Questions tagged [theophany]
Encounters with God, including through angels and other messengers.
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How and why does the Lord appear again to Jacob in Beth-el (Gen 35:9-13)?
In what form does the Lord appear to Jacob at Beth-el (Gen 35:9-13)? Was it similar to the form in which he appeared in Gen 32 (assuming the wrestler was, indeed, God)? Regardless, why does he appear ...
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Does Acts 1:21-26 teach that one of the requirements to be an apostle is to have witnessed the resurrection of Jesus?
Acts 1:21-26 (ESV):
21 So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was ...
user38524
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Was it a theophany in Numbers 22:25?
Numbers 22:25
New International Version
When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, it pressed close to the wall, crushing Balaam’s foot against it. So he beat the donkey again.
Did the donkey see a ...
user35953
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What does Isaiah 55:6 mean by "seeking" and "finding" the LORD?
Isaiah 55:6 (ESV):
“Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;
What does it mean to seek the LORD? What does it mean to find Him?
user38524
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What exactly happened to Saul when the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon him and turned him into "another man"? 1 Samuel 10:6
1 Samuel 10:6-7 (ESV):
6 Then the Spirit of the LORD will rush upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. 7 Now when these signs meet you, do what your hand finds to do,...
user38524
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Did Jacob wrestle with a person of the Godhead?
Genesis 32:
24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
28Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with ...
user35953
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Was the Angel of the Lord the Preincarnate Christ? [closed]
Hopefully, this question won't ignite too many brush fires. I've read several commentaries that I believe fall short of addressing this subject. Here are some of the instances where this being appears:...
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Why does the angel of the LORD speak in the first person in Judges 2:1-5?
Judges 2:1-5 (KJV):
And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I
made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land
which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, ...
user38524
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Does Hebrews 1:2 mean that Jesus can't be the Angel of the LORD?
Does Hebrew 1:2 mean that Jesus can’t be the Angel of the LORD? It states that in the old days God spoke to other people "but in these last days he has spoken by His son". So, does that mean ...
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In Judges 6, is the Lord and the angel of the Lord the same figure?
In Judges 6:16-23 (NASB)
16 Yet the Lord said to him, “I will certainly be with you, and you will defeat Midian as one man.” 17 So Gideon said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then ...
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Does Isaiah 64:4 speak of seeing God or seeing the greatest of God's blessings?
What hasn't been seen?
There appears to be a substantial difference in meaning in Isaiah 64:4 depending on how a few words are translated--and how the sentence (in English) is punctuated:
Case 1 (...
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Did Stephen see the Father?
Acts 7:54-58 (NRSV):
54 When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. 55 But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and ...
user38524
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What is the meaning of tetheatai "has seen" [God] in 1 John 4:12?
This question is based on discussion in the comments on two separate questions here and here
No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth
in us, and his love is perfected in ...
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If no one has ever seen God, how come Moses was allowed to see His back? [duplicate]
John 1:18 claims that no one has ever seen God, except Jesus:
18 God no one hath ever seen; the only begotten Son, who is on the bosom of the Father -- he did declare.
However, Moses was apparently ...
user38524
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How does Jesus manifest himself to those who love him?
John 14:18-24 (ESV) reads:
18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. ...
user38524
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How should we understand the concepts of "seek" and "find" in Proverbs 8:17?
Proverbs 8:12-21 (ESV):
12 “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
and I find knowledge and discretion.
13 The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted ...
user38524
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What does it mean to "seek God's face" (2 Chronicles 7:14)?
2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV):
14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive ...
user38524
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Is the angel of the lord God himself? Are there verses that affirms the angel of the Lord is God Almighty? [closed]
If the angel of the Lord is God Himself, why is he called the angel of the Lord? Young's Literal Translation of Judges 6:22 says, And Gideon seeth that He is a messenger of Jehovah, and Gideon saith, '...
user35499
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How can John 1:18 say that "No man has seen God" when the Bible says that Abraham, Moses, Job and others have?
At John 1:18 it says,
"No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the
bosom of the Father, He has declared Him."
But Genesis 17:1 says
the Lord appeared to Abram ...
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What does "my name is with him" mean in Exodus 23:21?
Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
21Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your ...
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Is the Angel of the Lord identifying as God? Genesis 21:16-21
In the passage about Hagar in the wilderness of Beer-Sheba, we read that God heard the voice of the crying child Ishmael and then curiously the text speaks of the Angel of the Lord who then identifies ...
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Why did God appear as a firepot and torch to Abram?
So the Lord said to him, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, each three years old, along with a dove and a young pigeon.”
Abram brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves ...
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Does Genesis 18 show God visited Abraham personally (Theophany), manfiested as a man?
Genesis 18 English Standard Version (ESV)
1 And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks[a] of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day. 2 He lifted up his eyes and looked, and ...
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Why does Jacob say "because I saw God face to face"? (Gen 32:30)
After Jacob wrestles with the angel, he names the place Peniel, "because I have seen God face to face." (Gen 32:30).
Why does he say that he has seen God face to face? He has only seen an angel, ...
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Why does God warn Moses to not allow the priests or the people to approach Sinai?
In Exodus 19, God describes a number of preparations that Moses should make before He will ascend to the top of Mount Sinai. One of them is to cordon off an area around the mountain:
You shall set ...
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What is Philip asking for in John 14:8?
When Philip asks Jesus, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be content," what is he asking for? Obviously his categories were mistaken, because the answer to his request was standing right before ...
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How did Manoah know his visitor was the angel of the LORD?
Judges 13 strongly parallels Genesis 18. I my question about that passage was how Abraham was able to determine that the person he was talking to was God so quickly. This time, I have the opposite ...
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At what point did Abraham know he was talking to God in Genesis 18?
At the start of the story in Genesis 18, Abraham does not seem to know who the three men are:
Looking up, he saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the ...
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Is the "captain of the Lord's host" an angel or God Himself?
After Joshua and the people of Israel crossed over the Jordan and before they assaulted Jericho, Joshua had this strange encounter:
Once, when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man ...
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