John Gill Commentary Ezekiel 10

Then I looked, and, behold
After the vision of the destruction of the greater part of the inhabitants of Jerusalem by the six men withslaughter weapons, and of the preservation of a few by the man clothed with linen; another vision is seen bythe prophet, in some things like to that he saw, of which there is an account in the first chapter; though insome circumstances different, and exhibited with a different view; partly to represent the destruction ofJerusalem by fire, and partly the Lord's removal from it, before or at that time: in thefirmament that was above the head of the cherubim ;
the same with the living creatures, (Ezekiel 1:22Ezekiel 1:26) ; where the firmament or expanse of heavenis said to be over their heads, as here; (See Gill on Ezekiel 1:22): there appearedover them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance
of the likeness of a throne; (See Gill on Ezekiel 1:26).

And he spoke unto the man clothed with linen
That is, the God of Israel, or the glory of the Lord, that sat upon the throne before described; he gave orders to the man clothed in linen, who appears in another character, and represents the Chaldean or Roman army.

And said, go in between the wheels, [even] under the cherub ;
the singular for the plural, the "cherubim"; the wheels were under these; the churches are under their ministers, their pastors, guides, and governors; or rather, since the wheels were by the cherubim, it should be rendered, as by some, "unto the cherub", or "cherubim" ^F1.

And fill your hand with coals of fire from between the cherubim, and
scatter [them] over the city ;

These "coals of fire" were an emblem of the wrath of God against Jerusalem, and of the destruction of it by fire; and these being fetched from between the cherubim, show that the cause of this wrath and ruin was the ill treatment of the prophets of the Lord; see (2 Chronicles 36:15–19) ; as the destruction of the same city afterwards by the Romans was owing, as to the rejection and killing of the Messiah, so to the prosecution of his apostles, (1 Thessalonians 2:15 1 Thessalonians 2:16) ; and he went in my sight ;
in the sight of the prophet, as it appeared to him in vision he saw him go in, as he was ordered, between the wheels, and under the cherubim; but as yet he did not see him take the coals of fire, and much less scatter them; these were afterwards done, as related in the other part of the vision.

FOOTNOTES:

• F1: (bwrkl txt la) "in locum cerubinorum, [vel] cheruborum", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator; "ad cherubim", Tigurine version; which is approved by Noldius, p. 84. No. 398.

Now the cherubim stood on the right side of the house According to the Targum, it was the south side of the house; and so Jarchi interprets it opposite to the north, where the gross idolatries were committed, (Ezekiel 8:3Ezekiel 8:5Ezekiel 8:14); standing at the greatest distance from them, and bearing their testimony against them:

when the man went in ; they stood as it were in a levee, through which the man passed, waiting upon him; paying a respect to him; assenting to what he did; and approving of it: this circumstance is mentioned, because they were not always in this position, only at this time; nor did they continue so; we afterwards hear of their motion:

and the cloud filled the inner court ; the court of the priests, not as a token of God's presence, as at the dedication of the temple; but rather of judicial blindness and darkness, which the people of the Jews were left unto.

Then the glory of the Lord went up from the cherub
Or, "cherubim"; those that were upon the mercy seat, between which the Shechinah or glorious majesty of God dwelt, in the most holy place: this is a token and intimation of the Lord's leaving of the temple; and a little before the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, to which this vision chiefly, if not together, refers, a voice was heard in the temple,

``let us go hence ^F2 :''

[and stood] over the threshold of the house ;
either of the holy of holies, from where he was removing; or rather of the holy place, the court of the priests, the inward court, and so open to the outward court, and view of the people in it:

and the house was filled with the cloud ;
the temple, being forsaken of God, was filled with darkness; as an emblem of that blindness which has come upon the Jews, and will continue on them till the fullness of the Gentiles is brought in:

and the court was full of the brightness of the Lord's glory ;
either the inward court, as the glory of the Lord passed through it, from the holy of holies; or rather the outward court, of which mention is made in (Ezekiel 10:4) ; the glory of the Lord being on the threshold Of the house, which looked towards that, and so enlightened it. This outward court signifies the Gentiles; who, when the Lord removed from the Jewish nation and people, were favoured with the glorious light of the Gospel, and ordinances of Christ; whereby they were enlightened, and filled with the knowledge of the Lord.

With the knowledge of him, who is the brightness of his father's glory, and the express image of his person; so through the fall of the Jews salvation came to the Gentiles, (Romans 11:11Romans 11:12) .

FOOTNOTES:

• F2: Josephus de Bello Judaeorum, l. 6. c. 5, sect. 3.

And the sound of the cherubim's wings was heard [even] to the outer court Or outward court. The sound of the Gospel, which is a joyful sound; a sound of love, grace, and mercy; of life, liberty, peace, pardon, righteousness, and salvation by Christ; the sound of this in the swift ministry of the apostles, signified by the "cherubim's wings", went into all the earth, and throughout the whole Gentile world; by which many souls were quickened and enlightened; many churches were formed; and the glory of the Lord, being revealed, was seen by all flesh; and the whole world was filled with the brightness of the Lord's glory, as it will be again, and more abundantly, in the latter day:

and this sound was as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh ; the Gospel is as thunder, which is the voice of God; and the ministers of it are "Boanergeses", "sons of thunder", (Mark 3:17): it shakes the conscience; shows men their danger; and points at the Saviour: it is not the word of man, but in deed and in truth the word of God: it is the voice of Christ, who is the Almighty; and it appears to be so, by its powerful effects, when attended with a divine energy, in quickening dead sinners; enlightening dark minds; unstopping deaf ears; softening hard hearts; and turning men from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God; it is so when God speaks in it, and by it; when it comes not in word only, but in the Holy Ghost, and in power.