Is there really an archangel named Metatron? This angel is not named in the Bible, but rather in a number of other religious writings where the claims are in stark contrast to what Scripture teaches about angels.
Metatron is an archangel mentioned in a number of religious writings outside the Bible, including the Jewish Talmud and Kabbalah, 2 Enoch, Islam, a variety of apocalyptic texts and various legends.
Metatron is described as “The King of Angels” in the Zohar, which is the holy book for the mystical branch of Judaism called Kabbalah. Metatron is said to rule “over the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” Metatron is also the official record keeper in heaven, recording all the activities of the lives of human beings on earth.
Metatron is seen as the patron angel of children. The Zohar states that it was the angel Metatron who led the Hebrew people through the wilderness for 40 years. Some Jewish believers regard Metatron as a “death Angel” who helps escort the souls of the deceased from Earth into the afterlife.
The Jerusalem Targum version of the Torah, (now called Targum Pseudo-Jonathan) translates the passage of Genesis 5:24 differently, as: “Enoch ascended into heaven through the Word of God, and God called him Metatron, the great scribe.”
Enoch is only mentioned briefly in the Bible as the great-grandfather of Noah in Genesis 5:18-24 and again in Hebrews 11:5. What’s important to remember about Enoch is that he apparently ascended to heaven without human physical death. This becomes important in the writings outside the Bible.
Two important things should be noted when one hears the phrase “the book of Enoch.” First, scholars do not consider the pseudepigraphic texts bearing the name of Enoch to have been written by him. The book of Enoch refers only to 1 Enoch, not 2 Enoch, which is a different apocryphal writing.
The book of Enoch is not considered part of the biblical canon, although it is briefly quoted in the New Testament in a small passage from Jude 1:14-15, which shows us that the disciples were familiar with the text. 1 Enoch gives us a much more descriptive account of both angels and demons than is found in the Bible.
However, it is the teachings about Enoch and the archangel Metatron in 2 Enoch that become problematic and contrary to the Bible.
Only three angels are named in the Bible: Gabriel (Daniel 8:16), the archangel Michael (Daniel 10:13), and the fallen archangel Lucifer (a.k.a. Satan) (Isaiah 14:12), according to GotQuestions.org. In the teachings about Metatron, there are three red flags Christians need to be aware of.
1. Metatron is Enoch. The non-biblical writings teach that Enoch transformed into the angel Metatron. The Bible teaches that humans and angels are separately created beings and that angels were created first. Secondly, the Bible teaches us in Hebrews 1:14 that angels are God’s messengers who serve humankind. “Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?”
2. Metatron is a mediator between God and Israel. The Bible tells us in Exodus 13:21-22 that the Lord God led the Israelites through the wilderness, not Metatron. Some translations use the word Yahweh or Jehovah, but no translation tells us that the Israelites were led by an angel.
3. Metatron is seated at the right hand of God. The Bible teaches that only one person is seated at the right hand of God and that person is Jesus. In Mark 16:19, we read: “After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.” This is also mentioned in Matthew 26:64, Luke 22:69, Mark 14:62, Colossians 3:1, Hebrews 1:13, 1 Peter 3:22 to name a few. We also have Stephen’s vision in Acts 7:55: “But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.”
The Archangel Metatron is especially popular in New Age and occult circles, where practitioners summon this angel, feel him, and call upon his power, Christianity.com reports.
Of course, this is against what the Bible teaches humans about interacting with angels, treading precariously along the lines of angel worship, which is forbidden. Angel worship is nothing new, and the Bible warns against this in Colossians 2:18 and Revelation 22:8-9.
