This is the climax of the vision, where Ezekiel sees God himself sitting on his throne. As elsewhere in this chapter, Ezekiel cannot describe in exact detail what he saw. Either the glory surrounding God was so bright that he could not make out the details properly, or (more likely) the vision of God on his throne was so wonderful and supernatural that human words were not adequate to describe it. Twice Ezekiel talks of the likeness of a throne, and his description of God is qualified three times with the words appearance, likeness, and form. In our translations the description of God and his throne should not be more explicit than the original text.

And above the firmament over their heads, that is, on the platform that was over the heads of the four creatures, there was the likeness of a throne, that is, something that looked like a throne. A throne is a large chair, on which kings and queens sit when they conduct their official business. Here it may be rendered “king’s seat” or “seat for a king.” This throne, which Ezekiel could not describe exactly, was standing on the platform above the creatures. In some languages, instead of the impersonal expression there was the likeness of a throne, it will be better to say “I saw something that looked like a seat for a king.”

The throne was in appearance like sapphire, that is, it looked as if it were “made of sapphire” (Good News Translation). Sapphire is the ancient name for the precious gemstone called lapis lazuli. This is a deep blue stone with golden flecks through it. It comes from China and is very valuable. Most translations use the word sapphire, even though the modern gem called a sapphire was not known in the time of Ezekiel. Some versions observe in a footnote that Ezekiel actually wrote “lapis lazuli,” not “sapphire” (so Revised Standard Version/New Revised Standard Version, New International Version, Revised English Bible). But the most important aspect here is not the actual gem in view, but the color of the throne, so like sapphire may be rendered “like the blue stone that is very valuable.”

And seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness as it were of a human form, that is, “sitting on the throne was a figure that looked like a man” (Good News Translation). Ezekiel does not say the figure he saw was a human being, but he implies that the figure looked like a person. We must retain this reluctance to describe God in precise detail. Seated above seems to suggest that the figure was floating above the throne and not sitting on it. The text should not be translated like this. Rather, above refers to the position of the throne itself. It was “high above” (New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible). A good model for this whole sentence is “and on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a human” (similarly New Living Translation).

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Ezekiel continues his tentative description of God. He qualifies everything he saw with the appearance of and as it were. Yet the main impression is a bright, shining, fiery figure.

And upward from what had the appearance of his loins: Upward from … his loins refers to the upper part of his body, from the waist up. Sometimes in the Bible the Hebrew word for loins refers to a person’s sexual organs, but the word actually refers to that part of the body between a person’s ribs and hips. The best translation for it here is the “waist.” Translators may render this clause as “Above what appeared like his waist.”

I saw as it were gleaming bronze: Gleaming bronze renders the same Hebrew word used in verse 4. See the comments there.

Like the appearance of fire enclosed round about: The Hebrew here is very puzzling. Literally it reads “like the appearance of fire [was] a house for it around about.” Scholars and translators are divided over the meaning of the last few words. Some think that the fire was surrounding the upper body of the figure like a sheath; for example, New Jerusalem Bible renders the first half of this verse as “I saw a brilliance like amber, like fire, radiating from what appeared to be the waist upwards.” Others think that the fire itself is enclosed and surrounded by something; for example, New English Bible and Revised English Bible render this clause as “like fire in a furnace.” This model makes very good sense. Anyone who has seen molten metal in a furnace knows how bright and fiery it is. This seems to be an appropriate description of the figure on the throne. The first half of this verse may be rendered “I saw what appeared to be the upper part of his body and it seemed to look like polished metal as if it were on fire in a furnace.”

And downward from what had the appearance of his loins refers to the lower part of his body, from the waist down. I saw as it were the appearance of fire means this part of his body was fiery, as if it were burning. Translators may render this whole sentence as “And from what appeared to be his waist down, it looked like fire.” The emphasis is on the brightness of what Ezekiel saw. This brightness is reinforced by the last clause: and there was brightness round about him, that is, “It shone all over with a bright light” (Good News Translation). This brightness was not just around the lower part of his body. It was either around the whole figure, or around the whole throne (so Revised Standard Version footnote with the pronoun “it”). Most translations take the pronoun him to refer to the figure itself, not to the throne.

