Did the Angel leave and return or was it a different event in Judges?

Question

Judges chapter 6

21 Then the Angel of the Lord put out the end of the staff that was in His hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened bread; and fire rose out of the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened bread. And the Angel of the Lord departed out of his sight.

22 Now Gideon perceived that He was the Angel of the Lord. So Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face.”

23 Then the Lord said to him, “Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die.”

I was reading this passage and am wondering did the angel disappear in vs 21 and come back to him on verse 23? My assumption is based on the passage is that he did come back since:

25 And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it:

This means that it was on the same day as follows

• makes sacrifice
• angel disappears

then the Lord said to him "Take thy father's young bullock".

Is my interpretation correct?

Answer 1

There are Old and New Testament references to “angels of the Lord,” “an angel of the Lord,” and “the angel of the Lord.”

It seems when the definite article “the” is used, it is specifying a unique being, separate from the other angels. The angel of the Lord speaks as God, identifies Himself with God, and exercises the responsibilities of God (Genesis 16:7-12; 21:17-18; 22:11-18; Exodus 3:2; Judges 2:1-4; 5:23; 6:11-24; 13:3-22; 2 Samuel 24:16; Zechariah 1:12; 3:1; 12:8).

In several of these appearances, (including the experience of Gideon in Judges 6:22) those who saw the angel of the Lord feared for their lives because they had “seen the Lord.” It is clear that in at least some instances, the angel of the Lord is a theophany, an appearance of God in physical form.

The angel of the Lord first appears to Gideon in Judges 6:11, where he sits down under the oak in Ophrah. Gideon wants a sign and so the angel of the Lord waits for Gideon to come back with the sacrifice.

In verse 21 the angel of the Lord disappears after the goat meat and the unleavened bread are consumed by fire. Then Gideon, after expressing his fear, is assured by God (who speaks to him) that he is not going to die. That's in verse 23.

In verse 25 God instructs Gideon (by speaking to him) to tear down and destroy the altar of Baal. The angel of the Lord does not need to put in a second appearance. His purpose in being seen by Gideon (verses 11 to 21) has been served. Thereafter, Gideon was assured that he had been called by God to deliver Israel.

The events between Judges 6:11 and Judges 6:27 happen on the same day.

However, it may be worth noting that the Jewish “day” begins at sundown, goes through the night and then a new “day” starts at sundown on the following day. As far as our days are concerned, it happened on the same day (between midnights).