Gabriel
In
Abrahamic religions,
Gabriel (
גַּבְרִיאֵל,
Standard Hebrew Gavriʼel,
Latin Gabrielus,
Tiberian Hebrew Gaḇrîʼ"l,
Arabic جبريل
Ǧabrīl Jibril, literally "Master, of God", i.e., a Master, who is "of God") is an
archangel who is thought to serve as a messenger from
God ("angel" literally translates to "messenger" from the
Koine Greek; an "arch" angel is a "primary" or "chief" messenger). He first appears in the
Book of Daniel in the
Hebrew Bible. He was also referred to as the "Left Hand of God".
Christians believe him to have foretold the births of
John the Baptist and
Jesus. In
Islam, he is thought to have been the medium through which God revealed the
Qur'an to
Muhammad.
In Biblical tradition, he is sometimes regarded as the angel of death, the prince of fire and thunder, but more frequently as one of God's chief messengers. The Talmud described him as the only angel that can speak
Syriac and
Chaldee. In Islam, Gabriel is one of God's chief messengers but other above mentioned titles are not given to him (for example the angel of death is
Azrael).
In the
Catholic Tradition, he is known as one of the
archangels. In
Islam, he is called the chief of the four favoured angels and the spirit of truth, and in some views Gabriel is the same person as the
Holy Spirit. Gabriel also finds mention in the writings of the
Bahá'í Faith, most notably in
Bahá'u'lláh's metaphysical work
The Seven Valleys and the Four Valleys.
Gabriel in Jewish history and the Hebrew Bible
In the historical context of the destruction of
Solomon's Temple in
Jerusalem, and the subsequent
Babylonian captivity of the
Jewish Kingdom of Judah that followed, the important Jewish leader
Daniel ponders the meanings of several visions he has experienced in exile, when Gabriel appears to him (
Daniel 8:16-
25).
Gabriel is mentioned twice by name:
*"...And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision, that I sought to understand it; and, behold, there stood before me as the appearance of a man. And I heard the voice of a man between the banks of Ulai, who called, and said:'
Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.' So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I was terrified, and fell upon my face; but he said to me: 'Understand, son of man; for the vision belongs to the time of the end..." [
1] (Daniel
8:15-
17).
It is towards the end of the rule of
Babylonia yet Gabriel is sent to elaborate and explain matters also relating to the "End of Days" (See
Jewish eschatology) such as when the kingdoms of
Persia,
Greece and
Rome will tumble from dominating the world.
*"...And while I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the Lord my God for the holy mountain of my God; and while I was speaking in prayer, the man
Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, approached close to me about the time of the evening offering. And he made me understand, and talked with me, and said: 'Daniel, I have now come to make you skilful of understanding...Seventy weeks are decreed upon your people and upon your holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sin, and to forgive iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal vision and prophet, and to anoint the most holy place" [
2] (Daniel
9:20-
24).
Here is where Gabriel tells Daniel about the mysterious "Seventy weeks" (
shavu-im shivim) that seem to indicate the end of the
Babylonian captivity which lasted seventy years when
Cyrus the Great allowed the return to
Zion and the rebuilding of the Temple by the Jews in his empire.
His name also occurs in the
apocryphal
Book of Enoch.
Gabriel in the Talmud
In the
Talmud, Gabriel appears as the destroyer of the hosts of
Sennacherib in
Sanhedrin 95b, armed "with a sharpened scythe which has been ready since Creation." The Archangel is also attributed as the one who showed
Joseph the way, the one who prevented Queen Vashti from appearing naked before King Ahasverus and his guests, and as one of the angels who buried
Moses. In Talmud
Yoma 79a, however, it is stated that Gabriel once fell into disgrace "for not obeying a command exactly as given, I remained for a while outside the heavenly Curtain." During this 21 day period, the
guardian angel of
Persia,
Dobiel, acted as Gabriel's proxy.
Gabriel is also, according to Jewish mythology, the voice that told Noah to gather the animals before the great flood; the invisible force that prevented Abraham from slaying Isaac; the invisible force that wrestled with Jacob; and the voice of the burning bush.
Gabriel in the canonical New Testament
In the New Testament, Gabriel is the angel who comes with/in the
Holy Spirit and reveals to
Zacharias that
John the Baptist will be born to Elizabeth and who visits
Mary to reveal that she will give birth to
Jesus. According to later legend, he is the unidentified angel in the
Book of Revelation (formerly known as the Apocalypse of John) who blows the horn announcing the
Judgment Day. To
Catholics, he is
St. Gabriel the Archangel, the
patron saint of communications workers. With
Michael and
Raphael, his feast day is
September 29.
