The Companion of the Way
by
H.C. Hewlett
1962
Moody Press
Chicago, Illinois
~ Out of print and in the public domain ~
The Sanctuary Of The Exile - Ezekiel
(Ezekiel 1)
I. THE SETTING -- THE
DIVINE COMPENSATION
Nowhere in the records of the divine presence
is the kindness and faithfulness of God more evident than in those that relate
the story of the exile of the people of Judah and of Jerusalem. On account of
the evils wrought by King Manasseh wherewith he polluted the house of the Lord
in Jerusalem and filled the city from end to end with innocent blood, God
delivered the king and later the nation into captivity in Babylon. There in his
affliction Manasseh humbled himself before God, who brought him again to his
kingdom in Judah (II Chron. 33:13). The nation entered in its turn into
captivity in three stages in the reigns of Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah,
all of whom came under the power of Nebuchadnezzar.
Among the captives
taken with Jehoiachin was Ezekiel the priest, whose narrative begins with his
place among his fellow-exiles by the river Chebar in the land of the Chaldeans.
In the providence of God, he was raised up to minister to the people of the
captivity in order that they might understand the justice of God in removing
them from their homeland and from the temple around which their national life
had centered, and that even amid the sorrows that had befallen them they might
be stirred to seek God anew and be sustained and cheered in their witness for
Him among the nations. Some there were who clung to the promises of God and
sought still to honor Him and to keep His law. To all these, even as to the
apathetic, the embittered, and the rebellious, Ezekiel bore the message of the
future regathering of Israel to their land. Two views were blended in his
prophecies, the near and the far. The one took place when the kings of Babylon
had been replaced by the kings of Persia, and the other shall be when Israel's
Lord and King returns in power and glory to earth and to His ancient city.
God did not forget His people. Away from their land and from their
sanctuary, they seemed remote from all the
blessings of their fathers, but the great Blesser Himself drew near and
revealed His glory to Ezekiel the priest, the representative of the godly. In
Jerusalem, God's dwelling place had been in the Holy of Holies, between the
Cherubim, and thither in days of care and of stress those who loved His name
directed their thoughts, and thence they sought His favor. When the threatening
letter from Sennacherib was received by Hezekiah he "prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of
Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone,
of all the kingdoms of the earth . . . Save thou us out of his hand" (II
Kings 19:15, 19). In the people's distress the psalmist besought God's
intervention, and prayed, "Give ear, O Shepherd
of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the
cherubims, shine forth" (Psa. 80:1). Another psalm tells exultingly the
glory of His kingdom: "The Lord reigneth; let
the people tremble: he sitteth between the cherubims; let the earth be
moved" (Psa. 99:1)
What then should His people do in the land of
captivity, and whither should they turn when the temple should be no more? The
answer of God to their need was to manifest Himself, enthroned, not amid the
cherubim of gold or of olive wood, but above the living creatures, the cherubim
of Heaven. In the vision of Isaiah (Isa. 6), God had displayed His majesty and
the service of the seraphim in the temple, but in Ezekiel's lifetime the temple
would be destroyed, and the prophet would abide an exile in a strange country.
It was in such circumstances that Ezekiel was given the visions of God described
in the chapters that open and close his book. Though earthly symbols passed
away, the heavenly realities were unchanged, and the heavens were opened that glories which no
king of Babylon could ever defile should be set before the exile's gaze. Ere the
earlier visions ceased, and ere the tidings came that Jerusalem was smitten
(Ezek. 33:21), God gave the promise which was the very meaning of the visions.
"Therefore say, Thus saith the LORD God;
Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have
scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary
in the countries where they shall come" (Ezek. 11:16). From the guilty
city of Jerusalem and from the doomed temple on Mount Moriah the presence of the
Lord would be withdrawn, but He would be with His people, a sanctuary for a
little time (i.e., till the captivity should be over), a temple to which they
might constantly repair to give thanks to Him, to inquire of His will and to
receive His blessing. So true is His perpetual presence.
II. THE BLESSING -- THE
DIVINE EMPOWERING
The visions of glory were vouchsafed to Ezekiel
at four separate times, in four distinct settings, and with four different
messages.
1. In the fifth day of the fourth month in the fifth year of
Jehoiachin's captivity. By the river Chebar. Giving him a commission to be a
watchman to the people. Chapters 1:1 to 3:21.
