Gemstones: The Anointed Cherub in Eden: Understanding Ezekiel 28 – Part 1

[Study Aired December 30, 2025]

Introduction

Ezekiel 28 stands among the most layered and spiritually demanding passages in all of Scripture. Though often approached as a historical prophecy against the rulers of ancient Tyre, the chapter itself presses far beyond the limits of earthly kingship. It begins with a judgment against the prince of Tyre—a man whose heart was lifted up in pride—and then moves to a lamentation over the king of Tyre, described in language that transcends any merely human ruler. This second figure is said to have been in Eden, clothed with precious stones, anointed as a covering cherub, walking in the midst of stones of fire. Such language demands a spiritual reading, for it cannot be satisfied by historical circumstance alone.

Scripture instructs us that spiritual truths are not discerned by the natural mind, nor are eternal realities confined to what is outwardly seen:

“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)

“While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18)

For this reason, Ezekiel 28 must be approached according to the pattern Scripture itself establishes—precept upon precept, line upon line, allowing God’s Word to interpret God’s Word:

“For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.” (Isaiah 28:10)

When read in this way, the passage reveals not the fall of a celestial being (Satan), but a divinely ordered pattern concerning humanity itself. The king of Tyre is presented as an archetypal figure, describing man as he was created—complete for purpose, adorned with glory, yet natural and subject to vanity. This condition was not the result of an unforeseen failure, but of God’s sovereign design.

The apostle Paul states this plainly:

“For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope.” (Romans 8:20)

Humanity was created in a natural, earthy state—full of beauty and wisdom, yet vulnerable to pride and self-exaltation. This was not a fall from spiritual perfection, but the necessary first stage in God’s redemptive purpose. As Scripture declares, “that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual” (1 Corinthians 15:46).

Ezekiel 28 therefore serves as a revelation of this divine process. It exposes the nature of the first man, the carnal mind, and the pride inherent in external glory. At the same time, it points forward to God’s solution—judgment not unto destruction, but unto transformation; fire not to annihilate, but to refine; and the ultimate purpose of conforming humanity to the image of Christ, the Last Adam.

This study will examine the imagery of Eden, precious stones, gold, judgment, and the anointed cherub within the full witness of Scripture. By tracing these patterns from the Law to the Prophets and into their fulfillment in Christ, we will see that Ezekiel 28 reveals God’s wisdom in creating man natural, judging him righteously, and transforming him spiritually—bringing forth sons conformed to the image of His Son.

The Prince and King: Two Distinct Judgments

Ezekiel 28 deliberately separates its prophecy into two distinct addresses: one directed to the prince of Tyre and another to the king of Tyre. This distinction is essential, for the language, scope, and spiritual depth of each passage differ markedly. The prophet is not merely repeating himself; he is unveiling two related but distinct aspects of judgment—one temporal and one archetypal.

The judgment against the prince of Tyre addresses a man operating within the realm of earthly power. God declares:

“Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God.” (Ezekiel 28:2)

Here, the emphasis is unmistakable: “thou art a man, and not God.” The prince represents human authority exercised in pride, wisdom corrupted by self-exaltation, and confidence rooted in prosperity rather than dependence upon God. His claim to divinity is not expressed through theology, but through posture— “I sit in the seat of God.” This is the carnal mind enthroning itself.

The prince’s wisdom, trade, and wealth become the instruments of his deception. His success persuades him that he is self-sufficient, blurring the boundary between creature and Creator. Scripture consistently identifies this progression: wisdom producing increase, increase fostering self-trust, and self-trust culminating in exaltation of self as God.

This pattern appears elsewhere in Scripture, most notably in the prophetic language spoken against Babylon:

“For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven… I will be like the most High.” (Isaiah 14:13–14)

It also finds expression in the apostolic warning concerning the man of sin:

“So that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thessalonians 2:4)

Scripture defines that temple clearly:

“Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you…?” (1 Corinthians 6:19)

The prince of Tyre therefore represents the old man—the carnal nature enthroned within the human vessel, asserting autonomy, wisdom, and authority apart from God. This is not merely a political problem; it is a spiritual condition shared by all humanity in its natural state.

God’s judgment upon the prince reflects this reality:

“Behold, therefore I will bring strangers upon thee… and they shall defile thy brightness.” (Ezekiel 28:7)

The very wisdom and splendour that elevated the prince become the means of his humiliation. His judgment takes place “in the midst of the seas,” a phrase Scripture interprets as peoples and multitudes (Revelation 17:15). He is brought down through the same system that once exalted him, revealing the futility of human glory rooted in commerce, influence, and self-rule.

The prophecy then shifts. No longer does God address the prince, but now commands a lamentation for the king of Tyre. The language immediately moves beyond earthly categories:

“Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God…” (Ezekiel 28:12–13)

Unlike the prince, the king is not addressed merely as a ruler among nations. He is placed in Eden. He is clothed with precious stones. He is described as created, anointed, and set by God. These details cannot be confined to a historical monarch, nor do they describe a contemporary political authority. The scope has expanded.

The transition from prince to king marks a movement from manifest pride to origin, from outward rule to inward condition, from present authority to foundational identity. The king of Tyre represents not a specific man, but man as he was created—humanity in its original, natural state, adorned with glory yet vulnerable to corruption.

Where the prince shows what the carnal mind becomes when exalted, the king reveals what the carnal nature is, even before judgment manifests openly. Together, the two figures form a complete picture: the prince displays the fruit, the king reveals the root.

This twofold structure is not accidental. It allows Scripture to reveal both the operation of pride in time and the origin of that pride in creation. The prince is judged for what he does; the king is lamented for what he is. The former is temporal and visible; the latter is archetypal and foundational.

Understanding this distinction is essential. Without it, Ezekiel 28 collapses into confusion. With it, the passage unfolds as a coherent revelation of humanity’s condition—created natural, elevated in beauty, corrupted through pride, and destined for judgment that leads not to annihilation, but to transformation.

The Anointed Cherub in Eden: Created Natural, Not Fallen

The lamentation over the king of Tyre introduces language that immediately transcends the realm of historical kingship. The figure described is said to have been in Eden, adorned with precious stones, created by God, and anointed as a covering cherub. Such imagery cannot be confined to a Phoenician ruler, nor does it describe a political office. Instead, Scripture draws our attention back to origins—to creation itself.

“Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God…” (Ezekiel 28:12–13)

These words describe completeness, beauty, and divine placement. Yet they also describe a created being—one brought forth by God, not eternal, not self-existent. The text states plainly that this figure was created, and that what followed unfolded according to God’s sovereign purpose.

For centuries, this passage has been misapplied to a supposed fall of Satan from heaven. However, Scripture itself does not support such a narrative. Christ declared unequivocally concerning the devil:

“He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth.” (John 8:44)

The adversary was not righteous and then corrupted; he was a murderer from the beginning. Likewise, God declares:

“I have created the waster to destroy.” (Isaiah 54:16)

These statements dismantle the idea of a pristine spiritual being who fell into evil. Instead, Scripture presents creation as proceeding according to divine intent, with each element formed for its purpose—including those instruments used in judgment and testing.

The anointed cherub in Ezekiel 28 therefore does not represent a fall from spiritual perfection, but humanity as it was created—complete for purpose, yet natural. Paul explains this foundational truth:

“For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope.” (Romans 8:20)

Humanity did not choose this condition; it was imposed by God Himself, and it was imposed in hope. The condition of vanity was not a curse resulting from divine failure, but a necessary stage in God’s redemptive design.

This is further clarified by the order Scripture establishes between the natural and the spiritual:

“Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.” (1 Corinthians 15:46)

The first man was created natural—earthy, visible, temporal. He was not created immortal, incorruptible, or spiritually complete. He was created fit for purpose as the first Adam.

The word translated “perfect” in Ezekiel 28:15 is the Hebrew tamim, meaning complete, whole, or sound. It does not mean morally flawless or spiritually finished. It describes something fully formed for its intended function. Adam was perfect in this sense—fully equipped as the natural man, lacking nothing required of the first creation. Yet that very completeness included susceptibility to pride, self-exaltation, and corruption.

This explains the statement:

“Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” (Ezekiel 28:15)

The iniquity was not implanted later by accident, nor did it arise from an unforeseen rebellion. It was found—brought to light, made manifest—according to God’s purpose. As Paul explains, creation was subjected to this condition so that deliverance might follow.

David acknowledged this reality when he wrote:

“Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” (Psalm 51:5)

This is not a lament over inherited guilt from a fallen perfection, but an acknowledgement of humanity’s natural condition from the beginning. We are formed earthy, subject to corruption, dependent upon God for transformation.

The anointed cherub in Eden therefore represents humanity in its original state—placed in proximity to God’s glory, adorned with beauty and wisdom, yet natural and incomplete with respect to spiritual life. This condition was not an error to be corrected, but a foundation upon which God would build something greater.

Scripture confirms that the natural was never meant to remain:

“The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.” (1 Corinthians 15:47)

Ezekiel 28 reveals this pattern in prophetic form. The cherub is created, adorned, and set by God—yet destined to pass through judgment, fire, and humbling so that what is natural might give way to what is spiritual. The passage does not describe a cosmic accident, but a divinely ordered process leading from the first Adam to the Last.

The Divine Pattern of Precious Stones: From Twelve to Nine to Twelve

The precious stones described in Ezekiel 28 are not ornamental details added for poetic effect. Scripture consistently uses stones as identifiers of people, covenantal order, and spiritual structure. When the stones of Ezekiel 28 are examined alongside the Law and the Revelation of Jesus Christ, a deliberate and progressive pattern emerges—one that reveals God’s purpose in moving humanity from the natural to the spiritual.

This pattern appears in three primary scriptural settings:

1. The high priest’s breastplate
2. The anointed cherub in Eden
3. The foundations of the New Jerusalem

Each setting reveals a different stage in God’s redemptive work.

The High Priest’s Breastplate — Twelve Stones Set in Gold

Under the Law, the high priest bore a breastplate containing twelve precious stones, each engraved with the name of a tribe of Israel:

“And thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row. And the second row shall be an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond. And the third row a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst. And the fourth row a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper: they shall be set in gold in their inclosings” (Exodus 28:17-20).

These stones were not free-standing; they were set in gold. The tribes were carried before God externally, upon the breastplate, mediated through priestly service. This arrangement represents Israel after the flesh—chosen, ordered, and adorned, yet still natural and dependent upon an external system of righteousness.

The numerical pattern is instructive. Twelve stones combined with gold (13) form a composite picture that Scripture elsewhere associates with rebellion and insufficiency. Israel served twelve years, but rebelled in the thirteenth (Genesis 14:4). The flesh, even when placed within a divinely appointed structure, cannot bring forth spiritual life. External glory does not resolve internal corruption.

The breastplate therefore reveals the limitation of outward religion: beauty without transformation, order without life.

The Anointed Cherub in Eden — Nine Stones and Gold

The description of the anointed cherub introduces a significant change:

“Every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold.” (Ezekiel 28:13)

Unlike the breastplate, only nine stones are named. Gold is still present, but no longer merely as a setting—it stands alongside the stones. This shift is deliberate.

Throughout Scripture, the number nine is consistently associated with judgment, completeness of testimony, and chastening. The pre-flood patriarchs lived into their nine hundreds and then died. Israel was judged after nine years under Hosea (2 Kings 17). Judgment reaches its fullness before transition occurs.

Here, nine stones plus gold form a new composite picture: completion of the natural man (10) under judgment (9). This is no longer rebellion through external religion, but refinement through exposure and testing. Gold, representing what is of God, is no longer merely framing the stones; it is being refined with them.

This corresponds precisely with Scripture’s teaching:

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth… For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby” (Hebrews 12:6, 10-11).

The anointed cherub is not glorified; he is being prepared. The stones serve as covering, but that covering is temporary. Judgment is underway, to begin the destruction of the carnal mind and to bring the natural man to completion so that transformation may follow.

“It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, and such fornication as is not so much as named among the Gentiles, that one should have his father’s wife. And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Corinthians 5:1-8)

The Foundations of the New Jerusalem — Twelve Stones Alone

The final appearance of precious stones occurs in Revelation:

“And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolyte; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst” (Revelation 21:19-20).

Here, twelve stones appear once more—but with a crucial distinction. They are no longer a covering. They are no longer set in gold. They are foundations.

The text explains their identity:

“And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:14)

This is no longer Israel after the flesh, nor humanity under judgment. This is the completed spiritual structure—God’s dwelling place with man. The divine nature once symbolized by gold has been fully internalized. There is no external framework because no separation remains.

The progression is unmistakable:

Breastplate: Stones externally set in gold

Cherub: Stones serving as temporary covering alongside gold

City: Stones themselves become the foundation

What was external becomes internal. What was decorative becomes structural. What once adorned now supports.

The Pattern Reveals God’s Purpose

This progression reveals God’s intent from the beginning. Humanity was never meant to remain externally adorned but internally transformed. The natural man must pass through judgment so that the divine nature may be fully integrated.

Paul describes this transformation plainly:

“If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

The stones of Ezekiel 28 therefore belong to a process, not a final state. They testify that God works through stages—natural glory, judgment, and spiritual completion. The anointed cherub stands between the breastplate and the city, between shadow and substance, between the first Adam and the Last.

This pattern prepares us for what follows: the role of judgment, fire, and refinement in bringing forth what is eternal.

Gold: The Divine Element Through Judgment

Gold occupies a unique place in Scripture. Unlike base metals, it does not corrode, decay, or lose its substance under pressure. For this reason, gold consistently represents what is most precious, enduring, and incorruptible in God’s sight. When Scripture speaks of gold in connection with fire, it is revealing not destruction, but refinement.

The first mention of gold establishes this principle:

“And the gold of that land is good.” (Genesis 2:12)

Gold is declared “good” not because it is untouched by fire, but because it can endure fire without being consumed. This enduring quality makes gold an apt symbol of what is of God—what remains when all that is corruptible is removed.

God’s law reveals how purification works:

“Only the gold, and the silver… everything that may abide the fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean.” (Numbers 31:22–23)

Fire does not destroy gold; it exposes and removes what is not gold. This principle governs God’s work in humanity. Judgment is not arbitrary punishment but a necessary process through which what is false is consumed and what is true is revealed.

The prophets consistently describe God’s judgment in these terms:

“And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God” (Zechariah 13:9)

“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness” (Malachi 3:2–3)

The fire of God is purposeful, measured, and redemptive. It is applied not to annihilate, but to prepare a people capable of offering righteousness.

This refining fire is not external only; it works inwardly. Peter makes this clear:

“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter 1:7-9)

Faith itself is refined through trial, just as gold is refined through heat. The outward affliction corresponds to an inward transformation.

This is precisely the context in which gold appears in Ezekiel 28. Gold is listed alongside the precious stones of the anointed cherub—not as ornamentation, but as an element undergoing refinement. The cherub’s judgment culminates in a striking declaration:

“Therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee; it shall devour thee.” (Ezekiel 28:18)

The fire originates from within. This is not foreign destruction imposed from without, but internal purification. The same principle appears in the apostolic witness:

“Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:13)

The fire tests works, not identity. What cannot endure is consumed; what is of God remains. Even when loss occurs, salvation is not negated:

“If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:14-15)

Judgment, then, is not God’s abandonment of the creature, but His commitment to transformation. It is the means by which pride is humbled, self-exaltation is burned away, and true substance is revealed.

This is why Christ counsels the church of Laodicea:

“I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire.” (Revelation 3:18)

The church lacked nothing outwardly, yet possessed nothing enduring inwardly. Gold tried in fire is not acquired through prosperity or knowledge, but through submission to God’s refining work.

The anointed cherub’s experience reflects this same reality. The gold that once adorned now enters the fire. What was external is drawn inward. What was merely covering is tested to determine what can endure.

God’s judgment is therefore not contrary to His love; it is the expression of it:

“For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth.” (Hebrews 12:6)

The purpose is not punishment, but participation—“that we might be partakers of his holiness” (Hebrews 12:10). Fire produces purity, and purity prepares for communion.

Gold, when refined, loses nothing of its nature—only what was never truly gold. Likewise, judgment removes what is carnal, leaving what is of God intact. Through this process, the natural man reaches completion, making way for spiritual transformation.

The fire that refines gold is the same fire that prepares living stones to become a spiritual house. It is the fire that consumes pride, trafficked religion, and self-will, while revealing faith, obedience, and truth. This refining work stands at the center of God’s purpose, bridging the natural and the spiritual, the first Adam and the Last.

Ezekiel 24:1-27  The Siege of Jerusalem and the Death of Ezekiel’s Wife

[Study Aired July 22, 2024]

Introduction

Today’s study focuses on the sins of the house of Israel which had necessitated the need for them to be judged by the Lord using the king of Babylon as His instrument of judgment by laying siege against Jerusalem. The house of Israel is Babylon or the physical churches of this world of which we were part of during a certain period of our journey with Christ. The study today therefore shows us our sins and the need for us to be judged in order to learn righteousness.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9 With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness. 

In addition, the study also highlights the death of Ezekiel’s wife and what it means to us today. These things were written for our admonition upon whom the “ends of the world are come.”

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 
1Co 10:12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 

The Judgment of the Lord is Here with Us

Eze 24:1  Again in the ninth year, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 
Eze 24:2  Son of man, write thee the name of the day, even of this same day: the king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem this same day. 

The number nine symbolizes the judgment of the Lord, and the number 10 shows us the fulness or completeness of the flesh. The tenth day of the tenth month in the ninth year therefore signifies that it is when the sins of our flesh have reached their fullness that we are given to experience the judgment of the Lord. In this case, the judgment of the inhabitants of Jerusalem was at hand because of their sins and the Lord was using the king of Babylon as His instrument of judgment. The completeness or the fullness of the flesh is another way of saying that our sins have reached the Heavens, and therefore judgment is at hand.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. 
Rev 18:6  Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she hath filled fill to her double. 
Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. 
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her.

As we can see in the verses above, it is when the sins of the harlot woman, representing Babylon or the physical churches of this world, have reached their fullness that her judgment shall begin. This judgment is in another age. However, today’s study is speaking to us of the Lord’s elect, whose judgment is at hand.

As indicated in verse 2, the Lord was using the king of Babylon as His instrument of judgment of His people. The king of Babylon is the smith the Lord has created that blows the coals in the fire to bring forth an instrument of His work. The king of Babylon is therefore the waster that comes to destroy and therefore represents the devil whom the Lord uses to give us an evil experience with the objective of bringing forth as an instrument of His work as we learn righteousness.

Isa 54:16  Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. 
Isa 54:17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

These verses therefore highlight the role the devil plays in our salvation. As we know, during the thousand-year reign of the elect, the devil will literally be arrested by the Lord, and therefore he will not be available as a smith that blows in the fire. That is why no one shall be saved during the thousand-year reign.

Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 
Rev 20:2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 
Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

The Lord Speaks to His Rebellious House in Parables

Eze 24:3  And utter a parable unto the rebellious house, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Set on a pot, set it on, and also pour water into it: 
Eze 24:4  Gather the pieces thereof into it, even every good piece, the thigh, and the shoulder; fill it with the choice bones. 
Eze 24:5  Take the choice of the flock, and burn also the bones under it, and make it boil well, and let them seethe the bones of it therein.
Eze 24:6  Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose scum is therein, and whose scum is not gone out of it! bring it out piece by piece; let no lot fall upon it. 

It is instructive to note that the Lord directed Ezekiel to speak in a parable to the rebellious house of Israel. As we know from the word of the Lord, our Lord Jesus spoke in parables to the multitude, and when the disciples questioned Him about it, He said that He speaks in parables because it is not given to the multitude to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven. In a similar vein, Ezekiel speaking to the rebellious house of Israel was to make them not understand the mysteries of the Kingdom. As a matter of fact, Ezekiel, and all the old testament prophets, were not even given to understand the Lord’s words. Ezekiel speaking in parables implies that when we rebelled against the Lord during our time in Babylon, we were not given to know the mysteries of the kingdom. 

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 
Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 
Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 
Mat 13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. 

1Pe 1:10  Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: 
1Pe 1:11  Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. 
1Pe 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into. 

In verses 3 to 5, the Lord told Ezekiel to put a pot on the fire and pour water in it. After that he should cut meat into pieces with all the best pieces of the thigh and shoulder and fill the pot with the meatiest bones selected from the best sheep. Finally, he should pile wood under the pot to boil the mixture to ensure that the bones are well cooked. The question is, “What is the Lord telling us with this parable?” In verse 6, we are given to know that the pot, or the rusted pot, represents the city of Jerusalem with blood on its hands.

Eze 24:6  These words mean that Jerusalem is doomed! The city is filled with murderers and is like an old, rusty pot. The meat is taken out piece by piece, and no one cares what happens to it. (CEV)

Remember that we were part of Jerusalem which is in bondage with her children, that is, Babylon, with blood on our hands for hating the Lord and those He sent to us.

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: 
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation; 
Luk 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation. 

Both the meat and the bones represent our flesh, and the fire at the bottom of the pot symbolizes the fire of the word of the Lord which is the judgment of our flesh or old man because of the word we have received.

Gen 2:23  And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

2Sa 19:12  Ye are my brethren, ye are my bones and my flesh: wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king?

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 

The bones being well cooked means that the judgment of our flesh, or our old man, is a thorough work of the Lord. It is insightful to note that in verse 6 we are told that Ezekiel should empty the pot piece by piece without choosing any particular piece. That is to say that all in Babylon shall be judged. However, we, the Lord’s elect who are the first to come out of Babylon, shall be judged first in this life. Our brothers and sisters shall be judged later in another age.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 
1Pe 4:18  And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? 
1Pe 4:19 Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.  

In verse 6, we are also told that the rust or the scum shall not go out of it. That is to say that in this age, the sins of Babylon shall not go away. From the Lord’s words, we know that it will only go away in the lake of fire. 

Our Sins that Necessitated the Lord’s Judgment

Eze 24:7  For her blood is in the midst of her; she set it upon the top of a rock; she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust; 
Eze 24:8  That it might cause fury to come up to take vengeance; I have set her blood upon the top of a rock, that it should not be covered. 
Eze 24:9  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the bloody city! I will even make the pile for fire great. 
Eze 24:10  Heap on wood, kindle the fire, consume the flesh, and spice it well, and let the bones be burned. 
Eze 24:11 Then set it empty upon the coals thereof, that the brass of it may be hot, and may burn, and that the filthiness of it may be molten in it, that the scum of it may be consumed.  

Apart from the literal shedding of blood of righteous men sent to the churches, that is, the death of our Lord Jesus and many of His servants, the shedding of blood spiritually signifies making those who have started their journey with the Lord worse off or spiritually dead through false doctrines. In verses 7 and 8, the fact that the blood of the righteous is set upon the top of a rock and not poured on the ground to cover it implies that the putting to death of the Lord’s children through the great swelling words of man’s wisdom and tradition is obvious for everyone to see, even people of the world. We, as the Lord’s elect, are also guilty of shedding blood since we were part of the church system, that is Babylon at a certain stage of our walk with Christ. 

