[The text below represents an edited transcript of the TV version of this Tomorrow’s World program.]
Ezekiel’s First Encounter: A Whirlwind, a Chariot, and Cherubim
Close Encounters of the Third Kind was a science fiction drama that burst onto the big screen in 1977, and it was a blockbuster hit for writer and director Steven Spielberg. For our younger audience, who may be unfamiliar with the film, the main character, played by Richard Dryfus, was an electrical lineman. Through a long series of events too complicated to relay at this time, he ends up having a close encounter with extra-terrestrial beings who descend in the mothership of a group of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs).
Spielberg followed up with an even bigger hit five years later—E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. This science fiction flic tells the story of a boy named Elliott, who comes in contact with a stranded extraterrestrial that he names E.T. In the end Elliott helps E.T. find his way back home.
Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. are, of course, sheer fiction created in the minds of writers, directors and filmmakers. But do you realize there was a real encounter with extra-terrestrials found in the pages of the Bible?
The biblical prophet Ezekiel saw a strange vision of living creatures and wheels within wheels. Many explanations have been given for these wheels, but the message given to Ezekiel has been almost universally ignored or misunderstood. On this program, I’ll reveal what that message was, and for whom it was for, and when it was to be fulfilled.
Time does not allow me to read the entire description, so I hope you will open your Bible and read it for yourself, but for now, let’s notice what must have been a frightening sight, beginning in Ezekiel 1:4.
Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also from within it came the likeness of four living creatures (Ezekiel 1:4).
The appearance of these extraterrestrials is described in the following verses. Notice verse 5.
And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. Each one had four faces, and each one had four wings. Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the soles of calves’ feet. They sparkled like the color of burnished bronze. The hands of a man were under their wings on their four sides; and each of the four had faces and wings. Their wings touched one another (Ezekiel 1:5–9).
What were these creatures?
Ezekiel 10:1 answers this question—they were cherubim, angelic beings of very high rank, and they are seen in some kind of mobile vehicle directed by another spirit being.
Ezekiel’s Wheel | Ezekiel 1:15–21
We’ll see who that might be in a moment, but notice how this object appears to move about, changing directions, defying the laws of nature as we know them (Ezekiel 1:9).
The creatures did not turn when they went, but each one went straight forward…. They went wherever the spirit wanted to go, and they did not turn when they went…. And the living creatures ran back and forth, in appearance like a flash of lightning (Ezekiel 1:9, 12–14).
Ezekiel next describes something that has puzzled many—wheels within wheels. Speculations are all over the map. Some think the wheels are angels. Others think that they are gyroscopes, similar to tops that many of us played with as children, with the wheel inside providing stability.
Now as I looked at the living creatures, behold, a wheel was on the earth beside each living creature.… The appearance of their workings was, as it were, a wheel in the middle of a wheel. When they moved, they went toward any one of four directions; they did not turn aside when they went… and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, because there the spirit went; and the wheels were lifted together with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. When those went, these went; when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up together with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels (Ezekiel 1:15–17, 19–21).
These were indeed strange creatures, clearly not resembling ET or anything else created by Hollywood.
Ezekiel’s Vision Explained: God’s Throne Described in Ezekiel 1
What was Ezekiel seeing in this close encounter? Where did they come from? Was this a UFO from some distant planet?
There is no need to speculate, as the Bible interprets the Bible. Verse 1 of chapter 1 tells us in plain language.
Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the River Chebar, that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God (Ezekiel 1:1).
The vision given to Ezekiel was apparently a portable throne of God, being confirmed later in the chapter.
And above the firmament over their heads [that is, over the heads of the cherubim] was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness with the appearance of a man high above it (Ezekiel 1:26).
Now notice Ezekiel’s reaction when he saw the throne and the One sitting on it (verse 28).
So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking (Ezekiel 1:28).
Ezekiel’s vision was exactly that—a vision of God, a vision of God on a portable throne. There is no indication anyone else experienced the vision, for as we read (in chapter 1, verse 3):
The word of the LORD came expressly to Ezekiel the priest (Ezekiel 1:3).
The Book of Ezekiel’s Purpose: An End-Time Warning Message
While many are intrigued by this strange encounter, almost no one understands the focus of the message given to Ezekiel.
Let’s pick it up in chapter 2.
And He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to you.” ...And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD’” (Ezekiel 2:1,3-4).
God did not speak flatteringly of Ezekiel’s intended audience. In addition to calling them impudent and stubborn children, He also called them rebellious.
As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a rebellious house—yet they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are a rebellious house. You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you (Ezekiel 2:5–9).
But who exactly were these stubborn rebels?
Ezekiel’s Prophecy to the Rebellious House of Israel
Almost everyone thinks the message was for the Jews, but that is not what the Bible says, and that misunderstanding is critical. Pick it up in verse 9.
Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. Then He spread it before me; and there was writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were lamentations and mourning and woe (Ezekiel 2:9–10).
Now we come to chapter 3, where Ezekiel is told to eat the scroll and the audience to whom he was to take the message is revealed (Ezekiel 3:1).
Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel” (Ezekiel 3:1).
Notice that he is to go to the house of Israel. We next read that he ate the scroll, and it was sweet like honey in his mouth. Then he is told again to go to the house of Israel with God’s message to them. Begin in verse 4.
