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Tim Maas
Supporter
What are "the cherubim" of 2 Samuel 22:11?
See also 2 Samuel 22:7
7
“In my distress I called to the Lord;
I called out to my God.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came to his ears.
11
He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared on the wings of the wind.
2 Samuel 22:11
NKJV - 11 He rode upon a cherub, and flew; And He was seen upon the wings of the wind.
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Asked November 22 2020
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Jack Gutknecht
Supporter
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Tim Maas
Supporter
The cherubim are an order or rank of the angelic beings who serve God. In popular thought, they are commonly conceived of as beings of small stature, but passages of Scripture describe them as bearing and moving the throne of God (which is the apparent sense of the reference to them in 2 Samuel 22:11, as noted in the question), which would seem to denote powerful beings of great strength. The root meaning of their name in Hebrew indicates that they are beings who bless (as in continually praising and magnifying God's holiness and power), but they are also recorded as performing an enforcement function, such as in Genesis 3:24, where they are stationed on the east side of Eden to prevent the return of Adam and Eve after being expelled from there by God. Ezekiel 28:14 (which is part of the description of Lucifer -- commonly interpreted as being Satan prior to his fall) indicates that he was once "an anointed guardian cherub".
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