After taking in the wondrous figures of the heavenly chariot bearers, the prophet’s gaze shifts toward the propulsion system that accompanies them. This expanding vision reveals the tight bond between higher spiritual forces and the physical systems they operate, mapping out a complete picture of how the universe is governed. While continuing to observe the living creatures, the prophet widens his focus to include the wheels they drive, recognizing that the movement of the wheels is a direct extension of the creatures' own actions [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].
He notices a wheel beside each creature, similar in appearance to a standard wagon wheel [מצודת ציון, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. These wheels are positioned in a lower space. The primary approach among commentators is that they do not rest on the actual, physical earth, but rather occupy a lower plane relative to the elevated creatures above them [רד״ק, מצודת דוד, אברבנאל]. However, another perspective suggests that the wheels stand directly upon the floor of the upper heavens [רש״י].
The arrangement of these wheels is precise. Beside each creature stands exactly one wheel. Even though every creature possesses four faces, a single wheel is paired with all four faces collectively, making a total of four wheels for the four creatures [רש״י, מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם]. This single wheel is positioned equally in front of all four faces, perfectly centered without slanting toward any particular direction [אברבנאל].
On a deeper level, the dynamic between the living creatures and the wheels is one of a leader and a follower. The creatures embody pure spiritual forces and higher intellects, while the wheels represent the physical universe—the celestial bodies, the orbits of the stars, and the natural systems. These physical elements move and are guided entirely by the power and spirit of the creatures above them [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל]. This understanding, which identifies the wheels as the heavenly spheres, specifically rejects the philosophical idea that the wheels represent raw, primal matter or the four basic elements of the physical world [אברבנאל].
The recurring number four throughout this vision—seen in the four creatures, four faces, and four wheels—carries broad symbolic weight. It reflects the fundamental fourfold divisions found across time and space, such as the four directions of the world, the four seasons of the year, the four phases of the lunar month, and the four parts of the day. Additionally, this division represents the four spiritual princes appointed over the nations, or the four angelic camps responsible for turning the heavenly spheres [מלבי״ם, אברבנאל].