Extra-dimensionality and God
Michael Belote http://rebootchristianity.blogspot.com
Overview
Purposes
– To challenge Christians to see their faith in new ways
– To reveal mysteries about God and His plan
– To help us see Scripture in a new light
– To better understand our relationship to the rest of Creation
In the Beginning…
Bible tells us that God pre-existed creation, and that He made everything we see,
“visible and invisible”.
What is included in this creation event?
– Visible space (three-dimensions)
– Invisible space (anything else)
– “In the beginning” implies that time itself (as we know it) was created
Humans are capable of perceiving three dimensions of space (length, height,
breadth) and one dimension of time. We see ourselves as living in a three-
dimensional space which passes through time.
height
1999 2009
AD AD
length
SPACE TIME
Dimensions of Space
Scripture has long said that God has a different perception of time than us (Psalm 90:4),
implies that He lives outside of our timeline (Gen 1:1), and is clear that He also created things
that we cannot perceive (Col 1:16).
Modern physicists all now agree that there is more to the universe than what we can perceive.
String theory, which many physicists think
is the closest explanation to the underlying
mathematical structure of the universe,
requires at least 10 dimensions of space
and 2 dimensions of time. (For reference, the figure
to the right is a Calabi-Yau representation of a
six-dimensional space.)
Our math predicts that these dimensions
exist, but we cannot perceive them. (For example, if you
apply Einstein’s General Relativity in five spatial dimensions rather
than three, it actually predicts the existence of electromagnetic forces – which we experience
but cannot otherwise adequately explain.
For you physicists: this presentation assumes that the brane-world scenario is basically
correct: that we are “stuck” in a 3-dimensional subspace of the full universe, and that the
additional dimensions are therefore not observable.
That’s enough physics…now to the analogies.
Dimensions (cont.)
We cannot perceive of extra dimensions with our
eyes. However, we can understand the concept by
a thought experiment.
This experiment was first (and best) described in
the 1884 novel Flatland by Edwin Abbott.
In this book, Abbott pretends that he is a square
living on a two-dimensional world, who has a
vision of revelation when he is visited by a three-
dimensional sphere.
Though the book was written for a secular
purpose, understanding this book is a great insight
to Scripture. And yet few Christians have ever
heard of it! Stay with us as we examine this
thought experiment, and then expand it to apply
to Scripture and God.
Welcome to Flatland
Imagine that the screen you are looking at is “Flatland”, and that the creatures you
see on it live on that screen.
Though their screen is just one “slice” of the three-dimensional world you see, they
are completely unaware of what happens on other “slices”…their brains are
capable only of understanding what they see on their page.
They can understand the “x” and “y”
directions, but not the “z” direction.
Talks of “up” and “down” are
meaningless.
Flatland
Z
Y
X
Introducing Mr. Circle
Our main character will be Mr. Circle, an inhabitant of Flatland. Let us examine his
life.
Mr. Circle’s skin is shown below in black. His “insides” (brain, organs, etc.) are the
blue. He can travel north, south, east, west, or at any angle, as long as he remains
within the borders of Flatland. He cannot “see” his insides, for he can only perceive
the things outside of himself.
He must stay on Flatland’s “plane” – he cannot travel “in” or “out” of the page, and
cannot see anything in those dimensions, either.
Introducing Mr. Circle
If Mr. Circle is walking along one day and sees Mrs. Triangle, he sees her as a
vertical line – because he sees her straight on from the edge.
If Mr. Circle sees her from above, he sees only a single point in space.
By looking at Mrs. Triangle from multiple angles, Mr. Circle can calculate that she is
a Triangle rather than a Circle, by scientific investigation.
He would think that we are insane for claiming that we can “see” all sides of Mrs.
Triangle at once – it is impossible to him.
“ .”
“ ”
Confusing Mr. Circle
There are a number of ways to freak out Mr. Circle. We will explore several here.
Notice that we are doing nothing but exposing Mr. Circle to reality – but, because
both he and his scientific instruments can only perceive the second dimension, it is
impossible for him to comprehend what we are saying.
Confusing Mr. Circle
Let us start by introducing ourselves.
Obviously he cannot understand when we say that we have “height” and he
doesn’t, nor can he understand the third dimension…so we won’t go there.
Instead let’s just say, “Hi”.
“Who said that?”
