In the JST, “angel” is replaced by “servant” in passages such as Rev 2:1, 8, 12, 18. The following is from NT Manuscript 2, p. 149:
There is an on-going debate within
scholarship if these angels are celestial beings or humans (i.e., bishops). For
examples of those who support the “human bishop” interpretation, consider the
following:
Moving on from the Pastorals, at the beginning of the
Book of Revelation, Christ gives John a message for each angelos (ἄγγελος) of
the seven churches in Asia (Rev 1:20; 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14). The Greek
word angelos, translated as “angel,”
can also mean “messenger,” which can be seen in its verbal form angellō (ἀγγέλλω) meaning to “announce,” “report,” or
“inform.” Some, though not many, consider these “angels” to be the human
leaders of each of the seven churches of Asia. However, the word angelos occurs sixty-seven times in the
Book of Revelation, and on every other occasion it means an angel. Be that as
it may, it would seem strange if John were really asked to write to an angel,
especially when he can see and talk to angels during his vision on Patmos (Rev
1:9–10), and there is no indication of how those angels would then pass on the
message to the church. On the other hand, it makes sense to regard the angel as
the episkopos of the church who could
pass on the message of John’s letter in his preaching, which seems to be the
meaning of the conclusion of each message to each “angel” advising that he who
has an ear should hear what the Spirit says to the churches (2:7, 11, 17, 29;
3:6, 13, 22). While rare, there are instances of angelos in the New Testament meaning a human “messenger” rather
than an “angel”: the messengers of John the Baptist (Luke 7:24); Jesus’
messengers (Luke 9:52); and the messengers Rahab received (James 2:25). John
the Baptist himself is understood as the messenger of Malachi 3:1 by Jesus in
Matthew 11:10 and Luke 7:27. So these instances in the first three chapters of
Revelation would not be the first or only occurrences where the word angelos means a human. While there is no
agreement on the meaning of the “angels” of the churches of Asia in Revelation
1–3, I nevertheless think it cannot be ruled out that the angelos of each of the seven churches in Revelation is its episkopos. If that is correct, these
angels/messengers are the episkopoi
of these seven churches, and in Revelation 1–3, we are now seeing a development
in church governance that brings us close to the situation at the turn of the
first century, when each local church was presided over by a bishop (assisted
by priests and deacons). (Thomas J. Lane, The Catholic
Priesthood: Biblical Foundations [Steubenville, Ohio: Emmaus Road
Publishing, 2006], 170-71)
The Angels as Human Figures
A third interpretation understands the angels as human
beings. This view generally understands the term ἄγγελος (angelos)
in the specific context of Rev 1:20 and the subsequent seven messages (Rev
2–3), to mean “messenger” in some form. Interpreters disagree concerning the
identity of these humans. Some interpretations describe the angels as:
• bishops.
• leaders
of worship in the Christian congregations, patterned after the Jewish style
(Mulholland, Revelation, 91–2).
• messengers
who carried the letter from John at Patmos to the churches. (Andrew
Coutras, “Angels of the Seven Churches,” in The Lexham Bible Dictionary,
ed. John D. Barry et al. [Bellingham, Wash.: Lexham Press, 2016], Logos ed.)
ANGELS
OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES: It is evident from the contexts of the
various Biblical passages in which the word “angel” appears, that the word does
not always represent the same idea. In such passages as Dnl 12:1 and Acts 12:15
it would seem that the angel was generally regarded as a superhuman being whose
duty it was to guard a nation or an individual, not unlike the jenei of the Arabs. However, in Mal 2:7
and 3:1 (Heb) the word is clearly used to represent men. In the NT also, there
are passages, such as Jas 2:25 (Gr), in which the word seems to be applied to
men. The seven angels of the seven churches (Rev 1:20) received seven letters,
fig. letters, and therefore it would seem that the seven angels are also fig.
and may refer to the seven bishops who presided over the seven churches of
Asia. Or the angels may be regarded as the personifications of the churches. (E.
J. Banks, “Angels of the Seven Churches,” in The International Standard
Bible Encyclopaedia, ed. James Orr et al., 4 vols. [Chicago: The
Howard-Severance Company, 1915], 1:135)
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