Tafsiran yang Mengutip untuk Yehezkiel 1:4

You will have to appreciate now that the nine filters mentioned by Rabbi Saadyah gaon are not nine different emanations through which these prophetic visions are filtered to the average prophet. Except for Moses, every prophet received his visions only via the tenth (lowest) of the ten emanations. The so-called אספקלריאות, “window-panes,” therefore are merely different levels of prophecy. Ezekiel already referred to this when he said (Ezekiel 1,4) “I looked, and lo a stormy wind came sweeping out of the north- a huge cloud and flashing fire, surrounded by a radiance; and in the centre of it, in the centre of the fire, a gleam as of amber. In the centre of it were also the figures of four creatures.” In verse 26 of the same chapter, the prophet describes that above the expanse over their heads was the semblance of a throne as well as a human-like figure. Altogether the prophet described 9 different “semblances.” רוח סערה, ענן גדול, אש מתלקחת, נוגה, חשמל, אופנים, חיותת רקיע, ראשי החיות, דמות כסא. We have here 9 separate “visions” which form the details of what the prophet had first described as מראות אלוהים, as “visions of G’d,” in verse one of the first chapter of his book. Having concluded these nine “visions” he reports about seeing something resembling מראה אדם, “the appearance of a man.” Moses’ prophetic visions did not have to be filtered through all these stages in order to result in a message to the people whom the prophet is meant to address.
All the foregoing gives you an idea of the difference between the quality of Moses’ prophetic insights and those of any other prophet after him. There are scholars who understand the “nine visions” enumerated by Ezekiel as allegorical descriptions of ever higher emanations, these emanations being paraphrased as the various planets, each one closer to the celestial centre. The ninth (highest) is perceived as the one that surrounds the attribute of G’d we know as כבוד. The powerful radiations of ever purer forms of light which the prophet saw appeared to him in the form of the respective four chayot. According to these scholars the meaning of our sages’ statement in the Midrash dealing with the story of the creation that there are chayot in our terrestrial world, i.e. holy beings on earth described by the prophet as chayot hakodesh, ophanim and kisseh hakavod, means that this is the meaning of Isaiah saying in Isaiah 66,1 that “the whole of earth is G’d’s footstool.” What they had in mind specifically was the surface of the moon. [The author continues further in this vein. As I am not certain of his meaning, I have omitted translating those lines. Ed.]

...The Holy One Blessed be He desired to sanctify His Altar and His Tabernacle through the descent of the divine fire there for four reasons: 1) The divine Camp and the collective of his angels is always likened to fire, as it is written, "the appearance of the Presence of the Lord was like a consuming fire" (Exodus 24:17). Ezekiel beheld his prophecy with fire, as it is written, "flashing fire...and in the center of it, in the center of the fire, a gleam as of amber" (Ezekiel 1:4). And Daniel said, "His throne was tongues of flame; its wheels were blazing fire. A river of fire..." (Daniel 7:9-10). Since the divine camp is called 'fire' in the words of the prophets, fire came to the Tabernacle and to the Temple to indicate that the Divine Presence and Glory of the Lord were there with the holy myriads. ... 2) The human intellect doubts the divine Providence due to the exalted nature of the Provider and the lowliness mortal individuals. He, may He be blessed, is non-corporeal and does not have accidents that would allow humans to perceive Him. Therefore, in order to ingrain the truth of his Providence in the minds of His servants, together with His exalted status, God brought fire down from heaven onto the altar... 3) The divine Torah is likened to fire, as it is written, "Lightning [אש] flashing from His right" (Deuteronomy 33:2). The prophet said, "Behold, My word is like fire" (Jeremiah 23:29). Once the Tabernacle was completed and Israel [had brought] their offerings, fire descended from Heaven to express that the true perfection consists in keeping the Torah that is likened to fire, as it was granted from Heaven. 4) Israel were in deep doubt about how the offerings could be of 'pleasant odor' to the Name, since He is distinct from all physicality. Therefore, He needed to bring down fire from Heaven to consume the burnt offering and the fats so that all the people could see with their own eyes that God was pleased with their actions...

ויהי ביום השלישי בהיות הבקר, “it was on the third day, during the morning,” the third day after they started sanctifying themselves, the sixth day of the month.
ויהי קולות וברקים, “and there was thunder and lightning.” The “voices” which we translated as “thunder” were those of the angels praising the Lord each and every morning, as we know from Job 38,7: “when the morning stars sang together and all the divine beings shouted for joy.” The “lightning” also referred to angels, a different group. We know that angels are described as lightning from Psalms 104,4: “He makes the winds His messengers, fiery flames His servants.” We also find this thought reflected in Ezekiel 1,13: “this fire, suggestive of torches, kept moving among the creatures; the fire had a radiance, and lightning issued from the fire.”
וענן כבד, and “heavy cloud.” The purpose of that was to separate between the angels and the people. If the Israelites had seen the angels they would have become frightened. We have a verse describing something similar occurring in Ezekiel’s vision (Ezekiel 1,4) ”a huge cloud and flashing fire, surrounded by a radiance;” this was followed (verse 5) by: “in the center of it were also the figures of four creatures.” The foregoing is a relatively new interpretation of this verse by Rabbeinu Chananel. It does not contradict, and must not be understood as contradicting the plain meaning of the words, i.e. that it was a cloudy day, that the קולות וברקים were thunder and lightning accompanied by some rain. This is in line with the plain meaning of Judges 5,4 where Devorah describes the weather on the day of the battle against Siserah, saying: “the earth trembled; the heavens dripped; yea the clouds dripped water. Mountains quaked, etc.” Rabbeinu Chananel’s explanation may be viewed as perhaps the foremost amongst the proverbial 70 facets according to which the written Torah may be explained. The cloud came first, followed by lightning and thunder, as is usual on such days. The reason the Torah does not report events in that order may have been to give prominence to the sound of the shofar. Had the Torah described events in their chronological order then the reader would have made a conceptual linkage between the words קולות and קול שופר, something which would have been wrong. By mentioning the thunder first, the Torah made certain that we would not associate the blast of the shofar with ordinary thunder experienced on that day. The difference between the sound of the thunder and the sound of the blast of the shofar may be described as similar to the difference between physical and spiritual sensations man experiences.

But you have burdened Me [lit. you have overworked Me.] You have caused Me to be an attendant to pagans, as Ezekiel envisioned (1:4): “And behold a tempest was coming from the north.” For the chariot of the Shechinah was returning from Babylon, where it had gone to conquer the whole world under the domination of Nebuchadnezzar, lest they say that He delivered His children into the hands of an inferior nation, as is found in Hagigah (13b).