A model for this verse is:

• And I looked at what seemed like the upper part of his body, and it was very bright, like glowing metal in the middle of a furnace. And what seemed like the lower part of his body, I saw that it was fiery, like it was burning. And he shone all over with a bright light.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain: The bright light surrounding the figure on the throne was not just a pure white light. Ezekiel compares it to a rainbow here. Good News Translation says that it “had in it all the colors of the rainbow,” but it is not wise to stress the different colors. Translators may be somewhat literal by saying “It looked like a rainbow on a rainy day,” or simply “It looked like a rainbow.” It is not clear how the bright light and the rainbow were mixed. In fact, Ezekiel describes it only as like the appearance of a rainbow, so again we must not try to be too specific.

So was the appearance of the brightness round about: See the comments on verse 27.

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD: Ezekiel identifies the figure that he saw in the vision as the LORD, that is, Yahweh (see the comments on Ezek 1.3). But he does not describe God directly, and we must also be sure that our description of God is no more explicit than the original text. As elsewhere in this chapter, the description of God is qualified with the expression the appearance of the likeness. In addition, Ezekiel does not even specify that he actually saw God’s body. Rather he saw the glory (kabod in Hebrew) of God. The word kabod is difficult to translate, because it literally means “weight” or “heaviness.” When it is used of God, it refers to his splendor, power, or impressive presence. It does not have the sense of dazzling bright light that the English word glory usually has. However, in Ezekiel it is usually used in the context of the vision of God on his throne (see 1.28; 3.12, 23; 8.4; 9.3; 10.4, 18-19; 11.22-23; 43.2, 4-5; 44.4) and, as we have seen, bright light is a characteristic of this vision. Most translations render kabod here as glory, but other renderings are “Majesty” (Anchor Bible) and “presence” (Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). Translators will do well to include something of the impressive presence of God in this verse. Possible models for this sentence are “That is what the great [or, magnificent] presence of Yahweh appeared like to me” and “This is how the great and powerful LORD appeared so to me.”

Good News Translation begins a new paragraph at this point. This is appropriate because this part of verse 28 goes closely with 2.1.

And when I saw it: And, which renders the Hebrew waw conjunction, continues the narration. In many languages this conjunction is not natural here, so it is dropped (so Good News Translation). When I saw it, that is, when Ezekiel saw the wonderful vision of God up close.

I fell upon my face means he lay face down on the ground. The word fell does not mean that he tripped and fell, or that he was pushed over. Rather, he knelt down and stretched himself out on the ground. It was a voluntary act of submission and worship. In some languages where this act would not be understood, translators may say “I lay face down on the ground out of respect [or, to worship].” Parole de Vie has “I got on my knees, with my forehead to the ground.”

And I heard the voice of one speaking: The translations are fairly evenly divided over whether Ezekiel heard someone speaking (so Revised Standard Version, New International Version, King James Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or whether he just heard a voice (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, Revised English Bible, Jerusalem Bible). Both are possible in the Hebrew text. Since he was face down on the ground, he may not have seen the speaker, so Good News Translation‘s rendering is valid. But many languages cannot have a disembodied voice speaking, and they will have to specify the speaker. The Hebrew does not tell us who the speaker was, but in chapter 2 it appears that the speaker was either God or an angel. It would be best to leave the speaker unidentified in this verse if possible, saying “I heard the voice of someone speaking.” However, for those languages that must be explicit, the speaker may be identified as God.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

And he said to me: God is probably the speaker here, although it could be an angel (see the comments on 1.28). This is the first time God addresses Ezekiel directly. But it is possible to understand the Hebrew of this clause as “And it [the voice] said to me” (similarly Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). Good News Translation takes this approach and does not identify the speaker until 3.1. Translators may say “The one speaking said to me” (similarly Parole de Vie). However, it will be better for most languages to identify the speaker at this point.

For Son of man, International Children’s Bible says “Human being.”

Stand upon your feet: God tells Ezekiel to “stand up” (Good News Translation). At this point Ezekiel was lying prostrate on the ground (see 1.28). In some languages it will be more natural to begin God’s words with “Stand up, you mere human being.”

