In verse 6, they are said to have "eyes all over, front and back", suggesting that they are alert and knowledgeable, that nothing escapes their notice. They have six wings, whereas Ezekiel's four living creatures are described as only having four. These appear as a lion, an ox, a man, and an eagle, much as in Ezekiel but in a different order. In Revelation 4:6–8, four living beings (Greek: ζῷον, zōion) are seen in John's vision. This description of movement differs from that of the seraphim in Isaiah's vision ( Isaiah 6:2) who have an extra set of wings, giving them the ability to fly. Concerning their ability to move, Ezekiel's cherubim do not need to turn, since they face all compass points simultaneously. However, the fact that they manifest in human form sets them apart from the griffin-like cherubs and lamassu of Babylonia and Assyria. Each of Ezekiel's cherubim have four faces, that of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. Cherubim as minor guardian deities of temple or palace thresholds are known all over the Ancient East. The symbolic depiction of the four living creatures in religious art, especially Christian art, is called a tetramorph.Įzekiel's vision of the four living creatures in Ezekiel 1 are identified as cherubim in Ezekiel 10, who are God's throne bearers. References to the sacred creatures recur in texts of Second Temple Judaism, in rabbinical merkabah ("chariot") literature, in the Book of Revelation in the New Testament, and in the Zohar.Īccording to Jewish and Christian traditions, there are four living creatures, although their description varies by source. They are described in the prophet Ezekiel's vision of the heavenly chariot in the first and tenth chapters of the Book of Ezekiel. The living creatures, living beings, or hayyot ( Hebrew חַיּוֹת ḥayyōṯ) are a class of heavenly beings in Jewish mythology. Ezekiel's "chariot vision", by Matthaeus Merian (1593–1650) Ezekiel's Wheel Ezekiel's encounter with the Merkabah and the Living Creatures
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