And there came a voice from above the expanse over their heads as they stood still with their wings lowered. And there came a voiceThe phrase "And there came a voice" signifies a divine communication, a common motif in prophetic literature where God directly addresses His prophets. In Hebrew, the word for "voice" is "קוֹל" (qol), which often denotes not just sound, but a powerful, authoritative declaration. This voice is not merely auditory but carries the weight of divine authority and revelation. In the context of Ezekiel, this voice represents God's direct intervention and guidance, emphasizing His sovereignty and the importance of the message being delivered. from above the expanse
The "expanse" (רָקִיעַ, raqia) refers to the firmament or sky, a concept introduced in Genesis during the creation narrative. In ancient Near Eastern cosmology, the expanse is seen as a solid dome separating the heavens from the earth. The voice coming from above the expanse indicates its divine origin, reinforcing the transcendence and majesty of God. This imagery underscores the separation between the divine and the earthly, yet also highlights God's willingness to bridge that gap to communicate with humanity. over their heads
The phrase "over their heads" situates the vision within a spatial context, emphasizing the position of the divine above the cherubim and the prophet. This positioning signifies authority and oversight, as God is depicted as being above all creation, including the heavenly beings. It serves as a reminder of God's omnipresence and His ultimate control over all things, both seen and unseen. as they stood still
The cherubim "stood still," indicating a moment of reverence and attention. In the presence of God's voice, all activity ceases, highlighting the importance and gravity of divine communication. This stillness can be seen as a form of worship, acknowledging God's supremacy and the need for complete focus on His words. It reflects the appropriate response to God's presence—humility, attentiveness, and readiness to receive His message. with their wings lowered
The lowering of wings is a gesture of submission and respect. In the ancient world, wings often symbolize swiftness and the ability to transcend earthly limitations. By lowering their wings, the cherubim demonstrate their submission to God's authority and their readiness to listen and obey. This act of lowering wings can be seen as a metaphor for the believer's posture before God—humble, receptive, and obedient to His will. Persons / Places / Events 1. EzekielA prophet and priest during the Babylonian exile, Ezekiel is the author of the book and the recipient of the visions described. 2. CherubimAngelic beings described in Ezekiel's vision, characterized by their multiple faces and wings, symbolizing God's majesty and presence. 3. The ExpanseA firmament or platform above the cherubim, representing the separation between the divine and the earthly realms. 4. Voice from AboveRepresents the voice of God, indicating divine communication and authority. 5. Babylonian ExileThe historical context of Ezekiel's prophecies, where the Israelites were in captivity, longing for God's guidance and restoration. Teaching Points The Majesty of God's PresenceThe vision in Ezekiel 1:25 reminds us of the awe-inspiring nature of God's presence. As believers, we should approach God with reverence and humility, recognizing His holiness and majesty. The Authority of God's VoiceGod's voice commands attention and obedience. In our lives, we should prioritize listening to God's word and seeking His guidance through prayer and scripture. The Role of Angelic BeingsThe cherubim in Ezekiel's vision serve as a reminder of the spiritual realm and the role of angels in God's plan. We should be aware of the spiritual battles around us and trust in God's protection. God's Communication with His PeopleJust as God spoke to Ezekiel, He continues to communicate with us today through His word and the Holy Spirit. We should be attentive and responsive to His leading. Hope in Times of ExileThe context of the Babylonian exile parallels times of personal struggle or "exile" in our lives. We can find hope in God's promises and His ability to restore and guide us through difficult times. Bible Study Questions 1. How does the description of the cherubim in Ezekiel 1:25 enhance our understanding of God's holiness and majesty? 2. In what ways can we ensure that we are attentive to God's voice in our daily lives? 