Messianic · The Angel who bears the Name
Exodus 23:20-23
Moses · ~1446 BC · Status: Fulfilled · Confidence: 65%
“Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.”
King James Version · the opening — all 4 verses are below
God sends His Angel before Israel — One who can pardon transgression and 'in whom is my name' — read by many as a pre-incarnate appearance of the Son.
Read the whole passage — all 4 verses (KJV)
23:20Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.
23:21Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him.
23:22But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.
23:23For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.
Fulfillment References
Exodus 33:14 Isaiah 63:9 1 Corinthians 10:4 John 8:58
How Traditions Read This Prophecy
Apostolic (Oneness) PentecostalThe Angel 'in whom is my name,' who pardons sin (which God alone does), is the one God Himself going before Israel — His Name, revealed fully in Jesus (John 8:58; Acts 4:12).
JewishThe guiding Angel of the LORD (malakh) bearing God's name; Jewish tradition debates the Angel's relation to God — a distinct agent yet bearing the Name.
CatholicOften read as a theophany prefiguring the Son, in whom the divine Name dwells.
ProtestantMany read the 'Angel in whom is my name,' who can forgive sins, as a Christophany — a pre-incarnate appearance of the Son.
OrthodoxThe Angel of great counsel — a manifestation of the pre-incarnate Word leading Israel.
DispensationalThe Angel of the LORD, frequently identified as the pre-incarnate Christ guiding Israel.
AcademicScholars study the 'Angel of the LORD' (mal'akh YHWH) as a figure both identified with and distinct from God — a key datum in the 'two powers in heaven' and later christological debates.
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