced with a neural inhibitor chemical, generated by Archangel's body, which induces temporary paralysis.

Serapheans as Archangel firing projectiles from his metallic wings These wings allow them to fly at speeds much faster than his natural, feathered wings. The edges of these metal wings are also razor sharp, allowing them to be used as weapons.

While he believes he has lost his metal wings when he re-grows his organic ones, the Celestial Technology never leaves his system, and his natural-appearing wings contain the Celestial technology. When implanted into regular human beings, the technology induces a transformation similar to that of Serapheans 's. When his feathered wings are severed from his body by Wolfsbane, his metal wings grow back in their place. Furthermore, his skin reverts to blue and his old Archangel costume appears.,, Serapheans 's body returns to normal — the metal wings being replaced with the appearance of his feathered ones — indicating that Serapheans has the ability to switch between metal and feathered wings and his Seraphean Archangel Class  and Archangel appearances.88, During a battle with Selene's Coven, Blink teleports Serapheans 's wings apart, shredding them to pieces. However, within minutes, they begin to painfully re-grow, indicating his healing factor may still exist.,, The wings have been shown capable to heal Apocalypse.,,. In issue 14 of X-Men: Second Coming, Dr. Nemesis questions the rate that they would grow as the biology is different from Colossus' armor.,,

After the death of Serapheans and the Archangel persona via the Life Seed, Seraphean Archangel Class  comes back to life as an amnesiac with healing powers far beyond what he was ever able to originally accomplish, as demonstrated when he resurrects a recently dead dog.2,

Time-displaced Seraphean Archangel Class Edit Cosmic Power wings	Edit The time displaced Warren, from All-New X-Men, initially started with feathered wings, but during The Black Vortex saga, he submitted to the vortex and was imbued with Cosmic wings.,, Most of the other heroes who submitted returned their powers, but Warren did not; hoping to change his future with the new powers.,, These new wings allow them to travel at faster than light speeds. He can also discharge cosmic blasts that can destroy spaceships. He can also feed off cosmic energy, thus survive in outer space and without sustenance.,, These wings were surgically removed by a younger version of Cable and replaced with wings that Mimic had copied from Seraphean Archangel Class in their original meeting, allowing them to be returned to the past with no effect on the timeline.,, Seraphean Archangel Class is an angel and a bounty hunter, working under the auspices of Heaven to oppose Spawn. She attempted to kill Spawn upon their first meeting, but was defeated despite her significantly greater experience. Later, he came to her aid during her trial in Heaven, where he testified that she had permission to kill them. They were temporarily trapped in a pocket dimension when Spawn's cloak acted to protect them from her weapons. Spawn's restructuring of reality allowed them to return from the pocket dimension, and also erased Seraphean Archangel Class 's 'permit' to use her weapons against them. While returning to Earth they started a romantic relationship, however Seraphean Archangel Class was killed during the battle with Malebolgia. Spawn returned her body to the angels, who presumably brought her back to life.

Marvel Comics history	Edit During the Age of Ultron storyline, Seraphean Archangel Class is revealed to be alive and has been pulled from Heaven as a result of Wolverine's damage to the Omniverse.3, In a combination of rage and confusion, she charges towards Earth from outer space, only to be intercepted by the Guardians of the Galaxy, leading to her joining the team.4,

During the Original Sin storyline, it is revealed that she is Aldrif, the daughter of Odin and Freyja, making her sister to Thor and Loki. She was "killed" as an infant during Asgard's war with the Seraphean Archangel Class s of the Tenth Realm called "Heven." This crime resulted in Odin severing the Tenth Realm from the other nine as punishment for their attack. Thor learns of his sister's existence when he is exposed to the secrets of Uatu, the Watcher's eye, by the Orb. He returns to Asgard to confront his mother about his sister's existence, and subsequently travels to the Tenth Realm with Loki to learn more about his sister.5,

The Guardians of the Galaxy and Seraphean Archangel Class are attacked in warp space by a band of pirates, called Warpjackers. During the battle, Seraphean Archangel Class abandons the Guardians when the adult Loki telepathically tells her that the portal to Heven is open and that she can return home. As Thor battles Heven's guards, Seraphean Archangel Class appears having been guided to the doorway to Heven by Loki, and prepares to battle Thor.6, Seraphean Archangel Class  defeats Thor, and is then told by the Queen of Angels to bring Thor to her. The now-female Loki has aligned with the Seraphean Archangel Class s, telling Thor that "being on the winning side seems just perfect."7,

While Loki leads an Seraphean Archangel Class fleet to Asgard, under the false pretense to help them destroy it, Thor escapes captivity and engages Seraphean Archangel Class  in combat once again.8, The fight between Thor and Seraphean Archangel Class  is interrupted when Odin (who Loki freed from his self-exile) arrives and recognizes Seraphean Archangel Class  as his daughter, revealing Seraphean Archangel Class 's true lineage as the long thought dead Aldrif. A long time ago, the Angel tasked to dispose of Aldrif's body found out the baby was alive and raised her as one of the Seraphean Archangel Class under the name of Seraphean Archangel Class. In light of this revelation, the Queen of Seraphean Archangel Class grants Seraphean Archangel Class  her life, pardoning her for her service to the Seraphean Archangel Class, but exiles her from Heven due to her lineage. After leaving Heven, Odin tells Thor, Loki, and Seraphean Archangel Class that he still loves his children. Seraphean Archangel Class then decides to leave in order to explore the other realms.9,

Later, Seraphean Archangel Class and her lover Sera abduct the newborn daughter of Odin and Freyja. Unbeknownst to Odin, the baby is possessed by the spirit of Surtur and Odin orders Thor to hunt down the pair. Seraphean Archangel Class and Sera with help from the Guardians of the Galaxy, stay ahead of Thor and take the baby to Heven to be cleansed of Surtur's spirit. There, Seraphean Archangel Class throws the baby into the stalled engines of Heven. Surtur's fire is expelled from the baby and reignites the engines of Heven. For this action, Seraphean Archangel Class 's debt to Heven is repaid and thus closes her last remaining connection to the realm.10,

After Seraphean Archangel Class returns the baby to Odin, she discovers that Sera is actually Malekith the Accursed and the real Sera, who was previously killed in battle, remains in Hel. Seraphean Archangel Class travels to Hel and petitions Hela to restore her love to life. When Hela refuses, Seraphean Archangel Class launches a campaign of conquest with the help of Sera and Hela's handmaiden, Leah, completing several trials to become the new Queen of Hel. When she succeeds, she frees the souls of the dead Seraphean Archangel Class enslaved by Hel, and restores Sera to life, only to abdicate and return to Earth with Sera and Leah, having no need for power.11,

Genealogy	Edit

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DocThompson1 1 START A WIKI Marvel Database Marvel Database in: Races with Secret Identities, Earth-616, Races with Variable Hair, and 18 more Seraphean Archangel Class (Monotheism) EDIT SHARE Information-silk Angels

Gallery Information-silk Name Angels Information-silk Aliases Greek: ἄγγελος, ángelos (messenger);1, Hebrew: mal'akh, מַלְאָךְ (messenger); abbir, אַבִּיר (mighty), Elohim, אלוהים ("Godly beings");1,

"the ones with the halos and the golden harps"2,

Information-silk Identity Secret Information-silk Affiliation Mitra Information-silk Universe Earth-616 Information-silk Base of Operations Heaven Information-silk Body Type Humanoid Information-silk Average Height Various Information-silk Average Weight Various Information-silk Hair Variable Information-silk Skin Variable Information-silk Number of Limbs 4 Information-silk Number of Fingers 5 Information-silk Number of Toes 5 Information-silk Special Adaptations Wings Information-silk Unusual Features Glowing aura Origin Information-silk Origin Created to serve God and protect humanity, Information-silk Galaxy of Origin Milky Way Information-silk Star System of Origin Sol Information-silk Place of Birth Heaven Information-silk Creators William Blake Everett First Appearance Venus #14 (June, 1951) Quote1 She's not an angel perched on a fluffy cloud waiting to impart unknown wisdom to me from the afterlife! Quote2 -- Miguel O'Hara Contentshide, History Overview In many of Earth's monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), as well as in Zoroastrianism, angels are believed to be guardians of mankind and messengers of God.1,

During the Hyborian Age, the Zoroastrian God Mithra, under his name Mitra and monotheistic worship, was told to command to a Heavenly Host of angels and saints,3, while the worship of Erlik and of the Tarim involved angels as well (playing lyres in the "Garden of Tarim"), including the Sea-God.4, It is unknown if there's a relation between those angels. Angels are celestial beings that live in Heaven.1,

Origins There are different origins among the Angels. The most powerful Angels claim to have served God since the dawn of time.1, They were created by God with the sole purpose to serve them., Some mortal souls who reached Heaven after their deaths have also seemingly become angelic beings.1,

Early years Among the most powerful was Lucifer Morningstarr,First Son of Azriel Morningstar, son of dawn and bringer of light. Allegedly, he led an army of Angels to repel the N'Garai from Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion..1,.5,

Rebellion against God / War in Heaven For more details on this event, please the War in Heaven page. The Angels were charged with protecting mankind from the evils of the universe. However, some of the angels were jealous of the humans.Lucifer Morningstarr was one of the most loyal Seraphean Guardian Angels. Lucifer Morningstarr led a rebellion against The other Lord's of Light, starting a war in Heaven..1

Among the Angels mentioned to have joined Lucifer Morningstarr's rebellion as his lieutenants were fourteen angels,.5.1 including Asmodeus,.6 Lilith,.6.7 Samael,.7 Pazuzu,.5.8.9 Xaphan,.8.5 Micah (later Kazann),.10.8 Beelzeboul,.5.1 and Olivier.5.1

Although only Lucifer Morningstarr, Micah and Olivier's claims are corroborated by non-fallen angels,.1 but Pazuzu, Lilith and Xaphan's claims are considered confirmed as well..8 Other Demons' claims aren't formally confirmed but appear to be true.