Rev 17:6  And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
Rev 17:7 And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.  

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 
2Pe 2:20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 

As a result of our hands stained with the blood of the saints, the Lord comes with His judgment to deliver us. Verses 9 to 11 show us the Lord’s judgment which is designed to purge us from the shedding of blood during our time in Jerusalem, or the churches of this world, as we learn righteousness. 

Isa 59:3  For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness. 
Isa 59:4  None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity. 

Isa 59:7  Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. 
Isa 59:8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

Isa 4:4  When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. 

We can see from these verses in Isaiah that the Lord shall surely intervene in our circumstances to cleanse us from the blood on our hands and from all kinds of evil through the judgment of our old man. In Ezekiel 24:11, the Lord is assuring us that His judgment shall result in our filthiness melted and the rust of it shall be consumed. That is to say that the judgment of the Lord shall destroy our old man or the man of sin in our lives.

Eze 24:12  She hath wearied herself with lies, and her great scum went not forth out of her: her scum shall be in the fire. 
Eze 24:13  In thy filthiness is lewdness: because I have purged thee, and thou wast not purged, thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any more, till I have caused my fury to rest upon thee. 
Eze 24:14  I the LORD have spoken it: it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord GOD.  

As indicated, it is through the lies or false doctrines that we become murderers and as a result become worse off. In verse 13, the Lord is telling us that on our own, we cannot purge ourselves of our lewdness. It is only through the Lord’s fury or His judgment that we can accomplish that. In other words, we cannot on our own walk in righteousness. The Lord has to come into our lives with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness to judge us in order to live righteously. In verse 14, the Lord is assuring us that He will surely make us righteous through His judgment. Isaiah 59:16-17 makes it clear to us that there is no man or intercessor to help us. That means that no man can help us or himself to become righteous. It is the Lord’s zeal for His Father’s house alone that assures us that He who has started a good work in us shall surely bring it to completion. 

Isa 59:16  And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. 
Isa 59:17  For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke. 
Isa 59:18  According to their deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence. 
Isa 59:19 So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him. 

Psa 69:9  For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.

Are you worried that you may not attain the standards of the Lord in view of your apparent weaknesses or sins? This is not the time to gloat over what we cannot do by ourselves. Our Lord Jesus Christ’s zeal to bring to perfection the Christ in us is consuming Him. Let’s turn our attention from ourselves and look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith!!

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Zec 4:7 Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.

The Death of Ezekiel’s Wife

Eze 24:15  Also the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 
Eze 24:16  Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down. 
Eze 24:17  Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men. 
Eze 24:18 So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded. 

Following from the earlier verses where we saw that the Lord is ready to unleash His fury on our old man because of our sins, the verses here show us the benefits of the Lord’s judgment. These verses use the symbol of the death of Ezekiel’s wife to show us what the Lord is doing in our lives presently. We can look at Ezekiel’s wife as representing the bride of Christ or the church which has gone astray, as Ezekiel here signifies Christ. This bride of Christ is the physical churches of this world or Babylon. Although we have physically left Babylon, we still retain the doctrines of Babylon within our hearts and minds which prevent us from knowing Christ. Thus, there is the need for Babylon within us to be taken away, just as Ezekiel’s wife had to die. In Revelation 14, we are told that our judgment includes the destruction of Babylon within us. This Babylon is the harlot woman who in this case represents Ezekiel’s wife.

Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. 

Babylon within us must be destroyed, and outwardly, we must leave Babylon.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 
Rev 18:5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

The wife of Ezekiel in this case can be likened to the prophet Hosea’s wife who was a harlot, whom Hosea was instructed by the Lord to marry. All these women signify Babylon within us and without. 

Hos 1:2  When the LORD first spoke to Hosea, the LORD told him, “Marry a prostitute and have children with that prostitute. The people in this land have acted like prostitutes and abandoned the LORD.” 
Hos 1:3 So Hosea married Gomer, daughter of Diblaim. She became pregnant and had a son.

It is instructive to note that in verse 16, the Lord told Ezekiel concerning his wife that He was going to take away the desire of his eyes with a stroke. In this perspective, the wife of Ezekiel therefore represents the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life which the Lord is gradually destroying in our lives. 

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.

Outwardly, the Lord will destroy Babylon in the fullness of time with a stroke just like what happened to Ezekiel’s wife in verse 18, who was alive in the morning, and by the evening, she was gone. 

Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. 
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. 
Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning,
Rev 18:10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come. 

It is also informative to note that the Lord required Ezekiel not to mourn or cry for the death of his wife (verses 16 and 17). The death of a wife is one of the most painful experiences in life. However, the fact that the Lord asked Ezekiel not to mourn is to let us know that although the death of Babylon in our lives is a painful experience, we are not to mourn during this evil experience of our judgment because of the joy that is set before us. We are to look to Jesus, who despised the evil experience He was destined to go through, in view of the joy He was going to possess.

Ecc 1:13  And I gave my heart to seek and to investigate by wisdom concerning all which is done under the heavens. It is an evil task God has given to the sons of men, to be afflicted by it. (LITV)

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

Eze 24:19  And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?

The people asking Ezekiel regarding the death of his wife and the fact that he was not allowed to mourn shows us that it is impossible for those who have not been given eyes to see and ears to hear to understand the mysteries concerning the Kingdom of Heaven. We were like these people at a certain stage of our walk until the Lord came to cause us to understand His words. 

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 
Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 
Mat 13:15 For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Eze 24:20  Then I answered them, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 
Eze 24:21  Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword. 
Eze 24:22  And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men. 
Eze 24:23  And your tires [turban, bonnet] shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away for your iniquities, and mourn one toward another. 
Eze 24:24 Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign: according to all that he hath done shall ye do: and when this cometh, ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD. 

Here in these verses, the Lord is showing us that our deplorable state in the churches of this world is all part of His agenda. In verse 21, He informed the house of Israel representing Babylon that He will profane His sanctuary or holy place which is our hearts and minds. This He does with the man of sin sitting in our temple claiming himself to be God. Our sons and daughters falling by the sword means we shall be polluted with false doctrines (the negative application of sword). 

2Ti 2:17  And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; 
2Ti 2:18  Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.

Psa 64:2  Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity: 
Psa 64:3  Who whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words: 

The Lord also told the house of Israel in verses 22 to 24 that they should imitate Ezekiel in the sense that they should not mourn or weep when He destroys Jerusalem, their sanctuary which was the desire of their eyes and the excellency of their strength. As indicated earlier, this Jerusalem represents Babylon within us which shall be destroyed by the Lord through His judgment. Later, in an age to come, the Lord will deal with Babylon outwardly. These verses confirm to us that Ezekiel’s wife is Babylon within us. Just like Ezekiel, we are required not to mourn the destruction of Babylon within us since their destruction is our salvation.

This brings to mind our Lord Jesus Christ during His time here on earth when He was followed by many who were wailing and lamenting Him as He was led to the cross. He turned around and told them not to weep for Him. As He is, so are we. We are not to wail or pity ourselves for the evil experience we are enduring!! This is because it is a blessing to be judged in this life!! 

Luk 23:26  And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. 
Luk 23:27  And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. 
Luk 23:28  But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. 
Luk 23:29 For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck.

In Luke 23:29, the barren who are blessed are the Lord’s elect who are going through the Lord’s judgment in this life.

Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 
Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. 
Gal 4:27 For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband. 

Eze 24:25  Also, thou son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds, their sons and their daughters, 
Eze 24:26  That he that escapeth in that day shall come unto thee, to cause thee to hear it with thine ears? 
Eze 24:27 In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him which is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb: and thou shalt be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am the LORD. 

