,transcriber's ,note3      ,this etext  
was produced from ,analog ,science ,fact
  ,fiction ,march #aifa4    ,extensive  
research did not uncover any evidence   
that the ,u4,s4 copyright    on this    
publication was renewed4                
,,the                                   
,,four-,,faced                          
,,visitors                              
,,of 444 ,,ezekiel                      
,by ,,arthur ,w4 ,,orton                
,ezekiel1 they say1 saw de wheel--but he
 saw somewhat more        than that4    
,and ,orton suggests that what he saw   
made        perfectly good sense 444 to 
the understanding6                      
,illustrated by ,orton           99     
99       99       99       99           
,we are told from our ,sunday ,school   
days that the ,bible is a living  book1 
the oldest of man's written works that  
is read and used anew1  from generation 
to generation4 ,it remains living       
because we are able  to find new meaning
 to fit our daily lives4 ,although it is

 not the  usual kind of new meaning1 ,i 
believe that ,i have found something of 
the sort in the very old prophesies of  
,ezekiel4    ,bible scholars have long  
recognized the first chapter of ,ezekiel
 as a  strange and nearly unfathomable  
account of a vision4 ,i suggest that it 
is strange only because it is written by
 a man far removed from us in  time and 
experience1 about a subject totally     
unfamiliar to men of his  time4 ,i do   
not think that this was a vision in the 
usual sense1 nor  was it meant to be    
mystical4 ,this particular chapter has  
been called  ,science fiction in the    
,bible and many attempts have been made 
to  unravel the meaning of the original 
author1 along both spiritual and        
mundane lines4 ,i am convinced that this
 chapter is the account of an  actual   
happening2 the landing of               
extraterrestial beings1 reported by a   
careful1 truthful and self-possessed    
observer4    ,i am not a student of     
theology and therefore you may feel that

 ,i am  being presumptive in attempting 
to throw light on a mystery as old and  
well-studied as ,ezekiel's first        
chapter4 ,i feel that any success that  
,i may have in doing so will be due to  
the accident of my birth at the  very   
beginning of an era when the events ,i  
have to describe are fact1  or are about
 to become fact4    ,if1 as ,i believe1 
this is an account of an actual         
encounter with men  from space1 ,i may  
be better able to interpret the meaning 
than a  student of theology1 who by     
training and interest1 is looking for a 
theological meaning4 ,i have worked with
 mechanical things1 and as an           
instructor of aircraft mechanics for    
most of my adult life4 ,during  this    
time ,i have had to untangle a lot of   
mechanical misconceptions  and          
misunderstandings4 ,i think that this   
gives me some insight into  this        
problem4    ,if you are not too familiar
 with the ,old ,testament1 ,i suggest   
that you  read through the first chapter

 of ,ezekiel to get the feeling of the  
flow of words1 and a general idea of    
what sort of material we will be        
covering4 ,if you have done a           
considerable amount of reading in the   
,bible1 ,i am sure you will notice at   
once how different and  un-,bible-like  
this chapter sounds4 ,it isn't long4    
,the first chapter  covers little more  
than one page4 ,don't expect to get a   
clear picture  the first time through4  
,it seems to have an elusive quality4   
,about the  time you feel that you have 
hold of a fact1 it seems to be          
contradicted in a later verse4 ,i am    
going to try to show you that this  is  
due to your own preconceived notions of 
what some of the words and  phrases     
mean4 ,you1 not ,ezekiel1 are supplying 
the contradictions4    ,you will see    
that ,i am not going to make excuses for
 the words1 as  written4 ,it is my      
belief that those who had the task of   
translating  the ,bible from its        
original tongue and re-copying it       

through the ages  were particularly     
careful of this chapter because they did
 not  understand it and were afraid of  
damaging it4    ,let us begin with the  
first verse of chapter one3      ,the   
,book of ,the ,prophet ,,ezekiel        
#hjc4       ,chapter #a      ,now it    
came to pass in the thirtieth year1 in  
the fourth month1 in  the fifth day of  
the month1 as ,i was among the captives 
by the river  of ,chebar1 that the      
heavens were opened1 and ,i saw visions 
of ,god4      #b4 ,in the fifth day of  
the month1 which was the fifth year of  
king  ,jehoiachin's captivity4      #c4 
,the word of the ,lord came expressly   
unto ,ezekiel the priest1 the  son of   
,buzi1 in the ,land of the ,chaldeans by
 the river ,chebar2 and the  hand of the
 ,lord was there upon him4    ,this     
fixes the location of this incident on  
the outskirts of ,bagdad4  ,the ,chebar 
is sometimes called ,the ,grand ,canal  
of ,bagdad4 ,although  the entire book  
was supposed to have been written by    