Because we are not visible in his two-dimensional plane, our speech seems to come
from ‘everywhere and nowhere’…it comes out of the very fabric of existence,
rather than from a location. He can hear it up, down, left, and right. He can hear it
inside and outside of his body. But it comes from someone invisible—us.
Confusing Mr. Circle
So, to make things easier, let’s put a part of ourselves on the page.
We take a finger and put it into his plane of existence (flatland). The cross-section
of our finger (a circle) appears out of thin air.
He looks at the circle from one side and sees only a line.
“|”
So initially, he thinks we are a line. After looking at the tip of my finger from
multiple angles and doing some math, he concludes that I am a circle 0.5” in
diameter.
I have become “like him” – a circle living in Flatland.
Confusing Mr. Circle
Now let us confuse him some more.
I am going to place my finger further into the page. The same finger, from the same
person, but at a different depth. I will put it so that my knuckle is the part he sees.
Because my knuckle was jammed playing ball as a kid, it is bigger than my finger.
After careful examination, he concludes that this is a different person – for this is a
circle of diameter 0.6”, not 0.5”.
“|”
Because he cannot see depth, he sees different parts of me looking different.
Confusing Mr. Circle
Now, let’s drive him truly insane.
I will put one finger on the page, and my other hand flat on the page.
After examination, he sees one to be a circle (my finger), and one to be a strangely
shaped creature that he’s never experienced (my hand’s outline).
What will he think if I say that BOTH are me, simultaneously?
I am essentially claiming something that he and all of his scientists would say is
impossible: that a circle in the East is the same person as the hand in the West.
Showing Mr. Circle some Miracles
You want to do a miracle? Let’s place a can into his world.
After walking around and examining the can, he concludes that it is a circle. (Which
is true – that is the cross-section he can see.)
Then, let’s rotate the can 90 degrees in the axis that he can’t see.
Now, he sees a rectangle.
Yet we know that both are actually the same object.
“ circle ” “ rectangle”
We have just done a miracle: we have changed a circle into a rectangle, right
before his eyes!
Showing Mr. Circle some Miracles
Let’s try another miracle – instantaneous transportation.
Let us pick Mrs. Triangle up into the third dimension (lift her off of the page) and
place her on the other side of Mr. Circle.
From Mr. Circle’s perspective, she instantly vanished out of existence and then
reappeared in another location!
ONE… TWO… THREE
Where did she go? “ !!!”
That is miracle number 2: we can make her pop into or out of existence, wherever
we want, without harming her in any way…simply by using a dimension that he
cannot perceive.
Showing Mr. Circle some Miracles
Miracle number three…healing.
Assume Mrs. Triangle needs surgery. Mr. Circle takes a scalpel, and cuts open one
of her edges. He then rearranges her organs as he sees fit, and she heals. If he does
it wrong, perhaps he harms her.
But what if you and I want to heal her?
Without ever breaking her skin, you and I can reach directly into her insides and
rearrange however we want…because as extra dimensional creatures, we can “see”
inside of her at all times…no MRI or surgery needed.
Showing Mr. Circle some Miracles
Miracle number four…ESP.
Say that Mrs. Triangle’s surgery from Mr. Circle didn’t go well. She says she doesn’t
blame him, but he worries that she does. If only he could “hear” her thoughts!
Well…we can. Because we can see her mind, we can easily read her thoughts at all
times. And his, and Sergeant Rectangle’s, etc. (Assuming that we know how to
interpret the electrical impulses as words/emotions/thoughts.)
I can see her thoughts, prayers, hopes and dreams…and everyone else’s…all at the
same moment in time.
It is not so much that I am “reading” minds, or “hearing” their prayers, as that I can
simply see all of her, inside and out, at all times—not just the “skin” that their 2-D
eyes are limited to perceiving.
Showing Mr. Circle some Miracles
Miracle #5…joining Mr. Circle’s world, and a duality of nature.
Assume for a moment that I am a cylinder. I decide to reside in his world for a
period of time.
Mr. Circle (and everyone else) sees me as a circle. Yet I teach him that I am also a
rectangle, if seen from a different angle.
I am saying the impossible, of course…that I am at the same moment in time both
fully circular and fully rectangular.
It seems nonsense to him…but only because he is limited in perception.
Mr. Circle’s Revelations
Let us give a revelation to Mr. Circle now. Let us let him have a peek at our
dimension, just for a minute…how would he describe it when he returns?
