EZEKIEL---VISIONS OF VENGEANCE AND VICTORY

INTRODUCTION: Notes on Ezekiel, the man

1.    He was a priest belonging to the aristocracy of Jerusalem. (1:1-3)

2.    His name means “God will strengthen”. Perhaps of prophetic significance in itself inasmuch as the future glory and strength of Israel were the messages of this man’s ministry.

3.    He is known as a “post-exilic” prophet. That is, he prophesied after the Babylonian exile of the Jews had taken place.

A.   He was carried away captive into Babylon at the age of 25, just eleven years before the destruction of the temple. (II Kings 24:11-18, cf. Ezek. 40:1)

B.   He was a contemporary in exile with Daniel, Obadiah, and Jeremiah.

C.   He was held captive in the city of Tel-abib. (3:15)

4.    He began his ministry in the fifth year of Jehoiachin’s captivity (1:2) and continued until the twenty-seventh year (29:17).

A.   This means that Ezekiel’s word was from 592 B.C. to 570 B.C.

B.   He had a prophetic-preaching ministry of at least twenty-two years.

C.   Unlike the pre-exilic prophets, whose ministry was primarily either to Judah or Israel, or to both, Ezekiel was the voice of the Lord to “the whole house of Israel”. (3:1; 17:2; 20:27, etc.)

5.    According to Jewish tradition Ezekiel was eventually slain by a fellow-exile whose idolatries he had rebuked.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The kingdom of Israel had been in Assyrian captivity over 100 years when God brought judgment upon the southern kingdom of Judah. Nebuchadnezzar had come to Jerusalem and carried away 10,000 of the chief men of the southern kingdom and some of the royal seed including Daniel and Ezekiel. (2 Chron. 36:6,7; Dan. 1:1-3; 2 Kings 24:14-18) He was finally forced to devastate Jerusalem because the city persisted in allying herself with Egypt. It was a tragic hour for Jerusalem when her walls were laid flat, her houses burned, the temple destroyed and her people dragged away as captives.

The Jews presented a pitiable picture---no temple, national life gone, little opportunity for business. Yet the majority clung to their idolatries and wrong ways (14:4; 33:32). These exiles were also living under the delusion that their captivity would soon be ended; and that Jehovah would never allow Jerusalem, His chosen city, to be ruined. There were false prophets among them who were responsible for bringing this attitude about.

It is certainly clear that there was a great need for such a prophet as Ezekiel who was called upon to bring them to a state of reality from their false hopes. His task was to convince the captives that before they could ever return to Jerusalem they must return to the Lord.

KEY PHRASES

1.    “They shall know that I am Jehovah” occurs no less then 70 times.

A.   29 times in reference to God’s punishment of Jerusalem (6:7,10; 11:10,12)

B.   24 times in connection with Jehovah’s judgments on the Gentile nations (25:5,7,11,17; 29:6; 30:26)

C.   17 times in relation to the coming restoration and final blessing of the elect nation of Israel (34:27; 36:11,23,38)

2.    “The glory of the Lord” or like phrase at least 16 times

A.   The glory of the Lord is seen departing from the city and the sanctuary. (9:3; 10:4,18; 11:23)

B.   The glory of the Lord will some day return to the House of Israel (43:2-5) to again be seen in the temple during the millennial reign of Christ.

EZEKIEL’S METHOD---Ezekiel used a visual method of preaching all his own:

1.    VISIONS---such as:

A.   His journey through the chambers of imagery in the temple of Jerusalem speaks of the desecration of the sanctuary through the practices of idolatry. (8)

B.   His journey through the streets of Jerusalem as the scribe with the inkhorn, marking the foreheads of the faithful, speaks of the slaughter of the city’s idolaters, except the faithful who bore the mark. (9)

2.    SYMBOLIC ACTIONS---such as:

A.   Taking a tile, he draws a picture of Jerusalem upon it; he then surrounds the tile with mounds, and thus pictures the siege of the city by Nebuchadnezzar. (4:1-3)

B.   He eats unclean food to indicate the hard conditions that the inhabitants of Jerusalem would suffer during the siege. (4:14-17)

C.   He cuts off the locks of his hair, then weighs and divides them. (5:1-4)

1)    One-third he burns to indicate the destruction of the city.

2)    One-third he slashes with a knife to show the large number of people of Jerusalem that would be slain with the sword during the siege.

3)    One-third he throws to the wind to indicate how many would be scattered before the enemy.

4)    A small portion of the hairs, having been saved out, were to be thrown into the fire indicating that God’s judgment would be spread over all Israel.

3.    SIMILITUDES---such as:

A.   The vine tree which is about to be burned or judged because of their sin (15:1-8)

B.   The adulteress (16) speaks of the fact that the city of Jerusalem would be judged as a harlot, and that God would use the very nations she had sought as the instruments of the judgment.

4.    PARABLES---such as the two eagles (17) which represent Babylon perching on the topmost branch of a cedar (the royal house of Judah); and breaking off one of the topmost young twigs (Jehoiachin), carrying it to Babylon. The eagle also planted a vine seed in the land (Nebuchadnezzar putting Zedekiah on the throne), but another eagle came (Egypt), and the roots of the vine turned to it (Zedekiah turning to Egypt for help). Because of the covenant Zedekiah had broken with Nebuchadnezzar (thus bringing a reproach on the Lord), God would give him over to Babylon.

5.    POEMS (19)---Under the imagery of a lioness and a productive vine, Israel (Judah) prospers; but her whelps (kings) are destroyed by the nations and her fruitfulness is curtailed by an east wind (Babylon).

6.    PROVERBS (12)---The proverb as stated: the prophets did not know what they were talking about. God would cause the proverb to cease as the people began to realize that the judgment and times of which the prophets spoke were realities.

7.    PROPHECIES (6, 20, 40-48)

EZEKIEL’S MILLENNIAL PROPHECIES---Ezekiel had a glorious picture to paint of the future of Israel. He saw in chapters 40-48)

   I.    A Reunited People

  II.    A Reerected Temple

 III.    A Reorganized People

IV.    A Regenerated Nation

EZEKIEL’S MESSAGES

1.    SIN---Judah had been led and cared for by God, but had fallen into the basest idolatry, and seemed happy and comfortable in it.

2.    PUNISHMENT---Because they had turned away from Him who was their only hope, there was nothing left open but to punish the nation. God could not be love, if He were not also just, and so His sinful people must suffer in consequence of their apostasy in Babylonian captivity.

3.    REPENTANCE---The prophet also had a message of repentance for them. “...As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?...the wicked, he shall not fall...in the day that he turneth from his wickedness;...” (33:11,12).

4.    BLESSING---If they would only turn and repent, great prospects of blessing were held out to them.

OUTLINE

  I.    PREPARATION AND CALL OF THE PROPHET (1-3)

 II.    PROPHECIES OF DESTRUCTION CONCERNING JERUSALEM (4-24)

A.   Similes and prophecies of imminent disaster (4-7)

B.   Glory departs from the city and Temple (8-11)

C.   Further types and messages of judgment (12-24)

III.   PROPHECIES AGAINST SEVEN NATIONS (25-39)

A.   Judgments on Gentile powers (25-32)

B.   After present judgments, Israel restored (33-37)

C.   Destruction of Gog and Magog (38-39)

IV.   PROPHECIES OF ISRAEL’S FUTURE (40-48)

A.   Reerected temple and return of God’s glory (40:1-43:12)

B.   Renewed worship (43:13-47:12)

C.   Redivided land and the city of God (47:13-48:35)