Then He said to me: “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted” (Ezekiel 3:4-7).
The message is unambiguously to a very specific people—the house of Israel. Now, why is this important, and what does it have to do with the message? Sadly, even theologians are ignorant about the intended audience.
Any serious student of the Bible is aware of the split that took place between the 12 tribes of Israel. You can read of that in 1 Kings 12. After the death of King Solomon, his unwise son Rehoboam refused to lighten the tax load on the people of Israel, causing ten of the 12 tribes to rebel and set up their own king—leaving only Judah (from which we derive the name Jew) and Benjamin. Thereafter, we read of the histories of two separate nations: the house of Judah and the house of Israel.
Ezekiel was a Jew, a captive taken to Babylon prior to when the house of Judah fell to King Nebuchadnezzar in 586BC. So while he interacted with his fellow captives of the house of Judah, there is no indication whatsoever of him interacting with the house of Israel, who were in captivity to the north. Yet his message was clearly to the house of Israel. He was even called a watchman to these northern ten tribes of that house (notice again Ezekiel 3: 17).
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me” (Ezekiel 3:17).
Any reading of the books of Kings and Chronicles demonstrates that the Jews and Benjamites compose the house of Judah; whereas the other ten tribes of Israel are known as the house of Israel. Did Ezekiel make a scribal error, or was he, a Jew, confused about the two different nations?
Ezekiel had been taken to Babylon in an early transportation of Jewish captives, but the city of Jerusalem was still holding out. We read in the opening verses of chapter 4 that the prophet was to portray on the ground the siege of Jerusalem. We’ll pick it up in verse 3.
Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city [that is, the city of Jerusalem]. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it (Ezekiel 4:3).
Notice carefully the rest of the verse 3.
This will be a sign to the house of Israel.
How strange. The portrayed siege is against Jerusalem, the capital of the house of Judah, but the sign is to the house of Israel, a different nation. Surely, Ezekiel is confused, not knowing the difference—or is he?
Differentiating the House of Israel from the House of Judah | Ezekiel 4
Did Ezekiel—to say nothing of God—know the difference between these two different nations? Let’s read on in verse 4.
Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their iniquity. For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel (Ezekiel 4:4–5).
Now notice the next part of the command (verse 6).
And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year (Ezekiel 4:6).
This is not the only delineation between the house of Judah (the Jews and Benjamites) and the house of Israel (the other ten tribes).
In the 37th chapter, we read of a time still ahead of us—the time of Christ’s return. Ezekiel was told to take two sticks and write on them. One stick is for Judah (the house of Judah) and the other is for Ephraim, the leading tribe in the house of Israel. He was then to join them in one hand. When the people asked him what this meant, he was to reply (verse 19):
Say to them, “Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Surely I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will join them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand’” (Ezekiel 37:19).
Notice this carefully.
“‘They shall no longer be two nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again’” (Ezekiel 37:22).
The two nations were never brought back together from the time they were first divided, so when will this happen (verse 24)?
David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd…. and My servant David shall be their prince forever (Ezekiel 37:24–25).
Another telecast on this subject can be found [on our YouTube channel]. Scroll down to “Popular Videos” and look for “Ezekiel’s Message Unlocked.” This video has 1.3 million views and covers aspects of this subject not covered here.
Ezekiel Watchman: Warning the House of Israel in the Last Days
We’ve seen that the message was not primarily for the Jews, but to a different nation composed of non-Jewish Israelites far from where Ezekiel resided in Chaldean captivity. However, this is only the beginning of Ezekiel’s mysteries.
We read in the last segment of the commission given to him by God.
I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel (Ezekiel 3:17).
This commission is further explained in chapter 33, beginning in verse 1.
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand’” (Ezekiel 33:1-6).
So far, so good. Nothing mysterious about this commission. However, this is not as straightforward as you might imagine. The next verse is shrouded in a mystery. I’ll read it and then explain.
So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me (Ezekiel 33:7).
Ezekiel was appointed by God to be a watchman, not for the house of Judah, but for the house of Israel. He was to warn them about a sword coming on the land, but here is the problem. The house of Israel had gone into captivity to Assyria more than 100 years earlier.
And this leaves us with only a few options.
- God was late in getting the message to the people intended (which is hard to imagine). Or:
- Ezekiel recorded the message to be delivered by others much later before a different captivity.
As we have seen, the house of Israel will be in existence as a separate nation at the time of Christ’s return.
Therefore, Ezekiel’s warning must go to a nation or nations existing now, leading to the time of the end.
So who are these modern-day descendants of the house of Israel? The answer is hiding in plain sight—in the book of Genesis.
Watch this next video explaining God’s promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their descendants—promises that include great amounts of territory, incredible mineral wealth, control of sea gates (such as the Strait of Hormuz*), unmatched agricultural riches, and God-given military power to defend against all aggressors.
See for yourself how—and for which nations—these prophecies are being fulfilled “in the last days”—right before your very eyes.
*Editor’s note:
“Although based some distance from the strait, the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet has been based in Bahrain since 1995 and plays a role in guaranteeing safe passage in the strait” (“Strait of Hormuz,” Britannica.com).
“American forces in recent weeks have helped coordinate the passage of dozens of commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz…” (“U.S. Military Is Quietly Guiding Ships Through the Strait of Hormuz,” New York Times, May 31, 2026).
