Institutes, Book 1, Chapter 14: (II)

Even in the Creation of the Universe and of All Things, Scripture By Unmistakable Marks Distinguishes the True God From False Gods.

Section 3: God is Lord Over All!

In these next sections, Calvin will teach concerning the creation and nature of angels. Moses did not include these beings in his account of creation, but from the rest of Scripture we can say a little something about them. And it is necessary to learn about the angels "to refute many errors." Many people almost go so far as to attribute divinity to the angels, seeing them as far greater in status than human beings, for example. Mani and his followers took the devil and elevated him to a place equal to God, considering him the principle of Dark and God the principle of Light that are in constant battle to explain evil and suffering in the world.

But we will only speak of angels as the doctrine is profitable to us.

Section 4: Also We Should Not Indulge in Speculations Concerning the Angels, But Search Out the Witness of Scripture.

Angels are God's ministers who carry out his commands, so it goes by reason that they were created by him. To ask, however, exactly when they were created is foolish. But we should hold to "one rule of modesty and sobriety: not to speak, or guess, or even to seek to know, concerning obscure matters anything except what has been imparted to us by God's Word." Also, we should seek to meditate on those things which are edifying, not simply informative. In this regard, Calvin mentions Pseudo-Dionysius, an early theologian who wrote a work called Celestial Hierarchy, concerning the angels. But to Calvin, this work is nothing but talk, and empty talk at that, for the apostle Paul forbids people to speak about secret things (2 Cor 12:4).

Section 5: The Designation of the Angels in Scripture.

Having cautioned his readers against speculation, Calvin now turns to Scripture itself to see what is taught therein concerning the angels. In this section he shows how Scripture designates angels--what they are called. Their purpose is carry out the things which God has decreed (Ps 103:20-21), they surround God and "adorn his majesty and render it conspicuous" so they are called 'hosts' (Luke 2:13, Dan 7:10), and they are also called 'virtues' "since the Lord through them wonderfully sets forth and declares the power and strength of his hand" (Eph 1:21, 1 Cor 15:24). Sometimes they are called 'principalities' and 'powers' because the Lord exercises his authority through them (Col 1:16, Eph. 1:21, 1 Cor 15:24). They are even, to Calvin, called 'gods' "because in their ministry as in a mirror they in some respect exhibit his divinity to us" (Ps 138:1).

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Reflection: Here we get into a topic that is of great interest to many people. This week I wrote a sermon on Lord's Day 22 of the Heidelberg Catechism which deals with the final two articles of the Apostles' Creed, concerning the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. As I was writing this sermon, and researching for it, I thought about all those people who seem to think that we become angels when we die. In heaven we are no longer human beings, but angels. I have no idea where that started, but it seems to me to have been wrought of ignorance concerning these things that Calvin is now discussing. I won't here get into the concept of 'guardian angels,' for Calvin does that himself in section 7 of this chapter.

Here we see the importance of clear thinking and right knowledge. To claim that human beings become angels upon death is to claim that we become something other than what we were created. And if we are something other than what we were created, then what we were created as is not redeemed, but is forgotten. Then God's power is either not enough, or our human existence was not worthy of redemption, both of which are wrong ideas. Too many people, while elevating the flesh in terms of lifestyle denigrate that same flesh when they consider salvation. Instead, we are to be clear and sober about these things, thinking what God has revealed to us.

The same applies, of course, to peoples' thinking about demons. Rev. Witteveen has an excellent article about demons and modern thought about them on his Prince George Mission website. The website is here: Canadian Reformed Mission in Prince George. The article is here: Demons and Demonology, a Biblical Approach.