Gabriel

Hebrew Bible

In the Hebrew Bible, Gabriel appears to the prophet Daniel to explain his visions (Daniel 8:15–26, 9:21–27). Later, in Daniel's final vision, an angel, not named but likely Gabriel again, appears to him and speaks of receiving help from prince Michael in battle against the demon prince of Persia (Daniel 10:13, 21) and also Michael's role in times to come (Daniel 12:1). These are the first instances of a named angel in the Bible. Gabriel's main function in Daniel is that of revealer, responsible for interpreting Daniel's visions, a role he continues to have in later traditions.

Rabbinic Judaism

Gabriel, (Hebrew: גַּבְרִיאֵל, romanized: Gaḇrīʾēl) is interpreted by Talmudic rabbis to be the "man in linen" mentioned in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Ezekiel. Talmudic Judaism understands the angel in the Book of Ezekiel, who was sent to destroy Jerusalem, to be Gabriel. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, Gabriel takes the form of a man, and stands at the left hand of God.^[14] Shimon ben Lakish (Syria Palaestina, 3rd century) concluded that the angelic names of Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel came out of the Babylonian exile (Gen. Rab. 48:9).^[15] Alongside the archangel Michael, Gabriel is described as the guardian angel of Israel, defending this people against the angels of the other nations.^[16]

Mystical Judaism

In Kabbalah, Gabriel is identified with the sefira of Yesod. Gabriel also has a prominent role as one of God's archangels in the Kabbalah literature. There, Gabriel is portrayed as working in concert with Michael as part of God's court. Gabriel is not to be prayed to because only God can answer prayers and sends Gabriel as his agent.^[14]

According to Jewish mythology, in the Garden of Eden there is a tree of life or the "tree of souls"^[17] that blossoms and produces new souls, which fall into the Guf, the treasury of souls. Gabriel reaches into the treasury and takes out the first soul that comes into his hand.

In Islam, the tree of souls is referred to as the Sidrat al-Muntaha (and is identified as a Ziziphus spina-christi).

New Testament

Gabriel's first appearance in the New Testament concerns the annunciation of the birth of John the Baptist. John's father Zachariah, a priest of the course of Abia, (Luke 1:5–7) was childless because his wife Elisabeth was barren. An angel appears to Zacharias while he is ministering in the Temple to announce the birth of his son. When Zachariah questions the angel, the angel gives his name as Gabriel:

10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.
11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.
13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.
14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb.
16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.
17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.
19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings.
20 And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

— Luke 1:10–20^[18]

After completing his required week^[19] of ministry, Zacharias returns to his home and his wife Elizabeth conceives. After she has completed five months of her pregnancy (Luke 1:21–25), Gabriel appears again, now to Mary, to announce the birth of Jesus:

26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

— Luke 1:26–38^[20]

Gabriel only appears by name in those two passages in Luke. In the first passage the angel identified himself as Gabriel, but in the second it is Luke who identified him as Gabriel. The only other named angels in the New Testament are Michael the Archangel (in Jude 1:9) and Abaddon (in Revelation 9:11). Believers are expressly warned not to worship angels in two New Testament passages: Colossians 2:18–19 and Revelation 19:10.^[21]

Intertestamental literature

Gabriel is not called an archangel in the canonical Bible. However, the intertestamental period (roughly 200 BC – 50 AD) produced a wealth of literature, much of it having an apocalyptic orientation. The names and ranks of angels and devils were greatly expanded in this literature, and each had particular duties and status before God. This was the period when Gabriel was first referred to as an archangel.

In 1 Enoch 9:1–3, Gabriel, along with Michael, Uriel, and Suriel, "saw much blood being shed upon the earth" (9:1) and heard the souls of men cry, "Bring our cause before the Most High" (9:3). In 1 Enoch 10:1, the reply came from "the Most High, the Holy and Great One" who sent forth agents, including Gabriel—

And the Lord said to Gabriel: "Proceed against the bastards and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in battle: for length of days shall they not have."

