CHAPTER I.

1 The time of Ezekiel's prophecy at Chebar. 4 His vision of four cherubims, 15 of the four wheels, 26 and of the glory of God.

FIRST GROUP.

WORDS OF WARNING TO ISRAEL.
Chaps. i.-xxiv.

CHAP. I. The first three chapters contain

the account of Ezekiel's call.

A mighty whirlwind is issuing from the north, and a dark cloud appears in that quarter of the heavens. In the midst of the cloud is an area of dazzling brightness surrounded by encircling flames. Therein are seen four beings of strange and mysterious shape standing so as to form a square, below their feet are four wheels, and over their heads a throne on which is seated the likeness of a man dimly seen, while a voice issuing from the throne summons the prophet to his office.

1. Now] The Hebrew particle, commonly rendered and, frequently commences an historical book, linking it to the preceding. (See on Exod. i. 1 and 1 S. i. 1.) In the prophetical writings this is only the case in Ezekiel and Jonah. Some have thought that the book of Ezekiel is thus linked to Jeremiah, but there is certainly no historical sequence. Rather, as one use of the Hebrew particle is to convert the verb into an historical tense, the connective force is merged into the conversive; it is well rendered now.

=

in the thirtieth year] The Hebrew is, literally, in thirty years" (a common way of expressing in the thirtieth year, Ewald 'Heb. Sprach'§ 287, R.), which thus finds a parallel in 2 S. xv. 7, after forty years, which refers to the age of Absalom, and in the common phrase, son of thirty years": thirty years old. We observe that here the thirtiet b year is closely connected with as I or and I, which is rather in favour of considering this as a personal date. (So Origen, Gregory and Schroeder.) It is not improbable that Ezekiel was called to his office at the age prescribed in the law for Levites (Num. iv. 23, 30), at which age both John the Baptist and our Lord began their ministry. His call is probably to be connected VOL. VI.

with the letter sent by Jeremiah to the captives (Jer. xxix.) written a few months previously. Some reckon this date from the accession of Nabopolassar, father of Nebuchadnezzar, B.C. 625, and suppose that Ezekiel here gives a Babylonian, as in v. 2 a Jewish date. The removal of Jehoiachin has been fixed by Prideaux and Clinton at B.C. 598 (Ewald B.C. 597); according to the Hebrew mode of computation this gives B.C. 594 for the fifth year of that captivity, the 32nd year of Nabopolassar's accession. We have no certainty that this accession formed an era in Babylon, and Ezekiel does not elsewhere give a double date, or even a Babylonian date. The Targum, followed by Jerome and Grotius, dates from the 18th year of Josiah, when Hilkiah discovered the book of the law (supposed to be a jubilee year). As Josiah reigned thirty-one years, and Jehoiakim eleven, this would give B.C. 594 as the 30th year, but we have no other instance in Ezekiel of reckoning from this year.

among the captives] Not in confinement, but restricted to the place of their settlement (see on v. 2), so that exiles would express too little, if captives expresses too much.

in the fourth month] We observe that month is not expressed in the original. This is the common method. See viii. 1, xx. 1, &c. Before the captivity the months were described not by proper names (the names Abib, Ziph, are scarcely exceptions) but by their order, the first, the second, &c.; the first month corresponding nearly with our April. After the captivity the Jews brought back with them the proper names of the months, Nisan, &c. (probably those used in Chaldæa).

the river of Chebar] The modern Khabour rises near Nisibis and flows into the Euphrates near Kerkesiah, 200 miles north of Babylon. It has been doubted whether this can be the Chebar, because we are told that the exiles with Jeconiah were brought from Jerusalem to Babylon (2 K. xxiv. 15). But this may very well have been said of any place of exile in the kingdom of Babylon. Comp. "in the land of

B

captivity.

the Chaldæans," v. 3. The Syriac interpreter adopting the Hebrew (as is usual among the old translators) employs the same word as that in use for the modern Khabour. We may therefore conclude that the Jewish exiles were placed in cities or villages on the banks of the Khabour. Some have identified Chebar with Habor the river of Gozan, for by is not in the original (2 K. xvii. 6), whither the ten tribes were carried away more than a hundred years before, and have supposed that Ezekiel and his companions were thus brought into close contact with the descendants of the exiles transported thither by the king of Assyria; but the place of exile of the ten tribes is clearly defined to have been in northern Assyria or Media, which does not suit with the place of

Ezekiel's exile.

the heavens were opened] Jerome explains this to mean that the glories were opened to the eye of faith (comp. John i. 51; Matt. iii. 16; Acts vii. 56, x. 11); but an actual vision is being described, and to the prophet's eye the heavens above his head were unfolded to shew the divine glory.

visions of God] The Hebrews were wont to express greatness and majesty by the addition of the name of God. Ps. xxxvi. 6; the great mountains: Heb., "the mountains of God." Ps. lxxx. 10; the great cedar trees: Heb., "the cedars of God." Comp. Ps. lxv. 9. Here, however, the visions were not only supremely majestic, but visions of the majesty of God. Comp. below, viii. 3 and xl. 2.

