Bible Theophanies
Meaning and Importance
This article, written in March 2025, is a prelude to our Who was Melchizedek. It one of a collection of articles examining some of the most common interpretation difficulties and challenges that often puzzle readers of the book of Hebrews. In this article, we examine the appearances of God to persons in the Bible .
Bible Theophanies
What is a Theophany?
The word theophany does not occur in the Bible. It comes from the compound Greek word “theophania”)., which is formed from the Greek words “theos” (God) and “phainein” (to appear). Thus, it describes a visible appearance or manifestation of God to humans. In the Hebrew, the root word “r'h” (to see or appear) is probably the best descriptive term. In the Hebrew Old Testament (OT), the passive form of the root r'h (“to see” or to “appear”) comes closest to describing this term as it often occurs in describing a theophany (see Gen 12:7; Num 16:19, 42; and 2 Chr 7:12 for example).
Theophanies also function as a means of divine revelation. Since God can assume any appearance that He chooses, theophanies come in many varying forms and contexts, particularly in the OT writings. In some cases, the mode or form is not revealed. For example, in the first mentioned theophany, God was walking the the Garden of Eden and spoke with Adam and Eve (Gen 3:8-19) but the text does not describe His exact manifestation. Theophanies can also come to individuals or groups of people as He chooses.
A related term often used by theologians is “Christophany”. This refers specifically to an appearance or manifestation of Jesus Christ to humans. This can refer to His pre-incarnate appearances in the OT or His appearances after His resurrection in the New Testament (NT). In addition, since Christ is also the second person of the trinity, the term “theophany” can also be applied to His appearances. Note that seeing the incarnate Christ during His First Advent is not considered to be a theophany. The experiencing of theophanies were temporary. Once the purpose and occasion for the appearance was fulfilled, the temporary appearance ceased. By contrast, the case of Christ taking on humanity along with His existing deity, was not temporary, but for eternity.
These divine appearances may also take many forms or appearances, as we’ll see throughout this article.
Characteristics of Theophanies
Theophanies are often marked by an announcement of divine promises or sometimes warnings, particularly in the the patriarchal period of the Old Testament (OT). This often resulted in the patriarch erecting an altar to commemorate the place where the promise was made. For example, one of the first theophanies after Eden involved God appearing to Abram (Abraham) with the promise that he would inherit the land of Canaan. Once Abram (Abraham) reached Shechem in Canaan, he built an alter dedicated to the Lord (Gen 12:1-9, see also Gen 26:24–25 and; 28:12–22).
Shortly after Abraham’s encounter with Melchizedek (Genesis 14), which I believe was likely a theophany (Melchizedek being a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ Himself), we see the Lord appearing to Abraham in a vision, in which He makes the Abrahamic Covenant of the land and nations (Genesis 15). Incidentally, if we look forward to the dispute between Jesus and the Pharisees in John 8:31-59 where Jesus stated “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad”. The common interpretation is that Abraham saw a future vision of the first century Christ. I believe that Jesus could have been speaking of the time a covenant was made in Genesis 15 or the appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ to Abraham in Genesis 18 just before God destroyed the city of Sodom (Genesis 18). Also, the author of Hebrews was likely referring to the second event when he wrote “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it” (Heb 13:2).
In the Sinai theophanies that occurred approximately a thousand years later, we witness God’s first manifestation of His presence to Israel as a nation, beginning with Moses on the mountain where He reveals the divine name, “Yahweh” (Ex 3:13-14). Later, God would appear to Moses and groups as He did at Sinai (Ex 16:6-18, compare 16:10). For example, the 70 elders of Israel, along with Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and Joshua, experience a vision of God (Ex 24:9–18) that immediately precedes instructions for the construction of the tabernacle (Ex 25–40).
God often appeared in order to commission a certain prophet for a particular task (e.g., 1 Sam 3:1–14; Isa 6:1–13; Jer 1:1–19; Amos 7:15–17). Many of God’s appearances were the source of the prophet’s claim to speak for God (e.g., 1 Kgs 19:9–18; Amos 7:1–9; Jer 1:11–19). Prophets also experience visions that include the hope that God will appear at a future time to restore Israel (Isa 35:2; 46:13; Jer 24:4–7; Amos 9:13–15; Zech 9:14). Judgment constitutes yet another theme of theophany (Num 12:9–10; Psa 18:13–15; Isa 30:27).
Primary Purpose of Theophanies
We know from the narrative in Exodus 33:12-23 (quoted in 1Jn 4:12) that no human can see God in His true glory and live (see also Dt 4:12; 1Tim 1:17; 6; 1Jn 4:12). Some may argue that God can be seen based on passages like Matthew 5:8 that states “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (see also Gen 32:30 and Job 19:26-27). How do we reconcile this apparent contradiction. As always, we must begin by understanding the contexts of each verse. We can see God metaphysically by our understanding of Who He is. We can also see Him through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ who became flesh and dwelt among us (Jn 1:14,18, see also Col 1:15). Yet, we can’t see God as He truly is since God is a Spirit. Thus the main purpose of theophanies is to provide a method by which God can reveal Himself to mortals in a visible form, without causing the death of the mortal viewer.
