What is the Biblical basis for the belief that Jesus is Michael?

Question

Congregations such as the Jehovah's Witnesses and Seventh-day Adventists believe that Jesus is Michael. What is the Biblical basis for the belief that Jesus is Michael?

Jehovah's Witnesses

...it is logical to conclude that Michael is none other than Jesus Christ in his heavenly role. Source

Seventh-day Adventists

Moses passed through death, but Michael came down and gave him life before his body had seen corruption. Satan tried to hold the body, claiming it as his; but Michael resurrected Moses and took him to heaven. Satan railed bitterly against God, denouncing Him as unjust in permitting his prey to be taken from him; but Christ did not rebuke His adversary, though it was through his temptation that the servant of God had fallen. He meekly referred him to His Father, saying, "The Lord rebuke thee."

Early Writings, p. 164.

Answer 1

The Seventh-day Adventist view

The SDA view is well articulated here: Amazing Facts: Who Is Michael The Archangel?

The primary arguments involved are:

• There are appearances of the preincarnate Christ with titles of “Angel of the LORD”, “Angel of His Presence” and “Angel of the Covenant”.
• The meaning of angel has a wide range of interpretations (it literally means “messenger”).
• The use of echad in Daniel 10:13 can mean “one” or “first”, so one interpretation is “Michael, the first of the chief princes” (rather than “one of”).

One note that is important regarding the SDA view is that they do not deny the deity of Christ, but teach that the title “Michael the Archangel” is another title for God the Son in the same vein as “Angel of the LORD” or “Captain of the LORD’s Host.”

From the conclusion:

In conclusion, we see this majestic and mysterious being, sometimes called Michael, sometimes the angel of the Lord, sometimes the commander of the Lord’s army, veiling His divinity and appearing in the form of a humble angel. Yet this same enigmatic being has the power, authority and attributes that belong only to God. He evicts the devil from heaven; He resurrects the dead; He intercedes for the saints; He judges and then stands, launching the great time of trouble. He redeems the saints and receives their worship. He offers us a new name.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses view

The JW view is articulated here: Is Jesus the Archangel Michael?

The principle arguments are:

• The custom of having more than one name is common in the Bible.
• Arch in archangel means “principal” or “chief.”
• The word “archangel” is never used in plural form (therefore it describes a unique being).
• Jesus spoke of his preincarnate existence.

From the conclusion:

So Michael the archangel is Jesus in his prehuman existence. After his resurrection and return to heaven, Jesus resumed his service as Michael, the chief angel, “to the glory of God the Father.”

The two views are actually quite similar regarding the use of “Michael the Archangel” as yet another title for Christ.

The two groups differ, however, regarding the deity of Christ. Jehovah’s Witnesses explicitly deny his deity, arguing He was the first of God’s creations and placed in authority over it. He is a created being, albeit the most powerful being short of God himself.

Note: This latter view has always been considered the aberrant view in Christianity. While the SDA view would fall within the camp of orthodoxy, the JW view does not.

Answer 2

The explanations by Jehovah's Witnesses (such as this one) has been linked in other answers but I wanted to provide below summary of the 3 points that I feel together provide the clearest evidence on this.

1. The term "archangel" (which means "chief angel" or "principal angel") occurs in the Bible only in the singular.

2. The term "archangel" is only used in reference to Michael in the Bible. This is in Jude verse 9 which, according to KJV (reference here in the right-hand side panel) says:

   Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

3. At 1 Thessalonians 4:16 the voice of the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ is described as being that of an archangel. This passage is quoted below as per KJV (reference here in the right-hand side panel).

   For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

In essence the reason is that, as explained above, the Bible speaks of only one archangel and it is Jesus that is described as descending with the voice of the archangel.

We already know, from scriptures such as Revelation 19:11-16 that Jesus as the leader of the angelic host will take the lead in the war of Armageddon. Revelation 19:14 says:

Also, the armies in heaven were following him on white horses, and they were clothed in white, clean, fine linen.

It is only logical that the voice expressing the commanding call (in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 quoted above) be described in a way that does not diminish or detract from the great authority that Christ Jesus has. If the designation “archangel” applied to another angel then the reference to "an archangel’s voice" would be describing a voice of lesser authority than that of Jesus himself.

Answer 3

Biblical basis that Michael is another name for Jesus are numerous. The belief that one of Jesus' many names is Michael by itself does not mean the rejection of Jesus' divinity or the Trinity.

1. Michael is referred to as "the great prince" (Dan 12:1), Gabriel told Daniel "except Michael your prince" (Dan 10:21). Angels are rarely referred to as princes, certainly not as our prince. However, Isaiah 9:6 states of Jesus, "His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace"
2. Archangel means the chief of angels. The word Archangel is mentioned twice in the Bible (Jude 9, 1 Thess 4:16), one time applied directly to Michael, both times appearing in singular form. Gabriel actually is never specified as an Archangel in the Bible, only according to tradition. Further, Michael is never actually described in the Bible as an angel, only as Archangel and prince. No evidence in the Bible to show that Gabriel is his equal.
3. Jesus is called the Angel of the Lord in many instances of the Bible. Angel can also mean messenger. Neither names imply that Jesus is a literal angel or creation.
4. Joshua meets an unnamed Man who calls Himself the "Commander of the army of the Lord" in Joshua 5:14. Jesus is this commander and the army of the Lord are His angels.

