This is Faith to Witness 99, motivating us to hear God and share the Shepherd.

Season 3 Episode 196 Part 2 – Ezekiel, A Watchman Who Witnesses the Glory of God (linen, cherubim and the glory weight of your witness)

Here’s the gist, human. Pausing to picture the glory of God as Ezekiel experienced it is a weighty proposition. The sound of cherubim, the vision of a throne made of lapis lazuli, and a Spirit that pulls us to our feet. Glowing metal. Fire. A place for the soles of God’s feet.

The weightiness of our Creator. A Creator who hovered over the Genesis waters to shape the only world we have ever known. A Heavenly Father who designed his own desire to dwell with us in the earthly space he created for us.

I want to see that. I want to see what Ezekiel saw. Do you?

Ezekiel 10:4

4 Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of the Lord.

Join us for part 2. Ezekiel’s description of the glory of God.

E196

Here’s the context: in 596 B.C. a second group of exiles were taken as captives to Babylon. This group was made up of priests and skilled craftsmen, including Ezekiel, who lived in the surrounding area of Babylon. It is recorded, though their exiles were 10 years apart, that both prophets, Daniel and Ezekiel started prophesying in c.620.

They had different audiences. Because God uses different voices.

I’m Kathryn Bise, your host.

Ezekiel had his first vision at age 30. Not unlike the age of Jesus, our Savior, starting his ministry at 30. He is known for the divine power expressed in his dreams—this alone captures the attention of scholars—but my spirit is all a-flutter because this young man who from 30 to 80 years old carried the “watchman” verdict from God’s mouth to his obedience, a man who must have been a witness of witnesses.

And God’s role for him, to be a watchman of the Israeli people was not for the faint of faith. Ezekiel does not take on the sin of others, but he must watch. He must warn.

But just as his name is translated “God strengthens” Ezekiel was witness to God’s glory. A man that God took further, beyond the exile, to the return to Jerusalem. A man that heard God describe his glory.

A man living through his prophetic life with such spiritual endurance that it makes me feel closer to God. With all my senses.

I mean. That is why I have a spirit crush on Ezekiel.

It comes in two parts. The first part is Ezekiel, the watchman. The witness. How God calls Ezekiel, and how God defines being a witness in the life of Ezekiel. He has a vision, receives his calling, accepts his role as watchman, loses his wife, and stands before a God who authenticates his witness. Check out e195 for part one. I left us to think about a heart-piercing question, as we take cues from a thirty-year old prophet who heard God tell him he is to be a watchman. Question: Am I missing opportunities to watch for, to warn, to dissuade, and I will add, to persuade someone to accepting Jesus as Savior and Lord? The very nature of God lifts us up, the Spirit can “raise us to our feet” just like God did with Ezekiel. How’s that going for you?

A Watchman Who Witnesses the Glory of God

The second part to consider is what Ezekiel saw, what the “Son of Man” experienced of the glory of God. A watchman who witnesses the glory of God.

I want to start with something tangible, touchable, something we know to be true in earthly life. In chapter 44, verse 17 and 18 of Ezekiel, God tells Ezekiel to instruct the priests to wear linen turbans and undergarments in the inner courts and the temple so as not to perspire.

Ezekiel 44:17-18

17 “‘When they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen clothes; they must not wear any woolen garment while ministering at the gates of the inner court or inside the temple. 18 They are to wear linen turbans on their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. They must not wear anything that makes them perspire.

This is the business of God’s holy nature. His glory. It’s a visual we can understand, right?

Linen breathes. It cools. It wrinkles. We know that. But finally, a divine reason to love linen. It keeps the priests from sweating, preventing an unclean state in the presence of God who is dwelling within. The priests are also instructed to take their linen turbans and undergarments around their waist off when not in the holy place so others are not consecrated (made holy) through contact with their linen garments.

That alone is enough to beckon my rebellious nature, enough to make me want to order a linen turban and undergarment for around my waist. I seek consecration that comes from being in God’s presence.

Today I am going to read the passages in Ezekiel that describe the glory of God. It is difficult to visualize, but it is the right thing to do. When we picture God in our minds, what do we see?

See, Hear, Consider the Glory of God

That’s our goal today. To visualize, to hear, to consider the glory of God through Ezekiel’s eyes.

Ezekiel 1:26-28

26 Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man.

What is lapis lazuli? It is a deep-blue metamorphic rock prized since antiquity for its intense color. Ranges from deep royal blue and indigo to lighter, greenish-blue hues. Inclusions: Often features white swirls of calcite and metallic, gold-like specks of pyrite, which resemble stars in a night sky. Ideal for carvings, beads, and inlays, but it requires gentle care in jewelry. The most prized lapis lazuli is sourced from the mountains of Afghanistan, highly valued by ancient Mesopotamians, Egyptians, and pharaohs, frequently appearing in royal treasures and death masks. Historically, the stone was ground into a powder to create ultramarine, a vivid blue pigment used by Renaissance masters, often considered more valuable than gold. God is the Master Colorist.

Continuing on with verse 27-28:

27 I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. 28 Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him.

This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

Ezekiel tells us that as the voice spoke, the Spirit came into him and raised him to his feet. When Ezekiel saw the likeness of the Lord’s glory he submitted by falling facedown, and the Lord raised him up into his presence. He was lifted to his feet. Is the Lord not a God of assurances. That he would embrace us with his spirit and stand us upright to hear him?

