Ezekiel 1:25-27
“And then, as they stood with folded wings, there was a voice from above the dome over their heads. Above the dome there was something that looked like a throne, sky-blue like a sapphire, with a humanlike figure towering above the throne. From what I could see, from the waist up he looked like burnished bronze and from the waist down like a blazing fire. Brightness everywhere!”
“As they stood with wings lowered, a voice spoke from beyond the crystal surface above them. Above this surface was something that looked like a throne made of blue lapis lazuli. And on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a man. From what appeared to be his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor.”
In this chapter the prophet Ezekiel describes God’s call to him. It occured while living with Judean exiles on the banks of the Kebar river in Babylon. Earlier, Ezekiel described four fantastical beasts and now, the person of God himself. Ezekiel has never seen anything like this and has no vocabulary to describe it. He could only say what these things were ‘like.’ This is who God is, a being completely other than our experience. We have no words that can accurately portray him. He overwhelms us. He shields us from what we cannot bear to look upon and reaches out to reveal himself in ways we can understand, through Abraham, Israel, and finally Jesus.
Lord Jesus, thank you for coming! You are the best teacher, introducing me to God Almighty in little bits I can understand. You are the gentle gardener who gradually introduces me as a seedlings to the sun until I can stand its burning brightness. I worship you.