Beginning

The Lord Gives Ezekiel Visions of His Glory

1 I was 30 years old. I was with my people. We had been taken away from our country. We were by the Kebar River in the land of Babylon. On the fifth day of the fourth month, the heavens were opened. I saw visions of God.

² It was the fifth day of the month. Jehoiachin had been king of Judah. It was the fifth year since he had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. ³ A message from the Lord came to me. I was by the Kebar River in Babylon. The power of the Lord came on me there. I am Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi.

⁴ I looked up and saw a windstorm coming from the north. I saw a huge cloud. The fire of lightning was flashing out of it. Bright light surrounded it. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal. ⁵ I saw in the fire something that looked like four living creatures. They appeared to have the shape of a human being. ⁶ But each of them had four faces and four wings. ⁷ Their legs were straight. Their feet looked like the feet of a calf. They were as bright as polished bronze. ⁸ The creatures had human hands under their wings on their four sides. All four of them had faces and wings. ⁹ The wings of one touched the wings of another. Each of the creatures went straight ahead. They didn’t change their direction as they moved.

¹⁰ Here’s what their faces looked like. Each of the four creatures had the face of a human being. On the right side each had the face of a lion. On the left each had the face of an ox. Each one also had an eagle’s face. ¹¹ That’s what their faces looked like. They each had two wings that spread out and lifted up. Each wing touched the wing of another creature on either side. They each had two other wings that covered their bodies. ¹² All the creatures went straight ahead. Anywhere their spirits would lead them to go, they would go. They didn’t change their direction as they went. ¹³ The living creatures looked like burning coals of fire or like torches. Fire moved back and forth among the creatures. It was bright. Lightning flashed out of it. ¹⁴ The creatures raced back and forth like flashes of lightning.

¹⁵ As I looked at the living creatures, I saw wheels on the ground beside them. Each creature had four faces. ¹⁶ Here’s how the wheels looked and worked. They gleamed like topaz. All four of them looked alike. Each one seemed to be made like a wheel inside another wheel at right angles. ¹⁷ The wheels could go in any one of the four directions the creatures faced. The wheels didn’t change their direction as the creatures moved. ¹⁸ Their rims were high and terrifying. All four rims were full of eyes all the way around them.

¹⁹ When the living creatures moved, the wheels beside them moved. When the creatures rose from the ground, the wheels also rose. ²⁰ Anywhere their spirits would lead them to go, they would go. And the wheels would rise along with them. That’s because the spirits of the living creatures were in the wheels. ²¹ When the living creatures moved, the wheels also moved. When the creatures stood still, they also stood still. When the creatures rose from the ground, the wheels rose along with them. That’s because the spirits of the living creatures were in the wheels.

²² Something that looked like a huge space was spread out above the heads of the living creatures. It gleamed like crystal. It was terrifying. ²³ The wings of the creatures were spread out under the space. They reached out toward one another. Each creature had two wings covering its body. ²⁴ When the living creatures moved, I heard the sound of their wings. It was like the roar of rushing waters. It sounded like the thundering voice of the Mighty God. It was like the loud noise an army makes. When the creatures stood still, they lowered their wings.

²⁵ Then a voice came from above the huge space over their heads. They stood with their wings lowered. ²⁶ Above the space over their heads was something that looked like a throne made out of lapis lazuli. On the throne high above was a figure that appeared to be a man. ²⁷ From his waist up he looked like glowing metal that was full of fire. From his waist down he looked like fire. Bright light surrounded him. ²⁸ The glow around him looked like a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day.

That’s what the glory of the Lord looked like. When I saw it, I fell with my face toward the ground. Then I heard the voice of someone speaking.

The Lord Appoints Ezekiel to Speak for Him

2 He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet. I will speak to you.” ² As he spoke, the Spirit of the Lord came into me. He raised me to my feet. I heard him speaking to me.

³ He said, “Son of man, I am sending you to the people of Israel. That nation has refused to obey me. They have turned against me. They and their people of long ago have been against me to this day. ⁴ The people I am sending you to are very stubborn. Tell them, ‘Here is what the Lord and King says.’ ⁵ They might listen, or they might not. After all, they refuse to obey me. But whether they listen or not, they will know that a prophet was among them. ⁶ Son of man, do not be afraid of them or of what they say. Do not be afraid, even if thorns and bushes are all around you. Do not be afraid, even if you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say. Do not be terrified by them. They always refuse to obey me. ⁷ You must give them my message. They might listen, or they might not. After all, they refuse to obey me. ⁸ Son of man, listen to what I tell you. Do not be like those who refuse to obey me. Open your mouth. Eat what I give you.”

⁹ Then I looked up. I saw a hand reach out to me. A scroll was in it. ¹⁰ He unrolled it in front of me. Both sides had words written on them. They spoke about sadness, sorrow and trouble.

3 The Lord said to me, “Son of man, eat what is in front of you. Eat this scroll. Then go and speak to the people of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth. And he gave me the scroll to eat.

³ Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you. Fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it. And it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.

⁴ Then he said to me, “Son of man, go to the people of Israel. Give them my message. ⁵ I am not sending you to people who speak another language that is hard to learn. Instead, I am sending you to the people of Israel. ⁶ You are not being sent to many nations whose people speak other languages that are hard to learn. You would not be able to understand them. Suppose I had sent you to them. Then they certainly would have listened to you. ⁷ But the people of Israel do not want to listen to you. That is because they do not want to listen to me. All the Israelites are very stubborn. ⁸ But I will make you just as stubborn as they are. ⁹ I will make you very brave. So do not be afraid of them. Do not let them terrify you, even though they refuse to obey me.”

