Book of Ezekiel
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The Book of Ezekiel is a book of the Jewish Hebrew Bible as well as the Christian Old Testament, attributed to the prophet Ezekiel (Hebrew: יְחֶזְקֵאל, Standard Yəḥezqel Tiberian Yəḥezqêl ; "God will strengthen") who is regarded by both Jews and Christians as a prophet.
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[edit] Authorship
There have been a number of debates that have surrounded this book over the centuries. Until the twentieth century, most Ezekiel scholars were primarily interested in discussing whether the Book of Ezekiel should be included in the Biblical canon. There was apparently some concern that 'unlearned' Jews or Christians might misinterpret the book. For a time, the first chapter was not to be read in synagogues and the private reading of the prophecy was not allowed until a person's 30th birthday.
In 1924, Gustav Hoelscher<ref>Gustav Hoelscher, "Hesekiel: Der Dicter und das Buch," BZAW 39 (1924).</ref> questioned the authorship of Ezekiel, challenging the conventional wisdom that the book was written by one person and expresses one train of thought and style, and arguing instead that 1,103 of the verses in Ezekiel were added at a later date.
Since then, the academic community has been split into a number of different camps over the authorship of the book. W. Zimmerli, who has a rather large following, proposes that Ezekiel's original message was influenced by a later school that added a deeper understanding to the prophecies. Other groups, like the one led by M. Greenberg, still tend to see the majority of the work of the book done by Ezekiel himself.
[edit] Unsourced thoughts about Authorship
Ezekiel's writing is made up of three distinct levels: an oracle, a continuation and a closing oracle. The first two layers are related in their writing style and are both attributed to Ezekiel himself. The third level, however, tends to be different from the first two, and as such is attributed to others who were interested in preserving and updating his work.
The book does show many examples of editing done over a period of time by both Ezekiel and others. Most of this work was simply rearranging the order of the oracles to fit the time period to which they applied.
The book of Ezekiel is a record of the prophesying of Ezekiel who delivered these oracles and prophecies orally at first. Most people accept that Ezekiel did play a part in the written record of these visions, possibly with the help of scribes or followers. The book, which is split into three sections based on the time they were written, was mostly written by Ezekiel himself. Ezekiel's writing is one of the most sophisticated of all of the Old Testament Prophets. This stems from his training as a priest for the temple, as well as his experience in ministering to the elite members of the nation of Judah.
[edit] Biography of Ezekiel
[edit] According to the Book of Ezekiel
The Book of Ezekiel gives little detail about Ezekiel's life. In it, he is mentioned only twice by name: 1:3 and 24:24. Ezekiel is a priest, the son of Buzi (my contempt), and his name means "God will strengthen". He was one of the Israelite exiles, who settled at a place called Tel-abib, on the banks of the Chebar, "in the land of the Chaldeans." The place is thus not identical to the modern city Tel Aviv, which however is named after it. He was probably carried away captive with Jehoiachin (1:2; 2 Kings 24:14-16) about 597 BCE.
[edit] According to other Jewish literature
Ezekiel, like Jeremiah, is said to have been a descendant of Joshua by his marriage with the proselyte Rahab (Talmud Meg. 14b; Midrash Sifre, Num. 78). Some scholars claim that he (Ezekiel) was Jeremiah or the son of Jeremiah, who was (also) called "Buzi" because he was despised by the Jews. He was already active as a prophet while in Israel, and he retained this gift when he was exiled with Jehoiachin and the nobles of the country to Babylon (Josephus, Ant. x. 6, § 3: "while he was still a boy"; comp. Rashi on Sanh. 92b, above). In the event Jeremiah and Ezekiel were indeed the same person, Hilkiah the priest was his father.
Although in the beginning of the book he describes the appearance of the throne of God (Merkabah), this is not due to the fact that he had seen more than Isaiah, but because the latter was more accustomed to such visions; for the relation of the two prophets is that of a courtier to a peasant, the latter of whom would always describe a royal court more floridly than the former, to whom such things would be familiar (Ḥag. 13b). Ezekiel, like all the other prophets, has beheld only a blurred reflection of the divine majesty, just as a poor mirror reflects objects only imperfectly (Midrash Lev. Rabbah i. 14, toward the end).
