Theophany: definition, elements, in the Old and New Testaments and more!

Theophany, in short, is the manifestation of God in the Bible. And this apparition occurs in various forms in some chapters of the Old and New Testaments. It is worth noting that these are visible manifestations, therefore they are real. Moreover, they were temporary appearances.

These theophanies even happen at very specific moments in the Bible. They occur when God seeks to send the message without the need for an intermediary, such as an angel. Therefore, the Divine speaks directly to some person. Therefore, they are decisive phases that carry great messages for everyone.

The warning of the fall of Sodom and Gomorrah to Abraham was one such moment. So, throughout this article understand what theophany is beyond the dictionary meaning, but know the moments where it occurred in the Holy Bible, in the Old and New Testaments and the etymological meaning.

In this first point you will understand the literal meaning of the Theophany. In addition, you will discover a little more about the origin of this word and understand how this divine manifestation occurs in the Bible and what these moments were.

The Greek vocabulary has given rise to many words from different languages ​​around the world. After all, the Greek language is one of the biggest influences of Latin. And with that, it brought a huge impact to the Portuguese language as a whole.

And in the case of the word theophany it was no different. This word is actually a portmanteau of two separate Greek words. Thus, Theos means “God”, while Phainein means to show or manifest.

Putting the two words together, we then have the word theosphainein, which in Portuguese becomes theophany. And putting the meanings together the meaning is “manifestation of God”.

A very common mistake when talking about theophany is to confuse it with anthropomorphism. Even this second case is a philosophical and theological current. It originates from the combination of the Greek terms “anthropo” meaning man and “morphhe” meaning “form”, where the concept attributes human characteristics to deities.

It is not uncommon to find quotes in the Bible that attribute characteristics such as feelings to God. He is even often referred to in the masculine, which highlights anthropomorphism. An example is using the expression “hand of God”.

However, the concept of placing characteristics distances itself from what theophany is in fact. For in this concept, when divine manifestation occurs, it is usually the spirit of God.

Theophany is, in short, the manifestation of God. But this occurs in a much more direct way than in other biblical cases. As said, it occurs in very decisive moments reported in the Bible, since it is the direct encounter with God. Speaking of which, this is a concept rooted in Christian religions such as Protestantism.

It is a supernatural experience where the believer feels the presence of God. Still according to the precepts, the believer who has the experience faithfully believes in God, without any kind of doubt or disbelief.

The Theophany in the Bible occurs at extremely decisive moments between humanity and God. There are more occurrences of this phenomenon in the Old Testament than in the New. They generally function as alerts for believers in the Christian divinity.

According to the holy book, the greatest theophany that occurred in the Bible until the present time is certainly the coming of Jesus Christ. In this case, the first one that occurs from his birth until his death, at the age of 33.

According to the books of the New Testament, Jesus Christ is the greatest appearance of God, because he lived among men, died crucified, but rose on the third day and appeared to the apostles.

In this section you will understand which were the decisive points where the Theophany took place in the Old Testament. It is worth remembering that this phenomenon is temporary, but it occurred at decisive moments. And that’s when God appears directly, without the need for an intermediary.

The first theophany that occurs in the Bible is in the book of Genesis. The city in which the first manifestation of God takes place is in Shechem, in Genesis, where together with his family, Abraham (here still described as Abram) takes the course to the lands of Canaan ordered by God.

In fact, it is worth noting that God always spoke to Abraham throughout his life, sometimes in theophany, sometimes not. The final destination is Shechem. They reach the highest mound where a sacred oak tree resides.

In this, God makes his first appearance to a human. After this Abraham erected an altar to God according to the divine order.

Sodom and Gomorrah are well-known cities even for those who don’t usually read the Bible. They were destroyed by God because they were considered places of great manifestation of sin. And in the meantime, God warns Abraham of his plan.

It also occurs in the book of Genesis. Abraham was already 99 years old when he inhabited Canaan. Three men entered his tent for lunch. At this moment, he hears the voice of the Lord saying that he would have a son.

After lunch, two of the men head to Sodom and Gomorrah. Then, the second theophany takes place: speaking in the first person, God says that he will destroy both cities.

