1 Ezequiel (filho de Buzi) era um sacerdote que vivia no meio dos judeus exilados nas proximidades do rio de Quebar em Babilónia. Em de Julho do meu trigésimo ano , abriram-se os céus de repente perante mim, e tive visões de Deus. Era o quinto ano do cativeiro do rei Jeconias; a palavra do Senhor foi-me dirigida pessoalmente e a sua mão esteve sobre mim.

4 Houve um forte vento tempestuoso vindo do norte, empurrando uma nuvem enorme que ardia em fogo e que espalhava à sua volta uma luminosidade intensa; no meio havia algo que brilhava como cobre polido.

5 Então, do centro da nuvem saíram quatro estranhas criaturas que se pareciam com seres humanos, mas que tinham quatro rostos cada um e ainda dois pares de asas!

7 Tinham pernas direitas, mas pés com cascos de bezerro e brilhavam como cobre polido. Debaixo das asas pude ver-lhes mãos humanas. Os quatro tinham rostos e asas assim dispostos:5

9 Estavam juntos, asas com asas, e voavam em frente, em linha recta, sem desvios. Para a frente do corpo tinham um rosto humano, para o lado direito da cabeça, um rosto de leão, para o lado esquerdo, um rosto de boi, e para trás, de águia. Os dois pares de asas saíam-lhes do meio das costas. Um par estendia-se até às asas da criatura que estava a seu lado, e o outro par cobria-lhes o corpo. Iam para onde quer que desejavam ir, sem se virar.

13 Entre eles havia outras formas que se deslocavam para cima e para baixo e que pareciam como brasas de carvão, ou como algo que ardesse intensamente. Fogo se movia entre esses seres, e brilhava intensamente, expelindo relâmpagos.

15 Enquanto olhava para isto tudo, vi ainda quatro rodas no chão, debaixo das criaturas; uma roda sob cada uma. As rodas tinham a cor de uma pedra preciosa, todas iguais, e cada uma delas tinha outra, na parte interior, atravessada. Podiam assim rodar para a frente e para os lados sem se virarem. As quatro rodas tinham aros e raios; os aros estavam cheios de olhos em toda a volta.

19 Quando os quatro seres viventes se deslocavam para a frente, as rodas seguiam-nos; se se elevavam, as rodas também se levantavam; se paravam, também as rodas. Porque o espírito das criaturas estava também nas rodas; por isso, para onde quer que o seu espírito fosse, tanto as rodas como os seres seguiam-no.

22 Os céus em cima pareciam feitos de cristal; eram duma beleza indescritível.

23 As asas de cada um dos seres estendiam-se direitas até tocaram nas do outro ao lado; e com o outro par de asas cobriam o corpo. Quando se deslocavam, as asas, ao baterem, faziam um ruído semelhante ao das vagas rebentando na praia, ou semelhante à voz de Deus, ou ainda parecido com o tumulto de um grande exército. Quando paravam, baixavam as asas. E ouvia-se uma voz do firmamento de cristal por cima deles.

26 Por cima desse firmamento estava algo semelhante a um trono, feito de belas pedras de safira azuis, e nele estava sentado alguém que parecia ser um homem.

27 Da cintura para cima, parecia ser de bronze brilhante, luzindo como fogo; para baixo, dava a impressão de ser todo ele uma chama; havia um resplendor em volta dele como um arco-íris nas nuvens num dia de aguaceiros. Foi assim que me apareceu a glória do Senhor. Quando vi aquilo, caí com o rosto em terra e ouvi a voz de alguém que me falava:

1 And it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth mouth on the fifth day of the month I being in the midst of them of the captivity, by the river Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

2 On the fifth of the month, that was the fifth year of the captivity of King Jehoiachin,

3 in very deed came the word of Yahweh unto Ezekiel son of Buzi the priest in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar,yea the hand of Yahweh I came on him there I-

4 So then I beheld and lo! a tempestuous wind coming out of the North, a great cloud and a fire catching hold of itself, and it had a brightness round about,

5 and out of the midst thereof, as burnished copper to look upon out of the midst of the fire; and out of the midst thereof, a likeness of four living ones, and this was their appearance, the likeness of a man, had they;

6 and four faces each, and four wings each, had they;

7 and their feet were straight feet,and the sole of their feet was like the sole of the foot of a calf, but sparkling, as shining bronze to look upon;

8 and the hands of a man! were under their wings, on their four sides,and their faces and their wings belonged to the four of them:

9 joined to each other, were their wings,they turned not when they went, each one straight before him, did they go;

10 and the likeness of their faces was the face of a man, with the face of a lion to the right of the four of them, and the face of an ox on the left, of the four of them,the face of an eagle, also had they four;

11 and their wings were spread above, two of each joined one another, and two covered their bodies;

12 and each one straight before him, did they go,whithersoever the spirit was minded to go, they went, they turned not when they went.

13 As for the likeness of the living ones, their appearance was like live coals of fire burning up like the appearance of torches, the same went to and fro between the living ones,and the fire had brightness and out of the fire, went forth a lightning.

14 And the living ones ran and returned,like the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15 And I looked at the living ones,and lo! one wheel upon the earth beside the living ones for each of his four faces,

16 The appearance of the wheels and of their structure was like a Tarshish-stone to look upon, and they four had one likeness,and their appearance and their structure were just as would be a wheel in the midst of a wheel.

17 Upon their four sides, when they went, so did they go,they turned not when they went.

18 As for their rings, they were so high that they were terrible, -and their rings full of eyes round about, had they four.

19 And when the living ones went, the wheels went beside them,and when the living ones were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up:

20 whithersoever the spirit was minded to go, they wentthither was the spirit minded to go,and the wheels would be lifted up along with them, for the spirit of the living one was in the wheels:

21 when they went, these went, and when they stood, there stood,ad when they were lifted up from off the earth, the wheels were lifted up along with them, for the spirit of the living one was in the wheels.

22 And there was a likeness over the heads of the living onean expanse, like terrible crystal to look upon, -stretched forth over their heads above.

23 And under the expanse, their wings were straight, one towards another,each one had two covering on this side, and each one had two covering on that side, their bodies.

24 And I heard the sound of their wings, as the sound of many waters, as the sound of the Almighty, when they went, the sound of a storm as the sound of a host,when they stood, they let down their wings,

25 And there was a voice above the expanse that was over their head,when they stood, they let down their wings.

26 And above the expanse that was over their heads, as the appearance of a sapphire stone, was the likeness of a throne,and upon the likeness of a throne, was a likeness as the appearance of a man upon it above.

27 And I saw as burnished copper to look upon, as the appearance of fire within it round about, from the appearance of his loins and upwards and from the appearance of his loins and downward, saw I as the appearance of fire, and he had brightness round about:

28 as the appearance of the bow which is in a cloud on a day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about, that was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh, and when I saw, I fell upon my face, and heard a voice of one speaking.