,ezekiel1 the  second and third verses  
sound like an editor's note1 inserted by
 a  later writer4      #d4 ,and ,i      
looked1 and1 behold1 a whirlwind came   
out of the north1 a  great cloud1 and a 
fire infolding itself1 and a brightness 
was about  it1 and out of the midst     
thereof as the colour of amber1 out of  
the  midst of the fire4    ,here is a   
man who had lived most of his life in   
arid desert country4  ,he had probably  
seen whirlwinds of all kinds1 from      
dust-devils to  full-scale tornadoes4   
,he was an accurate and honest observer1
 as we  shall see later4 ,if he said it 
was a whirlwind1 it must have really    
been one1 or at least it looked enough  
like one to fool him for a  while4      
,notice that he does not say that it was
 high in the air1 or  that it came out  
of the sky1 but1 444 out of the north1  
or toward  him from the north4    ,the  
first thing that he noticed was that it 
had fire associated with  it1 a strange 
companion for a whirlwind4 ,there is    

something strange  about the fire       
itself4 ,he says that it infolds itself1
 which  suggests a fire of more active  
nature than ,ezekiel would be accustomed
  to4 ,the association of fire and      
whirlwind must have struck him as       
peculiar4    ,also something amber      
colored was associated with the cloud   
and fire4  ,he said that this color came
 out of the midst1 which might mean that
  it was above the cloud and flame1 or  
appeared as the fire and cloud          
subsided1 or blew to one side4          
,considering the detail he gives in     
later verses1 this is quite vague1 as it
 might be if he saw it from a  distance4
      #e4 ,also out of the midst thereof
 came the likeness of four living       
creatures4 ,and this was their          
appearance2 they had the likeness of a  
man4    ,why didn't he say that out came
 four men8 ,remember that he is telling 
this to very primitive1 superstitious   
people4 ,he was himself bred in a  time 
when the supernatural was taken for     

granted4 ,under these  conditions he has
 gone about as far as he could by saying
 that they  certainly looked like four  
men4 ,he does not say here that he took 
them  for angels or any other kind of   
supernatural beings4      #f4 ,and every
 one had four faces1 and every one had  
four wings4    ,this short verse is very
 clear1 yet you wonder how a creature   
with  four faces and four wings could   
possibly be taken for a man1 even by    
you or me4    ,although he does not say 
so1 we can imply that these creatures   
must  have advanced much closer to him  
after they got out of the fire and      
cloud1 for him to be able to see so much
 detail4    ,imagine the courage it took
 for him to stay put in order to observe
  these creatures4 ,notice also how     
objective he is1 never mentioning his   
own feelings4      #g4 ,and their feet  
were straight feet2 and the sole of     
their feet was  like the sole of a      
calf's foot2 and they sparkled like the 
colour of  burnished brass4    ,each    

verse of the description covers one or  
two parts of the  creatures4 ,when      
,ezekiel mentions more than one part it 
becomes  confusing1 so that one verse   
seems to contradict another4 ,these can 
usually be sorted out however4 ,nowhere 
will you find a direct  contradiction4  
,here he is describing the feet only4   
,the word straight can be taken  several
 ways4 ,does he mean regular feet1 or   
feet that point straight  forward1 or   
feet that are straight up and down1 like
 an elephant's8  ,probably he means     
regular1 forward-pointing feet because  
he does not  dwell on the point4 ,in    
other places he leans heavily on simile 
to  describe some unusual feature of the
 beings4    ,the sole of the foot sounds
 as if it was heavily cleated4 ,what    
then  has he described in this verse8   
,for a person living in a warm climate  
who had never seen any footwear more    
complicated than a sandal1 he has       
described a highly polished leather1    
plastic or metal boot very well4        

#h4 ,and they had the hands of a man    
under their wings on their four  sides2 
and they four had their faces and their 
wings4    ,notice carefully that he is  
not saying that each creature had four  
man-like hands1 one on each of four     
sides4 ,he is saying that each has  the 
normal number of hands and they are     
located below their wings4  ,remember   
that he was a careful observer and he   
had probably noticed  that birds have   
wings instead of arms4 ,these had both4 
,in addition1  he has given us another  
bit of information about the            
distribution of  the wings4 ,they do not
 appear to be arranged like a biplane1  
but each  wing is at a ninety-degree    
angle from its neighboring wing like a  
helicopter4    ,ezekiel must have been  
something of a numerologist4 ,he points 
out that  there are four creatures1 and 
each of the four has four faces each1   
and each has four wings each--but not   
four hands4      #i4 ,their wings were  
joined one to another2 they turned not  

when they  went2 they went every one    
straight forward4    ,he is not saying  
that the wings of one creature are      
joined to the  wings of another         
creature4 ,he is saying that each wing  
is joined to  another wing1 not directly
 to the creature4    ,the second and    
third parts of this verse present a     
mystery4 ,we do not  know what the theys
 refer to4 ,there are three theys in    
this verse1  one after another and we   
are given very few clues to which refer 
to  creatures and which refer to wings4 
,the first they most likely is  tied to 
the first part of the verse and         
therefore refers to the wings4  ,given  
this1 there are still three             
interpretations3         #a4 ,the wings 
turned not when the wings went2 ,the    
wings       went every one straight     
forward4         #b4 ,the wings turned  
not when the creatures went2 ,the       
wings went every one straight forward4  
#c4 ,the wings turned not when the      
creatures went2 ,the       creatures    

