Haftorah Shavuot Day 1 Ezekiel 1:1-28, 3:12 With Commentary

Haftorah for Shavuot
Ezekiel 1:1-28, 3:12

Let’s first read the actual text:

Yechezkel (Ezekiel) Chapter 1

1Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year in the fourth [month] on the fifth day of the month, as I was in the midst of the exile by the river Chebar-the heavens opened up, and I saw visions of God.

2"On the fifth of the month"-that is the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's exile.

3The word of the Lord was [revealed] to Ezekiel the son of Buzi, the priest, in the land of the Chaldeans, by the river Chebar, and the hand of the Lord came upon him there.

4And I saw, and behold, a tempest was coming from the north, a huge cloud and a flaming fire with a brightness around it; and from its midst, it was like the color of the chashmal (only referred to the gemstone amber, which can be a fiery red color) from the midst of the fire.

5And from its midst was the likeness of four living beings, and this is their appearance; they had the likeness of a man.

6And [each] one had four faces, and [each] one had four wings.

7And their legs were a straight leg, and the soles of their feet were like a round foot, and they sparkled like the color of burnished copper.

8And human hands were beneath their wings on their four sides, and their faces and their wings were [the same] to all four of them.

9Their wings joined one to the other; they did not turn when they walked; each one would go toward the direction of his face.

10And the likeness of their faces was the face of a man, and the face of a lion was on their right, to the four of them, and the face of an ox to their left, to the four of them, and the face of an eagle [was] to the four of them.

11And so were their faces. And their wings were extended upward; each one had two wings joined to each other, and two covering their bodies.

12Now each one would go toward the direction of his face; wherever would be the will to go, they would go; they did not turn as they walked.

13And the likeness of the living beings; their appearance was like fiery coals, burning like the appearance of firebrands; it was going among the living beings; and there was a brightness to the fire and from the fire came forth lightning.

14And the living beings would run and return, like the appearance of the sparks.

15And I saw the living beings, and behold, one wheel [was] on the ground beside the living beings for its four faces.

16The appearance of the wheels and their work was like the appearance of crystal, and the four of them had one likeness, and their appearance and their workings were as a wheel would be within a wheel.

17When they went, they went toward their four sides; they did not turn when they went.

18And they had backs, and they were very high, and they were dreadful, and their eyebrows were full of eyes round about- [so it was] to the four of them.

19And when the living beings would go, the wheels would go beside them; and when the living beings would lift themselves off the ground, the wheels would lift themselves.

20Wherever there was the will to go, they would go; there was the will to go, and the wheels would lift themselves correspondingly to them, for the will of the living being was in the wheels.

21When they [the living beings] would go, they [the wheels] would go, and when they would stand, they would stand, and when they would lift themselves up from the ground, the wheels would lift themselves correspondingly to them, for the will of the living being was in the wheels.

22And there was a likeness over the heads of the living beings, of an expanse like the color of the severe frost extended over their heads above.

23And beneath the expanse, their wings were straight, one [pointed] toward the other; this one had two that covered, to here, and that one had two that covered, to here, their bodies.

24And I heard the sound of their wings, like the sound of many waters like the voice of the Almighty-when they went; the sound of stirring, like the sound of a camp; when they would stand, they would let down their wings.

25And there was a voice above the expanse that was over their heads; when they stood still, they would let down their wings.

26And above the expanse that was over their heads, like the appearance of a sapphire stone, was the likeness of a throne, and on the likeness of the throne, was a likeness like the appearance of a man upon it above.

27And I saw like the color of chashmal like the appearance of fire within it round about, from the appearance of his loins and above; and from the appearance of his loins and below, I saw [a thing] like the appearance of fire, and there was a brightness round about it.

28Like the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness round about; that was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord, and when I saw, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice speaking.

Yechezkel (Ezekiel) Chapter 3

12And a wind lifted me up, and I heard behind me the sound of a great uproar: "Blessed is the glory of the Lord from His place."

Let’s first look at the commentary from Chabad.org:

First Day of Shavuot Haftarah Companion

For an informed reading of Ezekiel 1:1–28, 3:12

By Mendel Dubov

The haftarah for the first day of Shavuot is of the most hallowed portions of the Bible. Known as Mirkevet Yechezkel,

“the Chariot of Ezekiel,” the reading speaks of the revelation to Ezekiel in which he saw the entire gamut of divine beings in what
he describes as a “chariot.”

This text is actually the primary source in the Tanach for the mystical element of Torah, known in the Jewish vernacular as Kabbalah. In fact, the Talmud and early Jewish works refer to Kabbalah as Maaseh Merkavah, “the Workings of the Chariot.”

