Heavenly Host

"The Heavenly Host are Heaven's most fearsome armies, consisting of the angelic warriors of the utmost degrees. They are symbols of justice and might, deliverers of God's Wrath, and the bane of wickedness. They are said to be one of the most powerful armies in mythology, dwarfing many other pantheons by great margins, and is one of the reasons why the pagan gods don't dare to attack the Abrahamic openly."

- Carl Black.

The Heavenly Host are the armies of Heaven comprised of only angels.

Overview
"Thou shall not oppose the wrath of God! FEAR! Fear god and give glory to Him For hour of His judgement has come to you. NOW! When the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released Judgement has come to you!"

- Cut Lyrics to the song Fierce Battle.

While angels are at times regarded as messengers, they are often overlooked as being soldiers of God. The Bible gives several descriptions of angels in military terms, such as their encampment, command structure, and combat. The heavenly host participated in the War in Heaven. The Heavenly Host can also be applied to a council of high-ranking angels.

Since the dawn of Creation, Heaven and Hell have waged their Eternal Conflict. To this end, the Heavenly Host adheres to strict militaristic disciplines, as angels believe that only absolute discipline can bring order to the myriad realms.

Description
The Heavenly Host appears to rely predominantly on spears, shields, and to an extent, swords, though the Skycutter, a mace, has been stated to be a favored weapon.

Composition
A number of types of warrior compose the Host. Most common of these appears to be "lancers;" angels equipped with spears who fight in formation, though have also been observed to use swords. Specialized types include the following:
 * Angelic Scouts: Unarmored and unarmed. Wear light armor or golden robes. They are adept in magic, are able to operate siege weaponry, expel demonic corruption and project shields of force to protect allies.
 * Angelic Warriors: Wears full plate white and golden armor, and carry maces or blades. They may operate or repair siege weapons.
 * Luminarei: An order of warriors directly under the command of the True Archangel Imperius, assigned to guard the Crystal Arch.
 * Sicarai: Angelic destroyers, most of whom were trained by the True Archangel Tyrael.

The Host has utilized siege weapons, of which massive conduits of Light, lightning towers and ballistae have been observed. Unlike the Legion, angels may repair their siege weaponry in the field. Timeless Prisons are sometimes utilized to trap the demon champions in time, preventing them from being reborn in Hell.

Origins
The heavenly host are commonly thought to have been created on the first day. However, the Jewish faith affirms angels were created either on the second or fifth day.

Some time later, the True Archangel known as Helel, began to rebel against God and Heaven and was able to coax a third of the hosts of Heaven to his side before declaring war against God. Michael amassed his own army of angels, which later became known as the Heavenly Host, loyal to God against the rebel angels of Helel. Armed with a sword from God's armory and His blessing, he bests his brother in personal combat, wounding his side. Michael alongside his army banished the rebel angels into Hell and Helel to his cage.

Worldstone
The Heavenly Host waged battle in of supremacy by Heaven, Hell, and Pandemonium alike. However, the war ground to a halt with the disappearance of the Worldstone.

Sin War
The Host came to Sanctuary in what would be the last battle of the Sin War. Under the command of the archangel Tyrael, the Host descended from the skies and struck their wrath on all who opposed them. To the Host, this version of humanity was nothing but a horde of demons, and as actual demons erupted from the ground to ignite a three-way battle, the angels made no distinction between the two of them. However, the angels and demons involved in the battle were sent back to their respective realms by Uldyssian. This led to a truce between Heaven and Hell, as they agreed to allow this mankind and the one created by God to follow its own path towards Order or Chaos.

Book of Joshua
In the Book of Joshua 5:13-15, Joshua encounters a "captain of the host of the Lord" in the early days of his campaigns in the Promised Land. This unnamed heavenly messenger is sent by God to encourage Joshua in the upcoming claiming of the Promised Land.

Deathless War
The Heavenly Host played another role where they participated in the Deathless War. Seeing the growing threat of the Sarkics as well as the impending arrival of Yaldabaoth due to their machinations, the armies of Heaven joined with the forces of Earth and Hell to push back the Sarkic Empire and destroy the abominations that were spawned from it. Their partaking in the war marked the first time in history where the angels descended to Earth to aid in the destruction of a growing evil.

Heaven's Final Stand
Millennia later, the Heavenly Host defended the Silver City from Al'Diabolos and his minions, but were overwhelmed. Total defeat was only averted by the Nephalem and their allies. Luckily the attack of Al'Diabolos had only destroyed a minor of the first line and layer of the Heaven's circle.

End Times
"Make no mistake this is not an act of rebellion against the word of our Father. The mortals have proven to be more than capable of oppressing the evils that were thrown against them. They may be frail, petty, and weak in flesh but they are strong in mind and spirit. And to sit idly by whilst they suffer and struggle at the growing tides of Hell is intolerable! We swore to our Father to shepherd these humans to Paradise! To protect them from the Serpent's temptations! We will uphold the oath! For they have fought the legions of Hell with our names as their sword and shield! Like it or not they have aided us, and it is time we return the favor. Even if that should require violating our own statutes, to allow such a debt to go unpaid would bring eternal shame upon Heaven!"

- Michael to the Heavenly Host.

Thousands of years later, they once again played another major role where they came to aid the united forces of the Earth against insurmountable numbers of Gog and Magog and the Euphrates Army.

During the Apocalypse, Lucifer had Satan and his forces bring forth Gog and Magog and the Euphrates Army to completely eradicate the human race along with anyone else that would oppose his plans. The Global Occult Coalition, alongside the combined might of the Dark Knight Initiative's own forces, and the armadas of many other countries were fighting a losing battle against Gog and Magog with the Euphrates Army, with both wars against these apocalyptic beings taking place on one side of the planet to another.

It was not long until Michael led the Heavenly Host to aid humanity in their growing struggle and quickly turn the tides in their favor.

Myths and Legends
"An army of angels who have no will of their own, but simply follow the will of the Lord. If God's will calls for blessing, then they will bless the people. If it calls for calamity, they will bring calamity down upon the people. Either way, they carry out His orders unhesitatingly."

- The Demonic Compendium.

The Bible gives several descriptions of angels in military terms, such as their encampment (Genesis 32:1–2), command structure (Psalms 91:11–12; Matt.13:41; Rev.7:2), and combat (Jdg.5:20; Job 19:12; Rev.12:7).

The term "Lord of Hosts" is also used in the Baháʼí Faith as a title of God. Bahá'u'lláh, claiming to be the Manifestation of God, wrote tablets to many of the kings and rulers of the world inviting them to recognize him as the Promised One of all ages and faiths, some of which were compiled and published in English as The Summons of the Lord of Hosts.

Quotes

 * "The Lord thunders at the head of his army; his forces are beyond number, and mighty is the army that obeys his command..." - Joel 2:11, The Bible.


 * "The demons could not stand before the swords of the angelic Host, and their blood ran upon the fields of eternity." - The Books of Jarl.


 * "Ten thousand strong, the angels burst forth from the clouds and fell upon the gathered army of the underworld, tearing it asunder with their savage weapons." - The Books of Jarl.


 * "The comfort of death will come for men and beast alike... by the guidance of the Great Will." - An Angel.


 * "Once when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing before him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went to him and said to him, ‘Are you one of us, or one of our adversaries?’ He replied, ‘Neither; but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.’ And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped, and he said to him, ‘What do you command your servant, my Lord?’ The commander of the army of the Lord said to Joshua, ‘Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you stand is holy.’ And Joshua did so." - Joshua 5:13–15 (NRSV).


 * "Forgiveness is between sinners and God, and they're here to arrange the meeting." - A Saint.

Images Sources

 * (AngelsSMT.jpg) Angels by Kazuma Kaneko
 * (Glory to god in the highest revised by douglasramsey d9k84md-fullview.jpg) Glory to God in the Highest Revised by DouglasRamsey
 * (Blessed Be the Host of the King of Heaven.jpg Blessed Be the Host of the Heavenly Tsar from the Russian Orthodox Church
 * (Ferdinand Bol God's Messenger Appears to Joshua.png) Depiction of the Commander of the Lord's Army in Joshua 5 by Ferdinand Bol
 * (Paradise Lost 5.jpg) Angels of Heaven blow their trumpets in victory by Gustave Doré
 * (Angel Army.jpg) Kingdom of God by ???
 * (Angels 0003.jpg) Angels from Lucifer Vol 3
 * (Goddess Clan.png) Angels of the Goddess Clan from Seven Deadly Sins
 * (Heavenly Host.jpg) Heavenly Host from Diablo
 * (Lancers.jpg) Warriors of the Heavenly Host from Diablo III - Wrath Animated Video
 * (HeavenleHostD3.png) The Heavenly Host attacks the Demonic Legion from Diablo
 * (AngelicWarriors.jpg) Angelic Warriors and Imperius from Diablo