Yechezkel 8:2

2 Then I beheld, and hinei a demut (likeness) as of the appearance of eish; from the appearance of His waist and downward, eish; and from His waist and upward, as the appearance of zohar (brightness), as of gleaming amber.

Yechezkel 8:2 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 8:2

And then one beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of
fire
The Septuagint and Arabic versions render it, "behold the likeness of a man"; reading (vya) , "a man", for (va) , "fire"; but without supposing such a reading, for which there is no foundation, this likeness may very well be understood of the likeness of a man; since mention is made of his joins in the next clause, and of his hand in ( Ezekiel 8:3 ) ; and the description agrees with the appearance of a man in ( Ezekiel 1:26 Ezekiel 1:27 ) ; it was usual for the Son of God, who doubtless is here meant, to appear in a human form; and so Junius and Tremellius supply the words,

``and lo a likeness "of a man", as in the appearance of fire:''

it was the form of a fiery man that was seen, as he is further described: from the appearance of his loins, even downward, fire;
his lower parts, thighs, legs, and feet; expressive either of the light of grace communicated from Christ to his people; or of his fervent love towards them, or flaming zeal for God and his house; or rather of his wrath against an idolatrous people; see ( Revelation 1:15 ) ; a like description is in ( Ezekiel 1:27 ) ; and from his loins, even upward, as the appearance of brightness;
his upper parts, back, belly, breast, shoulders, arms, head which may denote his incomprehensible majesty and glory; his glory being the glory of the only begotten, the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person. The Targum renders both the one and the other part of the description thus,

``and I saw, and twelve a likeness as the look of fire, the look of glory, which the eye cannot see, nor is it possible to look upon it; and beneath the look of fire, and the look of glory, which the eye cannot behold, nor is it possible to contemplate it; and above, as the look of brightness:''

as the colour of amber:
or "chasmal": which some take to be the name of an angel. The Syriac version is, "as the look of God"; (See Gill on Ezekiel 1:4); and (See Gill on Ezekiel 1:27).

Yechezkel 8:2 In-Context

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in mine bais, and the zekenim of Yehudah sat before me, that the yad Adonoi Hashem fell there upon me.

2 Then I beheld, and hinei a demut (likeness) as of the appearance of eish; from the appearance of His waist and downward, eish; and from His waist and upward, as the appearance of zohar (brightness), as of gleaming amber.

3 And He put forth the form of a yad, and took me by a lock of mine rosh; and the Ruach lifted me up between Ha’Aretz and Shomayim, and brought me in mar’ot Elohim ([divinely granted] visions) to Yerushalayim, to the Petach Sha’ar Hapenimit (entrance of the inner gate), the one facing north; where was the moshav (seat) of the semel hakinah (statue of jealousy), which provoketh [Hashem’s] jealousy.

4 And, hinei, the Kavod Elohei Yisroel was there, according to the mareh (vision) that I saw in the plain.

5 Then said He unto me, Ben adam, lift up thine eynayim now the derech (toward) north. So I lifted up mine eynayim the derech (toward) north, and hinei northward at the Sha’ar HaMizbe’ach was this semel hakinah in the entrance.