And I will speak with you: The Hebrew waw conjunction rendered and connects this clause with the previous one. It may be omitted here if that is more natural in a language (so Good News Translation). I will speak with you is not simply a future action, but shows God’s intention, so it may be rendered “I want to talk to you” (Good News Translation). New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh renders this clause and the previous one as “O mortal, stand up on your feet that I may speak to you,” which is a good model. Parole de Vie also expresses these clauses well with “Stand up, you mere human! I’m going to talk to you.”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

And when he spoke to me, that is, at the same time as God (or the angel) spoke the words in verse 1 to Ezekiel, the Spirit entered into me. Revised Standard Version capitalizes Spirit, which implies the Holy Spirit, and Good News Translation is similar with “God’s spirit.” The Hebrew is not so explicit, which is literally “a spirit” (New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh). This “spirit” probably refers to a divine impulse or the power of God (see the comments on 1.12). A footnote in Traduction œcuménique de la Bible refers to it as “prophetic charisma,” that is, divinely given power to perform a particular task, in this case to be a prophet. It is best not to make this “spirit” appear to be the Holy Spirit, but if translators follow the Hebrew closely, they must be careful not to make it appear as if it were an evil or ancestral spirit that entered Ezekiel at that time. “God’s power” is the rendering some translators have used.

And set me upon my feet means God’s power caused Ezekiel to stand up.

And I heard him speaking to me: As in the previous verse, the speaker is probably God, but it could be an angel. However, it is clear that it is not the “spirit” that has just entered Ezekiel. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh translates this clause as “and I heard what was being spoken to me.” This rendering indicates that when the spirit raised Ezekiel to his feet, he was in a position to hear what was being said to him. Other possible models are “Then I heard the voice speaking” and “Then I heard the one speaking say to me.”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

And he said to me: God now addresses Ezekiel. He gives him his task and the message that he must pass on to the people. The pronoun he may be rendered “the voice” or “the one speaking.”

Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel …: For Son of man, see the comments on Ezek 2.1. I send you may be rendered “I am sending you” (Contemporary English Version). God tells Ezekiel to go to the people of Israel, which is literally “the sons of Israel.”

God calls the Israelites a nation of rebels. The Revised Standard Version footnote here indicates that the Hebrew has “nations” instead of nation. The Hebrew plural word for “nations” is difficult in two ways. First, this word usually refers to the foreign nations, the non-Jewish heathen nations. It is not used of Israel and Judah. Here it seems to apply to the Israelites, because Ezekiel’s audience were the people who were taken from Jerusalem into exile in Babylonia. Second, these exiles were only one nation or, in actual fact, only part of a nation, since the ten tribes of the northern kingdom had been taken into exile nearly 150 years earlier. Most translations simply take this word as a singular, as Revised Standard Version does. Others simply omit the word (so Good News Translation, Revised English Bible, Jerusalem Bible/New Jerusalem Bible). A third alternative is that “nations of rebels” applies to the foreign nations that Ezekiel addresses in chapters 25–32, but this does not fit well in the context. Each of these solutions minimizes the force of the strong judgment of God on the people of Israel. This verse is not referring to a particular act of rebellion, but is characterizing the people as a group: they have rebelled against God throughout their history. They are “rebellious people.” By using the word “nations” God actually calls his own people “heathen” people! The force of this judgment should be reflected in translation, if possible. Brownlee says “rebellious heathen,” which is a compact but satisfactory rendering.

Who have rebelled against me: The Hebrew verb rendered rebels and have rebelled means to disobey someone in authority, to fight against a ruler or a government, or to refuse to give allegiance to a sovereign. It is a word taken from political affairs and applied to the way the people of Israel did not obey God. The word is used twice here: the people are described as being rebels, that is, disobedient, and they have rebelled against God, that is, they have repeatedly and constantly disobeyed God, and turned against him.

They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day: This disobedience was not a new thing that the people started doing. Rather, their fathers, that is, “their ancestors” (Good News Translation), acted in the same way for many years. Some languages will say “their grandfathers.” Like the Hebrew word for rebels, the word for have transgressed also comes from the realm of political affairs, where it applies to people who break their agreements to obey their rulers. It also has a religious and ethical meaning, namely, to step aside from the path on which someone should be walking, to commit an offense or sin. Translators may render have transgressed against me as “have disobeyed me” or “have acted wrongly toward me.” To this very day indicates that the disobedience has continued without stopping. The people were still disobeying and opposing God at the time God was talking to Ezekiel.