A simpler rendition of these verses are as follows:

Eze 24:25  “As for you, son of man, surely on the day when I take from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes and their soul’s desire, and also their sons and daughters, 
Eze 24:26  on that day a fugitive will come to you to report to you the news. 
Eze 24:27 On that day your mouth will be opened to the fugitive, and you shall speak and be no longer mute. So, you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD.” (ESV)

These verses reveal the end result of the Lord’s judgment. As indicated in verse 25, our stronghold shall be destroyed. This stronghold is our old man, and his death destroys the lust of our flesh, the lust of our eyes and the pride of life. What we need to know is that the Lord’s judgment is not a one day event, but a process that takes a lifetime. In verse 26, we are shown that it is while we are going through the Lord’s judgment that a fugitive will come to us to report to us the good news about the kingdom of Heaven. The fugitive here who comes to us on that day refers to the Lord’s elect who comes to us in the name of the Lord. The Lord’s elect are fugitives because we have run away from our captivity in Babylon. It is the coming of this fugitive in our lives which signals the coming of Christ into our lives.

Luk 13:35  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Psa 137:1  By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. 
Psa 137:2  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. 
Psa 137:3 For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. 

The coming of the fugitive into our lives signals the beginning of the time that we are given to know and speak the mysteries of the kingdom and not remain silent (verse 27). 

In summary, this is what Paul said concerning what we are going through now as the Lord’s elect:

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 
Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, 
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 
Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 

May the Lord’s Name be Praised for His wonderful work in us!! Amen!!

Audio Download

Ezekiel 4:1-17  The Siege of Jerusalem Symbolized

[Study Aired February 12, 2024]

Introduction

In today’s study, we are going to look at what the Lord told Ezekiel to do regarding an imminent siege of Jerusalem. In the ancient times, building a wall around a city served as the primary means of protection from an enemy. In times of war, if a city is fortified by its walls, then an enemy would surround the city wall and lay siege to it. The rationale to lay siege to a city is to starve the inhabitants of food and water which would result in the surrender of the inhabitants. Laying a siege often took months and even years, but ultimately, it was an effective way of conquering a people. 

In this study, the Lord was using Ezekiel to foretell an impending siege of Jerusalem. Sieges of ancient Israel serve as fitting allegories of how the Lord comes into our lives by causing us to surrender to Him when we are dominated by the flesh. Being dominated by the flesh serves as walls which keep the Lord from intervening in our circumstances. Although it causes a lot of suffering when we are under siege by the Lord, as we are starved of the word of the Lord which is our food and water, we end up surrendering to Christ. Let’s take a look at one of the sieges that Israel suffered and what came out of it. We should always remember that these things are written for our admonition of whom the end of our world is come. 

2Ki 6:24  Afterward Ben-hadad king of Syria mustered his entire army and went up and besieged Samaria.
2Ki 6:25  And there was a great famine in Samaria, as they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove’s dung for five shekels of silver.
2Ki 6:26  Now as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, “Help, my lord, O king!”
2Ki 6:27  And he said, “If the LORD will not help you, how shall I help you? From the threshing floor, or from the winepress?” 
2Ki 6:28  And the king asked her, “What is your trouble?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.’ 
2Ki 6:29  So we boiled my son and ate him. And on the next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, that we may eat him.’ But she has hidden her son.” 
2Ki 6:30  When the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his clothes—now he was passing by on the wall—and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth beneath on his body— 
2Ki 6:31  and he said, “May God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today.”
2Ki 6:32  Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. Now the king had dispatched a man from his presence, but before the messenger arrived Elisha said to the elders, “Do you see how this murderer has sent to take off my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door and hold the door fast against him. Is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him?” 
2Ki 6:33  And while he was still speaking with them, the messenger came down to him and said, “This trouble is from the LORD! Why should I wait for the LORD any longer?” (ESV)

From the siege, we can see how the people living in Samaria suffered. There was severe famine in Samaria such that a donkey’s head was sold for eighty shekels. One of the four sore judgments of the Lord is famine. As we are aware, famine signifies the lack of the word of the Lord.

Amo 8:11  Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD: 
Amo 8:12  And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.

Eze 14:21  For thus saith the Lord GOD; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?

Samaria here represents Babylon where there is lack of truth of the word of the Lord. In the absence of the word of the Lord, we seek after the wisdom of men which is here represented by the donkey’s head. In the scriptures, a donkey, or an ass in the negative sense, symbolize the Lord’s children who have gone astray. Thus, a donkey’s head represents human wisdom and that is what is taught in Babylon, which we paid so much for during our days there in Babylon, just as the donkey’s head was very expensive in Samaria during the siege.  

Hos 8:8  Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure.
Hos 8:9  For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired lovers. 

Jer 2:23  How canst thou say, I am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
Jer 2:24  A wild ass used to the wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her month they shall find her.

The second effect of the siege which is also related to famine is that dove’s dung was sold for five shekels. A dove represents the Holy Spirit. When the Holy spirit is gone (Ichabod), that is, when the presence of the spirit is gone, we cling to the tangible residue of the spirit which is the letter of the word, which kills.  This comes at a cost. For example, being trained in the letter of the word in Bible schools are expensive ventures.

2Co 3:6  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

1Sa 4:21  And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.
1Sa 4:22  And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.

When the glory of the Lord has departed, the church becomes a place where we become worse off as we end up spiritually putting our sons and daughters to death. This is signified by the two women who killed and ate one of their children and were disputing about having the other child also killed for food.

Mat 23:15  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

It is in this dire situation of our siege that Christ comes to call us. However, our testimony would not be accepted by our brothers and sisters in Babylon as they regard us as “leprous” because of our message. We are therefore forced to come out of the cities since we are considered leprous. In the fullness of time, the Lord will come and use us as the four lepers outside the gates of the city of Samaria to bring abundance of food to the city. The four lepers mean the whole of the elect of every generation who will be used to bring the truth of the word of the Lord to all humanity.   

2Ki 7:3  And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die? 
2Ki 7:4  If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. 
2Ki 7:5  And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of Syria, behold, there was no man there.

2Ki 7:10  So they came and called unto the porter of the city: and they told them, saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, and asses tied, and the tents as they were. 

2Ki 7:16  And the people went out, and spoiled the tents of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD.

This story shows us that the Lord’s siege in our lives is for our benefit. With this in mind, let us look at what the Lord is trying to tell us about the impending siege of Jerusalem.

Eze 4:1  “And you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. 
Eze 4:2  And put siegeworks against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, and plant battering rams against it all around. 
Eze 4:3  And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel. (ESV)

In these verses, the Lord told Ezekiel to demonstrate a siege against the city of Jerusalem as a sign for the house of Israel. Ezekiel was to engrave the name of Jerusalem on a brick and to prepare a siege against the brick, which represents Jerusalem. As we indicated in the introductory portion of the study, it is when we are dominated by the flesh that the Lord forces us to surrender to Him by laying siege against us. The fact that Jerusalem was going to be under siege demonstrates that they had gone astray. 

Isa 1:21  How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers. 
Isa 1:22  Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water: 
Isa 1:23  Thy princes are rebellious, and companions of thieves: every one loveth gifts, and followeth after rewards: they judge not the fatherless, neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.

As we know, Jerusalem, which is and is in bondage with her children, symbolizes Babylon or the physical churches of this world. The false doctrines in Babylon which had become the idol of the hearts of its children have become a wall that bars the Lord from coming to His elect in Babylon. The Lord therefore raises a siege against us in Babylon to cause us to surrender to Him. 

Eze 14:1  Then certain of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me.
Eze 14:2  And the word of the LORD came to me:
Eze 14:3  “Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their hearts, and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. Should I indeed let myself be consulted by them?
Eze 14:4  Therefore speak to them and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Any one of the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart and sets the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and yet comes to the prophet, I the LORD will answer him as he comes with the multitude of his idols, 
Eze 14:5  that I may lay hold of the hearts of the house of Israel, who are all estranged from me through their idols.

In verse 3, Ezekiel was required to use an iron griddle as an iron wall between him and the city. The use of iron demonstrates to us the inflexible decision by both parties – Ezekiel and Jerusalem. In this case, Ezekiel represents Christ, and Jerusalem signifies Babylon. This means that there is no way the Lord will abandon the siege in this life, and in the same manner, our brothers and sisters in Babylon have resolved not to surrender to Him in this life. In other words, the Lord is never going to relent in His siege of Babylon and likewise, our brothers and sisters are not going to surrender to the Lord in this age!! The Lord told Ezekiel in verse 3 that this siege will be a sign for the house of Israel. In the Bible, signs on a positive note can mean the Lord’s deliverance as shown in the following verses:

Dan 6:27  He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

Jer 32:21  And hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with great terror;

What this implies is that this siege by the Lord will work for the good of the people of Israel or Babylon. It is through this siege of Jerusalem that we became starved for the word of the Lord which precipitated our exit from Babylon to become saviors for our brothers and sisters in Babylon and the rest of the world.  

Oba 1:21  And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S. 

Eze 4:4  Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. 
Eze 4:5  For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. 
Eze 4:6  And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year. 

As we have seen in the Bible, it is only our Lord Jesus Christ who bore our iniquity. Ezekiel represents the Lord Jesus who bore our iniquity while He was living here on earth. As He is, so are we. We are the live goat that was set free into the wilderness to bear the iniquity of the people of Israel. Our suffering here on earth therefore complements the suffering of Christ. 

Lev 16:8  And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.
Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. 

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

The number of days that Ezekiel was required to lie on his left side was 390 days. The number 3 means the process of spiritual maturity through judgment. The number 9 means God’s judgment. Ezekiel also symbolizes the elect. What this means is that throughout our lives here on earth, we are being judged, or going through suffering, as we fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ. That is how we bear the iniquity of our brothers and sisters in Babylon and the world, just as Christ did for all humanity. From a physical perspective, the 390 days, which is equivalent to 13 months, represent the duration of the siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldean army if we take out the five months interval that the Chaldean army withdrew when they heard of the Egyptian army’s approach.  

Jer 52:4  And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it, and built forts against it round about. 
Jer 52:5  So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. 
Jer 52:6  And in the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land.
Jer 37:5  Then Pharaoh’s army was come forth out of Egypt: and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they departed from Jerusalem. 
Jer 37:6  Then came the word of the LORD unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying, 
Jer 37:7  Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto me to enquire of me; Behold, Pharaoh’s army, which is come forth to help you, shall return to Egypt into their own land. 
Jer 37:8  And the Chaldeans shall come again, and fight against this city, and take it, and burn it with fire.

Ezekiel is also required to lie on the right side for forty days, with a day equivalent to a year. The number forty can signify the duration of the Lord’s judgment. It can also symbolize the period of time that we are found lacking the ability to know the Lord’s ways as we persist in our evil ways. What we are being told is that the siege of the Lord in our lives is to bring us to acknowledge that of our own selves, we cannot worship the Lord, and therefore we have to surrender to Him to take control of our lives.

Gen 7:17  And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth.

Gen 8:6  And it came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made:

Psa 95:10  Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:

Eze 4:7  Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it. 

Here in Verse 7, Ezekiel is told to set his face toward the siege of Jerusalem and his arm shall be uncovered. As we have indicated, Ezekiel represents Christ. Thus, setting his face toward the siege in Jerusalem describes the Lord’s unwavering determination to persevere with the siege of Babylon. It is through this siege that the Lord’s arm shall be uncovered; that is to say that as a result of the siege, the works of the Lord shall be made known. Just as the Lord prophesied against Jerusalem during His days, we are also called to do the same. That is, part of our calling entails making known to those who will hear us, the siege of Babylon (Jerusalem) which has resulted in the lack of the truth of the word of the Lord. This is one of the Lord’s words against Jerusalem while He walked here on earth. As He is, so are we. We are to make known to our brothers and sisters in Babylon of this siege when an opportunity avails itself. 

Mat 23:13  But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Mat 23:14  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
Mat 23:15  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

Mat 23:37  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
Mat 23:38  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.
Mat 23:39  For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Eze 4:8  And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege.

As the Lord’s elect, we are restrained by the hand of the Lord through the Holy Spirit regarding our actions until we have achieved our purpose here on earth.

Pro 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people cast off restraint; But he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (ASV)

2Th 2:6  And now ye know that which restraineth, to the end that he (the beast within) may be revealed in his own season. 
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of lawlessness doth already work: only there is one that restraineth now, until he be taken out of the way.

The Lord sometimes even uses the devil to restrain us. For example, the Lord used the devil to restrain Paul from going to Thessalonica. 

1Th 2:17  But we, brethren, being taken from you for a short time in presence, not in heart, endeavoured the more abundantly to see your face with great desire.
1Th 2:18 Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.

Eze 4:9  Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.
Eze 4:10  And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it. 
Eze 4:11  Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink. 
Eze 4:12  And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight. 
Eze 4:13  And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them. 

During our time in Babylon when we were under siege, there was famine of the word of the Lord. This is symbolized by the measured amount of food, meat and water that we received. In verse 12 the barley cake was to be baked with the dung that comes out of a man, thus defiling the bread to be consumed. This implies that in Babylon, the word of the Lord is defiled with human wisdom which comes out of our bodies if we are to please the Lord. The defiled word of the Lord is the false doctrines of human wisdom and traditions. Verse 13 emphasizes the point that in Babylon, we eat defiled words of the Lord among the people of the world. 

Rev 6:5  And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. 
Rev 6:6  And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. 

Mar 7:5  Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? 
Mar 7:6  He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 
Mar 7:7  Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Mar 7:8  For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. 
Mar 7:9  And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.
Mar 7:10  For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death: 
Mar 7:11  But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.
Mar 7:12  And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother; 
Mar 7:13  Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye. 

Eze 4:14  Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
Eze 4:15  Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow’s dung for man’s dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith. 

Until the Lord comes to us with His brightness, we always think that we have not taken in any false doctrine of man’s tradition and wisdom. Ezekiel’s comment that his soul has not been polluted as he has not eaten any abominable flesh is the same as Peter saying that he has not eaten anything that is common or unclean when the Lord came to Him in a dream. It is as the Lord begins to unveil the mysteries of the kingdom to us that we come to see that we have taken in false doctrines all along. 

Act 10:9  On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour: 
Act 10:10  And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
Act 10:11  And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: 
Act 10:12  Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. 
Act 10:13  And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. 
Act 10:14  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. 

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

As a result of Ezekiel’s petition, the Lord allowed him to use cow’s dung for man’s dung. This is to tell us that the defiled word of the Lord which is eaten by our brothers and sisters in Babylon is better than the wisdom and traditions of this world without Christ.

Eze 4:16  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment: 
Eze 4:17  That they may want bread and water, and be astonied one with another, and consume away for their iniquity. 

To break the staff of bread in Jerusalem means to bring about famine of the word of the Lord in Babylon. This famine comes as a result of the siege brought about by the Lord. Whenever bread and water are weighed and measured out for consumption, then it implies that famine is biting hard. As we are aware, famine represents the lack of the truth of the word of the Lord in Babylon. In Ezekiel 14:13, we are given a reason why the Lord brings famine to His people through a siege.

Eze 14:13  Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it:

It is because the people had sinned against the Lord that there was famine. The laying of siege in our lives by the Lord is an inescapable experience. This is what the Lord did to His own people of Judah, which we must live it out in our lives as His elect:

2Ki 25:1  And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about.
2Ki 25:2  And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. 
2Ki 25:3  And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land. 
2Ki 25:4  And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king’s garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain. 
2Ki 25:5  And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho: and all his army were scattered from him. 
2Ki 25:6  So they took the king, and brought him up to the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him.
2Ki 25:7  And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of brass, and carried him to Babylon.

