Ezekiel 1:26-28 
Above the vault over their heads was what looked like a throne of lapis lazuli, and high above on the throne was a figure like that of a man. I saw that from what appeared to be his waist up he looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, and that from there down he looked like fire; and brilliant light surrounded him. Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him. 

This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. When I saw it, I fell facedown, and I heard the voice of one speaking. (NIV)

Above this surface was something that looked like a throne made of blue lapis lazuli. And on this throne high above was a figure whose appearance resembled a man. From what appeared to be his waist up, he looked like gleaming amber, flickering like a fire. And from his waist down, he looked like a burning flame, shining with splendor. All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining in the clouds on a rainy day. This is what the glory of the Lord looked like to me. 

When I saw it, I fell face down on the ground, and I heard someone’s voice speaking to me. (NLT)

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Some sights are so arresting we cannot help but pause and ponder. 

For example, if you’re the one person on Earth who hasn’t seen the video of Double Rainbow Guy, here’s your opportunity: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI)

A double rainbow is pretty cool, and I’ve been up close and personal with rainbows on several occasions. I’m pretty sure you have too. 

In the summer of 1982, in that hottest part of July, when all the grasses in the field had gone from green to yellow to brown, a summer storm blew up and rained hard for five minutes or so before it fully expended itself. Looking out across those grasslands as the sun broke back through the clouds, a rainbow kissed the earth not far from where I drove. The tail end washed across the pallet of waving grasses, turning their bleached appearance into red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. 

Can you imagine how Double Rainbow Guy would have responded to that image if I had a video camera that day and captured this event? Of course, video cameras in those days would not have been very convenient to operate under such circumstances. They were as big as a suitcase and required heavy-duty tripods to hold them in place. There was no such thing as an iPhone. 

Rainbows are pretty cool. Children love them. Adults may act like they’re not all that impressed, but they can’t help but linger when one appears. 

Consider Ezekiel’s experience captured in these verses. Lapis Lazuli, that bluest of blues with its gold specks and white streaks, formed the throne of God. The figure, like a man, Ezekiel saw from the waist up, looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire, he says. From there down, he looked like fire. Brilliant light surrounded him, “Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around him.”

He describes a consuming fire. He describes metal of perfect purity. He describes the loveliest of heavenly lights. God’s radiant glory held his attention completely. Nothing else mattered. Nothing could distract him. God’s holiness is glorious. It is beautiful and terrifying. It completely resets our sense of wonder. It permanently reorients us toward the meaning of all things. 

When Peter, James, and John saw Jesus transfigured on that mountain (Luke 9:28-36), it completely reshaped their lives. Peter and his companions didn’t say a thing about what they had seen until later. Then, when Peter started talking about it, he couldn’t shut up about it. He never got over that moment. It reshaped everything about him. 

John likewise could not stop pondering what he had seen that day. In 1 John 3:2, he tells us that when Christ appears, “we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” Seeing is more than believing. Seeing is transforming. Seeing is transformational. Seeing is transformation.  We cannot see Jesus for who he really is without being changed forever. 

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I will see Jesus for who He is, and I will view everything else from that perspective. 

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Our Father, thank you for giving us glimpses of glory. We long to gaze upon your glorious radiance. Thank you for the transformation you bring about through your beauty and wonder. Amen. 

A Note: I use the dictation app Wispr Flow to write these devotionals. This is a wonderful tool. However, it has not yet learned to use a capital G or a lowercase g when referring to God. Sometimes it gets it right. Sometimes it does not. I tell you this only because I don’t want you to think I’m psychotic. I’m confident the app will learn after repeated use. Until then, smile and know that I am not that great of a grammar and syntax failure.