Ezekiel 1 Footnotes

1:1 Ezekiel “saw visions of God,” a clue that he is about to relate a theophany, or an appearance of God. This one begins by introducing the attendant beings that surrounded him.

1:2 Critics differ on the meaning of the “fifth year.” Most likely this is a reference to the fifth year of the exile of Jehoiakim, who was taken captive in 597 BC. He had been allowed to remain on the throne as a vassal to Nebuchadnezzar after the siege of Jerusalem in 605 BC. This date would indicate that Ezekiel’s ministry began in 593 BC.

1:4 Many theological questions arose from the first attacks on Jerusalem and the subjugation of Jerusalem in 605 BC and 597 BC. Why would God allow such an atrocity to be inflicted on his chosen people? The Judeans could not reconcile the thought of the impending destruction of the city where God had enshrined his name (Ps 48; see Jr 7:4). The thought that a pagan nation should gain control of, or utterly destroy, Jerusalem and plunder the temple presented a theological dilemma for the Judeans (Dn 1:2; 5:1-4). Jerusalem was considered inviolable. That pagans could overthrow the nation was tantamount to admitting that their gods were greater than Yahweh. These issues also called their faith into question. It was to this time and to these circumstances Ezekiel was called to be God’s prophetic spokesman.

Some would deny that Ezk 1 describes a theophany. Windstorms are common occurrences for desert dwellers. But this windstorm also displayed flashes of lightning, fire, and smoke—all elements associated with a theophany (Ex 19:16-18; 1Kg 19:11-13; Jb 38:1; 40:6; Ps 29:3-5). The description of spiritual beings and the vision of God that followed confirm that this was not a “natural” occurrence but a theophany. But the “model” for this theophany was clearly the “most holy place,” the inner sanctuary of the temple (Ezekiel was a priest, Ezk 1:3).

1:5 Spiritual beings, especially angels, often are presented as having a human form (Gn 18:1; Jos 5:13-15; Jdg 13:6) and here these unique creatures also are said to have the “likeness” (Hb demuth) of a human being. The verses that follow provide various descriptive details, including the appearance of their legs (Ezk 1:7), their hands (v. 8), their movements (vv. 8-9), their wings (v. 11), their relation to the “Spirit” (vv. 12,20), their color (v. 13), their swiftness (v. 14) and their sound (v. 24).

1:10 Each creature had four faces: those of a human, a lion, an ox and an eagle. These creatures represent four major categories of life forms: human life, undomesticated animal life, domesticated animals, and winged creatures. A similar vision appears in Ezk 10, where the creatures are called “cherubim” (Hb cherub, sg. or cherubim, pl.) probably from an Akkadian root karabu which means “intercede,” “be gracious,” or “bless.” These creatures appear elsewhere in the Bible as guardians of the holiness of God (Gn 3:24; Ex 36:35; 1Kg 6:23-29; see Rv 4:6-7).

1:22 The “expanse” is the same word as in Gn 1:6. Here it describes a platform located above the living creatures as the support for God’s throne.

1:26-27 This theophany, in which God’s visible attributes are described in terms of human characteristics, provided assurance to Ezekiel and the captives that God had not abandoned them, but was with them even in Babylon. Scholars usually classify such comparisons as “anthropomorphic accommodations,” meaning that God accommodated people by describing himself in human terms, but the “accommodation” theory does not conform to the biblical record.

1:28 The mention of the rainbow is an echo of God’s covenant with Noah (Gn 9:11-13). Just as God restored the world after the flood, he promised to restore fallen Israel. This vision is an early hint that the message of Ezekiel would be one not only of judgment but also of hope and restoration. It was this message of hope that answered a crucial theological question for Ezekiel and every exile in Babylon—and Judeans still left in Jerusalem—namely: Is there any hope of restoration?