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THE
WONDER OF GOD Introduction: God assigned Ezekiel to take a message of judgment and of restoration to people who didn’t want to hear God’s Word. God prepared Ezekiel for this difficult task in steps. First, He allowed the prophet to see God in all His regal splendor. I. CONSTANT ACTIVITY
(1:4-25) A. Accomplishing His Purposes (vv.4-14) · The Storm – Divine Judgment (v.4) · The Cherubim (vv.5-21) - These are identified in 10:15; 19-20 as cherubim. Cherubim are special angelic beings consistently associated with God’s holiness (28:14; Isa 6:3). · Their faces … man … lion … ox … eagle. All power, glory, and authority belong to God. However, He uses rational intelligences to govern, including the angelic host. The face of man may well represent the realm of intelligence among God’s creatures; the face of the lion, the majesty of His creation; the face of the ox, the patient service that creation returns to Him; and the face of the eagle, swiftness to see and bring judgment where needed. · Their Ministry, Since cherubim are ministering spirits of the Lord, they do not deviate from their assigned task (Heb 1:14). Their task, shortly, would be to carry out God’s judgment upon a sinning nation. · Their Apperance…Coals of fire is used here as a symbol of judgment and holiness. By such means, Isaiah’s lips were purged (Isa 6:7). Note the coals of fire upon the altar to burn the sacrifices as substitutes for the sinners. The fire of judgment seen here in the vision was soon to be exercised upon the unrepentant remnant still in the land. B.
As All-Knowing
(vv.15-21) · Their Movement, Obviously, the wheels are used symbolically. A wheel symbolizes movement. In His government God never is static, but is always moving. The idolatrous remnant was saying judgment would not come. However, God’s reward or judgment will never fail to come. Wheel in the middle of a wheel. The symbolic wheels were so constructed as to enable movement in any direction, thus speaking of His power to work anywhere. Full of eyes speaks of the One who is all-seeing and all-knowing. God is omniscient and omnipresent · Noise of their wings. The noise coming from the cherubim’s wings is likened unto the noise of a great body of water, or the voice of the Almighty, or the noise of an army in movement. This is the same Hebrew word expressing the noise or sound that Adam and Eve heard in the garden in Genesis 3, rendered “voice” in the KJV. The symbolism is that of unlimited strength and power. Nothing can deter God from accomplishing His plans of judgment, and even angels have frequently been used in executing His judgment (II Kgs 7:6; Dan 10:6). II.
OVERWHELMING GLORY
(1:22-28) A.
The
Expanse (vv.22-25) ·
Hebrew raqia,
the same word used for the vault of heaven in Genesis 1. It
symbolizes the physical universe as metaphorically under heaven, the
throneroom of God. ·
The third part of the vision was the
firmament.
The Hebrew word used here is the same one used in Genesis 1:6, 7 for the
expanse created by God on the second day. ·
Its dazzling brilliance was an appropriate reminder
of God’s holiness and transcendent majesty (cf. the description in Rev.
4:6). B.
The
Throne (vv.26-27) ·
The throne above the dome implied that Yahweh is
sovereign over heaven and earth ·
The important reality was that the throne was
occupied, signifying that God was in control and judgment proceeded from
His throne. Ezekiel did not see God, but the likeness and appearance of
God ·
The central object of heaven is the throne of God
... It seems to be a fixed point, with everything else in heaven located
in relationship to it... The throne of God has been considered the fixed
center of the universe, the immovable point of reference. Just as
the North Star has been the ancient navigators' positional guide because
of its fixed position among the stars, so the throne of God is the place
of authority and the center of God's rulership for the activities of
heaven (113). C.
The
Rainbow (v.28) ·
The "rainbow" is a sign of God’s mercy and covenant love
(see 10:1ff.; Gen. 9:11–17; Rev. 4:3). ·
The third object Ezekiel sees is a rainbow in the midst of this fire.
The rainbow immediately reminds us of Genesis 9, where it is a sign of the
covenant that God will never again destroy the earth by a flood. ....
Ezekiel is reminded not only of a God who is near and who reigns, but also
of a God who is a covenant-making and covenant-keeping God. Deportation to
·
This is not an ordinary rainbow but a perfectly circular rainbow.
We only see half of the rainbow on earth, but in heaven we will see a
perfectly circular rainbow (115). Conclusion:
The first part of this vision suggests a God who is
present, even in wicked
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