Ezekiel 1
Holman Christian Standard Bible
1 In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, while I was among the exiles by the Chebar Canal,(A) the heavens opened(B) and I saw visions of God.(C) 2 On the fifth day of the month—it was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile(D)— 3 the word of the Lord came(E) directly to Ezekiel(F) the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans(G) by the Chebar Canal. And the Lord’s hand was on him there.(H)
Vision of the Lord’s Glory
4 I looked and there was a whirlwind(I) coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing back and forth and brilliant light all around it. In the center of the fire, there was a gleam like amber.(J) 5 The form of four living creatures came from it.(K) And this was their appearance: They had human form, 6 but each of them had four faces and four wings. 7 Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the hooves of a calf, sparkling like the gleam of polished bronze.(L) 8 They had human hands under their wings on their four sides.(M) All four of them had faces and wings.(N) 9 Their wings were touching. The creatures did not turn as they moved; each one went straight ahead.(O) 10 The form of each of their faces was that of a man,(P) and each of the four had the face of a lion on the right, the face of an ox on the left, and the face of an eagle.(Q) 11 That is what their faces were like. Their wings were spread upward; each had two wings touching that of another and two wings covering its body.(R) 12 Each creature went straight ahead.(S) Wherever the Spirit[a] wanted to go, they went without turning as they moved.(T)
13 The form of the living creatures was like the appearance of burning coals of fire and torches.(U) Fire was moving back and forth between the living creatures; it was bright, with lightning coming out of it. 14 The creatures were darting back and forth(V) like flashes of lightning.(W)
15 When I looked at the living creatures, there was one wheel on the ground beside each creature that had four faces. 16 The appearance of the wheels(X) and their craftsmanship was like the gleam of beryl,(Y) and all four had the same form. Their appearance and craftsmanship was like a wheel within a wheel. 17 When they moved, they went in any of the four directions, without pivoting as they moved. 18 Their rims were large and frightening. Each of their four rims were full of eyes(Z) all around. 19 So when the living creatures moved,(AA) the wheels moved beside them, and when the creatures rose from the earth, the wheels also rose. 20 Wherever the Spirit[b] wanted to go, the creatures went in the direction the Spirit was moving. The wheels rose alongside them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. 21 When the creatures moved, the wheels moved; when the creatures stood still, the wheels stood still; and when the creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose alongside them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.
22 The shape of an expanse,(AB) with a gleam like awe-inspiring crystal,(AC) was spread out over the heads of the living creatures.(AD) 23 And under the expanse their wings extended one toward another. Each of them also had two wings covering their bodies. 24 When they moved, I heard the sound of their wings like the roar of mighty waters,(AE) like the voice of the Almighty,(AF) and a sound of commotion like the noise of an army.(AG) When they stood still, they lowered their wings.
25 A voice came from above the expanse over their heads; when they stood still, they lowered their wings. 26 The shape of a throne with the appearance of sapphire[c] stone was above the expanse.[d](AH) There was a form with the appearance of a human on the throne high above.(AI) 27 From what seemed to be His waist up, I saw a gleam like amber, with what looked like fire enclosing it all around.(AJ) From what seemed to be His waist down, I also saw what looked like fire. There was a brilliant light all around Him. 28 The appearance of the brilliant light all around was like that of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day.(AK) This was the appearance of the form of the Lord’s glory.(AL) When I saw it, I fell facedown and heard a voice speaking.(AM)
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 1:12 Or spirit
- Ezekiel 1:20 Or spirit
- Ezekiel 1:26 Or lapis lazuli
- Ezekiel 1:26 Lit expanse that was over their head
Ezekiel 1
Common English Bible
First vision
1 In the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, I was with the exiles at the Chebar River when the heavens opened and I saw visions of God. 2 (It happened on the fifth day of the month, in the fifth year after King Jehoiachin’s deportation. 3 The Lord’s word burst in on the priest Ezekiel, Buzi’s son, in the land of Babylon at the Chebar River. There the Lord’s power overcame him.)
4 As I watched, suddenly a driving storm came out of the north, a great cloud flashing fire, with brightness all around. At its center, in the middle of the fire, there was something like gleaming amber. 5 And inside that were forms of four living creatures. This was what they looked like: Each had the form of a human being, 6 though each had four faces and four wings. 7 Their feet looked like proper feet, but the soles of their feet were like calves’ hooves, and they shone like burnished bronze. 8 Human hands were under their wings on all four sides. All four creatures had faces and wings, and 9 their wings touched each other’s wings. When they moved, they each went straight ahead without turning. 10 As for the form of their faces: each of the four had a human face, with a lion’s face on the right and a bull’s face on the left, and also an eagle’s face. 11 The pairs of wings[a] that stretched out overhead touched each other, while the other pairs covered their bodies. 12 Each moved straight ahead wherever the wind propelled them; they moved without turning. 13 Regarding the creatures’ forms: they looked like blazing coals, like torches. Fire darted about between the creatures and illuminated them, and lightning flashed from the fire. 14 The creatures looked like lightning streaking back and forth.
15 As I looked at the creatures, suddenly there was a wheel on the earth corresponding to all four faces of the creatures. 16 The appearance and composition of the wheels were like sparkling topaz. There was one shape for all four of them, as if one wheel were inside another. 17 When they moved in any of the four directions, they moved without swerving. 18 Their rims were tall and terrifying, because all four of them were filled with eyes all around. 19 When the creatures moved, the wheels moved next to them. Whenever the creatures rose above the earth, the wheels also rose up. 20 Wherever the wind would appear to go, the wind would make them go there too. The wheels rose up beside them, because the spirit[b] of the creatures was in the wheels. 21 When they moved, the wheels[c] moved; when they stood still, the wheels stood still; and when they rose above the earth, the wheels rose up along with them, because the spirit[d] of the creatures was in the wheels.
22 The shape above the heads of the creatures[e] was a dome; it was like glittering ice stretched out over their heads. 23 Just below the dome, their outstretched wings touched each other. They each also had two wings to cover their bodies. 24 Then I heard the sound of their wings when they moved forward. It was like the sound of mighty waters, like the sound of the Almighty,[f] like the sound of tumult or the sound of an army camp. When they stood still, their wings came to rest. 25 Then there was a sound from above the dome over their heads. They stood still, and their wings came to rest.
26 Above the dome over their heads, there appeared something like lapis lazuli in the form of a throne. Above the form of the throne there was a form that looked like a human being. 27 Above what looked like his waist, I saw something like gleaming amber, something like fire enclosing it all around. Below what looked like his waist, I saw something that appeared to be fire. Its brightness shone all around. 28 Just as a rainbow lights up a cloud on a rainy day, so its brightness shone all around. This was how the form of the Lord’s glory appeared. When I saw it, I fell on my face. I heard the sound of someone speaking.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 1:11 LXX; MT adds and their faces.
- Ezekiel 1:20 Or wind
- Ezekiel 1:21 Or they
- Ezekiel 1:21 Or wind
- Ezekiel 1:22 LXX; MT creature
- Ezekiel 1:24 Heb Shaddai or Mountain One
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