"Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the king of Assyria:
"He will not enter this city or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield or build a siege ramp against it.By the way that he came he will return;
he will not enter this city," declares the LORD."I will defend this city and save it, for my sake and for the sake of David my servant!"
Then the angel of the LORD went out and put to death a hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh and stayed there.
Isaiah 37:33-37
Basic Information
As far as badass angelic jobs go, this one is pretty popular and everybody seems to want a shot at the title. Here's a short list of those who could be considered Angels of Death:
- Azrael - in some Jewish and Christian traditions, as well as Islam and Sikhism.
- Death (Personification)
- St. Gabriel, an archangel. Mainly for his role of enciting the Nephilim to make war on one another in the book of Enoch.
- The Grim Reaper
- Malak Almawt, an Islamic angel of death.
- St. Michael, an archangel. He is viewed as the good Angel of Death or, more normally, as God's general.
- Samael, an archangel (in Judaism). He is viewed as the evil Angel of Death.
- Santa Muerte
- Sariel, thought by some to be another name of Azrael, in Judaism.
- Shinigami, Japanese Personification / God of Death
- Vanth, Etruscan psychopomp whose wings are covered with eyes
See also Death deity, Angel, and Psychopomp
In criminal psychology, Angel of Death may refer to a specific type of serial killer, typically in healthcare, who murders patients or persons otherwise perceived as ill or suffering.
Sources
Game and Story Use
- Depending on the type of tale you're telling, and the nature of your setting, the Angel of Death could be antagonist or protagonist. There may be only one at any given time, they may somehow split the chores, or perhaps there's many angels of death competing for souls.
- What starts as an investigation into hospital-based serial killings may turn out to have a supernatural / religious explanation. The FBI is equipped to apprehend mad men, but can they imprison an angel?
