Where do angels come from?

from the old testament

• Psalm 148:5 reads, “Let them praise the name of the LORD! For he commanded and they were created.” “They” refers back to Psalm 148:1–4, which includes many elements of creation, including the sun, moon, stars, waters, and angels. Therefore, we can be certain that they are created beings. This is consistent with how God is the only Being described as eternal (Isaiah 44:6) and as existing alone before anything was created (Isaiah 45:18).
• However, what’s less clear is when they were created. Genesis 1–2 is the creation account, but it doesn’t mention angels directly. That said, Genesis 1:1–2 (“God created the heavens and the earth”) and Genesis 2:1 (“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them”) both may imply that angels were created during that same creation event. One reason Scripture may not be explicit about the timing is that Scripture focuses on God, man, and man’s relationship with God. Many unresolved questions fall outside that focus, such as when and why angels were created.
• Although most scholars believe angels were created during the Genesis 1–2 timeframe, God says something that suggests the angels existed before physical creation. Speaking to Job, God said, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4–7). The “morning stars” and “sons of God” are likely references to angels.
• In the Job account, they appear to have been created before the physical creation because they were there to praise God when He created. However, it’s also possible they were created along with it, perhaps right at the start, and were both part of creation and witnesses to its completion. God may also have been speaking poetically to Job, highlighting how Job was nowhere to be found when God was creating.

from the new testament

• Like Psalms 148, Colossians 1:16–17 also indicates that angels are created beings. There we read, “For by [Jesus] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Jesus is said to be the Creator, and that nothing existed outside of Him (cf. John 1:3). While Paul is speaking in general terms, “visible and invisible” could refer to “physical and spiritual,” such as the earth and angels.
• The New Testament adds no information beyond that about when they were created. However, we can infer from it that all angels were created at the same time. The Sadducees, who didn’t believe in the resurrection, were trying to trick Jesus with an odd hypothetical. They proposed a situation where a woman keeps marrying a series of brothers after each brother dies. They asked whose wife she would be in the resurrection. Jesus replied, “In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven” (Matthew 22:30). From that answer, we can surmise that angels don’t procreate, implying they were all created at once.
• In the parallel account, Jesus also says, “They cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection” (Luke 20:36). From that, we can also deduce that angels never die. Therefore, every angel that exists today likely was created at the start of creation.
• Note: Demons and Satan are also angels (Jude 6; 2 Peter 2:4); thus, they too were created. However, they were not created evil, but created like all other angels. After creation, they fell because of pride (cf. Isaiah 14:12–14; Ezekiel 28:14–17).

implications for today

Popular culture makes angels and demons seem mysterious, powerful, and even uncontrollable—something to fear, investigate, or obsess over. The Bible gives us a very different perspective: angels are created beings who serve God, and even Satan and demons remain under His authority. We don’t need to fear the spiritual realm as though it operates beyond God’s control.

More importantly, notice what Scripture does—and doesn’t—focus on. God hasn’t told us everything we might want to know about angels because our greatest need isn’t to understand them; it’s to know Him. We were created in God’s image, yet we rebelled against Him by listening to Satan. That rebellion brought death, and unlike the fallen angels, we were given a way back.

God sent His Son to become human, experience death, and rescue sinful humanity. Through repentance and faith in Jesus, we can escape God’s wrath and be reconciled to Him. The beings we may be tempted to fear are ultimately less important than the God who created them—and the Savior who came to save us. We were made lower than the angels, yet those who belong to Christ will one day judge angels.

So instead of becoming fascinated with angels, demons, or the unseen world, let them remind you of something far more important: the Creator who rules over them and the Savior who came to rescue you.