In the second deportation, 597 BC, the entourage included a young priest of some means and stature. His name was Ezekiel. We estimate his age was about 25 then. Dating all his prophecies from the exile of his king, Jehoiachin, his prophetic ministry begins in the fifth year, his thirtieth, when he normally would have been vested for duty in the Temple. The prophet-statesman Daniel was already a living legend, roughly the same age, while Jeremiah was by this time middle aged.
Ezekiel lived in the wide, flat plains of Shinar, near the grand Chebar canal. There the Jews had a large ghetto outside Nippur. Being called to prophesy will quickly make any man seem strange, were he not already outside the norm. However, his prophecies are rather typical of ancient Hebrew mysticism. That is, his message is rooted in the Spirit Realm, and seldom finds a simple explanation in terms of this world.
The first half of his book comes before the Fall of Jerusalem, warning his people they fully deserved their sad fate in exile. The second half seeks to bring hope of a return some day. However, the imagery of that hope is thoroughly mixed with Messianic symbolism. He does not distinguish the application of such imagery for our convenience, because no Hebrew reader would expect it. Modern scholars who insist on ignoring the intellectual culture of the Hebrew people cannot possibly approach this material with any expectation of analyzing it sensibly. Pay no attention to such scholars.
Ezekiel struggles mightily under the burden of a calling we would find hard to imagine. Only the miracle of God touching hearts in his audience gained him any hearing at all. At some point his private home becomes a center for worship in the earliest infancy of the synagogue system. His emphasis on personal holiness is striking. His dramatic presentation, the strange and extreme actions used to symbolize his message, are equally indicative of sterling character and commitment to God's Truth.
Chapter 1 -- Ezekiel's vision of calling to the prophetic ministry provides the foundation for all that follows.
Chapter 2 -- The setting for Ezekiel's commission from God.
Chapter 3 -- Ezekiel is given his marching orders.
Chapter 4 -- The prophet is instructed in creating a dramatic symbol of God's wrathful sentence against His nation.
Chapter 5 -- God's wrath demonstrated by Ezekiel's hair.
Chapter 6 -- Ezekiel raises the fundamental issue of Israel's idolatry.
Chapter 7 -- The horrifying vision of God's wrath about to descend on the people in Judah.
Chapter 8 -- The Lord grants Ezekiel a vision showing the evidence of His accusation against Judah.
Chapter 9 -- Ezekiel is permitted to see the depth of the Lord's indignation against idolatry in Judah.
Chapter 10 -- More revelation in the vision of Ezekiel's visit to the Temple.
Chapter 11 -- The vision ends with the Lord confirming His determination to destroy the Pro-Egypt Party once and for all.
Chapter 12 -- Dramatic predictions of Zedekiah's failed attempt to escape the Babylonian siege.
Chapter 13 -- The Lord condemns the false prophets and prophetesses.
Chapter 14 -- The fundamental question of how one pleases God is addressed in a message to the elders about idols of the heart.
Chapter 15 -- The Lord speaks through the parable of the unfruitful vine.
Chapter 16 -- The parable of the adulterous wife.
Chapter 17 -- The riddle and parable of eagles and trees serves to warn Zedekiah he is fighting God Himself in rebelling against Babylon.
Chapter 18 -- The Lord responds to the obtuse whining of those in Jerusalem under Babylon's rule.
Chapter 19 -- A dirge of two parables recounts the haunting failures of Judah.
Chapter 20 -- The Lord stands as a witness against Israel, letting Ezekiel play the role of trial judge.
Chapter 21 -- The warning, the Song of the Sword, and the worse fate of Ammon.
Chapter 22 -- The Lord presents a triple indictment of the nation and city.
Chapter 23 -- Jehovah compares Israel and Judah to young brides who could hardly wait to begin playing the harlot.
Chapter 24 -- The parable of the boiling pot and Ezekiel's deep personal sorrow.
Chapter 25 -- Ezekiel begins his prophecies against the surrounding nations who had touched Israel during her history, starting with Ammon, Moab, Edom and Philistia.
Chapter 26 -- The beginning of several prophecies against Tyre.
Chapter 27 -- What was the danger Tyre brought to Israel?
Chapter 28 -- A particularly rich literary chapter describing the evils residing in the Phoenician kingdom of Tyre and Sidon.
Chapter 29 -- Turning to Egypt, the Lord promises He would establish once and for all who was God over the Nile.
Chapter 30 -- More warnings on Egypt's destruction at the hands of Babylon.
Chapter 31 -- The arrogance of Egypt is compared to that of Assyria.
Chapter 32 -- Two lamentations for Egypt's demise close the section on the Nile Empire.
Chapter 33 -- The renews Ezekiel's calling as we begin seven chapters of restoration prophecies.
Chapter 34 -- The parable of the abusive shepherds and rams indicates how God cares for the common people.
Chapter 35 -- The Lord settles accounts with Edom.
Chapter 36 -- Ezekiel relates a promise from God to the Land to restore the people of Israel.
Chapter 37 -- A dramatic message indicating God was planning to start afresh on the old original purpose Israel had been given at the foot of Mount Sinai, and build a new nation.
Chapter 38 -- The storyline continues, but the symbols of Gog and Magog don't mean what most people expect.
Chapter 39 -- More on the impotence of all humanity, symbolized by Gog and his hordes, against the power of God in His people.
Chapter 40 -- We begin the final section of the book, with an introduction to the vision of the New Temple.
Chapter 41 -- The Temple facility continues, with some speculation on some elements of the layout.
Chapter 42 -- The nature of holiness and service of worship is described.
Chapter 43 -- The meaning of the sacrificial system and the divine Presence of the Lord.
Chapter 44 -- The symbolism of holiness is explored in the priestly requirements.
Chapter 45 -- Political leadership and taxation in this Realm will by God's command be light handed.
Chapter 46 -- Symbolism of the differences between the calling of elder, pastor, and the rest of the church body.
Chapter 47 -- The River of Life and the equality in the Spirit.
Chapter 48 -- The tribal nature of the Spiritual Domain.
By Ed Hurst
15 February 2011
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