7 Dec. 2010 - Ezekiel 1:28

Ezekiel 1:28

"the living creatures and the glory of the Lord"

The first thing Ezekiel sees in his vision is a storm cloud with lightning and surrounded by light. upon closer inspection, he sees four beings in the midst of the light. they each stood, or rather would have stood, like a man, they seemed to be made of bronze (or, at least they gleamed like they were), they had 4 wings - 1 pair for flying, the other for covering their bodies - and they each had 4 faces - one of a man, one of a lion, one of an ox and one of an eagle. they all faced forward, but they moved with the spirit, while facing forward the whole time.

then, Ezekiel noticed 4  wheels on the ground next to the beings. each sparkled like chrysolite ( a pale green stone). they looked like 2 wheels intersecting and they moved with the beings -also not turning. oh, and did I mention the wheels were covered in eyes.

before I carry on, some explanation is needed. we find out later<spoiler alert=""> that the beings are cherubim, which are kind of like throne attendants, not little flying babies in diapers shooting arrows at couples. then, each of the faces and the body structure is significant in Jewish culture. the wheels could symbolize the mobility of God and the eyes the omniscience of God. the intersecting wheels are though of by the commentator in my bible as representing God;s omnipresence as they could move in any direction, hint, the four directions produced when 2 wheels cross could, in this case represent the 4 cardinal directions.</spoiler>

we now see Ezekiel's observations (or God's revelation) that the beings and wheels are connected. this is shown by the wheels always being a set distance from the cherubim, whether they are flying or gliding over the ground. these beings are connected to the wheels spiritually.

Ezekiel then leaves his bit about the beings and focuses on the space above the heads of the cherubim. there, above the beings was an expanse - empty space. then the cherubim stood at attention as  a voice echoed from above the expanse. Ezekiel looked up at  the source of the voice and above the expanse was a massive sapphire the=rone upon which was a man. well, not really. he looked like a man, but above the waist he looked like glowing metal from a fire and from the waist downwards, he looked like a blazing fire. and. he was. radiant.

these magnificent beings that initially inspired such awe from Ezekiel are nothing compared to this newcomer, their superior. he is so much higher than the beings that there exists a barrier of sorts, the expanse, separating the angels from God. God is that holy. the beings also stood at attention when they were being addressed. clearly, if the expanse didn't give it away, the beings are servants of God. also note that Ezekiel does not say that he looked at God directly - otherwise he would  have died.

God is so than any other thing. since when does the created have more value than the creator? and here we see God's magnificent servants and they are a spectacle. in all, God is glorious and, as such, deserves glory and the very best that we can bring before him.