t this chapter is the account of an
actual happening; the landing of extraterrestial beings, reported by a
careful, truthful and self-possessed observer.

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 chapter. 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 fact,
or are about to become fact.

If, as I believe, this is an account of an actual encounter with men
from space, I may be better able to interpret the meaning than a
student of theology, who by training and interest, is looking for a
theological meaning. I have worked with mechanical things, and as an
instructor of aircraft mechanics for most of my adult life. During
this time I have had to untangle a lot of mechanical misconceptions
and misunderstandings. I think that this gives me some insight into
this problem.

If you are not too familiar with the Old Testament, I suggest that you
read through the first chapter of Ezekiel to get the feeling of the
flow of words, and a general idea of what sort of material we will be
covering. If you have done a considerable amount of reading in the
Bible, I am sure you will notice at once how different and
"un-Bible-like" this chapter sounds. It isn't long. The first chapter
covers little more than one page. Don't expect to get a clear picture
the first time through. It seems to have an elusive quality. About the
time you feel that you have hold of a fact, it seems to be
contradicted in a later verse. 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 mean. You, not Ezekiel, are supplying the contradictions.

You will see that I am not going to make excuses for the words, as
written. 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 it.

Let us begin with the first verse of chapter one:

_The Book of The Prophet EZEKIEL_

803. Chapter 1

_Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in
the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river
of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw