The Spirit lifted me up: See 3.12. Again the Spirit is better rendered “a spirit” (New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh) or “a wind.”

And brought me to the east gate of the house of the LORD, which faces east: In many languages the verb brought is better rendered “carried” in this context (see 8.3). The wind or God’s power carried Ezekiel to the east gate of the house of the LORD, that is, the east gateway of the Temple, where the living creatures carrying the throne of God were (see 10.19). To make sure that no one misunderstood what gate was in view, Ezekiel added that it was the one which faces east, which may be rendered “This is the gate that faces east.” If such emphasis is not natural in the receptor language, this clause may be omitted (so Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). The LORD renders God’s name “Yahweh” (New Jerusalem Bible).

And behold, at the door of the gateway there were twenty-five men: Here behold introduces another vivid detail in Ezekiel’s vision. For the door of the gateway, see 10.19. The twenty-five men may have been inside the gateway itself, the appropriate place for a meeting. Some scholars have suggested that these men were same as those in 8.16, but we can’t be certain.

And I saw among them Ja-azaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people: We know nothing about these men, except the names of two of them: Ja-azaniah and Pelatiah. Apart from their fathers’ names, nothing is known of them. However, concerning Ja-azaniah see the comments on 8.11. The names of these two men and of their fathers were common names at the time. These two men were princes of the people, that is, political officials of some sort. For those cultures with a chiefly tradition, they may be called “chiefs.” Another possible rendering for princes is “leaders” (Good News Translation, New International Version) or “officials” (New Revised Standard Version). The translation of this whole sentence should not suggest that all twenty-five men were leaders. Contemporary English Version provides a good model here, saying “where I saw twenty-five men, including the two leaders, Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah.”

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .