Ezekiel 10:12-14

Eyes covered the cherubim and the wheels symbolizing the great perception and knowledge of these beings (Ezekiel 1:18; cf. Genesis 16:13; Zechariah 4:10; Revelation 4:6). Ezekiel heard the wheels called whirling (Heb. galgal, "rotating," "rolling," or "revolving") wheels, described in terms of their function. Each of the cherubim had four faces-the faces of a cherub, a man, a lion, and an eagle (cf. Ezekiel 1:10).

In Ezekiel 1:10 the faces were of a man, a lion, a bull, and an eagle. Evidently the cherubim appeared more like bulls than anything else. This conclusion harmonizes with ancient Near Eastern art that pictured winged bulls and lions with human or bird heads guarding palaces. Probably the ancients chose these symbols of combined human and animal creatures to represent characteristics of those beings that they respected. Evidently God represented the cherubim in similar terms to communicate that His angelic servants possessed these same characteristics.