Read With Awe

The reason we read this on Shavuot—the day the Torah was given—is because the Sinai event saw the revelation not only of G‑d Himself but of the entire G‑dly sphere as well.

Because of the awesome nature of this reading, the custom is that it is read in the synagogue by a “great and wise” man. In addition, the Code of Jewish Law records the custom that anyone reading the haftarah quietly along with the reader should stand while doing so.¹ These facets are not replicated in any
other haftarah of the year.

Ezekiel’s Metaphysical Imagery: A Model for Kabbalah

The narrative in Ezekiel speaks in physical terms about a completely spiritual reality. It is impossible to interpret any part of this description in a literal way, as it is only an allegory for metaphysical concepts. In fact, according to Avodat HaKodesh this is exactly what transpired in Ezekiel’s vision: he was shown images of the physical, while understanding the G‑dly ideas
to which they corresponded.

This style is replicated in most Kabbalistic works, where much of the teachings are also taught via physical metaphor. The sages throughout the ages warned that the student of Kabbalah must “divest the words from their physicality” and be
knowledgeable enough to do so.

In recent times, one of the great achievements of Chabad chassidic teachings was to do just that. All the key and foundational aspects of Kabbalah are dissected and thoroughly explained in such a way that the human mind can grasp at least the concept of a certain spiritual idea. Many of the phrases in this haftarah are explained in Chabad Chassidut at great length.

Why the Vision of Ezekiel?

Despite the above explanation of the connection between the haftarah and the holiday, a closer analysis still leaves room for discussion. After all, the primary occurrence at Sinai was the the revelation of G‑d Himself and the giving of the Torah to the Jewish people. The experience of the Divine “chariot,” as lofty as it is, can be considered only of secondary importance.

A contrasting reading that, on the surface, might have been more appropriate is a portion of the book of Isaiah (ch. 6) that is read as the haftarah for the portion of Yitro, the portion that contains the Torah reading for Shavuot. There Isaiah is predominantly occupied with the revelation of G‑d to him, but also briefly describes the “chariot” as the setting in which he “sees” G‑d. This, it seems, would make for a much more accurate description of what the Jews witnessed at the giving of the Torah.

All this is on top of the most obvious question of all:

For the vast majority of people, this haftarah is completely incomprehensible. The point of the public haftarah reading is not merely for the select few who have an understanding of the profound meaning of the verses; it is for the benefit of everyone.

It follows that there must be something in this haftarah that encapsulates the concept of the Sinai event itself, and that although the details are incomprehensible, there must be an overall underpinning of the narrative that can be understood by every Jew.

To explain:

The revelation of G‑d at Sinai was not something meant just for that time; it was rather the beginning of an entirely new world order. The revelation of G‑d was to inaugurate the process whereby the physical world could become a G‑dly place.

No detail in the physical world is isolated from G‑dly reality. On the contrary, the existence of this world is a material manifestation of a G‑dly counterpart that exists in a spiritual setting.

But although the physical stems from the spiritual, the Midrash³ tells us that before the giving of the Torah, there was no real ability for G‑dliness to penetrate and elevate the physical world. The corporeal cannot essentially perceive the G‑dly, as it is entirely distant from it.

An example for this can be seen even within physical existence itself: any attempt to explain the simplest math equation to a stone will be completely futile. Now, although both logic and a stone are components of the physical world, nevertheless one is entirely cut off from the reality of the other.

This is infinitely more so with regards to G‑dliness: the world, by definition, is finite. G‑d and everything about Him is infinite. For the finite and the infinite to connect is impossible.
It cannot begin to happen.

Nevertheless, with the giving of the Torah this was actually made possible. G‑d, who has no limitation whatsoever,

“came down” within His creation. Thus, at that moment, the possibility for the elevation of the physical to the G‑dly was created.

This idea is the entire theme of our haftarah. Although the exact details are rather obscure, the overall content is Ezekiel’s vision of physical images that not only did not obstruct the vision of G‑d, but on the contrary were the very means by which the prophet perceived G‑dliness.

Isaiah and Ezekiel: Villager or City Kid?

The above is also the reason why on the holiday, the reading from Ezekiel is preferred over the one from Isaiah. The Talmud, analyzing the two prophecies, comments that

“Isaiah can be compared to a man who dwells in the city who saw the king, and Ezekiel—to a villager who saw the king.”

A man who dwells in the capital is not greatly excited over the pomp and circumstance around the royal palace; he sees it daily. The villager, on the other hand, becomes very excited by all the extravagances of royalty. Simply speaking, the Talmud is referring to the fact that Isaiah was a prophet in the Land of Israel and thus was accustomed to Divine encounters, whereas Ezekiel prophesied in the diaspora, and there it is a great novelty to have the ability of experiencing anything G‑dly at all.

On a deeper level, though, the Talmud can be saying this: For a person who grew up in the city, or better yet in the palace itself, all the pomp and circumstance of royalty is just the way in which the king goes about his affairs. For these people, what matters is the king himself; the rest of it is just background. This was Isaiah, who spoke of the “chariot” only as the milieu in which G‑d was seen.

The level on which Ezekiel spoke was that of a villager who has altogether no concept of royalty. Witnessing the immense pageantry around the king arouses tremendous excitement within this simple man. It is actually through this experience that he gains entry into knowing what royalty is altogether, which serves as the entry point in beginning to appreciate who the king himself is.

The event at Sinai began the elevation of the physical world to the G‑dly. For this reason we specifically choose the text of Ezekiel, which comes from the perspective of the “villager”—the plane on which anything G‑dly is a novelty. For the physical to be elevated, it must first be imbued with the feeling that there is something higher than itself, that in fact its physical self is just the “image” of a Divine reality. This is the point of entry in taking the creation to its primary objective, the revelation of G‑d Himself within it.

As said, although the details of this in the text of Ezekiel are obscure, the above is the premise of the entire narrative.

The ideas themselves have been explained and expounded upon in chassidic teaching. The study of Chassidus enables the person to see G‑dliness within creation, which in essence
fulfills the purpose of creation itself.

Let’s now go to MyJewishLearning.com

Our rabbis tell us that in every generation, each person should consider himself or herself as having personally received the Torah on Mount Sinai. One of the highlights of the Shavuot morning service is the ritual for taking out the Torah.

On both days of Shavuot, two Torah scrolls are removed from the Ark. On the first day, in the first scroll, we read Exodus 19 and 20, which tell of the giving of the Ten Commandments. During the reading of the Ten Commandments, the custom in many synagogues is to rise, both to emphasize the importance of the event and to imitate the experience at Sinai when the Jews stood to receive God’s revelation. [This is a tradition that dates back to the Temple service. Those present during the public reading of the Ten Commandments stood for the entire rite.] The section of the Ten Commandments is read to a special melody, called the “ta’am elyon,” which is a more dramatic way of reading.

In the second scroll, we read Numbers 28:26-31, which tells of the special sacrificial offerings for Shavuot in biblical times.

[The second scroll is not read in Reform congregations.] The haftarah for the first day of Shavuot is Ezekiel 1:1-28, 3:12, which contains the prophet’s most astounding vision of God. Ezekiel describes a remarkable vision of God. He sees a Divine Throne-Chariot, whose main feature is a group of four-faced living creatures. His appearance of a manifestation of God connects the haftarahto the Torah reading, where God reveals
His will at Mount Sinai.

The reading for the second day of Shavuot is Deuteronomy 15:19-16:17, which deals with the laws of tithing, release of debts in the seventh year, the release of slaves every seventh year, and a detailed description of the three pilgrimage festivals of Passover,
Shavuot, and Sukkot.

In the haftarah, from the Book of Habakkuk 2:20-3:19, Habakkuk pleads with God to intervene on behalf of his people.

He visualizes his petition as granted in a graphic picture of the march of God and God’s retinue to overthrow the enemy.

As in the case of the haftarahfor the first day of Shavuot, this haftarah too is a description of a manifestation of God. For this reason, and because the language in places recalls the revelation at Sinai, it was chosen as the haftarah for the second day of Shavuot.

Shavuot celebrates the first barley harvest and also the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai—the moment when Israel accepted all of God’s law. There are several biblical texts read on this holiday.

The Book of Ruth

Ruth is read during the morning services of Shavuot (on the second day for those observing two days). The titular heroine, a Moabite woman, is married to an Israelite man who dies suddenly. Rather than return to her Moabite family, she follows her Jewish mother-in-law, Naomi, back to Bethlehem. Her declaration of fidelity to Naomi and the Jewish people is beautiful and moving:

“Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God.

Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried.
Thus and more may the LORD do to me if anything
but death parts me from you.” Ruth 1:16-17

In Bethlehem, Ruth is as good as her incredible words; she faithfully cares for Naomi, even in hard times. Ruth goes on to remarry (to another Israelite man) and ultimately becomes the matriarch of one of the great kings of Israel, King David.

We read Ruth for a few reasons. First, Ruth’s pledged fidelity to Naomi and the Israelite God mirrors the fidelity Israel expresses to God upon receiving the Torah. Second, Ruth’s story takes place during the season of the barley harvest, the agricultural occasion for Shavuot. Finally, Ruth is the great-great-grandmother of King David, who is thought to have been born and died on Shavuot.

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