¹⁰ He continued, “Son of man, listen carefully. Take to heart everything I tell you. ¹¹ Go now to your own people who were brought here as prisoners. Speak to them. Tell them, ‘Here is what the Lord and King says.’ Speak to them whether they listen or not.”

¹² Then the Spirit of the Lord lifted me up. I heard a loud rumbling sound behind me. The sound was made when the glory of the Lord rose up. It rose up from the place it had been standing. ¹³ The sound was made by the wings of the living creatures. They were brushing against one another. The sound was also made by the wheels beside them. It was a loud rumbling sound. ¹⁴ Then the Spirit lifted me up and took me away. My spirit was bitter. I was very angry. The power of the Lord was on me. ¹⁵ I came to my people who had been brought as prisoners to Tel Aviv. It was near the Kebar River. I went to where they were living. There I sat among them for seven days. I was very sad and scared about everything that had happened.

The Lord Has Appointed Ezekiel to Warn Israel

¹⁶ After seven days, a message from the Lord came to me. ¹⁷ The Lord said, “Son of man, I have appointed you as a prophet to warn the people of Israel. So listen to my message. Give them a warning from me. ¹⁸ Suppose I say to a sinful person, ‘You can be sure you will die.’ And you do not warn them. You do not try to get them to change their evil ways in order to save their life. Then that sinful person will die because they have sinned. And I will hold you responsible for their death. ¹⁹ But suppose you do warn that sinful person. And they do not turn away from their sin or their evil ways. Then they will die because they have sinned. But you will have saved yourself.

²⁰ “Or suppose a godly person turns away from their godliness and does what is evil. And suppose I put something in their way that will trip them up. Then they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The godly things that person did will not be remembered. And I will hold you responsible for their death. ²¹ But suppose you do warn a godly person not to sin. And they do not sin. Then you can be sure that they will live because they listened to your warning. And you will have saved yourself.”

²² The power of the Lord was on me. He said, “Get up. Go out to the plain. I will speak to you there.” ²³ So I got up and went out to the plain. The glory of the Lord was standing there. It was just like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River. So I fell with my face toward the ground.

²⁴ Then the Spirit of the Lord came into me. He raised me to my feet. He said to me, “Go, son of man. Shut yourself inside your house. ²⁵ Some people will tie you up with ropes. So you will not be able to go out among your people. ²⁶ I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth. Then you will be silent. You will not be able to correct them. That’s because they always refuse to obey me. ²⁷ But later I will speak to you. I will open your mouth. Then you will tell them, ‘Here is what the Lord and King says.’ Those who listen will listen. And those who refuse to listen will refuse. They always refuse to obey me.

An Attack on Jerusalem Is Pictured

4 “Son of man, get a block of clay. Put it in front of you. Draw the city of Jerusalem on it. ² Then pretend to surround it and attack it. Make some little models of war machines. Build a ramp up to it. Set camps up around it. Surround it with models of logs to be used for knocking down its gates. ³ Then get an iron pan. Put it between you and the city. Pretend it is an iron wall. Turn your face toward the city. It will be under attack when you begin to attack it. That will show the people of Israel what is going to happen to Jerusalem.

⁴ “Next, lie down on your left side. Pretend that you are putting Israel’s sin on yourself. Keep their sin on you for the number of days you lie on your side. ⁵ Let each day you lie there stand for one year of their sin. So you will keep Israel’s sin on you for 390 days.

⁶ “After you have finished this, lie down again. This time lie on your right side. Pretend that you are putting Judah’s sin on yourself. Lie there for 40 days. That is one day for each year of their sin. ⁷ Next, turn your face toward the model of Jerusalem under attack. Uncover your arm as if you were a soldier ready to fight. Prophesy against the city. ⁸ I will tie you up with ropes. Then you will not be able to turn from one side to the other. You will stay that way until you have finished attacking Jerusalem.

⁹ “Get some wheat and barley. Also get some beans and lentils. And get some millet and spelt. Put everything in a storage jar. Use it to make some bread for yourself. Eat it during the 390 days you are lying down on your side. ¹⁰ Weigh out eight ounces of food to eat each day. Eat it at your regular mealtimes. ¹¹ Also measure out two-thirds of a quart of water. Drink it at your regular mealtimes. ¹² Eat your food as you would eat a loaf of barley bread. Bake it over human waste in front of the people.” ¹³ The Lord said, “That is how the people of Israel will eat ‘unclean’ food. They will eat it in the nations where I will drive them.”

¹⁴ Then I said, “No, Lord and King! I won’t do this! I’ve never eaten anything ‘unclean.’ From the time I was young until now, I’ve never eaten anything that was found dead. And I’ve never eaten anything torn apart by wild animals. ‘Unclean’ meat has never entered my mouth.”

¹⁵ “All right,” he said. “I will let you bake your bread over waste from cows. You can use that instead of human waste.”

¹⁶ He continued, “Son of man, I am about to cut off the food supply in Jerusalem. The people will be worried as they eat their tiny share of food. They will not have any hope as they drink their tiny share of water. ¹⁷ There will be very little food and water. The people will be shocked as they look at one another. They will become weaker and weaker because of their sin.