Gabriel's visit to Mary in the
Gospel of Luke is often called "The
Annunciation," (
Luke 1:26 et al.), an event that is celebrated on
March 25. It is also commemorated as the "First Joyful Mystery" each time the
rosary is prayed.
Gabriel also visited Joseph. After learning about Mary's pregnancy, Joseph considered calling off the marriage, but Gabriel appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him that the conception was caused by the Holy Spirit.
Gabriel in other Christian denominations
In
Latter-day Saint theology, Gabriel lived a mortal life as the patriarch
Noah. Gabriel and Noah are regarded as the same person, but Gabriel alone is regarded as the immortal resurrected being (angel). As such, all of Noah's children are considered to be Gabriel's earthly children..
The
Arabic name for Gabriel is
Jibril,
Jibrīl,
Jibreel,
Jabrilæ or
Djibril (جبريل , جبرائيل,
IPA [d'ibræː"iːl], [d'ibrɛ̈"iːl], or [d'ibriːl])
Muslims believe Gabriel to have been the
angel who revealed the
Qur'an to the
prophet Muhammad.
Gabriel's physical appearance is described in the
Hadith ():
Narrated By Abu Ishaq-Ash-Shaibani: I asked Zir bin Hubaish regarding the Statement of God: "And was at a distance Of but two bow-lengths Or (even) nearer; So did (God) convey The Inspiration to His slave (Gabriel) and then he (Gabriel) Conveyed (that to Muhammad). () On that, Zir said, "Ibn Mas'ud informed us that the Prophet had seen Gabriel having 600 wings."
Gabriel's primary tasks are to bring messages from God to his messengers and to accompany the angel
Azrael ("Angel of Death") to take the soul of a person who dies with
ablution. As in Christianity, Gabriel is said to be the angel that informed
Mary (Arabic
Maryam) of how she would conceive Jesus (
Isa):
She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then We sent to her Our Ruh [angel Jibrael (Gabriel)], and he appeared before her in the form of a man in all respects. She said: "Verily! I seek refuge with the Most Beneficent (God) from you, if you do fear God." (The angel) said: "I am only a Messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a righteous son." She said: "How can I have a son, when no man has touched me, nor am I unchaste?" He said: "So (it will be), your Lord said: 'That is easy for Me (God): And (We wish) to appoint him as a sign to mankind and a mercy from Us (God), and it is a matter (already) decreed, (by God).' "
(Quran, )
Muslims believe Gabriel to have accompanied Muhammad in his
ascension to the heavens, where Muhammad is said to have met previous messengers of God, and was informed about the
Islamic prayer (Bukhari ). Muslims also believe that Gabriel descends to Earth on the night of
Lailat-ul-Qadr ("The Night of Power"), a night in the last ten days of the holy month of
Ramadan in the
Islamic calendar.
Gabriel is sometimes associated with the color
Blue, the direction
West (or
North), or the element
Water; his horse is named
Haizum. Gabriel is also variously identified as the angel of
annunciation,
resurrection, mercy, vengeance, death, and revelation. Furthermore, the Archangel has also been identified in various sources to be one of the 7 Archangels who stand in the presence of God; he is also claimed variously be a tafsarim (chief angelic prince) of the Cherub, Virtue, Power, Archangel, and Angel celestial orders. The governor of the Moon and Monday also are ascribed to Gabriel; finally, the Archangel is also the ruler of Shamayim, the First Heaven.
Some christian sects in South America also consider him to be the patron of writers.
The eccentric English hagiographer, antiquarian and father of 15 children,
Sabine Baring-Gould (1834-1924), wrote a
Basque Christmas carol,
Gabriel's Message, which was probably based on the 13th or 14th century Latin
chant Angelus Ad Virginem which itself is based on the Biblical account of the
Annunciation in the
New Testament Gospel of Luke.
The modern rock musician
Sting performed
Gabriel's Message on the
Christmas compilation CD, "A Very Special Christmas".
In 2006, British singer/songwriter Foy Vance recorded the song "Gabriel and the Vagabond", and the single was featured on the
Grey's Anatomy episode "Superstition". The song tells the tale of the angel helping a begger, who in turns helps others, inspiring a town of people and causing them to repent.
Gabriel is also the name of a song by
Electrelane, included in their first album,
Rock It To The Moon.
Gabriel is referenced or plays an active role in many
fictional works:
*In his
epic poem Paradise Lost,
John Milton made Gabriel chief of the angelic guards placed over
Paradise.
*In the epic poem
The Song of Roland, Gabriel instructs Frankish King
Charles Martel, to deliver the sword
Durendal to
Roland. Gabriel also bears Roland's soul to heaven.
*In
The Lay of the Cid, Gabriel
appears in a dream to predict a good outcome.