2. Seven days later, in
the plain. Making him a sign, and his actions signs, of the certainty and the
details of the judgments about to fall upon Jerusalem. Chapters 3:22 to 7:27.
3. In the fifth day of the sixth month of the following year. In his
house. Showing the departure of the glory of God from the temple and the city.
Chapters 8:1 to 11:25.
4. In the tenth day of the first month in the
twenty-fifth year of captivity. Location in Chaldea unnamed. Showing the future
dignity of the city, and the coming of the glory of God to the house of God,
never to depart. Chapters 40:1 to 48:35.
In each case the narrative
begins with like words.
1. "The hand of the LORD was there upon
him" (Ezekiel 1:3).
2. "The hand of the LORD was there upon
me" (Ezekiel 3:22).
3. "The hand of the LORD God fell there
upon me" (Ezekiel 8:1).
4. "The hand of the LORD was upon
me" (Ezekiel 40:1).
Three more times in Ezekiel we read of the
hand of the Lord in relation to the prophet. In his first experience of the controlling power of God in the visions,
he said, "The spirit lifted me up, and look me
away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat (Heb., hot anger) of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon
me" (Ezekiel 3:14). Writing concerning the eve of the coming of the
tidings that Jerusalem was smitten, he said, "Now the hand of the LORD was upon me in the evening,
afore he that was escaped came; and had opened my mouth" (Ezekiel 33:22).
Then, when he was shown the final regathering of Israel, under the figure of a
national resurrection, he said, "The hand of the
Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down
in the midst of the valley which was full of bones" (Ezekiel 37:1). In
these seven references to the hand of the Lord there is seen the putting forth
of the divine power by which Ezekiel was enabled to behold the visions. That
power cast its shelter around him, strengthened him for the revelations and for
the service they claimed, and impelled him to carry out his ministry in spite of
its burden of judgment and the resentment of his hearers. Truly "The prophecy came not in old time by the will of man:
but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost" (II Pet.
1:21).
Another expression recurring in these passages is that which
tells of his prostration in the Lord's presence.
1. "And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a
voice of one that spake" (Ezekiel 1:28).
2. "And I fell on my face" (Ezekiel 3:23).
3.
"And I fell upon my face" (Ezekiel
43:3).
Remarkably, in the third vision there is no mention of his falling
upon his face before such glory, but twice Ezekiel is seen in like attitude,
pleading for the sinful nation, "I fell upon my
face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord God! wilt thou destroy all the residue of
Israel" (Ezekiel 9:8). "Then fell I down
upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord God! wilt thou make
a full end of the remnant of Israel?" (Ezekiel 11:13). In answer to the
first petition God gave reply that He would not spare those guilty of the crimes
that defiled Jerusalem, but to the second He gave promise that to those
scattered among the heathen. He would be a sanctuary. In this way we are shown
two things that should ever bow us low before God, worship and intercession. The
heart that knows most of prostration in reverent awe in the secret of that
wondrous presence is that which will be most active in beseeching His mercy upon
the sons of men.
III. THE REVELATION -- THE
DIVINE MAJESTY
"And I looked, and
behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding
itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the
colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire" (Ezek. 1:4). In connection
with an earlier theophany, there is mentioned a whirlwind from which God spoke,
which likewise came out of the north. In the latter part of Job 36, and chapter
37, there is given a most graphic picture of the approaching storm. At the
beginning of chapter 37 Elihu speaks, "At this
also my heart trembleth, and is moved out of his place" and toward its
end, he says, "Fair weather cometh out of the
north: with God is terrible majesty" (Job 37:1, 22). It is this majesty
which is more fully described in Ezekiel. "The
LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust
of his feet" (Nah. 1:3). The stormy wind (whirlwind) fulfills His word
(Psa. 148:8). By a whirlwind He was pleased to take up Elijah into Heaven (II
Kings 2:1), and in the splendor that flamed out of a whirlwind to manifest
Himself to Ezekiel.
The cloud and the fire were inseparably associated
with Israel's history, especially with their deliverance from Egypt and journey
through the desert to the promised land. Carried captive from that land because
their sins had exceeded those of the nations driven out before them, they could
little expect to see again those manifestations of power and glory with which
God had blessed them in those brighter days. Yet, being God and not man, He
acted toward them with such faithfulness that even in the land of captivity He
displayed the tokens of His majesty.
"Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of
four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a
man" (Ezekiel 1:5).
"As for the
likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a
lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side;
they four also had the face of an eagle" (Ezekiel 1:10).
"And their whole body, and their backs, and their
hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the
wheels that they four had" (Ezekiel 10:12).
"I knew that they were the cherubims" (Ezekiel
10:20).
The profound themes portrayed in the living creatures, the cherubim, call not
for speculation or curiosity, but for awe and praise. The cherubim are found
always in association with the throne of God and have a threefold function in
relation to its government. First, they "cover" the throne, i.e., to them is
committed the guarding of the divine honor. Secondly, they share the
administration of the throne in that they are its close attendants and execute
its decrees. Thirdly, they manifest the character of God in His government of
all that He has made.
"Therefore the
LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence
he was taken. So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden
of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way
of the tree of life" (Gen. 3:23-24).
"And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten
work shalt thou make them, in the two ends of the mercy seat. And make one
cherub on the one end, and the other cherub on the other end: even of the mercy
seat shall ye make the cherubims on the two ends thereof. And the cherubims
shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their
wings, and their faces shall look one to another; toward the mercy seat shall
the faces of the cherubims be. And thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the
ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee. And
there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy
seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of
all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel . .
. And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined
linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made" (Exo. 25:18-22;
26:31).
"And within the oracle he made
two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high. And five cubits was the one
wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the
uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten
cubits. And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one
measure and one size. The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it
of the other cherub. And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and they
stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the wing of the one touched
the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their
wings touched one another in the midst of the house. And he overlaid the
cherubims with gold . . . And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of
the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place,
even under the wings of the cherubims" (I Kings 6:23-28; 8:6).
"And before the throne there was a sea
of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the
throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind. And the first beast was
like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as
a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle. And the four beasts had
each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they
rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was,
and is, and is to come . . . And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and
four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them
harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints. And
they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the
seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out
of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; And hast made us unto our
God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth" (Rev. 4:6-8;
5:8-10).
This character is fourfold.
1) The Ruler of the
universe is always majestic; nought that is petty or base is ever known among
His ways.
2) He is a ministering God, who ceaselessly attends to the needs
of His own creation. Apart from His care it could not be maintained.
3)
"His understanding is infinite." He appreciates all the
requirements and all the frailty of His creatures, and seeks to bestow on them
His fellowship, according to their measure of capacity for it.
4) He
possesses boundless adequacy for the carrying out of His purposes and the
supplying of every need of His creation. He Himself knows no limitation.
These four traits are exquisitely expressed in the four faces of the
cherubim. The lion speaks of majesty, the ox of ministry, the man of
understanding, and the eagle of that which is far above the limits of earth. The
appearance under which the living creatures are presented, with variation of
detail from book to book of Scripture, and yet with an underlying harmony
throughout, may be compared with the livery worn by the attendants of an earthly
throne. The livery may be worn by different persons in different circumstances,
yet is it still the same in style and meaning. Whether those who are concerned
with the administration of the throne of God be always the same beings or not,
yet the cherubic likeness is consistent throughout.
In the Old Testament
the cherubim are sometimes figurative, as in the structure and the holy vessels
of the tabernacle of Moses and the temple of Solomon. Sometimes the cherubim are
living beings, as at the gate of Eden and in the visions of Ezekiel. The living
creatures of the Old Testament thus appear to be of the angelic order. Ezekiel
himself speaks of the downfall of one who is called "the anointed cherub that covereth" (Eze.
28:14), whose greatness far exceeded that of the literal king of Tyre. Created
to high service in relation to the throne of God, he coveted that which he
should have covered.
"How art thou
fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the
ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I
will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will
sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will
ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High"
(Isa. 14:12-14).
When that cherub, so great and high, failed in his
trust, God revealed One "who was made a little
lower than the angels," and who ever-vindicated the character and
maintained the honor of the throne. In His lowly manhood the beloved Son
manifested the fourfold nature of God's ways, as is seen in the distinctive
portraits of Him in the four Gospels. Matthew displays His kingly majesty; Mark,
His perfect service; Luke, His holy manhood; John, His eternal deity.
