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Date of Vision of Living Creatures and Glory of the Throne of Yahweh

And it was in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, and I was in the midst of[a] the exiles[b] by the Kebar River.[c] The heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. On the fifth day of the month—it was the fifth year of the exile of the king Jehoiachin— the word of Yahweh came[d] clearly[e] to Ezekiel the son of Buzi, the priest, in the land of the Chaldeans at the Kebar River,[f] and the hand of Yahweh was on him there.

And I looked,[g] and look! A storm wind was coming from the north, a great cloud, and fire flashing back and forth, and brightness around and within it,[h] and from its midst[i] it was like the outward appearance of amber stone from the midst[j] of the fire. And from its midst[k] was the likeness of four living creatures, and this was their appearance: a human form,[l] and each had four faces,[m] and each of them had four wings.[n] And their legs were straight legs, and the sole of their feet was like the sole of the foot of a calf, and they were sparkling like the outward appearance of polished bronze. And under their wings were human hands[o] on their four sides. And their faces and their wings for the four of them were as follows: their wings were touching one another;[p] each of them went straight forward,[q] without turning right or left.[r] 10 The likeness of their faces was the face of a human in front, and the face of a lion on the right of each of them,[s] and the face of an ox on the left of each of them,[t] and the face of an eagle for each of them.[u] 11 So were their faces; their wings were spread out upward;[v] each had two touching one another and two covering their bodies. 12 And each went straight forward;[w] wherever the spirit went[x] they went, and they did not turn as they went.[y] 13 As for[z] the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches. It[aa] was moving to and fro between the living creatures, and the fire was very bright[ab] and lightning was going out from the fire. 14 And the living creatures were speeding to and fro[ac] like the appearance of lightning.

15 And I saw the living creatures, and look! A wheel was on the earth[ad] beside each of the living creatures that had four faces.[ae] 16 The appearance of the wheels and their construction was like the appearance of beryl,[af] and they all looked alike,[ag] and their appearance and their construction was like a wheel within a wheel.[ah] 17 When they moved, they went toward their four sides; they did not veer at all as they went.[ai] 18 And their rims were high and awesome,[aj] and all four of[ak] their rims were full of eyes all around. 19 And at the going of the living creatures, the wheels next to them also went, and when the creatures were lifted from the ground[al] the wheels also rose. 20 Wherever[am] the spirit went they would go there, and the wheels rose, for the spirit of the living creatures[an] was in the wheels. 21 At their[ao] going, they[ap] go, and at their standing, they stood, and at their being lifted up from on the earth,[aq] the wheels rose,[ar] for the spirit of the living creatures[as] was in the wheels.

22 Now[at] the likeness above the heads of the living creatures was an expanse like the outward appearance of awesome[au] ice[av] spread out above their heads upward.[aw] 23 And under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight one toward the other;[ax] each had two wings covering them, and each had two wings covering their bodies. 24 And I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the voice of Shaddai,[ay] and when they moved[az] there was a sound of tumult like the sound of an army; when they stood still[ba] they lowered their wings. 25 And there was[bb] a sound from above the expanse that was above their heads, and when they stood[bc] they lowered their wings. 26 And from above the expanse that was above their heads there was the likeness of a throne, looking like a sapphire,[bd] and above the likeness of the throne was a likeness similar to[be] the appearance of a human on it, but above it.[bf] 27 And I saw something like the outward appearance of amber, something like the appearance of fire, with a covering around it, from the likeness of his loins and upward.[bg] And from the likeness of his loins and downward[bh] I saw something like the appearance of fire, and it was radiant all around.[bi] 28 Like the appearance[bj] of a bow that is in the cloud on a rainy day,[bk] such was the radiance[bl] around it; thus was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh. And I saw, and I fell on my face, and I heard a voice speaking.