*In
Kidou Senshi Gundam Seed Destiny, Jibril is the name of the leader for Blue Cosmos, an extremist group dedicated to eradicating genetically enhanced humans (the coordinators).
*In
Salman Rushdie's controversial novel,
The Satanic Verses, Gabriel assumes the form of a fictional Bollywood movie star, Gibreel Farishta. In this novel, the archangel Gabriel never receives any direct communication from God.
*
Christopher Walken portrayed Gabriel in the film
The Prophecy as the leader of a rebellion opposed to God's favor of humans over angels. He is shown to be exceptionally jealous of humans and delights in frightening and torturing them. In subsequent films, however, we see Gabriel return from Hell, become human, and then, understanding them completely, returning to God's service as a lover of humans.
*In the movie
Van Helsing, it is suggested that the title character is in fact an amnesiac reincarnated Gabriel, primarily due to his first name and the fact that
Dracula refers to him as the Left Hand of God. **** The director/writer of "Van Helsing" took creative license with creating the character of Gabriel Van Helsing in this movie. "The Left Hand of God" is the Holy Ghost (aka, Holy Spirit), not Gabriel or any of the other archangels or angels. Recasting Gabriel as the Left Hand of God was purely the director's fanciful idea of a plot twist.
*Gabriel, portrayed by
Tilda Swinton (not as a female entity, but to signify the
androgynous nature of
angels), appears in the movie
Constantine (2005) with the intentions of making the world worthy of God's love by attempting to bring
Mammon forth into the world to wreak havoc. In the comic book
Hellblazer upon which the movie is based, Gabriel is referred to unaffectionately as "The Snob," and his Fall is engineered by the title character,
John Constantine, and a disgraced succubus named
Chantinelle.
*A
jazz trumpet player named "Gabe" talks
Jack Klugman's character into returning to the land of the living in the
Twilight Zone television episode, "
A Passage for Trumpet".
* Melville, Herman, "Moby Dick": The insane character of a fellow ship believes he is the angel Gabriel.
*The Trading Card Game
Magic: The Gathering features a card named "Gabriel Angelfire".
*In
Angel Sanctuary, Gabriel is depicted as a female and is called by the Arabic name, Jibril/D'jibril. She is the true form of the main character's sister. She is also Chief of the Order of Cherubim, and one of the four Archangels of the Elements (Water).
*In the
roleplaying game In Nomine Gabriel is one of thirteen major Archangels, and holder of the Divine Word of Fire. Gabriel is portrayed mostly in female form, and deals with insanity due to her role as a divine prophet and "word friction" with the
Demon of Fire,
Belial. Her servitors are tasked with the duty of punishing the cruel.
* Bamberger, Bernard Jacob, (March 15,
2006).
Fallen Angels: Soldiers of Satan's Realm. Jewish Publication Society of America. ISBN 0827607970
* Briggs, Constance Victoria,
1997.
The Encyclopedia of Angels : An A-to-Z Guide with Nearly 4,000 Entries. Plume. ISBN 0452279216.
* Bunson, Matthew, (
1996).
Angels A to Z : A Who's Who of the Heavenly Host. Three Rivers Press. ISBN 0517885379.
* Cruz, Joan C.
1999.
Angels and Devils. Tan Books & Publishers. ISBN 0895556383.
* Davidson, Gustav.
A Dictionary of Angels: Including the Fallen Angels. Free Press. ISBN 002907052X
* Graham, Billy,
1994.
Angels: God's Secret Agents. W Pub Group; Minibook edition. ISBN 0849950740
* Guiley, Rosemary, 1996.
Encyclopedia of Angels. ISBN 0816029881
* Kreeft, Peter J.
1995.
Angels and Demons: What Do We Really Know About Them? Ignatius Press. ISBN 0898705509
* Lewis, James R. (
1995).
Angels A to Z. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 0787606529
* Melville, Francis,
2001.
The Book of Angels: Turn to Your Angels for Guidance, Comfort, and Inspiration. Barron's Educational Series; 1st edition. ISBN 0764154036
* Ronner, John,
1993.
Know Your Angels: The Angel Almanac With Biographies of 100 Prominent Angels in Legend & Folklore-And Much More! Mamre Press. ISBN 0932945406.
*
Entheomedia.org*
Catholic Encyclopedia*
Jewish Encyclopedia*
Encyclopedia Mythica*
Steliart, Angelic Dictionary: G*
One of Many Ring*
Sarah's Archangels*
Trinity Angels: Archangels*
Angel Focus*
Great Dreams*
Gabriel, the Angel of Monday*
Icons of Archangel Gabriel*
Angel*
Archangel*
Michael (archangel)*
Raphael (archangel)*
Uriel (archangel)*
Angels in Islam*
Holy spirit*
Fleur de lys*
Annunciation*
List of names referring to El
