but each had four faces and four wings.
Parallel translations
- WEB Everyone had four faces, and each one of them had four wings.
- KJV And every one had four faces, and every one had four wings.
- NKJV Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings.
- NASB Each of them had four faces and four wings.
- NLT except that each had four faces and four wings.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Each creature has four faces and four wings. The fourfold form symbolizes completeness and readiness to serve in every direction.
Overview
The four faces and four wings express comprehensive perception and mobility, fitting attendants of the omnipresent God. Ancient readers would see in fourness a picture of the whole created order and the four points of the compass. These beings are equipped to do God's will instantly wherever He directs. Their design displays the wisdom and order of the God they serve.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Ezek 10:14Each of the cherubim had four faces: the first face was that of a cherub, the second that of a man, the third that of a lion, and the fourth that of an eagle.
- Ezek 10:21–22Each had four faces and four wings, with what looked like human hands under their wings.
- Ezek 1:8–11Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. All four living creatures had faces and wings,
- Ezek 10:10As for their appearance, all four had the same form, like a wheel within a wheel.
- Ezek 1:15When I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the ground beside each creature with its four faces.
- Rev 4:7–8The first living creature was like a lion, the second like a calf, the third had a face like a man, and the fourth was like an eagle in flight.
- Exod 25:20And the cherubim are to have wings that spread upward, overshadowing the mercy seat. The cherubim are to face each other, looking toward the mercy seat.
- Isa 6:2Above Him stood seraphim, each having six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.
- 1 Kgs 6:24–27One wing of the first cherub was five cubits long, and the other wing was five cubits long as well. So the full wingspan was ten cubits.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 1:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.