A model for this verse is:

• “Human being, I am telling you to go to the Israelites. They are like the heathen nations. They disobey me. They continually turn against me. They have been disobeying me for many years. Their grandfathers before them used to disobey me. And they are still disobeying me now.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

The people also are impudent and stubborn: Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation take The people to be the same Israelites mentioned in the previous verse. But the Hebrew reads literally “the sons,” which probably should be understood in contrast to “their fathers” in verse 3. Thus the focus narrows here to Ezekiel’s own generation. New English Bible and Revised English Bible say “this generation.” If this idea is difficult to render in a language, translators may say “these people today.”

Impudent and stubborn is literally “stiff of face and hard of heart.” The two Hebrew expressions here mean almost the same thing. The first Hebrew expression is unusual; the more usual one is literally “stiff of neck, stiff necked” (see Exo 32.9; Deut 9.6). It carries the meaning of defiant and stubborn, unwilling to listen (compare Isa 48.4). The second expression (“hard of heart”) is similar to one used many times in Exodus about Pharaoh (see, for example, Exo 7.13). It carries the meaning of stubborn and obstinate, unwilling to listen and obey. The first expression may apply to the external aspects of stubbornness, the second one to the internal aspects. Some languages have idioms for one or both of these expressions, for example, “closed ears” and “hard heads.” But if translators are not able to find two common expressions or idioms in their language for them, they may say “defiant and stubborn.”

I send you to them: See 2.3.

And you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD’: This expression usually introduces the actual words or message of God, but here the content of the message, that is, what God actually says to the people, is not explicit. This lack is clearly visible in some versions; for example, New Jerusalem Bible says “Lord Yahweh says this” (similarly Jerusalem Bible), New English Bible and Revised English Bible have “These are the words of the Lord GOD,” and New Century Version uses “This is what the Lord GOD says.” Good News Translation tries to smooth over the difficulty by rendering the last half of this verse as “so I am sending you to tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them.” It is best to understand this expression as a general authorization of Ezekiel’s whole prophecy. God is telling Ezekiel that every time he speaks to the people, he will be speaking on God’s behalf. Both Ezekiel and the people needed to know that. For those languages that would otherwise need to specify what God said, this expression may be translated a little more generally as “The Lord GOD is giving you a message.” To make the sense absolutely clear, translators may render the last two clauses of this verse as “You will give them messages from me, the Lord GOD.”

Lord renders the Hebrew word ʾadonai, and GOD renders “Yahweh” (YHWH in Hebrew), the name of God.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

And … they will know that there has been a prophet among them: The reason why God tells Ezekiel to say “Thus says the Lord GOD” is so that the Israelites will know that Ezekiel is a prophet. It is important for translators to make this connection with verse 4 clear. One way to do this is by rearranging this verse and connecting it to the end of verse 4 as follows: “You are to say to them, ‘These are the words of the Lord GOD,’ 5 and they will know that they have a prophet among them” (Revised English Bible). Some languages may prefer to show the connection between these two verses by beginning verse 5 with “Say this, so that they will know that there has been a prophet among them” or “Do this, so that they will know that they have a prophet with them.” This is the first instance in the book where God does something to make the audience recognize his power and authority.

Translators must be careful how they render the word prophet. The primary role of the Old Testament prophet was to speak God’s message to the people of his own day.

Eventually the people will recognize that Ezekiel was a prophet of God whether they hear or refuse to hear. The verb hear includes the idea of obeying here, so possible models for this clause are “whether they listen to him and obey him or not” and “whether they obey him or refuse to heed his word.” It is easy to see how they will recognize him as God’s prophet if they listen to him, but it is an important theme in Ezekiel that when God acts, even unbelievers will be forced to recognize that it is God. This applies to the unbelieving foreign nations as much as to the disobedient Israelites. The reason why the Israelites will not listen to Ezekiel is explained thus: for they are a rebellious house. This theme of the Israelites being rebellious is repeated from the previous verses (see the comments on Ezek 2.3) and will be repeated again in later verses. The house here does not refer to a building, but to a group of people.

Translations have handled the phrase rebellious house in different ways as follows: “those rebels” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version), “rebellious breed” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “tribe of rebels” (New Jerusalem Bible), “set of rebels” (Jerusalem Bible), “rebels” (New English Bible), and “people who have turned against me” (New Century Version). These are all adequate renderings.

Models for this verse are:

• They are such a rebellious group that they may or may not heed your message. But whether they do or not, they will know that there has been a prophet among them.

• They may or may not pay attention to your message since they are such rebels, but they will certainly know that a prophet has been among them.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .