“The Bible does not depict angels having wings,” I wrote to the manufacturer after my son and I noticed their toy angel with big white chicken feathers.
“There are different perspectives on how angels are depicted in Scripture,” they responded.
That’s true, there are different perspectives. The most popular being that angels have big white wings. The only problem with that is that it’s not from the Bible (winged cherubs and seraphim are different than the angelic messengers that also all seem to look like men).
In other words, the popular perspective is wrong. (For the record, Islam says angels do have wings.)
This should not be a surprise. There are many popular misconceptions about the Bible. For example…
• Moses never entered the promised land.
• A lamb was not sacrificed on the Day of Atonement.
• David took a staff with him to fight Goliath.
• We don’t become angels when we die.
• Jesus likely did not wear a pure white robe, blue sash, nor long hair.
Do these details matter? Only to show that people are generally more influenced by popular pictures, songs, movies, and preaching than what the Bible actually says.
If pop culture misses something like angel wings, what could they be missing about more important things like the cross of Christ or the Bible rightly divided?
Whenever you are tempted to think, “why doesn’t anyone else see … the mystery of Christ… the dispensation of grace… the importance of Paul’s apostleship… salvation by grace without works?”
Remember, angel wings.
For your edification,
Justin “not an angel” Johnson