2. the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity] This is the Jewish date. vv. 2, 3, which seem rather to interrupt the course of the narrative, may have been added by the prophet himself when he revised and put together the whole book. Jehoiachin was actually in prison for many years (2 K. xxv. 27)—but the word captivity is the same as in v. I and refers to the transportation of the king and others from their native to a foreign soil. Comp. Jer. xxix. 2 and 2 K. xxiv. 12. This policy of settling a conquered people in lands distant from their home, begun by the Assyrians, was continued by the Persians and by Alexander the Great. The Jews were specially selected for such settlements, and this was no doubt a Providential preparation for the Gospel, the dispersed Jews carrying with them the knowledge of the true God and the sacred Scriptures,

and thus paving the way for the messengers of the kingdom of Christ.

3. came expressly] did verily come, the phrase marking strongly that it was in truth a heaven-sent vision.

Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi] The order in the Heb. is, Ezekiel the son of Buzi the priest, where the priest may belong either to Ezekiel or to Buzi. The Hebrew accent (dargu) connects it with Buzi and this seems more natural; if so, Ezekiel was not only a priest but the son of a priest. Hengstenberg, however, adopts the former view, taking the priest to denote that Ezekiel was the priest in charge of the company of exiles among whom he resided. But this is less likely as he was not called to his office till the fifth year of the captivity, and seems then to have been of no repute among his countrymen.

the hand of the LORD] Rashi remarks that wherever the word 'hand of the Lord' is used, not only in this book but in all prophecy, it implies a constraining power, because the spirit constrains the prophet independently of his own will. Comp. 1 K. xviii. 46 and below, xxxiii. 22, xxxvii. I; also Rev. i. 17, where, however, the band exercises a supporting rather than a constraining power. So in Dan. viii.

18, X. 10.

4. out of the north] It was frequently foretold that the divine judgments should proceed from the north (Jer. i. 14, iv. 6) because it was from the north that the Assyrian conquerors came upon the Holy Land, and it may be that for this reason the whirlwind proceeded out of the north, for the vision though seen in Chaldæa had reference to Jerusalem, and the seer is to contemplate judgment as it is coming upon the Holy Land. But we observe in the vision of Zechariah that the horses go towards the north (Zech. vi. 8). Mount Zion and the temple were on the sides of the north (Ps. xlviii, 2, where see note, and Isai. xiv. 13). Thus the north was felt by the Jews to be the peculiar seat of the power of Jehovah. Further, the high mountain range of Lebanon that closed in the Holy Land on the north naturally connected to the inhabitants of that country the northern region with the idea of height reaching to heaven, from which such a vision as this would probably

come.

a great cloud, and a fire] as on Mount Sinai, Exod. xix. 16, 18.

infolding itself] forming a circle of light— flames moving round and round and following each other in rapid succession, to be as it were the framework of the glorious scene: a bright ness was about it, about the cloud; and out of the midst thereof, out of the midst of the fire.

colour] Literally, "eye." It is not the colour but the brightness which is compared. Eye means "appearance," and as the eye of is adequately represented by the one English word

like.

amber] Heb. chashmal. The word occurs only in Ezekiel, here and v. 27, and viii. 2. The LXX. and the Vulgate have electrum, a substance composed by a mixture of silver and gold, which corresponds very well to the Hebrew word. But since electrum was also applied to the gum known as amber, our translators adopted the latter word. The brightness is that of shining metal, not of a transparent gum, like the burnished brass in 2. 7 and fine brass, Rev. i. 15.

out of the midst of the fire] out of the midst thereof, like burnished gold out of the midst of fire. The punctuation in our Authorized Version would make this clause the repetition or explanation of out of the midst of it. It is better to connect it closely with burnished gold, and to consider the definite article as generic; the fire is for fire in general.

5. living creatures] The Hebrew word answers very nearly to the English "beings," to denote those who live, whether angels or men (in whom is the breath of life), or inferior creatures. The LXX. and Vulg. have words equivalent to our "animals" in the sense of living creatures. The Hebrew word is also used for "wild beasts," and (in a Chaldaic form) for the beasts in Daniel's vision (Dan. vii. 3), in which last passage, however, the LXX. and Vulg. use words equivalent not to "animals" but to "beasts." In Rev. iv. 6, the word for beasts is that employed here in the LXX. they bad the likeness of a man] They stood erect like men; with all their strange variety

of form, they bore the general aspect of the human figure.

