Judges 6:21
Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.
The verse belongs to the time of Midianite oppression, when after seven years of suffering the people confessed their sin and God raised up a helper for Israel. It belongs to the account of Gideon, whom God raised up to deliver Israel from its enemies, as part of the repeated pattern of backsliding, chastisement, and deliverance. In the verse Gideon is seeking a sign in the presence of the heavenly messenger, asking for confirmation that the message came from heaven.
His request for a sign parallels Hezekiah's request for confirmation that the message of healing came from God. The angel, appearing in human form, put forth the end of the staff in his hand and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and fire rose out of the rock and consumed them as on an altar; then the angel disappeared from sight. The fire showed that the offering was accepted as a sacrifice to God rather than a meal of hospitality, and by it the angel confirmed the offering and revealed his divine identity and character.
The event is one example of how God in all ages works through holy angels to help, succor, and deliver His people in human affairs. Because Gideon was commanded to offer sacrifice on the rock where the angel appeared, he wrongly concluded that he had been appointed to serve as a priest and could establish worship there, but the command and sign did not authorize him to institute a priesthood or a separate or new system of worship.