Theophanies also display the humility of God. Even though God is self-sufficient amongst Himself (ie the Trinity), He nonetheless reveals Himself to His creation in various forms.
Examples of Old Testament (OT) Theophanies
One of the earliest examples is found in the Book of Job, shortly after the worldwide flood a thousand years or so before the time of Moses. After Job pleads with God regarding the reason for his many tribulations, God appears to him in a whirlwind (Job 38). God then proceeds to ask Job a number of unanswerable questions regarding mysteries of creation and other topics. This forced Job to acknowledge the sovereignty of God and to repent for questioning God’s wisdom and understanding (see Job 42:1-6).
Perhaps the best known theophany is found in the narrative of Moses and the Burning Bush in Exodus chapter 3, in which God appears in a fiery bush that is not consumed by the flames. God then reveals that His personal name is Yahweh (I Am Who I Am), and names Moses as his representative who will lead His people out of Egyptian bondage. Perhaps the best known type of theophany is the appearances in human or partial-human form. For example, when God confirmed the Mosaic covenant in Exodus 24, He appeared to Moses and the elders by standing on pavement made of precious stones as blue as the sky “under His feet” (Ex 24:9-10). Afterward, Moses and Joshua went up the mountain for forty days and nights, during which He received the Ten Commandments. The mountain was covered by a cloud that appeared from below as like a consuming fire (Ex 24:12-18). Later, Moses agreed to lead the people and asked again to see the to see the glory of the Lord (Ex 33:12-23). God replied that Moses could not see his face and live, but agreed to show Moses his back (the Hebrew for back can also mean “after-effects”). God then hid Moses in the cleft of a rock until had passed by. the removed His hand for Moses to see.
Another popular method of revelation was to appear in dreams and/or visions. A good example is Jacob’s dream at Bethel, in which he saw a stairway reaching into heaven, with the angels of God ascending and descending on it. God used this vision to promise the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob the land on which he was lying. Their possession would spread to the north, south, east and west, and all peoples would be blessed through his offspring (Gen 28:10-17). This blessing was ultimately fulfilled by Jesus the Messiah. Amongst the prophets, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel also saw God in visions. In Isaiah 6, the prophet saw a vision of God’s throne room at his inauguration. In Ezekiel’s inauguration (Ezk 1-3). the prophet saw a vision of God in a windstorm containing an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. In chapter 43, he saw the Glory of the Lord returning to the Temple. His voice was described as the roar of rushing waters. The prophet Daniel’s vision came in a dream, in which he saw four great beasts coming out of the sea (Dan 7), followed by a vision of a ram and goat which predicted coming historical events (Dan 8). Note that some theologians exclude divine manifestations in dreams or visions from the theophany category.
Another famous theophany occurred at God’s commissioning of the prophet Isaiah in the Temple. As described by Isaiah in chapter 6 of his prophetical book, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke (Is 6:1-4).
Examples of New Testament (NT) Theophanies
After the incarnation, there was little necessity of theophanies. The Second Person of the Trinity was now dwelling on earth, so God was always present in the Person of Christ and, after thePentecost, the Holy Spirit. Still, we can identify several events that would be considered theophanies.
The first theophany in the New Testament involves an angel of the Lord appearing to Joseph, “father” of Jesus. In a dream, the angel announces the coming birth of the Messiah to his wife Mary (Mt 1:18-25). Then, at the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry, we see the appearance of the Holy Spirit coming down on Jesus “like a dove” at His baptism (Mt 3:13-17; Mk 1:9-11; Lk 3:21-22; and Jn 1:31-34).
Another example is at the stoning martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7), a man full of God’s grace and power, who performed great signs and wonders among the people (Ac 6:8). He spoke before the Sanhedrin (Jewish religious leaders) and proclaimed the good news of the kingdom as opposed to OT law that Jesus fulfilled. In his speech, he recalled the previous OT theophanies of Abraham and Moses (Ac 7:2-3). He then witnessed his own theophany of the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of the Father (Ac 7:55-56). It is noteworthy that the text says that Jesus was “standing” at the right hand of God. All other similar statements indicate that Jesus was “sitting” at the right hand of the Father. Yet, when Stephen became the first Christian martyr, Jesus stood up as if giving him a standing ovation. Stephen was thus tried and executed for his belief in Jesus, becoming the first Christian martyr (Acts chapters 7 and 8).