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 1:1 Or “among”
  2. Ezekiel 1:1 Hebrew “exile”
  3. Ezekiel 1:1 Literally “river of Kebar”
  4. Ezekiel 1:3 Literally “was”
  5. Ezekiel 1:3 Or “certainly”
  6. Ezekiel 1:3 Literally “river of Kebar”
  7. Ezekiel 1:4 Or “saw”
  8. Ezekiel 1:4 Literally “for it”
  9. Ezekiel 1:4 Or “middle”
  10. Ezekiel 1:4 Or “middle”
  11. Ezekiel 1:5 Or “middle”
  12. Ezekiel 1:5 Literally “this their appearance the likeness of a human to them”
  13. Ezekiel 1:6 Literally “and four faces to each”
  14. Ezekiel 1:6 Literally “and four wings to each for them”
  15. Ezekiel 1:8 Literally “hand his a man”
  16. Ezekiel 1:9 Literally “their wings were touching each her sister”
  17. Ezekiel 1:9 Literally “they did not turn at their going”
  18. Ezekiel 1:9 Literally “each toward the side of his face they went”
  19. Ezekiel 1:10 Literally “of the four of them”
  20. Ezekiel 1:10 Literally “of the four of them”
  21. Ezekiel 1:10 Literally “of the four of them”
  22. Ezekiel 1:11 Literally “from to above”
  23. Ezekiel 1:12 Literally “toward the side of his face they went”
  24. Ezekiel 1:12 Literally “towards which it was there the spirit”
  25. Ezekiel 1:12 Literally “they did not turn at their going”
  26. Ezekiel 1:13 Or “And”
  27. Ezekiel 1:13 That is, the fire
  28. Ezekiel 1:13 Literally “brightness was for the fire”
  29. Ezekiel 1:14 Literally “sped forth and returned”
  30. Ezekiel 1:15 Or “ground”
  31. Ezekiel 1:15 Literally “the living creatures for the four of his/its faces.” The LXX has “for the four of them.”
  32. Ezekiel 1:16 Or “chrysolite,” or “topaz”; this stone is difficult to identify exactly
  33. Ezekiel 1:16 Literally “likeness was one for the four of them”
  34. Ezekiel 1:16 Literally “as that it was a wheel in the midst of a wheel”
  35. Ezekiel 1:17 Literally “turn away when they went”
  36. Ezekiel 1:18 Literally “height was for them and awesomeness was for them”
  37. Ezekiel 1:18 Literally “of the four of them”
  38. Ezekiel 1:19 Literally “and at the lifting up of the creatures from the earth”
  39. Ezekiel 1:20 Literally “Toward which”
  40. Ezekiel 1:20 Hebrew “creature”
  41. Ezekiel 1:21 That is, the living creatures
  42. Ezekiel 1:21 That is, the wheels
  43. Ezekiel 1:21 Or “ground”
  44. Ezekiel 1:21 Or “were lifted up”
  45. Ezekiel 1:21 Hebrew “creature”
  46. Ezekiel 1:22 Or “And”
  47. Ezekiel 1:22 Literally “terrible”
  48. Ezekiel 1:22 Literally “frozen water”
  49. Ezekiel 1:22 Literally “from to upward”
  50. Ezekiel 1:23 Literally “each towards its sister”
  51. Ezekiel 1:24 Often translated “Almighty”
  52. Ezekiel 1:24 Literally “at their going”
  53. Ezekiel 1:24 Literally “at their standing”
  54. Ezekiel 1:25 Or “it was”
  55. Ezekiel 1:25 Literally “at their standing”
  56. Ezekiel 1:26 Literally “the appearance of a stone of sapphire”
  57. Ezekiel 1:26 Or “like”
  58. Ezekiel 1:26 Literally “from to above”
  59. Ezekiel 1:27 Literally “to above”
  60. Ezekiel 1:27 Literally “to down”
  61. Ezekiel 1:27 Literally “brightness was for it around”
  62. Ezekiel 1:28 Or “likeness”
  63. Ezekiel 1:28 Literally “the day of the rain”
  64. Ezekiel 1:28 Or “brightness”

First vision

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. (It happened on the fifth day of the month, in the fifth year after King Jehoiachin’s deportation. 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.)

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. And inside that were forms of four living creatures. This was what they looked like: Each had the form of a human being, though each had four faces and four wings. Their feet looked like proper feet, but the soles of their feet were like calves’ hooves, and they shone like burnished bronze. Human hands were under their wings on all four sides. All four creatures had faces and wings, and 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

  1. Ezekiel 1:11 LXX; MT adds and their faces.
  2. Ezekiel 1:20 Or wind
  3. Ezekiel 1:21 Or they
  4. Ezekiel 1:21 Or wind
  5. Ezekiel 1:22 LXX; MT creature
  6. Ezekiel 1:24 Heb Shaddai or Mountain One