My Translation of Ezekiel Chapter One

Prophecy of Ezekiel.   Chapter One

And so it was in the thirtieth year, the fourth month, on the fifth, while I was among the captives by the river K'var, heaven was opened and I saw manifestations of deity.

In the fifth of the month which was the fifth year of the exile of the king, Yoyakin, the work of Javé kept coming to Yehezkel ben Buzi, the Cohen (priest) in the land of Kasddim by the river K'var, and the hand of Javé was upon him there.

So I looked, and certainly a wind storm came from the north — a great cloud, and a fire engulfed it, and brilliance surrounded it, like a ring (or, "eye") of electricity, amid the fire.

(5)  Then from the midst of it came a likeness (or, form) of four beings (also, creatures, or creations); and this was their manifestation:  They had the likeness of man, but they had four faces each, and four pairs of wings to each of them, while their legs were straight, but the soles of their feet were like the soles of the feet of calves, and they sparkled like a ring of polish ed brass.  Human hands were beneath their wings, on all four sides of them, and their face and their wings to the four sides of them.  Each of their wings joined its sister-pair; they did not turn in their going; each turned not his faces when going.

(10)  And the similitude of their faces — human faces, and lion's faces, on the right of the four of them, and the face of a bull, on the left of the four of them, and the face of an eagle to the four of them; thus their faces, while their (double) wings were divided above:  to each was a pair joined to each, also a pair covered their bodies.  So each went face forward, to where it was the Spirit moved they would go, neither did they turn as they went.

(13)  And the likeness of the beings, of their appearances, was as coals of fire which burnt like the similitude of torches:  It oscillated (lit. went back and forth) among the beings, with the brightness of the fire, while from the fire issued lightenings, thus the beings ran and returned, after the manner of strokes of lightening.

(15) While I perceived the beings, there was a single rotation on earth connected with (or, at the side of) the beings, to the fourth (aspect) of his face.  The appearance of the rotations and their action, was like an "Eye of Tarshish", but there was one image to each to the four of them, thus their appearance and their action was, as it were, rotation in the midst of rotation.  Along four of their foursquare sides did they go, when they went, nor did they turn as they went.

Translated by James Duvall, M. A.
Big Bone, Kentucky
Typed 13 Mar 2011

Commentary

The "eye" of khashmal is difficult.  LXX has electrum, ususally understood to mean "amber", but this is merely a guess.  In modern Hebrew the word is used to mean "electricity" which is based on this passage.  It is generally understood to mean some colour.  The idea of electricty may not be too far off considering that there is lightening associated with the phenomena.

Four beings.  The word can also be translated "creatures" or "creations".  They are traditionally thought to be a kind of angels.  We are not given the name of the type here, if angels they are.  They are probably best connected with the four beings in the midst of the throne in the book of Revelation.

'ofan is usually translated "wheel" but this is only a traditional rendering of a difficult reading.  It seems more likely that such a phenomena in the sky would  be connected with rotation, rather than a wheel, even if it literally says "wheel", of which I am in doubt.

The "Eye of Tarshish" may have been a certain kind of stone, according to Gesenius.  Tarshish is the old name for Spain.  'ayin means "well", or "eye".  It it the same as the "eye" mentioned in connection with khashmal.

(More to come.)