Shortly after the stoning of Stephen, Paul (then called “Saul” prior to his conversion) headed to Damascus to take any believers as prisoner back to Jerusalem (Saul had approved of the stoning of Stephen). As he drew near to Damascus, he was blinded by a sudden flash of light from heaven and heard a voice saying, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” When he inquired as to the identity of the voice, It replied “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do” (Ac 9:5-6). When Paul got up from the ground, his was still blind and had to be led by the hand into Damascus. After three days, God sent Ananias to restore Paul’s eyesight and deliver the message that Paul had been chosen to proclaim the Name of Jesus to the Gentiles (Ac 9:1-19). In this case, the theophany took the form of a blinding light.
The book of Revelation contains multiple theophanic visions, many of which are foreseen in the OT. For example, the Apostle John first sees a vision of Christ (Rev 1:9-20) in which he receives messages to seven churches (Rev 2-3). As John describes the vision, On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” I turned around to see the voice that was speaking to me. And when I turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades (Rev 1:9-18).
Other similar visions of God’s throne room with vivid descriptions are found in Revelation 4:2-8 (see also Ezek 1:) and of the Great White Throne from which God will pronounce final judgments on unbelievers in Revelation 20:11-15 (see Ezekiel 1). Another very important vision by John was that of the two witnesses (Rev 11:1-14) and the seventh trumpet at which God’s Heavenly Temple was opened to reveal the ark of the covenant (Rev 11:15-19). The final theophany is found in Revelation 20:11-15 in which God is seated on a great white throne at the final judgment of the dead.
Theophanies Involving The Angel of the Lord
A very special and unusual case involving theophanies is when we find the expression, “Angel of the Lord” or “Angel of God”. Note that this is not “an angel of God”, which could include any of the vast angelic host that were created by God, but a rare appearance of “the Angel of God”. That is, this Angel is identified as Yahweh or the Lord Himself, the Second Person of the Trinity. Indeed, the title Angel of the Lord is often used interchangeably in Scripture with the names Yahweh (Jehovah) and God in such a way as to leave little doubt that the angel is a manifestation of God himself. Most occurrences are found in the OT, in which we have a pre-incarnation appearance of the Christ. A good example is the appearance of the Angel of the Lord to Hagar delivering a promise that she would bear a son Ishmael who would have descendants that would be too numerous to count (Gen 16). The Angel of the Lord is sometimes call the “Messenger of the Lord” since the Hebrew word for angel ( mel'akh) and the Greek word for angel (angelos) both mean “messenger”. In the OT, “the Angel of God” (or “of the Lord”) is often a pre-incarnation appearance of Jesus Christ. For example, it is commonly thought that one of the visitors to Abraham and Lot at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was none other than the Second Person of the Trinity (Gen 18) .
He sometimes appeared to performed special tasks at particular times in the
history of Israel. For example, He prepared the way to bring Israel into
the promised land. In this case, the God states that “my name is in
Him” (Ex 23:20-31). He was not to be identified as a created being
(Ex:18-20). In many texts, it was almost impossible distinguish between
the angel of the Lord and the Lord himself as in the aforementioned case of
Isaac, Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis 16 and 21:8-21). The Angel later
called to Abraham from heaven after his testing with Isaac (Gen 22:1-19) and
then found a wife for Isaac (Gen 24:7-40). Isaac’s son Jacob was blessed
with an abundance of livestock by the Angel (Gen 31:4-16) and delivered from
harm (Gen 48:15-16). In the days of Moses, the Angel appeared to him in a
burning bush. When Moses asked His name, He replied Yahweh, or “I Am Who I
Am” (Ex 3:1-14). Later, when the Midianites was during the time of
the Judges, the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, and assured him that He
was with him. In this case, Gideon clearly recognized the Angel as the
Lord. When Gideon realized that it was the angel of
the LORD, he exclaimed, “Alas, Sovereign LORD! I have seen the angel of
the LORD face to face!” But the LORD said to him, “Peace! Do not be
afraid. You are not going to die” (Jdg 6:22-23). We see
another appearance at the birth of Samson (Jdg 13).
Finally, one of my personal favorite pre-incarnate appearances is found in the narrative of the fiery furnace in Daniel chapter three during the nation of Judah’s captivity in Babylon. The Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold and decreed that all should bow down and worship the false idol. He further decreed that all who refused to worship the idol would immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace. Three of Daniel’s friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to worship the false idol and was brought before the king, bound and thrown into the fiery furnace (Daniel must have been off on official business since he also would have refused). Upon the king’s order, the furnace was heated seven times hotter than usual, so much so that the soldiers who were guarding them all died from the heat so Daniel’s three friend fell into the furnace. We now let the scriptures speak for themselves:
Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?” They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.” He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.” Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, and the satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way. ” Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon (Dan 3:24-30.). This figure that is described as “a son the the god” was almost certainly a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ.
Final Comment and Related Article
As we mentioned in our introduction, this article was written as a prelude to our Who was Melchizedek article. We find the story of Melchizedek in Genesis 14 and Hebrews 7. One of the possibilities that we discuss is the possibility that Melchizedek was a pre-incarnate appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ.