God on the Move: The Throne-Chariot of God Text: Ezekiel 1:1-21
Introduction: A God for Exiles
We live in an age that wants a domesticated God. We want a God who stays put, a God who can be neatly confined to the ornate box we build for Him called "religion." We want a God for Sunday mornings, a God for private thoughts, a God of the heart, but not a God of the world. We want a God who is a respectable hobby, not a consuming fire. The ancient pagans were no different. Their gods were local deities, tied to a particular mountain, city, or temple. If you conquered the city, you conquered its god. And so, for the exiles in Babylon, huddled by the Chebar canal, the conclusion was grimly logical: Nebuchadnezzar had sacked Jerusalem, so Marduk must have defeated Yahweh. Their God was either dead or imprisoned, left behind in the rubble of Solomon's Temple.
Into this profound despair, this crisis of faith, the heavens are torn open, and God gives the prophet Ezekiel a vision. And this vision is not of a stationary God, wringing His hands on a dusty throne back in Judah. The vision is of a God on the move. The vision is of a throne that is not a piece of furniture, but a terrifying, all-terrain, mobile command center. It is a vision designed to shatter every small, localized, manageable conception of God. It is a declaration that Yahweh is not the God of the hills only, but of the valleys also. He is not the God of Jerusalem only, but of Babylon also. He is the sovereign Lord of all creation, and He rules the universe from the very heart of the pagan empire that imagines it has defeated Him.
This is a truth our own generation desperately needs to recover. We are exiles in a new Babylon, a secular culture that has declared God irrelevant and the church defeated. And many Christians have tacitly agreed, retreating into their private spiritual ghettos. But Ezekiel's vision is God's polemic against this retreat. It tells us that God is not contained by our circumstances. He is not flustered by political upheaval. He is not intimidated by the arrogance of godless men. His throne is on the move, His providence is at work, and He is utterly and completely sovereign, right here, right now.
The Text
Now it happened in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. (On the fifth of the month in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile, the word of Yahweh came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and there the hand of Yahweh came upon him.)
Then I looked, and behold, a storm wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing forth continually and a bright light all around it, and in its midst something like the gleam of glowing metal in the midst of the fire. And within it there were figures with the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. And each of them had four faces and four wings. And their legs were straight, and their feet were like a calf’s hoof, and they sparkled like the gleam of burnished bronze. And under their wings on their four sides were hands of a man. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, their wings touched one another; their faces did not turn as they went; each went straight forward. And as for the likeness of their faces, each had the face of a man; all four had the face of a lion on the right and the face of a bull on the left, and all four had the face of an eagle. And such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above; each had two touching another being, and two covering their bodies. And each went straight forward; wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go, without turning as they went. As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches going back and forth among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and lightning was flashing from the fire. And the living creatures ran to and fro with the appearance of lightning.
Then I looked at the living creatures, and behold, there was one wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, for each of the four of them. The appearance of the wheels and their workmanship was like the gleam of beryl, and all four of them had the same likeness, their appearance and workmanship being as if one wheel were within another. Whenever they went, they went in any of their four directions without turning as they went. And as for their rims, they were lofty and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were full of eyes all around. And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them. And when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose also. Wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go in that direction, where the spirit was about to go. And the wheels rose alongside of them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. Whenever those went, these went; and whenever those stood still, these stood still. And whenever those rose from the earth, the wheels rose close beside them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.
(Ezekiel 1:1-21 LSB)
The Setting for Revelation (vv. 1-3)
The vision begins with a specific man, in a specific place, at a specific time.
"...while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles... the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God... the hand of Yahweh came upon him." (Ezekiel 1:1, 3)
God's revelation is not an abstract philosophy; it is anchored in history. Ezekiel is a priest, but his temple is gone. His vocation has been rendered obsolete. He is unemployed, displaced, and a refugee. And it is precisely here, at the end of his own strength and in the midst of his people's humiliation, that God meets him. God does not wait until our circumstances are tidy. He invades our chaos. He reveals His glory not in the pristine sanctuary, but by the muddy canals of pagan Babylon.
Notice the initiative. The heavens were opened. Ezekiel did not pry them open. Man does not discover God; God discloses Himself. And the hand of Yahweh came upon him. This is not a gentle invitation. This is a divine seizure. God lays hold of His prophets and commissions them. This is a sovereign act from start to finish. God is about to speak, and He begins by reminding us that He is the one who sets the terms of the conversation.
The Awful Approach (vv. 4-14)
What Ezekiel sees first is the terrifying approach of the divine presence.
