What is the meaning of Ezekiel 1:22? Spread out above the heads of the living creatures Ezekiel reports, “Spread out above the heads of the living creatures…” (Ezekiel 1:22). • The living beings are later identified as cherubim (Ezekiel 10:20–22), attendants of God’s throne. • Their position “below” highlights the Creator’s authority over even the highest angels (Psalm 99:1; Isaiah 6:2). • Revelation 4:6–8 also pictures living creatures before God’s throne, underscoring a consistent, literal scene in both Testaments. was the likeness of an awesome expanse The verse continues, “…was the likeness of an awesome expanse…” • “Expanse” recalls the firmament God made on Day Two (Genesis 1:6–8). Just as that firmament separated waters and displayed His majesty, this heavenly platform separates God’s throne from created beings, emphasizing His holiness (Isaiah 57:15). • Its “likeness” signals a reality beyond earthly categories, yet Ezekiel describes it literally as something he truly saw (compare 2 Corinthians 12:2–4 where Paul also struggles for earthly language). • John witnesses a similar scene: “Before the throne was something like a sea of glass, clear as crystal” (Revelation 4:6). gleaming like crystal Finally, the expanse was “gleaming like crystal.” • Crystal conveys purity, transparency, and unapproachable light (1 Timothy 6:16). • Job 37:18 asks, “Can you, like Him, spread out the skies, hard as a cast metal mirror?”—another image of a radiant, glass-like heaven. • Exodus 24:10 records elders seeing “under His feet a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself,” paralleling the brilliance Ezekiel saw. • Revelation repeats the theme: the New Jerusalem’s glory is “like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal” (Revelation 21:11), and the river of life is “clear as crystal” (Revelation 22:1). summary Ezekiel literally witnessed the throne room of God. Above the cherubim appeared a vast, awe-inspiring platform—God’s heavenly firmament—shining with crystal clarity. The scene proclaims His transcendence, purity, and sovereign rule, a vision echoed throughout Scripture to remind believers that the God who dwells in unapproachable light is also the One who rules all creation with flawless holiness. |
    |