14 So He said, "No, as Commander of the army of the Lord I have now come." And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and said to Him, "What does my Lord say to His servant?" 15 The the Commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, "Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy."

5. The original controversy in heaven was between Jesus and Satan. Satan wanted to be like the Most High. In such a pivotal battle, "Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought" (Rev 12:7). If this was not Jesus Himself, where was He? Is He not the commander of the Lord's army? Was He not at Joshua's battles?

6. Some Christians question why Michael would say in Jude 9 "The Lord rebuke you!" if he is God. But in Zechariah 3:2, God says the same words "The Lord rebuke you, Satan!"

7. Finally who will deliver us in the end? Is it not Jesus Himself?

(Dan 12:1) At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered.

Compare this with:

(Rev 19:11-14) Now I saw the heaven open, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on Him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war... And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean followed Him on white horses.

Answer 4

Here is an answer from an Adventist scholar, taken from his website (http://www.bibledoc.org/daniel-class/daniel-10-and-12-and-thoughts-on-michael-2/).

Here are the texts that speak about Michael in the Bible:

Da 10:13, 21 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one [that is, “first”, YLT] of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. . . . [21] But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.

Da 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

Re 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

Here the Adventist scholar found the following points from these Bible texts:

Michael is an exalted being, one sent to help Gabriel in his struggles

Michael is either “one of the chief” [KJV] or “the first of the chief” [Young’s Literal Translation] among the angels.

Michael is Daniel’s “prince” and a “great prince”

At the time of trouble Michael stands as prince in defense of Daniel’s people.

Michael is the archangel.

Michael fought with the Devil regarding the resurrection of Moses’ body (and won…).

Michael was over the angels that fought against the devil and his angels.

The positions ascribed to Michael in these verses include “prince” of God’s people (i.e., Daniel’s people), archangel, and captain of the faithful angels.

Now, when Jesus will come again, there are several things that the Bible says will happen, which have a connection with Michael the archangel:

There will be a resurrection of the bodies of the saints.

Commands will be given to the loyal angels to gather the saints.

The kingdoms of this earth will become the kingdoms of Christ.

The faithful will sit with him on his throne.

The resurrection will be called for by the mighty voice of Christ.

Here follows the Bible texts regarding each point:

Joh 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

It will be the Son of God (Christ) giving the command for the dead to resurrect

Mt 24:31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. {with…: or, with a trumpet, and a great voice}

Mr 13:27 And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

There will be a sound of trumpet and the angels will be sent, under the command of Christ, to take his elect from the whole earth.

The kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of Christ

Re 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

In light of this, the name "prince is reserved for Jesus, as ruler of the earth On earth there are many princes, but in the kingdom of God we find only one

Ac 3:15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

Ac 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.

Re 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,

Again we see here that the dead are resurrected by the voice of Jesus. It shows his rulership over Satan, that wanted to keep all of them in their grave, as he did regarding Moses

Joh 5:28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

The voice of "the Lord" connected here, by Paul, to the resurrection, is also called the “voice of the archangel.”

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

The point is here made by the author of the article:

This brings us to a good question. Is Jesus the captain, or prince, of the armies of heaven? Or might he have an angel working under him in that position? We find a definitive answer by comparing two texts of scripture:

Jos 5:14 And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the LORD am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant? {margin — captain: or, prince}

Re 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Notice the contrast. The “captain of the host of the Lord” receives the worship of Joshua. The mighty angel of Revelation refuses the worship of John.

These observations lead, it seems to me, to the following inescapable conclusion:

Either there are two captains of the Lord’s hosts, two beings with the voice of the archangel, two beings exalted to be “prince” over God’s people, two agents in the resurrection of the saints, two beings giving commands to the angels of God,

Or…

Jesus, a name chosen by God for our Savior, had the name “Michael” in the Old Testament.

In this regard, it is interesting to note that the New Testament references to Michael are all references to Old Testament events: the fall of Lucifer and the resurrection of Moses. We find no use of the name “Michael” for any being after the day that God’s Son is named "Jesus"

In fact in Hebrews, when it is spoken of the difference between angels and the Son of God, it is said that he rightly receives worship.

Heb 1:5-6 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? 6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

Worship was given to the “captain of the host of the Lord” when he met with Joshua. Even more than this, Joshua was commanded to put off his shoes (see Josh 5:26) and this reminds us of what happened to Moses when he saw the burning bush and spoke with God Himself. It is even more interesting to see how the Bible calls God in this context:

Ex 3:2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

And also in Malachi, when speaking about Jesus, the Lord is called "messenger of the covenant", where the Hebrew for "messenger" the common word translated "angel" 111 times in the Old Testament.