— 1 Enoch 10:9

Gabriel is the fifth of the five angels who keep watch: "Gabriel, one of the holy angels, who is over Paradise and the serpents and the Cherubim". (1 Enoch 20:7) When Enoch asked who the four figures were that he had seen:

And he said to me: 'This first is Michael, the merciful and long-suffering: and the second, who is set over all the diseases and all the wounds of the children of men, is Raphael: and the third, who is set over all the powers, is Gabriel: and the fourth, who is set over the repentance unto hope of those who inherit eternal life, is named Phanuel.' And these are the four angels of the Lord of Spirits and the four voices I heard in those days.

— Enoch 40:9

Gnosticism

The Christian movement of Gnosticism paid special attention to angels as beings belonging to a pantheon of spiritual forces involved in the creation of the world. According to one ancient Gnostic manuscript, the Holy Book of the Great Invisible Spirit, Gabriel is a divine being and inhabitant of the Pleroma who existed prior to the Demiurge.^[22]

Medieval Christian traditions

• 
  Archangel Gabriel at the façade of the Cathedral of Reims, late 13th century
• 
  The Annunciation from the Llanbeblig Book of Hours (late 14th century), showing Gabriel kneeling on one knee
• 
  Icon of Gabriel, Byzantine, c. 1387–1395 (Tretyakov Gallery)
• 
  Archangel Gabriel. A fresco from the Tsalenjikha Cathedral by Cyrus Emanuel Eugenicus. 14th century.
• 
  Statue of Archangel Gabriel (15th century), adorning the top of the northwest corner pillar of the Palazzo Ducale in Venice
• 
  Gabriel on the southern deacons' door of the iconostasis in the Cathedral of Hajdúdorog, Hungary

In a famous early work, the "four homilies on the Missus Est, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153 AD) interpreted Gabriel's name as "the strength of God", and his symbolic function in the gospel story as announcement of the strength or virtue of Christ, both as the strength of God incarnate and as the strength given by God to the timorous people who would bring into the world a fearful and troublesome event. "Therefore it was an opportune choice that designated Gabriel for the work he had to accomplish, or rather, because he was to accomplish it therefore he was called Gabriel."^[23]

Evangelical Christian traditions

The image of Gabriel's trumpet blast to announce the end of time was taken up in Evangelical Christianity, where it became widespread, notably in Negro spirituals.^[41]

An earlier example occurs in John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667):^[37][42]

Betwixt these rockie pillars Gabriel sat
Chief of the Angelic guards (IV.545f) ...
He ended, and the Son gave signal high
To the bright minister that watch'd, he blew
His trumpet, heard in Oreb since perhaps
When God descended, and perhaps once more
To sound at general doom. (XI.72ff).

It is unclear how the Armenian conception inspired Milton and the spirituals, though they presumably have a common source.^[37]

Tasks

Muslims believe that Gabriel was mainly tasked with transmitting the scriptures from God to the prophets and messengers, as Asbab al-Nuzul or revelation^[54] when Muhammad was questioned which angel is revealing the holy scriptures revelation, and Muhammad told the Jews it is revealed by Gabriel who is tasked to it.^[55]

Muslims also revere Gabriel for several events that predate what they regard as the first revelation narrated in the Quran. Muslims believe that Gabriel was the angel who informed Zechariah of the Nativity of John the Baptist, as well as Mary about the future nativity of Jesus;^[56][57] and that Gabriel was one of three angels who had earlier informed Abraham of the birth of Isaac (51:24–30).^[58] Gabriel also makes a famous appearance in the Hadith of Gabriel, in which he questions Muhammad on the core tenets of Islam.^[8]

Gabriel is also believed to have delivered punishment from God to the Sodomites by leveling the entire city of Sodom with a tip of his wing.^[59] According to a Hadith narrated by Abu Dharr al-Ghifari, which is compiled by al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi, Gabriel has the ability to regulate feeling or perception in humans, particularly happiness or sadness.^[60]

