Angels have wings and halos and carry around harps, right? As it turns out, this popular image of angels might not be accurate. The Bible gives us all kinds of descriptions of what angels look like – and they can be pretty surprising.
So what do angels look like according to the Bible?
What do angels look like?
It's not hard to find glimpses into the spiritual realm in the Bible. That includes eyewitness accounts of real-life angel encounters – both here on earth and in visions. From these personal accounts, we can draw a few conclusions about angels:
Angels don’t all look the same.
The Bible identifies different types of angels. Each serves a specific purpose and has a unique appearance. This means that our pop culture illustrations of naked babies with harps and halos isn’t quite accurate. Here’s how different kinds of angels are described in the Bible:
Angels can be radiant and bright.
One thing to know about angels is that many of them are bright. In Luke 2:9-10, we see angels announcing the birth of Jesus to shepherds in the fields:
Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. [The shepherds] were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.”
We don’t have an exact measurement in lumens, but it’s safe to assume that looking at an angel is comparable to staring into the sun!
Angels can look bizarre.
You may have seen human artists and AI try to answer the question, “What do real angels look like?” These depictions range from silly to downright horrifying – and the Bible actually backs some of them up.
The Book of Isaiah provides a glimpse into the celestial court where Seraphim worship and serve God. Isaiah 6:2 describes these beings with six wings, covering their faces and feet in humility before the divine.
Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew.
Cherubim are depicted with multiple faces and wings. Ezekiel encountered cherubim before and described what they looked like in Ezekiel 1:5-11:
From the center of the cloud came four living beings that looked human, except that each had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight, and their feet had hooves like those of a calf and shone like burnished bronze. Under each of their four wings I could see human hands. So each of the four beings had four faces and four wings. The wings of each living being touched the wings of the beings beside it. Each one moved straight forward in any direction without turning around. Each had a human face in the front, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle at the back. Each had two pairs of outstretched wings – one pair stretched out to touch the wings of the living beings on either side of it, and the other pair covered its body.
That’s quite a visual, isn’t it? In fact, reddit user @loganmochaelphilips created an illustration based on this description:
(Now it makes sense why angels always start by saying “Do not fear!”)
Angels can go undercover.
Angels don’t always look so strange to us. In fact, some can look exactly like us! The Bible contains several examples of angels going undercover and appearing like humans.
In certain instances, angels can assume a human-like form, making it challenging to discern them from ordinary individuals. In Genesis 18:2, when three angels visit Abraham, they appear as men:
[Abraham] looked up and noticed three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he ran to meet them and welcomed them, bowing low to the ground.
Although they look just like normal humans, Abraham recognizes these three beings as angels and treats them as the sacred beings they are. And based on this reminder in Hebrews 13:2, we may want to take some notes from Abraham:
Don't forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!
Isn’t it cool to think that many of us may have met an angel in real life without knowing it?
Angels don’t have halos.
What do all of these biblical descriptions of angels have in common? Not a single one mentions a halo. This means that, while halos are popular in artwork and pop culture, angels don’t actually have them.
There’s more to angels than meets the eye.
When it comes to angels, their outward appearance isn’t that important. Instead, the Bible emphasizes their role as messengers, guardians, and warriors. The question of what angels look like according to the Bible can inspire us explore God’s creation further and learn more about the spiritual realm.
-----
Interested in learning more about angels? So were we, which is why we sat down with a Biblical expert to talk about what angels (and demons) are really like.
-----
LCBC stands for Lives Changed By Christ. We are one church in multiple locations across Pennsylvania. Find the location closest to you or join us for Church Online. We can’t wait to connect with you!