“There were these people that they called ‘Spheres’…they were like circles, but you
could see the whole circle from every angle. It was like a million circles were all
joined together, in back of each other, so that no matter where you stood you
could see his shape as a circle. He has circles on front, back, and the sides…They
could move north and south, but also an up and down…”
The descriptions would sound like a bad acid trip…
Mr. Circle’s Revelations
For another revelation, let’s give him a peek into the mysteries of the universe…gravity.
To us, the law of gravity (or the Newtonian version, at least), is easy to understand. Gravity is
what keeps us “down”, on earth. It is what keeps Mr. Circle “down” on the paper, instead of
floating away.
But you see, he does not understand “down”. To him, “down” means south. Try to describe
“into the paper” to him…can you come up with an explanation that makes sense?
He would not even understand the purpose of that law. Since he cannot conceive of “up” and
“down”, he cannot understand even the need for such a law.
It would be like someone telling you that God had revealed to them a new law of nature,
which governs how you stay anchored in our three dimensions. What are the other options?
How could we even understand the need to be ‘anchored’? We know that gravity is needed to
anchor us from the “z” direction, but why would we need something to anchor us from
another, unknown dimension? That basic law of nature would be impossible to understand,
predict, or measure, because both we and our scientific instrumentation exist wholly within
this plane.
In similar notes, some physicists have suggested that extra dimensions help explain the laws
of electromagnetism and the weak force.
Mr. Circle’s Revelations
Another revelation…what if Mr. Circle is actually a cylinder? But because his organs
are stuck in the second dimension, that is all he can perceive?
If we reveal to him that he is more than just a circle…that the circle is just one
cross-section of who he “truly” is, what would he think? Would he believe us?
What if we tell him that his true home is the third dimension, and that one day we
will grant him the ability to see that…but in the meantime, all he can perceive is
this dimension? That if he listens to us he will achieve a higher perception and see
that he is both simultaneously circle and rectangle?
What if he raised the issue? Every scientist in the entire history of Flatland could
work on the problem, and yet get nowhere. Because every perception and
instrument that they use is limited to the second dimension.
Good bye, Mr. Circle
So we have tormented Mr. Circle enough.
Let us get to the point…what does this mean? Well, remember that we are three
dimensional creatures in a 10+ dimensional world…just because we can only
perceive of 3 dimensions does not mean that there aren’t more.
Now let us have a look at some Scriptures, and see if anything sounds familiar to
the plights of Mr. Circle…
Scriptural Applications – Heaven and Hell
“Look toward heaven and count the stars…” –Genesis 15:5
“Stretch our your hand toward heaven…” –Exodus 10:21
“Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven…” –Deut 26:15
On Lucifer, “You said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven…” –Isa 14:13
“He parted from them and was carried up into heaven…” –Luke 22:43
The Bible is full of references to “heaven” and “hell”, which are vaguely referred to
as up or down. And these references are clearly to an actual physical place, with
objects and people. Yet we now know that there is not some physical location
called hell in the center of the earth, nor some city in the clouds above us. What
does this mean?
Would not descriptions of heaven be somewhat similar for Mr. Circle, trying to
describe our reality? “Up”, but not up as his people understand it… it is “out” for
them, a direction they cannot perceive.
Perhaps the references to heaven being “up” and hell “down” are neither literal
descriptions of up and down in the z-axis, nor merely symbolic statements. Perhaps
they are literally “up” and “down” in some dimension that we simply cannot see
yet.
Scriptural Applications – The Invisible Realm
“For by him all things were created, in heaven
and on earth, visible and invisible…”
--Paul to the Colossians, 1:16
“Visible and invisible” – the Bible is clear
that God created tangible objects that we
cannot now see, but which exist.
Stop and think of how extraordinary this
claim truly is: it is not unlike the Platonic
Cave analogy, where Plato argues that we
are only seeing a “shadow” of the true
nature of things.
Just like Mr. Circle could perceive only one
aspect of his reality and every other plane
of existence was “invisible”, so too do our
other 7 spatial dimensions remain invisible
to us.
Scriptural Applications – The Voice of God
“He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice
from the cloud said, ‘This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him.”
–The Gospel of Matthew, 17:5
“And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you
persecuting me?’…Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand
the voice” –Acts, 22:7,9
The Bible talks about God’s speech being physically
capable of being heard by many people or just one
person, and the voice coming from thin air overhead.