According to midrash Canticles Rabbah, it was Ezekiel whom the three pious men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, (Shadrach, Miesheck, and Obednigo in Christian Bibles) asked for advice as to whether they should resist Nebuchadnezzar's command and choose death by fire rather than worship his idol. At first God revealed to the prophet that they could not hope for a miraculous rescue; whereupon the prophet was greatly grieved, since these three men constituted the "remnant of Judah". But after they had left the house of the prophet, fully determined to sacrifice their lives to God, Ezekiel received this revelation: "Thou dost believe indeed that I will abandon them. That shall not happen; but do thou let them carry out their intention according to their pious dictates, and tell them nothing" (Midrash Canticles Rabbah vii. 8).
Ezekiel's greatest miracle consisted in his resuscitation of the dead, which is recounted in chapter 37 of the Book of Ezekiel. There are different traditions as to the fate of these men, both before and after their revitalization, and as to the time at which it happened. Some say that they were godless people, who in their lifetime had denied the resurrection, and committed other sins; others think they were those Ephraimites who tried to escape from Egypt before Moses and perished in the attempt. There are still others who maintain that after Nebuchadnezzar had carried the beautiful youths of Judah to Babylon, he had them executed and their bodies mutilated, because their beauty had entranced the Babylonian women, and that it was these youths whom Ezekiel called back to life.
The miracle was performed on the same day on which the three men were cast into the fiery furnace; namely, on the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement (Cant. R. vii. 9). Nebuchadnezzar, who had made a drinking-cup from the skull of a murdered Jew, was greatly astonished when, at the moment that the three men were cast into the furnace, the bodies of the dead boys moved, and, striking him in the face, cried out: "The companion of these three men revives the dead!" (see a Karaite record of this episode in Judah Hadasi's "Eshkol ha-Kofer," 45b, at foot; 134a, end of the section). When the boys awakened from death, they rose up and joined in a song of praise to God for the miracle vouchsafed to them; later, they went to Palestine, where they married and reared children.
As early as the second century, however, some authorities declared this resurrection of the dead was a prophetic vision: an opinion regarded by Maimonides (Guide for the Perplexed, II:46) and his followers as the only rational explanation of the Biblical passage.
[edit] According to Islam
Some Muslims believe that Ezekiel may be Dhul-Kifl, a figure who is mentioned in the following Qur'anic verse:
"And (remember) Ismail (Ishmael) and Idris (Enoch) and Dhul-Kifl, all were from among those who observe patience." (Surah 21: 85-86)
Other Muslims believe Dhul-Kifl may be the same person as Gautama Buddha, taking 'Kifl' to be the Arabic pronunciation of Kapilvastu, a place where he spent 30 years of his life, and use this as evidence to describe the Buddha as a prophet.
A tomb said to be that of Dhul-Kifl can be seen in the town of al-Kifl, Iraq, near Najaf and Al-Hilla.
[edit] Historical Background
The Book of Ezekiel was written for the Israelites living in exile in Babylon. Up until that exile their custom had been to worship their God in the temple in Jerusalem. Exile raised important theological questions. How, the Israelites asked, could they worship YHVH when they were now in a distant land? Was their God still available to them? Ezekiel speaks to this problem. He first explains that the Israelite exile is a punishment for disobedience and he then offers hope to the exiles, suggesting that the exile will be reversed once the Israelites return to YHVH.
Generally speaking, life was good in captivity. Unlike their ancestors, who were enslaved and socially marginalized while in exile in Egypt, the Jews of Ezekiel's time were able to become part of the society they found themselves in. The Israelite Exiles were told by Jeremiah not to worship the foreign gods, but Jeremiah did tell them that they could become part of the Babylonian culture. They did this well, often being called upon by the Babylonians to complete projects using their skills as artisans. Unlike other enemies, the Babylonians allowed the Jewish people to settle in small groups. While keeping their religious and national identities, many Jewish people did start to settle into their new environment. From building homes to opening businesses, the Jews seemed to settle into their exile land for the long haul.
