In the angelology of differentreligions, ahierarchy of angels is a ranking system ofangels. The higher ranking angels have greater power and authority than lower ones, and different ranks have differences in appearance, such as varying numbers of wings or faces.
TheJewish angelic hierarchy is established in theHebrew Bible,Talmud,Rabbinic literature, and traditionalJewish liturgy. They are categorized in different hierarchies proposed by various theologians. For example,Maimonides, in hisMishneh Torah orYad ha-Chazakah: Yesodei ha-Torah, counts ten ranks ofangels.[1][2][3][4] TheZohar, inExodus 43a, also lists ten ranks of angels.[5] Jacob Nazir, in hisMaseket Atzilut, also listed ten ranks of angels.[5]Abraham ben Isaac of Granada, in hisBerit Menuchah, also listed ten ranks of angels.
All of them are ranked with 1 being the highest, and all subsequent numbers being lower ranks.
| Rank | Angelic Class | Notes | Refs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mishneh Torah | Zohar | Maseket Atzilut | Berit Menuchah | Reshit Chochmah | |||
| 1 | 4 | N/A | N/A | 1 | Chayot Ha Kodesh/Chayot[6] | SeeEzekiel 1 andEzekiel 10 | |
| 2 | 5 | 2 | 9 | 2 | Ophan | SeeEzekiel 1 andEzekiel 10 | |
| 3 | 2 | 10 | 1 | 5 | Erel | SeeIsaiah 33:7 | |
| 4 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 7 | Hashmal | SeeEzekiel 1:4 | |
| 5 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 3 | Seraph | SeeIsaiah 6 | |
| 6 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 9 | Malakh/Malak | Messengers, angels | |
| 7 | 8 | N/A | N/A | N/A | Elohim | "Godly beings", Divine beings who were not the Supreme God | |
| 8 | 9 | 9 | 3 | N/A | Bene Elohim | "Sons of God" | |
| 9 | N/A | 3 | 8 | 4 | Cherub | SeeHagigah 13b | |
| 10 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 10 | Ish | "manlike beings" | seeGenesis 18:2Daniel 10:5 |
| N/A | 7 | N/A | N/A | 8 | El | 2 Corinthians 13:3 | |
| N/A | N/A | 4 | 7 | N/A | Shinan | 3 Enoch | |
| N/A | N/A | 5 | 6 | 6 | Tarshish | 3 Enoch | |
The most influentialangelic hierarchy was that put forward byPseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite in the 5th or 6th century in his bookDe Coelesti Hierarchia (On the Celestial Hierarchy). Dionysius described nine levels of spiritual beings which he grouped into three orders:[7][8][9]
During theMiddle Ages, various schemes were proposed, some drawing on and expanding on Pseudo-Dionysius, others suggesting completely different classifications.
Pseudo-Dionysius (On the Celestial Hierarchy) andThomas Aquinas (Summa Theologiae) drew on passages from theNew Testament, specificallyEphesians1:21 andColossians1:16, to develop a schema of three Hierarchies, Spheres or Triads of angels, with each Hierarchy containing three Orders or Choirs.Bonaventure summarized their nine offices as follows: announcing, declaring, and leading; regulating, enforcing, and commanding; receiving, revealing, and anointing.[10] Thomas agreed withJerome's commentary onMt 18:10 that every living human possesses aguardian angel. Of the angelic orders, he asserted that only the lowest five are sent by God to manifest themselves in the corporeal world, while the four highest remain inHeaven at His presence.[11]
TheChaplet of Saint Michael the archangel, a Catholic devotion also called the rosary of the angels, approved by Pope Pius IX, includes prayers and specific invocations for each of the nine choirs of angels.[12][13]
There is no standard hierarchical organization in Islam that parallels the Christian division into different "choirs" or spheres, and the topic is not directly addressed in theQuran. However, it is clear that there is a set order or hierarchy that exists between angels, defined by the assigned jobs and various tasks to which angels are commanded by God. Some scholars suggest that Islamic angels can be grouped into fourteen categories, with some of the higher orders being consideredarchangels.Qazwini describes an angelic hierarchy in hisAja'ib al-makhluqat withRuh on the head of all angels, surrounded by the four archangelic cherubim. Below them are the seven angels of the seven heavens.[14]
Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d. 1209) divided the angels into eight groups, which shows some resemblance to Christian angelology:[15]
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There is an informalZoroastrian angelic hierarchy, with the specific angelic beings calledyazatas having key positions in the day-name dedications on theZoroastrian calendar segregated into theameshaspentas (the second to seventh of the 30 days of the month),yazatas andminoos (the last six of the 30 days of the month).
Angels are occasionally presented inrole-playing games as having ordered hierarchies, within which higher level angels have more power and the ability to cast more spells or exercise other magical abilities. For example, Angels inDungeons & Dragons, a subgroup of the beings called Celestials, come in three different types, the progressively more powerful Astral Deva, Planetar, and Solar.[17][18] Another game which has summonable angels isShin Megami Tensei, often classified under Divine, or Heralds.In the game seriesBayonetta, Black Angels are supporting and all seven spheres are present, each divided in the same seven way as the traditional hierarchy.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)| First Sphere |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Second Sphere | ||
| Third Sphere | ||