These things are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 
1Co 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 

May the Lord continue to sustain us in Him to do that which is pleasing in His sight. Amen!!

This phrase appears three times in scripture, and all three are in Daniel 7:

Dan 7:9  I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

Dan 7:22  Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

It is commonly taught that “the Ancient of days” is God the Father, and “the son of man” in these verses signifies Christ. But is that true? Does that teaching accord with the scriptures when we place them “line upon line and precept upon precept”? The answer to that question, as we will see is, no, that understanding of who ‘the ancient of days’ signifies and who ‘the son of man’ signifies does not accord with “the sum of [God’s] word”.

A proper understanding of this question must be based upon what the scriptures reveal about who is signified by these two phrases “the Ancient of days” and “the Son of man”.

Before we can determine who is “the Ancient of days”, we must first determine who He is not, and to do that we must simply believe what the scriptures tells us about “God… the Father”, and this is what we are plainly told:

“No man hath seen God at any time”

Joh 1:18  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Christ Himself reiterates and emphasizes this truth:

Joh 5:37  And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.

What does that tell us about the meaning of this verse of Daniel 7:

Dan 7:9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.

And again in this verse:

Dan 7:13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

In both verses, Daniel saw ‘the Ancient of days’ and describes for us His garments and His hair: “…the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool.” It is clear that ‘the Ancient of days’ could be seen, and was seen, by Daniel.

Who else fits this very description of “the Ancient of days”? This is how John describes Christ Himself as he sees Him standing in the midst of the seven candlesticks:

Rev 1:14  His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;

Then who is this “Son of man” who is brought before “the Ancient of days” and is given the kingdom? Once again “the sum of [God’s] Word” (Psa 119:160) will give us our answer. The answer is actually right here is this same chapter where “the Son of man” is defined as “the saints of the most high”.

Let’s look closely at these verses and notice to whom the kingdom is given:

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

These verses state clearly that the “dominion, and glory, and a kingdom” were all given by “the Ancient of Days” unto “the “Son of man”. Then we are given the interpretation of who this “Son of man” is who receives the kingdom and glory and dominion:

Dan 7:16  I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.
Dan 7:17  These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.
Dan 7:18  But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

The phrase “the son of man” appears 108 times in the Old Testament. 93 of those 108 entries are in the book of Ezekiel, where Ezekiel refers to himself as “son of man”. It is true that Christ called Himself “the Son of man” almost twice as many times as He refers to Himself as “the Son of God” in gospels. The  phrase “Son of man” appears in the New Testament 85 times, while the phrase “son of God” appears only 45 times in all of the New Testament. Christ refers to Himself as “the Son of God” only five times in the gospels, and all those five entries are in the gospel of John. The other gospels certainly declare Christ “the Son of God”, but in Matthew, Mark and Luke Christ never once directly refers to Himself as “the Son of God”.

The point being made is the phrase “the Son of Man” in the New Testament, as well as the Old Testament, can and does refer both to Christ and to His Christ as in this verse:

Heb 2:6  But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?

So the phrase “son of man” demonstrably can and does refer both to Christ and to “His Christ”. It can, and it does, refer both to “the Lord and His Christ”.

God has made Christ “both Lord and Christ”:

Act 2:36  Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

Christ, because His Father whom no man has ever seen or heard sent Him to do so, has made us to be His Christ, those whom He has anointed and sent out to do exactly what His Father sent Him to do, and that includes receiving a kingdom:

Luk 22:29  And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;

Heb 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

These verses accord with Daniel 7, which tells us who “the Son of Man” is who is given the kingdom:

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.

“One like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven and came to the Ancient of days… and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people and nations, and languages should serve him…” Then we are given “the interpretation of those words:

Dan 7:16  I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

Dan 7:18  But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

Christ himself tells us:

Joh 20:21  Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

To erase any doubt as to who is “the Ancient of days” and who is “the Son of man”, Christ Himself tells us that from His, and His Father’s, perspective we are who He is:

Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Mat 25:45  Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

Then Christ makes this statement to Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus:

Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

It is neither ‘adding to’ nor ‘taking away’ from the Word of God to substitute the words “Son of man” for “Jesus of Nazareth”, and we still arrive at the conclusion that “the kingdom is given to the saints of the Most High”

Dan 7:13  I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
Dan 7:14  And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Dan 7:16  I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things.

Dan 7:18  But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

One last verse which should help us to see that “the Son of man” referred to in Daniel 7 is “the saints of the Most High” is:

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

In conclusion, “the Ancient of days” is seen and described to us by Ezekiel while Christ tells us “Ye have never heard His [Father’s] voice nor seen His [Father’s] shape”, and the interpretation of “the Son of man”, both by Ezekiel and by Christ Himself is that He, Christ, at the behest of His and our heavenly Father, have given the kingdom “to the saints of the Most High… to the Son of man”.

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Introduction

We saw last week that Christ is in these four beasts as the lion of the tribe of Judah, the legitimate legal heir of King David, in the gospel of Matthew. He is, as mentioned in Mark, the ox, the tireless servant by whose strength is much increase. He is the son of man, whose genealogy is traced all the way back to Adam in Luke, and He is presented to us from the view of the heavens, as the eagle, in John’s gospel.

Today we will get a much more mature vision of who these four beasts represent, and in doing so we will see just how true the statement is of Christ, “As My Father has sent me even so send I you,” and we will see that our relationship to Christ is just as close to Him as His relationship is to His and our heavenly Father. By knowing who these four beasts represent we will also see what is meant by Paul’s statement that Christ’s inheritance is “in the saints” and that it is through that inheritance Christ was delivered up “through our offences and was resurrected through our justification.”

Eph 1:17  That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Eph 1:18  The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
Eph 1:19  And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us- ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,

Rom 4:25  Who was delivered for [Greek: dia, through] our offences, and was raised again for [Greek: dia, through] our justification.

If God does indeed give us “the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, then we will see that it is these four beasts and the four and twenty elders around the throne of God who are used to symbolize for us “the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,” and it is the goal of this study to demonstrate this is indeed the spiritual significance of the symbol of four beasts.

Who are these four beasts?

There is a very good reason why these four beasts are “in the middle of and round about the throne of God.” Here is what these beasts tell us of themselves. We need not guess who they represent. They tell us plainly who they symbolize.

Rev 5:1  And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
Rev 5:2  And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
Rev 5:3  And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon.
Rev 5:4  And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon.
Rev 5:5  And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
Rev 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
Rev 5:7  And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

There it is as clearly as it can be stated. These four beasts and four and twenty elders are God’s elect who have been “redeemed out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation” to become kings and priest ruling this earth. That is who these four beasts symbolize. However, this revelation was not given all in one place in scripture. It has been given to us line upon line and precept upon precept, beginning in the garden of Eden, culminating in this “signified revelation of Jesus Christ”.

Rev 4:1  After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.
Rev 4:2  And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
Rev 4:3  And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.
Rev 4:4  And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
Rev 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.
Rev 4:6  And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.
Rev 4:7  And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.
Rev 4:8  And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

A door was opened in heaven… in the spirit… a throne set in heaven… one seated on that throne… the throne being like a rainbow and like an emerald… Around this throne in heaven are twenty-four elders wearing white raiment, and twenty-four golden crowns. Next we see a sea of glass before the throne, and in the middle of the throne and round about the throne are four beasts; a lion, a calf, a man and an eagle. Every beast has six wings and are full of eyes within, and they cry, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.” What is all of this symbolism? Where does it all originate? It all begins with the cherubims with a flaming sword in Genesis 3, when mankind was driven out of the garden:

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

It is in the tabernacle of Moses and again in the temple of Solomon that we see these same four beasts all around both the tabernacle of Moses and the temple of Solomon. Both the tabernacle and the temple show us that heaven and God’s throne are symbolized by the holy of holies and the ark of the covenant with the cherubs overshadowing the mercy seat:

Exo 26:1  Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet: with cherubims of cunning work shalt thou make them.
Exo 26:30  And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount.
Exo 26:31  And thou shalt make a vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made:
Exo 26:32  And thou shalt hang it upon four pillars of shittim wood overlaid with gold: their hooks shall be of gold, upon the four sockets of silver.
Exo 26:33  And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy.
Exo 26:34  And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place.

In the tabernacle the cherubims overshadowed the mercy seat and were on the curtains that made up the tabernacle, and they were woven into the vail that hung on the four pillars, which separated the holy of holies from the holy place. Later it is revealed to us that these same four creatures are carved into the doors and walls of the temple of Solomon. In either type, the message is clear; you must go through these four creatures in order to enter into the presence of God.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rev 3:9  Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

Paul tells us this is all a type and shadow of “heavenly things.”

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

Christ did not die to purify a physical temple with physical outward implements like candlesticks, tables, knives and tongs. He died and was resurrected to live His life in and to purify you and me. Christ’s elect are “the heavenly things themselves.” The temple and its implements are figures of the true. They are figures of us, and that is where Christ went when He “entered into the holy places” made without hands.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world [Greek: aion, age]. Amen.

God’s throne is in His house, His temple, the heavens, and in Christ we are all of these:

1Pe 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

Again, what do the four beasts say of themselves?

Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

What and where is heaven?

A door is opened in heaven… a throne is set in heaven. If we do not know where and what is heaven, then not one word of this prophecy will be understood. What and where heaven is, is a study we have already covered in depth, and we came to see that, for the sake of communicating with us, we are informed that God dwells “in the heavens.” For an in-depth study read What And Where Is Heaven. Here are but a very few verses for the sake of this study.

Psa 2:4  He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.

Psa 103:19  The LORD hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.

Psa 115:3  But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.

Psa 123:1  Unto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens.

“God dwells in the heavens.” There it is! This tells us where God dwells. Can we believe and receive what this reveals about the location of heaven? Here is where heaven is; here is where God dwells:

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

Heaven is not a physical, geographical planet because God is not a physical God. God is spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in Truth.

Joh 4:24 God is spirit, and those who are worshiping Him must be worshiping in spirit and truth.(CLV)

The King James Version has “God is a spirit,” but there is no article in the Greek. It reads simply, “God is spirit,” and we are plainly told:

2Ch 6:18  But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built!

God created the heavens and the earth. He does not need a physical location. He is spirit, and He dwells in His people. He dwells in heaven. “The spirit of God dwells in you!”

Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

What are the cherubim?

We saw earlier that these beasts, the cherubims, are first mentioned in Genesis 3, when God placed them as the door- keepers of the tree of life. Just look at where else the Old Testament has these beasts. As we saw above, their revelation is in stages, starting with the Garden of Eden. In Eden and in the tabernacle and temple, there are only two cherubs, and in the tabernacle the cherubs have just two wings. However, there are four cherubs around the throne of God in Ezekiel, and each cherub has four wings. Here again is what Genesis reveals.

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

The wings are not even mentioned in Genesis. The next place we see these cherubims is in the tabernacle of Moses. God spoke to Moses “from between the two cherubims” which overshadowed the mercy seat. Here in Exodus the cherubs are given wings.

Exo 25:20  And the cherubims shall stretch forth their wings on high, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and their faces shall look one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubims be.

Exo 25:22  And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.

Num 7:89  And when Moses was gone into the tabernacle of the congregation to speak with him, then he heard the voice of one speaking unto him from off the mercy seat that was upon the ark of testimony, from between the two cherubims: and he spake unto him.

It is the function of the cherubims to “keep the way of the tree of life,” and as such they are on the doors of the temple of Solomon.

1Ki 6:23  And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.
1Ki 6:24  And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits.
1Ki 6:25  And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the cherubims were of one measure and one size.
1Ki 6:26  The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub.
1Ki 6:27  And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house.
1Ki 6:28  And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.
1Ki 6:29  And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, within and without.
1Ki 6:30  And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without.
1Ki 6:31  And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.
1Ki 6:32  The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees.

When God’s gold is “spread upon the cherubims” it is not covering our idols of our hearts, but it is serving as the channel through which others are brought to God.

In Solomon’s temple the cherubims were carved onto the two doors of the temple, to “guard the way of the tree of life” symbolized by the ark of God.

The next place we see these beasts, these cherubs, is once again around the throne of God, in Ezekiel 1:

Eze 1:1  Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

Both here in Ezekiel 1 and 10, when these creatures are mentioned, they are always seen around the throne of God and are in the midst of and handling the fire of God. In Ezekiel 10 and in Revelation they are only seen within the context of an “open heaven,” meaning a spiritual mind being opened and enlightened to see and understand spiritual knowledge.

Eze 1:4  And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.
Eze 1:5  Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.
Eze 1:6  And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.
Eze 1:7  And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot: and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass.
Eze 1:8  And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and they four had their faces and their wings.
Eze 1:9  Their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward.
Eze 1:10  As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.

Eze 1:26  And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.

These are the exact same animals mentioned in Revelation 4 and 5. In verse 20 of Ezekiel 10 we find that the spirit of the four creatures is also in four wheels:

Eze 10:1  Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne.
Eze 10:2  And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight.

Eze 10:16  And when the cherubims went, the wheels went by them: and when the cherubims lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels also turned not from beside them.
Eze 10:17  When they stood, these stood; and when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also for the spirit of the living creature was in them.
Eze 10:18  Then the glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims.
Eze 10:19  And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD’S house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.
Eze 10:20  This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims.
Eze 10:21  Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings.
Eze 10:22  And the likeness of their faces [was] the same faces which I saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves: they went every one straight forward.

Who is it who is around the throne of God saying holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty? According to Revelation 4, it is these four creatures. But in Isaiah 6 we see these same four creatures symbolized by one single creature “more subtle than any beast of the field,” and this time we see all six wings, just as they are given six wings in the book of Revelation, and they are performing all the same functions of being around God’s throne and handling the fire of God.

Isa 6:1  In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
Isa 6:2  Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
Isa 6:3  And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.
Isa 6:4  And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke.
Isa 6:5  Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.
Isa 6:6  Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:
Isa 6:7  And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
Isa 6:8  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
Isa 6:9  And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not.
Isa 6:10  Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.

Num 21 reveals that these seraphims are winged serpents.

Num 21:8  And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent [Hebrew: seraph], and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
Num 21:9  And Moses made a serpent [Hebrew: nachash, serpent] of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent [nachash] had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent [nachash] of brass, he lived.

We have seen that the four beasts and the four and twenty elders all sing a song, proclaiming for the whole world who they symbolize:

Rev 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
Rev 5:7  And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

In Ezekiel and Isaiah, we have all the functions of the four beasts of Revelation chapters 4 and five. But in Ezekiel and Isaiah these accomplishments are split up between cherubs with four wings and seraphs with six wings. In Revelation these beasts are all combined into the four beasts with six wings who proclaim that God is holy and that they have been redeemed to God out of every nation and they will rule on earth. It comes as a shock for us to realize that even in the heavens we are made aware of our earthly origins as serpents and as beasts.

What is the function of these beasts. Yes, they are on the doors of the tabernacle of Moses and the doors of the temple of Solomon, but what does that signify?

In our next study we will see why these beasts are in the middle of and around the throne of God, and we will see why they have been chosen to rule with Christ on earth. We will see that Christ has chosen these four beasts and the twenty-four elders as His channel through which He will bring all men to Himself. We will see that these four beasts and twenty-four elders symbolize the Christ of Christ.

[The next installment of this study can be found here.]