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Ezekiel
{This is the book of the prophet Ezekiel. He was a young man - a contemporary of Daniel. Ezekiel was taken captive 11 to 12 years before the fall of Jerusalem. Daniel went out on the first wave of captives and Ezekiel went out on the second wave.}
Chapter 1
{Introduction
to the Book}
1``Now
it came to pass in the thirtieth year,
in
the fourth month,
on
the fifth day of the month,
when
I was in the community of the exiles by the Chebar Canal,
the
heavens opened,
and
I saw visions of God.
2-3``On
the fifth day of the month -
it
was the fifth year of the exile of king Jehoiachin - 3``
the
word/'doctrinal communication' {dabar} of Jehovah/God
came
to the priest Ezekiel, the son of Buzi,
by
the Chebar Canal,
in
the land of the Chaldeans.
And the hand of Jehovah/God came upon him there.
{Verses
4-14 Officers of the Pursuivant (Messenger Angels)}
4~~And
as I looked, I saw a firestorm coming out of the north
{Chaldean invasion of Israel - BC 625},
a
great cloud, and a fire flashing out continually, and
a
bright light around it, furthermore
out
the center of the fire looked like glowing metal, 5~~
and,
inside {the firecloud} were figures
resembling
four angels/living creatures
{Cherub class angels/ Pursuivant Officers}.
And, the appearance was like that of a man.
6~Each of them had four faces and four wings {signifies rank}.
{Note: The 'four faces' represent the 4 Gentile nations that will deal with Israel under 5th Cycle from Ezekiel time ( BC 625 ) to AD 70. Chaldean Empire in BC 586; Persian Empire restore and BC 536; Hellenistic - Syria (Salukis) and Egyptian (Ptolemy).}
7~~And
legs were straight,
and
the sole of their feet was like that of a calf
and
they gleamed like burnished bronze {military judgment}.
8~~Under
their wings and on their four sides,
they
had the hands of a man;
and
all four of them had faces and wings.
9~~Their
wings {insignia of office} touched one another;
and
they did not turn as they went;
they
went every one
{top pair only per verse 11}
in
the direction of his face.
{Note: This symbolizes unity of purpose. They did not go off on their own. They worked together to fulfill the divine purpose - professionalism.}
10~~And
the form of their faces was like that of a man,
that
is one of the four sides, in addition
on
the right, all four had the face of a lion,
and
on the left, all four had the face of a bull/ox,
and
all four also had the face of an eagle.
{Note:
This portrays the coat of arms of our Lord Jesus Christ. See also
Revelation 4:7:
Coat
of Arms of the Lord Jesus Christ was so large it took four
Seraph
class angels to carry 1/4 of the eschuteon each. Each Title/
job
of Christ was emphasized in a Gospel book:
1st
eschuteon - Book of Matthew - emphasizing King of Jews -
Davidic
covenant, the 2nd royal patent, the lion of the tribe of Judah
2nd
eschuteon - Book of Mark - Servant of Jehovah - Kenosis and
impeccability,
our Lord's first Advent and His saving ability -
submission
to the Father's plan - the bull is a hard worker
3rd
eschuteon - Book of Luke - Son of Man - Face of a man - His
Humanity,
physical death - the 3rd royal patent
4th
eschuteon - Book of John - Son of God - Deity of Christ - An
eagle
represents God's blessing and discipline to Israel - Jesus Christ
controls
history.}
11~~Such were their faces.
Their top set of wings were spread out above.
Each
one had two top wings touching each other,
plus
two wings covering their bodies.
12~~Furthermore each one went in the direction of his face.
Wherever
the wind would go,
they
would go without turning as they went.
13~~And
the appearance of the living creatures/Cherubs
was
like burning coals of fire,
or
like the appearance of torches
{historical judgment}
and
the fire went out like lightening.
14~~And
the angels went back and forth
like
bolts of lightening
{administration of historical judgement}.
{Verses
15-28: Functions of the Angelic Officers in the Pursuivant category}
15~~Now
as I looked out at the living creatures/angels,
behold
there was one wheel {'owphan}
on
the earth beside each angel,
with
their four faces {coat of arms}.
{Note: In Exodus 14:25 the 'owphan is used for the wheel of the Egyptian Chariots chasing Israel while crossing the Red Sea. In Proverbs 20:26 the wheel is used for capital punishment in hindering crime. So the wheels represent judgement. See also Daniel 7:9 for the 'Chariots of Fire' and see Ezekiel 10:2.}
16~~The
appearance of the wheels
and
their workmanship was like the flash of an emerald
{an emerald axle},
and
all four looked alike,
and
their appearance and their workmanship
was
as it were a wheel
were
in another
{idiom meaning 'all four wheels were exact duplicates'}.
17~~And,
as they moved,
they
would go in any one of four directions
the
{Pursuivant angel} faced
{did not have to turn their heads to see}.
The wheels did not turn as they moved.
18~~
As for their rims, they were high and awesome;
and
all four rims were full of eyes all around.
{Note: Eyes represent maximum perception of doctrine and wisdom. In Revelation, we see eyes as an insignia of reward to angels who are winners - a uniform of wisdom.}
19~~And
when the living creatures/angels moved,
the
wheels beside them moved, and
when
the living creatures/angels rose from the earth,
the
wheels rose also.
20~~Where
ever the wind/Spirit {ruwach}
would
go, they would go in that direction.
And
the wheels would rise with them
because
the wind/spirit
of
the living creatures/angels
was
also in the wheels.
{Note: The Hebrew word 'ruwach' here is sometimes used for wind or Spirit. Here it is referring to God the Holy Spirit, who either indwelled or otherwise empowered the angels. The angels were following the will of God in their duties.}
21~~When
the former {angels} moved,
the
latter {wheels} moved also,
when
the former {angels} stood still, the wheels also stood still.
Furthermore,
when the former raised themselves from the ground,
the
latter raised themselves beside them.
For
the Spirit {God} of the living creatures/angels
was
also in the wheels.
22~~Now
over the heads of the living creature/angels
there
was something like an expanse.
Like the awesome gleam of crystal, extended over their heads.
23~~And
under the expanse,
their
wings were stretched out horizontally/straight,
one
toward the other.
Each
one also had two sets of wings covering their bodies,
one
on the one side and one on the other
{four wings in all - badge of ranks - rank and file - under the six
winged Seraphs}.
{Divine
judgement in Military disaster -see Revelation 1:15}
24~~And
when they went,
I
also heard the sound of their wings . . .
like
the sound of many waters . . .
like
the voice of the Almighty . . .
like
the sound of an army in bivouac.
When they stood still, they lowered their wings.
{Note: The sound of many waters is used for the sound of armies invading Israel under either the 4th or 5th cycles of discipline.}
{Source
of Judgment now Stated}
25~~And
there came a voice
from
above the expanse that was over their heads,
as
they stood still with lowered wings.
26~~Furthermore,
above the expanse that was over their heads
there
was something resembling a throne of Sapphire.
And
high above that throne was a figure like that of a man
{Jesus Christ Who controls History}.
27~~Then
I noticed that from what appeared to be His waist up
He
looked like glowing metal . . . as full of fire.
And,
that from there down He looked like fire . . . and
a
brilliant light surrounded Him.
{Note: This means that all judgement comes from Topside. It has integrity and is fair and perfect.}
28~~Like
the appearance of a rainbow
in
the clouds on a rainy day,
so
was the radiance above Him
{rainbow represents that God keeps His Word}.
This
was the appearance
of
the likeness of the glory of the Lord.
When
I saw it,
I
fell upon my face,
and
I heard the voice of One that spoke.
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