EZEKIEL'S FIRST VISION OF GOD (1.1—7.27)
God's Throne
1 On the fifth day of the fourth month of the thirtieth year, I, Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, was living with the Jewish exiles by the Chebar River in Babylonia. The sky opened, and I saw a vision of God. ( 2 It was the fifth year since King Jehoiachin had been taken into exile.) 3 There in Babylonia beside the Chebar River, I heard the Lord speak to me, and I felt his power.
4 I looked up and saw a windstorm coming from the north. Lightning was flashing from a huge cloud, and the sky around it was glowing. Where the lightning was flashing, something shone like bronze. 5 At the center of the storm I saw what looked like four living creatures in human form, 6 but each of them had four faces and four wings. 7 Their legs were straight, and they had hoofs like those of a bull. They shone like polished bronze. 8 In addition to their four faces and four wings, they each had four human hands, one under each wing. 9 Two wings of each creature were spread out so that the creatures formed a square, with their wing tips touching. When they moved, they moved as a group without turning their bodies.
10 Each living creature had four different faces: a human face in front, a lion's face at the right, a bull's face at the left, and an eagle's face at the back. 11 Two wings of each creature were raised so that they touched the tips of the wings of the creatures next to it, and their other two wings were folded against their bodies. 12 Each creature faced all four directions, and so the group could go wherever they wished, without having to turn.
13 Among the creatures there was something that looked like a blazing torch, constantly moving. The fire would blaze up and shoot out flashes of lightning. 14 The creatures themselves darted back and forth with the speed of lightning.
15 As I was looking at the four creatures I saw four wheels touching the ground, one beside each of them. 16 All four wheels were alike; each one shone like a precious stone, and each had another wheel intersecting it at right angles, 17 so that the wheels could move in any of the four directions. 18 The rims of the wheels were covered with eyes. 19 Whenever the creatures moved, the wheels moved with them, and if the creatures rose up from the earth, so did the wheels. 20 The creatures went wherever they wished, and the wheels did exactly what the creatures did, because the creatures controlled them. 21 So every time the creatures moved or stopped or rose in the air, the wheels did exactly the same.
22 Above the heads of the creatures there was something that looked like a dome made of dazzling crystal. 23 There under the dome stood the creatures, each stretching out two wings toward the ones next to it and covering its body with the other two wings. 24 I heard the noise their wings made in flight; it sounded like the roar of the sea, like the noise of a huge army, like the voice of Almighty God. When they stopped flying, they folded their wings, 25 but there was still a sound coming from above the dome over their heads.
26 Above the dome there was something that looked like a throne made of sapphire, and sitting on the throne was a figure that looked like a human being. 27 The figure seemed to be shining like bronze in the middle of a fire. It shone all over with a bright light 28 that had in it all the colors of the rainbow. This was the dazzling light which shows the presence of the Lord.
God Calls Ezekiel to Be a Prophet
When I saw this, I fell face downward on the ground. Then I heard a voice
Esekieli ǂguro ai-i Elob xa hâ-i
Elob di trons
1 ǃNonadisiǁî kurib ǃnâ, koroǁî tsēs hakaǁî ǁkhâb dis ai ta ǃkhōsaben ǁaegu Kebarǃāb tawa hâ hîab ge ǀhomma ge ǁkhowa-amsen tsî ta ge Elob di ai-e ge mû. 2 Koroǁî tsēs ǁkhâb dis ai, Gao-aob Jojakinni koro kuriga ǃkhōsis ǃnâb hâ hîas 3 ge ǃKhūb mîsa Busi ôab prister Esekieli tawa ge hā, Xaldeaǁîn di ǃhūb Kebarǃāb tawa ǁgoeb ǃnâ; tsîb ge ǃKhūb ǃomma ǁnāpa ǁîb ai ge hâ i.
4 Kō ta ra hîas ge ǁkhō ǂoasa ǀapasǀkhāba xu ge hā, tsîs ge kai ǃâus, ǂnamipeb âs gere ǂkhais tsî ǀû tamase gere nani ǀaes, ǁîs ǁaegub ǃnâ i brons-i khami ra ǂkhai xū-e hâsa ge hâ i. 5 ǁÎs ǁaegu i ge haka ûitsama kurusabegu khami ī xū-e ge hâ i. ǁÎgu ge khoe-i khami ge ī i. 6 Mâb hoab ge haka aidi tsî haka ǁgabogu tsîna ge ūhâ i. 7 ǁÎgu ǀnūgu ge ge ǂhanu i tsî ǂaiǃnāgu ge tsâu-i ǁkhoradi ǃnakab khami ge ī i; tsî gu ge ǂkhaiǂkhaihe hâ brons i khami gere napa. 8 ǁÎgu ge khoeǃomga ǁgabogu ǃnaka, hoa haka ǀkhāgu ai ge ūhâ i. Tsî ǁnā-amaga gu ge haka kurusabega ǁîgu aidi tsî ǁgabogu tsîna ge ūhâ i: 9 ǁÎgu ǁgabogu ge gere tsâǀkhāgu; mâb hoab ge ǂhanuse, unusen tamase ge ǃgû.