This growing comfort in Babylon helps to explain why so many Jewish people decided not to return to their land. Many people would have been born in exile and would know nothing of their old land, so when the opportunity came for them to reclaim the land that was taken from them, many decided not to leave the Babylonian land they knew. This large group of people who decided to stay are known to be the oldest of the Diaspora communities along with the Jews of Persia.
[edit] Content
[edit] Summary of prophecies
Ezekiel contains three distinct sections.
- Judgment on Israel - Ezekiel makes a series of denunciations against his fellow Judeans ( 3:22-24), warning them of the certain destruction of Jerusalem, in opposition to the words of the false prophets (4:1-3). The symbolic acts, by which the extremities to which Jerusalem would be reduced are described in Chapters 4 and 5, show his intimate acquaintance with the Levitical legislation. (See, for example, Exodus 22:30; Deuteronomy 14:21; Leviticus 5:2; 7:18,24; 17:15; 19:7; 22:8)
- Prophecies against various neighboring nations: against the Ammonites ( Ezek. 25:1-7), the Moabites ( 25:8-11), the Edomites ( 25:12-14), the Philistines ( 25:15-17), Tyre and Sidon ( 26-28), and against Egypt (29-32).
- Prophecies delivered after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar II: the triumphs of Israel and of the kingdom of God on earth ( Ezek. 33-39 ); Messianic times, and the establishment and prosperity of the kingdom of God ( 40-48).
[edit] Connections with other books in the Bible
It is generally agreed that the closing visions of the Book of Ezekiel are referred to in the book of Revelation.
(Ezek. 38 = Rev. 20:8; Ezek. 47:1-8 = Rev. 22:1,2). Other references to this book are also found in the New Testament. (Compare Epistle to the Romans 2:24 with Ezek. 36:22; Rom. 10:5, Galatians 3:12 with Ezek. 20:11; 2 Peter 3:4 with Ezek. 12:22.)
It is also generally agreed that the Book of Ezekiel refers to the Pentateuch (e.g., Ezek. 27; 28:13; 31:8; 36:11, 34; 47:13, etc.) quite often, and shows on a number of occasions that its author is familiar with the writings of Hosea (Ezek. 37:22), Isaiah (Ezek. 8:12; 29:6), and especially with those of Jeremiah, (Jeremiah 24:7, 9; 48:37).
According to traditionalists, Ezekiel 14:4 refers to the Daniel described in the Biblical Book of Daniel, fourteen years after Daniel's deportation from Jerusalem, and Ezekiel 28:3 mentions this Daniel again as being 'pre-eminent in wisdom'. In support of this interpretation, traditionalists note that the name Daniel appears in the Book of Ezekiel immediately after the names of Noah and Job, two other major Biblical characters.
Some non-traditionalist commentators disagree, noting that a "Daniel" also appears in ancient Ugaritic texts, that Daniel isn't specifically described as a contemporary (indeed, the phrase "Noah, Daniel and Job" implies otherwise), and that the Book of Daniel is widely regarded by modern scholars as having been written centuries later.
[edit] Important Dates
The Book of Ezekiel can be dated based on the links it records between the rule of King Jehoiachin (King of Jerusalem) and the other events that the book describes.
According to this system, Ezekiel was originally written in the 25 year period between 593 to 571 B.C. The following table lists events in Ezekiel with their approximate dates.
| Event | Verse Reference | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Chariot Vision (Merkabah) | 1:1-3 | June 593 B.C. |
| Call to be a Watchman | 3:16 | June 593 |
| Temple Vision | 8:1 | August/September 592 |
| Discourse with Elders | 20:1 | August 591 |
| Second Siege of Jerusalem | 24:1 | January 588 |
| Judgment on Tyre | 26:1 | March/April 587/586 |
| Judgment on Egypt | 29:1 | January 587 |
| Judgment on Egypt | 29:17 | April 571 |
| Judgment on Egypt | 30:20 | April 587 |
| Judgment on Egypt | 31:1 | June 587 |
| Lament over Pharaoh | 32:1 | March 585 |
| Lament over Egypt | 32:17 | April 586 |
| Fall of Jerusalem | 33:21 | December/January 586/85 |
| New Temple Vision | 40:1 | April 573 |
On the fifth day of the fourth month in the fifth year of his exile (Tammuz, 592 BCE), he said he beheld on the banks of the Chebar the glory of God, who consecrated him as a prophet. The latest date in his book is the first day of the first month in the twenty-seventh year of his exile (Nisan, 570 BCE); consequently, his prophecies extended over twenty-two years.
