Video summary
The phrase "a wheel within a wheel," often heard in songs and statements but rarely preached upon, originates from the prophetic visions of Ezekiel regarding the divine chariot throne. This complex imagery appears in chapters 1 and 10 of the book of Ezekiel, where the prophet describes four living creatures accompanied by wheels that possess an appearance as if one wheel were inside another. These wheels are described as gleaming like tarshish stone, having lofty rims full of eyes all around, and moving in any of the four directions without turning their bodies. The text suggests that this difficult-to-visualize description is not merely about physical mechanics but serves to convey profound spiritual truths about God's nature during a time when Israel was facing captivity and punishment.
The primary theological argument presented is that these intricate descriptions symbolize God's omnipresence and omniscience rather than just a literal mechanical structure. The eyes covering the wheels signify that there is no place one can go where God cannot see, while the ability of the wheels to move in all directions without turning represents God's sovereignty and freedom to act wherever His spirit leads. For the Jewish audience in Babylonian exile, this vision was a message of comfort, assuring them that despite their displacement and suffering, God had not abandoned them; His spirit remained with them, and He would fulfill His promise to eventually restore them after the period of judgment.
This concept extends beyond its original historical context to apply to believers today, including Gentiles who are part of God's people. Just as the all-seeing eyes watched over Israel in captivity, the same divine attributes protect, sanctify, and guide Christians through their own trials and life journeys. The vision reminds us that God is ever-present and ever-knowing, capable of seeing every detail of our lives regardless of where we are or what we are facing. Ultimately, the strange imagery serves to illustrate a comforting truth: no matter the circumstances, God is actively present, watching over His people with perfect knowledge and power to bring about His purposes.
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Can someone clarify for me what a will
what a will in the middle of a wheel
means? Wheel in the middle of a wheel.
Thank you.
>> I'll try. I'll do my best.
>> This is a passage that I've heard, a
phrase that I've heard over and over
again, but I don't think I've ever heard
anyone actually preach on this. And I've
heard it in song. I've heard it in in
statements that he's a will in the
middle of a wheel. But you rarely hear
someone talk about it. So what does that
mean? Well, it comes out of Ezekiel in a
couple passages. One, let's go to let's
start in Ezekiel. You know what? We're
going to start in chapter 10 and then go
back to the original where it comes up.
But let's go to chapter 10 first. Then I
Ezekiel 10:9 looked and behold four
wheels beside the cherubam. uh one wheel
beside each cherub and the appearance of
the wheels was like a gleam of tarsa
stone. As for their appearance, all four
of them had the same likeness as if one
wheel were within another wheel. And so
you have this wheel in the middle of a
wheel. When they moved, they went in
they went I'm sorry, they went in any of
their four directions without turning as
they went. But they followed in the
direction which they faced without
turning as they went. Their whole body,
their backs, their hands, their wings,
and the wheels were full of eyes all
around the wheel belonging to all four
of them. The wheels were called in my
hearing the whirling wheels. And each
one had four faces. The first face was
the face of a cherub, the second was the
face of the face of a man, the third
face uh of a lion, and the fourth the
face of an eagle. Well, what does that
mean? That's weird, right? So when you
see these different pictorial
descriptions that prophets or some
apostle someone has given especially
almost like end times related then it
what you have is the writer the author
trying to give a description of what he
is having a hard time describing. It's
almost like trying to describe water to
someone who's never experienced water or
a headache to someone who's never
experienced headache. Right? even things
of people that we already know who've
experienced the same thing like love.
Sometimes it's hard to describe certain
things. And so that's what's happening
here. He's giving a description of
what's happening. Now remember where
this takes place. Ezekiel is writing as
they are going into captivity. As a
matter of fact, the letter that he
starts off with with Ezekiel is Israel
being taken into captivity. This is part
of their punishment. But now remember
though, and this is the part that's
important to remember, God has told them
that they will be taken into captivity.
