What Kind of Creatures Are the Cherubim?

For more on the history of interpretation, see my article: “Cherub: A History of Interpretation”, Biblica 96/1 (2015): 26–38. For a better translation, see my paper on this epithet: R. Eichler, “The Meaning of ישב הכרבים”, ZAW 126.3 (2014): 358–371.

For a survey of the different theories about how cherubs were believed to function (including my own work on this question), see Zev Farber’s TABS essay, “The Cherubim: Their Role on the Ark in the Holy of Holies.” Although the two pieces overlap, this piece focuses on the appearance of the cherubim, not their function.

M. Margulies (ed.), Midrash Haggadol on the Pentateuch. Exodus (Jerusalem 1956; Hebrew) 580.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 7:29, in M. Cohen (ed.), Kings I & II (Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’; Ramat-Gan 1995; Hebrew) 55, 57.

C.F. Keil – F. Delitzsch, The Pentateuch (Commentary on the Old Testament; Edinburgh 1866) II, 169-170; R.H. Pfeiffer, “Cherubim”, JBL 41/3-4 (1922) 249-250; P. Dhorme – L.H. Vincent, “Les Chérubins”, RB 35/3 (1926) 328-358 and 35/4 (1926) 481-495 at 484-486. Cf. H. Gressmann, Die Lade Jahves und das Allerheiligste des Salomonischen Tempels (Berlin 1920) 6-14, 47-67; Cooke, Ezekiel, 113; U. Cassuto – R.D. Barnett, “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopedia Miqra’it IV, 238-244 (Hebrew).

Rashbam: commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 72; Hizkuni: (ad loc.), in C.D. Chavel (ed.), Hizkuni. The Torah Commentaries of Hezekiah b.R. Manoah (Jerusalem 1981/2) 280 [Hebrew]. Cf. Rashi on Ezek. 28,14, in Ezekiel Mikra’ot Gedolot ‘Haketer’ (ed., M. Cohen; Ramat-Gan 2000; Hebrew) 190.

F. Lenormant, The Beginnings of History According to the Bible and the Traditions of Oriental Peoples (New York 1882), 135-136.

S.D. Sassoon (ed.), Commentary of Rabbenu Abraham ben HaRambam on Genesis and Exodus (London 1959; Arabic/Hebrew), 390-392.

J. Gellis (ed.), Sefer Tosafot hashalem. Commentary on the Bible (Jerusalem 1993; Hebrew) I, 148.

H. Grotius, Annotationes in Vetus & Novum Testamentum (London 1727 [1644]) 47.

C. Taylor, Fragments, Illustrative of the Manners, Incidents, and Phraseology, of the Holy Scriptures (London 1798) II, 119-130, 159-160; III, 184-185; plates (not enumerated) “Ark of the Covenant”, “Cherubim” 1-4; C. de Bruyn, Travels into Muscovy, Persia, and Part of the East-Indies (London 1737) II, 11-12.

Lenormant, History, 125-126; F. Delitzsch, Wo Lag das Paradies? (Leipzig 1881) 153. Refuted by, e.g., T.C. Foote, “The Cherubim and the Ark”, JAOS 25 (1904) 279-286 at 279. The Chicago Assyrian Dictionary does not list kirûbu as a word.

Dhorme – Vincent, “Chérubins”, 335-336. According to the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary, kāribu is an adjective that can describe “a deity represented as making a gesture of adoration”.

Layard himself made this connection cautiously. See A.H. Layard, Nineveh and Its Remains (London 1849) II, 464-465; idem, Discoveries in the Ruins of Nineveh and Babylon(New York 1853) 549. See also Delitzsch, Paradies, 150-155 and bibl.

A. Dillmann, Genesis: Critically and Exegetically Expounded (Eugene, Oreg. 2005 [1897]) 170 (83). Wood (Wings, 200-207) identifies the cherub with the eagle-headed winged lion and the human-headed winged lion (winged sphinx) – see below.

W.F. Albright, “What Were the Cherubim?” BA 1 (1938) 1-3; G. E. Wright, Biblical Archaeology (Philadelphia 1957) 141; de Vaux, “Chérubins”, esp. 234-238; Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18; idem, Die Geschichte Jerusalems und die Entstehung des Monotheismus(Göttingen 2007) I, 294-301; M. Metzger, Königsthron und Gottesthron: Thronformen und Throndarstellungen in Ägypten und im Vorderen Orient im dritten und zweiten Jahrtausend vor Christus und deren Bedeutung für das Verständnis von Aussagen über den Thron im Alten Testament (AOAT XV; Kevelaer 1985) 323; T.N.D. Mettinger, “Cherubim”, DDD 189-192; Wood, Wings, 202-203; T. Staubli, “Cherub(im)”, Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception V, 55-59.

