Ezekiel 1:11

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ezekiel 1:4-14

The visions of God which Ezekiel here saw were very glorious, and had more particulars than those which other prophets saw. It is the scope and intention of these vision, 1. To possess the prophet's mind with very great, and high, and honourable thoughts of that God by whom he was commissioned and for whom he was employed. It is the likeness of the glory of the Lord that he sees (Ezek. 1:28), and hence he may infer that it is his honour to serve him, for he is one whom angels serve. He may... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ezekiel 1:11

Thus were their faces: and their wings were stretched upward ,.... The former clause, "thus were their faces", either belongs to Ezekiel 1:10 ; and the meaning is, this, as now represented, was the likeness of their faces, and this the position of them: or it may be read in connection with the following clause, and be rendered, "and their faces and their wings were stretched upwards"; as they are in the Chaldee paraphrase, the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Arabic versions: "their faces... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Ezekiel 1:11

Verse 11 He says, that the faces as well as the wings were extended, because the four faces proceeded from one body. Here then the Prophet says, that they are not united together, so that a fourfold form could be seen on one head: there was the form of a man, and then that of a lion, as in one glass various forms sometimes appear, but each answers to its own original. So also the reader might mistake here, as if different faces belonged to the same head: hence the Prophet says, they were... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 1:1-28

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 1:4-25

The glory of the Eternal. This marvellous vision, which has correspondences with others to be found in Scripture, must be interpreted in the light of the prophet's peculiar genius and imagination, and in the light of the canons and customs of ancient and Oriental art. To find significance in every detail would be to indulge an idle curiosity; to dismiss the figures as the product of an imagination dissociated from truth would be irrational and irreverent. It is plain that Ezekiel was... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 1:4-28

The providential government of God. This is acknowledged even by some of the ablest expositors to be a most difficult portion of sacred Scripture. Isaac Casaubon says that "in the whole of the Old Testament there is nothing more obscure than the beginning and the end of the Book of Ezekiel." And Calvin "acknowledges that he does not understand this vision." Yet we would humbly and reverently endeavour to set forth what appear to us to be the principal teachings of this marvellous vision.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 1:5-14

Unseen forms of intelligent ministry. Man is only a part, though an integral part, of the active universe of God. Even inert matter is pervaded by dynamic throes, such as attraction, heat, and electricity; and every part of God's creation is executing, either intelligently or ignorantly, his supreme will. To a heathen monarch he made a startling revelation, "1 girded thee, though thou hast not known me." These cherubic forms (seen first at the gate of Eden, and again in symbol over the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ezekiel 1:11

Thus were their faces: and, etc.; better, with Revised Version, and their faces and their wings were separate above; i.e. were stretched upward, touching the neighbouring wings at the tip, and so "joined," while the other two covered the bodies and were never stretched (comp. Isaiah 6:2 ). read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ezekiel 1:11

Thus ... - Rather, And their faces and their wings were separated above. All four formed a whole, yet the upper parts of each, the heads and the wings (though touching), rose distinct from one another. Two wings of each, as in the case of Isaiah’s Seraphim, were folded down over the body: and two were in their flight Ezekiel 1:9 “stretched upward” parted) so as to meet, each a wing of the neighboring living creature, just as the wings of the cherubim touched one another over the mercy-seat of... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Ezekiel 1:11-12

Ezekiel 1:11-12. Their wings were stretched upward That is, two wings of each, namely, in a posture of flying, to show that they were always actively employed in executing God’s commands. Some unite this clause with the preceding, and render the whole, Their faces and their wings were stretched upward, namely, denoting a posture of attention, as if they were hearkening to the voice of God’s words, as angels are represented Psalms 103:20. Two wings of every one were joined one to... read more

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