Research by Simon Brown
Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus existed before His birth as Michael the Archangel. They believe Michael is another name for Jesus before He came to earth and after He returned to heaven.
But does the Bible actually teach this?
I believe the answer is no. The Bible never says Jesus is Michael the Archangel. It never says Michael became flesh. It never says Michael was born of Mary. It never says Michael died for our sins. Instead, Scripture plainly identifies Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the Last Adam, and the one Mediator between God and mankind.
10 Quick Bible Facts
1. Jesus died, but holy angels do not die
Jesus said:
“I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.”
Revelation 1:17–18
The gospel requires us to believe that Jesus truly died and was raised from the dead. If Jesus were Michael the Archangel, then an archangel would have died. But holy angels are spiritual beings and are not presented in Scripture as dying for sin. Jesus died because He was truly a man.
2. God alone created all things
Yahweh says:
“I am Yahweh, who makes all things; who alone stretches out the heavens; who spreads out the earth by myself.”
Isaiah 44:24
God says He created alone and by Himself. The Bible never says God created the world through Michael the Archangel.
3. Jesus pointed to the one Creator
Jesus said:
“Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female?”
Matthew 19:4
Jesus did not say that He, Michael, or another heavenly being created Adam and Eve. He pointed back to the one Creator: His Father and God.
4. Jesus is the Last Adam
Paul calls Jesus the “last Adam” and “second man”:
“The first man Adam became a living soul; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”
1 Corinthians 15:45
Adam did not pre-exist his human life. He was a man. Therefore, the Last Adam must also be a true man, not a pre-existing angel transformed into a man.
5. Jesus called Himself the Son of Man
Jesus repeatedly called Himself the Son of Man. This title points to His humanity and also connects with Daniel 7:13–14.
Jesus was identifying Himself as the promised human Messiah, not as Michael the Archangel.
6. Jesus is always called a man
Scripture says:
“Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God.”
Acts 2:22
Jesus Himself said:
“You seek to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God.”
John 8:40
Paul wrote:
“There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
1 Timothy 2:5
The Bible calls Jesus a man, not an angel.
7. Jesus is given many titles, but never Michael
Jesus is called:
- Jesus
- Christ
- Messiah
- Son of God
- Only begotten Son
- Son of Man
- Lamb of God
- Lord
- Saviour
- Prophet
- Good Shepherd
- Bread of Life
- Light of the World
- The Way, the Truth, and the Life
- The Faithful and True Witness
But He is never called Michael the Archangel.
If Jesus were Michael, this would be one of the most important truths in the Bible. Yet no prophet, apostle, angel, or Jesus Himself ever says it.
8. Hebrews separates Jesus from the angels
Hebrews 1 says:
“Having become so much superior to the angels…”
Hebrews 1:4
Then it says:
“For to which of the angels did He ever say, ‘You are My Son; today I have begotten You’?”
Hebrews 1:5
This is one of the strongest verses against the idea that Jesus is an angel. God never said this to any angel. He said it to His Son.
9. Angels are not to be worshipped
When John tried to worship an angel, the angel said:
“See that you do not do that… Worship God!”
Revelation 22:8–9
But Hebrews 1:6 says:
“Let all God’s angels worship Him.”
If Jesus were Michael the Archangel, then angels would be worshipping another angel. Scripture does not teach this.
10. Jesus was foreknown, not pre-existing
Peter says Jesus was:
“foreknown before the foundation of the world, but revealed in the last times.”
1 Peter 1:20
Jesus existed in God’s plan, purpose, prophecy, and foreknowledge before the foundation of the world. But being foreknown is not the same as being personally alive as Michael the Archangel.
Who Is Michael the Archangel?
Michael is mentioned in Daniel, Jude, and Revelation.
He is called:
- “one of the chief princes” — Daniel 10:13
- “your prince” — Daniel 10:21
- “the great prince” — Daniel 12:1
- “Michael the archangel” — Jude 9
- leader of angels in battle — Revelation 12:7
Michael is a mighty angelic prince. But nowhere is he called:
- the Son of God
- the only begotten Son
- the Christ
- the Lamb of God
- the Son of Man
- the Mediator between God and man
- the Last Adam
- the descendant of David
- the man Christ Jesus
Michael is Michael. Jesus is Jesus.
Jesus Identified Himself Clearly
In Revelation 22:16 Jesus says:
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel… I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
Notice carefully: Jesus says, “I, Jesus.” He does not say, “I, Michael.” He says He sent His angel. He does not say He is that angel.
Jesus also identifies Himself as the descendant of David. That means He belongs to the human Messianic line. Michael the Archangel is never called the descendant of David.
Hebrews 1 Destroys the Angel Theory
Hebrews 1 repeatedly contrasts Jesus with the angels.
It says Jesus has become superior to the angels. It asks, “To which of the angels did God ever say, ‘You are My Son’?” The answer is obvious: none of them.
Therefore, Jesus cannot be Michael the Archangel.
Hebrews 1:13 says:
“To which of the angels did He ever say, ‘Sit at My right hand’?”
Again, the answer is: no angel. God said this to Jesus, His Son.
Jesus Was Begotten
The Bible says:
“You are My Son; today I have begotten You.”
Psalm 2:7 / Hebrews 1:5 / Acts 13:33
To be begotten means to be brought forth as a Son. Jesus is not an eternal angel. He is the only begotten Son of God.
Luke 1:35 says:
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you… therefore the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”
Jesus is the Son of God because of His miraculous begetting in Mary, not because He was Michael the Archangel.
Jesus Is the True Mediator
Job said:
“There is no mediator between us.”
Job 9:33
But Paul says:
“There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.”
1 Timothy 2:5
The mediator had to be a true man. Not God Himself. Not Michael the Archangel. Not a pre-existing spirit being. The mediator is the man Christ Jesus.
The Son of Man
Jesus often called Himself the Son of Man. This title shows His humanity and His Messianic identity.
God is not a man:
“God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man…”
Numbers 23:19
Michael is not a man either. But Jesus is the Son of Man, born of Mary, descended from David, and appointed by God.
Conclusion
There is no verse in the Bible that says Jesus is Michael the Archangel.
There is no verse that says Michael became flesh.
There is no verse that says Michael died for our sins.
There is no verse that says Michael is the only begotten Son of God.
The Bible teaches something much clearer:
Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
He is the promised Messiah.
He is the Son of Man.
He is the Last Adam.
He is the one mediator between God and mankind.
He is not God Almighty.
He is not Michael the Archangel.
He is the man Christ Jesus, the only begotten Son of the one true God.
As Jesus said:
“This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”
John 17:3
The truth is simple: Jesus is not God, and Jesus is not Michael the Archangel. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
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