In
His glorified manhood, exalted "far above all
principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is
named," the Son will ever administer every function of the throne, but associated
with Him in that sphere of honor will be His redeemed ones from earth, all of
them partakers of the heavenly calling, destined to share His glory. Brought
nearer to Him than angels have ever been, and enjoying therefore a greater
nearness to the throne, they will be linked with Him in functions hitherto
entrusted to the angels. Accordingly, in Revelation 5 angels are "round about the throne and the beasts and the
elders." The living creatures themselves are "in the midst of the throne, and round about the
throne" and are joined with the elders in one song of praise. Therefore
it would seem that the living creatures and the elders set forth the redeemed in
two capacities different in themselves, but borne by the same persons. As
elders, they have complete maturity and priestly access; as living creatures
they are associated with the Lamb in His government. This is confirmed by the
undoubted fact that the functions of the cherubim are all attributed, in
statements not symbolic but express, to the glorified saints. They will judge
the world, and judge angels; they will serve for ever and ever; they will be
marked by wisdom and spiritual understanding; they will have spiritual bodies
conditioned to the environment and life of Heaven, and thus free from earthly
limitations. It is fitting, therefore, in view of their character and
occupation, that they should be pictured wearing the livery of the throne, i.e.,
the cherubic likeness.
"And above the
firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the
appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the
likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it. And I saw as the colour of
amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance of
his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I saw
as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about. As the
appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the
appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the
likeness of the glory of the LORD" (Ezek. 1:26-28).
The climax of
the vision was the revelation of the throne and of its occupant, One who
appeared as a man, and yet with a splendor not of earth. He who covers Himself
with light as with a garment (Psa. 104:2) deigned to appear to Ezekiel in form
which he could comprehend (the appearance of a man), and yet with such incomprehensible majesty that Ezekiel bowed to
the earth upon his face. As in the scene which the Apostle John beheld in
Heaven, there was a rainbow round about the throne (Rev. 4:3), so the brightness
about the Man whom Ezekiel saw was likewise as the appearance of the bow. As the
rainbow was given to Noah as the token of God's covenant, as the pledge of His
abiding promise, so the very brightness which invested this Man witnessed by its
appearance to the faithfulness of the covenant-keeping God of Israel.
It
was the glory of Jehovah which Ezekiel beheld. Though the location and other
circumstances of its manifestation had changed, the glory itself endured forever
(Ps. 104:31). It was not so with the gods of the heathen, the vain deities whose
fame ceased with the destruction of their worshipers. These gods were powerless
to protect those whose downfall they wrought. The eyes of the prophet and of
those who heeded his words were lifted from the helplessness of the nation to
their abiding resources in God. In the third vision, Ezekiel witnessed the
departure of the glory from the temple and the city, yet earlier than that, in
the first vision, he saw the glory in the land of exile. Thus did the goodness
of God strengthen him for the sadness of the ruin which should befall Jerusalem.
The sins of the temple brought desolation to their country, and the judgments of
God stripped from them their national independence, but He Himself was still the
refuge of all who trusted Him. In all His glory, in all His power, in all His
sovereign overruling in the affairs of
men, He was with His saints. It has ever been so in the annals of our poor race.
From age to age God has remained the same. Nothing could more suitably have
shown this to Ezekiel than the vision of the Lord enthroned above the living
creatures, the Lord whose will is supreme throughout the universe!
In
his final vision, Ezekiel saw the return of the glory to the royal city. The day
of the vision's fulfillment has not yet dawned, and night's darkest hour must
yet cast its pall of anguish upon the nation of Israel. Nevertheless, when the
prophet had long since passed from the scenes of his labors, the glory of the
Lord appeared in the land which Ezekiel loved and shone round about the
shepherds keeping watch over their flock by night, as to them were given the
glad tidings of the birth of "a Saviour, . . .
Christ the Lord." He will yet come as the King of glory, and His city
shall be known as Jehovah-shammah (the
LORD is there) (Ezek. 48:35). Then all the prophet's longings for his people
will be satisfied. The presence that cheered him in exile will be the constant
joy of restored Israel. This is his last word, the consummation of all his hopes
and the fulfillment of all his visions -- THE LORD IS THERE.
Chapter 8 - THE COMPANION IN THE FIRE - Daniel 3 - Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah
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