Did you ever hear the song about Ezekiel, from the Bible? Some of us sang it in school, back when things like that could be done. Ezekiel saw something that inspired Woody Guthrie to write the song, “Ezekiel Saw the Wheel.”
Ezekiel saw that wheel
Way up in the middle of the air
Ezekiel saw that wheel whirling
Way up in the middle of the air
Now the little wheel runs by faith
And the big wheel runs by the grace of God
And a wheel in a wheel whirling
Way up in the middle of the air
He really did see a wheel, well, actually FOUR of them! Can you imagine Ezekiel’s surprise at seeing wheel’s whirling in the air?? He saw FOUR wheels, belonging to four creatures! Before he saw the wheels or the creatures, though, He saw a whirlwind cloud with,
…”raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. “ Ezekiel 1:4-5 NKJV
You know what I am thinking as I read this? Why didn’t he look away? Why didn’t he run? Would I have done that, or would I have shook my head to clear the vision and not tell anyone, lest they thought I was crazy? Not only did Ezekiel NOT run or NOT keep his vision to himself, he described it, in specific, lengthy detail! What made him stand still and take it all in and write about it?
I found my answer at the end of chapter one of Ezekiel. After Ezekiel describes the four creatures, their wings, their movements and their wheels that contained their spirit, he hears what sounds like God!
When they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of many waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a tumult like the noise of an army; and when they stood still, they let down their wings. A voice came from above the firmament that was over their heads; whenever they stood, they let down their wings. Ezekiel 24-25 NKJV
Ezekiel heard the noise. Those four words tell me that he knew he was hearing and seeing something from God. He stood still. He watched. He heard. He gave his full attention to the vision. He stood still, as I see it, because he could not look away if He wanted to.
The very last two verses of Ezekiel are ones you have to read! He saw the glory of the Lord! Look how beautiful!
I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord.” Ezekiel 1:27-28 NKJV
Wow. He saw the beautiful, bright, glory of God! Ezekiel did not just see a wheel. That brings to mind some questions worth thinking about…
Do you ever feel God showing you something or do you feel a still small voice urging you to do something? God still inspires and shows and leads. It was not just in the Bible days that God gave people visions.
Do we stand still when we see or hear God at work? Do we stand transfixed when He shows us something? Do we follow through with what He wants us to do?
Thank you for reading. Tomorrow, we will dive into Ezekiel chapter two. I can’t wait to see what happens and what God does next!
Dear Father,
Today we have a simple request. Open our eyes and ears so they work like You want them to. Help us to stand still and take in all that You say. Like Ezekiel, make us transfixed and not able to look away from You. You are beautiful and glorious and we love You. Thank You for listening and answering our prayers. Amen
Love and prayers to all! Have a great Tuesday!
Just me. Just His.
Christina
Glory in the Morning 