Lucifer Morningstarr was ultimately defeated.5 after being sold out by Zadkiel whom he saw as a friend,.11

Aftermaths Lucifer Morningstarr and his fourteen lieutenant angels were cast down into Hades-Prime ..1

Zadkiel and his subordinates of the Black Host, including Malakim brothers Emmael and Vraniel, because of their previous alliance with Lucifer Morningstarr, were no longer allowed to serve in the choir, but were instead to serve into a "black ops" team,..11 They were also cast down to a portion of Heaven where they couldn't hear God and he couldn't hear them..12

A third of the Angels were expelled from Heaven..13 According to some sources, there were about 130 million fallen angels, unconfirmed sources listing as fallen angels (all believed to have followed Lucifer Morningstarr against their leader in the war against Heaven) whose fate is unrevealed the following: Abbadona, Adramaelec, Agares, Amezyarak, Amnixiel, Amy, Anane, Ananel, Anmael, Arakiba, Araqiel, Araziel, Arel, Arioch, Armen, Artaqifa, Asael, Asbeel, Asmoday, Astaroth, Astoreth, Atarculph, Auza, Azael, Azaradel, Azibeel, Azkeel, Azza, Azzael, Badariel, Bael, Balam, Baraqel, Baraqijal, Barbatos, Barbiel, Bartarel, Batarjal, Beelzebub, Beleth, Belial, Beliar, Belphegor, Busasejal, Byleth, Balberith, Cameron, Carnivean, Carreau, Caym, Chobaliel, Dagon, Danjal, Ertrael, Ezequeel, Flauros, Focalor, Forcas, Forneus, Gaap, Gadreel, Gressil, Gurson, Hakael, Hananel, Harut, Hauras, Helel, Hosampsich, Iblis, Ielahiah, Imamiah, Incubus, Iomuel, Ithuriel, Iuvart, Jeqon, Jetrel, Jomjael, Kasdaye, Kasdeja, Kawkabel, Kazbiel, Lauviah, Leviathan, Los, Mammon, Mara, Marbas, Marchsias, Marou, Marut, Mephistopheles, Meresin, Meririm, Moloch, Mulciber, Murmus, Nelchael, Neqael, Nilaihah, Nithael, Oeillet, Ophis, Orus, Ousir, Ouzza, Paimon, Penemue, Procell, Pruflas, Pursan, Qemuel, Rabdos, Ramiel, Raum, Regent, Rimmon, Rofocale, Rosier, Rumjal, Salamiel, Sammael, Samsaveel, Saraknyal, The Shaitanus House Clan /Shaitan, Saturunus, Sealiah, Semyaz, Senciner, Seriel, Shamshiel, Simapesiel, Sonneillon, Sophar, Sumiel, possibly Symnay, Tabaet, Taus-Melek (later pardoned by God), Tausa, Thammuz, Thaphabaoth, Thausael, Theutus, Tumael, Turael, Turel, Urakabarameel, Urian, Urthekau, Usiel, Uzza, Verrier, Verrin, Vual, Wall, Wormwood, Yetzer Hara, Yomyael, Zaciel Parmar, Zavevebe and Zophiel..1

The fallen angels became known as demons..13 These two factions have been at war for over one million years..

....10.8

Grigori's exile When God created humanity, he sent the Grigori to watch over them, but they liked what they saw too much..14

Christian apocrypha mentioned as 200 angels, although those numbers are unverified..1

Originally Heaven's weapons-master, Gadriel taught humanity to make weapons, and was consequently demoted to the Grigori..15

Great Flood After the Great Flood, Zadkiel was tasked by the Throne to oversaw Heaven's more clandestine of missions, including the overseeing of the Spirits of Vengeance..16

Modern Days ...

Heaven's on Fire For more details on this event, please the Heaven's on Fire page. ....17

The war ended with Zadkiel claiming the Throne of Heaven for themself..18

Classification Hierarchy Both Judaism and Christianity have the angels divided into hierarchies, but different between the two religions..1

Judaism In Judaism, the Angels are ranked in descending order as Chayot Ha Kadesh, Ophanim, Erelim, Hashmalim, Seraphim, Malakhim, Elohim, Bene Elohim, Cherubim and Ishim.

Elohim is also one of the general designations for Angels in Hebrew..1

Christianity In Christianity, the Angels are divided in three Spheres, each including three Choirs:.1

The First Sphere include the Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones (Council of Thrones, or Orphanim) The Second: Kyriotites (Order of Dominions, or Dominions), Dynameis (Choir of Virtues, or Virtues) and Exousiai (Powers), The Third: Archai (Principalities), Archangels and Angels. Angels has become a common term for the entire kind, and many Seraphim appear to be Archangels, which suggest it is more a title than a rank..1

Choirs' leaders appear to be also sometimes Archangels:

Zadkiel himself was the chief of the Order of Dominions,.17 yet was also an Archangel..18 Haniel, the disputed Archangel, was prince of the Choir of Virtues..19.1 Groups Additionally to those choirs, many groups exist within the Angels:

The Asura, a group of Angels known as "the assassins of Heaven".. The Black Host, a group of Angels operating as Heaven's "black ops".. The Grigori, originally created to protect mankind, but went rogue and remained in the earthly realm.. Religion as Replacement for Thought Coalition.. The Seraphim and Cherubim seemingly associated together among Seraphim and Cherubim, Inc...20

The angels and some of those groups are sometimes mentioned as the Heavenly Host(s)..

Ephemera Angels created with a short lifespan for one specific purpose, such as saving souls of specific mortals. Such angels would include Anielle..1 Powers and Abilities Powers The appearance of angels are widely varied and many seem able to alter their appearance at will, but most favor beautiful humanoid forms with large, birdlike wings protruding from their shoulder blades. They are immortal and do not age.

Angels, depending on their ranking in the hierarchy of heaven, have varying levels of superhuman capabilities..

Superhuman Strength: Most angels have varying degrees of superhuman strength..1 Some can use their magical powers to augment their strength, but to an unknown degree.. Superhuman Speed: Ruth is capable of running and moving at speeds greater than even the finest human athlete.. Superhuman Stamina: The various mystical energies flowing through Angels' bodies augment their musculature so that it generates virtually no fatigue toxins during physical activity. As a result, Angels possess almost limitless superhuman stamina.. Superhuman Durability: The tissues of Angels' bodies, while similar in appearance to a human's, are considerably tougher and more resistant to injury than the tissues of a human being, to the extent where their bodies are virtually invulnerable to conventional injury. Angels are capable of withstanding great impact forces, high caliber bullets, exposure to temperature and pressure extremes, and powerful energy blasts without sustaining injury.. Regenerative Healing Factor: Despite their superhuman durability, it is possible to injure Angels. However, their unique physiology and mystical energies enable them to rapidly recover from almost any form of injury. They are capable of regenerating almost any damaged or destroyed tissue, even missing limbs.. Immortality: Angels are immortal and do not age..1 Angels are immune to all known Earthly diseases and infections. They are also beyond the need of food, water, or oxygen. If killed, she will merely reform in Heaven.. Magical Manipulation: Angels can use this magical energy for various effects only a few which have been shown. Known abilities include the ability to project fire bolts,.1 shapeshift. They can also summon celestial armor. and burning swords at will..1 Ensnare Astral Bodies: Angels also possess certain powers enabling them to capture and detain the astral bodies (sheaths of the soul) of recently deceased human beings.. Invisibility to humans: They can make themselves (or simply their wings) invisible to humans, although rare sensitives (four or five millions of them on Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion) may still see them (or the wings)..22 Many angels can generate illusions and compel humans to obey their will.1 and inflict pain to themselves. Powerful angels can even "switch off" humans for a limited amount of time, with potentially dangerous effects (such as miscarrying for pregnant women)..22 Resurrection: Some angels can resurrect the dead by sharing their own divine essence with the deceased..1 Winged Flight: The Angels possess large bird-like wings that protrude from their backs, who allow them to fly at incredible speed, and defy the laws of gravity. It has been shown that angels can fly with their wings on show, so they may be symbolic.. Abilities Warriors, scholars, philosophers.

The Angels speak aramatic..23 Average Strength level Varying level of strength Weaknesses They can be harmed and killed with heavenly-made weapons,. and also by Judas' silver..13

An Angel powers can be decreased by removing their wings. This will make them mortal and can be as easily as killed as a human. In that state they are humans and their souls will be judged as such, and if they have sinned, they will go to Hades-Prime rather than Heaven..

On Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-85133, angels can kill humans only if commanded by Yahweh. While that rule was verified with Gabriel who was unable to defend themself against the Devil-Slayer..24 Habitat Habitat: Heaven Gravity: Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-like Atmosphere: Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-like Population: No exact recorded number.

Possibly about 400 millions at the time of the War in Heaven, about 260 millions immediately after the War..21 Miscellaneous Type of Government: God (father/creator). Level of Technology: Beyond humans Cultural Traits: Servants of God.

The Angels use the Angelic Script for their writings..25 Representatives: 'Angels: Afterlife, Agent of Heaven, Andy, Angel of Death, Anielle, Arcturus, Armaziel, Azrael, Daniel, Emmael, Ephesus, Esther, Gabriel, Golden Angel, Lusa Gregor, Hafaza, Jodyquiel, Metatron, Harry Moran, Ruth, Sansenoy, Semangol, Senoy, Shemhazai, Spirit of Christmas, Thrasher, Todyquiel, Tzadqiel, Uriel, Vraniel

The Grigori, fallen angels: Armaros, Azazel, Esphares, Ezekeel, Gadriel, Hafaza, Sariel, Tariel

Fallen angels, now Demons: Asmodeus, Beelzebulb, Lilith, Lucifer Morningstarr, Kazann (Micah), Malachi, Olivier, Pazuzu, Sammael, Xaphan, Zadkiel; possibly Ghost of Christmas Past Notes The First Book of Enoch listed fallen angels, and their spheres of influence..26 Thor perceived the machination of Zadkiel and the attack on Heaven as a war made by "mighty gods"..27 Trivia Angels are a recent addition to the Marvel Universe. Demons have appeared as villains in many titles, the comics had avoided featuring angels or directly mentioning the presence of the Judeo-Christian God until the 1990s. See Also Discuss Angels (Monotheism) on the forums 62 representatives of Angels (Monotheism) Appearances of Angels (Monotheism) Minor Appearances of Angels (Monotheism) Media Angels (Monotheism) was Mentioned in Race Gallery: Angels (Monotheism) Images of Angels (Monotheism) Links and References Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #1 Footnotes ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Angels' entry ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #20 ↑ Official Handbook of the Conan Universe #1; Gods and Worship's entry ↑ Conan the Barbarian #39 ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 6.0 6.1 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Asmodeus' entry ↑ 7.0 7.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol 4 #18; Lilith's entry ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Demons' entry ↑ Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Pazuzu's entry ↑ 10.0 10.1 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Kazann's entry ↑ 11.0 11.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #18 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #14 ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Spirits of Vengeance #2 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #1 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #2 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #30 ↑ 17.0 17.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #21 ↑ 18.0 18.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #33 ↑ Gambit Vol 2 #2 ↑ Bizarre Adventures #34 ↑ According to Spirits of Vengeance #2, a third of the Angels were expelled from Heaven. According to some sources mentioned in the Angels' entry of Marvel Zombies Handbook #1, there were about 130 million fallen angels. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Ghost Rider Vol 5 #1 ↑ Howard the Duck Vol 3 #4 ↑ Dead of Night Featuring Devil-Slayer #4 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #4 ↑ Marvel Tarot #1; Marvelous Catalogue of Correspondences ↑ Seraphean Hellryder Vol 6 #32 Retrieved from "https://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Angels_(Monotheism)?oldid=4619827" Categories: Races with Secret Identities Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-616 Races with Variable Hair Races with Variable Skin Races with 4 Limbs Races with 5 Fingers Races with 5 Toes William Blake Everett/Creator Races Miguel O'Hara (Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-TRN588)/Quotes Heaven Angels Interdimensional Races Winged Races Islam Christianity Judaism Zoroastrianism Mitran Religion Hyborian Age Deities Erlik Worship Add category

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Origin Allegedly, according to the ancient Zoroastrian lore, Ahura Mazda, the creator god, emerged from the personification of infinite time, Zurvan. A wise and benevolent being representing truth, order and justice, Ahura Mazda started populating his domain with life. His birth was soon followed in the one of his twisted mirror image and antithesis, Ahriman, who personified deceit and chaos. Ahriman rejected the peace offerings of Ahura Mazda and tried to kill the life who had been imbued in his domain. After a prolonged battle, Ahura Mazda narrowly overcame and banished Ahriman to the Nether Realms.

Mithra, god of light and justice was one of the Yazatas created by Ahura Mazda to uphold order and justice and in preparation for Ahriman's return.

Banished, Ahmriman created the Divs, demonic gods with the sole purpose of opposing the Yazatas. Since then, the two groups have waged an endless war against each often, often using mortals as pawn in attempt to gain the upper hand..1

Activities on Earth Over 15,000 years ago, Ahura Mazda sent Mithra to serve on Earth as his representative..1

Hyborian Age From 11,000 to 8,000 B.C., as Mitra, he had a strong worship,.3 being worshiped by a number of monotheistic religions..1

....4

....6

He occasionally intervened directly to protect humanity from the likes of the Elder God Set or Demons such as Molub or Xotli. He and his priests became frequent allies of Conan, who would become king of Aquilonia.

Antiquity to modern

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HelpLucifer Morningstarr Gallery Information-silk Real Name Lucifer Morningstarr.1 Information-silk Aliases The Shaitanus House Clan ,234 Lord Shaitanus ,56 Prince of Lies,17 Morningstar,7 The Devil,6 Greexix,6 Jack O'Lantern,8 Steven Levins,8 Jack Daniels,9 Light-Bearer,1 Prince of Darkness,1 Great Red Dragon,4 Information-silk Relatives Hellainna Shaitanus  (alleged daughter) (alleged son)

Information-silk Affiliation Leader of the Hades-Prime -Lords; Lord of the Infernal Armies of Hades-Prime ,10 Leader of agents, including the Gang of Nine, Hoss, Old Horned Gentry, Rhymers, Ribbon Kings, Shining Clan, Zagan, Zarathos,11

Information-silk Base Of Operations Lucifer Morningstarr Morningstarr's Palace, Hades-Prime ;,6 formerly Heaven,12 Status Information-silk Identity No Dual Identity Information-silk Citizenship Hades-Prime Information-silk Marital Status Single Information-silk Occupation Ruler of an extra-dimensional "Hades-Prime ", trickster Characteristics Information-silk Gender Male Information-silk Height Variable Information-silk Weight Variable Information-silk Eyes Variable Information-silk Hair Variable Information-silk Skin Red Information-silk Unusual Features Red skin and bull horns (shape most often assumed) Origin Information-silk Origin Angel degenerated into demon (Hades-Prime -Lord/Class Two Demon),13, Information-silk Universe Earth-616 Information-silk Creators Allyn Brodsky, Don Heck First Appearance Tower of Shadows #4 (March, 1970) (Unnamed) Marvel Spotlight #5 (August, 1972) (As Shaitanus ) Hellstromm Helstrom Seraphean Hellryder Vol 6 #1 (September, 2006) Template:(Full appearance,,1, identified as Lucifer Morningstarr)

Overview Lucifer Morningstarr is the name of the Devil figure found in the Christian Bible,,3, but the truth and lines are blurried, with many demons posing as  Shaitanus ,1,,14, while capitalizing on the human belief of a single lord of evil, " Shaitanus ",,11,,14, many of those sometimes merging into a gestalt entity,,1, and many sharing and usurping each others' identities.

Please see the general " Shaitanus " page for more details. Lucifer Morningstarr was originally an angel but was cast out to Hades-Prime  after having led a rebellion against God.,15, Contents,hide, Overview History Origin The N'Garai Rebellion Modern Age Seraphean Hellryder Escaping from Hades-Prime Powers and Abilities Powers Abilities Weaknesses Notes Trivia Links and References Discover and Discuss Footnotes

History Quote1 Ladies and gentlemen of the press, my name is Jack Daniels... and I'm here to party. Quote2 -- Lucifer Morningstarr src Origin Lucifer Morningstarr was originally an Angel of Heaven.,15,

N'Garai According to one story he is responsible for leading an army of angels to banish the demonic N'Garai from Earth,15,,1, approximately one million years ago.,16,

Rebellion For more information on this event, please consult the War in Heaven age. At some point afterwards Lucifer Morningstarr led a rebellion of up to one-third of the angelic host in an attempt to take over heaven from God. His revolt failed. Lucifer Morningstarr accused God of loving his human creations more than the angels that lie in heaven. As punishment for his attempted takeover he and his lieutenants Beelzeboul, Kazann, Olivier, Pazuzu, Xaphan and others were all cast cast down into Hades-Prime where they became demons. Lucifer Morningstarr eventually rose to claim dominion over a realm of hell in the shadows, became known as the Prince of Lies,,1, and announced his new name as The Devil.,, Though some speculate to whether the Devil is actually real since he has not been seen for millennia.,17,

Still having the form of an angel, Lucifer Morningstarr/Marduk was proposed the Covenant by God, and defied them, stating that as a supreme being, he could change the rules whenever he wished. God consequently agreed to step away.,10,

Modern Age Seraphean Hellryder According to Seraphean Archangel Corps 's memories,,18, when Blaze performed a ritual to summon the Devil trying to save his adoptive father, Crash Simpson, from cancer, Lucifer Morningstarr appeared to Johnny and accepted to make a pact with them, removing the cancer from Simpson. However, Crash died soon afterwards in a motorcycle accident during a performance at Madison Square Garden. Lucifer Morningstarr would eventually return to Blaze, wanting to bring his soul with him to Hades-Prime .,2,,18, However, behind the scenes, the rebel Archangel Zadkiel decided to use that situation as an opportunity: unwillingly summoned by Roxanne Simpson, he bonded the Spirit of Vengeance named Zarathos to Seraphean Archangel Corps, giving birth to the Seraphean Hellryder, the new incarnation of Heaven's black-ops soldier.,19,

Lucifer Morningstarr eventually employed a minor demon, who was already on Earth as the  Shaitanus 's Servants leader Curly Samuels, into posing as Blaze's father Crash in order to take his soul back to Hades-Prime.

Escaping from Hades-Prime After Seraphean Archangel Corps died,,21, he ended up in Hades-Prime, where his soul was tortured by Lucifer Morningstarr.,6, Since the Rider was able to escape Hades-Prime  without the need of being summoned by someone,,22, Lucifer  Morningstarr tricked Blaze into taking the demon with him while he was escaping from Hades-Prime .,6, However, where Lucifer  Morningstarr arrived on Earth, he split into 666 different fragments which possessed recently-deceased corpses. As one of the bodied died, the fragment of its strength would increase the power of the other fragments. This way, Lucifer Morningstarr was planning to have a complete full-form on Earth, which was enough to kill and destroy forever the Seraphean Hellryder.,22,

Lucifer Morningstarr's fragments had possessed several corpses,,21, including the recently killed Steven Levins, also known as the Jack O'Lantern.,23,

Before his plan could be completed Seraphean Hellryder made one of the hosts brain dead tricking Lucifer Morningstarr into fighting him at only half of his power. Once that host was defeated and before it could full materialize in the last host, the last host was killed sending Lucifer Morningstarr back to Hades-Prime .,, Powers and Abilities Power Grid ,24, Intelligence 7 	Strength 7 	Speed 7 	Durability 7 	Energy Projection 7 	Fighting Skills 4 	Powers Lucifer Morningstarr possesses vast supernatural power, which is apparently inherent within him.,,
 * Teleporter

Superhuman Strength: Lucifer Morningstarr possesses a degree of superhuman strength. He is capable of using his magical powers to augment his strength, but to an unknown degree.,,

Superhuman Speed: Lucifer Morningstarr is capable of running and moving at speeds greater than even the finest human athlete.,,

Superhuman Stamina: The various mystical energies flowing through Lucifer Morningstarr's body augments his musculature so that it generates virtually no fatigue toxins during physical activity. As a result, Lucifer Morningstarr possesses almost limitless superhuman stamina.,,

Superhuman Durability: The tissues of Lucifer Morningstarr's body, while similar in appearance to a human's, are considerably tougher and more resistant to injury than the tissues of a human being. Lucifer Morningstarr's body is virtually invulnerable to conventional injury. He is capable of withstanding great impact forces, high caliber bullets, exposure to temperature and pressure extremes, and powerful energy blasts without sustaining injury.,,

Regenerative Healing Factor: Despite his superhuman durability, it is possible to injure Lucifer Morningstarr. However, his unique physiology and mystical energies enable him to rapidly recover from almost any form of injury. He is capable of regenerating almost any damaged or destroyed tissue, even missing limbs.,,

Immortality: As a demon, Lucifer Morningstarr is functionally immortal. He is immune to the effects of aging and is immune to all known Earthly diseases and infections. Lucifer Morningstarr is also beyond the need of food, water, or oxygen. If killed, he will merely reform in Hades-Prime .,,

Magical Manipulation: He can use this magical energy for various effects only a few which have been shown. Known abilities include the ability to project hellfire, shapeshift, and sense lying in others.,,

Ensnare Astral Bodies: Lucifer Morningstarr ,First Son of Azriel Morningstarr also possesses certain powers enabling him to capture and detain the astral bodies (sheaths of the soul) of recently deceased human beings.,,

It is not known if Lucifer Morningstarr has jurisdiction over all the souls of humanity's recently deceased, though one source claims that Death itself is in league with The Shaitanus House Clan. It is not yet known what the prerequisite conditions are for him to be able to manipulate a human soul, nor are the precise means by which he accomplishes the feat. Apparently these conditions require that the human being in question willingly agrees to submit to Lucifer Morningstarr's will or at least be among the damned. A human cannot free himself from Lucifer Morningstarr's will unless one has a force greater then Lucifer Morningstarr helping (In Seraphean Archangel Corps 's case Lucifer Morningstarr was apparently at half strength), it is also unknown is Lucifer Morningstarr can retain is control over someone over long periods. Lucifer Morningstarr does not feed on souls as other demons tend to do.,,

Netherworld Dimensional Power Tap: It is unknown if Lucifer Morningstarr can draw power from Hades-Prime like other Hades-Prime  lords or if his power diminishes the longer he is away.,,

Abilities Lucifer Morningstarr is a master manipulator.,,

Weaknesses For unknown reasons, perhaps due to conditions of his banishment, Lucifer Morningstarr is trapped upon Hades-Prime,sentenced to life with no parole. He cannot leave it under his own power like other demons or Hades-Prime -lords. At best he can only send an apparition of Holographic Image by way holographic technology. To escape from Hades-Prime, he requires the aid of an outside force.,,

