Scroll to the bottom for thoughts/discussion questions!
One-sentence summary: During the captivity, the priest Ezekiel is called of God to be a prophet and speak God's words to the people; He sees visions of the glory of the Lord and four living creatures.
As Ezekiel the priest is among the captains by the River Kebar, the heavens are opened, and he sees visions of God. In the fifth year of King Jehoiakin's captivity, the word of the Lord comes to him in the land of the Chaldeans by the river, and the Lord's hand is upon him there. He sees a whirlwind coming from the north, "a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself, and brightness [is] all around it." He sees what looks like four living creatures coming from it, each having "the likeness of the man." Each has four faces and four wings, and their feet are like calves' feet. They sparkle like burnished bronze. Their hands are under their wings, and they move in a straight line. Each has a man's face, but also the face of a lion on the right, an ox on the left, and the face of an eagle. Two wings stretch upward, and two cover their bodies. They go "wherever the Spirit [wants] to go," and they do not turn. They look like burning coals of fire, "like torches going back and forth." Out of the fire comes lightning, and the creatures run back and forth, resembling flashes of lightning as they go. Ezekiel also sees a wheel beside each creature. When the wheels move, they go in one of four directions. Their rims are very high and are full of eyes all around. When the creatures move, they wheels move with them; when they are lifted up, the wheels are lifted up. Wherever the Spirit goes, they go also, and he says the spirit of the living creatures is in the wheels. The likeness of the sky above the creatures is like an "an awesome crystal," and under it, their wings spread out toward each other. They have two on each side, covering their bodies. When they move, Ezekiel hears the sound of their wings, and it sounds like "the voice of many waters, like the voice of the Almighty," and "like the noise of an army." He hears a voice in the sky above and sees a throne, like a sapphire stone. He sees One like a Man high above it. His torso is the color of amber with something like fire all around it. Below His waist is also bright like fire. Also, "like the appearance of the rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so [is] the appearance of the brightness all around." Ezekiel says, "This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord." When he sees it, he falls on his face. Then, he hears a voice.
The Lord says to him, "Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to you." Then, the Spirit enters him and sets him on his feet, and he hears the Lord saying, "Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation who has rebelled against Me." He tells him to say to them, "Thus says the Lord," whether they listen or not. Either way, they will know that a prophet has been among them. The Lord tells him not to be afraid of their words, though he "dwells among scorpions." He also says not to be dismayed by their looks. He must speak the Lord's words to them, whether they listen or not. The Lord warns him not to be rebellious like them and to open his mouth and eat what He gives him. Then, Ezekiel sees a hand stretched out to him with a scroll of a book in it. The Lord spreads it before him, and there is writing on the outside and inside, and on it are written "lamentations and mourning and woe."
The Lord tells him to eat the scroll and go speak to Israel. Ezekiel opens his mouth, and the Lord causes him to eat the scroll and tells him to fill himself to the full with it. Ezekiel says it tastes like honey in his mouth. The Lord tells him again to go speak to the people. He says He is not sending him to foreigners, for they would have listened. He tells Ezekiel that Israel will not listen to him because they will not listen to Him, as they are hard hearted. But the Lord says He has made his face hard against their faces, like flint, and not to be afraid or dismayed. He tells him to receive in his heart all the words He speaks and to go speak to the captives, his people, and tell them His words, whether they hear or refuse. Then, the Spirit lifts him up, and he hears behind him a "great, thunderous voice that says, "Blessed is the glory of the Lord." He also hears the noise of the creatures' wings and the wheels and a noise like thunder. The Lord lifts him up and takes him away, and he weeps in bitterness; the hand of the Lord is strong upon him. Then, he goes to the captives who dwell by the River Kebar. He sits where they sit and remains there, astonished, among them for seven days. After seven days, the word of the Lord comes to him. The Lord says He has made him a watchman for Israel and that he must warn them. If he does not warn the wicked to save his life, that man will die, and the Lord will require his blood of Ezekiel. However, if he warns him, and he dies, his own soul will be delivered. The Lord says when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and the Lord lays a stumbling block before him, he will die, and his righteousness will not be remembered. If he is not warned, his blood will be required of Ezekiel. If he does warn him, and the man does not sin and lives, he will have delivered his soul. The Lord's hand is upon him, and he tells him to go out to the plain so he can speak with him. When he goes, he sees the glory of the Lord again, and he falls on his face. The Spirit enters him and sets him on his feet and speaks with him. He tells him to shut himself inside his house, and tells him the people will bind him with ropes. The Lord says he will make him unable to speak, but whenever the Lord speaks to him, He will open his mouth, and he will speak the Lord's words.
The Lord also tells Ezekiel to take a clay tablet and lay it before him and portray on it the city Jerusalem. He is to lay siege to it and place an iron wall between him and the city and set his face against it, as a sign to Israel. He also tells him to lie on his left side for 390 days, to bear Israel's iniquity for the number of years they sinned. Then again, he is to lie on his right side, to bear Judah's sin for 40 days- a day for each year they sinned. The Lord says He will restrain him so he cannot turn to the other side until he has ended the "days of his siege." He also tells him to take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and make bread for himself to be food for that time, and tells him how much he should eat a day, and also how much water to drink. He is to use human waste as fuel and bake it in their sight... "so shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles where I will drive them." Ezekiel says he has never defiled himself since his youth, so the Lord says He is giving him cow dung instead of human waste. He says He is cutting off the supply of bread and water, and the people will barely have enough and will "waste away, because of their iniquity."
Thoughts/discussion questions:
Have you ever studied what the four living creatures represent? We must remember that Ezekiel saw "what looked like" four living creatures. These creatures represent invisible (to our eye) heavenly realities.