that they will be punished and there's
this 70-year exile that's going to
happen with them and then there's going
to be coming back. God is still not
through punishing them, but he's
promised to um kind of uproot them, to
uh pluck them up, to overthrow them, to
kind of destroy them, and then also to
build them back. And so remember God's
promise. I'm going to punish you. I have
to punish you. I'm a just God, but I've
kept I'm going to keep my promise. I'm
going to build you back up. So that
should be indicative of the fact that
God is never going to let go or take his
eyes off of Israel or his protection
completely. So let's go to Ezekiel
chapter 1 starting in verse one and
let's begin reading there. Now it came
about in the 30th year on the fifth day
of the fourth month while I was by the
river Kip Kabar among the exiles. So,
uh, the heavens were open and I saw a
vision of God. On the 5th of the month,
in the fifth year of King Johakim's
exile, the word of the Lord came
expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son
of Boozie, in the land of the Caldanss
by the river Kevar. And there the hand
of the Lord came upon him. As I looked,
behold, a storm wind was coming from the
north, a great cloud with a fire with a
fire flashing forth continually and
bright lights around it. So this is
probably indicative of uh in this case
the people that would come and take over
or bring into bring them into exile
coming from the north uh and a bright
light around it and in the midst of
something like a glowing meadow in the
midst of the fire within it there were
figures resembling the four living
beings. So as their capttors come from
the north so too would be these living
beings coming from the north. Now,
notice some of the descriptions that
they have up here. And again, granted,
it can be a little difficult to kind of
follow because the imagery is well, I I
it's hard to imagine and to try to
visualize the imagery, but what they're
trying to picture is the important part,
not so much what they actually look
like. So, uh, within it, there were
creatures resembling four living beings,
and this was their appearance as as they
had human form. Each of them had four
faces and four wings. Their legs were
straight and their feet were like the
calf's holes and they gleamed like
burnished bronze. Under their wings, on
the four sides were human hands. As for
the faces and wings of the four of them,
their wings touched one another. Their
faces did not turn. When they moved,
each went straight forward. As for the
form of their faces, each had the face
of a man. All had all four had the face
of a lion on their right and uh the face
of a bull on their left. and all four
had the face of an eagle. So now if you
go back to the passage describing them
in Ezekiel 10, it seems as though that
each each one of them had different
faces. No. Uh all four of them had the
same face and all four had the face of a
man, a lion, uh an eagle, and so forth.
So that's what he's trying to describe
to us. Such were their faces. Their
wings were spread out above. Each had
two touching another being and two
covering their bodies. and each went
straight forward where the spirit was
about to go. They would go without
turning as they went. In other words,
you wouldn't see them kind of moving.
So, if they went one way or the other,
if you had a camera, you wouldn't see
them turning. In the midst of the living
beings, there was something that looked
like burning coals of fire, like torches
darting back and forth among the living
beings. The fire was bright, and the
lightning uh was flashing from the fire,
and the living beings ran to and fro
like bolts of lightning. Now, as I
looked at the living beings, behold,
there was one wheel on the earth beside
the living beings. For each of the four
of them, I'm sorry, for each of the four
of them, the appearance of the wheels
and their workmanship was like sparkling
barrel, and all four of them had the
same form. their appearance and their
workmanship being as if one wheel were
within another. They're kind of wheel in
the middle of a wheel. But there's
something um important about how this is
actually being described. Whenever they
moved, they moved in form of their four
I'm sorry, in any of their four
directions without turning as they move.
So picture them moving, but let's say
you're looking at the front of me and me
moving, but I'm not turning to move. So,
they're how he looks or how they look.
He might move this way or they might
move that way or what have you, but you
see them not actually turning their
bodies, if that makes sense. Uh, as for
the rims, they were lofty. Now, again,
this kind of makes you picture of what
comes to mind when you think of a rim.
You think of a car rim. You think of the
rims on a car. This isn't the same
thing, I don't think. As for their rims,
they were lofty and awesome, and the
rims of all four of them were full of
eyes around. Whenever the living beings
moved, the wheels moved with with them.
And whenever the living beings rose from
the earth, the wheels rose also.
Wherever the spirit was about to go,
they would go in that direction. And the
wheels rose close beside them. For the
spirit of the living beings was in the
wheels. Now, let's pause. Trying to get
a picture of what the what he's
describing is going to be difficult. But
rather than trying to see what he's
saying, think about what it is he's
trying to describe. Why? What does each
picture kind of symbolize, so to speak?
Verse 21. Whenever those went, these
went. And whenever those stood still,
these stood still. And whenever those
rose from above the earth, the wheels
rose close beside them. For the spirit
of the living beings was in the wheels.
And so, let's drop to verse 22. Now over
the heads of the living beings there was
something like an expanse like the
awesome gleam of crystals spread out
over their heads. Under the expanse
their wings were stretched out straight
one toward one another. Each one also
had two wings covering its body on the
one side and on the other. I also heard
the sound of the wings of their wings
like the sound of abundant waters as
they went like the voice of the
Almighty. A sound of tumult like the
sound of an army camp. And so what does
his voice sound like? It sound like the
voice of the Almighty.
Um where and and wherever they stood
still, they dropped their wings. And
there came a voice from above the
expanse that was over their heads.