Is this not the same as what we did to Mr. Circle, when
we spoke to him without actually placing our fingers
on the paper? He felt that we were speaking from
everywhere and nowhere. Further, could we not
speak specifically into his “insides”, thus preventing
others from perceiving it?
Scriptural Applications – The Finger of God
“And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mt Sinai, the two
tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written in the finger of God.” –Exodus, 31:18
“Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the
wall…” –Daniel 5:5
The Bible shows God’s “finger” physically taking form from time to time, from out
of mid-air, to write something on a wall or tablet. It is unconnected to anything
else, performs some action, and then vanishes into midair again.
Does this not sound like an extra-dimensional being ‘materializing’? Remember
when we stuck our finger in the page? That could easily be described by Mr. Circle
in similar terms.
Scriptural Applications – ESP/Healing
“Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a
blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” –Job 1:8
In the book of Job, God and Satan discuss Job. Notice that the quote implies that
both God and Satan can see the thoughts of Job and everyone else (for comparison
sake).
If God and Satan are extra-dimensional beings, and are capable of understanding
the electrical signals in our brains (and the associated thoughts) then they could
presumably “see” our thoughts – and everyone else’s – just as easily as we can see
the insides of Mr. Circle and Mrs. Triangle.
Furthermore, later when Satan is allowed to harm the person of Job, is it not easy
to see how that is possible? God prevents Satan from touching the “insides” of a
person without permission, and when that permission is granted, Satan can harm
organs internally just as we could fix Mrs. Triangle after her botched surgery
earlier.
Also note the numerous times that Jesus miraculously healed others. If He (or God,
at His request) can access extra-dimensionality, then they could do “surgery” to our
insides without ever breaking the skin.
Scriptural Applications – Philip’s Teleportation
“And when they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and
the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at
Azotus...” –The Acts of the Apostles, 8:39-40
For some reason this miracle is often overlooked…yet it is fascinating and powerful.
Philip had been baptizing the Ethiopian eunuch, and was located on the road from
Jerusalem to Gaza. Then, in an instant, he disappeared from there are re-appeared
in Azotus (modern Ashdod). We do not know exactly the distance, but based upon
the maps, the teleportation would have been at least out of sight (say, a quarter-
mile) and as much as 40 miles (depending upon his starting point at the baptism of
the eunuch).
Imagine…God miraculously pops him out of existence in one location and into
existence in another. How is this possible? Well, remember that we did the same
thing with Mrs. Triangle, by moving her along a dimension of space that Mr. Circle
couldn’t see.
All God would have to do is “pop” Philip out of the three dimensions we can see,
do the travel quickly along some other spatial dimension, and then “pop” him back
into existence in the three dimensions we can see.
Scriptural Applications – Visions and Dreams
“I saw in the night visions, and behold…” –Daniel, 7:13
The Bible frequently speaks about God giving visions or dreams to people. How
would this be possible?
Again, think of us and Mr. Circle. Because of our location we can easily see his
“insides”, including his brain. Now let’s assume that we can interpret the electrical
impulses properly. Thus we could read his thoughts, emotions, dreams, etc.
Now if we further assume that we could induce an electrical impulse, we could
actually control his thoughts/visions/etc. In other words, we could artificially
introduce something that his eyes really weren’t seeing: we could “put in” the
signals we wanted, without him ever noticing it.
Hence…visions. If we assume God is extra-dimensional, and we assume that God
can interpret as well as introduce the electrical signals which are our thoughts and
emotions, then God could easily introduce a vision, dream, desire, etc. into your
brain. And of course, “detecting” it would be impossible here, because we cannot
see anything but the results.
Scriptural Applications – The Glory of God
“As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with
brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually” – Ezekiel 1:4
How is the appearance of God described? You see Ezekiel’s description above. He is described “like a
devouring fire” in Exodus 24. During the Exodus, the Israelites saw His presence as a cloud by day and fire
by night. He is described as coming in fire and whirlwind in Isaiah 66. Moses sees him in fire at the burning
bush. The Acts of the Apostles describes the receiving of God’s spirit as being like tongues of fire and
associated with the sound of a mighty wind. When Moses had talked to God, his face was shining for some
time afterward, as metal cools after having been heated (Ex 34:29). In Exodus 33, God revealed himself to
Moses, who had to hide his eyes to save his life.