3. How does the vision of the expanse and the voice from above relate to the concept of God's transcendence and immanence? 4. What parallels can we draw between the Babylonian exile and personal challenges we face today, and how can Ezekiel's vision provide hope? 5. How do other biblical accounts of divine visions and voices (e.g., Isaiah 6, Acts 9) reinforce the themes found in Ezekiel 1:25? Connections to Other Scriptures Genesis 1The creation account where God speaks creation into existence, highlighting the power and authority of God's voice. Revelation 4Describes a vision of heaven with creatures and a throne, similar to Ezekiel's vision, emphasizing God's sovereignty and holiness. Psalm 29Speaks of the voice of the Lord being powerful and majestic, reinforcing the theme of divine authority. Isaiah 6Isaiah's vision of the Lord, where the seraphim cover their faces and feet, similar to the cherubim lowering their wings in reverence. Acts 9The conversion of Saul, where a voice from heaven speaks, demonstrating God's direct intervention and guidance. People Babylonians, Buzi, Ezekiel, JehoiachinPlaces ChebarTopics Arch, Dropped, Expanse, Fall, Firmament, Heads, Lowered, Rest, Standing, Stood, Voice, Whenever, WingsDictionary of Bible Themes Ezekiel 1:1-28 8474 seeing God Ezekiel 1:3-28 7775 prophets, lives Ezekiel 1:4-28 1090 God, majesty of
1469 visions Ezekiel 1:5-25 4627 creatures Ezekiel 1:25-28 1194 glory, divine and human Library God's Providence
"Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel upon the earth by the living creatures, with his four faces. 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. When they went, they went upon their four sides: and they turned not when they went. As for their rings, they were so high that they were dreadful; and their rings were full of eyes round …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 54: 1908The Noble Results of this Species of Prayer
The Noble Results of this Species of Prayer Some persons, when they hear of the prayer of silence, falsely imagine, that the soul remains stupid, dead, and inactive. But, unquestionably, it acteth therein, more nobly and more extensively than it had ever done before; for God Himself is the mover, and the soul now acteth by the agency of His Spirit. When S. Paul speaks of our being led by the Spirit of God, it is not meant that we should cease from action; but that we should act through the internal …
Madame Guyon—A Short and Easy Method of Prayer 'Deliver us from Evil'
'But deliver us from evil.'--MATT. vi. 13. The two halves of this prayer are like a calm sky with stars shining silently in its steadfast blue, and a troubled earth beneath, where storms sweep, and changes come, and tears are ever being shed. The one is so tranquil, the other so full of woe and want. What a dark picture of human conditions lies beneath the petitions of this second half! Hunger and sin and temptation, and wider still, that tragic word which includes them all--evil. Forgiveness and …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture This State of Prayer not one of Idleness, but of Noble Action, Wrought by the Spirit of God, and in Dependence Upon Him --The Communication Of
Some people, hearing of the prayer of silence, have wrongly imagined that the soul remains inactive, lifeless, and without movement. But the truth is, that its action is more noble and more extensive than it ever was before it entered this degree, since it is moved by God Himself, and acted upon by His Spirit. St Paul desires that we should be led by the Spirit of God (Rom. viii. 14). I do not say that there must be no action, but that we must act in dependence upon the divine movement. This …
Jeanne Marie Bouvières—A Short Method Of Prayer And Spiritual Torrents The Prophet Jonah.
It has been asserted without any sufficient reason, that Jonah is older than Hosea, Joel, Amos, and Obadiah,--that he is the oldest among the prophets whose written monuments have been preserved to us. The passage in 2 Kings xiv. 25, where it is said, that Jonah, the son of Amittai the prophet, prophesied to Jeroboam the happy success of his arms, and the restoration of the ancient boundaries of Israel, and that this prophecy was confirmed by the event, cannot decide in favour of this assertion, …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament How Subjects and Prelates are to be Admonished.
(Admonition 5.) Differently to be admonished are subjects and prelates: the former that subjection crush them not, the latter that superior place elate them not: the former that they fail not to fulfil what is commanded them, the latter that they command not more to be fulfilled than is just: the former that they submit humbly, the latter that they preside temperately. For this, which may be understood also figuratively, is said to the former, Children, obey your parents in the Lord: but to …
Leo the Great—Writings of Leo the Great A Sight of the Crowned Christ
(Revelation, Chapter i.) "Since mine eyes were fixed on Jesus, I've lost sight of all beside, So enchained my spirit's vision, Looking at the Crucified." "The Lord Christ passed my humble cot: I knew him, yet I knew him not; But as I oft had done before, I hurried through my narrow door To touch His garment's hem. "He drew me to a place apart From curious crowd and noisy mart; And as I sat there at His feet I caught the thrill of His heart-beat Beyond His garment's hem. "Rare was the bread He broke …
by S. D. Gordon—Quiet Talks on the Crowned Christ of Revelation Appendix v. Rabbinic Theology and Literature
1. The Traditional Law. - The brief account given in vol. i. p. 100, of the character and authority claimed for the traditional law may here be supplemented by a chronological arrangement of the Halakhoth in the order of their supposed introduction or promulgation. In the first class, or Halakhoth of Moses from Sinai,' tradition enumerates fifty-five, [6370] which may be thus designated: religio-agrarian, four; [6371] ritual, including questions about clean and unclean,' twenty-three; [6372] concerning …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah Of Love to God
I proceed to the second general branch of the text. The persons interested in this privilege. They are lovers of God. "All things work together for good, to them that love God." Despisers and haters of God have no lot or part in this privilege. It is children's bread, it belongs only to them that love God. Because love is the very heart and spirit of religion, I shall the more fully treat upon this; and for the further discussion of it, let us notice these five things concerning love to God. 1. The …
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial Covenanting Enforced by the Grant of Covenant Signs and Seals.
To declare emphatically that the people of God are a covenant people, various signs were in sovereignty vouchsafed. The lights in the firmament of heaven were appointed to be for signs, affording direction to the mariner, the husbandman, and others. Miracles wrought on memorable occasions, were constituted signs or tokens of God's universal government. The gracious grant of covenant signs was made in order to proclaim the truth of the existence of God's covenant with his people, to urge the performance …
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting An Advance Step in the Royal Programme
(Revelation, Chapters iv. and v.) "We are watching, we are waiting, For the bright prophetic day; When the shadows, weary shadows, From the world shall roll away. "We are watching, we are waiting, For the star that brings the day; When the night of sin shall vanish, And the shadows melt away. "We are watching, we are waiting, For the beauteous King of day; For the chiefest of ten thousand, For the Light, the Truth, the Way. "We are waiting for the morning, When the beauteous day is dawning, We are …
by S. D. Gordon—Quiet Talks on the Crowned Christ of Revelation Brief Outline of Ancient Jewish Theological Literature
The arrangements of the synagogue, as hitherto described, combined in a remarkable manner fixedness of order with liberty of the individual. Alike the seasons and the time of public services, their order, the prayers to be offered, and the portions of the law to be read were fixed. On the other hand, between the eighteen "benedictions" said on ordinary days, and the seven repeated on the Sabbaths, free prayer might be inserted; the selection from the prophets, with which the public reading concluded--the …
Alfred Edersheim—Sketches of Jewish Social Life Ezekiel
To a modern taste, Ezekiel does not appeal anything like so powerfully as Isaiah or Jeremiah. He has neither the majesty of the one nor the tenderness and passion of the other. There is much in him that is fantastic, and much that is ritualistic. His imaginations border sometimes on the grotesque and sometimes on the mechanical. Yet he is a historical figure of the first importance; it was very largely from him that Judaism received the ecclesiastical impulse by which for centuries it was powerfully …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Ezekiel 1:25 NIVEzekiel 1:25 NLTEzekiel 1:25 ESVEzekiel 1:25 NASBEzekiel 1:25 KJV
Ezekiel 1:25 Commentaries
Bible Hub |
