Ezekiel [ÔöÇ├ÂzÔöÇ├┤kÔöÇ┬íel]

god is strong or the man god strengthens.…The son of Buzi, a priest who prophesied to the exiles by the river Chebar, and fourth of "The Greater Prophets" (Ezek. 1:324:24).

“What should we learn from the life of Ezekiel?”……For the first-time reader of the Bible, the book of Ezekiel is mostly a perplexing maze of incoherent visions, a kaleidoscope of whirling wheels (chapter 1) and dry bones (chapter 37) that defy interpretation. This impression often causes readers to shy away from studying the book and miss one of the great literary and spiritual portions of the Old Testament. The book is named after the author, Ezekiel, whose name means "strengthened by God." As you read and study this amazing book, draw strength as Ezekiel did from the One who is Himself strength.……Ezekiel grew up in Jerusalem, served as a priest in the temple and was among the second group of captives taken to Babylon along with King Jehoiachin. While in Babylon he became a prophet of God, and his ministry began with condemnation and judgment of the nation Judah. After the destruction of Jerusalem, Ezekiel's perspective changed to a glimmer of hope shining through for the future. Ezekiel wanted to help the people learn from their failures and announced impending judgment upon the nations that surrounded Judah and reestablished hope for the restoration of Israel. His vision of the valley of dry bones pictures new life being breathed into the nation which will occur in the Millennial Reign of Christ on earth.……Ezekiel continues to have detailed visions of the New Temple (chapters 40-43), the New Jerusalem (Ezekiel 48:30-35), the Millennium (chapter 44) and the new land in which the people will reside (Ezekiel 47:13-23). Israel and Judah will once again be restored to unity from the ends of the earth as God's glory also returns and God dwells among His people. These beautiful and unusual visions of Ezekiel concern both the immediate and the long-term plans of God. They help to establish Ezekiel as watchman (chapter 33), not only to warn the people but to be an encouragement. He minces no words and he delivers God's messages with straightforward language that everyone could understand, whether they listened or not (Ezekiel 2:7). Ezekiel himself received a warning from God that if he did not tell everyone he was sent to about the punishment for not following God, he would be held accountable for the blood of those who died in their sins (Ezekiel 33:8-9). He did not hesitate in his mission and is the one man in the Bible in whom we can find no fault as he steadfastly followed God's instructions. He had a passionate view of judgment and hope and displayed his closeness to God's own sorrow over the people's sins.……The prophet experienced considerable opposition during his own lifetime, yet he doggedly expressed God's desire that the wicked not die but turn from their wicked ways and live. His periodic speechlessness during his early years was broken when God empowered him to speak, and his tongue was loosened to speak the longest passage of sustained hope in the Bible. The burning, chopping and scattering of his hair represented the fall of Jerusalem and the bringing back of God's remnant (chapter 5). The hopeful words climax in the promise of everlasting possession of the land, an everlasting Davidic prince, an everlasting covenant, and an everlasting sanctuary in Israel (Ezekiel 11:16-21). He leaps ahead to a time after Israel has been restored to the mysterious invasion from the north which will be brought by Yahweh against Israel, but then will be utterly defeated. This demonstrates that no enemy nation will ever invade the Holy Land again with success, and the glory of the God of Israel returns, entering through the east gate of the templeEzekiel envisions.……Ezekiel has shown all Christians that we are to be watchmen on this earth, speaking the truth of the gospel to everyone we meet. We cannot possibly turn our backs on the perishing and go our own righteous way without being held accountable for those who die in sin that we could have reached. God told Ezekiel to groan with a broken heart and bitter grief for the coming judgment, and through his dramatic book, Ezekiel is telling us the very same thing. This judgment is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign Lord!

The Man Who Was Every Inch a Churchman

Little is known of this man of a priestly family (Ezek. 1:330:1). His father's name, Buzi, was a Gentile one (Gen. 22:21Job 32:2, 6). Referring to himself as "a priest," Ezekiel was akin to Jeremiah who was also a prophet and a priest. Because of his priestly lineage, levitical tendencies appear in his book (Ezek. 40-46), as well as foregleams of the high priestly character of the Messiah (Ezek. 21:2545:22). Ezekiel is every inch a churchman, and his strong ecclesiastical characteristics pervade and give tone to his prophecies.

Ezekiel's call came in his thirtieth year (Ezek. 1:1), in the fifth year and on the fifth day of the month of king Jehoiachin's captivity (Ezek. 1, 2). With the call to service there came the impartation of the prophetic gift (Ezek. 3:22). The theme of the prophetic message he was commissioned to proclaim was the same as that of Jeremiah, namely, the downfall of Judah and Jerusalem with judgment upon foreign nations. The keynote of his book is: through tribulation into rest. Residing with a company of captives by the river Chebar (Ezek. 1:18:1) he labored as "a prophet of the iron harp."

With divine authority Ezekiel dispelled illusions, denounced false prophets, declared repentance, restoration and renewal. He was a true shepherd of souls. Dr. Donald Fraser wrote of him: "Like a giant, he wrestled against Jewish degeneracy and Babylonish pride. Remote as we are from his times, we are stirred by his vivid imagination and his power of fervid denunciation and strenuous appeal. Even when the understanding is puzzled, the heart burns inwardly at the recital of Ezekiel's visions and those burdens which the Lord laid upon his spirit."

Ezekiel was happy in his home life (Ezek. 8:1). God, however, revealed to him that the desire of his eyes would die of a sudden sickness, which his wife did during the siege of Jerusalem. Although her death was a heavy blow, yet Ezekiel was not allowed to publicly weep or lament her passing. His anguish was to serve as a sign that Jerusalem would be destroyed without wailing or lamentation (Ezek. 24:15-27). After a prophetic ministry lasting for at least twenty-two years, tradition has it that Ezekiel was put to death by his fellow exiles because of his faithfulness and boldness in denouncing them for their idolatry.

Several aspects of the prophet's life can be applied with profit to ourselves:

I. He was an exile (Ezek. 1:1); so are we (Heb. 11:131 Pet. 2:11).

II. He was an ambassador (Ezek 1:12:1-63:1-3); so are we (Eph. 6:20).

III. He was a watchman (Ezek. 3:17-20); so are we (Heb. 13:17).

IV. He was a sign (12:1-7); so are we (1 Tim. 1:10).