Mal 3:1 Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.

Here is the conclusion of the author:

Jesus, Michael, our Prince, our coming King, captain of the host of the Lord, the Archangel, will descend and rout the prince of this world, send the holy angels to gather the saints, and we will reign with him.

Answer 5

Two Facts:

There is no verse that says Michael is not Jesus.
There is no verse that says Michael is Jesus.

These are the two facts.

Considerations:

Same accounts to other things, such as, "is Jesus called the Holy Spirit?" This is another topic dealing with the same principle: no clear direct verse.
Same goes with "Trinity", no verse in the Bible.

So how do we show evidence that Michael could be Jesus, one and the same?
Scripture verses that gives evidence all together. Let's see how many there are.

Genesis 21:17

And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is.

Genesis 22:11

And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.

Genesis 31:11

And the angel of God spake unto me in a dream, saying, Jacob: And I said, Here am I.

Genesis 48:16

The Angel which redeemed me from all evil

Exodus 3:2-7

And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. ...And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; (Angel of the Lord appearing to be the Lord)

Exodus 14:19

And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:

Judges 2:1-5

And an Angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I(Angel) made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I(Angel) sware unto your fathers; and I(Angel) said, I(Angel) will never break my(Angel) covenant with you. And ye shall make no league with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall throw down their altars: but ye have not obeyed my(Angel) voice: why have ye done this? Wherefore I(Angel) also said, I(Angel) will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you. And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept. And they called the name of that place Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto the LORD.

Judges 6:12

And the Angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD(Angel) is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.

Judges 6:22,23

And when Gideon perceived that he was an Angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O Lord GOD! for because I have seen an Angel of the LORD face to face. And the LORD(Angel) said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die.

Something fishy about this one:
Judges 13:17-18

And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honour? And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

Summary:
Angel of the Lord give Himself forward as the Lord Himself
Angel of the Lord has a covenant with Israel
Angel of the Lord took Israel out of Egypt
Angel of the Lord speaks out of heaven

The name Michael

First, let's consider the meaning of some words and names. In the Greek New Testament, the word "angel" means "messenger," and "arch" means "chief, principle, greatest, or highest." So "archangel" simply means "highest or greatest messenger."

The Hebrew name "Michael," found in the Old Testament, means "who is like God" or sometimes it forms a question: "Who is like God?" So the title Michael the archangel can be translated as "The greatest messenger who is God." - See more at: http://www.amazingfacts.org/media-library/book/e/85/t/who-is-michael-the-archangel.aspx#sthash.n809ftAm.dpuf

Those were about the Angel of the Lord Looking at Michael

Daniel 12:1

And at that time shall Michael stand up(Start ruling), the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people(Michael's people): and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

Jude 1:9

Yet Michael the Archangel

Revelation 12:7

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels(Angels that belong to Michael) fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels.

Summary:
Michael has a group of people that belongs to Him
Michael will start to rule as the King
Michael is the only Archangel
Michael owns multiple angels

Well that's it.
Can this be, that Michael and Jesus are One and the same?
Well that's up to you to decide.

Answer 6

Michael the arch angel.

One thing we have to keep in mind is that the word "angel" is also the word "messenger" in both Greek and Hebrew. Whether it's a living human messenger or a spirit entity that was not created to have a biological form (disembodied saints are also called "angels" - John runs into one of these in the book of Revelation. John bows down to this angel and the angel tells him to get up. "I'm your fellow servant, of your brothers the prophets...") we can usually tell by the context of the verse.

The only two angels that I'm aware of that are named are Gabriel and Michael. Michael is called an "arch angel" and Gabriel is just called Gabriel.

Now when we dissect the names, Michael is made up of two different words and comes out to mean "who most assuredly is God". So thus the justification people have for equating Michael to Christ. I don't necessarily think this is a wrong interpretation, since Christ is the "arch" (chief) messenger of the gospel.

So when we look at all the passages were Michael is named, this does seem to fit. "But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince." Jesus is the prince of peace and none holds us but Him. So that fits.

Da 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. This one fits too. Who is the great prince that stands for the children of (God's) people? The mediator of the covenant; that's Christ.

Jude 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

Re 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

These two fit too. Who better qualified to answer Satan than Christ and who better to lead the armies of the host of heaven. Revelation also portrays Christ as a conqueror on a white horse. So that all fits together too.

Where the Jehovah's Witnesses get in trouble though is where they deny the divinity of Christ and say he's just a created being, like an angel. They miss the point of both the meaning of the name Michael and also that an angel is simply put, a messenger.

SDA's, however, do believe in the divinity of Christ.

Interestingly though, Gabriel means "God man". So is Gabriel another depiction of Christ? I don't know? He only shows up in the book of Luke around the time of the incarnation.