sin purged.” [Isaiah vi. 7.] Still, though Isaiah must have regarded this angel as his benefactor under God, yet neither to this seraph, nor to any of the host of heaven, does he offer one prayer for their good offices, even by their intercession.  He ever ascribes all to God alone; and never joins any other name with His either in supplication or in praise.  Let us also take the case of Daniel.  He acknowledges not only that the Lord’s omnipotent hand had rescued him from the jaws of the lions, but that the deliverance was brought about by the ministration of an angel.  “My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me.” [Dan. vi. 22.] Yet when we look through Daniel’s prayers, we find no allusion to any of the highest angels.  He had seen Gabriel before his prayer; he had heard the voice and felt the hand of that heavenly messenger who was commissioned to reveal to him what should be done in the latter end; and immediately after the offering of his prayer, the same Gabriel announces himself as one who was come forth to give the prophet skill and understanding.  And yet neither towards Gabriel, nor any other of the angels of God, does one word of invocation fall from the lips of Daniel.  In the supplications of that holy, intrepid, and blessed servant and child of God, we search in vain for any thing approaching in spirit to the invocation, “Sancte Gabriel, ora pro nobis.” {38}

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Section iii.—­Evidence of the old testament (continued)

We must now briefly refer to those passages, by which Roman Catholic writers have endeavoured to maintain that religious adoration was paid to angels by the faithful sons of God.  The two principal instances cited are, first, the case of Abraham bowing down before three men, whom he recognizes as messengers from heaven; and, secondly, the words of Jacob when he gave his benediction to his grandsons.

With regard to the first instance, how very far the prostration of Abraham was in itself from implying an act of religious worship, being as it was the ordinary mode of paying respect to a fellow mortal, is evident from the very words of Scripture.  The Hebrew word, which we translate by “bowed himself,” and which the Vulgate unhappily renders “adoravit” ("adored"), is, letter for letter, the same in the case of Abraham saluting his three heavenly visitors, and in the case of Jacob saluting his brother Esau.  The parallelism of the two passages is very striking.

Gen. xviii. 2.  Gen. xxxiii. 1 and 3.