went every one straight forward4        
,none of these three statements make    
much of a point1 whether the  creatures 
have helicopter wings1 or bird-angel    
wings4 ,let us assume  then that the    
first they refers to the creatures3     
#a4 ,the creatures turned not when the  
creatures went2       ,the creatures    
went every one straight forward4        
#b4 ,the creatures turned not when the  
wings went2 ,the       wings went every 
one straight forward4         #c4 ,the  
creatures turned not when the wings     
went2 ,the       creatures went every   
one straight forward4    ,this last     
statement would pretty well describe the
 action of the  blades of an inoperative
 helicopter being carried forward in a  
straight line4 ,it would strike ,ezekiel
 as odd that the wings might  move and  
turn without turning the men under them4
 ,you might wonder why  he would say 444
 wings went 444 instead of 444 wings    
turned4444  ,when a light breeze moves  
the blades of an inoperative helicopter 

the  blades not only turn1 but they     
change their pitch and plane in a most  
random manner4    ,although ,ezekiel has
 not completed his description of the   
creatures1  we can try now to form a    
picture of what he saw4 ,no matter how  
we bend  and squeeze1 we are not going  
to get a ,michelangelo-type angel4 ,look
  at figure one4 ,go back over the      
points that ,ezekiel has described4 ,you
  will see that it fits quite well4     
#aj4 ,as for the likeness of the faces1 
they four had the face of a  man1 and   
the face of a lion1 on the right side2  
and they four had the  face of an ox on 
the left side2 they four also had the   
face of an  eagle4    ,illustration     
,this again does not sound very         
man-like4 ,you wonder what could have   
kept him from pronouncing them demons4  
,if you will study figure two1  you will
 see what ,ezekiel described4 ,now look 
at figure three4 ,how  much better could
 a man living six centuries before      
,christ describe  figure three8         

#aa4 ,thus were their faces3 and their  
wings were stretched upward2 ,two  wings
 of every one were joined one to        
another1 and two covered their  bodies4 
,see figure one again4 ,the arrangement 
is like he describes4 ,notice  that when
 he talks about 444 the wings 444 of one
 creature1 he  apparently means the     
whole system of wings and attachments4  
#ab4 ,and they went every one straight  
forward3 wither the spirit was  to go1  
they went2 and they turned not as they  
went4    ,again we have trouble with the
 theys4 ,notice however1 that the first 
part  of this verse repeats the last    
part of verse nine4 ,if we were right in
 that  verse1 the first they in this    
refers to the creatures again4 ,the     
second  part of this verse contains a   
new idea1 whither the spirit was to go  
4441  has an opposite meaning from 444  
they went 444 straight forward 444  and1
 444 they turned not when they went4    
,the first and last part sounds  like   
the four creatures were marching        

purposefully in one direction4 ,if  then
 the second or middle part refers to the
 wings1 we could read it3         ,and  
the creatures went every one straight   
forward3       whither the spirit was to
 go1 the wings went2 and the            
creatures turned not when the wings     
went4    ,again we have a picture of    
four men walking with their inoperative 
helicopters moving in several different 
ways as the breeze and the  men's       
motions cause them to move slightly4    
,notice that ,ezekiel seems to be more  
impressed with the wings and  their     
motion than with any other feature of   
what he witnessed4      #ac4 ,as for the
 likeness of the living creatures1 their
 appearance was  like burning coals of  
fire1 and like the appearance of lamps3 
it went  up and down among the living   
creatures2 and the fire was bright1 and 
out of the fire went forth lightning4   
,illustration    ,here he is describing 
their over-all appearance4 ,we can      
assume that  creatures that look like   

men but has a surface that resembles    
lights1  coals and fire must be wearing 
suits with a brightly colored metallic  
surface4 ,the modern anodized aluminium 
coatings glisten and sparkle  with an   
effect like he describes4 ,if these are 
space-suits1 there is a  good reason for
 making them gaudy4 ,if they were worn  
in space while  working on and around a 
ship1 they should be as bright and      
eye-catching as possible1 in the case   
the man became detached and  floated    
away4 ,he would be quite visible against
 the blackness of  space4      #ad4 ,and
 the living creatures ran and returned  
as the appearance of a  flash of        
lightning4    ,this might mean that they
 moved swiftly1 but more than likely it 
means  that they sparkled and shined on 
all sides1 and this was visible as  they
 moved about4    ,this ends the         
description for a while4 ,there are two 
later verses of  description1 but we    
will take this when we come to it4 ,it  
is  surprising that ,ezekiel has        

