Ezekiel 1
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CHAPTER 1
The Living Creatures and the Glory of the Lord (1:1–28)
1–3 In Ezekiel’s thirtieth year, after he had been in exile in Babylonia for four years, he saw visions of God by the Kebar River2 (verse 1). As he saw the visions, he experienced the hand of the LORD upon him (verse 3)—that is, he experienced an overwhelming revelation of God.
4–14 In the remainder of this first chapter, Ezekiel describes the visions of God he received in the fifth year of his exile3 (verse 2). God gave Ezekiel this initial vision in order to prepare him for his prophetic ministry. This was a vision of God; God revealed Himself to Ezekiel. Though Ezekiel didn’t see God Himself, he did see His glory, His holiness, His majesty. The vision changed Ezekiel’s life, and empowered him for God’s service. Ezekiel was being called to a difficult ministry and this vision would give him the strength and inspiration to carry it out.
In these verses, Ezekiel describes four living creatures; they served as throne attendants of the Lord. They were directed by a spirit, and wherever this spirit led, they would go (verse 12). These creatures had four faces: that of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle (verses 6,10)—all representing different attributes of God.4
15–21 Here Ezekiel describes another part of the vision: the wheels. Each wheel was made with another wheel intersecting it; this allowed the wheels to move in any direction, as the spirit of the living creatures directed (verses 16–17,20). The rims of the wheels were full of eyes (verse 18), symbolizing God’s all–seeing nature (Proverbs 15:3). The wheels, together with the four living creatures, symbolized the working out of God’s will on earth.
22–24 An expanse separated the four living creatures from the glory of the Lord, just as an expanse separated the waters in Genesis 1:6–8.
25–28 Above the “expanse” was a throne, which symbolized the rule of God on earth. Above the throne was a figure like that of a man surrounded by brilliant light (verses 26–27). Ezekiel didn’t see God face to face (see Exodus 33:20; John 1:18; 6:46), but he did see the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD (verse 28). The whole vision, then, was a revelation of God’s GLORY. God’s glory had left the temple in Jerusalem (1 Kings 8:10–11) and was now appearing to God’s people in Babylonia (see Ezekiel 10:4; 11:23). In one of his later visions, Ezekiel would see the glory of the Lord returning to His restored temple (Ezekiel 43:1–5).
We may ask: Does Ezekiel’s vision have anything to do with us today? The answer is “Yes.” Every Christian setting out to do the Lord’s will needs some kind of “vision,” some kind of personal encounter with the risen Christ. It doesn’t have to be dramatic or emotional. It doesn’t have to occur all at one time; it can be gradual or incremental. But each believer must experience firsthand the glory of the Lord as revealed in the risen Christ. Without that life–changing encounter, one cannot truly know the Lord or serve Him fully.5
How did Ezekiel respond to this vision? He saw, he fell, and he heard (verse 28). And then, when he was facedown, the HOLY SPIRIT came and raised him up (Ezekiel 2:2). Thus was Ezekiel made a prophet of the Lord.