Commentaire sur Ézéchiel 1:4

and behold, a tempest was coming from the north That is the Chariot of the throne of the glory of the Shechinah, as it is described in this chapter (verse 28). Since it came with fury to destroy Israel, it is therefore likened to a tempest and a [storm] cloud.

coming from the north It was returning from the land of the Chaldeans, which is in the north. As it is said (Jer. 1:14): “From the north the misfortune will break forth.” And why did it go there [first]? In order to subjugate the whole world to Nebuchadnezzar, to prevent the nations from saying that He delivered His children into the hands of a lowly nation, for the Chaldeans were [considered] a lowly nation. As it is said (Isa. 23:13): “this people has never been.” So did our Sages expound on this verse in tractate Chagigah (13b).

with a brightness around it Surrounding the cloud on the outside, implying that Israel was destined to be redeemed from there [Babylonia].