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Home , Cherub, Ezekiel 10, Living creatures (Bible)

THE BOOK OF THE REVELATION “The Exaltation of The Lamb” Instructor: Geof W. Jackson HomeChurch Training [email protected]

EXL-21 02/23/2021 “IN AWE”- PT2

Rev 4:2-11 At once I was in the Spirit, and behold, a stood in , with one seated on the throne. 3 And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian, and around the throne was a rainbow that had the appearance of an emerald. 4 Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, with golden crowns on their heads. 5 From the throne came flashes of lightning, and rumblings and peals of thunder, and before the throne were burning seven torches of fire, which are the seven spirits of , 6 and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four , full of eyes in front and behind: 7 the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” 9 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11 “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.”

IN AWE OF THE FOUR LIVING CREATURES John spends more words trying to describe these creatures than on anything else in the scene. It must have been a spectacular and marvelous thing to experience.

REV 4:6B-11 And around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind: 7 the first living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, the third living creature with the face of a man, and the fourth living creature like an eagle in flight. 8 And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!”

LIVING CREATURES… • Living Creatures… - Zoon – From “Zoe” – Living Ones / Things / NOT Beasts (Therion) – NO OTHER WORDS for them…

o John had NO other words FOR them…

o Appear to be the “Cherubim” EZEK 1:5-6

KERUB / KERUBIM - A masculine noun of uncertain derivation meaning an angelic being. It is commonly translated as “ / cherubim”.

REVELATION: The Exaltation of the Lamb Ó2020 Geof Jackson Min, Inc HomeChurch Bible Training 21-01 The Bible provides few details concerning the likeness of these winged creatures, except for the visions of in [ESP. ] The Bible portrays cherubim as: § Guardians of the (GEN. 3:24) and seemingly the GLORY OF THE LORD (CF. EZEK. 10:3, 4, 18-20) § Flanking the (PS. 99:1; CF. ISA. 37:16; references to the in the (NUM. 7:89) § Embroidered images on the tapestry of the TABERNACLE (EX. 26:1, 31) § “HAMMERED” images arching above the MERCY SEAT on the (EX. 25:18-20, 22; 1 KGS 6:23-28; 2 CHR. 3:10-13) § Figuratively, the word is used to describe “God’s winged transport” (2 SAM. 22:11; PS. 18:10) § Interestingly, SATAN is described as being THE ANOINTED CHERUB (EZEK. 28:14) before he was cast out of heaven.

Current pictures of cherubim as chubby infants with wings or as feminine creatures find no scriptural basis.

EZEK 1:5-6 And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a likeness, 6 but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. 10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had a [Human-Cherub**] face. The four had the face of a LION on the right side, the four had the face of an OX on the left side, and the four had the face of an EAGLE.

EZEK 10:9-14 And I looked, and behold, there were four wheels beside the cherubim, one beside each cherub, and the appearance of the wheels was like sparkling beryl. 10 And as for their appearance, the four had the same likeness, as if a wheel were within a wheel. 11 When they went, they went in any of their four directions without turning as they went, but in whatever direction the front wheel faced, the others followed without turning as they went. 12 And their whole body, their rims, and their spokes, their wings, and the wheels were full of eyes all around—the wheels that the four of them had. 13 As for the wheels, they were called in my hearing “the whirling wheels.” 14 And each one had four faces: the first face was the face of the Cherub, and the second face was a Human face, and the third the face of a Lion, and the fourth the face of an Eagle. ** He does NOT use the word for “ox / calf” here, but “Kerub” NOTICE there are only “3” – The face of the “OX” is presented as looking from the front where he could see the 2-faces on the R&L, and THROUGH to the face of the Eagle behind – It was a “living creature” – a Kerub

EX 25:18-20 And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. 19 Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. 20 The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be.

EX 26:1 “Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them.

REVELATION: The Exaltation of the Lamb Ó2020 Geof Jackson Min, Inc HomeChurch Bible Training 21-02 o NOT Seraphim of ISAIAH 6 – No indication of “number” – No description of the “four faces” which figure so prominently to John’s ISAIAH 6:2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

• On each Side of the Throne… – One at each side – EACH ONE Facing inward / outward / left / right

• With Six wings…- Like ISA 6:2, not like EZE 1:6, where only four wings are given apiece – It would seem that in Ezekiel’s vision “2” of the wings may have been obscured by the fact of the movement and activity of the creatures

"Each had six wings: with twain he covered his face [in reverence, as not presuming to lift up his face to God], with twain he covered his feet (in humility, as not worthy to stand in God's holy presence), and with twain he did fly [in obedient readiness to do instantly God's command]."

• FULL of Eyes… - (mentioned twice) – Eyes on each of the faces?? Eyes that seemed as they covered them?? Eyes On and around and under each of their wings (EZEKIEL)

“FOUR FACES ON EACH” – • 1st – Lion – KING – Rule – Royal Line – MATTHEW

• 2nd – Ox – SERVANT – Labor – Productive – MARK

• 3rd – Man – HUMANITY – Passion – Compassion – LUKE

• 4th – Eagle in flight – – Above the earthly limitations – Soaring… NOT Perched – JOHN

SAYING… - • Holy, Holy, Holy… -

• Lord God Almighty… - Kurios… Theos… Pantokratōr

• WAS… IS… IS TO COME…

IN AWE OF THE ONE SEATED ON THE THRONE

THE APPEARANCE OF… REV 4:3A “…And he who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian…”

• Appearance – 2 words: “similar / in vision to the eyes” – The ONE on the Throne WAS NOT these… but WHAT He was (as it appeared to the eyes) was “like” these… -

• Jasper –

• Carnelian –

REVELATION: The Exaltation of the Lamb Ó2020 Geof Jackson Min, Inc HomeChurch Bible Training 21-03 THE WORSHIP OF…

REV 4:9-11 And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 11 “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.

• Glory and Honor and Thanks -

• Worship HIM wo lives forever and ever –

• Cast their Crowns before HIM –

• Saying… -

• Worthy… -

• Glory … Honor … Power … - Glory BELONGS to Him / Honor is GIVEN to Him / Power flows FROM Him

• Created ALL things – [AorAct] – The REASON that HE is worthy of ALL “Glory… Honor… Power… - HE created it ALL – NO help, NO assistance, NO dependance upon ANY other… AND ALL the Cherubim, the , and NOW the Saints in Heaven… ALL proclaim HIS Worth…

• BY YOUR WILL they… - [for your pleasure] – “Will” is that of a desire for something that is followed by action to accomplish / acquire it – What God WANTED was what would PLEASE Him so he “CREATED” it…

o Existed – Oldest manuscript - “they were not, and [so they] were created” – they didn’t exist… THEN they DID! - His Purpose / DESIRE – they were FIRST in the Mind / Heart of GOD

o And were created – [AorPass] The RESULT of His Desire – THEN they were CREATED in the physical Universe

REVELATION: The Exaltation of the Lamb Ó2020 Geof Jackson Min, Inc HomeChurch Bible Training 21-04