Ezekiel 1:5-14

The four living creatures

These are described as having in general the human form; they were erect and had apparently two feet (Ezekiel 1:5; Ezekiel 1:7); they had four faces, one looking each way: the face of a man, a lion, an ox and an eagle (Ezekiel 1:10). The man's face was the front face of each, and met the eye of the beholder who looked at the chariot on any of its four sides, and thus when the chariot moved in any direction the creature on that side had the appearance of an advancing man. The living creatures had each four wings, one pair being used in flight, and the other pair covering the body (Ezekiel 1:6; Ezekiel 1:11). The two pairs of wings were probably at right angles to one another, one pair belonging to the front and back sides and the other pair to the two lateral sides, for it is said that they had human hands under their wings on their four sides (Ezekiel 1:8). They had thus four hands or arms like those of men. Their feet, that is, their limbs were straight like those of men, but their feet proper were round like those of a calf (Ezekiel 1:7). When in motion each creature expanded one pair of wings, that is the wings on the right and left of the front face; the expanded wings of the four thus formed a square, the tips of the wings of each creature touching those of two of its fellows on the right and on the left (Ezekiel 1:11). When the living creatures stood still their wings dropped (Ezekiel 1:24).