Revelation each "beast" has its own distinc6. four faces, and...four wings] In the

four characters; in Revelation each has six wings, like the Seraphim in Isaiah (Isai. vi. 2), here only four. (See Introduction.)

tive character-here each unites in itself the

7. their feet were straight feet] Each of their legs was a straight leg and their foot like a calf's foot. The foot seems here to mean the lower part of the leg, including the knee, and this was straight, i.e. upright like a man's. Like the sole of a calf's foot, the sole is the foot as distinguished from the leg, the leg terminated in a solid calf's hoof. This was suitable for a being which was to present a front on each of its four sides. Ezekiel was living in a country on the walls of whose temples and palaces were those strange mixed figures, human heads with the bodies of lions and the feet of calves, and the like, which we see in the Babylonian and Assyrian monuments. These combinations were of course symbolical and the symbolism must have been familiar to Ezekiel. But the prophet is not constructing his cherubim in imitation of these figures, the Spirit of God is revealing forms corresponding to the general rules of eastern symbolism. See Introduction, § v. (See Note at end of Chapter.)

like the colour of] Lit. "as the eye of;" translate like; see on v. 4.

avings] This clause is to be connected with 8. and they four had their faces and their the former clause thus:-"They had the hands just as they had wings and faces on all four of a man under their wings on all four sides,

sides."

9. Their wings were joined one to another] Two of the wings were in the act of flying, so stretched out that the extremity of each touched a wing of a neighbouring living creature, similarly stretched out. This was only when they were in motion. When they stood these two wings were let down. (See v. 24.)

they went every one straight forward] The

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

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

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

four formed a square, each occupying one corner, with its two outer faces in a line with the two sides of the square. The upper wings of each touching the wings of each other formed the sides of the square. Thus the four together formed a square, and never altered their relative position. From each side two faces looked straight out, one at each cornerand so all moved together towards any of the four quarters, towards which each one had one of its four faces directed, and so in whichsoever direction the whole moved the four might be said all to go straight forward.

10. Each living creature had four faces, of a man, of a lion, of an ox, of an eagle. Our English Bibles in the present day have a comma after lion, which would refer on the right side both to the face of a man, and the face of a lion; but it is better with the older edition to omit the comma after lion. Thus each would have in front the face of a man, that of a lion on the right side, that of an ox on the left side, and that of an eagle behind, and the "chariot" would present to the beholder two faces of a man, of a lion, of an eagle, and of an ox, according to the quarter from which he looked upon it.

11. Thus avere their faces, and their wings were stretched upward] Rather, And their faces and their wings were separated above. The original of the first clause is simply and their faces. The words added are forced in very unnaturally. The word rendered stretched occurs often, and is variously rendered divided (Gen. x. 5), separated (Gen. xiii. 14), parted (Gen. ii, 10), dispersed (Esther iii. 8), scattered (Job iv. 11), sundered (Job xli. 17). All these renderings agree substantially, and differ entirely from stretched. All four formed, as we have seen, a whole, yet the upper parts of each, the heads and the wings (though touching), rose distinct from one another; two wings of each as in the case

13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.

14 And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15 ¶ Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces.

16 The appearance of the wheels

of Isaiah's Seraphim were folded down over the body, and two were in their flight (see on v. 9) stretched upward so as to meet, each a wing of the neighbouring living creature, as the wings of the Cherubim touched one another over the mercy-seat of the ark.

12. whither the spirit was to go] Although the "chariot" was composed of distinct parts, four living creatures, four wheels, &c., it was to be considered as a whole. There was one

spirit expressive of one conscious life pervading the whole, and guiding the motions of the whole in perfect harmony.

13. lamps] like the appearance of flames. The and before like is not in the original and is not wanted. The Hebrew word is variously translated in our English Bibles lamp (Gen. XV. 17), lightnings (Exod. xx. 18), firebrands (Judg. xv. 4), torches (Nahum ii. 4). The corresponding Greek word is in the N. T. translated torches (John xviii. 3), elsewhere lamps. Comparing these passages together we conclude that the word properly means not the vessel which contains the light but the light itself. Here it must mean the bright flames described as resembling coals of fire.

mentioned. It seems desirable, for the sake of it went up and down] It refers to fire just distinctness, to substitute in the translation the noun for the pronoun that is intended to represent it. Fire went up and down.

14. as the appearance of a flash of lightning] In this description is probably included the speed as well as the brightness of the lightningflash.

15. one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces] Translate, one wheel upon the earth by each of the living creatures on his four sides. One prefixed to wheel has in Hebrew a distributive force, and thus we learn that there was a wheel to