Angel
A created spiritual being, superior to humans and without a body, which Scripture and many traditions describe as a messenger or servant of God.
Works to read
- The Destruction of Sennacherib by Lord Byron, 1815
- The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, 1910
Passages
We shall rest. We shall hear the angels. We shall see heaven shining like a jewel.
— Anton Chekhov, Uncle Vanya
Lucifer, we are told, was a son of the morning, a radiant and mighty angel; yet he fell
— James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Man is neither angel nor brute, and the unfortunate thing is that he who would act the angel acts the brute
— Blaise Pascal, Pensees
Cromwell, I charge thee, fling away ambition! By that sin fell the angels; how can man, then, The image of his maker, hope to win by it
— William Shakespeare, Henry VIII
If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary
— Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay, The Federalist Papers
But man, proud man, Dressed in a little brief authority, Most ignorant of what he’s most assured, His glassy essence, like an angry ape Plays such fantastic tricks before high heaven As makes the angels weep
— William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure
Passages are verified quotations from the library that use one of these words: angel, angels, cherubim, seraphim. Sentences under “From the texts” are copied word for word from the full texts in this library. Read each in its context on the work's page.