Too Many Angels

"Too many angels near the ground they're buzzin' 'round like lovely killer bees. . ." These words begin the song "Too Many Angels" by Terry Scott Taylor. Throughout this song, Taylor questions and wrestles with what part angels play in our faith. He vacillates between believing in angels and wondering if we have twisted the purpose of these heavenly beings to our own desires. Later in the song, speaking of angels and how they are perceived in our society, Taylor sings, "They're tuned to amuse you and fill you with dread. They're beneath your feet and over your head. You see them hitchhiking and under your bed. They hang around gift shops pretending their dead." In all this poetry, Taylor lays it before us that we are a society that does not know what to make of angels. Are they magic, holy gift charms that grant our wishes? Are the holy beings we should fear as they fight celestial battles? Are they cute little cherubs? What are angels?
Scot McKnight does a worthy job in "The Hum of Angels" answering this question from a Biblical perspective. After raising some of the same concerns regarding society's misconstrued and often faulty understandings of angels, McKnight beautifully explores Scripture to give us a picture of angels that is Biblically accurate and clear to understand.
McKnight begins by defending the existence of angels, declaring that Scripture attests to their existence and so those of us who seek to be faithful to Scripture should acknowledge their existence and believe in them. McKnight declares that many people do believe in angels. Yet many people believe in angels in ways that come from popular culture and not in ways that are attested to in Scripture.
After defending the existence of angels, McKnight lays out a beautiful picture of who and what these heavenly beings are. They are messengers from God. They declare the Bible's main themes. They do God's work in the world. They bring about God's wrath. They are heavenly beings that point to God's redemption through Jesus Christ. They do indeed guard our lives, our nations, and our churches. They serve God. They lead the faithful in worship. They praise God, gathering around His throne, declaring God's holiness. They witness to God and God's full grace for all humanity.
Anyone with an interest in angels and a true portrayal of angels as documented in God's holy word should study this book. McKnight offers a readable text that allows the reader to understand the presentation of angels within the pages of Scripture. That readability is sometimes interrupted by humor. The flow of the text breaks because of these small humorous asides. The book is still a great read, but I feel these aspects could have been avoided to the benefit of the text as a whole.
Yet, do yourself a favor and read "The Hum of Angels: Listening for the Messengers of God Around Us."
I received this book as part of the Blogging for Books program with Multnohmah Publishing Group.