Ezekiel 1
1
Ezekiel in Babylon
1 # [ver. 3; Num. 4:3] In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by #ch. 3:15, 23; 10:15, 20, 22; 43:3 the Chebar canal, #[Matt. 3:16; Mark 1:10; Luke 3:21; John 1:51; Acts 7:56; 10:11; Rev. 19:11] the heavens were opened, and I saw #ch. 8:3; 40:2; [ch. 11:24; Num. 12:6]visions of God.#1:1 Or from God 2On the fifth day of the month (it was #[ch. 8:1]; See ch. 20:1 the fifth year of #2 Kgs. 24:12, 15; [ch. 17:12; 19:8; 33:21; 40:1]the exile of King Jehoiachin), 3the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel #[ver. 1] the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by #[See ver. 1 above] the Chebar canal, and #ch. 3:22; 8:1; 33:22; 37:1; 40:1; [1 Kgs. 18:46; 2 Kgs. 3:15]the hand of the Lord was upon him there.
The Glory of the Lord
4As I looked, behold, #Jer. 23:19; 25:32; 30:23; [ch. 3:12] a stormy wind came #See Jer. 1:14 out of the north, and a great cloud, with #ver. 27 brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, #ver. 27; ch. 8:2as it were gleaming metal.#1:4 Or amber; also verse 27 5And from the midst of it came the likeness of #See Rev. 4:6-8 four living creatures. #ch. 10:14, 21And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, 6#ch. 10:21but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. 7Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled #ch. 40:3; Rev. 1:15; 2:18like burnished bronze. 8Under their wings #ver. 17; ch. 10:11 on their four sides #ch. 10:8, 21they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: 9their wings touched one another. #ch. 10:22 Each one of them went straight forward, #[See ver. 8 above]without turning as they went. 10As for the likeness of their faces, #ch. 10:14, 21each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. 11Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while #ver. 23; [Isa. 6:2]two covered their bodies. 12#[See ver. 9 above] And each went straight forward. #ch. 10:17Wherever the spirit#1:12 Or Spirit; also twice in verse 20 and once in verse 21 would go, they went, without turning as they went. 13As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was #[Ps. 104:4] like burning coals of fire, #[Ps. 104:4] like the appearance of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. #[Ps. 97:3, 4]And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. 14And the living creatures #[Zech. 4:10] darted to and fro, #[Matt. 24:27; Luke 17:24]like the appearance of a flash of lightning.
15 # ch. 10:9; [Dan. 7:9] Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them.#1:15 Hebrew of their faces 16#[See ver. 15 above] As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like #[Dan. 10:6] the gleaming of beryl. #ch. 10:10And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. 17#ch. 10:11 When they went, they went #ver. 8 in any of their four directions#1:17 Hebrew on their four sides #ver. 9without turning as they went. 18And their rims were tall and awesome, #ch. 10:12; [Rev. 4:8]and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. 19#ch. 10:16 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; #[ch. 10:19; 11:22]and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. 20#ch. 10:17Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them, #ch. 10:17for the spirit of the living creatures#1:20 Or the spirit of life; also verse 21 was in the wheels. 21#[See ver. 19 above] When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; #[See ver. 19 above] and when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, #[See ver. 20 above]for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.
22Over the heads of the living creatures there was #[ver. 25, 26; ch. 10:1] the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-inspiring #[Rev. 4:6]crystal, spread out above their heads. 23And under the expanse their wings were #ver. 7 stretched out straight, one toward another. #ver. 11And each creature had two wings covering its body. 24And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings #ch. 43:2; [Rev. 1:15] like the sound of many waters, like #Ps. 29:3, 4; 68:33 the sound of the #See Gen. 17:1 Almighty, a sound of tumult #Dan. 10:6; [Rev. 19:6]like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings. 25And there came a voice from above #[ver. 22]the expanse over their heads. When they stood still, they let down their wings.
26And above the expanse over their heads there was #ch. 10:1; [1 Kgs. 22:19] the likeness of a throne, #ch. 10:1; [1 Kgs. 22:19] in appearance #Ex. 24:10 like sapphire;#1:26 Or lapis lazuli and seated above the likeness of a throne was #Dan. 8:15; [Rev. 1:13]a likeness with a human appearance. 27And #ch. 8:2; [ver. 4] upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were #See ver. 4 gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and #ver. 4there was brightness around him.#1:27 Or it 28Like the appearance of #Gen. 9:13; [Rev. 4:3; 10:1] the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.
Such was the appearance of the likeness of #ch. 3:23; 8:4; 9:3; 10:4, 18, 19; 11:22, 23; 43:4, 5; 44:4; [Ex. 24:16] the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, #ch. 3:23; 43:3; 44:4; [Gen. 17:3, 17; Josh. 5:14; Dan. 8:17; Acts 9:4; Rev. 1:17]I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
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Ezekiel 1: ESV
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