Reference: Ezekiel, Book of
Easton
consists mainly of three groups of prophecies. After an account of his call to the prophetical office (Eze 1:1-3:21), Ezekiel (1) utters words of denunciation against the Jews (Eze 3:22-24), warning them of the certain destruction of Jerusalem, in opposition to the words of the false prophets (Eze 4:1-3). The symbolical acts, by which the extremities to which Jerusalem would be reduced are described in ch. 4,5, show his intimate acquaintance with the Levitical legislation. (See Ex 22:30; De 14:21; Le 5:2; 7:18,24; 17:15; 19:7; 22:8, etc.)
(2.) Prophecies against various surrounding nations: against the Ammonites (Eze 25:1-7), the Moabites (Eze 25:8-11), the Edomites (Eze 25:12-14), the Philistines (Eze 25:15-17), Tyre and Sidon (Eze 25:17), and against Egypt (Eze 25:17).
(3.) Prophecies delivered after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar: the triumphs of Israel and of the kingdom of God on earth (EZE 33-39); Messianic times, and the establishment and prosperity of the kingdom of God (40;48).
The closing visions of this book are referred to in the book of Revelation (Eze 38 = Re 20:8; Eze 47:1-8 = Re 22:1-2). Other references to this book are also found in the New Testament. (Comp. Ro 2:24 with Eze 36:2; Ro 10:5, Ga 3:12 with Eze 20:11; 2Pe 3:4 with Eze 12:22.)
It may be noted that Daniel, fourteen years after his deportation from Jerusalem, is mentioned by Ezekiel (Da 12:13) along with Noah and Job as distinguished for his righteousness, and some five years later he is spoken of as pre-eminent for his wisdom (Da 12:13).
Ezekiel's prophecies are characterized by symbolical and allegorical representations, "unfolding a rich series of majestic visions and of colossal symbols." There are a great many also of "symbolcal actions embodying vivid conceptions on the part of the prophet" (Eze 4:1-4; 5:1-4; 12:3-6; 24:3-5; 37:16, etc.) "The mode of representation, in which symbols and allegories occupy a prominent place, gives a dark, mysterious character to the prophecies of Ezekiel. They are obscure and enigmatical. A cloudy mystery overhangs them which it is almost impossible to penetrate. Jerome calls the book 'a labyrith of the mysteries of God.' It was because of this obscurity that the Jews forbade any one to read it till he had attained the age of thirty."
Ezekiel is singular in the frequency with which he refers to the Pentateuch (e.g., Eze 27; 28:13; 31:8; 36:11,34; 47:13, etc.). He shows also an acquaintance with the writings of Hosea (Eze 37:22), Isaiah (Eze 8:12; 29:6), and especially with those of Jeremiah, his older contemporary (Jer 24:7,9; 48:37).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.
'Or if a person touches any unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean beast or the carcass of unclean cattle or a carcass of unclean swarming things, though it is hidden from him and he is unclean, then he will be guilty.
'So if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings should ever be eaten on the third day, he who offers it will not be accepted, and it will not be reckoned to his benefit. It shall be an offensive thing, and the person who eats of it will bear his own iniquity.
'Also the fat of an animal which dies and the fat of an animal torn by beasts may be put to any other use, but you must certainly not eat it.
"When any person eats an animal which dies or is torn by beasts, whether he is a native or an alien, he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and remain unclean until evening; then he will become clean.
'So if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an offense; it will not be accepted.
'He shall not eat an animal which dies or is torn by beasts, becoming unclean by it; I am the LORD.
"You shall not eat anything which dies of itself You may give it to the alien who is in your town, so that he may eat it, or you may sell it to a foreigner, for you are a holy people to the LORD your God You shall not boil a young goat in its mother's milk.
'I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the LORD; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.
'I will make them a terror and an evil for all the kingdoms of the earth, as a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse in all places where I will scatter them.
"For every head is bald and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands and sackcloth on the loins.
Now it came about in the thirtieth year, on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was by the river Chebar among the exiles, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. (On the fifth of the month in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's exile, read more. the word of the LORD came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and there the hand of the LORD came upon him.)
The hand of the LORD was on me there, and He said to me, "Get up, go out to the plain, and there I will speak to you." So I got up and went out to the plain; and behold, the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory which I saw by the river Chebar, and I fell on my face. read more. The Spirit then entered me and made me stand on my feet, and He spoke with me and said to me, "Go, shut yourself up in your house.
"Now you son of man, get yourself a brick, place it before you and inscribe a city on it, Jerusalem.
"Now you son of man, get yourself a brick, place it before you and inscribe a city on it, Jerusalem. "Then lay siege against it, build a siege wall, raise up a ramp, pitch camps and place battering rams against it all around.
"Then lay siege against it, build a siege wall, raise up a ramp, pitch camps and place battering rams against it all around. "Then get yourself an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city, and set your face toward it so that it is under siege, and besiege it This is a sign to the house of Israel.
"Then get yourself an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city, and set your face toward it so that it is under siege, and besiege it This is a sign to the house of Israel. "As for you, lie down on your left side and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel on it; you shall bear their iniquity for the number of days that you lie on it.
