THE PROPHETS

!ey have a queer way of talking, like people who, instead of proceeding in an orderly manner, ramble o" from one thing to the next so that you cannot make heads or tails of them or see what they are ge#ing at.

Martin Luther them

GOD

us us

barriers to

understanding

Language Geography

HistoryCulture

Religion Why do we have the Bible?So that we can know God‘‘

’’

Whether he is discussing the past, present or future, the prophet is seeking to make God the most genuine reality that men can know and experience.

A.B. Mickelson‘Interpreting the Bible’, p. 287

not foretelling forthtelling‘‘

’’

Prophecy is essentially a ministry of disclosure, a stripping bare. Israel’s great prophets do not merely li$ the veil of the future in order to destroy false expect-ations; at the same time, they expose the conduct of their contemporaries. . . . Prophets tear the masks away and show the true face of the people behind them.

Hans Walter Wol", ‘Confrontations’

The Word of the LORD

Calling people back to the covenant

Covenant enforcement

mediators

(Fee and Stuart)

Warning of judgment

Promising restoration Identi%cation of

Israel’s sin

Announcement of judgment

Declaration of God’s love for Israel

Announcement of blessing

‘‘’’

!e ‘prophet in scripture takes on the role of gracious mediator. He stands between God and the people to deliver the word of the Lord. . . . !e person of the prophet substitutes for the presence of Almighty God himself.’

O.P. Robertson, ‘!e Christ of the Prophets’, p. 10

Ful!lment

NewTestament

Promise

OldTestament

EZEKIEL

?What is the most important thing in your life?

What is your primary motivation?

What is the most important motivation for discipleship and for evangelism?

‘‘’’

!e importance of Ezekiel can hardly be overstressed.

Henry McKeating, Ezekiel

Context

Structure

Genre

Content

Context

• 30th year of Ezekiel’s life

• … when he should have started as a priest

• 5th day of 4th month = 31 July

• 5th year of Jehoiachin’s exile = 593 BC

• Six years before the fall of Jerusalem

Babylon !is segment covers

605-594 BC• Ba#le of Carcemish• Accession of

Nebuchadnezzar• Appointment of

Zedekiah • Judean exile

Babylonian Chronicle

Babylonian empire Ishtar Gate

Ishtar gate

A displaced people Cut o! from the city Surrounded by pagan religion

‘‘’’

Exile was not simply displacement from the land, but it was the experience of the end of creation, the exhaustion of salvation history, the demise of king, temple, city, land and all those supports which gave structure and meaning to life.

Walter Breuggemann, ‘Weariness, Exile and Chaos’

Experiencing God’s judgment Structure

1:2

8:1

20:1

24:1

26:1

29:1

29:17

31 July 593

17 September 592

14 August 591

15 January 588

587

December 588

571

30:20

31:1

32:1

32:17

33:21

40:1

March 587

May 587

February 585

March 585

8 January 585

573

Dates in Ezekiel

Ezekiel’s call and "rst collection of

oracles of judgment 1:1–7:27

A2nd collection of

oracles of judgment

8:1 – 13:23

B

3rd collection of oracles of judgment

14:1 – 19:14

C4th collection of

oracles of judgment

20:1 – 24:27

DOracles against nations

25:1 – 32:32

E

Israel's punishment and future restoration

33:1 – 39:29

FVision of the new temple and land

40:1 – 48:35

GEzekiel’s call and "rst

collection of messages about coming judgment

1:1–7:27

A

1. Vision 1: Ezekiel’s Call

1:1 – 3:11 ?What words would you use to describe Ezekiel’s vision?

an encounter with God shapes everything

Vocation Report• Divine confrontation

• Introductory word

• Commission

• Objection(s)

• Reassurances

• Sign(s)

?What words, phrases or ideas does Ezekiel repeat in this section (1:1 – 3:11)?

What does the phrase ‘son of man’ convey in this context?

How well does Ezekiel 1:28 – 3:15 correspond to the standard structure of a ‘vocation report’?

• ‘I will speak to you’• the God whom Ezekiel has encountered

• ‘I will speak to you’• God is not remote; he communicates

• ‘I will speak to you’• God speaks to Ezekiel personally

See also 2:7,8; 3:4,10,17,22,27

• ‘the hand of the Lord was on him’ (1:3)

• vision of the glory of YHWH

• vision followed by Ezekiel falling face down and receiving God’s instructions