Reflecting on the profound depths of biblical texts, a recent exploration into the shared thematic elements of Ezekiel and Revelation unveiled compelling insights. This comparative study, initially prepared as an introductory lecture for a comprehensive Bible study on John’s Apocalypse at Cedar Grove Baptist Church, aimed to move beyond simply listing similarities. The goal was to extract meaningful lessons from these prophetic books, enriching the understanding of those in attendance. Through this endeavor, a significant realization emerged: examining Scripture through the lens of comparison, particularly when contrasting books like Ezekiel and Revelation, opens avenues to unique interpretations and amplifications of theological truths, often overlooked in isolated readings. This article will delve into two distinct yet interconnected lessons that surfaced from a detailed comparison of Ezekiel’s and John’s visions, specifically focusing on the auditory and visual descriptions of divine encounters and, importantly, John’s vision of cherubim compared to Ezekiel’s vision.
Jordan Bennett | Saint Mary’s College standing in front of a stained glass window depicting biblical figures, illustrating the scholarly approach to biblical studies and interpretation.
The Voice of Divinity: Shared Auditory Experiences
“His feet were like burnished bronze when it has been heated to a glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters.” (Rev. 1:15)
Both the prophetic visions of Ezekiel and the apocalyptic revelations of John are punctuated by descriptions of powerful, awe-inspiring sounds accompanying glimpses into heavenly realms. In the opening chapter of Revelation, John recounts the voice of Christ as resonating “like the sound of many waters.” This auditory imagery, while striking, echoes a familiar resonance for those acquainted with Ezekiel’s prophecies. Ezekiel 43:2 vividly portrays the voice of God in remarkably similar terms—“like a noise of many waters.”
This parallel in auditory description is far from coincidental. It serves as a potent theological marker: the voice of Christ in his divine essence is indistinguishable from the voice of God. This profound lesson is amplified when Revelation is juxtaposed with Ezekiel’s visionary accounts. The shared auditory experience underscores a critical tenet of Christian theology – Christ’s divine status. Furthermore, it intimates the unified will within the Holy Trinity. Indeed, the divine will is singular; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit communicate with one unified voice.
“And I also heard the sound of their wings, like the sound of abundant waters as they went, like the voice of the Almighty, a sound of a crowd like the sound of an army camp; whenever they stopped, they let down their wings.” (Ezek. 1:24)
Expanding on this auditory motif, Ezekiel’s vision further describes the sound of the cherubim’s wings as akin to “the voice of the Almighty.” This detail illuminates another layer of understanding regarding divine will and angelic agency. The movement and function of the cherubim are directly governed by God’s will, a will shared throughout the Trinity. As Ezekiel notes, “whither the spirit was to go, they went.” (Ezek. 1:12). The cherubic sound, reminiscent of God’s voice, acts as an echo, an imitation of the divine. Angels, unlike humanity, operate in complete alignment with the LORD’s desire, never in opposition. This serves as an aspirational model for Christians, urging a similar conformation of will to that of Christ. Our actions, ideally, should resonate like the voice of Christ, reflecting His divine will in our earthly conduct.
The Enigmatic Creatures: Visual Parallels in Cherubim Visions
Turning to the visual aspects of these divine encounters, both Ezekiel and John describe extraordinary beings. In Revelation chapter four, John witnesses “four living creatures,” each possessing a distinct appearance: “the first living creature was like a lion, the second creature like a calf, the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle.” (Rev. 4:7). Ezekiel’s vision, while distinct, presents analogous entities. The beings he observes each have four faces, strikingly similar to John’s descriptions. Ezekiel records, “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.” (Ezek. 1:10). This close alignment in the depiction of faces, man, lion, ox/calf, and eagle, across both prophetic accounts is remarkable.
Further visual parallels emerge in their descriptions. Ezekiel’s creatures possess four wings (Ezek. 1:12; 10:21), while John’s beings are described with six wings (Rev. 4:8). Both prophets also witness a multitude of eyes. Ezekiel sees eyes covering the wheels of the heavenly throne chariot (Ezek. 1:18) and later notes the cherubim and their associated wheels sharing this characteristic (Ezek. 10:12). Similarly, John’s vision includes “four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.” (Rev. 4:6, 8). These shared visual attributes – the four faces, the wings, and the multitude of eyes – across Ezekiel’s cherubim and John’s living creatures, reinforce a common symbolic language describing celestial beings and divine presence.
Reconciling Divergences: Visions Beyond Human Language
While the similarities between Ezekiel and John’s visions are undeniable, discrepancies exist. The number of wings, for instance, varies between accounts. Do these differences undermine the consistency of Scripture? On the contrary, these variations are not contradictions but rather illuminate the limitations of human language when grappling with transcendent spiritual experiences. Describing a vision of the Glory of God inherently stretches human linguistic capacity. Human comprehension and articulation are finite when confronted with the infinite.
It is plausible that both Ezekiel and John witnessed the same or very similar spiritual entities, but their individual human perspectives and descriptive abilities resulted in nuanced accounts. Perhaps differing facets of these multifaceted spiritual beings were emphasized in each vision, or the limitations of human sensory perception resulted in slightly varied interpretations of the same divine reality. This understanding is comforting; it confirms that John was not merely replicating Ezekiel’s vision but experiencing and documenting these profound encounters firsthand, to the best of his ability.
Analogously, the Bible, as a whole, utilizes diverse imagery and symbolism to depict heavenly realities, pushing beyond our typical modes of thought. The variance in wing count, four in Ezekiel and six in John, when considered together, underscores the otherworldly nature of these non-human spiritual entities. Accepting both accounts as truthful depictions of the same living creatures suggests we are encountering beings that transcend human description. Therefore, variations in Scriptural accounts of certain entities should not be viewed with discouragement. These variations do not detract from the Bible’s divinely inspired status; rather, they serve to affirm it, highlighting the ineffable nature of the divine and the limitations of human language to fully capture its essence.
Conclusion
Comparing John’s vision of cherubim in Revelation with Ezekiel’s vision reveals striking parallels in both auditory and visual descriptions of divine encounters. The shared imagery of the voice “like many waters” and the depiction of four-faced, winged creatures with numerous eyes underscores a consistent symbolic language within Scripture to convey the nature of God and celestial beings. These comparative insights not only deepen our understanding of these individual prophetic texts but also enrich our appreciation for the unified theological message of the Bible. The apparent discrepancies, rather than posing contradictions, highlight the limitations of human language to fully encapsulate divine revelation, ultimately strengthening the testament to Scripture’s divinely inspired nature and inviting a continued exploration of its inexhaustible depths.