Moses was the one who most communicated with God. After all, he was responsible for the Ten Commandments. After several days of heading towards the Promised Land, the Israelites are in the wilderness of Mt. The theophany occurs through a dense cloud composed of fire, thunder, lightning and also the sound of a trumpet.

However, God desires to speak only to Moses on high. There the giving of the laws of Israel, in addition to the Ten Commandments, took place. Some of God’s orders are known even today, such as “You shall not idolize anyone besides me”. To read it in full, just open the Bible to Exodus 20.

Here, the theophany takes place as the Israelites walk towards the Promised Land. After fleeing the Egyptians and being guided by Moses, God performs another manifestation. So that his people, the Israelites, could go safely, the Lord made an appearance in the middle of a cloud.

She served as a guide in the desert, after the Israelites built a tabernacle, i.e. a sacred place to house the Ark of the Covenant. It was composed of curtains and other materials such as gold. Returning to the theophany, every time the people could set up a camp, the cloud descended to signal.

Every time it rose, it was time for the people to take the path to the Promised Land. It is worth remembering that this walk lasted about 40 years.

Elijah was one of the numerous prophets that exist in the Bible. Here, pursued by Queen Jezebel, in the book of 1 Kings, the prophet goes into the desert and then to Mount Horeb. God had promised that he would appear to Elijah.

While in a cave there was a very strong wind, followed by an earthquake and finally fire. After that, Elijah feels a gentle breeze indicating that it was God making the appearance. In this brief encounter, the prophet feels stronger after the Lord reassures him about any fears that pass through Elijah’s heart.

The theophanies occurring between the two prophets are quite similar. Both have visions of the temple and all the glory of God. The two appearances are reported in the books of the Bible by each of the prophets.

Isaiah reports in the eponymous book that the skirt of the Lord’s garment filled the temple and He was seated on a high and exalted throne. Ezekiel already saw the figure of a man on high above the throne. A man surrounded by bright light.

In this way, the visions encouraged the two prophets to spread the word of the Lord throughout the people of Israel, fervently and courageously.

Learn now how the theophanies occurred in the New Testament, which divine appearances are reported and how they happened in the second part of the Bible. It is worth mentioning that since there is the presence of Jesus Christ, also considered as God, theophanies can also be called Christophany.

The coming of Jesus to Earth is regarded as the greatest theophany yet. Throughout the 33 years of his life, the son of God became flesh and sought to spread the Gospel, the good news, in addition to God’s love for humanity.

The story of Jesus in the Bible, which goes from his birth to his death, and then the resurrection, is told in 4 books: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. In all of them, some event in the life of the son of God is quoted.

Another theophany associated with Jesus is when, after the resurrection, He appears to the apostles and also speaks to His followers.

Saul was one of the greatest persecutors of Christians after the death of Jesus. He bound the faithful to the Gospel. Until one day, a theophany happened to him: the son of God made an appearance. Jesus rebuked him for persecuting Christians. Including, Saulo was temporarily blinded due to theophany.

At this, Saulo repented and even changed his name from Saulo de Tarso, becoming known as Paulo de Tarso. In addition, he was one of the greatest propagators of the Gospel, being the author of thirteen books of the New Testament. It is even through these books that Christian doctrine is based, at first.

This is the last theophany found in the New Testament. It relates to the last book of the Bible: the Apocalypse. While imprisoned on Patmos, John reports having a vision of Jesus in which He revealed supernatural power to him.

But it wasn’t just that. In this manifestation of God the Son, it was appointed to John that he might see the end of time. And, in addition, he should write about what the second coming of Jesus means for humanity according to the Christian religion.

It is through John that Christians are prepared for the Apocalypse and all that will occur in the so-called “end times”.

The elements of theophany in the Holy Bible are common items existing in the manifestations of God. Clearly, not every item appears in every type of theophany. That is, there are some elements that will appear in some manifestations and others will not. Understand now what these elements are!

One of the characteristics of the theophany is certainly its temporality. Divine manifestations are temporary. That is, when they reach the purpose, soon, God withdraws. However, this does not mean that God has abandoned them.

As the Bible expresses in all its…