that Nachmanides considered the words, "I am the God of Bethel, &c.," as applying to the angel.

6

Bechai says, " If interpreted literally, the words, 'I am the God of Bethel,' mean, The God that appeared to thee in Bethel. But according to cabbalistic interpretation, this angel who calls himself the God of Bethel, is the goodness spoken of in the words, I will make all my goodness pass before thee' (Exod. xxxiii. 19), and he is the house mentioned in the words, Who was faithful in all my house,' for a man's goodness is his house, and, therefore, he says of himself, I am the God of Bethel. And so it is said of Jacob, 'He called the place El Bethel.' But, behold, even according to the literal interpretation of the verse, it is certain that this angel is the God of Bethel, and understand this."* (Comment. in loc.) Bechai also fully agrees to the fact that the angel is called the God of Bethel, and the reasons which he assigns, evidently point to the Shechinah or habitation which he calls "The house;" and, further, "The goodness of the Lord;" so that from this Commentary it would appear that the Shechinah is the Being here alluded to.

In the Commentary of Menachem of Rekanata, the same opinion is expressed still more clearly. He says, "The angel mentioned above, said to him, I am the God of Bethel, by which is intended the Shechinah, who is called angel, for she appeared to the fathers, and to her the vow was made, and, therefore, it is said, Where thou vowedst the vow to me, as is explained above. She is called angel, because the government of this world is by her mouth. And understand that she is called

*

אנכי האל בית אל - ע"ד הפשט שנגלה לך בבי' אל - וע"ד הקבל' המלאך הזה שקרא עצמו אל הוא הטוב שנא' אני אעביר כל טובי על פניך והוא הבית שנא' עליו בכל ביתי נאמן הוא כי טוב האדם ביתו - ועל כן אמר על עצמו אנכי האל בית אל - וכן ביעקב ויקרא למקו' אל בית אל והנה הכתוב הזה נכון כפשוטו כי המלאך הזה שהוא אל ביתאל והבן זה •

Shechinah, which means habitation, is feminine, and, therefore, the pronouns and verbs are feminine.

is by Gematria equivalent האלהים where מלאך האלהים

to ; and

b (God) is here used, because she proceeds from the sphera, 7722 (might).”*

Here also it is plainly admitted that the angel calls himself the God of Bethel, and to this Being the vow was made. The fact therefore is not disputed, and therefore this one passage is sufficient to prove that this angel is very God. Indeed the commentators quoted do not deny the inference, for when they say that this Being was the Shechinah, or habitation, they employ the same language used in the New Testament, as for instance, "In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." (Coloss. ii. 9.) When the law of Moses sets before us a being who says of himself that He is the God of Bethel, and that He is the object of Jacob's worship, what else can we conclude but that He is very God, especially as the great object of this law, throughout, is to enforce the unity of God? But it is to be observed that this passage does not stand alone, there are other similar assertions, equally plain and strong. In the third chapter of Exodus, this same Being is said to have appeared to Moses in the bush, and then without any intimation of a change of person, the text says, "And when the Lord, n, saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses! And he said, Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Moreover, he said, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face ; for he was afraid to look upon God." (Exod. iii. 4-6.)

המלאך הנזכר למעלה אמר לו אנכי האל בית אל - והרמז לשכינה הנקראת מלאך כי היא הנראית לאבות ואליה היה הנדר וע"כ אמר אשר נדרת לי שם נדר כמו שפי' למעלה •

והבן שקראה מלאך האלהים ונקראת מלאך יען היות הנהגת העולם הזה על פיה האלהים בגמטריא מ"לאך בעבור יניקתה מן הגבורה אמר אלהים

Edit. Venice,

1523, fol. 45, col. 1. The folios are not numbered, but I have counted them, reckoning the title folio as fol. 1.

