A Glimpse of Glory

It’s interesting that Ezekiel first described a supernatural vision of God’s glory before diving into a message of judgment, encouragement for exiles, and teaching about God’s character. Sometimes we learn by doing. During our 1 Peter study, we considered how to give glory to God.

Ezekiel will help us better understand God’s glory and why we should worship Him.

*How would you describe God’s glory?

*What does it mean to give glory to God?

 Ezekiel briefly sets the scene then jumps right into his message. While he was an exile in Babylon, God gave him visions. He takes a step back to state his credentials in third person.

“the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. There the hand of the Lord was on him” (Ezekiel 1:3).

• God spoke to Ezekiel.
• God’s Word is active, it exists, and specific things happened in the vision.¹
• As a priest, Ezekiel served as a mediator between God and the people.²
• God’s strength would be with Ezekiel as he relayed God’s message.

There are four components of the vision.

• setting
• living creatures
• action
• purpose

Setting

“I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal” (Ezekiel 1:4).

Ezekiel described the setting and added more details throughout his description of the vision.

• The word for windstorm also refers to Spirit of the Lord.³
• A cloud was a symbol of God’s presence.⁴
• It also shielded God’s presence⁵ from people, as on Mt. Sinai (Exodus 24:15-18).
• Ezekiel referred to natural earthly sights to describe a supernatural vision.
• As we would expect in a storm, what looked like lightning flashed within the cloud.
• The lightning in the center of the cloud looked like the glowing embers in a fire.
• Brilliant light shone around the cloud, radiance from God’s glory.⁶

 *What do we learn about God’s glory in this verse?

Living Creatures

“and in the fire was looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was human, but each of them had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight; their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze. Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. All four of them had faces and wings, and the wings of one touched the wings of another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not turn as they moved” (Ezekiel 1:5-9).

Ezekiel continued to compare what he saw to things we see on earth.

• At the heart of the fire, he saw creatures like birds and animals.
• Even though he described them as actual beings, they were “tied to the Spirit.”⁷
• We can envision the creatures’ wings like a great bird.⁸
• Again, Ezekiel used earthly things to describe the feet of these heavenly beings.
• Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin, stronger and more durable than copper alone.⁹

*How do you envision living beings that are tied to the Spirit?

*How do these creatures reflect God’s glory?

 “Their 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. Such were their faces. They each had two wings spreading out upward, each wing touching that of the creature one either side; and each had two other wings covering its body” (Ezekiel 1:10-11).

I envision a row of creatures, wings touching, marching straight ahead. A force to be reckoned with. But how did Ezekiel see the faces on each of the four sides of each creature if they did not turn? Scripture doesn’t explain this. The description of wings makes me think of cherubim.

• We first see cherubim in Genesis, guarding the entrance to the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:24).
• God instructed the Israelites to form two cherubim and place them on the atonement cover on top of the ark of the covenant. God would speak to the people from between the cherubim. (Exodus 25:18-22).
• When King Solomon built the temple, he made cherubim and placed them “inside the innermost room of the temple, with their wings spread out” (1 Kings 6:27).
• “The biblical authors describe cherubim as formidable creatures who rest at the throne of God’s presence and relentlessly guard his sacred space.”¹⁰
• They remind us “that entering into a place of true, everlasting life is not something humans can achieve apart from God.”¹⁰

We’ll reflect on the second half of the vision, action and purpose, next week.

*What is the significance of the role of cherubim here in Ezekiel’s vision?

*What does it mean for the cherubim to guard God’s sacred space?

*What do these verses show us about God’s glory and character?

*How does this lead us to worship Him?

 

1. Warren Baker, D.R.E., Eugene Carpenter, Ph.D. The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: Old Testament. (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2003). 266
2. Baker, 497
3. Baker, 1040
4. Baker, 854
5. Baker, 785
6. Baker, 705
7. Baker, 331-332
8. Baker, 514
9. Nick Nolan. “What is the Difference Between Copper, Brass, and Bronze Parts?” Spex Precision Machine Technologies. December 7, 2023. https://www.spex1.com/copper-vs-brass-vs-bronze/
10. Cheree Hayes & BibleProject Team. “What Does the Bible Say about Angels and Cherubim?: Understanding These Mysterious Beings and Why They Matter.” BibleProject. December 8, 2022. https://bibleproject.com/articles/what-does-the-bible-say-about-angels-and-cherubim/