Ezekiel 10:19

10:19 The cherubim spread ¹  their wings, and they rose up from the earth ²  while I watched (when they went the wheels went alongside them). They stopped at the entrance to the east gate of the Lord’s temple as the glory of the God of Israel hovered above them.

Ezekiel 20:5

20:5 and say to them:

“‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: On the day I chose Israel I swore ³  to the descendants ⁴  of the house of Jacob and made myself known to them in the land of Egypt. I swore ⁵  to them, “I am the Lord your God.”

Ezekiel 28:13

28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. ⁶ 

Every precious stone was your covering,

the ruby, topaz, and emerald,

the chrysolite, onyx, and jasper,

the sapphire, turquoise, and beryl; ⁷ 

your settings and mounts were made of gold.

On the day you were created they were prepared.

Ezekiel 28:26

28:26 They will live securely in it; they will build houses and plant vineyards. They will live securely ⁸  when I execute my judgments on all those who scorn them and surround them. Then they will know that I am the Lord their God.’”

Ezekiel 37:23

37:23 They will not defile themselves with their idols, their detestable things, and all their rebellious deeds. I will save them from all their unfaithfulness ⁹  by which they sinned. I will purify them; they will become my people and I will become their God.

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¹ tn Heb “lifted.”

² tn Or “the ground” (NIV, NCV).

³ tn Heb “I lifted up my hand.”

⁴ tn Heb “seed.”

⁵ tn Heb “I lifted up my hand.”

⁶ sn The imagery of the lament appears to draw upon an extrabiblical Eden tradition about the expulsion of the first man (see v. 14 and the note there) from the garden due to his pride. The biblical Eden tradition speaks of cherubs placed as guardians at the garden entrance following the sin of Adam and Eve (Gen 3:24), but no guardian cherub like the one described in verse 14 is depicted or mentioned in the biblical account. Ezekiel’s imagery also appears to reflect Mesopotamian and Canaanite mythology at certain points. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:119-20.

⁷ tn The exact identification of each gemstone is uncertain. The list should be compared to that of the priest in Exod 28:17-20, which lists twelve stones in rows of three. The LXX apparently imports the Exod 28 list. See reference to the types of stones in L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.

⁸ sn This promise was given in Lev 25:18-19.

⁹ tc Heb “their dwellings.” The text as it stands does not make sense. Based on the LXX, a slight emendation of two vowels, including a mater, yields the reading “from their turning,” a reference here to their turning from God and deviating from his commandments. See BDB 1000 s.v. מְשׁוּבָה, and D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:407.