World English Bible · Babylon and the exile
Ezekiel 1
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Now in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the by the river , were opened, and I saw of . In the fifth of the month, which was the fifth year of King , word came to the priest, the son of , in the land of the by the river ; and hand was there on him. I looked, and behold, a stormy wind came out of the north: a great cloud, with flashing lightning, and a brightness around it, and out of the middle of it as it were glowing metal, out of the middle of the . Out of its center came the of . This was their appearance: They had the of a man. Everyone had four faces, and each one of them had four . Their feet were straight feet. The sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot; and they sparkled like burnished bronze. They had the hands of a man under their on their four sides. The four of them had their faces and their like this: Their were joined to one another. They didn't turn when they went. Each one went straight forward. As for the of their faces, they had the of a man. The four of them had the of a lion on the right side. The four of them had the of an ox on the left side. The four of them also had the of an eagle. Such were their faces. Their were spread out above. Two of each one touched another, and two covered their bodies. Each one went straight forward. Where was to go, they went. They didn't turn when they went. As for the of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of , like the appearance of torches. The went up and down among the living creatures. The was bright, and lightning went out of the . The living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning. Now as I saw the living creatures, behold, there was one wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, for each of the four faces of it. The appearance of the wheels and their work was like a beryl. The four of them had one . Their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel within a wheel. When they went, they went in their four directions. They didn't turn when they went. As for their rims, they were high and dreadful; and the four of them had their rims full of eyes all around. When the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them. When the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. Wherever was to go, they went. was to go there. The wheels were lifted up beside them; for of the was in the wheels. When those went, these went. When those stood, these stood. When those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up beside them; for of the was in the wheels. Over the head of the there was the of an expanse, like an awesome crystal to look at, stretched out over their heads above. Under the expanse, their were straight, one toward the other. Each one had two which covered on this side, and each one had two which covered their bodies on that side. When they went, I heard the noise of their like the noise of great waters, like the voice of , a noise of tumult like the noise of an army. When they stood, they let down their . There was a voice above the expanse that was over their heads. When they stood, they let down their . Above the expanse that was over their heads was the of a , as the appearance of a sapphire stone. On the of was a as the appearance of a man on it above. I saw as it were glowing metal, as the appearance of within it all around, from the appearance of his waist and upward; and from the appearance of his waist and downward I saw as it were the appearance of , and there was brightness around him. As the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud in the day of , so was the appearance of the brightness all around. This was the appearance of the of . When I saw it, I fell on , and I heard a voice of one that spoke.
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Babylon and the exile, 612 BC to 539 BC ›
Babylon replaces Assyria, Jerusalem and its temple are destroyed in 586 BC, and the leadership of Judah lives in Mesopotamia without a king, a temple, or a country.
- Babylon
- Nebuchadnezzar II rebuilds the city on a scale meant to be seen from a distance: the Ishtar Gate in glazed blue brick, the processional way, the ziggurat, and gardens later counted among the wonders of the world. Babylonian tablets record rations issued to the captive king Jehoiachin of Judah by name, which is one of the tidier points of contact between the Bible and the archives.
- Egypt
- Briefly resurgent. Pharaoh Neco marches north, kills King Josiah at Megiddo, and installs and deposes kings in Jerusalem, until Babylon beats him decisively at Carchemish in 605 BC. Jeremiah spends his career saying that betting on Egypt is suicide, and is proved right.
- Judah
- Deported in stages, then destroyed. The temple is burned, the walls broken, and the leadership marched to Mesopotamia. What happens next is one of the strangest survivals in history: a people keeps its identity without land, king, or sanctuary, and comes out of it with its scriptures more central than before.
- Further afield
- An extraordinary century for ideas everywhere at once. Thales and the first Greek philosophers, Solon's reforms at Athens, the Buddha in India, Confucius and Lao Tzu in China, and Zoroaster in Persia all fall within a few generations of the exile.
All of Ezekiel