All of these share similarities: when God reveals
himself to man, it appears to be “fire-like” and
“cloud-like” and “wind-like”.
I don’t believe that God in appearing was literally
burning heavenly fires or collecting clouds or
blowing winds just to impress people. I believe
the Biblical authors are telling the truth – that He
truly put a part of Himself (the Spirit) into our three
dimensions, and that the closest description that
our human eyes could come up with is that it was
kind of like a fiery cloud-thing that was accompanied
by wind. Just as Mr. Circle sees only a small portion
of our finger, so too did we just get a glimpse of God.
Scriptural Applications –Ascensions
“Behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went
up by a whirlwind into heaven.” – Second Book of Kings, 2:11
“As they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
…Behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you
stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will
come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” – Acts of the Apostles, 1:9-11
Twice in the Bible, we hear an account of people being taken up to heaven – Jesus
and Elijah. In both cases, it is described somewhat similarly to God’s
appearance…associated with whirlwinds and fire and clouds.
What if Jesus and Elijah being taken up to heaven was similar to Mr. Circle being
lifted off of the page? If this was done through God’s Spirit, then it would explain
the similarities to the passages of when God appeared to humans.
Also, note that the angels could appear instantly because all they had to do was
“drop in” to the page so that they could be seen.
Scriptural Applications –Trinity
One of the core beliefs of Christianity is that God the Father, God the Son, and God
the Holy Spirit are all the same ‘being’. Many philosophers feel this is absurd, and
many Christians have struggled to explain it.
But when you think of it in extra-dimensional terms, is it not rather easy?
Take any three dimensional shape. For example, the star pyramid shown below. If
you try to describe this in two-dimensions, what do you say? Which part of it do
you describe for the Flatlanders? From the top, it looks like a single point. From any
section along the vertical axis, it looks like a star. Sectioned from its side, it looks
like a triangle.
To a 2-D creature, the star pyramid below is simultaneously a point, a star, and a
triangle—three different, mutually-exclusive beings. So how then can we explain
that these are just three views, or three aspects, or three manifestations, of the
same being? Is this not the same as the Trinity – that somehow we are to believe
that Father, Son, and Spirit are simultaneously God and yet different? Perhaps once
we receive extra-dimensional sensing abilities (if we ever will!), the explanation is
obvious.
Scriptural Applications – Fully Human Fully God
Another core belief of Christianity is that while Jesus was on earth, He was
simultaneously both fully human and fully God – tempted by sin but sinless, fully
man and fully God, “God in the Flesh”, while God the Father remained separate.
Again, think of it in terms of the star application we made before. Let us say that
the star pyramid decides to live in Flatland. He decides to place his side in Flatland,
so what the Flatlanders see is a triangle.
Is he fully a triangle? Yes, in every possible way. But has he ceased being a star
pyramid in order to “take the flesh” of the Flatlanders? No. He need not “leave”
the third dimension in order to inhabit the second, nor does he need to change
anything about himself in order to do so.
Perhaps the same is true with Jesus. Perhaps God, being an extra-dimensional
being, can indeed have one “aspect” of His being inhabit three dimensions and look
just like “one of us”, without ever “leaving” heaven. Note the explanations – Jesus’
prayers would be like the triangle talking to the star base on where to go; being
born would be placing the triangle into Flatland; the ascension is pulling back away;
sending the Spirit instead is rotating such that the point is in Flatland, etc.
Scriptural Applications – Revelations (1)
“After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven!” – The Apocalypse of
St. John, 4:1
Several times in the Bible, a prophet is given a vision of heaven. These visions are
fascinating, because if our discussions have any relevance, then these visions are
somewhat like picking up Mr. Circle and giving him a “peek” into heaven.
We will focus on Ezekiel 1, where Ezekiel gives an extremely detailed vision of
heaven. We will use this instead of the Apocalypse of St. John, because John is far
less descriptive about the what of heaven, and rather focused on the events he
saw. Ezekiel instead goes to great lengths to describe, in almost mathematical
terms, everything he sees.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the
fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by
the Chebar canal, the heavens opened, and I saw
visions of God.” – The Book of Ezekiel, 1:1
Ezekiel (considered by Jews to be the third
major prophet, behind only Moses and Elijah)
had one of the most vivid and longest-lasting
visions of heaven in the Bible. I am going to
assume for the sake of argument that, just as
we pulled Mr. Circle into the third dimension for
a peek, so too did God pull Ezekiel into extra
dimensions for a look around. Assuming that is
true, let us hear what Ezekiel has to say. Watch
as he tries to describe the un-describable.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
To begin with, he gets a glimpse of God’s glory taking residence in the third
dimension, which is very similar to what Elisha saw during Elijah’s ascension,
Moses saw on Sinai, and the disciples saw when given the Holy Spirit:
“As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with
brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire,
as it were gleaming metal.” (v.4)
I think it is safe to assume as a Christian, based upon the wealth of Biblical
evidence, that if we were to get to “see” heaven in its true nature, we would see
or hear or feel:
– Something resembling a mighty wind
– Something resembling a cloud that glows like hot metal
– Something resembling fire that does not burn out
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
Then Ezekiel sees some strange creatures. We will discuss each verse in turn:
“And from the midst came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their
appearance: they had a human likeness, but each had four faces, and each of them
had four wings.” (v.5-6)
Sounds a bit like Mr. Circle trying to describe a sphere, doesn’t it? “It was like a
circle, but not really—it had too many faces, and circles on every side of its body.”
Meaningless drivel to a two-dimensional creature, as he tries to describe a three-
dimensional object!
What do we know about these beings? What were Ezekiel’s impressions?
– They looked like living creatures
– They reminded him of humans, but with too many faces and something that looked like
wings
– Everything seemed to be in fours. (An interesting comment…a three-dimensional solid
like a pyramid has three ‘faces’ or axes; does the four faces/four wings/four creatures
aspect indicate an extra dimension that he is seeing?)
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s
foot. And they sparkled like burnished bronze. Under their wings on their four sides
they had human hands.” (v.7-8a)
Notice that Ezekiel spends the entire time speaking in analogies and metaphors.
He cannot say much for sure about the creatures—cannot give them a concrete
description—so he compares different parts of them to things we know.
We learn some more here:
– Their legs are straight
– He can see the soles of their feet and they remind him of a calf’s foot
– They sparkle like burnished bronze; very similar to how Moses looked after being
exposed to God’s glory (Ex 34:29).
– They have four different sides, each of which has wings and human hands.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“And the four had their faces and their wings thus: their wings touched one another. Each
one of them went straight forward, without turning as they went. As for the likeness of their
faces, each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had
the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. Such were their faces.
” (v.8b-11a)
Notice here that Ezekiel is saying impossible things: the wings go straight forward from each
of the four sides, without turning. Now if this is a physical four-sided, three-dimensional
creature, then these four wings would certainly never touch: they would all be 90 degrees
away from each other. But Ezekiel goes out of his way to say that they did touch. Again, we
see that this is extra dimensionality at work.
The four faces are of a human, a lion, an ox, and an eagle. Most theologians think these refer
to the four evangelists of the New Testament or four features of God…but none of that is
based upon evidence, just speculation that nobody has dared to question.
Isn’t it possible that—rather than speaking in arcane symbols—Ezekiel is relating exactly
what he sees? That these creatures seem to resemble at the same time both lions and
humans and eagles and oxen? Is that any crazier than Mr. Circle saying telling his friends that
a star pyramid had “eleven faces, one of which was a star and ten are triangles, and the
triangles all touch together but are away from each other, and all of them touch the star at
the same time”?
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which
touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies. And each went straight
forward. Wherever the spirit would go, they went, without turning as they went. As for the
likeness of the creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance
of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. And the fire was bright, and out of
the fire went forth lightning. And the living creatures darted to and fro, like the appearance
of a flash of lightning.” (v.11b-14)
Ezekiel says that they move, darting like lightning, wherever the Spirit went, and that they
didn’t need to turn to move.
He expands on their burnished bronze appearance, saying that they were burning like bright
fire with flashes like lightning, but that the fire appearance was not constant, flicking across
their bodies like living torches.
Again, does this sound like someone speaking in symbolic riddles to be understood? Or does
it sound like someone who is seeing dimensions and objects that are impossible in our world,
and struggling greatly to describe them in our terms?
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living
creatures, one for each of the four of them. As for the appearance of the wheels and their
construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl. And the four had the same
likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel.” (v.15-
16)
Ezekiel continues describing things that he cannot describe: four wheels which gleamed like
beryl, a gem of turquoise/aquamarine, but which look like a wheel inside a wheel.
