Ezekiel 10:1-20

Then I saw a vision. On top of the dome over the heads of the cherubim, I saw something that looked like a sapphire throne. YAHWEH said to the man dressed in white linen, “Go among the whirling wheels below the cherubim and take a handful of burning coals from between the living creatures and scatter them over the city.” While I was watching, he went in among the whirling wheels. The cherubim were on the south side of the temple as the man went in, and the billowing glory cloud filled the inner courtyard. The dazzling glory of YAHWEH rose from between the cherubim and rested over the entrance of the temple. The temple was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of YAHWEH. The noise of the living creatures’ wings was as loud as the voice of God Almighty! The people could even hear it in the outer courtyard! Afterward, YAHWEH commanded the man dressed in white linen to go among the wheels and take fire that was burning among the cherubim. So, the man went among them and stood beside one of the wheels. One of the living creatures then reached his hand into the fire between the cherubim and took some fire and placed it into the hands of the man dressed in white linen, who took it and left. It seemed that the living creatures had what looked like a human hand under their wings. I saw the four wheels by the living creatures, one wheel beside each living creature. And the wheels sparkled like precious gemstones. Each wheel appeared to be identical with another wheel inside it. As the wheels moved, they would go in any one of the four directions the living creatures faced, without having to turn around. They went in whatever direction their head faced without turning as they went. Their entire bodies, their backs, their hands, their wings—along with all four of their wheels—were covered with eyes all around. I heard a voice refer to the wheels as “whirling wheels.” Each living creature had four faces; the first was a cherub’s face, the second a human face, the third a lion’s face, and the fourth an eagle’s face. Then the cherubim rose to the sky. They were the same living creatures I had seen by the River Chebar. When the living creatures moved as a group in any direction, the wheels followed them, and when the living creatures levitated off the ground by spreading their wings, the wheels did not leave their place beside them. When the living creatures stopped, the wheels stopped; when the former rose, the wheels rose with them, since they shared the same living Spirit. Then the dazzling glory of YAHWEH departed from the entrance of the temple and hovered over the living creatures. They spread their wings, and before my eyes, I saw them levitate from the ground, with the wheels spinning beside them. Then they paused at the entrance to the eastern gate of YAHWEH’s temple, with the dazzling glory of the God of Israel shining over them. These were the same living creatures I had seen beneath the throne of the God of Israel by the River Chebar; I knew that they were cherubim.