organized his material so well4 ,it     
reads  like a scientific report4 ,if he 
had headed the section that we just     
covered1 ,description1 we would not have
 been too surprised to find  the        
following section headed1 ,action3      
#ae4 ,now as ,i beheld the living       
creatures1 behold one wheel upon the    
earth by the living creatures1 with his 
four faces4    ,if we read ,ezekiel     
correctly and the creatures did have    
helicopter  attachments on their backs1 
we can assume that one of them now      
started his helicopter1 which would     
appear as a wheel to ,ezekiel1  and     
probably surprised him greatly4         
#af4 ,the appearance of the wheels and  
their work was like unto the  colour of 
,beryl3 and they four had one likeness3 
and their appearance  and their work was
 as it were a wheel in the middle of a  
wheel4    ,here we must digress in order
 to put ourselves into the life and time
  of this man because he has mentioned  
the wheel4 ,a wheel did not have  quite 

the same meaning for him as it does for 
you and ,i1 living in a  mechanical age4
 ,the wheel in #fjj ,b4,c4 in the area  
around the eastern  end of the          
,mediterranean1 the most civilized part 
of the world at that  time1 had only a  
few very limited uses4    ,one use1 old 
even in ,ezekiel's time was the potter's
 wheel2 a simple  platform mounted on   
crude vertical bearings so that it could
 be turned  with one hand while the clay
 was worked with the other4 ,from this  
the  grindstone and the lapidary wheel  
developed for working metal and  stone4 
,these early machines probably employed 
some form of foot  treadle but even     
these could not turn the wheel very     
fast4 ,if the  stone had a large enough 
diameter1 it was possible to get the    
speed at  the outer edge high enough to 
produce sparks when grinding hard       
material4 ,the work took place at some  
distance from the axis1  usually at the 
edge of the stone4    ,the wheel we     
usually associate with ancient times is 

the cart wheel4  ,in its earliest form  
it was a solid wheel1 like those still  
in use in  primitive sections of        
,mexico4 ,even with the cart wheel1     
ancient man  would associate the edge of
 the wheel with the work of the wheel4  
,this was the part that left a track in 
the mud and dust1 crushed an  occasional
 rock and fractured an occasional toe4  
,in order to increase the efficiency of 
military chariots it was  necessary to  
build a wheel that was lighter1 yet just
 as strong as the  solid model4 ,this   
was first done by cutting out lightening
 holes  between the hub and rim4        
,pressing this invention to the ultimate
  produced a spoked wheel4 ,the         
,egyptians used a six-spoked chariot    
wheel  thousands of years before        
,ezekiel's time1 and the ,greeks and    
others  had four-spoke models4 ,this was
 quite an invention and in addition to  
its useful aspects1 it produced some    
rather unusual1 even magical            
side-effects4 ,as every child knows1 if 

you turn your tricycle  upside-down and 
spin the wheel1 the spokes seem to      
vanish4 ,all that  can be seen is the   
rim and the parts of the hub near the   
center of  rotation4 ,no matter what    
shape the hub actually is1 it too looks 
round  like a wheel4 ,it is very likely 
that such an effect was referred to as  
a wheel within a wheel4    ,in verse #af
 ,ezekiel says that1 wheels and their   
work was the colour  of beryl 4441 a    
blue-green color4 ,this sounds like the 
emphasis is on  the color at the edge of
 the wheel4 ,this could be from a flame 
coming from jets on the tips of the     
rotors4    ,all of the creatures must   
have started their rotors4 7444 they    
four  had one likeness47 ,they looked   
like 444 a wheel in the middle of a     
wheel4 ,or the spinning spokes of a     
wheel4 ,notice also that he never       
mentions wings and wheels at the same   
time1 for when one appears  the other   
vanishes4      #ag4 ,when they went1    
they went upon their four sides3 and    

they turned  not when they went4    ,if 
four men were standing fairly close     
together on the ground with  running    
helicopters1 they would tend to spread  
out as they left the  ground1 so as to  
not run into each other4 ,moreover1 with
 a helicopter1  it is not necessary to  
face the direction you intend to go4    
,this  sounds like four men lifting off 
the ground1 spreading out slightly  and 
starting up and away1 in formation4     
#ah4 ,as for their rings1 they were so  
high that they were dreadful2  and their
 rings were full of eyes round about    
them four4    ,the four creatures are   
now high in the air above ,ezekiel1 a   
dreadful  and awe-inspiring sight for a 
man of ,ezekiel's time4 ,their rings    
obviously are the flames from their     
tip-jets1 seen from below--the  only    
part of the wheel now visible from far  
below4 ,and the rings  would be full of 
eyes4 ,when a jet or rocket motor is    
operating there  is a shock wave        
generated in the tailpipe which tends to

