CHAPTER XI STUDIES IN EZEKIEL AND DANIEL Peculiar Circumstances. The circumstances under which the prophecies of Ezekiel were written are peculiar. The prophet was a captive in a strange land; for he had been deported with Jehoiachim in 597 B.C. He resided at Tel-abib, on the river Chebar, in the midst of a considerable community of Hebrew exiles. He was married, as we learn incidentally, and resided in his own house. Ezekiel was a priest, and therefore belonged to the aristocracy of his people. His office involved an extensive and accurate knowledge of Hebrew history and Hebrew law. He shared the deepest aspirations of the Chosen People. With profound and anxious sadness he must have dwelt on the former splendor of his nation, its present humiliation and suffering, and its future destiny. Prophetic Call. The prophetic call of Ezekiel came in a sublime vision. As narrated in the first chapter, he beheld the form of Jehovah enthroned on a firmament upheld by flaming cherubim. When, at the sight of the overpowering spectacle, he fell on his face, he heard a divine voice, which said: "Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me, even unto this very day. For they are impudent children, and stiff-hearted." 1 The date of this vision and call is fixed definitely in the 1 Ez. 2: 3, 4. fourth month of the fifth year of Jehoiachim's captivity; hence in July, 592 B.C. It is the interval between the first and second capture of Jerusalem. Jeremiah is still living and preaching; and the course of political events is uncertain and alarming both to the exiles and to the residents of Judah. From this time, for twenty-two years, Ezekiel, speaking in the name of the Lord, continues to warn, instruct, and comfort his people. Threefold Division. The book of Ezekiel naturally falls into a threefold division. For a time the most significant event for the Hebrew people, whether at home or in captivity, is the impending destruction of Jerusalem. The first twenty-four chapters deal with this event in varied and impressive forms. The second division (chapters 25-32) is concerned with other nations more or less closely associated with Israel. The fall of Jerusalem filled the Hebrews for a time with a paralyzing dejection. The fall of the capital and the captivity of the people seemed like a triumph of heathenism. But in the presence of this discouragement the prophet shows them that the triumph is only temporary, and that the proud nations about them are destined to fall under the mighty hand of Jehovah. In the third division (chapters 33-48) the future restoration and glory of Israel are predicted with impressive imagery and deep spiritual insight. The chastening results of sorrow are recognized, and the richer spiritual life of the Hebrew people after the restoration is foretold in poetic language. The closing chapters are devoted to an imaginary reconstruction of the temple and to directions for its services. It is thus seen that the book of Ezekiel is arranged in a systematic manner. Its authorship has never been seriously questioned; and though its frequent symbolism is sometimes obscure, the book has had great influence in the subsequent development of the religious life and worship of the Jews. Sense of Responsibility. — Ezekiel entered upon his task with a high sense of his responsibility. It is the responsibility of every great religious leader. Though for a time his dispiriting message was unwelcome to his fellow-exiles, he did not allow himself to sink into a selfish or cowardly silence. It was a week after his call that he was made to understand the responsibility of his position. "The word of the Lord," he says, "came unto me, saying, Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from Me. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die, and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul." 1 Judgment for Sin. Ezekiel clearly foresees the impending doom of Jerusalem. He foretells it in plain language; he portrays it in symbolical acts. In the fourth chapter he lays a mimic siege to Jerusalem; and in the fifth chapter, through the symbolism of his shaven hair, he sets forth the destruction of the people. Like the other Hebrew prophets, he traces the disasters of Judah to the sins of the people. The past history of Jerusalem is portrayed in very dark colors: : 1 Ez. 3: 16–19. "I have set her in the midst of the nations And countries are round about her. And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, And my statutes more than the countries that are round about her; For they have refused my judgments and my statutes, They have not walked in them." And what is to be the result of this wickedness? Here is the declaration of judgment: "Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I, even I, am against thee, And will execute judgments in the midst of thee In the sight of the nations. And I will do in thee that which I have not done, And whereunto I will not do any more the like, Because of all thine abominations. Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, And the sons shall eat the fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, And the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds."1 Sometimes, as in chapter six, the coming destruction of Israel is portrayed in language of poetic eloquence. Heredity and Righteousness. The Jews of the captivity, it appears, were inclined to attribute their misfortunes to the sins of their fathers. They were accustomed to quote the proverb, "The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge." This was a selfcomplacent assertion of their own righteousness; for by "the children" they meant themselves. The same proverb had been used in connection with the preaching of Jeremiah.2 This proverb contains an important truth; namely, that children often suffer for the sins of their parents. This is 2 See Jer. 31:29. 1 Ez. 5: 5-10. frequently seen in the transmitted taints of heredity. But this law is not inevitable in its consequences, and cannot be adduced as an impeachment of the justice of Jehovah. It is only when children continue in the iniquity of their parents that retribution follows in all its force. The evil results of heredity may be counteracted by righteousness, and every man, in spite of inherited evil, sustains a relation of individual responsibility before God. This truth Ezekiel announces very clearly and forcibly to his self-complacent countryman : "Ye say, why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, And hath kept all My statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live. The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, Neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, All his transgressions that he hath committed, They shall not be mentioned unto him: In his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die ? "1 A Picture of War. Among the doom prophecies those against Tyre and Egypt are elaborate and striking. A wealth of detail is made splendid by poetic imagination. In the twenty-sixth chapter there is an instructive portrayal of Oriental warfare: we behold its varied implements and its unsparing cruelties. Nebuchadnezzar is to be sent against the proud city of Tyre, 1 Ez. 18: 19-23. See also 33: 18-20. |