(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to
each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted.)
How do you get your information? The answer probably depends on the kind of information you want. If you watch TV, you can check the Weather Channel to know what the forecast will be or a news channel to get the day's headlines. If you are an internet user, there are sites for that information and more. There are even sites to determine if the symptoms you are experiencing match a particular illness.
Ezekiel was among a group of Israelite captives that enemy forces relocated to a settlement by the Chebar River in Babylon. He is best known as one of the major prophets, but that was the job God gave him in exile. Before his capture, he was a priest at the temple in Jerusalem, and much of his initial writing concerns the decline of religion back home, among those Judeans the invaders left behind.
As a priest, Ezekiel may have had access to the Holy Place, where the golden candlestick, the table of showbread, and altar of incense are. Not being the high priest, though, he would not have been able to enter the Most Holy Place, where the ark of the covenant is and over which the divine presence hovers between the cherubim. He probably heard stories about what it was like to go into the inner sanctum on the one day a year the high priest could do so without forfeiting his life. At that time, the high priest would precede his entry with clouds of incense, which obscured his vision and prevented him from getting a clear view of the divine presence, but it may have been safer that way.
Now in exile, hundreds of miles from the temple, Ezekiel will never again set foot in the sacred compound, never again visit the place where God dwells. Then, more than a decade after his capture, the unexpected happens.1
* LII. The Foremost Conceptualization
...of the almighty,
Nevertheless, although Ezekiel's encounter was only a vision, it was still impressive, so much so that the prophet had difficulty finding words to communicate it adequately. Hence, his report is a series of circumlocutions, indirect phrases that attempt to describe what is essentially indescribable. Look again at the second sentence in v. 28, and notice how Ezekiel's wording never actually gets to what he saw. The prophet uses three phrases to indicate that he cannot quite put his finger on it. The Hebrew is particularly striking, but the English translation makes the point clearly enough. Had Ezekiel said simply, "This was the Lord," and moved on, that statement, while accurate enough to record what he saw, would not have been adequate enough to convey the wonder of his vision. So, instead, he writes in v. 28...
You may not have received a vision of God, but you have encountered Him, and He has changed your life forever, not in precisely the same way He changed Ezekiel's life, but certainly in a tangible way, and in some similar fashion...
Some of the others who had similar visions of God received them later in life, after they were further along in their walk with Him. So they were somewhat prepared for what they saw.
You may not have received a vision of God, but you have encountered Him, and He has changed your life forever, not in precisely the same way, but certainly in a tangible way, and in some similar fashion...
One of the purposes of Ezekiel's vision (593 B.C.) may have been to reassure the exiles that although they are far from home, God is not far from them. This assurance will assume even greater importance when news of Jerusalem's and the temple's final destruction (597 B.C.) years later reaches the Jewish community in Babylon. The exiles will react with understandable despair, which Ezekiel records in...
That encouragement remains valid today, now 2600 years after the prophet received it. The Lord, this same Lord, is not limited to one place or even to one time. No matter what hardships His people may experience, He is still with them wherever and whenever they are. Having embraced this same God, He is also with you, wherever and whenever you are.
You may never have a vision of God as these men did. That privilege seems to be limited to prophets, and not to all prophets, but you have come to know God and will one day see Him, and not in a vision. That is what John says will happen for all the redeemed. In heaven "They will see his face" (Rev 22:4a),10 and what is not possible now will become permanent then, because at that point, "they [you!] will reign for ever and ever" (v. 5) with Him.
Ezekiel may have thought that as a priest taken captive to Babylon, his ministry was over. Then, in Babylon, the unexpected happens. He receives The Foremost Conceptualization of the almighty, a portrait of God that changes his life and the lives of those to whom he ministers. That is what encountering God does: It changes your life forever.
Having considered The Foremost Conceptualization, we will look next at The Foremost Construction, when Israel will experience fully the preservation of God, in Ezek 37:7,10.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
Mori was a hypochondriac, always assuming he had some dreaded disease, and he would often check his symptoms on internet web sites, which only fueled his paranoia as his imagination would find connections with some new malady. His alarm grew ever greater with each self-diagnosis but reached its peak as he was researching liver disorders and found himself identifying with every symptom listed: loss of appetite, restless sleep, lethargy. He did feel somewhat better, though, when he read the last symptom.... "No longer enjoys romping and wagging its tail."How do you get your information? The answer probably depends on the kind of information you want. If you want to know about God, it is best to go directly to the source, as Ezekiel does in The Foremost Conceptualization.
Ezekiel was among a group of Israelite captives that enemy forces relocated to a settlement by the Chebar River in Babylon. He is best known as one of the major prophets, but that was the job God gave him in exile. Before his capture, he was a priest at the temple in Jerusalem, and much of his initial writing concerns the decline of religion back home, among those Judeans the invaders left behind.
As a priest, Ezekiel may have had access to the Holy Place, where the golden candlestick, the table of showbread, and altar of incense are. Not being the high priest, though, he would not have been able to enter the Most Holy Place, where the ark of the covenant is and over which the divine presence hovers between the cherubim. He probably heard stories about what it was like to go into the inner sanctum on the one day a year the high priest could do so without forfeiting his life. At that time, the high priest would precede his entry with clouds of incense, which obscured his vision and prevented him from getting a clear view of the divine presence, but it may have been safer that way.
Now in exile, hundreds of miles from the temple, Ezekiel will never again set foot in the sacred compound, never again visit the place where God dwells. Then, more than a decade after his capture, the unexpected happens.1
Ezek 1:1 In the thirtieth year [of captivity], in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God.Ezekiel was not the only person to have this kind of experience. There were others who also saw God in this manner.
- Micaiah had a vision of God during the reign of the Judean King Jehoshaphat.
1 Kgs 22:19b I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him....
- Isaiah had a vision of God during the reign of the Judean King Jotham.
Isa 6:1 ...I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2a Above him were seraphs.... 3 And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory."
- Daniel had a vision of God during the reign of the Babylonian King Belshazzar.
Dan 7:9 As I looked...the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.
- John had a vision of God during the reign of the Roman Emperor Domitian.
In all these visions, attention is not on any earthly ruler, but on God, who is sitting on His throne in heaven.2 Moreover, in all these visions, God is in human form, perhaps underscoring that fact that man is created in His image.3 This is...Rev 4:2a ...a throne was set in heaven.... 3 And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne.... 8b Day and night [the seraphs] never stop saying: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."
* LII. The Foremost Conceptualization
...of the almighty,
- The portrait of God (Ezek 1:26-28)4
Ezek 1:26 Above the expanse over [the seraphs'] heads was what looked like a throne of sapphire, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. 27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown....This is a vision of God, not a physical encounter. It was not like Moses's meeting with God, where the Lord shielded him, allowing only a glimpse of God's back. Had Ezekiel's meeting been an actual encounter with God, the prophet's falling prostrate might have been an appropriate response, but it would not have been an adequate response, sufficient to prevent his death, because God had said to Moses, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live" (Exod 33:20).6
Nevertheless, although Ezekiel's encounter was only a vision, it was still impressive, so much so that the prophet had difficulty finding words to communicate it adequately. Hence, his report is a series of circumlocutions, indirect phrases that attempt to describe what is essentially indescribable. Look again at the second sentence in v. 28, and notice how Ezekiel's wording never actually gets to what he saw. The prophet uses three phrases to indicate that he cannot quite put his finger on it. The Hebrew is particularly striking, but the English translation makes the point clearly enough. Had Ezekiel said simply, "This was the Lord," and moved on, that statement, while accurate enough to record what he saw, would not have been adequate enough to convey the wonder of his vision. So, instead, he writes in v. 28...
This was—the appearance of—the likeness of—the glory of—the LORD.That roundabout, oblique, indirect phrasing is the best he can come up with to relate what he sees, because no words do it justice.
You may not have received a vision of God, but you have encountered Him, and He has changed your life forever, not in precisely the same way He changed Ezekiel's life, but certainly in a tangible way, and in some similar fashion...
1. Your perception of God should impress you....as it did the prophet and, like Ezekiel, if you had to describe God to someone, whatever you might say would not be adequate to convey the wonder of who He is.
Some of the others who had similar visions of God received them later in life, after they were further along in their walk with Him. So they were somewhat prepared for what they saw.
- Micaiah's prophetic reputation was already well established when he related his vision of God.7
- Daniel had already received and interpreted several visions by the time he has his vision of God.
- John was in the process of learning about the future and had already caught a glimpse of the risen Jesus,8 when he receives his vision of God.
- Isaiah was terrified.
Isa 6:5 "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For...my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty."
- Ezekiel was tongue-tied.
Despite the initial reaction of these two men, their vision of God provided the inspiration for long and effective prophetic ministry, despite the difficulty, even hostility both of them faced from an often unreceptive audience.Ezek 1:28b-c This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. When I saw it, I fell facedown....
You may not have received a vision of God, but you have encountered Him, and He has changed your life forever, not in precisely the same way, but certainly in a tangible way, and in some similar fashion...
2. Your perception of God should inspire you....to press on and to endure whatever difficulties you may encounter, because you know the wonder of who He is.
One of the purposes of Ezekiel's vision (593 B.C.) may have been to reassure the exiles that although they are far from home, God is not far from them. This assurance will assume even greater importance when news of Jerusalem's and the temple's final destruction (597 B.C.) years later reaches the Jewish community in Babylon. The exiles will react with understandable despair, which Ezekiel records in...
Ezek 37:11b [Then they will say,] "our hope is gone; we are cut off."This vision, given to God's spokesman in exile some years earlier, will stand as a reminder to His people that the Lord is not limited to one place, like the temple in Jerusalem, and that even when the temple is gone, He is still with them wherever they are.9
That encouragement remains valid today, now 2600 years after the prophet received it. The Lord, this same Lord, is not limited to one place or even to one time. No matter what hardships His people may experience, He is still with them wherever and whenever they are. Having embraced this same God, He is also with you, wherever and whenever you are.
You may never have a vision of God as these men did. That privilege seems to be limited to prophets, and not to all prophets, but you have come to know God and will one day see Him, and not in a vision. That is what John says will happen for all the redeemed. In heaven "They will see his face" (Rev 22:4a),10 and what is not possible now will become permanent then, because at that point, "they [you!] will reign for ever and ever" (v. 5) with Him.
Ezekiel may have thought that as a priest taken captive to Babylon, his ministry was over. Then, in Babylon, the unexpected happens. He receives The Foremost Conceptualization of the almighty, a portrait of God that changes his life and the lives of those to whom he ministers. That is what encountering God does: It changes your life forever.
Having considered The Foremost Conceptualization, we will look next at The Foremost Construction, when Israel will experience fully the preservation of God, in Ezek 37:7,10.
For the Bibliography and Endnotes, see the pdf here.
(This sermon is part of Dr. Manuel's sermon series: "What is Foremost?" Links to each of the sermons in the series will be found here as they are posted)
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Jim Skaggs