 cut the  exhaust gas into segments4    
,time exposures of jet aircraft at night
  often show this4 ,when a tip-jet is   
operating1 these bright1 evenly  spaced 
spots give it the appearance of a string
 of pearls1 444 full  of eyes round     
about them4444      #ai4 ,and when the  
living creatures went1 the wheels went  
up by them3  and when the living        
creatures were lifted up from the earth1
 the  wheels were lifted up4    ,ezekiel
 makes it clear that he does not know   
whether the men are  lifting the wheels 
or the wheels lifting the men1 but both 
went up  together4      #bj4            
,withersoever the spirit was to go1 they
 went1 thither was their  spirit to go2 
and the wheels were lifted over against 
them3 for the  spirit of the living     
creatures was in the wheels4    ,this is
 a most sophisticated opinion4 ,although
 ,ezekiel was describing  only what he  
saw1 he could not help but have some    
opinions about the  creatures4 ,in verse
 nineteen he makes it clear that he does

 not know  whether man is lifting the   
machine1 or the other way around1 but   
here  he makes it clear that whichever1 
there is no doubt that the creatures    
are controlling4 ,they are not being    
carried off by the will of the  wheel4  
#ba4 ,when those went1 these went2 and  
when those stood1 these stood2  and when
 those were lifted up from the earth1   
the wheels were lifted  up over against 
them3 for the spirit of the living      
creatures was in  the wheels4    ,this  
carries the idea of control one step    
farther4 ,not only are the  men         
controlling the wheels1 but they are    
self-controlled3 ,they are  flying in   
formation4      #bb4 ,and the likeness  
of the firmament upon the heads of the  
living  creatures was as the colour of  
terrible crystal1 stretched forth over  
their heads above4    ,perhaps this     
verse was moved out of it's original    
position1 for it  returns to the        
description of the creatures4 ,you may  
have noticed that  many of the verses   

are written so that it is in part1 an   
enlargement  of the thought put forward 
in the preceding verse1 and part new    
thought1 to be enlarged upon in the     
following verse4 ,verses twenty-two  and
 twenty-three seem to go together4 ,both
 would fit the rest of the  chapter     
better if they were between verses      
twelve and thirteen4    ,what is meant  
by firmament8 ,these people had no term 
for a  hollow-sphere4 ,most spherical   
objects were not hollow4 ,they had no   
soap1 so they had no soap bubbles4 ,the 
most common thing to compare a  hollow  
sphere to was the sky1 the bowl of the  
heavens--the firmament4  ,this          
crystal-clear bubble was over the heads 
of the creatures1 one on  each creature4
    ,we will come to the word firmament 
again1 but notice that this is1  444 the
 likeness of the firmament 4441 not the 
firmament itself4  ,later verses speak  
only of the firmament4      #bc4 ,and   
under the firmaments were their wings   
straight1 the one  toward the other3    

every one had two1 which covered on this
 side1 and  every one had two which     
covered on that side1 their bodies4     
,if you changed 444 under the firmament 
444 to1 444 below the sky  you would get
 a clearer picture4 ,if you look at the 
picture of a  house1 the roof is1 below 
the sky1 if you start at the top and    
work  down4 ,if you start at the ground 
and work up1 the roof is1 at the  top of
 the house4 ,ezekiel's description of   
the wings1 which is  continued in this  
verse1 concerns the wings at the top4   
,they are  7connected71 444 one toward  
the other1 about like in figure one4    
#bd4 ,and when they went1 ,i heard the  
noise of their wings1 like the  noise of
 great waters1 like the voice of the    
,almighty1 the voice of  speech1 as the 
noise of the host3 when they stood they 
let down their  wings4    ,if you have  
ever stood near a running tip-jet1 or   
any jet engine1 ,i  think you will know 
what ,ezekiel means4 ,the last statement
 is most  interesting4 ,it seems that   

when the creatures landed again they    
detached the helicopter mechanisms and  
set them down1 as anyone will  with a   
heavy back-pack who is resting or       
waiting4      #be4 ,and there was a     
voice from the firmament that was over  
their  heads1 when they stood1 and had  
let down their wings4    ,this voice1 or
 sound1 was not from the likeness of the
 firmament1  but from the sky1 as they  
stood there with their wings off4       
,this is the end of ,ezekiel's attention
 to the four creatures4      #bf4 ,and  
above the firmament that was over their 
heads was the  likeness of a throne1 as 
the appearance of a sapphire stone2 and 
upon  the likeness of the throne was the
 likeness as the appearance of a man    
above upon it4    ,out of the sky comes 
a man on a green seat4 ,but a throne is 
more than  a chair4 ,it is usually      
associated with a platform4 ,this may be
 some  kind of flying platform similar  
to those being tested for the           
transporting of infantry4      #bg4 ,and