10 ǁÎgu aidi di īb ǃoa gu ge hakaga mâb hoaba khoe-i aisa aisǀkhāb ai ge ūhâ i, xammi di aisa amǀkhāb ai, gomab di aisa ǁareǀkhāb ai tsî ǁkhāti ǃariǃkhās di ais tsîna; 11 ǁîgu aidi ge ǁnāti ge ī i. ǁÎgu ǁgabogu ge ǀgapise ge ǃāǂuisa i; mâb hoab ge ǀgam ǁgabokha ge ūhâ i, ǀguib di ǁgabob ge naub di ǁgaboba gere tsâǀkhā, ǀgamkha ge ǁîgu sorode gere ǃgū-ai. 12 Mâb hoab ge ǃoa gere aiǃgû; gagab ra ǃgû ǃkhai-i hoa-i ǁga, ǃgû gu garu daoba xu ǁgôa tamase.
13 Ûitsama kurusabegu ǁaegu i ge xū-e ge hâ i khau ra ǂnomdi ǀaes didi khami ī-e, ǃamǀaedi ûitsama kurusabegu ǁaegu ra gondi khami; ǀaes ge ǃgāsase gere ǃnâ tsî ǀaesa xub ge napaba gere hā. 14 Napab di nanib khami gu ge ûitsama kurusabega nēpas, naupas ti gere napa.
15 Ûitsama kurusabega ta ge kō, o ta ge ǀnūsa ǃhūb ai ûitsama kurusabegu xōǀkhā ge mû, mâb hoab xōǀkhās ge ǀnūsa ge hâ i. 16 Nē ǀnūdi īb tsî kuruǀgaub ge ǃgomǀgausa turkoesǀuis khami ge ī i, tsî di ge nē ǀnūde ǀguiti ge ī i tsî ǁîdi ge ǀnūs ǀnî ǀnūs ǃnâ kuruǂgāsa khami ge ī i. 17 Gon di ga, o di ge mâ ǀkhāb hoab haka ǀkhāgu dib ǃoa gere ǃkhoe, garu di a ǀkhāba xu dabasen tamase. 18 ǁÎdi ǀnūǀuridi ge gaxu tsî ǃaorosa ge i, haka ǀnūǀuridi hoadi ge hoaraga ǂnamipeb âdi ai mûde ūhâ i xui-ao. 19 Ûitsama kurusabegu ga ǃgû, o di ge ǀnūdi tsîna ǁîgu xōǀkhā gere ǃkhoe tsî ǁîgu ga ǃhūba xu khâi, o di ge ǀnūdi tsîna gere khâi. 20 Gagab ra ǃgû ǃkhai-i hoa-i ǁga di ge ǁîdi tsîna gere ǃgû tsî di ge ǀnūde ǁîgu ǀkha gere khâimâ; ûitsama kurusabegu di gagab ge ǀnūdi ǃnâ hâ i xui-ao. 21 ǁÎgu ga ǃgû, o di ge ǁîdi tsîna gere ǃkhoe; ǁîgu ga mâ, o di ge ǁîdi tsîna gere mâ tsî ǁîgu ga ǃhūbaiba xu khâi, o di ge ǀnūdi tsîna ǁîgu ǀkha gere khâi, ûitsama kurusabegu di gagas ge ǀnūdi ǃnâ hâ i xui-ao.
22 Ûitsama kurusabegu di danadi ǂamai i ge xū-i, ǃāǂuisab khami ī-e ge hâ i, ǂkhai ra kristal-i khami ge ǁîgu danadi ǀgapiga khoraǂuisa i-e. 23 ǃĀǂuisab ǃnaka gu ge ǁîgu ǁgaboga ǂhanuse ge khoraǃāsa i, mâb hoaba naub ǃoagu; tsî mâ kurusabeb hoab ge ǁîb sorosa ra ǃgū-ai ǁgabokha ge ūhâ i. 24 ǁÎgu ga ǁkhana, o ta ge ǂgui ǁgamgu di ǀōb xase ǁîgu ǁgapogu ǀōba gere ǁnâu, Hoaǀgaixab di ǃgurub tamas ka io toroǂnubis di ǀōb khami. ǁKhanaǀû gu ka, o gu ge ǁgabogu âga gere ǃgam. 25 O i ge dom-e ǁîgu danadi ǂamai hâ ǃāǂuisaba xu gere hā; ǁkhanaǀû gu ka, o gu ge ǁgabogu âga gere ǃgam.
26 Tsî ǁîgu danadi ǂamai hâ ǃāǂuisab ǀgapise i ge tron-i khami ī xū-i, ǃgomǀgausa safirǀui-i khami ra mûsen-e ge hâ i. Trons ai i ge khoe-i khami gere mûsen xū-e ge ǂnôa i. 27 O ta ge kamanab âb ǀgapise brons-i ǂkhaiba ūhâ xū-e ge mû. ǁÎb kamanab ǃnakab ai ta ge ǀae-i khami ī xū-e ge mû, tsî ǁnāpab ge ǁîb ǂnamipe ǂkhai ra ǃnâba ge hâ i. 28 ǀApi ra ǀnanub ǃâudi ǃnâb ǀapiǃhanaba ǂgui ǀûga ra ǁgauǂui, khamib ge ǁîb ǂnamipe hâ ǂkhaiba ge ī i. Nēs ge ǃKhūb di ǂkhaisib ge ī i ǀgausa.
Elob ge Esekiela kēbo-aosis ǃoa ra ǂgai
Nēsa ta ge mû, o ta ge ais âtas ai ge ǁnāǁgoe. Tsî ta ge khoe-i dom-e ge ǁnâu,
