I’ve always loved music. As far back as I can remember, music has been a big part of my life. I wrote my first song when I was only 3 years old, with my grandmother, and sister. Growing up, I slept with the radio on all night long. I’ve enjoyed listening to all types of music over the years, but I listen mostly to Christian music these days, and I have to say, there’s a lot of false doctrine in Christian music. If you’ve read any of my books or my blog, you know that I truly believe the Bible is the Holy Word of God, and that it’s true from cover to cover. I believe it’s very important to understand the truth of God’s word and to make people aware of false doctrines that they may believe.
Bible doctrine is like a chain. Each subject is like a link in that chain, and they all fit together perfectly if they’re understood correctly. But, if even one of those doctrines is misunderstood, then the chain is broken. I believe that’s one reason there are so many false doctrines because if one doctrine is misunderstood then the other doctrines don’t fit, so people misinterpret, and even twist the next link in the chain to fit with the previous link because it is misunderstood.
With that said, I want to talk about a false teaching that I’ve heard all my life, and continue to hear in Christian music, and preaching. Going back to the subject of my love for music, which I listen to every day on my way home from work, and sometimes in the morning on the way to work, if I’m not listening to talk radio.
I frequently hear songs that say something about Gabriel blowing his horn or trumpet. I’ve also heard and read that he’s an archangel.
Gabriel is only mentioned four times in the Bible, (Dan 8:16; 9:21; Luke 1:19; 26) and neither of these references says he’s an archangel. Michael is the only one ever called an archangel in God’s book (Jude 1:9), and he’s called THE Archangel. There’s only one Archangel mentioned in the Bible, and there’s a reason for that.
According to the Strong’ Concordance of the Bible, the word Archangel means Chief, Leader, or Ruler of the angels. So the Archangel is the leader of the angels or the chief or ruler of the angels, and as I said, the Bible only mentions one. Michael is THE Archangel; not Gabriel.
Now let’s talk about Gabriel’s trumpet. A simple Bible search finds no reference to Gabriel blowing a horn or trumpet at any time. As I said, Gabriel is only mentioned four times in the Bible.
(1) In Daniel 8:16, and (2) Daniel 9:21, Gabriel is sent to Daniel to help him understand the vision that God had shown him earlier.
(3) In Luke 1:19, Gabriel appears to Zachariah to tell him that God had heard and would answer his prayer to have a son, even though he and his wife were both old.
(4) In Luke 1:26, Gabriel appeared to the virgin Mary to tell her she would have a baby who would be the Son of God, and she was to name him Jesus.
None of these verses, that talk about Gabriel, ever mention him blowing a horn or a trumpet. So let’s look at the verses in the Bible that do mention the trumpet. We’ll start with Matthew 24:30-31.
Matthew 24:30-31
30 Then, the sign of the Son of man will appear in the sky, and then all the people of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming in the clouds with power and great glory.
31 Then, he will send his angels with the loud sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together his saints from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52
51 Look, I will show you a mystery; We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed,
52 In a moment, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet: because the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised immortal, and we will be changed.
1 Thessalonians 4:16
16 Because the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and those who are dead in Jesus will rise first.
Those three New Testament verses talk about the last trumpet blowing at the resurrection when Jesus returns. Let’s compare three Old Testament verses with these and see what’s revealed.
Psalm 47:5
5 God has gone up with a shout, the LORD went up with the sound of a trumpet.
Zechariah 9:14
14 And the LORD will be seen over them, and his arrow will go out as the lightning: and the Lord GOD will blow the trumpet, and will go with whirlwinds of the south.
Jeremiah 25:30
30 So prophesy against them all these words, and say to them, The LORD will roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation; he will roar mightily upon his habitation; he will give a shout, as those who stomp the grapes, against all those who live on the earth.
These Old Testament verses show the Lord blowing the trumpet, and shouting. Is 1 Thessalonians 4:16 saying that the Lord is the Archangel, as some Christians believe? Let’s read it again.
1 Thessalonians 4:16
16 Because the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a shout, (He Shouts) with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and those who are dead in Jesus will rise first.
So, the Lord Jesus himself will come down from heaven and shout, with the voice of the Archangel, and he will blow the trumpet of God.
The Lord Jesus himself is the Archangel. That doesn’t mean he’s an angel, with wings. He’s NOT a created being. He’s God, the Son. Remember, the term Archangel means Chief, or Leader, or Ruler. It’s Jesus, NOT Gabriel, who will shout with the voice of the Archangel, and blow the last trumpet, as he leads all the angels of heaven to the earth at the end of this world.