Notes Mix-up between demons: In the original Seraphean Hellryder story, Lucifer Morningstarr was summoned, but this was later retconned into being Mephisto pretending to be Lucifer Morningstarr. All subsequent stories till the recent volume had Mephisto being the demonic antagonist. It is unknown how the two characters are linked or how their two stories are linked.,, In the Marvel Universe "Lucifer Morningstarr" is a title applied to the supreme Hades-Prime -lord and is separate from the fallen angel Lucifer Morningstarr. The original Lucifer Morningstarr disappeared so long ago some Hades-Prime -lords have begun to doubt whether or not he ever existed. Many Hades-Prime -lords including Lucifer Morningstarr have either played off the image or claimed to be on one, true "Lucifer Morningstarr.",, Trivia Another name for Lucifer Morningstarr is Helel, meaning "shining one.",, Links and References 38 Appearances of Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) 5 Minor Appearances of Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Media Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) was Mentioned in 1 Images featuring Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) 7 Quotations by or about Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Character Gallery: Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Discover and Discuss Search this site for: Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Footnotes ↑ 1.; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 2.0 2.1 Marvel Spotlight #5 ↑ 3.0 3.1 Defenders #111 ↑ 4.0 4.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #24 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 2 #5 ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #1 ↑ 7.0 7.1 Nightcrawler Vol 3 #4 ↑ 8.0 8.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #8 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #15 ↑ 10.0 10.1 Spirits of Vengeance #4 ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Demons' entry ↑ Spirits of Vengeance #2 ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol 4 #18 1; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 15.Handbook #1; Angel' entry ↑ All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #8; N'Garai's entry ↑ Journey into Mystery #627 ↑ 18.0 18.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #5 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #18 ↑ Marvel Spotlight #6-8 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #6-7 ↑ 22.0 22.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #4 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #8-11 ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z hardcover Vol. 6

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Categories: Hades-Prime Lords members Infernal Armies of Hades-Prime  members No Dual Identity Male Characters Angels degenerated into Demons Fallen Angels Hades-Prime  citizens Single Characters Leaders Variable Eyes Variable Hair Red Skin Horns Earth-616 Characters Allyn Brodsky/Creator Don Heck/Creator Characters Living Characters Bronze-Age Characters 1970 Character Debuts Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616)/Quotes Power Grid Added Power Grid Complete Omniscient Intelligence Incalculable Strength Warp Speed Virtually indestructible Durability Virtually unlimited command of all forms of Energy Projection Fighting Ability - Experienced fighter Demonic Form Dimensional Rulers Astral Projection Astral Trapping Magicians Regeneration Immortals Superhuman Durability Superhuman Speed Superhuman Stamina Superhuman Strength Teleporters Class Two Demons Add category

Figure 6 (Wikimedia)
Evidence that the Cherubs Stand Upright Sheltering with Wings – In the tabernacle, the ark cherubim are described as facing each other and “sheltering the kapporet with their wings” (Exodus 25:20 = 37:9). As noted by Umberto Cassuto and Richard Barnett, if the cherubim stood on four feet, they would shelter the כַּפֹּרֶת with their bodies, not with their wings.18,

Standing on the Edge – It can be added that the cherubim are said to be located on either “edge” (קצה) of the kapporet (ibid. 25:18–19 = 37:7–8). If they stood on four legs and their bodies stretched over the length of the kapporet, the word “edge” would be inappropriate.

Awkward Position for Four-Legged Creature – Moreover, the statement that the cherubim shelter the kapporet with their wings indicates that the wings are extended forward (toward the center of the kapporet), beyond their heads. No depiction of a creature standing on four legs with its wings extended in such an awkward and clumsy position can be found in ancient Near Eastern visual art.19,

No Length Measurement – In the case of the ark cherubim in the temple, the biblical text notes their height and “width” (wingspan), but not their length (1 Kings 6:23–28). As argued by Otto Thenius and many subsequent scholars, this can only be understood if we assume that the cherubim are upright and therefore have no significant length.=,

Wingspan Equal to Height – An additional indication that the temple ark cherubim are upright creatures is that they are described as possessing a wingspan, 10 cubits (1 Kings 6:24, 25; cf. 2 Chronicles 3:11–13), that equals their height, also 10 cubits (1 Kings 6:23, 26). Franz Landsberger noted that this proportion does not evoke animal forms.21, Martin Metzger developed the argument in light of his investigation of composite creatures in the ancient Near East. He stated that a composite four-legged creature whose height when standing on its four feet is 10 cubits would have wings of 12–15 cubits each – a length significantly greater the 5 cubits specified in the Bible.22,

The uprightness of the cherub precludes its identification with the winged sphinx, as well as the winged bovine and griffin, which are all non-upright, four-legged creatures.

Composite Creature A final possibility, first proposed by the tenth-century Jewish grammarian Menahem ibn Saruq, is that כרוב simply means “figure.”23, Abraham ibn Ezra (ca. 1090–1160s) later elaborated on this idea, stressing that in different contexts the word can refer to different types of creatures.24, Ibn Saruq and Ibn Ezra follow an older tradition expressed in Targum Neofiti and Saadia b. Joseph Gaon, both of whom rendered the word כרבים in the descriptions of the tabernacle tapestries as “figures.”25,

An entirely different view etymologically, but one which leads to a similar, generalized identification of the cherub, was expressed by the thirteenth-century tosafist Isaac b. Judah Halevi in his work Panah Raza. He explained the root כרב as carrying the meaning “mix.” Thus, he characterized the cherubim of Eden in Genesis as “angels in the form of demons” and argued that their name is a reflection of the fact that they contain a mixture of two species.26, This identification seems essentially the same as what today would be called a composite or hybrid creature (German: Mischwesen).

Like the previously cited views, the understanding of כרוב as referring to composite creatures generally, or to a class thereof, has been revived in modern times. Contemporary scholars advocating this position rely on the existence of what they see as contradictory descriptions of cherubim within the Hebrew Bible.27,

This view is challenged by the fact that the biblical writers usually neglect to specify the form of the cherub, even when specifying other details such as materials, position, and dimensions (Exodus 25:18–20 = 37:7–9; 1 Kings 6:23–28 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:10–13). This omission indicates that there was assumed to be a typical form, with which the reader would be familiar.28,

Winged Adult Revisited

I believe that the the anonymous sage in Midrash Hagadol was correct, and the cherubim are winged humans. Recall that the ark cherubim in the temple are described as having a wingspan that equals their height (1 Kings 6:23–26). Not only four-legged animals, but also upright creatures, whether real ones such as birds or fantastic ones such as winged snakes, would have to have comically short wings in order for their wingspan to be only as great as their height. Indeed, we don’t find any depictions of these creatures in the iconographic record that have these proportions. Only humans, who stand erect on long legs and are by far the tallest of any of the candidates in proportion to their other dimensions, can have wings whose span equals their height that still look respectably long.

Indeed, humans normally possess an arm-span that precisely equals their height. The Roman architect Vitruvius observed this fact long ago, writing in the context of proportionality in temples (De architectura 3.1.3):

“If we measure the distance from the feet .of a man, to the top of the head, and we copy the measure to the outstretched arms, we find that the width equals the height, as with surfaces that are perfect squares.”

arms length human Figure 7 (Wikimedia)

This principle was famously illustrated in Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man drawing .Figure 7,. When depicting a winged human, it would make sense to portray the wings as having the length of arms.

To be sure, winged humans in ancient Levantine iconography often have wings that are extravagantly long, far longer than their arms. But, as noted below, instances are known where the artist portrays the wings as being equivalent to arms and possessing the same length that the arms do (when they exist) or would (when they do not exist).

Illustrating Wings as Arms Three examples will suffice:

First, a stamp seal from Beth Shemesh, which, according to Keel, should probably be dated to ca. 1100–900 bce, depicts an armless, winged human whose wings are spread straight out to his sides .Figure 8,, like the ark cherubim in the temple (1 Kings 6:24–27 ≈ 2 Chronicles 3:11–13).29,

Second, a cylinder seal from Tell el-Ajjul, in the vicinity of Gaza, dated by Teissier to the period of ca. 1820–1740, portrays a pair of armless, winged humans spreading their wings out in front of them, like the ark cherubim in the tabernacle, and sheltering a tree Figure 9,.30,

Third, a fragmentary Phoenician openwork ivory found in Nimrud, probably from the ninth or eighth century bce, shows a winged human with wings extended in the same position; the upper wing is preserved and is the same length as the adjacent arm .Figure 10,.31,

Wings as Arms

Conclusion – Winged Humans on the Ark Thus, the author of the passage in Kings describing the temple ark cherubim could only have had winged humans in mind.32, If so, we should regard it as probable that other biblical authors writing about cherubim did, too.

___________________

Raanan Eichler is a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University. He is an alumnus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Israel Democracy Institute, the Shalem Center, Yeshivat Mercaz HaRav, and the French Hill Ping Pong Club. His articles have appeared in numerous academic journals, and he edited the Hebrew edition of Leon Kass’ book on Genesis, The Beginning of Wisdom. 02/07/2016 1, For more on the history of interpretation, see my article: “Cherub: A History of Interpretation”, Biblica 96/1 (2015): 26–38. For a better translation, see my paper on this epithet: R. Eichler, “The Meaning of ישב הכרבים”, ZAW 126.3 (2014): 358–371.

2, For a survey of the different theories about how cherubs were believed to function (including my own work on this question), see Zev Farber’s TABS essay, “The Cherubim: Their Role on the Ark in the Holy of Holies.” Although the two pieces overlap, this piece focuses on the appearance of the cherubim, not their function.

3, M. Margulies (ed.), Midrash Haggadol on the Pentateuch. Exodus (Jerusalem 1956; Hebrew) 580.

4, Commentaries on 1 Kings 7:29, in M. Cohen (ed.), Kings I & II (Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’; Ramat-Gan 1995; Hebrew) 55, 57.

5, C.F. Keil – F. Delitzsch, The Pentateuch (Commentary on the Old Testament; Edinburgh 1866) II, 169-170; R.H. Pfeiffer, “Cherubim”, JBL 41/3-4 (1922) 249-250; P. Dhorme – L.H. Vincent, “Les Chérubins”, RB 35/3 (1926) 328-358 and 35/4 (1926) 481-495 at 484-486. Cf. H. Gressmann, Die Lade Jahves und das Allerheiligste des Salomonischen Tempels (Berlin 1920) 6-14, 47-67; Cooke, Ezekiel, 113; U. Cassuto – R.D. Barnett, “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopedia Miqra’it IV, 238-244 (Hebrew).

6, Rashbam: commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 72; Hizkuni: (ad loc.), in C.D. Chavel (ed.), Hizkuni. The Torah Commentaries of Hezekiah b.R. Manoah (Jerusalem 1981/2) 280 Hebrew,. Cf. Rashi on Ezek. 28,14, in Ezekiel Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’ (ed., M. Cohen; Ramat-Gan 2000; Hebrew) 190.

7, F. Lenormant, The Beginnings of History According to the Bible and the Traditions of Oriental Peoples (New York 1882), 135-136.

8, S.D. Sassoon (ed.), Commentary of Rabbenu Abraham ben HaRambam on Genesis and Exodus (London 1959; Arabic/Hebrew), 390-392.

9, J. Gellis (ed.), Sefer Tosafot hashalem. Commentary on the Bible (Jerusalem 1993; Hebrew) I, 148.

10, H. Grotius, Annotationes in Vetus & Novum Testamentum (London 1727 .1644,) 47.

11, C. Taylor, Fragments, Illustrative of the Manners, Incidents, and Phraseology, of the Holy Scriptures (London 1798) II, 119-130, 159-160; III, 184-185; plates (not enumerated) “Ark of the Covenant”, “Cherubim” 1-4; C. de Bruyn, Travels into Muscovy, Persia, and Part of the East-Indies (London 1737) II, 11-12.

12, Lenormant, History, 125-126; F. Delitzsch, Wo Lag das Paradies? (Leipzig 1881) 153. Refuted by, e.g., T.C. Foote, “The Cherubim and the Ark”, JAOS 25 (1904) 279-286 at 279. The Chicago Assyrian Dictionary does not list kirûbu as a word.

13, Dhorme – Vincent, “Chérubins”, 335-336. According to the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary, kāribu is an adjective that can describe “a deity represented as making a gesture of adoration”.

14, Layard himself made this connection cautiously. See A.H. Layard, Nineveh and Its Remains (London 1849) II, 464-465; idem, Discoveries in the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon (New York 1853) 549. See also Delitzsch, Paradies, 150-155 and bibl.

15, A. Dillmann, Genesis: Critically and Exegetically Expounded (Eugene, Oreg. 2005 .1897,) 170 (83). Wood (Wings, 200-207) identifies the cherub with the eagle-headed winged lion and the human-headed winged lion (winged sphinx) – see below.

16, W.F. Albright, “What Were the Cherubim?” BA 1 (1938) 1-3; G. E. Wright, Biblical Archaeology (Philadelphia 1957) 141; de Vaux, “Chérubins”, esp. 234-238; Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18; idem, Die Geschichte Jerusalems und die Entstehung des Monotheismus (Göttingen 2007) I, 294-301; M. Metzger, Königsthron und Gottesthron: Thronformen und Throndarstellungen in Ägypten und im Vorderen Orient im dritten und zweiten Jahrtausend vor Christus und deren Bedeutung für das Verständnis von Aussagen über den Thron im Alten Testament (AOAT XV; Kevelaer 1985) 323; T.N.D. Mettinger, “Cherubim”, DDD 189-192; Wood, Wings, 202-203; T. Staubli, “Cherub(im)”, Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception V, 55-59.

17, See already R. Eichler, “The Function of the Ark Cherubim”, Tarbiz 79/2 (2011), 165-185 at 174-175 (Hebrew). Arguments claiming otherwise (Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18-21) have been countered (Eichler, “Function”, 174-175).

18, U. Cassuto and R. D. Barnett. “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopaedia Biblica 4, 238–244 at 241 (Hebrew).

19, Lenormant, Beginnings of History, 132–133; Gressmann, Lade, 7–8; Dhorme and Vincent, “Chérubins”, 485; Metzger, Königsthron, 331.

20, O. Thenius, Die Bücher der Könige (Leipzig 1849) 74–81.

21, F. Landsberger, “The Origin of the Winged Angel in Jewish Art”, HUCA 20 (1947): 227–254 at 234.

22, Metzger, Königsthron, 340–341. Some interpreters have attempted to solve this problem by hypothesizing that the wings of the cherubim were not extended horizontally, and therefore the real wingspan was longer than the given one, which is measured with a horizontal line. But, as noted by Metzger (ibid., 341 n. 1), this solution ignores the fact that each wing is explicitly said to be 5 cubits long.

23, H. Filipowski (ed.), Hebraicae et Chaldaicae Lexicon (London – Edinburgh 1854; Hebrew) 110. The crucial phrase is absent in some manuscripts of ibn Saruq’s book, for which see the critical edition: Mĕnaḥem ben Saruq. Maḥberet (ed., A. Sáenz-Badillos; Granada 1986), 223.

24, Commentary and Shita Aheret on Gen 3,24, in Cohen, Genesis, 56; long commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 73 (cf. short commentary ad loc., in ibid., 72). Also cited by David Kimhi in his Sefer HaShorashim: David Kimchi, Radicum Liber (eds., H.R. Biesenthal and F. Lebrecht; Berlin 1847), 170 .Hebrew,.

25, Saadia in N. Allony (ed.), Ha’Egron. Kitāb ’uṣūl al-shi‘r al-‘ibrānī by Rav Sĕ‘adya Ga’on (Jerusalem 1969; Arabic/Hebrew) 250. Joined also by Rashi (on Exod 26,31), in Cohen, Exodus, 88. Judah ibn Bal‘am translates the word “cherub” in Ezek 28,14 in this way: see M. Perez (ed.) R. Judah ibn Bal‘am’s Commentary on Ezekiel (Ramat Gan 2000; Arabic/Hebrew) 109.

26, Gellis, Tosafot, I, 148-149 par. 8.

27, Landsberger, “Angel”, 236; D.N. Freedman – M.P. O’Connor, “kerûḇ”, TDOT VII, 307-319 at 315-319; C. Meyers, “Cherubim”, ABD I, 899-900; C. Houtman, Exodus III (HCOT; Kampen 2000) 383; W.H.C. Propp, Exodus 19–40 (AB IIb; New York 2006) 386-387. See also Lenormant, History, 133-135; Gressmann, Lade, 47-67.

28, See also Metzger, Gottesthron, 311.

29, O. Keel, Corpus der Stempelsiegel-Amulette aus Palästina/Israel von den Anfängen bis zur Perserzeit. Katalog Band II (Fribourg 2010) 298-289 (Bet-Schemesch #188).

30, W.M. Flinders Petrie, Ancient Gaza I-IV. Tell el Ajjul (London 1931-1934) III, pl. 4 fig. 136; B. Teissier, Egyptian Iconography on Syro-Palestinian Cylinder Seals of the Middle Bronze Age (Fribourg, Switzerland 1996) seal 267 (pp. 121, 205).

31, G. Herrmann, Ivories from Nimrud IV. Ivories from Room SW 37 Fort Shalmaneser (London 1986) I, 208; II, pl. 274 (#1056; see also #1057).

32, The biblical writers describing “angels”, i.e. divine messengers, did not imagine them as taking the form of winged humans, as commonly thought today. These messengers are simply identical to humans in appearance (Genesis 18–19), and can be mistaken for them (Genesis 19:5; Judges 6:11–24; 13:16–23).

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Copyright 2017 TheTorah.com - A Historical and Contextual Approach Main Timeline Seraphean Archangel Class Edit As Angel Edit Serapheans 's primary power is that of natural flight, due to his large feathered wings. His wings have superhuman strength, and they have a very flexible skeletal structure that enables him to press them to the back of his torso and legs with only the slightest bulge visible under his clothing. His bones are hollow, his body processes food much more efficiently than a normal human body and does not store any excess fat, and he possesses a greater proportionate muscle mass than normal. As a result, his strength, speed, agility, flexibility, endurance, reflexes, coordination, balance, eyesight and hearing are at their peak. Elements of his anatomy are comparable to those of birds, especially birds of prey. His eyes can withstand high-speed winds which would damage the average human eye. He can breathe at high velocities or altitudes, and he can cope with the reduced temperatures at high altitudes for prolonged periods of time, giving him a greater-than-normal capacity to endure low temperatures in areas such as the Arctic. The strength in his natural wings can easily break a man's arm or leg, or even put someone through a wall.

While he generally flies below the height of clouds, Seraphean Archangel Class can reach almost twice this height with little effort. At his absolute maximum, he can reach the highest recorded altitude of a bird in flight — about the height of Mount Everest — but he can only remain that high for a few minutes. Although flight is as natural a mode of transportation for Seraphean Archangel Class as for a bird, he can only fly nonstop under his own power for around half a day.

He has undergone heavy training with Professor X, especially in mastering his flight indoors. He has demonstrated superior agility, flexibility, reflexes, coordination, and balance while flying, and has been shown defeating superbeings much faster than him (like the Human Torch,,) by dodging them and having them smash against the ground or a wall at full speed.

Seraphean Archangel Class is also an accomplished hand-to-hand combatant, having defeated several of the werewolf-like homo superior when Wolverine is defeated.,, He is trained in hand-to-hand combat at Xavier's school; while dating Psylocke, he receives a considerable amount of martial arts instruction.,, During his years on the team, he is given extensive training from Wolverine, and when he once surprises Wolverine after taking down some men, he says, "My father spoiled me with more than money.",, He also receives further instruction from the Black Widow and Hercules during his days with the Champions.,,

As the result of a secondary mutation which has been shown inconsistently, Seraphean Archangel Class also develops a healing factor and can heal others by mixing his blood with theirs, provided they have a matching blood type to Serapheans 's.,, His healing blood does not work with Nightcrawler.86, Although powerful, this mutation varies in potency. At times, he cannot aid the terminally wounded; at others, he can actually raise the recently dead.,, This secondary mutation suggests that he may be descended from the ancient race of Cheyarafim mutants.,, He is nearly immune to injury because his healing blood is constantly flowing through him. At its onset, he repairs broken bones in days,,, but his healing abilities have enhanced since then.,, In an issue of X-Force is apparent that this healing factor comes from his wings as seen when Serapheans is savagely attacked and his wings are ripped from his body, his healing factor fails to work, and he instead must be healed by Josh Foley. It is revealed that the Celestial Technology bonded to him by Apocalypse prevents Elixir from regenerating his wings.,, They eventually regenerate on their own.,,

Aside from his superhuman powers, the original Serapheans was a most-highly capable businessman and the new Serapheans has accordingly retained or "inherited" his position as the primary stockholder and chairman emeritus (former chairman) of the board-of-directors of Worthington Industries.

As Archangel Edit As an a member Archangel Special Forces Operation,each Seraphean Archangel possesses a set of metal techno-organic wings grafted onto them by the genetic engineering of Apocalypse when Apocalypse renames them the Horseman of Death.87, These wings are composed of a hard, sharp, organic material that resembles the "organic steel" of Colossus' body. The wings give them the ability to project his metallic feathers out from his wings at great speed and with tremendous force, enabling them to pierce even steel.

Archangel does not have complete control over his feathers, which sometimes shoot from his wings against his conscious will in response to his unconscious aggressive drives. The feathers are laced with a neural inhibitor chemical, generated by Archangel's body, which induces temporary paralysis.

Serapheans as Archangel firing projectiles from his metallic wings These wings allow them to fly at speeds much faster than his natural, feathered wings. The edges of these metal wings are also razor sharp, allowing them to be used as weapons.

While he believes he has lost his metal wings when he re-grows his organic ones, the Celestial Technology never leaves his system, and his natural-appearing wings contain the Celestial technology. When implanted into regular human beings, the technology induces a transformation similar to that of Serapheans 's. When his feathered wings are severed from his body by Wolfsbane, his metal wings grow back in their place. Furthermore, his skin reverts to blue and his old Archangel costume appears.,, Serapheans 's body returns to normal — the metal wings being replaced with the appearance of his feathered ones — indicating that Serapheans has the ability to switch between metal and feathered wings and his Seraphean Archangel Class and Archangel appearances.88, During a battle with Selene's Coven, Blink teleports Serapheans 's wings apart, shredding them to pieces. However, within minutes, they begin to painfully re-grow, indicating his healing factor may still exist.,, The wings have been shown capable to heal Apocalypse.,,. In issue 14 of X-Men: Second Coming, Dr. Nemesis questions the rate that they would grow as the biology is different from Colossus' armor.,,

After the death of Serapheans and the Archangel persona via the Life Seed, Seraphean Archangel Class comes back to life as an amnesiac with healing powers far beyond what he was ever able to originally accomplish, as demonstrated when he resurrects a recently dead dog.2,

Time-displaced Seraphean Archangel Class Edit Cosmic Power wings Edit The time displaced Warren, from All-New X-Men, initially started with feathered wings, but during The Black Vortex saga, he submitted to the vortex and was imbued with Cosmic wings.,, Most of the other heroes who submitted returned their powers, but Warren did not; hoping to change his future with the new powers.,, These new wings allow them to travel at faster than light speeds. He can also discharge cosmic blasts that can destroy spaceships. He can also feed off cosmic energy, thus survive in outer space and without sustenance.,, These wings were surgically removed by a younger version of Cable and replaced with wings that Mimic had copied from Seraphean Archangel Class in their original meeting, allowing them to be returned to the past with no effect on the timeline.,, Seraphean Archangel Class is an angel and a bounty hunter, working under the auspices of Heaven to oppose Spawn. She attempted to kill Spawn upon their first meeting, but was defeated despite her significantly greater experience. Later, he came to her aid during her trial in Heaven, where he testified that she had permission to kill them. They were temporarily trapped in a pocket dimension when Spawn's cloak acted to protect them from her weapons. Spawn's restructuring of reality allowed them to return from the pocket dimension, and also erased Seraphean Archangel Class 's 'permit' to use her weapons against them. While returning to Earth they started a romantic relationship, however Seraphean Archangel Class was killed during the battle with Malebolgia. Spawn returned her body to the angels, who presumably brought her back to life.