The elders of the exiles repeatedly visited him to obtain a divine oracle (chapters 8, 14, 20). He exerted no permanent influence upon his contemporaries, however, whom he repeatedly calls the "rebellious house" (2:5, 6, 8; 3:9, 26, 27; and elsewhere), complaining that although they flock in great numbers to hear him they regard his discourse as a sort of aesthetic amusement, and fail to act in accordance with his words (33:30-33). If the enigmatical date, "the thirtieth year" (1:1), be understood to apply to the age of the prophet, Ezekiel was born exactly at the time of the reform in the ritual introduced by Josiah. Concerning his death nothing is known.
He had a house in the place of his exile, Tel-Aviv, where he lost his wife, in the ninth year of his exile, by some sudden and unforeseen stroke (Ezek. 8:1; 24:18).
His ministry extended over twenty-three years 595 - 573 BCE (29:17), during part of which he was contemporary with Jeremiah, and probably also with Obadiah. According to tradition, he would also have been contemporary with Daniel (however, Daniel is regarded by some as being written much later, with Ezekiel's references to "Daniel" being seen as references to an ancient Ugaritic hero of that name, not a contemporary). The time and manner of his death are unknown. His reputed tomb is pointed out in the neighbourhood of Baghdad, at a place called Keffil.
After being led away by the Babylonians somewhere between 597 and 596, Ezekiel, along with the other Israelites, was resettled in Babylon. Ezekiel himself lived in his own home in exile at Tel-abib near Chebar canal, which was near Nippur in Babylonia.
[edit] Commentary on the Book of Ezekiel
[edit] Ezekiel as a person with Epilepsy
Some scholars have suggested that the person described by the Book of Ezekiel may have suffered from epilepsy. Specifically, it is claimed that Ezekiel may have suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy, which has several characteristic symptoms that are apparent from his writing<ref>Altschuler, E.L.: "Did Ezekiel Have Temporal Lobe Epilepsy?", Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2002;59:561-562.</ref>. These symptoms include hypergraphia, hyperreligiosity, fainting spells, mutism and pedantism, often collectively ascribed to a condition known as Geschwind syndrome.
[edit] Unsourced commentary apparently written by Wikipedians
Herein lies the individualistic tendency which distinguishes Ezekiel from his predecessors. He conceives it as his prophetic mission to strive to reach his brethren and compatriots individually, to follow them, and to win them back to God; and he considers himself personally responsible for every individual soul. Those redeemed were to form the congregation of the new Temple, and to exemplify by their lives the truth of the word that Israel was destined to become a "kingdom of priests" (Exodus 19:6).
Law and worship--these are the two focal points of Ezekiel's hope for the future. The people become a congregation; the nation, a religious fraternity. Political aims and tasks no longer exist; and monarchy and state have become absorbed in the pure dominion of God. Thus Ezekiel has stamped upon post-exilic Judaism its peculiar character; and herein lies his unique religio-historical importance.
With the Judaic exile, monarchy and state were annihilated, and a political and national life was no longer possible. In the absence of a worldly foundation it became necessary to build upon a spiritual one. This mission Ezekiel performed by observing the signs of the time and by deducing his doctrines from them. In conformity with the two parts of his book his personality and his preaching are alike twofold. The events of the past must be explained.
Although God has permitted His city and Temple to be destroyed, and His people to be led into exile, Ezekiel holds that God is not betraying His people. He asserts that God was compelled to do this because of the sins of the people. Ezekiel feels that there is no reason to despair, for God does not desire the death of the sinner, but his reformation. The Lord exemplifies through action, in that He will remain the God of Israel, and Israel will remain His people.
