1In my thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the River Kebar, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.2On the fifth of the month – it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin –3the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the River Kebar in the land of the Babylonians.[1] There the hand of the Lord was on him.4I looked, and I saw a violent storm coming out of the north – an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The centre of the fire looked like glowing metal,5and in the fire was what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was human,6but each of them had four faces and four wings.7Their legs were straight; their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze.8Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. All four of them had faces and wings,9and the wings of one touched the wings of another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not turn as they moved.10Their faces looked like this: each of the four had the face of a human being, and on the right side each had the face of a lion, and on the left the face of an ox; each also had the face of an eagle.11Such were their faces. They each had two wings spreading out upwards, each wing touching that of the creature on either side; and each had two other wings covering its body.12Each one went straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went.13The appearance of the living creatures was like burning coals of fire or like torches. Fire moved back and forth among the creatures; it was bright, and lightning flashed out of it.14The creatures sped back and forth like flashes of lightning.15As I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the ground beside each creature with its four faces.16This was the appearance and structure of the wheels: they sparkled like topaz, and all four looked alike. Each appeared to be made like a wheel intersecting a wheel.17As they moved, they would go in any one of the four directions the creatures faced; the wheels did not change direction as the creatures went.18Their rims were high and awesome, and all four rims were full of eyes all around.19When the living creatures moved, the wheels beside them moved; and when the living creatures rose from the ground, the wheels also rose.20Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, and the wheels would rise along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.21When the creatures moved, they also moved; when the creatures stood still, they also stood still; and when the creatures rose from the ground, the wheels rose along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.22Spread out above the heads of the living creatures was what looked something like a vault, sparkling like crystal, and awesome.23Under the vault their wings were stretched out one towards the other, and each had two wings covering its body.24When the creatures moved, I heard the sound of their wings, like the roar of rushing waters, like the voice of the Almighty,[2] like the tumult of an army. When they stood still, they lowered their wings.25Then there came a voice from above the vault over their heads as they stood with lowered wings.26Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man.27I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him.28Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell face down, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
4As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal.[2] (Jer 1:14; Jer 23:19; Jer 25:32; Jer 30:23; Eze 1:27; Eze 3:12; Eze 8:2)5And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, (Eze 10:14; Eze 10:21; Re 4:6)6but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. (Eze 10:21)7Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like burnished bronze. (Eze 40:3; Re 1:15; Re 2:18)8Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: (Eze 1:17; Eze 10:8; Eze 10:11; Eze 10:21)9their wings touched one another. Each one of them went straight forward, without turning as they went. (Eze 1:8; Eze 10:22)10As for the likeness of their faces, each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. (Eze 10:14; Eze 10:21)11Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies. (Isa 6:2; Eze 1:23)12And each went straight forward. Wherever the spirit[3] would go, they went, without turning as they went. (Eze 1:9; Eze 10:17)13As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. (Ps 97:3; Ps 104:4)14And the living creatures darted to and fro, like the appearance of a flash of lightning. (Zec 4:10; Mt 24:27; Lu 17:24)15Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them.[4] (Eze 10:9; Da 7:9)16As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl. And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. (Eze 1:15; Eze 10:10; Da 10:6)17When they went, they went in any of their four directions[5] without turning as they went. (Eze 1:8; Eze 1:9; Eze 10:11)18And their rims were tall and awesome, and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. (Eze 10:12; Re 4:8)19And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. (Eze 10:16; Eze 10:19; Eze 11:22)20Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures[6] was in the wheels. (Eze 10:17)21When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. (Eze 1:19; Eze 1:20)22Over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-inspiring crystal, spread out above their heads. (Eze 1:25; Eze 10:1; Re 4:6)23And under the expanse their wings were stretched out straight, one toward another. And each creature had two wings covering its body. (Eze 1:7; Eze 1:11)24And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters, like the sound of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings. (Ge 17:1; Ps 29:3; Ps 68:33; Eze 43:2; Da 10:6; Re 1:15; Re 19:6)25And there came a voice from above the expanse over their heads. When they stood still, they let down their wings. (Eze 1:22)26And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire;[7] and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. (Ex 24:10; 1Ki 22:19; Eze 10:1; Da 8:15; Re 1:13)27And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.[8] (Eze 1:4; Eze 8:2)28Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking. (Ge 9:13; Ge 17:3; Ge 17:17; Ex 24:16; Jos 5:14; Eze 3:23; Eze 8:4; Eze 9:3; Eze 10:4; Eze 10:18; Eze 11:22; Eze 43:3; Eze 43:4; Eze 44:4; Da 8:17; Ac 9:4; Re 1:17; Re 4:3; Re 10:1)