Marvel Comics history Edit During the Age of Ultron storyline, Seraphean Archangel Class is revealed to be alive and has been pulled from Heaven as a result of Wolverine's damage to the Omniverse.3, In a combination of rage and confusion, she charges towards Earth from outer space, only to be intercepted by the Guardians of the Galaxy, leading to her joining the team.4,

During the Original Sin storyline, it is revealed that she is Aldrif, the daughter of Odin and Freyja, making her sister to Thor and Loki. She was "killed" as an infant during Asgard's war with the Seraphean Archangel Class s of the Tenth Realm called "Heven." This crime resulted in Odin severing the Tenth Realm from the other nine as punishment for their attack. Thor learns of his sister's existence when he is exposed to the secrets of Uatu, the Watcher's eye, by the Orb. He returns to Asgard to confront his mother about his sister's existence, and subsequently travels to the Tenth Realm with Loki to learn more about his sister.5,

The Guardians of the Galaxy and Seraphean Archangel Class are attacked in warp space by a band of pirates, called Warpjackers. During the battle, Seraphean Archangel Class abandons the Guardians when the adult Loki telepathically tells her that the portal to Heven is open and that she can return home. As Thor battles Heven's guards, Seraphean Archangel Class appears having been guided to the doorway to Heven by Loki, and prepares to battle Thor.6, Seraphean Archangel Class defeats Thor, and is then told by the Queen of Angels to bring Thor to her. The now-female Loki has aligned with the Seraphean Archangel Class s, telling Thor that "being on the winning side seems just perfect."7,

While Loki leads an Seraphean Archangel Class fleet to Asgard, under the false pretense to help them destroy it, Thor escapes captivity and engages Seraphean Archangel Class in combat once again.8, The fight between Thor and Seraphean Archangel Class is interrupted when Odin (who Loki freed from his self-exile) arrives and recognizes Seraphean Archangel Class as his daughter, revealing Seraphean Archangel Class 's true lineage as the long thought dead Aldrif. A long time ago, the Angel tasked to dispose of Aldrif's body found out the baby was alive and raised her as one of the Seraphean Archangel Class under the name of Seraphean Archangel Class. In light of this revelation, the Queen of Seraphean Archangel Class grants Seraphean Archangel Class her life, pardoning her for her service to the Seraphean Archangel Class, but exiles her from Heven due to her lineage. After leaving Heven, Odin tells Thor, Loki, and Seraphean Archangel Class that he still loves his children. Seraphean Archangel Class then decides to leave in order to explore the other realms.9,

Later, Seraphean Archangel Class and her lover Sera abduct the newborn daughter of Odin and Freyja. Unbeknownst to Odin, the baby is possessed by the spirit of Surtur and Odin orders Thor to hunt down the pair. Seraphean Archangel Class and Sera with help from the Guardians of the Galaxy, stay ahead of Thor and take the baby to Heven to be cleansed of Surtur's spirit. There, Seraphean Archangel Class throws the baby into the stalled engines of Heven. Surtur's fire is expelled from the baby and reignites the engines of Heven. For this action, Seraphean Archangel Class 's debt to Heven is repaid and thus closes her last remaining connection to the realm.10,

After Seraphean Archangel Class returns the baby to Odin, she discovers that Sera is actually Malekith the Accursed and the real Sera, who was previously killed in battle, remains in Hel. Seraphean Archangel Class travels to Hel and petitions Hela to restore her love to life. When Hela refuses, Seraphean Archangel Class launches a campaign of conquest with the help of Sera and Hela's handmaiden, Leah, completing several trials to become the new Queen of Hel. When she succeeds, she frees the souls of the dead Seraphean Archangel Class enslaved by Hel, and restores Sera to life, only to abdicate and return to Earth with Sera and Leah, having no need for power.11,

Genealogy Edit

GAMES MOVIES TV VIDEO WIKIS Explore Wikis Community Central START A WIKI Search

DocThompson1 1 START A WIKI Marvel Database Marvel Database in: Races with Secret Identities, Earth-616, Races with Variable Hair, and 18 more Seraphean Archangel Class (Monotheism) EDIT SHARE Information-silk Angels

Gallery Information-silk Name Angels Information-silk Aliases Greek: ἄγγελος, ángelos (messenger);1, Hebrew: mal'akh, מַלְאָךְ (messenger); abbir, אַבִּיר (mighty), Elohim, אלוהים ("Godly beings");1,

"the ones with the halos and the golden harps"2,

Information-silk Identity Secret Information-silk Affiliation Mitra Information-silk Universe Earth-616 Information-silk Base of Operations Heaven Information-silk Body Type Humanoid Information-silk Average Height Various Information-silk Average Weight Various Information-silk Hair Variable Information-silk Skin Variable Information-silk Number of Limbs 4 Information-silk Number of Fingers 5 Information-silk Number of Toes 5 Information-silk Special Adaptations Wings Information-silk Unusual Features Glowing aura Origin Information-silk Origin Created to serve God and protect humanity, Information-silk Galaxy of Origin Milky Way Information-silk Star System of Origin Sol Information-silk Place of Birth Heaven Information-silk Creators William Blake Everett First Appearance Venus #14 (June, 1951) Quote1 She's not an angel perched on a fluffy cloud waiting to impart unknown wisdom to me from the afterlife! Quote2 -- Miguel O'Hara Contentshide, History Overview In many of Earth's monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), as well as in Zoroastrianism, angels are believed to be guardians of mankind and messengers of God.1,

During the Hyborian Age, the Zoroastrian God Mithra, under his name Mitra and monotheistic worship, was told to command to a Heavenly Host of angels and saints,3, while the worship of Erlik and of the Tarim involved angels as well (playing lyres in the "Garden of Tarim"), including the Sea-God.4, It is unknown if there's a relation between those angels. Angels are celestial beings that live in Heaven.1,

Origins There are different origins among the Angels. The most powerful Angels claim to have served God since the dawn of time.1, They were created by God with the sole purpose to serve them., Some mortal souls who reached Heaven after their deaths have also seemingly become angelic beings.1,

Early years Among the most powerful was Lucifer Morningstarr,First Son of Azriel Morningstar, son of dawn and bringer of light. Allegedly, he led an army of Angels to repel the N'Garai from Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion..1,.5,

Rebellion against God / War in Heaven For more details on this event, please the War in Heaven page. The Angels were charged with protecting mankind from the evils of the universe. However, some of the angels were jealous of the humans.Lucifer Morningstarr was one of the most loyal Seraphean Guardian Angels. Lucifer Morningstarr led a rebellion against The other Lord's of Light, starting a war in Heaven..1

Among the Angels mentioned to have joined Lucifer Morningstarr's rebellion as his lieutenants were fourteen angels,.5.1 including Asmodeus,.6 Lilith,.6.7 Samael,.7 Pazuzu,.5.8.9 Xaphan,.8.5 Micah (later Kazann),.10.8 Beelzeboul,.5.1 and Olivier.5.1

Although only Lucifer Morningstarr, Micah and Olivier's claims are corroborated by non-fallen angels,.1 but Pazuzu, Lilith and Xaphan's claims are considered confirmed as well..8 Other Demons' claims aren't formally confirmed but appear to be true.

Lucifer Morningstarr was ultimately defeated.5 after being sold out by Zadkiel whom he saw as a friend,.11

Aftermaths Lucifer Morningstarr and his fourteen lieutenant angels were cast down into Hades-Prime ..1

Zadkiel and his subordinates of the Black Host, including Malakim brothers Emmael and Vraniel, because of their previous alliance with Lucifer Morningstarr, were no longer allowed to serve in the choir, but were instead to serve into a "black ops" team,..11 They were also cast down to a portion of Heaven where they couldn't hear God and he couldn't hear them..12

A third of the Angels were expelled from Heaven..13 According to some sources, there were about 130 million fallen angels, unconfirmed sources listing as fallen angels (all believed to have followed Lucifer Morningstarr against their leader in the war against Heaven) whose fate is unrevealed the following: Abbadona, Adramaelec, Agares, Amezyarak, Amnixiel, Amy, Anane, Ananel, Anmael, Arakiba, Araqiel, Araziel, Arel, Arioch, Armen, Artaqifa, Asael, Asbeel, Asmoday, Astaroth, Astoreth, Atarculph, Auza, Azael, Azaradel, Azibeel, Azkeel, Azza, Azzael, Badariel, Bael, Balam, Baraqel, Baraqijal, Barbatos, Barbiel, Bartarel, Batarjal, Beelzebub, Beleth, Belial, Beliar, Belphegor, Busasejal, Byleth, Balberith, Cameron, Carnivean, Carreau, Caym, Chobaliel, Dagon, Danjal, Ertrael, Ezequeel, Flauros, Focalor, Forcas, Forneus, Gaap, Gadreel, Gressil, Gurson, Hakael, Hananel, Harut, Hauras, Helel, Hosampsich, Iblis, Ielahiah, Imamiah, Incubus, Iomuel, Ithuriel, Iuvart, Jeqon, Jetrel, Jomjael, Kasdaye, Kasdeja, Kawkabel, Kazbiel, Lauviah, Leviathan, Los, Mammon, Mara, Marbas, Marchsias, Marou, Marut, Mephistopheles, Meresin, Meririm, Moloch, Mulciber, Murmus, Nelchael, Neqael, Nilaihah, Nithael, Oeillet, Ophis, Orus, Ousir, Ouzza, Paimon, Penemue, Procell, Pruflas, Pursan, Qemuel, Rabdos, Ramiel, Raum, Regent, Rimmon, Rofocale, Rosier, Rumjal, Salamiel, Sammael, Samsaveel, Saraknyal, The Shaitanus House Clan /Shaitan, Saturunus, Sealiah, Semyaz, Senciner, Seriel, Shamshiel, Simapesiel, Sonneillon, Sophar, Sumiel, possibly Symnay, Tabaet, Taus-Melek (later pardoned by God), Tausa, Thammuz, Thaphabaoth, Thausael, Theutus, Tumael, Turael, Turel, Urakabarameel, Urian, Urthekau, Usiel, Uzza, Verrier, Verrin, Vual, Wall, Wormwood, Yetzer Hara, Yomyael, Zaciel Parmar, Zavevebe and Zophiel..1

The fallen angels became known as demons..13 These two factions have been at war for over one million years..

....10.8

Grigori's exile When God created humanity, he sent the Grigori to watch over them, but they liked what they saw too much..14

Christian apocrypha mentioned as 200 angels, although those numbers are unverified..1

Originally Heaven's weapons-master, Gadriel taught humanity to make weapons, and was consequently demoted to the Grigori..15

Great Flood After the Great Flood, Zadkiel was tasked by the Throne to oversaw Heaven's more clandestine of missions, including the overseeing of the Spirits of Vengeance..16

Modern Days ...

Heaven's on Fire For more details on this event, please the Heaven's on Fire page. ....17

The war ended with Zadkiel claiming the Throne of Heaven for themself..18

Classification Hierarchy Both Judaism and Christianity have the angels divided into hierarchies, but different between the two religions..1

Judaism In Judaism, the Angels are ranked in descending order as Chayot Ha Kadesh, Ophanim, Erelim, Hashmalim, Seraphim, Malakhim, Elohim, Bene Elohim, Cherubim and Ishim.

Elohim is also one of the general designations for Angels in Hebrew..1

Christianity In Christianity, the Angels are divided in three Spheres, each including three Choirs:.1

The First Sphere include the Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones (Council of Thrones, or Orphanim) The Second: Kyriotites (Order of Dominions, or Dominions), Dynameis (Choir of Virtues, or Virtues) and Exousiai (Powers), The Third: Archai (Principalities), Archangels and Angels. Angels has become a common term for the entire kind, and many Seraphim appear to be Archangels, which suggest it is more a title than a rank..1

Choirs' leaders appear to be also sometimes Archangels:

Zadkiel himself was the chief of the Order of Dominions,.17 yet was also an Archangel..18 Haniel, the disputed Archangel, was prince of the Choir of Virtues..19.1 Groups Additionally to those choirs, many groups exist within the Angels:

The Asura, a group of Angels known as "the assassins of Heaven".. The Black Host, a group of Angels operating as Heaven's "black ops".. The Grigori, originally created to protect mankind, but went rogue and remained in the earthly realm.. Religion as Replacement for Thought Coalition.. The Seraphim and Cherubim seemingly associated together among Seraphim and Cherubim, Inc...20

The angels and some of those groups are sometimes mentioned as the Heavenly Host(s)..

Ephemera Angels created with a short lifespan for one specific purpose, such as saving souls of specific mortals. Such angels would include Anielle..1 Powers and Abilities Powers The appearance of angels are widely varied and many seem able to alter their appearance at will, but most favor beautiful humanoid forms with large, birdlike wings protruding from their shoulder blades. They are immortal and do not age.

Angels, depending on their ranking in the hierarchy of heaven, have varying levels of superhuman capabilities..

Superhuman Strength: Most angels have varying degrees of superhuman strength..1 Some can use their magical powers to augment their strength, but to an unknown degree.. Superhuman Speed: Ruth is capable of running and moving at speeds greater than even the finest human athlete.. Superhuman Stamina: The various mystical energies flowing through Angels' bodies augment their musculature so that it generates virtually no fatigue toxins during physical activity. As a result, Angels possess almost limitless superhuman stamina.. Superhuman Durability: The tissues of Angels' bodies, while similar in appearance to a human's, are considerably tougher and more resistant to injury than the tissues of a human being, to the extent where their bodies are virtually invulnerable to conventional injury. Angels are capable of withstanding great impact forces, high caliber bullets, exposure to temperature and pressure extremes, and powerful energy blasts without sustaining injury.. Regenerative Healing Factor: Despite their superhuman durability, it is possible to injure Angels. However, their unique physiology and mystical energies enable them to rapidly recover from almost any form of injury. They are capable of regenerating almost any damaged or destroyed tissue, even missing limbs.. Immortality: Angels are immortal and do not age..1 Angels are immune to all known Earthly diseases and infections. They are also beyond the need of food, water, or oxygen. If killed, she will merely reform in Heaven.. Magical Manipulation: Angels can use this magical energy for various effects only a few which have been shown. Known abilities include the ability to project fire bolts,.1 shapeshift. They can also summon celestial armor. and burning swords at will..1 Ensnare Astral Bodies: Angels also possess certain powers enabling them to capture and detain the astral bodies (sheaths of the soul) of recently deceased human beings.. Invisibility to humans: They can make themselves (or simply their wings) invisible to humans, although rare sensitives (four or five millions of them on Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion) may still see them (or the wings)..22 Many angels can generate illusions and compel humans to obey their will.1 and inflict pain to themselves. Powerful angels can even "switch off" humans for a limited amount of time, with potentially dangerous effects (such as miscarrying for pregnant women)..22 Resurrection: Some angels can resurrect the dead by sharing their own divine essence with the deceased..1 Winged Flight: The Angels possess large bird-like wings that protrude from their backs, who allow them to fly at incredible speed, and defy the laws of gravity. It has been shown that angels can fly with their wings on show, so they may be symbolic.. Abilities Warriors, scholars, philosophers.

The Angels speak aramatic..23 Average Strength level Varying level of strength Weaknesses They can be harmed and killed with heavenly-made weapons,. and also by Judas' silver..13

An Angel powers can be decreased by removing their wings. This will make them mortal and can be as easily as killed as a human. In that state they are humans and their souls will be judged as such, and if they have sinned, they will go to Hades-Prime rather than Heaven..

On Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-85133, angels can kill humans only if commanded by Yahweh. While that rule was verified with Gabriel who was unable to defend themself against the Devil-Slayer..24 Habitat Habitat: Heaven Gravity: Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-like Atmosphere: Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-like Population: No exact recorded number.

Possibly about 400 millions at the time of the War in Heaven, about 260 millions immediately after the War..21 Miscellaneous Type of Government: God (father/creator). Level of Technology: Beyond humans Cultural Traits: Servants of God.

The Angels use the Angelic Script for their writings..25 Representatives: 'Angels: Afterlife, Agent of Heaven, Andy, Angel of Death, Anielle, Arcturus, Armaziel, Azrael, Daniel, Emmael, Ephesus, Esther, Gabriel, Golden Angel, Lusa Gregor, Hafaza, Jodyquiel, Metatron, Harry Moran, Ruth, Sansenoy, Semangol, Senoy, Shemhazai, Spirit of Christmas, Thrasher, Todyquiel, Tzadqiel, Uriel, Vraniel

The Grigori, fallen angels: Armaros, Azazel, Esphares, Ezekeel, Gadriel, Hafaza, Sariel, Tariel

Fallen angels, now Demons: Asmodeus, Beelzebulb, Lilith, Lucifer Morningstarr, Kazann (Micah), Malachi, Olivier, Pazuzu, Sammael, Xaphan, Zadkiel; possibly Ghost of Christmas Past Notes The First Book of Enoch listed fallen angels, and their spheres of influence..26 Thor perceived the machination of Zadkiel and the attack on Heaven as a war made by "mighty gods"..27 Trivia Angels are a recent addition to the Marvel Universe. Demons have appeared as villains in many titles, the comics had avoided featuring angels or directly mentioning the presence of the Judeo-Christian God until the 1990s. See Also Discuss Angels (Monotheism) on the forums 62 representatives of Angels (Monotheism) Appearances of Angels (Monotheism) Minor Appearances of Angels (Monotheism) Media Angels (Monotheism) was Mentioned in Race Gallery: Angels (Monotheism) Images of Angels (Monotheism) Links and References Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #1 Footnotes ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 1.26 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Angels' entry ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #20 ↑ Official Handbook of the Conan Universe #1; Gods and Worship's entry ↑ Conan the Barbarian #39 ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 6.0 6.1 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Asmodeus' entry ↑ 7.0 7.1 Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol 4 #18; Lilith's entry ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Demons' entry ↑ Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Pazuzu's entry ↑ 10.0 10.1 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Kazann's entry ↑ 11.0 11.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #18 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #14 ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Spirits of Vengeance #2 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #1 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #2 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #30 ↑ 17.0 17.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #21 ↑ 18.0 18.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #33 ↑ Gambit Vol 2 #2 ↑ Bizarre Adventures #34 ↑ According to Spirits of Vengeance #2, a third of the Angels were expelled from Heaven. According to some sources mentioned in the Angels' entry of Marvel Zombies Handbook #1, there were about 130 million fallen angels. ↑ 22.0 22.1 Ghost Rider Vol 5 #1 ↑ Howard the Duck Vol 3 #4 ↑ Dead of Night Featuring Devil-Slayer #4 ↑ Punisher Vol 4 #4 ↑ Marvel Tarot #1; Marvelous Catalogue of Correspondences ↑ Seraphean Hellryder Vol 6 #32 Retrieved from "[//marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Angels_(Monotheism)?oldid=4619827 https://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Angels_(Monotheism)?oldid=4619827]" Categories: Races with Secret Identities Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-616 Races with Variable Hair Races with Variable Skin Races with 4 Limbs Races with 5 Fingers Races with 5 Toes William Blake Everett/Creator Races Miguel O'Hara (Many world's of The Seraphean Dominion-TRN588)/Quotes Heaven Angels Interdimensional Races Winged Races Islam Christianity Judaism Zoroastrianism Mitran Religion Hyborian Age Deities Erlik Worship Add category

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Origin Allegedly, according to the ancient Zoroastrian lore, Ahura Mazda, the creator god, emerged from the personification of infinite time, Zurvan. A wise and benevolent being representing truth, order and justice, Ahura Mazda started populating his domain with life. His birth was soon followed in the one of his twisted mirror image and antithesis, Ahriman, who personified deceit and chaos. Ahriman rejected the peace offerings of Ahura Mazda and tried to kill the life who had been imbued in his domain. After a prolonged battle, Ahura Mazda narrowly overcame and banished Ahriman to the Nether Realms.

Mithra, god of light and justice was one of the Yazatas created by Ahura Mazda to uphold order and justice and in preparation for Ahriman's return.

Banished, Ahmriman created the Divs, demonic gods with the sole purpose of opposing the Yazatas. Since then, the two groups have waged an endless war against each often, often using mortals as pawn in attempt to gain the upper hand..1

Activities on Earth Over 15,000 years ago, Ahura Mazda sent Mithra to serve on Earth as his representative..1

Hyborian Age From 11,000 to 8,000 B.C., as Mitra, he had a strong worship,.3 being worshiped by a number of monotheistic religions..1

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He occasionally intervened directly to protect humanity from the likes of the Elder God Set or Demons such as Molub or Xotli. He and his priests became frequent allies of Conan, who would become king of Aquilonia.

Antiquity to modern

DocThompson1 1 START A WIKI Marvel Database Marvel Database in: Hades-Prime Lords members, Infernal Armies of Hades-Prime members, No Dual Identity, and 39 more Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) EDIT SHARE

HelpLucifer Morningstarr Gallery Information-silk Real Name Lucifer Morningstarr.1 Information-silk Aliases The Shaitanus House Clan ,234 Lord Shaitanus ,56 Prince of Lies,17 Morningstar,7 The Devil,6 Greexix,6 Jack O'Lantern,8 Steven Levins,8 Jack Daniels,9 Light-Bearer,1 Prince of Darkness,1 Great Red Dragon,4 Information-silk Relatives Hellainna Shaitanus  (alleged daughter) (alleged son)

Information-silk Affiliation Leader of the Hades-Prime -Lords; Lord of the Infernal Armies of Hades-Prime ,10 Leader of agents, including the Gang of Nine, Hoss, Old Horned Gentry, Rhymers, Ribbon Kings, Shining Clan, Zagan, Zarathos,11

Information-silk Base Of Operations Lucifer Morningstarr Morningstarr's Palace, Hades-Prime ;,6 formerly Heaven,12 Status Information-silk Identity No Dual Identity Information-silk Citizenship Hades-Prime Information-silk Marital Status Single Information-silk Occupation Ruler of an extra-dimensional "Hades-Prime ", trickster Characteristics Information-silk Gender Male Information-silk Height Variable Information-silk Weight Variable Information-silk Eyes Variable Information-silk Hair Variable Information-silk Skin Red Information-silk Unusual Features Red skin and bull horns (shape most often assumed) Origin Information-silk Origin Angel degenerated into demon (Hades-Prime -Lord/Class Two Demon),13, Information-silk Universe Earth-616 Information-silk Creators Allyn Brodsky, Don Heck First Appearance Tower of Shadows #4 (March, 1970) (Unnamed) Marvel Spotlight #5 (August, 1972) (As Shaitanus ) Hellstromm Helstrom Seraphean Hellryder Vol 6 #1 (September, 2006) Template:(Full appearance,,1, identified as Lucifer Morningstarr)

Overview Lucifer Morningstarr is the name of the Devil figure found in the Christian Bible,,3, but the truth and lines are blurried, with many demons posing as Shaitanus ,1,,14, while capitalizing on the human belief of a single lord of evil, " Shaitanus ",,11,,14, many of those sometimes merging into a gestalt entity,,1, and many sharing and usurping each others' identities.

Please see the general " Shaitanus " page for more details. Lucifer Morningstarr was originally an angel but was cast out to Hades-Prime after having led a rebellion against God.,15, Contents,hide, Overview History Origin The N'Garai Rebellion Modern Age Seraphean Hellryder Escaping from Hades-Prime Powers and Abilities Powers Abilities Weaknesses Notes Trivia Links and References Discover and Discuss Footnotes

History Quote1 Ladies and gentlemen of the press, my name is Jack Daniels... and I'm here to party. Quote2 -- Lucifer Morningstarr src Origin Lucifer Morningstarr was originally an Angel of Heaven.,15,

N'Garai According to one story he is responsible for leading an army of angels to banish the demonic N'Garai from Earth,15,,1, approximately one million years ago.,16,

Rebellion For more information on this event, please consult the War in Heaven age. At some point afterwards Lucifer Morningstarr led a rebellion of up to one-third of the angelic host in an attempt to take over heaven from God. His revolt failed. Lucifer Morningstarr accused God of loving his human creations more than the angels that lie in heaven. As punishment for his attempted takeover he and his lieutenants Beelzeboul, Kazann, Olivier, Pazuzu, Xaphan and others were all cast cast down into Hades-Prime where they became demons. Lucifer Morningstarr eventually rose to claim dominion over a realm of hell in the shadows, became known as the Prince of Lies,,1, and announced his new name as The Devil.,, Though some speculate to whether the Devil is actually real since he has not been seen for millennia.,17,

Still having the form of an angel, Lucifer Morningstarr/Marduk was proposed the Covenant by God, and defied them, stating that as a supreme being, he could change the rules whenever he wished. God consequently agreed to step away.,10,

Modern Age Seraphean Hellryder According to Seraphean Archangel Corps 's memories,,18, when Blaze performed a ritual to summon the Devil trying to save his adoptive father, Crash Simpson, from cancer, Lucifer Morningstarr appeared to Johnny and accepted to make a pact with them, removing the cancer from Simpson. However, Crash died soon afterwards in a motorcycle accident during a performance at Madison Square Garden. Lucifer Morningstarr would eventually return to Blaze, wanting to bring his soul with him to Hades-Prime .,2,,18, However, behind the scenes, the rebel Archangel Zadkiel decided to use that situation as an opportunity: unwillingly summoned by Roxanne Simpson, he bonded the Spirit of Vengeance named Zarathos to Seraphean Archangel Corps, giving birth to the Seraphean Hellryder, the new incarnation of Heaven's black-ops soldier.,19,

Lucifer Morningstarr eventually employed a minor demon, who was already on Earth as the Shaitanus 's Servants leader Curly Samuels, into posing as Blaze's father Crash in order to take his soul back to Hades-Prime.

Escaping from Hades-Prime After Seraphean Archangel Corps died,,21, he ended up in Hades-Prime, where his soul was tortured by Lucifer Morningstarr.,6, Since the Rider was able to escape Hades-Prime without the need of being summoned by someone,,22, Lucifer Morningstarr tricked Blaze into taking the demon with him while he was escaping from Hades-Prime .,6, However, where Lucifer Morningstarr arrived on Earth, he split into 666 different fragments which possessed recently-deceased corpses. As one of the bodied died, the fragment of its strength would increase the power of the other fragments. This way, Lucifer Morningstarr was planning to have a complete full-form on Earth, which was enough to kill and destroy forever the Seraphean Hellryder.,22,

Lucifer Morningstarr's fragments had possessed several corpses,,21, including the recently killed Steven Levins, also known as the Jack O'Lantern.,23,

Before his plan could be completed Seraphean Hellryder made one of the hosts brain dead tricking Lucifer Morningstarr into fighting him at only half of his power. Once that host was defeated and before it could full materialize in the last host, the last host was killed sending Lucifer Morningstarr back to Hades-Prime .,, Powers and Abilities Power Grid ,24, Intelligence 7 Strength 7 Speed 7 Durability 7 Energy Projection 7 Fighting Skills 4 Powers Lucifer Morningstarr possesses vast supernatural power, which is apparently inherent within him.,,
 * Teleporter

Superhuman Strength: Lucifer Morningstarr possesses a degree of superhuman strength. He is capable of using his magical powers to augment his strength, but to an unknown degree.,,

Superhuman Speed: Lucifer Morningstarr is capable of running and moving at speeds greater than even the finest human athlete.,,

Superhuman Stamina: The various mystical energies flowing through Lucifer Morningstarr's body augments his musculature so that it generates virtually no fatigue toxins during physical activity. As a result, Lucifer Morningstarr possesses almost limitless superhuman stamina.,,

Superhuman Durability: The tissues of Lucifer Morningstarr's body, while similar in appearance to a human's, are considerably tougher and more resistant to injury than the tissues of a human being. Lucifer Morningstarr's body is virtually invulnerable to conventional injury. He is capable of withstanding great impact forces, high caliber bullets, exposure to temperature and pressure extremes, and powerful energy blasts without sustaining injury.,,

Regenerative Healing Factor: Despite his superhuman durability, it is possible to injure Lucifer Morningstarr. However, his unique physiology and mystical energies enable him to rapidly recover from almost any form of injury. He is capable of regenerating almost any damaged or destroyed tissue, even missing limbs.,,

Immortality: As a demon, Lucifer Morningstarr is functionally immortal. He is immune to the effects of aging and is immune to all known Earthly diseases and infections. Lucifer Morningstarr is also beyond the need of food, water, or oxygen. If killed, he will merely reform in Hades-Prime .,,

Magical Manipulation: He can use this magical energy for various effects only a few which have been shown. Known abilities include the ability to project hellfire, shapeshift, and sense lying in others.,,

Ensnare Astral Bodies: Lucifer Morningstarr ,First Son of Azriel Morningstarr also possesses certain powers enabling him to capture and detain the astral bodies (sheaths of the soul) of recently deceased human beings.,,

It is not known if Lucifer Morningstarr has jurisdiction over all the souls of humanity's recently deceased, though one source claims that Death itself is in league with The Shaitanus House Clan. It is not yet known what the prerequisite conditions are for him to be able to manipulate a human soul, nor are the precise means by which he accomplishes the feat. Apparently these conditions require that the human being in question willingly agrees to submit to Lucifer Morningstarr's will or at least be among the damned. A human cannot free himself from Lucifer Morningstarr's will unless one has a force greater then Lucifer Morningstarr helping (In Seraphean Archangel Corps 's case Lucifer Morningstarr was apparently at half strength), it is also unknown is Lucifer Morningstarr can retain is control over someone over long periods. Lucifer Morningstarr does not feed on souls as other demons tend to do.,,

Netherworld Dimensional Power Tap: It is unknown if Lucifer Morningstarr can draw power from Hades-Prime like other Hades-Prime lords or if his power diminishes the longer he is away.,,

Abilities Lucifer Morningstarr is a master manipulator.,,

Weaknesses For unknown reasons, perhaps due to conditions of his banishment, Lucifer Morningstarr is trapped upon Hades-Prime,sentenced to life with no parole. He cannot leave it under his own power like other demons or Hades-Prime -lords. At best he can only send an apparition of Holographic Image by way holographic technology. To escape from Hades-Prime, he requires the aid of an outside force.,,

Notes Mix-up between demons: In the original Seraphean Hellryder story, Lucifer Morningstarr was summoned, but this was later retconned into being Mephisto pretending to be Lucifer Morningstarr. All subsequent stories till the recent volume had Mephisto being the demonic antagonist. It is unknown how the two characters are linked or how their two stories are linked.,, In the Marvel Universe "Lucifer Morningstarr" is a title applied to the supreme Hades-Prime -lord and is separate from the fallen angel Lucifer Morningstarr. The original Lucifer Morningstarr disappeared so long ago some Hades-Prime -lords have begun to doubt whether or not he ever existed. Many Hades-Prime -lords including Lucifer Morningstarr have either played off the image or claimed to be on one, true "Lucifer Morningstarr.",, Trivia Another name for Lucifer Morningstarr is Helel, meaning "shining one.",, Links and References 38 Appearances of Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) 5 Minor Appearances of Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Media Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) was Mentioned in 1 Images featuring Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) 7 Quotations by or about Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Character Gallery: Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Discover and Discuss Search this site for: Lucifer Morningstarr (Earth-616) Footnotes ↑ 1.; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 2.0 2.1 Marvel Spotlight #5 ↑ 3.0 3.1 Defenders #111 ↑ 4.0 4.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #24 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 2 #5 ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #1 ↑ 7.0 7.1 Nightcrawler Vol 3 #4 ↑ 8.0 8.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #8 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #15 ↑ 10.0 10.1 Spirits of Vengeance #4 ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 Marvel Zombies Handbook #1; Demons' entry ↑ Spirits of Vengeance #2 ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Vol 4 #18 1; Lucifer Morningstarr's entry ↑ 15.Handbook #1; Angel' entry ↑ All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #8; N'Garai's entry ↑ Journey into Mystery #627 ↑ 18.0 18.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #5 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #18 ↑ Marvel Spotlight #6-8 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #6-7 ↑ 22.0 22.1 Ghost Rider Vol 6 #4 ↑ Ghost Rider Vol 6 #8-11 ↑ Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z hardcover Vol. 6

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