How I stumbled into this biblical rabbit hole
Alright so here’s how this all started – I was scrolling through old art stuff online, right? Saw some church painting from like 500 years ago with giant winged dudes fighting demons. Super dramatic. Messed me up because I couldn’t remember anyone except Michael and Gabriel. Pathetic, I know. So obviously, I had to fix this.
Grabbed my dusty Bible first – the one my grandma gave me when I got confirmed. Cracked it open like it might bite me. Started flipping pages randomly…not what I wanted. Genesis? Noah? Nada. Exodus? Just plagues and frogs. Felt like hunting for a needle in a haystack.
Then I remembered apps exist. Installed some free Bible thing that looked kinda legit. Searched “angel” – big mistake. Stuff popped up everywhere. Hundreds of verses. Scattered like my kid’s Legos after playtime. Needed caffeine. Made coffee. Bad move – now wide awake at 2 AM reading about Ezekiel’s wild visions. Seriously, wheels covered in eyes? Heavy stuff.
Actually making sense of all this
Decided to search smarter. Typed “major angels Bible” instead. Finally got somewhere. Pulled up like 8 different sites, plus my app. Cross-checked everything because trust issues. Notes app got messy:
- Michael: Easy. Found him fast – pops up in Daniel yelling at demons and in Revelation battling Satan. Like heaven’s team captain.
- Gabriel: Another easy one. Announced John the Baptist AND Jesus. Literally called “God’s messenger.” Can’t miss him.
- Raphael: Tricky. Tobit? Seriously? Never heard of it before. Had to Google what “Tobit” even was. Some Jewish book not everyone agrees on. Whatever. Raphael’s in there talking about healing and eyes… weird stuff.
- Uriel: Total headache. Found almost nothing in standard Bible books. Eastern Orthodox folks seem to like him. Random sources said he brings light and knowledge or something? Felt shaky. Not solid like the other three.
Saw tons of other names pop up – Metatron, Raguel, etc. Looked like fanfiction material. No serious Christian texts backed them. Focused on the core four.
Why this matters to me personally
Truth? This wasn’t just trivia. Back in January, Aunt Margie had that nasty surgery – tubes everywhere. I remember sitting in that hospital chapel, fluorescent lights buzzing, totally useless. Couldn’t fix anything. Just stared at statues. Felt that helplessness creep back while reading about healing angels tonight. Maybe Raphael’s story – weird fish guts medicine aside – hits different when you’re scared and tired. Symbols matter when you’re waiting for test results at 4 AM.
So yeah:
- Michael = Warrior guy
- Gabriel = News reporter
- Raphael = Healer (disputed origin)
- Uriel = Light guy (super disputed origin)
Spent four hours piecing together stuff most people learn in Sunday school as kids. Pretty sure my coffee machine needs an intervention now. Anyway – hope this ramble helps someone else avoid an all-nighter. Check your sources.