 ,i saw as the colour of amber1 as the  
appearance of fire round  about within  
it1 from the appearance of his loins    
even upward1 and  from the appearance of
 his loins even downward1 ,i saw as it  
were the  appearance of fire1 and it had
 brightness round about4    ,since this 
thing was high over their heads1 and he 
saw fire round  about it1 the fire may  
have been on the under side4 ,what he   
says about  the man is very like what he
 said about the other four1 except that 
he  describes the man from the waist1 up
 and down1 as if he could not see  the  
area near the man's waist4      #bh4 ,as
 the appearance of the bow that is in   
the cloud in the day of  rain1 so was   
the appearance of the brightness round  
about4 ,this was  the appearance of the 
likeness of the glory of the ,lord4 ,and
 when ,i  saw it1 ,i fell upon my face1 
and ,i heard a voice of one who spake4  
,what prismatic effect1 brighter than   
the outdoor desert sunshine is  hard to 
imagine1 but a large shining object     

close at hand would be  pretty          
terrifying4 ,it seems strange that      
,ezekiel would not throw  himself upon  
the ground1 after withstanding all he   
had seen up till  now1 but we must      
remember that a man seated on a throne1 
a flying  throne at that might have a   
lot more meaning for him than it would  
for  you and me4 ,if this object        
happened to come down closer to him than
  the other creatures had1 he might well
 have broken4    ,we have now covered   
every verse of the first chapter quite  
thoroughly4  ,since the ,book of        
,ezekiel contains forty-eight chapters1 
we might fear  that this is just the    
beginning of a long and tiring study4   
,fortunately or unfortunately this is   
not the case4 ,the second chapter       
begins3      #hjd4    ,and he said unto 
me1 ,son of man1 stand upon they feet1  
and ,i will  speak to thee4    #b4 ,and 
the spirit entered into me when he spake
 unto me1 and set me  upon my feet1 that
 ,i heard him that spake unto me4    #c4

 ,and he said unto me1 ,son of man1 ,i  
send thee to the children of  ,israel1  
to a rebellious nation that hath        
rebelled against me3 they and  their    
fathers have transgressed against me1   
even unto this very day4    ,this       
typically prophetic writing goes on for 
many pages1 telling the  woes and sins  
of the ,israelites4 ,reference is made  
in a few places to  the material in the 
first chapter1 but even this dies out   
before the  end of the book4    ,no     
mention is made again of the living     
creatures till chapter three  where the 
following verse is found3      #ac4 ,i  
heard also the noise of the wings of the
 living creatures that  touched one     
another1 and the noise of the wheels    
over against them1  and a noise of great
 rushing4    ,this combines some of the 
ideas of earlier verses without adding  
any  new information4 ,notice that      
writer has the notion that the wings of 
one creature touched those of another1  
or that the creatures touched  one      

another4    ,this verse is typical of   
several more scattered throughout the   
first  third of the book4 ,all the      
verses mentioning the living creatures  
after the first chapter are more        
dramatic and all fail to continue the   
style of a careful reporter4 ,no new    
ideas are advanced1 but some  rather    
unusual contradictions are introduced1  
by using several parts  of several      
verses of ,chapter ,one4 ,chapter ,ten  
reads like an attempt at  rephrasing    
,chapter ,one and ,chapter ,eleven is   
the last mention of the  living         
creatures in the entire book4           
,although it contains no further        
information on the living creatures1    
,chapter ,three has a verse that should 
be mentioned4 ,verse fifteen  sounds    
like a fitting conclusion to the first  
chapter3    ,illustration      #ae4     
,then ,i came to them of the captivity  
at ,tel-,abib1 that dwelt by  the river 
,chebar1 and ,i sat where they sat1 and 
remained there  astonished among them   

for seven days4    ,just what do we     
have8 ,we have a description of four    
spacesuited and  helicopter-equipped    
men1 getting off of1 or out of something
 that  landed in a cloud of dust or     
smoke4 ,the four men start their        
helicopters1 take off and fly to some   
height4 ,on returning to the  ground    
they remove their flying gear and wait4 
,they are met by a fifth  man1 riding on
 a flying platform4 ,such an event would
 cause some  interest in any community  
today1 but in those times it could only 
be  interpreted as supernatural--a      
miracle4 ,the miracle may well be that  
the story has been preserved for us1    
twenty-six centuries later4    ,a word  
for word interpretation is only part of 
the oddity of this  chapter4 ,several   
other aspects are worth pondering4 ,the 
whole chapter  has a well-worn feeling1 
as though the author had told and       
re-told it  many times4 ,it reads like a
 deposition1 taken down by a police     
officer1 after the witness1 who prides  

himself on truthfulness1 has  told the  
story over and over to his incredulous  
friends4 ,it has a  certain poetic      
beauty4 ,it has the style of one who is 
telling you the  truth1 no matter       
whether you are going to believe it or  
not4 ,it is  the presentation of a      
tableau that makes no sense to the man  
who  witnessed it1 or to those to whom  
he is describing it4    ,the product of 
a man's imagination is tied to his own  
experience1 his  own time4 ,a wonderful 
tale of the supernatural may sound very 
imaginative to the contemporary of the  
teller1 but it will date itself  to a   
later generation4 ,the lives of the     
,greek gods are related to the  lives of
 the early ,greeks4 ,an imaginative     
science-fiction writer such  as ,jules  
,verne is limited in the same way4 ,as  
good as he was1  experience has set an  
outer limit to his imagination4         
,ezekiel's tale  is not in this class4  
,to his contemporaries1 it was out of   
step with  reality4 ,to us it is real   

