Visions of God's Glory

1Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

2On the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,

3The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.

4And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire engulfing itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of its midst as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire.

5Also out of its midst came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.

6And each one had four faces, and each one had four wings.

7And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot: and they sparkled like the color of burnished bronze.

8And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and the four had their faces and their wings.

9Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went each one straight forward.

10As for the likeness of their faces, the four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and the four had the face of an ox on the left side; the four also had the face of an eagle.

11Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of each one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.

12And they went each one straight forward: wherever the spirit was to go, they went; and they turned not when they went.

13As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches: they went back and forth among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.

14And the living creatures ran back and forth like the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold, a wheel upon the earth beside the living creatures, with its four faces.

16The appearance of the wheels and their workings was like the color of beryl: and the four had the same likeness: and their appearance and their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

17When they went, they went in any of four directions: and they turned not when they went.

18As for their rims, they were so high that they were awesome; and their rims were full of eyes, round about the four of them.

19And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.

20Wherever the spirit was to go, they went, there was their spirit to go; and the wheels were lifted up with them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

21When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up along with them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

22And the likeness of the firmament above the heads of the living creature was as the color of awesome crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.

23And under the firmament were their wings spread out straight, the one toward the other: each one had two, which covered on this side, and each one had two, which covered on that side, their bodies.

24And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of tumult, as the noise of an army: when they stood, they let down their wings.

25And there was a voice from the firmament that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings.

26And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.

27And I saw as the color of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of his waist even upward, and from the appearance of his waist even downward, I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.

28As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spoke.