To a plain reader, abiding by the common rules of grammar and the usage of all languages, it would appear, that the angel of the Lord here calls himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But it has been said that this is a Trinitarian prejudice; let us see, then, how the Jews, who are supposed to be free from this prejudice, understood the passage:

:

Aben Ezra expresses his opinion thus: "And when the Lord saw. "These are also the words of Moses, afterwards, and the angel is called by the glorious name in the same way as in the passage, For my name is in him,' and there I shall explain it. And this is also done with respect to the angel who appeared to Gideon, where it is written, And the LORD said to him.' Or the meaning may be thus, The Lord saw that he turned aside to see, and commanded the angel to call to him, and, therefore, the word (God) is used. [God called unto him out of the bush.] And this name [b] is not a noun of substance, but a noun of quality, as I will explain : and it comprehends all holy beings, which are not corporeal, and whose power is not corporeal, as it is written, The Gods, b, whose dwelling is not with flesh,' which is corporeal. And, behold, b (God) in this passage, is the angel mentioned above."* (Comment. in loc.) Aben Ezra here offers two ways of interpreting the fourth verse; according to the first, there is no change of person. The angel is, therefore, the only agent throughout, and consequently says, "I am the God of Abraham, &c." According to the other interpretation there are two agents, Jehovah and the angel. The sense of the verse on this view would be, "When the Lord

6

גם אלה דברי משה בסוף ונקרא המלאך בשם הנכבד כדרך כי שמי בקרבו ושם אפרשנו וכך המלאך שנראה לגדעון ושם כתוב ויאמר לו יי' או השם איננו שם העצם רק שם תאר כאשר אפרש והוא כולל כל קדוש שאינו גוף ולא כח בגוף ככתוב להן אלהין די מדרהון עם בשרא לא איתוהי שהוא הגוף והנה אלהים במקום הזה הוא המלאך

הנזכר :

saw that he turned aside to see, the angel called unto him out of the midst of the bush." We do not stop to show the untenableness of this interpretation at present, for it does not alter the argument. Aben Ezra grants that the angel is the speaker, and that is all that we require. We only wish at present to establish the fact, not to explain it.

R. Bechai testifies unreservedly to the fact, that the angel here calls himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. "Ask not," he says, "how Moses could hide his face before the angel, for the angel mentioned here is the angel, the Redeemer, of whom it is written, I am the God of Bethel.' And in like manner it is said here, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob,' and he it is of whom it is said, 'My name is in him."" (Comment. in loc.)

R. Moses ben Nachman goes a step farther; he not only confirms the fact, but rejects the explanation, that the angel was speaking in the name of him that sent him. His words are, "The explanation, that in the words, 'I am the God of thy father,' the messenger spoke in the language of him that sent him is not correct, for Moses's degree in prophecy was too high for him to hide his face before the angel. Our rabbies have said in Bereshith Rabba, This angel is Michael. As in the case of R. Jose, the Patient, wherever he was seen, they said, There is our holy rabbi; so wherever Michael is seen, there is the glory of the Shechinah.' They meant to say, that at first Michael appeared to him, and that the glory of the Shechinah was there, but he did not see the glory, for he did not apply his mind to the prophetic vision; but, when he applied his mind and turned aside to see, then the appearance of the Shechinah was revealed

ואל תתמה איך יסתיר משה פניו מן המלאך כי המלאך הנזכר בכאן הוא המלאך הגואל שכתוב בו אנכי האל בית אל וכן אמר בכאן אנכי אלהי אביך אלהי אברהם אלהי יצחק ואלהי יעקב והוא שנ' עליו כי שמי בקרבו :

unto him, and God called unto him out of the midst of the bush. And in the way of truth, this angel was the angel, the Redeemer, for it is said, 'My name is in him.' He it is who said to Jacob, I am the God of Bethel; and of him it is said, And God called to him.' But he is called angel, 78, with reference to the government of the world; and thus it is written [in one place], 'And the LORD brought us out of Egypt' (Deut. vi. 21); and [in another place] it is written, And he sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt.' (Numb. xx. 16.) Again, it is said, 'The angel of his presence saved them,' that is to say, The angel who is his presence. (Isaiah lxiii. 9.) For it is written, My presence shall go, and I will give thee rest.' (Exod. xxxiii. 14.) And this is what is said, 'The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come. (Mal. iii. 1.)' And thou wilt understand this further in other verses yet to come, which treat of the same matter."

We have here the confession of Jews, that that Being who is called the angel of the Lord says of himself, that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; that this is the plain meaning of the text, what, then, is the conclusion? What can it be, but that He is what he claimed to be? We have seen that there is but one being who is called the angel of the Lord. Secondly, That the name of this one Being is Jehovah, the incommunicable name of God: and, Thirdly, That this Being says of himself, distinctly and unequivocally, that He is the God whom Jacob worshipped, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and we have seen, Fourthly, That this is as plainly asserted by the Jews as by us. There is but one possible conclusion, and that is, that this Being is very God.

Enough, I trust, has been here said, to establish the