I do not think he is talking about concentric circles here. He continues to use metaphorical
speech, “their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel.” He
doesn’t say, “There was a wheel on the outside and a wheel on the inside”; instead, he is
clearly describing something for which he doesn’t have the words, and said it is like a wheel,
but one with a wheel inside of it. Mr. Circle might well describe a cylinder as a “rectangle
with a circle inside of it”, wouldn’t he?
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“When they went, they went in any of their four directions without turning as they went.”
(v.17)
To me, this is a key verse: what does Ezekiel mean as “their four directions”?
He surely does not mean “north, south, east, and west”…for his statements would therefore
imply that these wheels could move only at 90 degree angles from each other.
No, by “their four directions”, he almost certainly means, “the living creatures’ four
directions.” I strongly suppose he is discussing a four spatial dimension here – he cannot
describe it in any other way except to say that there are four directions of travel rather than
the three to which we are accustomed.
He is also awed that they do not turn when they move, but can travel freely throughout
these dimensions.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“And their rims were tall and awesome, and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around.
And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living
creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went,
and the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.”
(v.18-20)
Here, Ezekiel says that somehow the wheels were actually inhabited spiritually by the
creatures, and that they themselves had eyes in every axis. He also, in addition to speaking of
the four “directions” of the creatures, mentions “rising” here as though it were clearly a
different direction—are we now discussing a fifth spatial dimension?
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“Over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-
inspiring crystal, spread out above their heads. And under the expanse their wings were
stretched out straight, one toward another. And each creature had two wings covering its
body. And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings like the sound of many waters,
like the sound of the Almighty, a sound of tumult like the sound of an army. When they stood
still, they let down their wings.” (v.22-24)
Notice again that Ezekiel can do nothing but use references to things we know—that above
their heads was something that was “like” an expanse, that their wings sounded “like”
rushing waters or God or an army preparing for battle.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
“And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance
like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with human
appearance. And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were
gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what
had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was
brightness around him. Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain,
so was the appearance of brightness all around. Such was the appearance of the likeness of
the glory of the Lord.” (v.25-28)
Ezekiel could hardly use the words ”like”, “as” or “appearance” more than he does here!
Here he describes the throne of God and one it something that was “like” a human
“appearance”. He had something which had the “appearance of his waist”, above which it
seemed to gleam like metal and fire, but all captured within it. Downward from this waist
seemed to be like fire, and all around him seemed to have a color explosion like a rainbow.
Notice key descriptions throughout the book which might allude to different spatial
dimensions. He discussed that there were the four “directions” of the living creatures; that
they could also raise “up”; that above them was something like an expanse; above that was
something like a throne; above the throne was God; and that within God there is both an
“upward” and “downward” from his waist. That is 11 specific directions that he has
mentioned throughout the book—perhaps these are spatial dimensions? It is certainly
interesting that string theory says that there are 10-11 spatial dimensions.
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
What if these four creatures are (as many speculate)
angels? One of their “faces” is human-like with wings.
What if we assume that this “face” is actually three-
dimensional? Then in that case, when the creature
put that “face” into our three dimensions, what
would we see? (See the illustration at the right –
perhaps we can only see one small “slice” of this
reality.)
Well, we would see something that looked like a
human, with two wings, bright and glowing…doesn’t
that sound pretty similar to the Biblical descriptions
of an angel?
Revelation Applications: Ezekiel 1
I argue that traditional Christian theology might be wrong: Ezekiel’s four creatures are not at
all supposed to be symbols of what he saw. I believe that it is at least possible that he was
being completely honest and open about what he saw, and that he was simply trying to
describe a multi-dimensional creature to a three-dimensional audience…just as Mr. Circle
would try to describe us to his friends.
Think about it, what would he say? He would say something like, “They are like Flatlanders
with three directions instead of two, and they can move in any direction without effort. They
have a face like three circles, one on top and one in front and one on the side. They have a
body like two rectangles, placed so that the long sides are touching together but so are the
other direction. They have legs and arms like rectangles that are made of millions of
circles…”, etc.
I argue that it is very possible that the four living creatures are the “true” appearance of any
angel and that we just saw one side.
Two Dimensions of Time?
