CHERUBIM - Fullness of God's Knowledge

In the Zohar we read, "Come and see. When the sun sets the cherubim ... beat their wings above and stretch them out, and the melodious sound of their wings is heard in the realms above." The Cherubim are brilliant and mighty angels who dwell close to God in the Seventh Heaven. They are the second-highest order of angels in Heaven. They are sometimes referred to as Cherubs, but are not to be mistaken for the baby angels, also referred to as Cherubs. According to the Book of Enochs, they are majestic and beautiful. The name Cherubim orginated in Assyria, and is derived from the word karibu which means "one who prays." They emanate a subtle vibration of knowledge and wisdom that they receive from God. They are also the keepers of the celestial records and are said to praise God night and day continuously. In Islam, they are called the el-karubiyan, which means those "brought close to Allah". Originally they were portrayed as mighty guardian figures that appeared to the Near and Middle East. In Assyrian art, Cherubim were depicted as winged creatures with faces of either a lion, or a human, on bodies of sphinxes, eagles, and bulls. In the Book of Psalms 18:10, God rides upon a Cherub. The Cherubim are sometimes referred to as living creatures, winged creatures, and Holy Beasts. Ruling princes of the Cherubim include Gabriel, Kerubiel, Ophaniel, Raphael, Uriel, and Zophiel. Satan was also a ruling prince before his fall from grace.

(Taken from The Encyclopedia of Angels by Constance Victoria Briggs, published 1997 by the Penguin Group)

In medieval Jewish thought, Cherubim are said to be the guardians of the fixed stars, keepers of the celestial records and bestowers of knowledge. In the Talmud cherubim are equated with the order of wheels, also called Ophanim.

In Chapter 2 Samuel 22:11 Cherubs are linked with God's punishment of sin. This chapter contains a long psalm of praise to the Lord written by David after he was delivered from his enemy, Saul. The psalm opens with an expression of faith in God (22:2-4) and an admission that the fear of enemies droved David to the Lord (22:5-7). God's lengthy and powerful response to David provided a vivid picture of the Lord: "He rode upon a cherub, and flew;/And He was seen upon the wings of the wind." Cherubim are a special class of angels associated with God's presence and here David envisioned the Lord coming to be present for him, ready to crush his enemies.

Satan himself belonged to this order before his fall (Ezek, 28:14). The first reference in the bible is found in Genesis 3:24. Golden models of cherubim were placed on the cover of the ark of the covenant, which was located in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle and later in the Jerusalem temple. The "glory of God", symbolizing God's visible presence with His people, rested there. Hebrews 9:5 refers to those figures as "cherubim of glory" because of their closeness to the divine presence. The placement of two golden models of cherubim on the cover of the ark is significant. Not only did God's presence rest there, but also the blood of sacrifice offered on the Day of Atonement to cleanse Israelites from all their sins (Lev 16:30) was sprinkled between the cherubim on the ark's cover. Thus cherubim also symbolize God's grace - reminders of God's awesomeness and holiness, yet filled with grace in that He forgives all sins.

Cherubim were never refered to as angels (ma'lakim) likely because of the fact that cherubim did not serve God as messengers. Instead, cherubim were inimately associated with His presence and visible glory. They escorted the Lord wherever he went, and the coals of fire among which they live (Ezek, 10:6) represented His purity.

MIXED BEINGS:
The cherubim, like seraphim, are "mixed beings" conforming to no earthy "kind". This is presumably why cherub images could be used without violating the commandment against images. The seraphim combine features of snake, bird and man, while the cherubim have faces and bodies of the four animal groups: eagle, lion, bull and man. They are confined to the movements of God himself except for the reference to the cherubim God assigned to the Garden. The very weirdness of these creatures signifies the transendence of God and was intented to prevent interlopers from casually entering into his presence.

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