以西結書 1
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
以西結的異象
1 第三十年四月五日，我正在迦巴魯河畔被擄的人當中，忽然天開了，我看見了上帝的異象。 2 那是約雅斤王被擄第五年的四月五日， 3 就在迦勒底人境內的迦巴魯河畔，耶和華的話特別傳給了布西的兒子以西結祭司，耶和華的能力[a]降在他身上。
4 在異象中，我看見一陣狂風從北方颳來，隨後有一大朵雲閃耀著火光，四周環繞著燦爛的光芒，火的中心像發光的金屬。 5 火中有四個像人形的活物， 6 每個活物有四張不同的面孔和四個翅膀。 7 他們的腿是直的，腳如同牛犢的蹄，都亮如磨光的銅。 8 四面的翅膀下都有人的手，四個活物都有臉和翅膀， 9 翅膀彼此相連。他們移動時不必轉身，各朝前面移動。 10 四個活物的面孔是這樣的：正面是人的臉，右面是獅子的臉，左面是牛的臉，後面是鷹的臉。 11 他們的翅膀向上展開，每個活物的一對翅膀與其他活物的翅膀相連，另外一對翅膀遮蔽身體。 12 耶和華的靈往哪裡去，他們也往哪裡去，移動時不用轉身。 13 四個活物的形像如燃燒的火炭，又像火把。活物之間有火上下移動，發出耀眼的閃電。 14 這些活物像閃電一樣往來飛馳。
15 當我觀看這些活物的時候，發現每個活物旁邊的地上都有一個輪子。 16 四個輪子的形狀和結構都一樣，好像輪套輪，如同閃耀的綠寶石。 17 他們可以向四面移動，移動時輪子不必轉向。 18 輪圈高而可畏，周圍佈滿了眼睛。 19 活物行走，輪子也在旁邊行走；活物上升，輪子也上升。 20 靈往哪裡去，活物也往哪裡去，輪子也跟著往哪裡去，因為活物的靈在輪子裡。 21 活物行走，輪子也行走；活物站立不動，輪子也站立不動；活物上升，輪子也跟著上升，因為活物的靈在輪子裡。
22 活物的頭上好像鋪展著茫茫的穹蒼，如同頂著耀眼的水晶。 23 穹蒼下四個活物伸展翅膀，彼此相對，各用兩個翅膀遮蔽身體。 24 他們移動時，翅膀發出的響聲如洪濤之聲，既像全能者的聲音，又像軍隊的呐喊。活物站住的時候，便將翅膀垂下。 25 他們站立垂下翅膀時，有聲音從他們頭頂的穹蒼之上傳來。
26 在他們頭頂的穹蒼之上彷彿有藍寶石的寶座，有一位形狀像人的高高坐在寶座上。 27 我看到祂的腰部以上好像燒紅發亮的金屬，好像有火四面環繞。腰部以下如同火焰。祂周圍有耀眼的光輝， 28 彷彿雨天雲中的彩虹。
這是耶和華榮耀的形像。我一看見，便俯伏在地，隨後聽見有說話的聲音。
Footnotes
- 1·3 「能力」希伯來文是「手」。
Ezekiel 1
New King James Version
Ezekiel’s Vision of God
1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by (A)the River Chebar, that (B)the heavens were opened and I saw (C)visions[a] of God. 2 On the fifth day of the month, which was in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, 3 the word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the [b]Chaldeans by the River Chebar; and (D)the hand of the Lord was upon him there.
4 Then I looked, and behold, (E)a whirlwind was coming (F)out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. 5 (G)Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And (H)this was their appearance: they had (I)the likeness of a man. 6 Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. 7 Their [c]legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves’ feet. They sparkled (J)like the color of burnished bronze. 8 (K)The hands of a man were under their wings on their four sides; and each of the four had faces and wings. 9 Their wings touched one another. The creatures did not turn when they went, but each one went straight (L)forward.
10 As for (M)the likeness of their faces, each (N)had the face of a man; each of the four had (O)the face of a lion on the right side, (P)each of the four had the face of an ox on the left side, (Q)and each of the four had the face of an eagle. 11 Thus were their faces. Their wings stretched upward; two wings of each one touched one another, and (R)two covered their bodies. 12 And (S)each one went straight forward; they went wherever the spirit wanted to go, and they did not turn when they went.
13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, (T)like the appearance of torches going back and forth among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of the fire went lightning. 14 And the living creatures ran back and forth, (U)in appearance like a flash of lightning.
15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, behold, (V)a wheel was on the earth beside each living creature with its four faces. 16 (W)The appearance of the wheels and their workings was (X)like the color of beryl, and all four had the same likeness. The appearance of their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel. 17 When they moved, they went toward any one of four directions; they did not turn aside when they went. 18 As for their rims, they were so high they were awesome; and their rims were (Y)full of eyes, all around the four of them. 19 (Z)When the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. 20 Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, because there the spirit went; and the wheels were lifted together with them, (AA)for the spirit of the [d]living creatures was in the wheels. 21 When those went, these went; when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up together with them, for the spirit of the [e]living creatures was in the wheels.
