Throughout the Hebrew Bible, the angel of the Lord often appeared in human form to individuals. Significantly, the Hebrew word for 'angel' simply means 'messenger'.
1) Most Messianic Jews believe in the deity of Yeshua. And they would hold to the angel of the Lord being Yeshua. Here is a Messianic Rabbi named Loren Jacobs (of Congregation Shema Yisrael in Michigan) who wrote a good article on this topic defending the main Messianic view. http://ldolphin.org/angelL.html
2) In Genesis 16 – the angel of the Lord appears to Hagar. Moses wrote down her reaction: “She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” (Genesis 16:13). Notice it is Moses himself who uses the Holy name of God – Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey when he says “She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her.” So who was it spoke to her? Moses tells us it was YHVH. Yet the text indicates this was “the angel of the Lord.” Solution – this was indeed Yeshua!
3) “The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.” (Genesis 18:1). Again, while it does not specifically state that this was the angel of the Lord, the text is clear. Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey appears before Abraham. So was this the Father? No, it could not be, as no one has ever seen the Father. So then who was this? Again – it was Yeshua.
4) Again to Gideon this angel of the LORD appears, and look at how Moses frames the angel's reply to Gideon's question: “The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.” Again – this is what Moses wrote: Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey answered Gideon. Not some created angel, not some human, but Moses specifically wants us to know the LORD answered, and that this “angel of the Lord” is indeed deity. He tells this by showing us who replied, the angel of the LORD, and this angel using God's personal name.
Lest you think that God would share His glory with any created being – let us remember in Isaiah 42:8 God states, “I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another....” It is unthinkable that Moses was sharing this information with us – this angel sharing God's holy name - to not tell us that this angel is YHVH Himself.
To summarize, remember, Yeshua Himself states, “Moses wrote of me.” (John 5:46). If all these above are not Moses writing of Yeshua in Torah, then what is?
Objection: “But if this was Yeshua, then his first coming was really his 19th or something.”
Reply: None of these appearances were to the nation of Israel as a whole. And that is what His “comings” are about – His comings are to the entire nation. First to be our sin bearer, then second to reign as King. His “comings” are to the entire nation, not to individuals appearing as an angel (messenger).
You can rest assured – Yeshua is the Messiah, and He is deity with the Father. Not two separate beings – but ONE in essence.
