There is a sound coming from Heaven—the noise of the chariots of God! For His mighty army of angels is on the move.

It was a sound heard in the prophet Elisha’s time, when God caused Israel’s enemies to hear the sound of chariots and horses and a great army.
They fled in fear, leaving a bounty of food behind. (2 Kings 7:6)

I believe the Lord is saying to many, “I am setting you free from fear of your enemy on the ground.
I am giving you ears to hear the sound of marching from Heaven.”

• As God said to David,
  “When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, advance against the Philistines. For you will know that I have gone before you.” (See 2 Sam 5:23-25)

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9 Lessons on Angels (and Chariots)

1. Understanding Angels is a Key to Knowing God

“…[The LORD] makes the clouds His chariot,
Who walks on the wings of the wind,
Who makes His angels spirits,
His ministers a flame of fire.” (Psalm 104:3b-4, NKJV)

How much do we desire God, and to know Him?

One of the names of God is, “Lord of Hosts”.
That word “hosts” in Hebrew comes from a word meaning “a mass of persons especially organized for war”! (Strong’s H6635)

Or as Eugene Peterson puts it, He is “GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies”. [1]

This is a significant revelation of God in Scripture. It is a gift He is releasing right now, for He wants us to know Him in all his fullness.

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2. Angels Give us Overcoming Power

The Aramean army surrounded the city of Dothan. They were after one person—the Prophet Elisha.
It was “a great army”, with chariots, horses, and armed men.

When his servant became fearful, Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes”.
At this, the servant saw a heavenly army.
Fiery angelic chariots and horses surrounded them. Not only were the angels more numerous than the enemy army, they were positioned higher, upon the mountain!

What “chariot” is coming against you today?

• The Holy Spirit is releasing faith, so that that you can know as Elisha did,
  “Those who are with you are more than those who are with them.” (2 Kings 6:16b)

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3. Angels Appeared with Chariots

Sometimes, angels appear or are mentioned in the Bible along with horses and chariots. And it is most often in the context of battle. [2]

Why chariots?
Chariots are symbolic in the Bible of strength, power, and might. [3]

• In ancient times, chariots were used as a military weapon
• An army that had many chariots was considered powerful

So, earthly chariots were synonymous with human might!
And chariots of fire—angelic “vehicles”—carried the might of Heaven.

These were a constant military presence, surrounding God’s people.

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4. Angels Should be Held in Our Peripheral Vision

Elisha was aware of the angelic armies and fiery chariots in the hillside. But they weren’t his point of focus.
His confidence was in God.

• These stories of Scripture remind us that angels are to stay in our peripheral vision.

In other words, we know they are there, we may even perceive them.
And those of us who are discerners know that angels have a distinct, identifiable presence.
But they are not our main point of focus, for our eyes are fixed on Jesus.

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5. Knowing Angels are Near Banishes Fear

Being aware of the “chariots of God” was an antidote to fear that was so effective, Elisha prayed for God to open his servant’s eyes!

God is releasing courage to someone today!
You can be confident that God has angels waiting and working on your behalf.

We do not need to fear the chariots of the world. Instead, we can trust in the Lord’s power to deliver us.

As David wrote,
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
(Psalms 20:7 NKJV, see also Deut 20:1)

Trust in God is a powerful magnet that pulls on the resources of Heaven.

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6. Angels are Messengers with a Purpose

• The Hebrew word for angel, malak, comes from a word meaning to dispatch as a deputy (Strong’s H4397).
• And the word used for angel in the New Testament Greek, aggelos, means a messenger or envoy (Strong’s G32).

As messengers, angels are sent by God on assignment—coming with power to act in a certain way, for a specific purpose.

“Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word. Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure.”
(Psalms 103:20-21 NKJV)

God will dispatch angels for your protection and to aid in breakthrough (Psalm 91:11).

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7. God is Releasing Angelic Orders on Your Behalf

“Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.” (Dan 10:12, NKJV)

Daniel’s example is a reminder that we don’t direct angels ourselves—it is our Father who sends them forth from His throne. (Matt 26:53, Psalm 103:20)

From the moment you prayed and called upon God, He set angelic orders in motion, to break open the way before you.

Even your ineloquent groaning has moved Him to act. (Exodus 2:24, 1 Sam 1:13)

So today, no matter how many enemies are stacked against you, your Father wants you to know that He has heard your prayer, and angels are present in response to your words!

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8. Angels are Abundant!

King David wrote,
“The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of thousands; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy Place.”
(Psalm 68:17, NKJV)

This is speaking of a Heavenly reality!
We don’t need to have a scarcity mindset when it comes to the angelic.
The messengers of God and the power of God they bear are numerous.
And you can be assured of this:

When pressure comes against you, God’s power is working for you.

Angels are not limited in potential; they are great in power.
They are freely available, awaiting your Father’s command—in answer to your prayer.

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9. It’s Time to Discern the Chariots

I believe this is a significant word for this time:

Discern the sources of power you see.
And ask: “Am I dependent upon the “chariots of the Lord” for victory, or is this a chariot of the world?”

For those of us who hunger to see God’s power at work, there is a lesson we can learn from King Solomon, who gathered thousands of chariots into chariot cities (1 Kings 9:19) [4]. He achieved a remarkable feat—but in doing so, there were three “flags” Solomon ignored:

a. History’s Example
Generations earlier, God commanded Joshua to burn the chariots of armies they conquered. Not to keep them! (Josh 11:6)
Why? Because God wanted His people to be dependent upon Him.

b. Prophetic words spoken to him.
King David spoke a prophecy over his son Solomon, that he would have rest from his enemies. (1 Chronicles 22:9)
The name Solomon means peace, or peaceful (Strong’s H8010).
According to God’s word over his life, he would not need to stockpile chariots.

3. The Command of the LORD
God specifically commanded kings not to accumulate horses (Deut 17:16)
This means Solomon was in ignorance of God’s commands—at worst, in outright disobedience to God’s Word.

Solomon Neglected his greatest power

The chariot cities were military power held in reserve.
But Solomon neglected his greatest power:
Having right standing with God.

Oh, how our Father longs to unleash His power on our behalf!

Which chariots are we relying on?
When we obey God only to the extent of our human capacity, we limit Him!

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Angel Hosts are On the Way

The most powerful weapon you have is free of cost, yet it is pivotal to everything!
It’s the gift of right standing with God.
It is His Presence with you.

Through this favor, you have power, you have angels at work on your behalf, that can sweep aside opposition and overcome obstacles.
Against all odds.

Hear the sound from Heaven. The chariots of God—His angel hosts—are on the way.

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Notes:

1. The Message Bible by Eugene Peterson, Navpress

2. In ancient times, chariots were not only used for battle, but kings, their leaders, and representatives rode in chariots (Gen 41:43).
Perhaps this is a reason why God chose to bring His faithful servant Elijah to Heaven in a chariot of fire!

3. Used for research:
https://www.bible-history.com/links.php?cat=39&sub=791&cat_name=Manners+%26+Customs&subcat_name=Chariots

4. There are references to the chariots of Israel in 1 Kings 16.
But the chariot cities are not mentioned again.

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Leave a Comment
Which of the above points inspire you the most?
Personally, it’s number 9, as my study of Solomon’s chariot cities prompted me to create this post! I’d love to hear from you, so leave a message in the comments box on the blog.

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Related Posts:

• God Has Assigned Angels to You
• 5 Ways Angels Help You in Spiritual Warfare

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Find out more about the course, ‘Spiritual Warfare 101: How to Identify and Overcome Spiritual Attack’ here. Scroll down to see the complete list of lessons and PDFs.

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© 2021 Helen Calder Enliven Blog – Prophetic Teaching
Enliven Ministries
In the David McCracken Ministries family