To this point, we have discussed only the fact that string theory considers multiple
dimensions of space. But it also theorizes two dimensions of time. I will spend less
time on that because, frankly, I do not understand it that well! It is harder for me to
picture this than extra spatial dimensions.
In general, we see time as being one-dimensional: that is, it is a line that we move
across. We move from one end of the line to the other, and various scientists argue
about whether you could ever move “back” or skip “forward” along the line.
Everyone seems to agree, though, that there is just one “direction” of time: one
line, with 1000 AD behind us and 3000 AD ahead of us.
Time (1-D)
Two Dimensions of Time?
Instead, it is possible that there are two dimensions of time, meaning that time
looks more like the Cartesian coordinate system. For lack of a better term, I will call
the second dimension as “vertical time”:
Vertical Time (2-D) 2002 VT
0 VT
0AD
2002 AD
Human Time (1-D)
Now I don’t understand this much more than anyone else; but I do know that there
are some things that we can say about any two-dimensional system.
Two Dimensions of Time?
Anything that happens at a certain “moment” in human time could be happening
simultaneously across many “moments” of the vertical time.
Event X
Vertical Time (2-D) 2002 VT
0 VT
0AD
2002 AD
Human Time (1-D)
This means that something which happens in one instant of human time can affect
the entire timeline of vertical time. So “event X” above happens in 2002 AD, but it
is a vertical line…so it has happened at all times in vertical time.
Let’s look at two key examples.
Two Dimensions of Time?
1. CREATION OF OUR UNIVERSE
infinity VT Science measures that the earth has aged several billion years. The Bible
says the creation lasted 6 days. Perhaps the 6 days is figurative, or relatively
of time plays a role…or perhaps the two axes of time is the solution.
The Bible says that the universe was created “in the beginning”, indicating
that Genesis 1 is the “beginning” of our timeline/axis of time. Nothing was
“before” in our timeline…but perhaps something was “before” in heaven’s
timeline?
Perhaps the “Vertical Time” here is heaven’s timeline. In some year of
heaven’s time (say, year 1234), God began creating our universe. He spent
Vertical Time (2-D)
six days of “Vertical Time” to do so.
Though only 6 days of “heaven” time passed, that only tells us the start and
stop points on the y-axis. Depending upon how long the event is on the X
axis, millions of years could have passed on earth. You see, saying the
creation is “6 days” only tells you how thick it is on one axis…not the other.
In other words, with two axes of time, 6 literal days of creation could
absolutely account for billions of years of creation time on earth.
Day 6
Day 1
Creation
2009 AD
Human Time (1-D)
0 VT
Two Dimensions of Time?
2. JESUS’ DEATH AS ATONEMENT FOR SIN
infinity VT One question people often ask is, “How could Jesus die at one time and have
it account for all of sin?”
Assume Jesus died in only one year, 33 AD. Assume that on that date, God
forgave sins for all of our timeline.
Then do you see that it doesn’t matter where on the Human timeline the
event occurred? If the “height” reaches to all eternity on the y-axis, then it
doesn’t matter at what point on the x-axis it occurred. As long as it occurred
once, and the event affects all of the other axis, then one distinct event on
earth can affect all of the other axis (just as a few days’ work in the other axis
Vertical Time (2-D)
can affect a huge portion of time on earth.
In other words, with two axes of time, 6 literal days of creation could
absolutely account for billions of years of creation time on earth.
2009 AD
33 AD Human Time (1-D)
0 VT
Conclusions
As you can see, comprehending other dimensions has a lot of potential for
understanding some of the mysteries of our faith.
I hope that this presentation has helped you see God and the faith in new ways. It
may or may not be right (probably not, since I did it!). But it certainly helps us see
that God is way more than what we typically think of Him. Since He is not limited
by our dimensions of time and space, a lot of the supposedly impossible miracles
of the Bible are actually not that hard to comprehend.
In conclusion, I would say to you about this presentation the same thing that C.S.
Lewis said in his introduction to Mere Christianity. I hope that this helps open your
eyes to see Scripture and God in a new light. But if it doesn’t…well, throw it away
and ignore it! It is not canon. If it is useful, use it; if not, ignore it.
See Also
For more information on similar topics, check out the following sources:
– Edwin Abbot’s Flatland
– The always-excellent blog Sword and Spirit (www.swordandspirit.com), for their
presentation, “Fish Guts and Extra-Dimensionality”
– Brian Green’s The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for
the Ultimate Theory