Do Angels Have Wings?

Jane Isley
Aug 9
4 min read

Updated: Sep 2

Interesting question, let’s see.

Do I believe this question directly impacts our salvation? No. Do I think it’s a good and fun question to ask to help our understanding? Absolutely!

So let’s see what the Bible tells us.

First, I’ve decided to use the terms “being” and “angel,” because there are different created entities mentioned in the Bible.

So what we know from Scripture is that angels can look human, and even more fascinating is this: “Do not neglect hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.” Heb 13:2

Talk about keeping you on your toes.

At least that's what I read from this verse. Who’s to say how many of us have hosted or come across an angel unknowingly?

Think about this one for a moment, how would you defend yourself to God on judgment day when asked why you turned away a stranger in need or treated someone poorly when in fact it was an angel? Just food for thought.

Anyway, angels and wings.

The Bible does not explicitly state that angels have wings, and I also don’t believe that references to wings for other beings are purely symbolic, especially considering the numerous physical descriptions of Cherubim in the Bible.

This honestly makes sense to me because every kind that God created has unique differences and roles within that kind.

The beings we commonly know about from Scripture.

First up is Gabriel, who is only thought to have wings, based on the passage from Dan 9:21, “Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight.”

He is described as a human in appearance, but no literal mention of wings in any verses he is in, not referred to as an archangel, and scared the poo out of Daniel because of his appearance when he saw him. (Mary and Zechariah, too.)

Not a clue exactly what kind he is because we are never told that explicitly, we just know he is referred to as an angel, and delivers a lot of messages.

Then we have Michael, the only archangel mentioned in the Bible, btw, and he is never said to have wings either. But he is a warrior and protector angelic being; words such as “one of the chief princes” and “great prince who protects your people” are used to describe him. (3)

Here are three fun nuggets.

Here is when we learn that Michael is not the only “chief prince,” but he must be a pretty awesome baddy because he has already taken satan on once about Moses' body (4) and will again when he leads his army against him in the future. (5)

Michael only says four words in the whole Bible. “The Lord rebuke you!” (well, in Greek it was actually three words)

And Michael and Gabriel are the only two named angelic beings in the whole Bible, except Abaddon, from the book of Revelation, but that is also a title, not just a name, and a whole different conversation.

Anyway, back to wings.

We see many other divine messengers of God throughout the Bible who looked human, didn’t have wings, and delivered messages to people, but weren’t named like Gabriel and Michael; instead were simply called angels (messengers).

For example, in Gen 19:1 “The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening,” the Hebrew word is “malak”, which literally means “angel, messengers, messenger” but they didn’t have wings.

And in Acts, we have an angel (same meaning as malak, just in Greek), no wings, committing some B&E and getting Peter and his disciples out of jail.

An angel frees a bearded man with bolt cutters in a dim prison. Two surprised men look on. "SNIP" text above the action. — ChatGPT

So, what does have wings, then, for sure?

We know for certain that the Seraphim have six wings, which are their own distinct kind (1), and Cherubim, also a distinct kind, have four wings. (And four faces, but we’re just chatting about their wings today, not trying to sort that one out today. (2)

Remember, church tradition and Jewish tradition consider the Cherubim and Seraphim as types of angels, not the Bible per se.

Wrapping things up.

The question I asked is: Do all angels have wings?

Well, that’s actually a loaded question because you have to ask the question with the right word first.

Angel (Messenger), Seraphim, Cherubim, or Archangel.

Angels are the messengers of God (literally, that is the definition), and the winged beings are their own class of something, but are never called angels in the Bible.

Michael and Gabriel are never specified as having wings, but are called angels, not Cherubim or Seraphim, with Michael being the only Archangel.

Winging it.

The wing culture comes from a blending of the verse, “came to me in swift flight,” the Cheribum and Seraphim descriptions, what angels are capable of doing, and artwork over the centuries that kept it going.

Could they all have wings, and somehow the angels are able to keep theirs invisible? Sure, why not?

These are beings who can pack of heck of a spiritual punch, and God loves to give us mysteries to ponder on, but at the same time, we are told which beings do have wings.

Like I said in the beginning. Does this affect your salvation if you believe angels have wings? No, but it is fun, fascinating, and helps a person see the Bible, not tradition.