The book explains that once Israel recognizes the sovereignty of the Lord and acts accordingly, God will restore the people, in order that they may fulfill their eternal mission and that He may truly dwell in the midst of them. This, however, cannot be accomplished until every individual reforms themselves and makes the will of the Lord their law.
Ezekiel also exhibits one of the most down to earth and bawdy attitudes of all the biblical authors, comparing the idolatry of Israel to the behaviour of a prostitute in a notorious passage (chapter 23). Ezekiel describes the prostitute's lovers as having genitals which resemble those of donkeys and whose ejaculate was like the issue of horses.
Yet another feature of Ezekiel's personality is the pathological. With no other prophet are vision and ecstasy so prominent; and he repeatedly refers to symptoms of severe maladies, such as paralysis of the limbs and of the tongue (3:25 et seq.), from which infirmities he is relieved only upon the announcement of the downfall of Jerusalem (24:27, 33:22).
Ezekiel is a prophet who was instructed to act his prophesies. He was a prophet who loved drama and songwriting unlike the other prophets. He would sometimes do unbelievable things such as taking a potter's flask and smashing it to symbolize that Jerusalem will be destroyed and the people in Jerusalem will be scattered to the winds. His name means "Whom God makes strong."
The book seems to be written in two different time periods during Ezekiel's 25 years of prophecy. The first section, which is aimed at the upper class of Judah, was written between from 593 to 586 B.C. The second section, which runs from 586 to 571, deals with his oracles of salvation for the people.
Ezekiel points to a day when Judah and Israel would once more be restored to their land. Borrowing heavily from earlier prophets and books, Ezekiel sought to comfort the people by teaching them about the never-ending quality of their covenant with YHVH. He preached to them a new understanding in their time of exile. He shows them that God was still in control of the situation. Ezekiel used his own life and his relationship with God as an example.
Ezekiel did much of his prophecizing through his actions. Instead of preaching to the people an oral message God instructed him to live out his message in various ways. His actions were interpreted as having unique and specific meanings. For example, he does various things like sketches Jerusalem on a brick ( Ezek. 4:1-3), Lies on left side for 390 days and right side for 40 ( Ezekiel 4:4-8 ), Shaves his head with a sword, weighs and divides the hair, burning a portion of it, smiting a second portion with a sword and scattering the third portion to the winds ( Ezek. 5:1-12), Digs his way through a wall and takes an exile's baggage with him ( Ezek. 12:1-12), Marks out a route for the Babylonian army with a crossroads that forces the king to cast lots to decide which road to take (Ezek. 21:18-23), and loses his wife in death (Ezek. 25:15-24).
It has been suggested that some of his visions are actually primitive descriptions of UFOs ("wheels within wheels in the sky"); the History Channel has a show examining this theory.[1]
[edit] On-line translations of the Book of Ezekiel
- Jewish translations:
- Yechezkiel - Ezekiel from Chabad.org
- Christian translations:
- Online Bible at GospelHall.org
- Ezekiel at BibleGateway.com (Various translations)
[edit] Notes
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[edit] References
- Easton's Bible Dictionary, 1897.
- LaSor, William Sanford et al. Old Testament Survey: the Message, Form, and Background of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 1996.
- Allen, Leslie C. Word Biblical Commentary Volume 28: Ezekiel 1-20. Word Books Publisher: Dallas TX, 1990
- Allen, Leslie C. Word Biblical Commentary Volume 29: Ezekiel 20-48. Word Books Publisher: Dallas TX, 1990
- George R. Berry, "The Authorship of Ezekiel 40-48, Journal of Biblical Literature 341/4 (1915), pp. 17-40.
[edit] External links
- Jewish Encyclopedia: Book of Ezekiel
- Shamati a book by Rabbi Yehuda Ashlag
- Douglas E. Cox "Ezekiel's firmament" 1996
- 'Meditations on Ezekiel': a comprehensive blog by Stephen Barkley
- Bible.org: Introduction to Ezekiel, based on Hill and Walton
- List of names referring to El.
- The Prophecy That Is Shaping History: New Research on Ezekiel's Vision of the End, 2003[2]cs:Kniha Ezechiel
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