"Then I looked, and behold, a storm wind was coming from the north, a great cloud with fire flashing forth continually and a bright light all around it..." (Ezekiel 1:4 LSB)
This is the language of theophany. This is the God of Mount Sinai, wrapped in smoke and fire, showing up in Mesopotamia. The storm comes from the north, a direction often associated with judgment and the dwelling place of God. This is not a gentle breeze; it is a hurricane of divine power. God is not safe, as our therapeutic age would have it. He is glorious, holy, and terrifying. To see Him is to be undone.
Out of the heart of this storm come the living creatures, the Cherubim. These are the guardians of God's throne, the very beings who guarded the way back to the Tree of Life with a flaming sword. They are a picture of redeemed creation, harnessed in perfect service to the Creator. They have four faces: that of a man, a lion, a bull, and an eagle. This represents the pinnacle of all created life. The man represents intelligence and dominion. The lion, king of the wild beasts, represents royalty. The bull, the strongest of the domestic animals, represents strength and service. The eagle, lord of the sky, represents swiftness and transcendence. All the glories of the created order find their ultimate purpose not in themselves, but in bearing the throne of their Maker.
Their movement is key: "each went straight forward; wherever the spirit was about to go, they would go, without turning as they went." This is a picture of perfect, unhesitating obedience. There is no deviation, no questioning, no sideways glance. The will of the Spirit is translated into immediate action. This is a profound rebuke to our own faltering, compromised, and crooked obedience. They are filled with the fire of God, flashing like lightning, embodying the dynamic, holy energy of the one they serve.
The Wheels of Providence (vv. 15-21)
As if the vision were not strange enough, Ezekiel now sees the wheels.
"Then I looked... and behold, there was one wheel on the earth beside the living creatures... their appearance and workmanship being as if one wheel were within another." (Ezekiel 1:15-16 LSB)
These wheels are God's providence. The first thing to notice is that they are "on the earth." God's heavenly rule is not detached from earthly realities. His sovereignty has traction. It is engaged with the grit and grime of our world. The throne of God is not an abstract idea; it has wheels on your street.
The design of these wheels is glorious. They are like a "wheel within another," set at right angles. This means they can move in any of the four directions without needing to turn. God's providence is never caught off guard. He never has to stop, back up, and change direction. What looks to us like a chaotic detour is, from His perspective, simply moving "straight forward." He can handle any contingency, any eventuality, with perfect agility.
And the rims of the wheels are even more staggering.
"And as for their rims, they were lofty and awesome, and the rims of all four of them were full of eyes all around." (Ezekiel 1:18 LSB)
God's providence is not blind fate. It is not a dumb, impersonal force. It is intelligent, watchful, and omniscient. The wheels are full of eyes. The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. Not a single detail of your life, not a single political machination in the halls of power, escapes His gaze. His plan is not a rough sketch; it is an infinitely detailed blueprint, and He is watching over every part of it.
And here is the linchpin that connects it all. The movement of the heavenly creatures and the earthly wheels are perfectly synchronized. Why?
"...for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels." (Ezekiel 1:20 LSB)
The same Holy Spirit who directs the angelic hosts in heaven is the same Spirit who directs the circumstances of history on earth. There is one will, one purpose, one sovereign plan. The spiritual realm and the material realm are not disconnected. The will of the Spirit moves the Cherubim, and that same will moves the wheels. What happens in the throne room of heaven is inextricably and sovereignly linked to what happens by the river Chebar. There is no division. It is one, unified, unstoppable operation.
Our God is Not Stuck
For Ezekiel and the exiles, this vision was a profound comfort. Their God was not a casualty of war. He was not a provincial deity left behind in the ruins. He was the sovereign King of the universe, enthroned above the Cherubim, whose all-seeing providence was active and at work right there in the heart of their captivity. God was ruling over Babylon, from Babylon. His purposes had not been thwarted; they were being accomplished.
The application for us is exactly the same. We live in a world that seems to be spinning out of control. We see the rise of wickedness and the decay of our culture, and we are tempted to despair. We are tempted to think that God is absent, or that His kingdom has been defeated. We act like the church is a small, frightened garrison under siege, hoping to hold out until the end.
But Ezekiel's vision is a cannon shot into the heart of that thinking. Our God is not stuck. His throne is not a stationary relic. It is a mobile, fiery, all-seeing command center. The same Spirit that directs the hosts of heaven is the same Spirit that is in the wheels of our daily lives, our national politics, and the course of history. He is not reacting to events; He is directing them. And He always, always moves straight forward.
Therefore, we are not to be afraid. The storm we see is the storm He rides. The fire we fear is the fire of His presence. The complex and confusing events of our time are the wheels of His intricate and all-seeing providence. Our God is on the move, and His kingdom is advancing, even here, even now, in the heart of our modern Babylon. And nothing can stop Him.