Book of Ezekiel - Contents

Contents

The book opens with a vision of Yahweh, God of Israel; moves on to anticipate the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple, explains this as Yahweh's punishment, and closes with the promise of a new beginning and a new Temple.

1. Inaugural vision (Ezekiel 1:1–3:27): Yahweh approaches Ezekiel as the divine warrior, riding in his battle chariot. The chariot is drawn by four living creatures each having four faces (of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle), and four wings. Beside each "living creature" is a "wheel within a wheel," with "tall and awesome" rims full of eyes all around. Yahweh commissions Ezekiel to be a prophet and a "watchman" in Israel: "Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites." (2:3)
2. Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah (Ezekiel 4:1–24:27) and on the nations (Ezekiel 25:1–32:32): Yahweh warns of the certain destruction of Jerusalem and the devastation of the nations that have troubled his people, the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites and Philistines, the Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon, and Egypt.
3. Building a new city (Ezekiel 33:1–48:35): The Jewish exile will come to an end, a new city and new Temple will be built, and the Israelites will be gathered and blessed as never before.

Some of the highlights include:

• The "throne vision", in which Ezekiel sees God enthroned in the Temple among the heavenly host (Ezekiel 1:4-28);
• The first "temple vision", in which Ezekiel sees God leave the Temple because of the abominations being practiced there (meaning the worship of Gods other than Yahweh, the official God of Judah (Ezekiel 8:1-16);
• Images of Israel, in which Israel is seen as a nymphomaniac bride, among other things (Ezekiel 15-19);
• The valley of bones, in which the prophet sees the dead rise again (Ezekiel 37:1-14);
• The destruction of Gog and Magog, in which he sees Israel's enemies destroyed and a new age of peace established (Ezekiel 38-39);
• The final temple vision, in which Ezekiel is transported to Jerusalem and sees a new commonwealth centered around a new Temple to which God's glory has returned (Ezekiel 40-48)