Ezekiel 1:4

Ezekiel 1:4 says, And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.  Ezekiel said the first vision that he saw was a whirlwind from the north that was like a cloud of fire enfolding in on itself.  From the midst of the fire, he saw a brightness the color of amber.  It was one of the purposes of the prophets to see visions from God, and we as followers of Jesus Christ today should still have visions of Who God is.  Matthew Henry says the purpose of this whirlwind was to allow Ezekiel to see into heaven, but whether he physically saw into heaven and its glory, I cannot say.  I do know that he realized it was a great vision from God.  We will never see God face to face in this lifetime, but we need to have a clear vision of Who He is.  Of course, some of Ezekiel’s visions were not all that clear as to their meaning.  I believe we can also say that our vision of God will never be totally clear.   

Verse five adds, Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.  Ezekiel said that out of this this whirlwind of fire came the likeness of four living creatures who had the appearance of men, though it wasn’t the creatures themselves. Matthew Henry says they were like hieroglyphics that represented the angels since the angels themselves are spirits that cannot be seen, but we know of several instances when we are told of angels appearing to different people, so I am not sure I can agree that they cannot be seen.  Of course, I know angels can have different appearances since we are told sometimes, we may entertain angles unaware that we are doing so. 

Verse six adds, And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.  Ezekiel had said they had an appearance like unto men, but this doesn’t sound like any man I have ever seen.  Matthew Henry says there were four to represent the four faces they had and the four winds of heaven or the skies.  He says that unlike what some people that he doesn't think they represented four particular angels, whom some name as Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel.  As we go through the book of Ezekiel, we will find that there are different interpretations as to what these visions represent, but we do know that God gave Ezekiel the visions for a purpose.  In John’s vision, which in some ways parallels Ezekiel’s here, each of the four living creatures had one of the faces and here, each of the four had all four faces.  Matthew Henry says that in Ezekiel’s vision this means that they were all equally qualified to do the overall work of God and in John’s it may mean that some were more qualified to do a particular task.  In the church today, we are all equally qualified to  carryout the overall mission of God, but we also have different areas that we are more qualified in,   

Verse seven continues, And 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 colour of burnished brass.  Their feet were straight and strong, ready to go in any direction they were sent and to bear any burden put on them.  We need to be the same way as followers of Christ today.  We should willing go anywhere God tells us to go and be willing to bear any burden serving Him might bring.   

Ezekiel 1:1

 Ezekiel 1:1 says, Now 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.  There are things in Ezekiel that are hard to understand, and I will not profess to understand them all, but I will do my best to tell what I believe that God was saying through him as it applies to the world today.  Some understand this to refer to Ezekiel’s age.  Ezekiel was a priest who had reached the age of thirty and should have assumed full priestly duties, but there was no temple or altar to serve at.  Others understand it to be in the thirtieth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, but either way, there was no temple and likely no altar for Ezekiel to serve at, and he saw visions from God.   He said the heavens opened up and he saw this.  It wasn’t a dream or a fantasy but a vision from God.  We likely will never see such a vision since God has sent His Son to redeem us and show us everything that we need to know about God in order to be saved.   

Verse two adds, In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,  Ezekiel further dates the time that he began to see these visions to the firth day of the fifth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin. Matthew Henry sys this was likely a sabbath, but whatever day of the week it was, God was at work in Ezekiel's life even when he was in captivity.  God was also at work in our lives when we were in captivity to sin, and He sent us the spiritual sight of Jesus Christ as our Redeemer.  It might not have been as glorious as the visions that Ezekiel had, but it was more important, since it brought us to a right relationship with God if we accepted His gift of salvation,      

Verse three continues, The 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.  Ezekiel said the word of the Lord came expressly to him, and that the hand of the Lord was upon him.  When God calls us to salvation, His call comes to each of us individually, and then His hand is upon us if we accept His gift of salvation.  This is true because the Holy Spirit indwells us and we are never out of the presence of God once we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, even if at times we slip back into sin and wish we weren’t in His sight.   

 

Isaiah Review Concluded

 One of the great prophesies of Isaiah was his prophesy of the coming Messiah.  He said that the coming Messiah would be born of a virgin, and we know that Jesus Christ was the One Isaiah spoke of.  All the prophesies concerning Israel were temporary except for this one, but Jesus Christ came to be the everlasting Savior of mankind if people will only put their faith in Him.  Had this been the only prophesy that Isaiah proclaimed; it would set him apart as a great prophet. 

I have only pointed out a few of the things that Isaiah prophesied during his life, but this is the most important one.  All the other prophesies and actions of Isaiah were temporary, but the coming of Jesus Christ as a newborn baby to grow into a man and offer Himself as a sacrifice for the sins of all mankind for all time is everlasting.  If we were to fail to understand all of Isaiah’s other prophecies, we must understand this one.  Jesus Christ came to live a sin free life, even though He was tempted to sin just like we and yet never give in to sin.  Because He didn’t, He was able to become the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all other people.

We will never be a prophet like Isaiah or any of the other prophets, because we already know everything we need to know in order to be restored to a right relationship with God and we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us to help us know what God wants us to do and to call us to repentance when we don't.  Our commission is to share the gospel with other people, and I believe this should also lead us to want to gather with our fellow believers to give praise to God and to grow spiritually. 

Many times, Isaiah and the other prophets encountered opposition, and they sometimes felt that God was not with them, but He reminded them that He was. Like the prophets, we may encounter opposition from the world, but like them we must also remain faithful to God.  The Holy Spirit will always remind us that God is with us not matter what is going on in our life.   

Next. We will look at the Book of Ezekiel.