enough1 but out of step with time4 ,the 
most  credible explanation is that it   
really happened4           99       99  
99       99       99    ,perhaps there  
are some points of my interpretation    
that you do not  agree with1 but as a   
whole the story does hang together      
rather well4  ,if you have the feeling  
that it would be easy to fit the words  
around  an entirely different set of    
circumstances1 ,i suggest that you try4 
,it is interesting to know that some    
years ago a verbal battle raged in      
theological circles as to whether       
,ezekiel wrote the ,book of ,ezekiel4   
,one school of thought held that he did1
 while the other school held  that the  
first chapter was a forgery1 written in 
the third century  before ,christ1 and  
tacked on as a sort of leader to        
,ezekiel's book4  ,for our purposes it  
cannot be a forgery4 ,it makes little   
difference  how long ago it was written1
 so long as it was not since ,world ,war
 ,,ii6    ,suppose ,ezekiel or some     

ancient man actually saw what ,i have   
proposed4  ,what are the possible       
explanations8 ,is it possible that some 
ancient  race1 unknown to us1 could have
 developed such equipment8 ,it is not   
likely4 ,during the last one hundred    
years we have been prodding about  in   
the earth and finding so many ancient   
records that someone else  besides      
,ezekiel would certainly have left us a 
report on them4    ,the things that were
 science fiction twenty years ago are   
solid fact  now4 ,we know that a landing
 on the ,moon is only a question of     
time1 a  few years at the most4 ,the    
planets of our ,solar ,system will      
follow1 at  least some before the turn  
of the century1 probably4 ,as for the   
planets of neighboring stars we cannot  
say4 ,we have no way of  exploring them 
at present1 but that is not the same as 
saying that we  never will4 ,if the past
 performance of the human race is any   
measure1  they will likely fall to      
exploration within two hundred years4   

,if you concede that it is possible that
 we can visit other star  systems in a  
future not too distant1 why then could  
we not have been  visited some time in  
the past8 ,it may tend to deflate our   
ego to think  that there may be         
intelligent beings not too different    
from us who are  advanced beyond us4 ,it
 need not4 ,one of the most striking    
features of  ,ezekiel's story1 if it has
 been decoded correctly1 is that these  
beings are very much like we are1 right 
at the present time4 ,that puts  them   
three or four thousand years ahead of   
us1 a very small amount  indeed when we 
consider the long sweep of human life   
and development  before the dawn of     
written history4    ,we are so used to  
stories of ,bug-eyed ,monsters coming to
 ,earth1 that  the idea of beings from  
other worlds looking and acting human   
seems  fantastic4 ,it should not4 ,there
 is good sound scientific reason to     
believe that there is little chance of  
it being any other way4 ,life is  a     

delicate and fragile thing when compared
 to cosmic extremes of  temperature and 
environment in our universe4 ,if life   
formed on earth  as science now believes
 that it did1 we must have had just the 
right  size planet at just the right    
distance from a particular type of star4
  ,while such extremely narrow limits   
are going to reduce the number of       
places in the universe where life can   
develop1 it is also going to  limit the 
differences4 ,in our creation things    
operate by rule4 ,the  rule is that in  
similar circumstance there are similar  
solutions to a  problem4 ,man is the    
solution of the problem of building the 
highest  form of life on ,earth4 ,on a  
similar planet we can expect to find a  
similar solution4 ,this is simply the   
extension of the theory of  parallel    
evolution to a cosmic scale4    ,if     
then1 we were visited by people from    
another world1 what were they  doing    
here8 ,strangely enough1 there is       
considerable evidence of what  they were

 up to from ,ezekiel's own testimony4   
,let us suppose that  these creatures   
were very much like we expect to be in  
five hundred  years4 ,they have come    
from some other star system in a ship   
whose  principle of operation is as yet 
unknown to us4 ,we can assume that it   
was a rather large ship1 being that     
there were five beings on board at      
once1 and we can presume that enough of 
a crew remained aboard to  return it    
home in case something happened to the  
explorers4 ,how would  we proceed in    
such a case8    ,it is not likely that  
such a large ship would be brought down 
to the  surface of the earth4 ,after    
arriving in the neighborhood of the     
earth1  it would be put into orbit1 and 
the surface of the earth would be       
studied through telescopes for days or  
weeks4 ,the entire radio  spectrum would
 be scanned to determine if there were  
inhabitants  below1 capable of operating
 electrical equipment4 ,a small--manned 
or  unmanned--flyer would be sent down  

into the upper atmosphere to  determine 
the level of radioactivity1 air         
components1 spore and  bacteria count   
and radio signals incapable of          
penetrating the  atmosphere4 ,from the  
ship the land areas would be mapped and 
studied4  ,any large object on the      
ground that appeared to be of an        
artificial  nature would be given       
particular attention4 ,during the       
night-time  hours below1 these objects  
and areas would be very carefully       
observed  for signs of light4    ,in the
 case of our visitors of twenty-six     
centuries ago1 this is what  they would 
have found3 ,quite a few artificial     
works could be seen4  ,cultivated fields
 and large buildings would be easily    
visible in many  places around the      
eastern end of the ,mediterranean4 ,the 
,pyramids were  old even then4 7,the    
,great ,wall in ,china probably had not 
been  started47 ,there would be no radio
 sounds1 except for an occasional       
lightning click4 ,we do not know how    

well their cities were lighted at       
night1 but they were probably too dim to
 see4 ,tiny orange pinpoints of  light  
from outdoor bonfires could probably be 
seen around the globe1  but there would 
be more of them around the              
,mediterranean and in the  ,east and    
,near ,east than anywhere else4 ,the    
radioactivity level would  be low4 ,our 
visitors would conclude that the        
inhabitants were either  in the early   
stages of civilization1 or were once    
highly civilized and  now sunk back to a
 primitive stage4 ,they would know that 
this was due  to something other than   
atomic war4    ,we have to conclude that
 these were moral beings4 ,if the       
conditions  below were as they seemed to
 be1 that of an early civilization1 they
  would not want to interfere4 ,they    
would want to observe without being     
observed1 so even if it were technically
 possible they would not want  to bring 
a large ship down4 ,they would send down
 as small and  inconspicuous a vehicle  

as possible4    ,we usually picture such
 a craft as a small version of the      
larger ship1  or a large--by our        
standards--rocket1 or an aircraft       
similar to our  ,dyna-soar4 ,for people 
this advanced technologically something 
a lot  simpler might be used4 ,it might 
be an open vehicle1 similar to our      
flying platforms1 but with vastly more  
powerful nuclear power plants4  ,the men
 going down would have to wear air-tight
 suits--spacesuits1 and  would have to  
leave them on all the time they were    
below1 for fear of  becoming infected   
with molds and viruses that the natives 
would long  since have become immune to4
 ,one man1 the pilot1 would stay with   
the  platform while the others did the  
observing and recording4    ,the flying 
platform would have no need for rapid   
forward motion1 at  least inside the    
atmosphere and therefore would have     
little need for  streamlining or        
protective covering for the passengers1 
who would  carry their equipment with   

them4 ,most of the equipment for the    
survey  would be built into the suits4  
,they would each carry a set of portable
  helicopter attachments so they could  
cover more ground in a hurry4  ,like    
small helicopters of our time1 these    
probably would have a rather  limited   
speed and range1 but they would be      
extremely maneuverable4    ,the platform
 on the other hand1 being nuclear       
powered1 would probably  be very        
powerful and have almost unlimited      
range1 but it would be less             
maneuverable4 ,the products of its      
exhaust might be radioactive and        
therefore its operators would be        
reluctant to operate it above or  near  
the natives of the planet1 or places    
that they frequented4    ,as they push  
away from the mother-ship the spacemen  
would be in  free-fall and would tend to
 float nearby until they turned the     
bottom side of the platform toward the  
direction of their orbit and  applied   
power4 ,they would then drop toward the 

surface1 but with  almost unlimited     
power available they could keep the     
downward  component of their fall within
 limits and prevent overheating4 ,they  
could probably be on the surface in less
 than an hour4    ,the first and most   
likely area of exploration would be     
,egypt4 ,the  platform could be landed a
 few miles back from the ,nile and be in
  completely unoccupied desert4 ,the    
four helicopter-equipped explorers      
could put on their rotating-wing        
backpacks and by keeping low1 come up   
very close to some center of            
civilization without being seen4 ,by    
going  up to a few thousand feet they   
could observe a fairly large area4 ,even
  if they were spotted1 they would be   
small and unrecognizable1 and  cause a  
minimum amount of excitement4    ,like  
any tourist in any age they would       
probably be most interested in  the     
territory around the pyramids4 ,when    
they had finished here they  might want 
to look over the country around what is 

now ,bagdad1 but  then only near the    
capital city of ,nebuchadnezzar's       
empire4 ,this is  about eight hundred   
miles away1 an impractical trip by      
helicopter1 so  they would return to the
 platform1 climb to a few hundred       
thousand  feet1 and scoot over in a few 
minutes4 ,here they would land again in 
some uninhabited spot and repeat the    
maneuver4 ,this country was  probably   
sprinkled with more people than they    
expected4 ,maybe that's  why this is the
 legendary flying carpet country1 or    
maybe not4 ,at any  rate1 one lonely    
military prisoner1 working by himself   
near the banks  of a stream must have   
seen them4 ,even if they did notice him1
 what  possible harm could he do8 ,in   
the present state of the civilization   
who would remember what he said or even 
believe him8 ,i do4      ,,the ,,end    
99       99       99       99       99