Ezekiel 1:26-28 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone… Ezekiel was reminded that he had to present God before the people as clothed with fire — a symbol, probably, of His coming indignation on the last of Jerusalem's inhabitants. But, not to disturb the righteous, or to give them the least idea for supposing that, in the final desolation of Jerusalem, God's covenant should cease, the vision went on (ver. 28) to reveal a rainbow overarching this fiery throne, the mild lustre of which outshone its blazing glare. Could anything be more gracious? From that time, both the prophet and His faithful people might well rest assured that they were safe. God would not, and could not, forsake them. The bow of the covenant was above them, far beyond the reach of those changing providences which were represented as going forward so rapidly and incessantly below them. And even thus, amidst the changes and troubles of this mortal life, the true Israel, the believers in Christ, are safe under God's covenant mercy and grace. (J. H. Titcomb.) Parallel Verses KJV: 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. |