See already R. Eichler, “The Function of the Ark Cherubim”, Tarbiz 79/2 (2011), 165-185 at 174-175 (Hebrew). Arguments claiming otherwise (Keel, Jahwe-Visionen, 18-21) have been countered (Eichler, “Function”, 174-175).

 U. Cassuto and R. D. Barnett. “Cherub, Cherubim”, Encyclopaedia Biblica 4, 238–244 at 241 (Hebrew).

Lenormant, Beginnings of History, 132–133; Gressmann, Lade, 7–8; Dhorme and Vincent, “Chérubins”, 485; Metzger, Königsthron, 331.

O. Thenius, Die Bücher der Könige (Leipzig 1849) 74–81.

 F. Landsberger, “The Origin of the Winged Angel in Jewish Art”, HUCA 20 (1947): 227–254 at 234.

Metzger, Königsthron, 340–341. Some interpreters have attempted to solve this problem by hypothesizing that the wings of the cherubim were not extended horizontally, and therefore the real wingspan was longer than the given one, which is measured with a horizontal line. But, as noted by Metzger (ibid., 341 n. 1), this solution ignores the fact that each wing is explicitly said to be 5 cubits long.

H. Filipowski (ed.), Hebraicae et Chaldaicae Lexicon (London – Edinburgh 1854; Hebrew) 110. The crucial phrase is absent in some manuscripts of ibn Saruq’s book, for which see the critical edition: Mĕnaḥem ben Saruq. Maḥberet (ed., A. Sáenz-Badillos; Granada 1986), 223.

Commentary and Shita Aheret on Gen 3,24, in Cohen, Genesis, 56; long commentary on Exod 25,18, in Cohen, Exodus, 73 (cf. short commentary ad loc., in ibid., 72). Also cited by David Kimhi in his Sefer HaShorashim: David Kimchi, Radicum Liber (eds., H.R. Biesenthal and F. Lebrecht; Berlin 1847), 170 [Hebrew].

Saadia in N. Allony (ed.), Ha’Egron. Kitāb ’uṣūl al-shi‘r al-‘ibrānī by Rav Sĕ‘adya Ga’on (Jerusalem 1969; Arabic/Hebrew) 250. Joined also by Rashi (on Exod 26,31), in Cohen, Exodus, 88. Judah ibn Bal‘am translates the word “cherub” in Ezek 28,14 in this way: see M. Perez (ed.) R. Judah ibn Bal‘am’s Commentary on Ezekiel (Ramat Gan 2000; Arabic/Hebrew) 109.

Gellis, Tosafot, I, 148-149 par. 8.

Landsberger, “Angel”, 236; D.N. Freedman – M.P. O’Connor, “kerûḇ”, TDOT VII, 307-319 at 315-319; C. Meyers, “Cherubim”, ABD I, 899-900; C. Houtman, Exodus III (HCOT; Kampen 2000) 383; W.H.C. Propp, Exodus 19–40 (AB IIb; New York 2006) 386-387. See also Lenormant, History, 133-135; Gressmann, Lade, 47-67.

See also Metzger, Gottesthron, 311.

O. Keel, Corpus der Stempelsiegel-Amulette aus Palästina/Israel von den Anfängen bis zur Perserzeit. Katalog Band II (Fribourg 2010) 298-289 (Bet-Schemesch #188).

W.M. Flinders Petrie, Ancient Gaza I-IV. Tell el Ajjul (London 1931-1934) III, pl. 4 fig. 136; B. Teissier, Egyptian Iconography on Syro-Palestinian Cylinder Seals of the Middle Bronze Age (Fribourg, Switzerland 1996) seal 267 (pp. 121, 205).

G. Herrmann, Ivories from Nimrud IV. Ivories from Room SW 37 Fort Shalmaneser (London 1986) I, 208; II, pl. 274 (#1056; see also #1057).

The biblical writers describing “angels”, i.e. divine messengers, did not imagine them as taking the form of winged humans, as commonly thought today. These messengers are simply identical to humans in appearance (Genesis 18–19), and can be mistaken for them (Genesis 19:5; Judges 6:11–24; 13:16–23).