Gabriel is believed to have helped Muhammad overcome his adversaries significantly against an ifrit during the Night Journey.^[61][62] Gabriel is also believed to have helped Muhammad overcome his adversaries during the Battle of Badr, where according to scholars and clerics of Islam, the various hadiths, both authentics and inauthentics, has mentioned that Gabriel,^[63] Michael, Raphael,^{[64][N 3][N 4]} and thousands of best angels from third level of heaven, all came to the battle of Badr by impersonating the appearance of Zubayr ibn al-Awwam, a Companions of the Prophet and bodyguard of the prophet.^{[N 5][69]} This is deemed as Zubayr personal honor according to Islamic belief.^{[70][71][N 6]} Meanwhile, Safiur Rahman Mubarakpuri has recorded in his historiography works of Quran and Hadith revelation in Prophetic biography, that Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas testified he saw two unidentified warriors clad in white had protected Muhammad during the Battle of Uhud, that later being confirmed by Muhammad those two unidentified warriors were Jibril and Mikail in disguise.^[73]

Moreover, he is believed to have further encouraged Muhammad to wage war and attack the Jewish tribe of Banu Qurayza.^[45][74] Another appearance of Gabriel in Islamic religious texts were found in numerous Hadiths during the Battle of Hunayn, where the Gabriel stood next to Muhammad.^[75]

Other Islamic texts and some Apocryphal literature also supported Gabriel's role as a celestial warrior.^[45][76] Though alternate theories exist, whether the occurrence of the Holy Spirit in the Quran refers to Gabriel or not, remains an issue of scholarly debate.^{[citation needed]} However, a clear distinction between apocryphal and Quranic references to Gabriel is that the former doesn't designate him as the Holy Spirit in the First Book of Enoch, which narrates the story of Gabriel defeating the Nephilim.^[45]

Sculptures

• 
  Archangel Gabriel Millennium Monument at Heroes' Square in Budapest
• 
  Archangel Gabriel in the church of St. Georg in Bermatingen
• 
  Archangel Gabriel in the church of St. Magnus in Waldburg
• 
  Archangel Gabriel at the façade of the Cathedral of Reims
• 
  Archangel Gabriel at the Liberty Square, Budapest
• 
  Archangel Gabriel of Nedvědice

Festivals

• Baltimore's (Maryland) "Little Italy" neighborhood has for over 80 years hosted an annual "end of summer" St. Gabriel Festival that features a procession with a statue of the saint carried through the streets.^[84][85]

Film

• In Liliom (1930), Gabriel is portrayed by Harvey Clark.
• In Gabriel Over the White House (1933), Gabriel is an unseen presence indicated by enhanced light.
• In The Green Pastures (1936), Gabriel is portrayed by Oscar Polk.
• In Heaven Only Knows (1947), Gabriel was portrayed by William Farnum.
• In The Littlest Angel (1969; television film), Gabriel is portrayed by Cab Calloway.
• In horror film The Prophecy (1995), Gabriel (portrayed by Christopher Walken) searches for an evil soul on Earth during an end-of-days angelic civil war. He is also a character in The Prophecy II (1998) and The Prophecy 3: The Ascent (2000).
• In Mary, Mother of Jesus (1999; television film), Gabriel is portrayed by John Light.
• In the fantasy/horror film Van Helsing (2004), the title character played by Hugh Jackman is hinted to be an incarnation of Gabriel.
• The film De-Lovely (2004), based on the life of Cole Porter, has a frame story featuring Jonathan Pryce as Gabriel the Angel of Death, coming to collect Porter (Kevin Kline) in 1964. This subplot culminates in a chorus of the song "Blow, Gabriel, Blow".
• In the fantasy/horror film Constantine (2005), Tilda Swinton portrays an androgynous archangel Gabriel.
• In the action/horror film Gabriel (2007), the eponymous character (portrayed by Andy Whitfield) fights to save the souls in purgatory by defeating the evil fallen angels.
• In the apocalyptic supernatural action film Legion (2010), Kevin Durand plays the role of Archangel Gabriel, the leader of the angel army, and the main antagonist. The story was continued in the TV series Dominion.
• In the analog horror series The Mandela Catalogue, Gabriel is portrayed as the main antagonist, seemingly being the Antichrist or Satan disguised as Gabriel, that manipulates the shepherds to be their saviour instead of Jesus in the first episode, Overthrone. This leads to the events of the series having hostile organisms called Alternates.