In chapter 10, Ezekiel says that when the Lord is describing the new temple, he can hear the sound of the wings of what?

The Cherubim Go Where His Glory Goes

Ezekiel 10:4-5

4 Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of the Lord. 5 The sound of the wings of the cherubim could be heard as far away as the outer court, like the voice of God Almighty when he speaks.

The sound of the wings of the cherubim. What is a cherub? It is not an angel that looks like cupid fluttering around with a bow and arrow. It is a specific, higher-ranking order of celestial beings primarily tasked with guarding God’s presence and throne. It is described in detail early in the book of Ezekiel if you want to circle back, but we don’t go into it here. Most importantly, we should envision listening for their sound, because wherever the glory of our Lord is, the sound of their wings precedes him, surrounds him, protects him. I can visualize, and I can hear that sound circling the lapis luzuli.

Ezekiel tells us that sound carries into the outer court along with God’s voice.

The prophet Ezekiel’s vision of the glory of God was full of fire and lightning and tumultuous sounds. His holiness reflected in our witness, again. In other words, he tells Ezekiel this for the second time.

Ezekiel 36:23

23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes.

When the Glory of God Fills the Temple

Beginning in chapter 43 Ezekiel tells us how God’s glory returns to the temple (his dwelling).

Ezekiel 43:1-12

God’s Glory Returns to the Temple

43 Then the man brought me to the gate facing east, 2 and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory. 3 The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when he came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River, and I fell facedown. 4 The glory of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. 5 Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

6 While the man was standing beside me, I heard someone speaking to me from inside the temple. 7 He said: “Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place for the soles of my feet. This is where I will live among the Israelites forever. The people of Israel will never again defile my holy name—neither they nor their kings—by their prostitution and the funeral offerings for their kings at their death. 8 When they placed their threshold next to my threshold and their doorposts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me and them, they defiled my holy name by their detestable practices. So I destroyed them in my anger. 9 Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the funeral offerings for their kings, and I will live among them forever.

10 “Son of man, describe the temple to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their sins. Let them consider its perfection, 11 and if they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the design of the temple—its arrangement, its exits and entrances—its whole design and all its regulations and laws. Write these down before them so that they may be faithful to its design and follow all its regulations.

12 “This is the law of the temple: All the surrounding area on top of the mountain will be most holy. Such is the law of the temple.

God references the funeral offerings of the kings. This reference summons the lapis lazuli of God’s throne, that he alone is the King. And the powerful image of the soles of God’s feet on earthly ground. In the holy place. And His Son would come to walk the earth, creating the Gospel with his every step.

Let’s continue.

The Glory of God Will Be There

Ezekiel 44:1-4

44 Then the man brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, the one facing east, and it was shut. 2 The Lord said to me, “This gate is to remain shut. It must not be opened; no one may enter through it. It is to remain shut because the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered through it. 3 The prince himself is the only one who may sit inside the gateway to eat in the presence of the Lord. He is to enter by way of the portico of the gateway and go out the same way.”

4 Then the man brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple. I looked and saw the glory of the Lord filling the temple of the Lord, and I fell facedown.

When we are in the presence of God’s glory, we are immediately humbled by his Presence. We cannot strive for humility. It is impossible to seek. It comes from the weight of God’s glory. In Ezekiel’s final description God lays down his Presence in a way we can comprehend. A way we can hold on to in this earthly realm.

Ezekiel 48:30-35

30 “These will be the exits of the city: Beginning on the north side, which is 4,500 cubits long, 31 the gates of the city will be named after the tribes of Israel. The three gates on the north side will be the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah and the gate of Levi.

32 “On the east side, which is 4,500 cubits long, will be three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin and the gate of Dan.

33 “On the south side, which measures 4,500 cubits, will be three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar and the gate of Zebulun.

34 “On the west side, which is 4,500 cubits long, will be three gates: the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher and the gate of Naphtali.

35 “The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits.

“And the name of the city from that time on will be:

the Lord is there.”

The beginning of Genesis tells us of a Creator that has no boundaries, no limitations, that he hovered in the void at the threshold of bringing his creation into existence. Yet, here God, our exacting God gives us the boundaries, the dimensions of the gates defining where he will dwell with us in his earthly kingdom. Why?

To build our trust. That this is where he will be.

The Weight of Glory in Our Witness

The Hebrew word for glory (kavod) is described as honor, majesty, a weight. A physical heaviness or social weightiness. The weightiness of something, in this case, the gravity of God’s nature. So I have to circle back to one thing: witness. And weight. Because it is such a wonder to me, yet it has the gravity of accountability bearing down on it.

God, in speaking to Israel says:

Ezekiel 20:41

41 I will accept you as fragrant incense when I bring you out from the nations and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will be proved holy through you in the sight of the nations.

The proof that God is holy is through our actions. Our worship, our obedience, our praises, our work, our giving, our suffering, our everything. Our actions represent the holiness of God.

Our witness has a divine weight to it. Ezekiel’s life gives us this.

It is extraordinary to live a holy life with God’s Spirit and the sound of cherubim wings navigating through our witness. That his protectors guard his presence while his Spirit consecrates us, breathes through us.

Like linen.