Ezekiel 1:1-14, Meet the Holy God (A Vision in Despair)
Ezekiel 1:1-14, Meet the Holy God (A Vision in Despair)
1-14, 1.In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. 2.On the fifth of the month -- it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin --3.the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, by the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. There the hand of the LORD was upon him. 4.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, 5.and in the fire was what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was that of a man, 6.but each of them had four faces and four wings. 7.Their legs were straight; their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze. 8.Under their wings on their four sides they had the hands of a man. All four of them had faces and wings, 9.and their wings touched one another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not turn as they moved. 10.Their faces looked like this: Each of the four had the face of a man, 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. 11.Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out upward; each had two wings, one touching the wing of another creature on either side, and two wings covering its body. 12.Each one went straight ahead. Wherever the spirit would go, they would go, without turning as they went. 13.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. 14.The creatures sped back and forth like flashes of lightning.
<Sermon>
What is the greatest trial of a saint? Health? Money? Work? Academics? Relationships? These are also difficult trials. However, the greatest trial is theological conflict. Ezekiel must have felt that way. Why did God’s chosen people perish by foreign nations? (36:6) Should we live as captives? After seeing the scene full of dry bones, is there any hope for us anymore? (37:11) Is God truly with us? (11:23) The answer to these questions is given in the book of Ezekiel. The book of Ezekiel judges sin, but it also allows us to meet the God of hope who restores. He restores through the Holy Spirit (Ezek.36:26-27). He also restores through the words of the new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34). The book of Ezekiel is largely divided into two parts. Chapters 1-32 are about God’s judgment. Chapters 1-24 of these deal with the judgment on Judah and Jerusalem, chapters 25-32 with the judgment on the Gentile seven nations. Chapters 33-48 then give hope for the restoration of Israel and the temple.
1. God takes the initiative and comes to us (1-3).
The first one to come was God. Verse 1 says, “The heavens were opened.” God decided to come down. Ezekiel did not open the heavens and approach God. Ezekiel did not approach God first. Verse 3 says, “The word of the Lord came to me expressly,” verse 4 says, “I looked and, behold, a stormy wind and a great cloud were coming from the north.” And verse 28 says, “... When I saw it, I fell facedown and heard the voice of one speaking to me.” Like Moses seeing the burning bush, Isaiah in the temple, and Paul on the road to Damascus, Ezekiel also saw the coming God. None of them took the initiative to see God or initiate contact with God. God takes the initiative. Even today, God comes to us first.
In 1:1-3, we meet God who came to Ezekiel after five years of captivity. During these five years, it was a time of great trial for Ezekiel and the captive people of Judah. “Where is God?” “Have you forsaken us?” They must have despaired and despaired again. It must have been a period of five years of being angry at God, resenting their neighbors, gritting their teeth, and trying to survive on their own. As the five years passed, the anger and despair subsided and they began to reflect on themselves. Let’s think about how we make kimchi. Cabbage that is alive and well does not become kimchi. Cabbage is cut in half, sprinkled with salt, and left for 12 hours to kill the spores. Only then can the seasoning be added. The captive Judah people also died to their egos and met God after being sprinkled with God’s salt for five years.
2. Meet the God of glory through a vision (4-14)
Ezekiel sees the God of glory coming in the middle of a great storm and dark clouds. Verse 4, “I saw a storm and a great cloud coming from the north, and fire flashed in it, and light shined all around, and in the midst of the fire appeared something like glowing metal.” A storm is blowing with great force, like a hurricane or tornado. He saw God's glory (presence) in a fiery storm and a great cloud (1:4). This simultaneously symbolized God's judgment on Judah and Jerusalem, which were idolatrous and disobedient. Babylon approached Jerusalem from the north. However, Babylon is nothing more than an instrument of God’s judgment. The storm and large clouds with flashing fire signify God's destruction of Jerusalem through Babylon. Ezekiel (“God gives strength, strengthens”) was a captive priest (1:1), so he could not perform his ministry after leaving the temple and the holy altar. However, God opened the heavens to him and called him to be a prophet! He had been a captive in Babylon for five years before his calling. Priests began their ministry at the age of 30 (Num. 4:3). He was the son of a priest and was trained as a priest at the age of 25 before being taken captive (Num. 8:24). The spiritual condition of the people of Judah during this captivity was miserable (Ps. 137). God, as his name suggests, took his hand and raised him up, and fed him with the word of God to strengthen him. Thus, Ezekiel, who had become strong, tried to comfort and strengthen his fellow captives who were in despair with the word of God. Jeremiah had told the people of Judah in Jerusalem that they would live in Babylon for 70 years. But the false prophets said that God would destroy Babylon and free the captives (Jer. 28-29). Ezekiel’s mission was to fortify them by telling them that God intended to destroy Jerusalem, not Babylon, but that one day the people and the temple would be restored to glory. The phrase “the word of the Lord came…” occurs 49 times in this book. What a blessing it is to know that God’s word is never far from God’s people! John heard the word while he was exiled on the island of Patmos (Rev. 1:9ff.), and Paul heard the word while he was in prison.
3. Ezekiel sees four visions that day (5-28).
Ezekiel sees four consecutive and terrifying and strange visions in chapter 1. Verses 5-14: vision of four living creatures, 15-21: vision of wheels, 22-25: vision of the firmament, 26-28: vision of the throne. God tells him to draw a color picture. Today, we will only look at the first vision (5-14), so be careful not to let your imagination run away because the content is difficult. Ezekiel sees four living creatures (cherubs, 10:1-22). The four living creatures (cherubs) are shaped like human (5), symbolizing God’s glory and power. At that times the four represent the four directions, east, west, north, south, and all directions. In other words, it means that God is omnipresent in the entire universe and rules over the universe. The four living creatures can see all directions and move in all directions. They can move quickly to fulfill God’s will. Above the heads of the living creatures is something that looks like a canopy in the shape of a firmament. The canopy looks like crystal and gives great fear to those who see it. Under this canopy, the wings of the living creatures touch each other. Each of the four creatures, each with four faces, has four wings. In total, there are sixteen faces and sixteen wings. Under each wing is a human hand (6). The tips of the two wings of the creatures touch the wings of the creatures standing next to them. The creatures face one of the four directions: east, west, south, north. Two of their four wings touch each other. Two of their wings are used for the unity of the cherubim, and the other two are used to cover their own bodies. These angelic figures suggest how our faith should be balanced on both a communal and an individual level. Just as the cross of the Lord is formed by the intersection of vertical (facing God) and horizontal (facing the community) pillars, both of these are important.
The legs of the cherubim were straight (without joints), and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves (agile), and they glittered like burnished bronze. Verses 7 and 8, “Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves, and they shined like burnished bronze.” This is what it means to walk steadfastly in the path of the Word. Why is it difficult to walk this path of the Word? Because it looks trivial to people. However, when people’s skills are difficult and tribulations come, none of them will work. Only these straight legs can go all the way. These feet shine like polished copper, so that they can step on poisonous snakes, not be pierced by nails, and overcome all obstacles. And the important thing is the wings. These wings are connected in pairs, and with these, we can overcome all the difficulties of the world and fly like eagles. For us, these two things are the Word and prayer. No matter how frustrating and difficult things we encounter, we can fly to God with the wings of the Word and prayer. There, no one can harm us or throw us to the ground. V.8, “Under each of their four wings were the hands of a man.” The cherubim are very active.
Now the four living creatures are mentioned. Verse V.10, the four animals are a man in front, a lion on the right, an ox on the left, and an eagle in the back. These four faces represent their characteristics, namely, human-intelligence, lion- courage, ox- loyalty and service, eagle- freedom, etc. In these four faces, we can see the characteristics of the four Gospels (Augustine, Matthew Henry). That is, we can see the four images of Jesus Christ that the Gospels show. ● Man - intelligence, the head of all things (a leader with outstanding talent and power) / Luke - Christ as the Son of Man ● Lion, the leader of beasts, courage, the lion shows Christ as the King who will come from the tribe of Judah and the descendant of David / Matthew - deals with Christ as the King. ● Ox, the leader of livestock, service and loyalty / Mark - shows Christ as a servant who comes like a serving ox. ● Eagle, the leader of birds, swift and free to fly in the sky / John - emphasizes the divinity of Christ, the Son of God who came from heaven.
We must also serve God by thinking about the characteristics of the four creatures. 1) We must serve with human wisdom and intelligence. When difficulties arise, we must use common sense and wisdom. The most important thing in finding God’s will is wisdom and common sense. We must live with the leisure and intelligence to see tribulation with new eyes.
2) We must live like lions by crying out to God during prayer time. So we must shake off all anxiety and fear. “Be strong like lions.”
3) Also, we must walk step by step with patience like oxen and eventually reach our destination. If we try to do God’s work too hastily, we will get tired. God’s work is a long-term battle, like a marathon. If we run too fast at the beginning, we will not be able to finish. We must control our condition well and run with patience for a long time. We must look to Jesus Christ, the main perfecter of faith, and run the long-distance marathon of faith with patience on the cross.
4) And eagles are birds that soar the highest and can see the farthest. We are saints who ascend to the highest place, heaven. We also live by looking farthest, that is, to heaven. It is to eat the bread of life, pray fervently, and live with a vision that others cannot have, so that they can ascend to the throne of God.
The cherubim moved in the direction the spirit wanted to go. Verse 12, “Whichever way the spirit went, the living creatures went in that direction; they did not turn back, but all went straight forward.” This spirit moves according to the will of God who sits on the throne, that is, it is the spirit that God uses to best understand God’s heart and convey it to the living creatures.
Verse 13, “The appearance of the living creatures was like burning coals of fire and like torches, and the fire went up and down among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of it came lightning.” In particular, there was fire inside the beast (13). The living creatures looked like burning coals of fire or torches. Lightning shot out from the fire. The cherubim were completely balls of fire. The appearance of these living creatures prepares the appearance of Jehovah’s throne engulfed in fire (27-28). The angel of God had fire inside himself, and energy was supplied. In other words, God's people can become Israel and a blessed people wherever they are as long as they have the right faith. People have expectations of politicians and the wealthy. However, politicians cannot create an ideal country. Blessings must come from God. These creatures move very quickly. Verse 14, "The creatures moved back and forth like lightning." When the cherubim moved, they did not turn around but went straight ahead. They were very agile and moved quickly.
Let’s summarize the words given today. 1. God takes the initiative and comes to us when we are dying (1-3). 2. We meet the God of glory through visions (4-14). 3. God is omnipresent and rules over the entire world.
Dear saints, I bless you to meet the God who comes to us in despair, the God of glory, the God who is omnipresent and rules over us, and to live with the life of Jesus as God’s faithful servants. Amen.
