Then the man brought me to the front of the temple by way of the north gate. I looked and saw the glory of the LORD filling His temple, and I fell facedown.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then he brought me by the way of the north gate before the house; and I looked, and behold, Yahweh’s glory filled Yahweh’s house: and I fell on my face.
- KJV Then brought he me the way of the north gate before the house: and I looked, and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD: and I fell upon my face.
- NKJV Also He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple; so I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord; and I fell on my face.
- NASB Then He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the house; and I looked, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord, and I fell on my face.
- NLT Then the man brought me through the north gateway to the front of the Temple. I looked and saw that the glory of the Lord filled the Temple of the Lord, and I fell face down on the ground.
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
Brought to the north gate, Ezekiel sees the glory of the Lord filling the temple and falls on his face.
Overview
The return of God's glory, earlier described in chapter 43, again overwhelms the prophet and drives him to worship. Falling on his face is the proper response to the manifest presence of a holy God. This vision of God's filling glory anticipates the day when His presence will fully dwell with His redeemed people (Revelation 21:3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Ezek 1:28The appearance of the brilliant light all around Him was like that of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell facedown and heard a voice speaking.
- Ezek 3:23So I got up and went out to the plain, and behold, the glory of the LORD was present there, like the glory I had seen by the River Kebar, and I fell facedown.
- Rev 1:17When I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. But He placed His right hand on me and said, “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last,
- Ezek 43:3–5The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen when He came to destroy the city and like the visions I had seen by the River Kebar. I fell facedown,
- Ezek 40:20He also measured the length and width of the gateway of the outer court facing north.
- Hag 2:7I will shake all the nations, and they will come with all their treasures, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of Hosts.
- Ezek 40:40Outside, as one goes up to the entrance of the north gateway, there were two tables on one side and two more tables on the other side of the gate’s portico.
- Isa 6:3–4And they were calling out to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Hosts; all the earth is full of His glory.”
- Mal 3:1“Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.
- Ezek 10:4Then the glory of the LORD rose from above the cherubim and stood over the threshold of the temple. The temple was filled with the cloud, and the court was filled with the brightness of the glory of the LORD.
- Ezek 10:18–19Then the glory of the LORD moved away from the threshold of the temple and stood above the cherubim.
- Ps 89:7In the council of the holy ones, God is greatly feared, and awesome above all who surround Him.
- Gen 17:3Then Abram fell facedown, and God said to him,
- Ezek 11:22–23Then the cherubim, with the wheels beside them, spread their wings, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them.
- Num 16:42–45But when the congregation gathered against them, Moses and Aaron turned toward the Tent of Meeting, and suddenly the cloud covered it and the glory of the LORD appeared.
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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 44:4 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
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