The Wheels, the Living Creatures, and the Glory by the Chebar

Ezekiel, a priest among the captives by the river Chebar, saw the heavens opened. The thirtieth year, the fifth day of the fourth month, the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity—the text marks the date precisely. The word of the Lord came expressly to Ezekiel, son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans, and the hand of the Lord was upon him.

What Ezekiel saw was not a gentle vision. A stormy wind came out of the north, a great cloud with fire enfolding itself, and a brightness around it. Out of the midst of the fire came what looked like glowing metal. From that fire emerged the likeness of four living creatures. They had the likeness of a man, but each had four faces and four wings.

Their feet were straight, the soles like the sole of a calf’s foot, sparkling like burnished brass. Under their wings on their four sides were human hands. Their wings were joined one to another. They did not turn when they moved; they went straight forward.

Each creature had four faces: the face of a man, the face of a lion on the right side, the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle. Above, their wings were separate; two wings of each were joined to another, and two covered their bodies. They went straight forward wherever the spirit was to go, never turning.

The living creatures themselves looked like burning coals of fire, like torches. Fire went up and down among them, bright, with lightning flashing out. The creatures ran and returned like a flash of lightning.

Beside each creature, on the earth, was a wheel. The wheels looked like beryl, and all four had the same likeness: a wheel within a wheel. They moved in four directions without turning. Their rims were high and dreadful, and full of eyes all around. When the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them. When the creatures were lifted from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. The spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

Over the heads of the living creatures was a firmament, like terrible crystal stretched above them. Under the firmament, their wings were straight, one toward the other. Each had two wings covering one side of the body and two covering the other. When the creatures went, the noise of their wings was like the noise of great waters, like the voice of the Almighty, like the noise of a tumult of an army. When they stood, they let down their wings.

A voice came from above the firmament over their heads. Above the firmament was the likeness of a throne, like a sapphire stone. On the throne was a likeness like the appearance of a man. From his loins upward and downward, Ezekiel saw what looked like glowing metal and fire, with brightness all around. The brightness had the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day.

This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When Ezekiel saw it, he fell on his face. Then he heard a voice speaking.