Appearance of the Likeness

 Ezekiel 1:4-28
 

Last week, Carl set the stage for our study of the book of Ezekiel by describing the events that had led up to this young priest sitting by a canal in Babylon a thousand miles away from his home in Jerusalem. He had been taken captive when the Babylonians had attacked Judah, subdued it, and carried off thousands of exiles. God had allowed this invasion as part of his judgment on his people for turning away from him and worshiping other gods, a prospect he had warned King Solomon about way back at the dedication of the temple. Disobedience to the covenant would have consequences.
 
God had sent numerous prophets to warn his people, but a series of evil kings in both Israel and Judah had led the people away from their loyalty and commitment to God. Israel was conquered by the Assyrians in 722 BC, and many of its people were carried off into exile at that time. In Judah, the last “good” king, Josiah, came to the throne in about 640 BC and rediscovered the Book of the Law, which helped him realize how far the people had strayed from God. This was probably in the very year that Ezekiel was born. Josiah did what he could to rid the land of idolatry, but God sent him word that in one sense it was “too late.” The disaster that God was bringing on the land of Judah and its people would indeed happen, but because of Josiah’s faithfulness it would not be within his lifetime. In the words of the passage from 2 Kings 22 that Carl read, God would remove Judah from his presence and reject Jerusalem, the city he had chosen, and the temple about which he had said, “My name shall be there.” This punishment was inevitable.
 
It's easy to understand why Ezekiel was probably feeling quite disheartened. Despite starting out his life during the more hopeful reign of King Josiah, things had gone downhill, and Ezekiel was caught up in the terrible disaster that God had brought on the land. Personally, he seems to have a heart to follow God. He was now 30 years old, about the time when he could be installed formally as a priest in the temple. But all of that had been stripped away: everything familiar, all of his plans and hopes. This was extreme dislocation, as he was uprooted and stuck in a foreign land, with no control over his own future. It probably felt “unprecedented” and “like uncharted territory.” You have no doubt heard those terms a few times over the past year. Most of us have experienced some major changes in our lives in the midst of the pandemic – new ways of operating, things we wanted to do but haven’t been able to. The world seems more divided, confusing, and uncertain than ever. What is God doing? Can we still trust him?

Ezekiel probably had a lot of questions, too. It had been 5 years since the attack on Jerusalem. Five long years of exile in Babylon. What was even happening back home in Jerusalem? Had God abandoned his people and his temple completely? Would there be anything worth looking forward to in Babylon? So what does it mean to be committed and obedient to God now? Ezekiel would not be able to serve as a priest, so far from the temple. He was in a foreign country, essentially as a slave, surrounded by false gods and a domineering culture. But we have the words that we read at end of last week’s passage: “There the hand of the Lord was on him.” God was coming to meet him right where he was. We begin today with verse 4 of Ezekiel chapter 1:
 
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, and in the fire was what 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.
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 on either side; and each had two other wings covering its body. Each one went straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went. The 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. The creatures sped back and forth like flashes of lightning. – Ezekiel 1:4-14
 
In his quiet moment by the canal, Ezekiel looks up and sees what looks like an approaching storm, blowing up suddenly, as can happen in the desert. But he soon realizes that this is no ordinary storm. He is seeing a vision of something divine. In the blinding light of the cloud he sees four living creatures. In chapter 10 he will identify them as cherubim, but for now he just describes their strange appearance, each with four faces and four wings. There is much symbolism here. A lion would be associated with strength, courage, and ferocity. The eagle was stately and swift. An ox or bull was a common symbol of fertility and divinity. The people of Israel had fashioned a golden calf to worship at Mount Sinai. The face of a human would reflect the image of God, in his majesty and wisdom. And the human hands of the creatures would represent ability and competence. Repetition of the number four emphasizes the universal nature of these creatures, relating them to the four winds or four corners of the earth: four creatures, four wings, four faces.
 
Ezekiel would have seen similar creatures depicted on the temples and palaces of Babylon, winged bull-men standing guard or supporting a royal throne. What stands out in his vision is that these four creatures are in fact highly mobile, speeding back and forth like flashes of lightning, it says. These are not static sculptures or paintings. They are living creatures. They are purposeful in their movement as well, proceeding straight ahead without turning, guided by a mysterious spirit. Their mobility is further emphasized by the wheels that were supporting them.
 
As I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the ground beside each creature with its four faces. This 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. As 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. Their rims were high and awesome, and all four rims were full of eyes all around.
 When the living creatures moved, the wheels beside them moved; and when the living creatures rose from the ground, the wheels also rose. Wherever 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.  When 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. – Ezekiel 1:15-21
 
The wheel within each wheel or intersecting each wheel meant that the creatures could move readily in any direction, acting like the casters on an office chair. The creatures did not have to turn, because they were already facing all four directions. The eyes on the wheels might add to the omniscience of the creatures looking in every direction or perhaps they were part of the colorful decorations in this dazzling scene. The wheels gave the creatures full and unrestricted movement, as motivated by the spirit of life, the same spirit that would animate Ezekiel as a prophet.
 
The creatures were apparently arranged in a square, with their wings touching at the corners. The reason for this is that they were aligned with a throne:
 
Spread out above the heads of the living creatures was what looked something like a vault, sparkling like crystal, and awesome. Under the vault their wings were stretched out one toward the other, and each had two wings covering its body. When the creatures moved, I heard the sound of their wings, like the roar of rushing waters, like the voice of the Almighty, like the tumult of an army. When they stood still, they lowered their wings.
Then there came a voice from above the vault over their heads as they stood with lowered wings. Above 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. I 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. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. – Ezekiel 1:22-28a
 
Ezekiel saw the creatures first and marveled at how they moved, but they are not the focus of the scene. As he looked above them he sees this sparkling but transparent vault or dome and above that a bright blue throne. Seated on the throne is one with the appearance of a man, also radiating light. He is surrounded by the brilliance of a rainbow. The whole thing is an awesome sight, full of light and color and noise. The figure is compared to fire, as was the cloud that Ezekiel first saw and the living creatures themselves. God’s judgment is often spoken of in scripture as a fire. Fire refines and purifies. The creator and judge of the whole earth has arrived. He has the appearance of a man, for all people were created in his image. His glory would be seen again in the transfiguration, which we read about in Matthew 17, when Jesus shone like the sun, with his clothes becoming white as the light. He will also occupy the great white throne of Revelation 20 for the final judgment, when Death and Hades are thrown into the lake of fire, along with everyone whose names are not written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
 
Ezekiel is stunned by the vision. Did he realize what he was looking at? The first clue that he did is in verse 24, where he likens the sound of the creatures’ wings to the voice of the Almighty. Is this El Shaddai himself? Ezekiel avoids giving the impression that he saw God directly. He knew that God had told Moses that no one could see his face and live. So Ezekiel is very careful in how he identifies what he saw in this vision. Right at the end of this chapter he puts it this way:
 
This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking. – Ezekiel 1:28b
 
This was not even the glory of the Lord itself. It was the likeness or copy of that glory that appeared to him. This is plenty awe-inspiring anyway, and Ezekiel assumes a position of humility and submission, on his face, acknowledging the majesty and sovereignty of God. His creator is about to speak with him.
 
We can only guess what was going through Ezekiel’s head at this point. Was he recalling the words of Psalm 18, where David is acknowledging the greatness of God?
 
He parted the heavens and came down;
    dark clouds were under his feet.
He mounted the cherubim and flew;
    he soared on the wings of the wind.
He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—
    the dark rain clouds of the sky.
Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,
    with hailstones and bolts of lightning.
The Lord thundered from heaven;
    the voice of the Most High resounded. – Psalm 18:9-13
 
Perhaps he was remembering Moses’ encounter with God on Mount Sinai. When Moses went up the mountain, a cloud covered it, as the glory of the Lord settled on the mountain. Exodus 24 tells us that to the Israelites the glory of the Lord looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. And Moses was up there 40 days and 40 nights. But what does the glory of God actually mean? We often think of glory as something visual and beautiful, like a glorious sunset. Or we think of glory as recognition by others, as when we get the glory for some achievement. However, the Hebrew word for glory has to do with weight or substance. The glory of God is an inherent quality. It exists whether anyone sees it or not. It has to do with his significance. In this sense, then, God is infinitely glorious. Everything in the universe exists and functions because of him. How can we speak, therefore, of giving glory to God? How can we add to something that is already infinite, greater than we can imagine? It is indeed a mystery. But Isaiah 43 reminds us that God created us as human beings for his glory. And Psalm 19 tells us that the entire universe is already declaring the glory of God:
 
The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
 Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
    their words to the ends of the world. – Isaiah 43:1-4
 
We are part of this grand symphony of worship when we recognize who God is and what he has done. Psalm 96 commands us to give him glory:
 
Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name;
    bring an offering and come into his courts.
Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness;
    tremble before him, all the earth. – Psalm 96:8-9
 
To ascribe glory to God means to recognize and declare that he alone is worthy of that glory. The name of the Lord represents who he is, his reputation and his authority. Therefore we ascribe glory to the name of the Lord when we worship him and submit ourselves to him, when we say that he is worthy of all that we are and have. Glory and honor are closely related and often come together in describing what we should offer to God. Giving glory to God is our eternal destiny as well, when we join the unending worship in heaven, as it says in Revelation 4:
 
Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
 “You are worthy, our Lord and God,
    to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
    and by your will they were created
    and have their being.” – Revelation 4:9-11
 
The Creator God is infinitely glorious and yet he can receive more glory in worship. Ezekiel was faced with a visual representation of the glory of God, and his response was to bow before it in submission. To say this was a watershed moment in his life is probably an understatement. God Almighty was about to speak to him and change his calling from priest to prophet. Instead of caring for the temple and helping to preserve it, we will see that he will be predicting its destruction and replacement. Many people will take offense at what he says and the person that he becomes.
 
At this moment he is faced with two terrifying realizations. The first is that the glory of God is appearing to him in Babylon. What is the shekinah glory doing in this pagan land, when Ezekiel had always associated it with the Holy of Holies in the temple in Jerusalem? Ezekiel probably had some vague sense of the omnipresence of God. Perhaps he was even in personal prayer at his spot beside the canal. But this specific expression of God’s presence would be very upsetting. Did it mean that the glory had left the temple? What was God up to? Ezekiel was no doubt hoping against hope that someday he would be able to return to Jerusalem and some “new normal” in terms of his life as a priest. Would God even be there when he got back? Ezekiel was having to face the fact that there would be no going back; his world was changing forever. God wants to do something in Babylon. What could that be?
 
This leads to the second terrifying realization: the glory of God is appearing to him. No one else is around. So this is probably not good news for him personally. Something significant is going on, and he is to be a part of it. Given all the recent expressions of God’s righteous anger against his rebellious people, Ezekiel is probably not expecting words of comfort and peace. We will see in the chapters ahead that God does indeed give him many more words of judgment and condemnation against the idolatry of his people. These are warnings that will largely be ignored. They will not make Ezekiel a popular person amongst his fellow exiles. He will need to press on in obedience even when the results of his ministry seem lacking or unfavorable.
 
At the same time, in experiencing this theophany Ezekiel is probably somewhat assured by the fact that God even sees him and cares about him. He and the other exiles are not completely abandoned. God is still holy and powerful but wants to connect with him in some way. God has not forgotten them; he cares about the remnant. Ezekiel might even recall that God had called Abraham while he was in Ur of the Chaldeans, not far from where Ezekiel was now. God promised to give Abram, as he was called then, a new land and to make him great. The first promise is in Genesis 12:
 
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
“I will make you into a great nation,
    and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
    and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
    and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
    will be blessed through you.”
So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran. He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Harran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there. – Genesis 12:1-5
 
Could Ezekiel take comfort in God’s covenant with Abraham? Was God still committed to the great nation that he had made? God had promised him descendants as numerous as the sand on the seashore. Now the people of Israel were being decimated. Was God giving up on his promises because his people had not fulfilled their part of the covenant? God had told David that someone would sit on his throne forever. Now King Jehoiachin was in exile with Ezekiel. It looked like Babylon was about to wipe out the monarchy.
 
But in the prophecies that would come to Ezekiel over the course of this book we will see that God wants to do a new thing with his people. In chapters 34-37 we will see the promise that God will establish a new David, not the old type of king, and a new Israel with new hearts. It would not be the same as before, but God would continue to show his faithfulness to his people, the remnant whose hearts remained devoted to him.
 
So what is God saying to us through the story of Ezekiel? We will see that amidst all the strange and disturbing aspects of this book – and indeed there are many – that God does not give up on his people. Even today he meets us where we are, even when we feel like we are in Babylon, given the current disruption in the world. He judges sin, but at the same time he offers salvation. He invites us to be a part of what he is doing in bringing his redemption to people everywhere, not promising that our obedience to his calling will be easy or even fruitful in our eyes, but that his presence with us will make it worthwhile in light of eternity. We submit and offer our lives in worship and service, as Ezekiel did, just because of who God is, when we see him in all of his glory.