22 (AB)The likeness of the [f]firmament above the heads of the [g]living creatures was like the color of an awesome (AC)crystal, stretched out (AD)over their heads. 23 And under the firmament their wings spread out straight, one toward another. Each one had two which covered one side, and each one had two which covered the other side of the body. 24 (AE)When they went, I heard the noise of their wings, (AF)like the noise of many waters, like (AG)the voice of the Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army; and when they stood still, they let down their wings. 25 A voice came from above the firmament that was over their heads; whenever they stood, they let down their wings.
26 (AH)And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, (AI)in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above (AJ)it. 27 Also from the appearance of His waist and upward (AK)I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. 28 (AL)Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. (AM)This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.
Ezekiel Sent to Rebellious Israel
So when I saw it, (AN)I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 1:1 So with MT, LXX, Vg.; Syr., Tg. a vision
- Ezekiel 1:3 Or Babylonians, and so elsewhere in the book
- Ezekiel 1:7 Lit. feet
- Ezekiel 1:20 Lit. living creature; LXX, Vg. spirit of life; Tg. creatures
- Ezekiel 1:21 See note at v. 20
- Ezekiel 1:22 Or expanse
- Ezekiel 1:22 So with LXX, Tg., Vg.; MT living creature
Ezekiel 1
Easy-to-Read Version
Introduction
1 I am the priest, Ezekiel son of Buzi. I was in exile by the Kebar Canal in Babylonia when the skies opened up, and I saw visions of God. This was on the fifth day of the fourth month of the thirtieth year.[a] (This was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile. The word of the Lord came to Ezekiel. The power of the Lord came over him at that place.)
The Chariot of the Lord—God’s Throne
4 I was watching a big storm come in from the north. It was a big cloud with a strong wind, and there was fire flashing from it. Light was shining out all around it. It looked like hot metal[b] glowing in a fire. 5 Inside the cloud, there were four living beings that looked like people. 6 But each one of them had four faces and four wings. 7 Their legs were straight. Their feet looked like calves’ feet, and they sparkled like polished brass. 8 Under their wings were human arms. There were four living beings. Each living being had four faces and four wings. 9 The wings touched each other. The living beings did not turn when they moved. They went in the direction they were looking.
10 Each living being had four faces. In the front they each had a man’s face. There was a lion’s face on the right side and a bull’s face on the left side. There was an eagle’s face on the back. 11 Their wings were spread out over them. With two of the wings each living being reached out to touch the one near it, and with the other two wings it covered its body. 12 Each living being went in the direction it was looking. They went wherever the spirit[c] caused them to go, but they did not turn when they moved. 13 That is what the living beings looked like.
Inside the area between the living beings, there was something that looked like burning coals of fire. This fire was like small torches that kept moving around among the living beings. The fire glowed brightly and lightning flashed from it. 14 The living beings ran back and forth—as fast as lightning.[d]
15-16 I was looking at the living beings when I noticed four wheels that touched the ground. There was one wheel by each living being. All the wheels looked the same. The wheels looked as if they were made from a clear, yellow jewel. They looked like there was a wheel inside a wheel. 17 They could turn to move in any direction. But the living beings did not turn when they moved.[e]
18 The rims of the wheels were tall and frightening. There were eyes all over the rims of all four wheels.
19 The wheels always moved with the living beings. If the living beings went up into the air, the wheels went with them. 20 They went wherever the spirit wanted them to go, and the wheels went with them, because the power that moved the living being was in the wheels. 21 So if the living beings moved, the wheels moved. If the living beings stopped, the wheels stopped. If the wheels went into the air, the living beings went with them, because the spirit was in the wheels.
22 There was an amazing thing over the heads of the living beings. It was like a bowl[f] turned upside down, and the bowl was clear like crystal. 23 Under this bowl, each living being had wings reaching out to the one next to it. Two wings spread out one way and two wings spread out the other way, covering its body.
24 Then I heard the wings. Every time the living beings moved, their wings made a very loud noise like a lot of water rushing by. They were loud like the Lord All-Powerful. They were as loud as an army or a crowd of people. When the living beings stopped moving, they put their wings down by their side.
25 The living beings stopped moving and lowered their wings. Then there was another loud sound that came from above the bowl over their heads. 26 There was something that looked like a throne on top of the bowl. It was blue like sapphire. There was also something that looked like a man sitting on the throne. 27 I looked at him from his waist up. He looked like hot metal with fire all around him. I looked at him from his waist down. It looked like fire with a glow that was shining all around him. 28 The light shining around him was like a rainbow in a cloud. It was the Glory of the Lord. As soon as I saw that, I fell to the ground. I bowed with my face to the ground, and then I heard a voice speaking to me.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 1:1 fifth day … year If the year refers to Ezekiel’s age, this is the same as the fifth year of exile, that is, July 31, 593 B.C.
- Ezekiel 1:4 hot metal The Hebrew word might mean “melted copper,” “an alloy of gold and silver,” or “amber.” Also in verse 27.
- Ezekiel 1:12 spirit Or “wind.” Also in verse 20.
- Ezekiel 1:14 Or “And there was something like lighting shooting back and forth among the living beings.”
- Ezekiel 1:17 The wheels … moved Or “The wheels could move in any four directions, but they did not turn when they moved.”
- Ezekiel 1:22 bowl This Hebrew word is the same word used in Gen. 1:6-7 to describe the dome of the sky.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International