Games

• 2005: Spanish role-playing game Anima: Beyond Fantasy, Gabriel is, as the humans know, one of the seven "Beryls" (godlike beings of light), and is identified with the archangel of the same name. She has associated with love, friendship, arts, and peace.
• In the Japanese role-playing game Shin Megami Tensei, Gabriel is one of the Demons the player can summon to assist in battle.
• In the 2011 video game El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron, based on the Book of Enoch, Gabriel is featured alongside Michael, Raphael, and Uriel as a guide for Enoch on his quest. All four archangels take the form of swans while on Earth. Gabriel is depicted as female in this interpretation and implied to be an angel of wisdom. She is associated with the Veil weapon Enoch uses.
• Gabriel appears in the retro first-person shooter Ultrakill, and is voiced by Gianni Matragrano. He is featured as the final boss of the first two acts and a primary story character.
• In The Binding of Isaac (2011), a roguelike dungeon crawler, the player is able to fight Gabriel and Uriel to obtain their key pieces in order to fight Mega Satan.
• In In Death: Unchained, a virtual reality rougelike archery game, God has abandoned the Heaven and Gabriel has lost his sanity. He is a boss of the Paradise Lost area.

Literature

• Baal-e-Jibril (Published in 1935) is a Urdu philosophical poetry book written by Allama Muhammad Iqbal. Jibril-wa-Iblis (Gabriel and Lucifer) is one of its poem, a conversation between Gabriel and Lucifer.
• In his epic poem Paradise Lost, John Milton made Gabriel chief of the angelic guards placed over Paradise.
• The Hebrew poem "Elifelet" (אליפלט) by Nathan Alterman, put to music and often heard on the Israeli Radio, tells of a heroic, self-sacrificing Israeli soldier being killed in battle. Upon the protagonist's death, the angel Gabriel descends to Earth, in order to comfort the spirit of the fallen hero and take him to Heaven.^[86][87]
• In August Wilson's Fences (1985), the mentally handicapped character Gabriel believes with every fiber of his soul that he is the Archangel Gabriel. He carries around a trumpet on him always, and strives to chase away the "hellhounds". In the last scene of the play, he calls for Saint Peter to open the gates.
• The main character of Salman Rushdie's The Satanic Verses (1988) believes that he is the modern incarnation of Gabriel.
• In the humourous fantasy novel Good Omens (1990) by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Gabriel is the head of an inefficient heavenly bureaucracy.
• In the Japanese light novel series No Game No Life (2012), Jibril is a member of the Flügel race and was a member of the Council of 18 Wings, a prominent section in the government. She is depicted as loving knowledge and books.
• In volume 3 of the Japanese light novel series The Devil Is a Part-Timer!, an archangel named Gabriel appears and is the guardian of the Sephirah Yesod.
• In the Japanese light novel High School DxD, Gabriel is featured as one of the Four Great Seraph whom are the highest ranking Seraph alongside Michael, Uriel, and Raphael. In the novel, Gabriel is depicted as a female angel with immense angelic beauty, and is given the titles of "The Strongest Woman in Heaven" and "The Most Beautiful Woman in Heaven".
• In the Japanese light novel series Date A Live, Gabriel is the name of a spiritual weapon (referred to as angels within the series), belonging to Miku Izayoi. Gabriel takes the form of an organ that can control sound. It can play various songs including March, which enhances the targets physical abilities, and Solo, which can brainwash those who listen to it, among others.

Music

• The eccentric English hagiographer and antiquarian, Sabine Baring-Gould (1834–1924) wrote "Gabriel's Message", the English translation of the Basque Christmas carol Birjina gaztetto bat zegoen. The original carol is likely related to the 13th or 14th-century Latin chant Angelus Ad Virginem, which itself is based on the biblical account of the Annunciation in the Gospel of Luke.
• The school spirit song of the University of Texas at Austin, "The Eyes of Texas" lyrics (written by John Sinclair 1903) concludes with the line, ’til Gabriel blows his horn.
• "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" was sung by Ethel Merman in Cole Porter's 1934 musical Anything Goes.
• In the 1997 song "My Own Prison" by Creed, Gabriel is mentioned as deciphering the visions to the song's main character.
• "Sugar Baby", the last track on Bob Dylan's 2001 albume Love and Theft, contains this reference:

"Just as sure as we're living, just as sure as we're born
Look up, look up – seek your Maker – 'fore Gabriel blows his horn.

