e Assyrians an hundred fourscore and
five thousand." There were "cut off all the mighty men of valor, and the
leaders and captains," from the army of Sennacherib. "So he returned with
shame of face to his own land."(904)

Angels are sent on missions of mercy to the children of God. To Abraham,
with promises of blessing; to the gates of Sodom, to rescue righteous Lot
from its fiery doom; to Elijah, as he was about to perish from weariness
and hunger in the desert; to Elisha, with chariots and horses of fire
surrounding the little town where he was shut in by his foes; to Daniel,
while seeking divine wisdom in the court of a heathen king, or abandoned
to become the lions' prey; to Peter, doomed to death in Herod's dungeon;
to the prisoners at Philippi; to Paul and his companions in the night of
tempest on the sea; to open the mind of Cornelius to receive the gospel;
to dispatch Peter with the message of salvation to the Gentile
stranger,--thus holy angels have, in all ages, ministered to God's people.

A guardian angel is appointed to every follower of Christ. These heavenly
watchers shield the righteous from the power of the wicked one. This Satan
himself recognized when he said, "Doth Job fear God for naught? Hast not
Thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he
hath on every side?"(905) The agency by which God protects His people is
presented in the words of the psalmist, "The angel of the Lord encampeth
round about them that fear Him, and delivereth them."(906) Said the
Saviour, speaking of those that believe in Him, "Take heed that ye despise
not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their
angels do always behold the face of My Father."(907) The angels appointed
to minister to the children of God have at all times access to His
presence.

Thus God's people, exposed to the deceptive power and unsleeping malice of
the prince of darkness, and in conflict with all the forces of evil, are
assured of the unceasing guardianship of heavenly angels. Nor is such
assurance given without need. If God has granted to His children promise
of grace and protection, it is because there are mighty agencies of evil
to be met,--agencies numerous, determined, and untiring, of whose malignity
and power none can safely be ignorant or unheeding.

Evil spirits, in the beginning created sinless, were equal in nature,
power, and glory with the holy beings that are now God's messengers. But
fa