Again, Jesus is not a created being. He has always existed. That’s not easy for the human mind to comprehend, but that’s what the Bible teaches. He was there at creation (John 1:1-14), he was there in the burning bush (Exodus 3:2), he wrestled with Jacob (Gen. 32:24-30; 35:10-13; Hosea 12:2-5), and he was in the furnace of fire with the three Hebrews (Daniel 3:8-30). He led the Israelites out of Egypt, and through the wilderness for forty years, and into the promised land (Numbers 20:16; Exodus 14:19; 1 Corinthians 10:4).
Let’s clear up one more subject of controversy as we unpack this even further, and dig a little deeper. Numbers 20:16, and Exodus 14:19 say that God sent an angel and brought the Children of Israel out of Egypt. 1 Corinthians 10:4 says that “angel” was Jesus. Again, Jesus is not a created being. The word “angel” simply means messenger. (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)
Malachi 3:1 says he’s the “Messenger” of the Covenant.
John 12:49 shows us that he’s the “Messenger” of God.
So, Jesus is the “Messenger of God” and the “Ruler of the angels.” He’s also called the “Angel of God” and the “Angel of the Lord” throughout the Bible. He’s referred to by many names and titles in the Bible, but he was not called Jesus until he was born as a baby to the virgin Mary. Before that, he was called Michael. Yes, the Bible teaches that Jesus is Michael, the Archangel. The “Messenger of God,” and the “Ruler of the angels.”
Let’s compare a few scriptures.
Jesus is called the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
Michael is called the Chief Prince, and the Great Prince. (Daniel 10:13 and Daniel 12:1)
Jesus will return with his angels. (Matthew 24:30-3; 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8)
Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. (Revelation 12:7)
Jesus’s voice will raise the dead at the 2nd coming. (John 5:25-29)
Michael’s voice will raise the dead at the 2nd coming. (1 Thessalonians 4:15-16; Jude 1:9)
Jesus Cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, Come Out!” (John 11:43-44)
Then Lazarus was brought back to life.
Michael means “Who Is Like God”
Jesus is “Like God” (Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3)
God says, “Who is like Me?” (Isaiah 44:6-8)
“Who is a God like You?” (Micah 7:18-19)
The Bible says, “No one has ever seen the Father at any time” (John 1:18; 5:37; 6:46). So all appearances of God in the Bible was Jesus before he was born into a human body. Many times he was called “the angel of the Lord.”
The Bible says God is a Spirit (John 4:24).
It also says God is invisible (1 Timothy 1:17).
So he needs a representative. Jesus is God’s representative.
The Word was God, and he was there at the beginning and created everything (John 1:1).
Then he became flesh and lived with us here on earth (John 1:14).
God created a human body for him to live in then placed him in Mary’s womb (Luke 1:26-35). That’s what the Father was referring to when he said, “This day, I have begotten you (Psalm 2:7; Hebrews 10:5; Micah 5:2).
1 Timothy 2:5 says, There’s only one mediator between God and mankind, and that’s Jesus who was called Michael before he was incarnated into a human body to be sacrificed for our sins.
Jesus, Michael, The Angel of God, and The Angel of The Lord, all refer to the Son of God.
In Exodus 3:1-2, 14, the “Angel of the Lord” appeared to Moses in the burning bush, and told him he was the “I AM.” When Jesus was here on earth, he said, “Before Moses was, I AM” (John 8:58-59). It was Jesus in the Burning Bush before he was called Jesus. He told Moses to take off his shoes because the ground where he was standing was holy. In Joshua 5:13-15 the Captain of the Lord’s host appeared to Joshua and told him the same thing. The ground wasn’t holy in itself, the presence of God is what made it holy. So this was also Michael/Jesus.
In Genesis 16:7, 11, the “Angel of the LORD” told Hagar that he would increase her seed. Angels don’t have that power. It was God/Michael/Jesus.
In Genesis 22:11-18, the “Angel of the LORD,” speaking of himself, said he would bless Abraham because he had not withheld his son from him. It was God/Michael/Jesus.
In Exodus 23:20-23, the “Angel of the Lord” was sent to guard Israel. God said, “Obey him and do not be rebellious toward him because he will not pardon your transgressions since my name is in him.
The Angel of the LORD camps around those who fear him, and rescues them (Psalm 34:7). We are to fear only God, not angels. The Angel of the LORD is God/Michael/Jesus.
So, there you have it. The Bible shows that Jesus is God, and he created everything. It shows that he has always existed, and has been interacting with humans since he created us. He is called Michael, the angel of the Lord, the Captain of the Lord’s army, the Prince of Peace, the Son of God, the Son of man, and many other names in the Old Testament.
He is the King of kings, and the Lord of lords, and he will return soon to take his children home. I hope you’re one of his children. I you’re not, then please repent of your sins, and ask him to save you. Then prepare to meet him face-to-face when he returns. If I don’t see you before, I’ll see you then.
*For more about Jesus before he was born on earth, read the article One God.
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