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
Emoniko lyotango lyaHesekiel ta mono Kalunga
Iinamwenyo neadhimo lyOmuwa
1 Mesiku etitano lyomwedhi omutine gwomumvo omutimulongo nomutitatu, ngame, omuyambi Hesekiel yaBusi, sho nda kala pamwe naapongekwa Aajuda pomulonga Kebar muBabilon, egulu olye eguluka nonda mono emoniko lyaKalunga. 2 (Ogwa li omumvo omutitano, sho omukwaniilwa Jehoiakin a li a falwa muupongekwa.) 3 Mwiyaka muBabilonia pomulonga Kebar ondu uvu Omuwa ta popitha ndje, noshikaha she osha thinda ndje.
4 Onda ligamene nonda mono okambiya taka zi kuumbangalantu, ka fa oshikogo oshinene sha geta omulilo, newangandjo lye shi kunduka olya li lya hanya. Mokati kasho omwa li eadhimo tali tayima, lya fa oshikushu sha hanya. 5 Mokati kokambiya onda ndhindhilike mo iinamwenyo ine molupe lwomuntu, 6 ihe kehe shimwe shomuyo osha li shi na iipala ine nomawawa gane. 7 Omagulu gayo oga li gu ukilila, noya li yi na omakondo ga fa gongombe. Taga adhima ga fa oshikushu sha kwehulwa. 8 Kakele kiipala ine nomawawa gane, kehe shimwe oshi na iikaha ine, oshikaha shimwe kohi yewawa kehe. 9 Omawawa gaali goshinamwenyo kehe oga li ga yalalekwa taga gumathana nogoshikwawo. Mokweenda oyu ukilila owala, inayi punguluka.
10 Oshinamwenyo kehe osha li shi na iipala ine: komeho oshipala shomuntu, kolulyo oshipala shonime, kolumoho oshipala shongombe nokonima oshipala shekodhi. 11 Omawawa gaali goshinamwenyo kehe oga li ga yeluka ga gumathana noondungu dhomawawa goshinamwenyo kehe she shi egama, nomawawa gaali oga li ga lambalala olutu lwasho. 12 Oshinamwenyo kehe osha li sha tala koombinga adhihe ne, onkee ongundu ya vulu okuya shaa hoka ya hala, pwaa na epunguluko lyasha.
13 Mokati kiinamwenyo omwa li sha sha geta sha fa onyeka, tashi inyenganyenga aluhe. Omulilo ogwa li gwa yaka gu na omalaka taga igandjana. 14 Iinamwenyo oya telagana nokuuka huka naahwiyaka ngeshelo lyolwaadhi.
15 Sho nda tongolola iinamwenyo, onda mono omagulutemba gane ga guma pevi; okugulu kumwe okwa li kombinga yoshinamwenyo kehe. 16 Omagulutemba agehe gane oga li ga faathana, shaa nkoka otaku adhima kwa fa emanya li na ondilo, noshaa hoka okwa li ku na okugulutemba okukwawo kwe ku shigakana mokati, 17 opo okugulutemba kehe otaku ngoongola mokati koombinga adhihe ne. 18 Omigoyo dhomagulutemba odha li dhu udha omeho. 19 Shaa hoka iinamwenyo tayi uka, nomagulutemba oko taga uka pamwe nayo; niinamwenyo nge tayi yeluka po pevi, nomagulutemba osho taga ningi wo. 20 Iinamwenyo otayi yi shaa nkoka ya hala, nomagulutemba otaga ningi naanaa, ngaashi iinamwenyo tayi ningi, oshoka iinamwenyo otayi ga utha. 21 Onkee shaa tuu iinamwenyo tayi yi nenge tayi thikama nenge tayi uka mombanda, nomagulutemba osho naanaa taga ningi wo.
22 Kombanda yomitse dhiinamwenyo okwa li ondunda ya tungwa momamanya gokristali taga adhima. 23 Iinamwenyo oya li meni lyondunda, shaa shoka sha yalaleka omawawa gaali gu uka pushoka shi li pusho, noshi isiikile nomawawa gaali. 24 Ondu uvu oshihomo shomawawa gayo, sho tayi papama mokutuka. Oshihomo shoka osha fa shefuta, sha fa oshihomo shetangakwiita enene, sha fa oshihomo shaKalunga Omunankondoawike. Nge ya lambele, otayi gonyo omawawa gayo, 25 ihe natango oshihomo otashi pupu pombanda yondunda komitse dhayo.
26 Kombanda yondunda yayo okwa li sha sha fa oshipangelapundi sha ningwa mosafire, nokoshipangelapundi kwa kuutumba nakukala a fa omuntu. 27 Olupe lwe olwa fa eadhimo lyoshikushu shi li meziko lya hanya. Koombinga adhihe ota tayima uuyelele wo wene. 28 Meadhimo omwa li omalwaala agehe guutamvula. Osho sha li olupe lweadhimo lyOmuwa.