"As for you, son of man, take a sharp sword; take and use it as a barber's razor on your head and beard Then take scales for weighing and divide the hair. "One third you shall burn in the fire at the center of the city, when the days of the siege are completed Then you shall take one third and strike it with the sword all around the city, and one third you shall scatter to the wind; and I will unsheathe a sword behind them. read more. "Take also a few in number from them and bind them in the edges of your robes. "Take again some of them and throw them into the fire and burn them in the fire; from it a fire will spread to all the house of Israel.
Then He said to me, "Son of man, do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are committing in the dark, each man in the room of his carved images? For they say, 'The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the land.'"
"Therefore, son of man, prepare for yourself baggage for exile and go into exile by day in their sight; even go into exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand though they are a rebellious house. "Bring your baggage out by day in their sight, as baggage for exile. Then you will go out at evening in their sight, as those going into exile. read more. "Dig a hole through the wall in their sight and go out through it. "Load the baggage on your shoulder in their sight and carry it out in the dark. You shall cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have set you as a sign to the house of Israel."
"Son of man, what is this proverb you people have concerning the land of Israel, saying, 'The days are long and every vision fails'?
"I gave them My statutes and informed them of My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them, he will live.
"Speak a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Put on the pot, put it on and also pour water in it; Put in it the pieces, Every good piece, the thigh and the shoulder; Fill it with choice bones. read more. "Take the choicest of the flock, And also pile wood under the pot. Make it boil vigorously. Also seethe its bones in it."
And the word of the LORD came to me saying, "Son of man, set your face toward the sons of Ammon and prophesy against them, read more. and say to the sons of Ammon, 'Hear the word of the Lord GOD! Thus says the Lord GOD, "Because you said, 'Aha!' against My sanctuary when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and against the house of Judah when they went into exile, therefore, behold, I am going to give you to the sons of the east for a possession, and they will set their encampments among you and make their dwellings among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk. "I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels and the sons of Ammon a resting place for flocks. Thus you will know that I am the LORD." 'For thus says the Lord GOD, "Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the scorn of your soul against the land of Israel, therefore, behold, I have stretched out My hand against you and I will give you for spoil to the nations And I will cut you off from the peoples and make you perish from the lands; I will destroy you Thus you will know that I am the LORD." 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Because Moab and Seir say, 'Behold, the house of Judah is like all the nations,' therefore, behold, I am going to deprive the flank of Moab of its cities, of its cities which are on its frontiers, the glory of the land, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon and Kiriathaim, and I will give it for a possession along with the sons of Ammon to the sons of the east, so that the sons of Ammon will not be remembered among the nations. "Thus I will execute judgments on Moab, and they will know that I am the LORD." 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Because Edom has acted against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has incurred grievous guilt, and avenged themselves upon them," therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "I will also stretch out My hand against Edom and cut off man and beast from it And I will lay it waste; from Teman even to Dedan they will fall by the sword. "I will lay My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel Therefore, they will act in Edom according to My anger and according to My wrath; thus they will know My vengeance," declares the Lord GOD. 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Because the Philistines have acted in revenge and have taken vengeance with scorn of soul to destroy with everlasting enmity," therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "Behold, I will stretch out My hand against the Philistines, even cut off the Cherethites and destroy the remnant of the seacoast. "I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes; and they will know that I am the LORD when I lay My vengeance on them."'"
"I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes; and they will know that I am the LORD when I lay My vengeance on them."'"
"I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes; and they will know that I am the LORD when I lay My vengeance on them."'"
"Then all the inhabitants of Egypt will know that I am the LORD, Because they have been only a staff made of reed to the house of Israel.
'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Because the enemy has spoken against you, 'Aha!' and, 'The everlasting heights have become our possession,'
"And you, son of man, take for yourself one stick and write on it, 'For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions'; then take another stick and write on it, 'For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.'
and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms.
Then he brought me back to the door of the house; and behold, water was flowing from under the threshold of the house toward the east, for the house faced east. And the water was flowing down from under, from the right side of the house, from south of the altar. He brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate by way of the gate that faces east. And behold, water was trickling from the south side. read more. When the man went out toward the east with a line in his hand, he measured a thousand cubits, and he led me through the water, water reaching the ankles. Again he measured a thousand and led me through the water, water reaching the knees. Again he measured a thousand and led me through the water, water reaching the loins. Again he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not ford, for the water had risen, enough water to swim in, a river that could not be forded. He said to me, "Son of man, have you seen this?" Then he brought me back to the bank of the river. Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river there were very many trees on the one side and on the other. Then he said to me, "These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah; then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the waters of the sea become fresh.
"But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age."
"But as for you, go your way to the end; then you will enter into rest and rise again for your allotted portion at the end of the age."
For "THE NAME OF GOD IS BLASPHEMED AMONG THE GENTILES BECAUSE OF YOU," just as it is written.
For Moses writes that the man who practices the righteousness which is based on law shall live by that righteousness.
However, the Law is not of faith; on the contrary, "HE WHO PRACTICES THEM SHALL LIVE BY THEM."
and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore.
Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.