Whenever they stood still, they dropped
their wings. Now above the expanse that
was over their heads, there was
something resembling like a throne like
the lis lazuli uh in the appearance and
uh on that which resembled a throne.
High up was a figure with the appearance
of a man. Then I noticed from the
appearance of his loins and upward
something like a glowing metal that
looked like fire all around within. And
from the appearance of his loins and
downward I saw something like fire and
there was a radiance around him. As the
appearance of the rainbow in the clouds
on a rainy day, so was the appearance of
the surrounding radiance. Such was the
appearance of the likeness of the glory
of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell
on my face and heard a voice speaking.
So when you read all of this, you kind
of get a picture and understanding of
who this is before him. And so rather
than trying to figure out how exactly
does do these cherubam look with all
these wings and the wheels and the eyes,
by the way, this term these wheels in
the middle of a wheel, it's not so much
really in the middle of a wheel. What
he's really trying to say is that the
wheels are touching each other almost
like overlapping so that the wheels um
you don't see them turning but they're
turning. They're moving and so too are
the eyes and the eyes are always looking
in different places. What's interesting
is that Ezekiel
is um speaking about how the wherever
the spirit moved these creatures moved
as well. And then in one of the passage
he brings about how he looks up and the
spirit of the Lord is with him. Even in
captivity, even where they are, the
spirit of the Lord is there. And so
wherever,
wherever his people are, he will be
there. Even if they're going through
something, by the way, that should be
something some sort of comfort to us
that no matter what we're going through,
no matter what's happening, he will be
there. And why do you see all these
eyes? Because there's no place that you
can go that he can see you. it kind of
helps to demonstrate his omnisient and
omnipresence. So when you look at this
and when you look at look at the text uh
speaking about these different wheels
because that was a question asked. What
is a wheel in the middle of the wheel?
Uh each wheel has a kind of a a a
particular structure and the wheels as I
said they're intersecting each other
kind of at a right angle. And so as the
creatures are one here, one's here,
one's here, and one's kind of behind. So
no matter which way you look at at the
creature or this being or these beings,
there's a wheel and they're kind of
intersecting. And so that's when it
talks about there being a wheel in the
the middle of the wheel. And so the
wheels themselves are also covered with
these eyes as though no matter where you
go, they will they will be seeing you.
Um and that they move in all four
directions without turning. Ain't that
weird? Um and so it proves kind of their
their function. Uh the two wheels inter
interconnect differently on their axis
and it's just weird. Again,
if someone were to actually draw this
out,
maybe you can get it right, maybe you
couldn't. Um, all I can tell you is this
though, that that it seems to symbolize,
not what they look like, but what it
seems to symbolize is um God's
attributes and his sovereignty that he
can see wherever he wants, so he can go
where he wants to. Um, I don't want to
read too much in the fact they don't
move or anything like that. I don't know
if we could, if I should. Should I say
that he's unchanging, unmoved? I don't
know. I wouldn't say that. Um, though it
could be the that could be it though.
All I do know is that he's always
present, ever present and ever seeing.
Again, kind of omnisient and
omnipresent. No matter where you go, God
will see and perceive. And so, remember
this is going out to Ezekiel and his
audience, which would be these Jews who
are in captivity, in this case, in
Babylon. And so it should be a sign of
comfort for them that God is still
seeing, allseeing, all knowing,
everpresent, even with them in the
middle of their captivity. And he is
going to do exactly what he said.
Because why is he there? The reason why
he's there is because he's going to
fulfill what he said he's going to do
with them. That is to bring them out.
Now, does this apply in any way, shape,
or fashion to us as Gentiles? Well, the
same God who is the God of Israel is the
same God who's the God of us believers.
And by the way, he's only going to save
some of Israel. And so, just as there
are some who are chosen of Israel, those
of us who are saved also chosen. And so,
those very same eyes that are watchful
over Israel, uh, who are being
disciplined,
he's certainly those same eyes are
watchful over us, those who he's
keeping, who he's growing, who he's
sanctifying, and who's developing and
using us to bring other people in some
cases bringing some of those Jews to
Christ. And so the omnipresent,
omnisient, and even omni an omnipotent
God um whose spirit is hovering over and
watching over us, knows all and protects
all. And so you can you can kind of
glean some of the same things that he's
going to do for them that he's doing and
will do for us. So I hope this helps.
Again, it's a difficult uh picture to
draw it, to see it. If someone were to
make a movie, good luck. It's going to
be that difficult. But the point behind
it, I think, should be pretty pretty
understandable that he is an allseeing,
all knowing God. And just like he was
that for them, he's that way for us.
Amen.