• In the end of the song "Je N'en Connais Pas la Fin" by American post metal band Rosetta part of the lyrics said "Won't you play your trumpet well Gabriele", alluding to the announcement of apocalypse made by Gabriel in the bible.

• "Blow Your Trumpets Gabriel" was performed by Polish black metal band Behemoth.
• The 1996 garage/house song "Gabriel" by Roy Davis Jr. (featuring vocals from Peven Everett) is about the archangel Gabriel. In the chorus, Everett can be heard singing "Gabriel play" in reference to Gabriel's trumpet. A trumpet is also heard in the song right after this line is sung.

Visual art

See also Gabriel gallery in Commons.

Daniel 8:15 describes Gabriel as appearing in the "likeness of man" and in Daniel 9:21 he is referred to as "the man Gabriel". David Everson observes that "such anthropomorphic descriptions of an angel are consistent with previous .. .descriptions of angels", as in Genesis 19:5.^[15]

Gabriel is most often portrayed in the context of scenes of the Annunciation. In 2008 a 16th-century drawing by Lucas van Leyden of the Netherlands was discovered. George R. Goldner, chairman of the department of prints and drawings at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, suggested that the sketch was for a stained glass window. "The fact that the archangel is an ordinary-looking person and not an idealized boy is typical of the artist", said Goldner.^[88]

In chronological order (to see each item, follow the link in the footnote):^[89]

• Archangel Gabriel (Triptych), early 10th century, Benaki Museum
• The Archangel Gabriel, Pisan, c. 1325–1350, National Gallery of Art
• The Archangel Gabriel, Masolino da Panicale, c. 1420–1430, National Gallery of Art
• Justice between the Archangels Michael and Gabriel, Jacobello del Fiore, 1421
• Merode Altarpiece (Triptych), Robert Campin, c. 1425, Metropolitan Museum of Art
• The Angel Gabriel, Agostino di Duccio, c. 1450
• Annunciation, Leonardo da Vinci, c. 1475
• The Angel Gabriel, Neroccio d'Landi, c. 1490
• The Angel Gabriel, late 15th or early 16th century, Flemish, National Gallery of Art
• The Angel Gabriel, Ferrari Gaudenzio, 1511, National Gallery, London
• Gabriel delivering the Annunciation El Greco, 1575 (pictured above)
• Go Down Death, Aaron Douglas, 1934

The Military Order of Saint Gabriel was established to recognize "individuals who have made significant contributions to the U.S. Army Public Affairs community and practice". The medallion depicts St. Gabriel sounding a trumpet, while the obverse displays the Army Public Affairs emblem.^[90]

Television

• The Twilight Zone (1960) episode "A Passage for Trumpet" – The down-and-out musician Joey Crown (Jack Klugman) meets an enigmatic trumpet player named "Gabe" (played by John Anderson), in what has been described as Rod Serling's version of It's a Wonderful Life.^[91]
• Supernatural (2005) – Gabriel, portrayed by Richard Speight Jr., is a runaway archangel who kills people he deems evil, also interacting with other angels, including his siblings Michael, Raphael, and Lucifer.
• Dominion (2014) – Gabriel, portrayed by Carl Beukes, is the series antagonist, who plans to kill the Archangel Michael and annihilate humanity.
• Now Apocalypse (2019) – Gabriel, portrayed by Tyler Posey, is an enigmatic trumpet player who has a passionate tryst with series protagonist Ulysses Zane before warning him about an impending apocalypse.
• Amazon Prime miniseries Good Omens (2019) – Gabriel is portrayed by Jon Hamm. The show is based on the novel by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman.