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Now the cherubim were standing on the right side of the temple when the man entered, and the cloud filled the inner courtyard.
Ezekiel 10:3 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Now the cherubim stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court.
  • KJV Now the cherubims stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court.
  • BSB Now when the man went in, the cherubim were standing on the south side of the temple, and a cloud filled the inner court.
  • NKJV Now the cherubim were standing on the south side of the temple when the man went in, and the cloud filled the inner court.
  • NLT The cherubim were standing at the south end of the Temple when the man went in, and the cloud of glory filled the inner courtyard.

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

The cherubim stand on the temple's south side as the man enters, and a cloud fills the inner court. It marks the manifest presence of God filling the temple before His departure.

Overview

The cloud filling the court recalls the glory-cloud that filled the tabernacle and Solomon's temple, signs of God's dwelling. Here, however, the cloud accompanies the prelude to judgment and departure. God's presence, once a blessing, now attends His withdrawal. The movement of His glory reminds us that God is not bound to a place, and that His true dwelling would come in Christ and His people.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 3

  • Ezek 9:3The glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub, whereupon it was, to the threshold of the house; and he called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writer’s inkhorn by his side.
  • Ezek 43:4Yahweh’s glory came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.
  • Ezek 8:16He brought me into the inner court of Yahweh’s house; and I saw at the door of Yahweh’s temple, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs toward Yahweh’s temple, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Ezekiel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Ezekiel 10:3YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on EzekielMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 10:3 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.