And of the angels he says,
Who makes his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.
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Clement Of Rome
AD 99
For it is thus written, "Who maketh His angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire.".
For it is thus written, "Who maketh His angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire."
Maketh his Angels, spirits: and his ministers, a flame of fire. St. Augustine, on Psalm ciii., and St. Gregory, hom. xxxiv. in Evang., would have the sense and construction of the words to be, who maketh the blessed spirits to be also his Angels, or messengers to announce and execute his will: (messengers and Angels signify the same in the Greek) Calvin and Beza by spirits, here understand the winds, as if the sense was only, who maketh the winds and flames of fire, that is, thunder and lightning, the messengers and instruments of his divine will, in regard of men, whom he punisheth. But this exposition agrees not with the rest of the text, nor with the design of St. Paul, which is to show Christ above all the Angels, and above all creatures. St. Paul therefore is to be understood of Angels or angelic spirits: but then the sense may be, who maketh his Angels like the winds, or like a flame of fire, inasmuch as they execute his divine will with incredible swiftness, like the winds, and ...
Is it then Angels only? No; for hear what follows: And of His Angels He says, Which makes His Angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire: but unto the Son, Your Throne, O God, is for ever and ever. Behold, the greatest difference! That they are created, but He uncreated. While of His angels He says, who makes; wherefore of the Son did He not say Who makes? Although he might have expressed the difference as follows: Of His Angels He says, Who makes His Angels spirits, but of the Son, 'The Lord created Me': 'God has made Him Lord and Christ.' Proverbs 8:22; Acts 2:36 But neither was the one spoken concerning the Son, nor the other concerning God The Word, but concerning the flesh. For when he desired to express the true difference, he no longer included angels only, but the whole ministering power above. Do you see how he distinguishes, and with how great clearness, between creatures and Creator, ministers and Lord, the Heir and true Son, and slaves?
45. – As mentioned above, the Apostle devotes this entire first chapter to extolling Christ over the angels by reason of His excellence; hence he lists four things pertaining to Christ’s excellence: first, His origin, because He is the Son; secondly, His dominion, because He is the heir; thirdly, His power, because He made the world; fourthly, His honor, because He sits on the right hand of majesty. But now the Apostle shows that Christ exceeds the angels in these four points: first, in His sonship; secondly, in His dominion (v.6); thirdly, in the work of creation (v.10); fourthly, in regard to the Father’s confession (v.13). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he states his proposition; secondly, he proves it (v.5).
46. – He says, therefore: [Being made] having become as much superior to the angels, i.e., holier and nearer to God. In these words he suggests Christ’s excellence as compared with the angels: ‘Setting him on his right hand in the heavenly places above all...
