Regardless, messenger angels are a highly important part of preserving and strengthening the link, as well as necessary distance, of God to humans. The nature of the knowledge that angelic messengers carry is always heavenly; that is to say, it is divine, and only by being sanctioned by God can it be transmitted to humans, and only for necessary reasons. When an angel transmits knowledge from God, his own identity is effaced by that of his Lord; that is, he speaks directly for God.[12]