v. Angel, Spirit, Cherub
Isa 6:2 above him there were s; each
Seraphim (Heb. serâfîm, “fiery beings, “serpent”, “seraph”, “shining”). Heavenly beings that the prophet Isaiah saw in vision before the throne of God (Is. 6:2, 6). Each one had 6 wings: with one pair they covered their faces, with another their feet, and they used the 3rd pair to fly. He heard the seraphim sing: “Holy, holy, holy, Jehovah of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory” (v 3). When he confessed his sin, one of the seraphim took a burning coal from the altar and touched the prophet’s lips with it to indicate his purification from iniquity (vs 5-7). The Bible offers no further information about the identity of these beings. The adjective sârâf appears as “fiery” in Num 21:6, where the serpents that invaded the Israelite camp in the desert are described. In v 8 the “serpent” that Moses made is called sârâf, the same word that in Isa 14:29 and 30:6 is translated as “flying serpent” or “that flies”. Since the verbal root Heb. srf refers to something that burns (Exo 32:20; Lev 13:55; 1Ki 13:2), it would seem that when the word is applied to a snake it does not refer to its shape but to its burning bite or the inflammation it produces , or perhaps his brilliance. So when it is used to describe the heavenly beings before God’s throne, it may denote the radiance they radiate. In Isa_6 the word “seraph” may be associated with the fact that a sârâf was the instrument to administer the symbolic purification by means of fire (vs 6, 7). The words and activities of the seraphim of cp 6 show that they are intelligent beings who honor and serve God. If the seraphim actually have 6 wings, or if this is just a symbolic detail used for the purposes of this vision, it is not known for sure. In fig 459 appears a pagan equivalent of a seraphim with 6 wings. 459. Seraphim with 6 wings on a stone plate found at Tell 2alâf.
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
Angels.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
guy, ANGE
see, CHERUB N, LIVING THINGS
Vet, Celestial Being seen by Isaiah before the Lord on His throne. Each of them had three pairs of wings: with one pair he covered his face, in reverence; with another he covered his feet, as a sign of humility; with the other pair he flew to fulfill his mission. Gesenius and Fürst give the term “saraf” the meaning of “to burn” and “to be exalted”. They give seraphim the ultimate meaning as “exalted ones.” This term appears only in Nm. 21:6; Deut. 8:15, translated “fiery”; in Nm. 21:8 is translated “fiery serpent”, while in two other passages Is. 14:29 and 30:6, it is translated “flying serpent”. In Is. 6:2-7 (plural), the “seraphim” are exalted beings, but the only actions recorded are that one of them took a burning coal from the altar and, touching it to the mouth of the prophet, He said, “Your guilt is taken away, and your sin is cleansed.” They cried out one to another: “Holy, holy, holy, the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.” The distinction between cherubim and seraphim seems to be that, while the latter testify to God’s holiness (that is, to his nature), the former exhibit the principles of his righteous rule on earth. The “living creatures” of Rev. 4 combine the characteristics of cherubim and seraphim. (See CHERUB N, LIVING CREATURES.)
Source: New Illustrated Bible Dictionary
Angel of the highest category, whose mission is to be close to the divinity. The Hebrew etymology of “saraf” (burn, burn) is at the base of the denomination that Isaiah (Is.6.2) gives to the six-winged beings who are in ardent adoration before the Most High. The pre-Christian apocryphal called “Book of Enoch” speaks of the seraphim together with the cherubim
Pedro Chico González, Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy, Editorial Bruño, Lima, Peru 2006
Source: Dictionary of Catechesis and Religious Pedagogy
see Angel.
Source: Dictionary of Theology
Masculine plural name in Hebrew that designates a special class of celestial servants in Yahweh’s court.
In the Holy Scriptures these angelic beings are clearly mentioned in Isaiah’s description of their call to the prophetic office (Is. 6,2 ss.). In a vision of deep spiritual content, which was granted to him in the Temple, Isaiah contemplated the invisible realities symbolized by the external forms of Yahweh’s dwelling, his altar, his ministers, etc. As he gazed before the priest’s court, there arose before him an august vision of Yahweh seated on his throne of glory. On each side of the throne were mysterious guardians, each with six wings: with one pair they fluttered, with another pair they covered their faces and with the other pair they covered their feet, now bare, as is appropriate for priestly service in the presence of the Almighty. The highest servants of him, were there to serve him and to proclaim his glory, and they shouted to each other: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord, Yahveh Sebaot; the whole earth is full of his glory.” These were the seraphim, one of whom flew to Isaiah with a live coal which he took from the altar, and with which he touched and purified the prophet’s lips which were henceforth consecrated to the declarations of inspiration.
This is, in substance, the symbolic vision of Isaiah, from which everything that the Holy Scriptures reveal about the seraphim can be inferred. Although they are described in human form with faces, hands, and feet (Is. 6,2.6), they are undoubtedly existing spiritual beings corresponding to their name, and not simply symbolic representations as Protestant scholars often claim. Their number is considerable, for they appear around the heavenly throne in a double choir, and the volume of their voices is such that the sounds shake the foundations of the palace.
They are different from the cherubim who carry or hide God and show the presence of his glory in the earthly sanctuary, while the seraphim stand before God as his officiating servants in the heavenly court. Their name also, seraphim, distinguishes them from the cherubim, although it is admittedly difficult to find a passage in the Scriptures where a clear conception of their precise meaning is mentioned.
The name is often derived from the Hebrew verb saraph (“to be consumed with fire”) and this etymology is very likely, since it is in accordance with Is. 6,6, where one of the seraphim is represented carrying heavenly fire from the altar to purify the lips of the prophet Many scholars prefer to derive the name from the Hebrew name saraph “a fiery and flying serpent”, mentioned in Num. 21,6; Is. 14,29, and the bronze image that was in the Temple at the time of Isaiah (2 Kings 18,4); but it is evident that in Isaiah’s description of the seraphim there is no trace of such a serpentine. Even less likely are the views put forward by certain critics who connect the Biblical seraphim with the Babylonian Sharrapu, a name for Nergal, the fire-god, or with the Egyptian griffin (séref) that Beni-Hassan places as guardians of tombs.
Seraphim are mentioned at least twice in the Book of Enoch (LXI, 10; LXXI, 7) together with, and distinctively, the cherubim. In Christian theology, the seraphim, along with the cherubim, occupy the highest rank in the heavenly hierarchy (see cherubim), while in the liturgy (Te Deum; Mass preface) they are depicted as repeating the Trisagion exactly as in Isaiah 6.
Bibliography: Commentaries on Isaiah: KNABENBAUER (Paris, 1887); DELITSCH (tr. Edinburgh, 1890); DURM (Gottingen, 1892); SKINNER (Cambridge, 1896); MARTI (Tübingen, 1900); CONDAMIN (Paris, 1905). Theology of the Old Testament: OEHLER (tr. New York, 1883); DILLMANN-KITTEL (Leipzig, 1895); SCHULTZ (tr. Edinburgh, 1898).
Source: Gigot, Francis. “Seraphim.” The Catholic Encyclopaedia. Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13725b.htm
Translated by Giovanni E. Reyes. rc
Source: Catholic Encyclopedia