Ezekiel, 1

1. In the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, as I was among the exiles by the River Chebar, heaven opened and I saw visions from God.

1. 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.

2. On the fifth of the month -- it was the fifth year of exile for King Jehoiachin-

2. In the fifth [day] of the month, which [was] the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,

3. the word of Yahweh was addressed to the priest Ezekiel son of Buzi, in Chaldaea by the River Chebar. There the hand of Yahweh came on him.

3. 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.

4. I looked; a stormy wind blew from the north, a great cloud with flashing fire and brilliant light round it, and in the middle, in the heart of the fire, a brilliance like that of amber,

4. 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.

5. and in the middle what seemed to be four living creatures. They looked like this: They were of human form.

5. 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.

6. Each had four faces, each had four wings.

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

7. Their legs were straight; they had hooves like calves, glittering like polished brass.

7. 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.

8. Below their wings, they had human hands on all four sides corresponding to their four faces and four wings.

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

9. They touched one another with their wings; they did not turn as they moved; each one moved straight forward.

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

10. As to the appearance of their faces, all four had a human face, and a lion's face to the right, and all four had a bull's face to the left, and all four had an eagle's face.

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.

11. Their wings were spread upwards, each had one pair touching its neighbour's, and the other pair covering its body.

11. 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 each one moved straight forward; they went where the spirit urged them, they did not turn as they moved.

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

13. Between these living creatures were what looked like blazing coals, like torches, darting backwards and forwards between the living creatures; the fire gave a brilliant light, and lightning flashed from the fire,

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 kept disappearing and reappearing like flashes of lightning.

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

15. Now, as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel touching the ground beside each of the four-faced living creatures.

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 and structure of the wheels were like glittering chrysolite. All four looked alike, and their appearance and structure were such that each wheel seemed to have another wheel inside it.

16. The appearance of the wheels and their work [was] like unto the colour of a beryl: and they four had one likeness: and their appearance and their work [was] as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

17. In whichever of the four directions they moved, they did not need to turn as they moved.

17. When they went, they went upon their four sides: [and] they turned not when they went.

18. Their circumference was of awe-inspiring size, and the rims of all four sparkled all the way round.

18. As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings [were] full of eyes round about them four.

19. When the living creatures moved, the wheels moved beside them; and when the living creatures left the ground, the wheels too left the ground.

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

20. They moved in whichever direction the spirit chose to go, and the wheels rose with them, since the wheels shared the spirit of the animals.

20. Whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went, thither [was their] spirit to go; and the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living creature [was] in the wheels.

21. When the living creatures moved on, they moved on; when the former halted, the latter halted; when the former left the ground, the wheels too left the ground, since the wheels shared the spirit of the animals.

21. When those went, [these] went; and when those stood, [these] stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up over against them: for the spirit of the living creature [was] in the wheels.

22. Over the heads of the living creatures was what looked like a solid surface glittering like crystal, spread out over their heads, above them,

22. And the likeness of the firmament upon the heads of the living creature [was] as the colour of the terrible crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.

23. and under the solid surface, their wings were spread out straight, touching one another, and each had a pair covering its body.

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

24. I also heard the noise of their wings; when they moved, it was like the noise of flood-waters, like the voice of Shaddai, like the noise of a storm, like the noise of an armed camp; and when they halted, they lowered their wings;

24. And 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 speech, as the noise of an host: when they stood, they let down their wings.

25. there was a noise too.

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

26. Beyond the solid surface above their heads, there was what seemed like a sapphire, in the form of a throne. High above on the form of a throne was a form with the appearance of a human being.

26. And 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.

27. I saw a brilliance like amber, like fire, radiating from what appeared to be the waist upwards; and from what appeared to be the waist downwards, I saw what looked like fire, giving a brilliant light all round.

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

28. The radiance of the encircling light was like the radiance of the bow in the clouds on rainy days. The sight was like the glory of Yahweh. I looked and fell to the ground, and I heard the voice of someone speaking to me.

28. As 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 spake.