When Were The Angels Created?
Bodie Hodge
Biblical Authority Ministries,
April 2, 2024
Angels are created beings. They are not eternal
ever-existing beings like God is. Satan, is also not an ever-existing being. He
too was created.
Some mistakenly think that Satan and God are like equal and
opposite beings but this is not the case. That is actually a false religion
called dualism where they are essentially two equal and opposite “gods”
opposing each other. This is not the case of God and Satan.
God is the Creator whereas Satan and angels are creations—just
as man is also a created being—albeit made in the image of God. God’s creation occurred
in six days where He created all things (e.g., Exodus 20:11, Exodus 31:17, Nehemiah
9:6, John 1:1-3, etc.).
When it comes to the creation of angels (and Satan, who was
once an anointed cherub per Ezekiel 28:14), it was definitely during Creation
Week. We can learn a little more in a poetic passage in Job. Job 1 and 2 and
the conclusion of Job are written as literal history but the rest of Job is
poetic in nature. In Job 38:4-7, we read God’s response to Job:
4 “Where were you when I laid
the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have understanding. 5 Who
determined its measurements? Surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon
it? 6 To what were its foundations fastened? Or who laid its cornerstone, 7 When
the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of God shouted for joy?
NKJV
If “morning stars” and “sons of God” in this context is
interpreted as angels, which seems a proper interpretation, then this means
they were there to witness the foundations of the earth being made by God. So,
when were the foundations of the earth made in Creation Week?
Well, it depends. Were the foundations inclusive of the initial
creation of the earth on Day 1 or is it discussing the solid foundation of the dry
land which was one Day 3? In other words, was there some earthen materials
(i.e., dirt, rock, etc.) under the waters of the initial earth that God created
on Day 1 or was this initial earth simply pure water (without dirt, rock, etc.)
that God later separated, divided, and gathered and then created or transformed
waters to have dirt, rock, etc., on Day 3? The Bible simply does not give us
enough detail to be definitive.
So, what we know from these passages is that angels were
created beings and it occurred during creation week. What we don’t know is whether
it was on Day 1 or Day 3.
I have considered if it was Day 1 because God created the heavens
(plural) in Genesis 1:1, and angels are spiritual being in heaven. Though, I am
not adamant it was Day 1. In some cases of Creation Week, God created something
(e.g., the dry land) then the same day He made plants for that land; but in
other cases, God made the seas, and two days later He filled those seas with
creatures. We are simply not told extra details about angels in this instance.
But I think it is safe to say they were created by Day 3 in
light of Scripture.
