--- title: "Ezekiel 1 - Study King James Bible with commentary critical and explanatory on the whole bible" description: "Read Ezekiel 1 with commentary critical and explanatory on the whole bible commentary. 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" image: "/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg" url: "https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/ezekiel/1" --- [ Read](/kjv/ezekiel/1)[ Commentary](/study/ezekiel/1)[ Interlinear](/interlinear/ezekiel/1) Audio 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 In the fifth *day* of the month, which *was* the fifth year of king Jehoiachin’s captivity, 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 ¶ 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 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 And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings. 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 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 Their wings *were* joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward. 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 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 they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went; *and* they turned not when they went. 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 ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning. 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 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 When they went, they went upon their four sides: *and* they turned not when they went. 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 And there was a voice from the firmament that *was* over their heads, when they stood, *and* had let down their wings. 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 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 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. [Lamentations 5](/study/lamentations/5) [Ezekiel 2](/study/ezekiel/2) ## Commentary To verse 1 **1. Now it came to pass**—rather, "*And* it came," c. As this formula in :- has reference to the *written* history of previous times, so here (and in [Ruth 1:1](/kjv/ruth/1/1) [Esther 1:1](/kjv/esther/1/1)), it refers to the *unwritten* history which was before the mind of the writer. The prophet by it, as it were, continues the history of the preceding times. In the fourth year of Zedekiah's reign ([Esther 1:1](/kjv/esther/1/1)- :), Jeremiah sent by Seraiah a message to the captives ([Esther 1:1](/kjv/esther/1/1)- :) to submit themselves to God and lay aside their flattering hopes of a speedy restoration. This communication was in the next year, the fifth, and the fourth month of the same king (for Jehoiachin's captivity and Zedekiah's accession coincide in time), *followed up* by a prophet raised up among the captives themselves, the energetic Ezekiel. **thirtieth year**—that is, counting from the beginning of the reign of Nabopolassar, father of Nebuchadnezzar, the era of the Babylonian empire, 625 B.C., which epoch coincides with the eighteenth year of Josiah, that in which the book of the law was found, and the consequent reformation began [SCALIGER]; or the thirtieth year of Ezekiel's life. As the Lord was about to be a "little sanctuary" ([Esther 1:1](/kjv/esther/1/1)- :) to the exiles on the Chebar, so Ezekiel was to be the ministering priest; therefore he marks his priestly relation to God and the people at the outset; the close, which describes the future temple, thus answering to the beginning. By designating himself expressly as "the priest" ([Esther 1:1](/kjv/esther/1/1)- :), and as having reached his thirtieth year (the regular year of priests commencing their office), he marks his office as the priest among the prophets. Thus the opening vision follows naturally as the formal institution of that spiritual temple in which he was to minister [FAIRBAIRN]. **Chebar**—the same as Chabor or Habor, whither the ten tribes had been transported by Tiglath-pileser and Shalmaneser ([2 Kings 17:6](/kjv/2-kings/17/6); [1 Chronicles 5:26](/kjv/1-chronicles/5/26)). It flows into the Euphrates near Carchemish or Circesium, two hundred miles north of Babylon. **visions of God**—Four expressions are used as to the revelation granted to Ezekiel, the three first having respect to what was presented from without, to assure him of its *reality,* the fourth to his being internally made fit to receive the revelation; "the heavens were opened" (so [Matthew 3:16](/kjv/matthew/3/16); [Acts 7:56](/kjv/acts/7/56); [Acts 10:11](/kjv/acts/10/11); [Revelation 19:11](/kjv/revelation/19/11)); "he saw visions of God"; "the word of Jehovah came *verily* (as the meaning is rather than 'expressly, *English Version,* [Ezekiel 1:3](/kjv/ezekiel/1/3)) unto him" (it was no unreal hallucination); and "the hand of Jehovah was upon him" ([Isaiah 8:11](/kjv/isaiah/8/11); [Daniel 10:10](/kjv/daniel/10/10); [Daniel 10:18](/kjv/daniel/10/18); [Revelation 1:17](/kjv/revelation/1/17); the Lord by His touch strengthening him for his high and arduous ministry, that he might be able to witness and report aright the revelations made to him). ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#website","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com","name":"Real Bible Believers","description":"RBB","publisher":{"@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/#/schema/person/e966585dde703268e7f6ae890ea98509"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/search?q={search_term_string}","query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/ezekiel/1#primaryimage","inLanguage":"en-US","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","contentUrl":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/_app/immutable/assets/missing.C7wGMEZ6.jpg","width":672,"height":448,"caption":"Real Bible Believers"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/ezekiel/1#webpage","url":"https://realbiblebelievers.com/study/commentary-critical-and-explanatory-on-the-whole-bible/ezekiel/1","name":"Ezekiel 1 - 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