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EZEKIEL
INTRODUCTION
The priest Ezekiel was among the Judeans that Nebuchadnezzar brought to Babylon in 597 BC. Five years into this exile, God called Ezekiel to go to Israel (both those in Babylon and those back in Judea) and speak my words to them. Ezekiel often brought this message by composing finely polished poetic oracles and speaking (or perhaps singing) them in public. But he also told stories with symbolic meanings, performed symbolic actions, and described extraordinary visions that he had received.
The book of Ezekiel organizes these messages into three main parts: oracles of judgment against Israel, oracles against other nations, and then promises of Israel’s restoration. These divisions are marked by references to the prophet losing and then regaining his ability to speak. A key vision near the beginning describes how God removed His presence from the Jerusalem temple because of Israel’s evil. The oracles against the nations make it clear that though God’s temple was destroyed, no one should conclude that God is not still in control of the world. Those who threaten His people will be defeated in the end. The book’s closing promises confirm that God will renew the hearts of His people and refresh all life on the face of the earth. Ezekiel’s visions fit the ongoing drama of the Bible: a broken world will be healed when the Lord returns to live with His people in a land that has become like the Garden of Eden.
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Ezekiel 1 (ESV)
1 In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by the Chebar canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. 2 On the fifth day of the month (it was the fifth year of the exile of King Jehoiachin), 3 the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Chebar canal, and the hand of the Lord was upon him there.
4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal. 5 And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, 6 but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings…
15 Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them. 16 As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like the gleaming of beryl. And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. ..
26 And above the expanse over their heads there was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was a likeness with a human appearance. 27 And upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him. 28 Like the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.
Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.
REFLECTION:
Ezekiel was born and raised in Judah. When he was preparing to serve as a priest in the temple in 597 BC, the Babylonians attacked Jerusalem and took 10,000 captives, including Ezekiel himself (cf. 2 Kings 24:10-14). The entire nation is facing destruction. Four or five years later, when Ezekiel was thirty years old (this is the legal age to become a priest), God called him to be a prophet. During the first six years of Ezekiel’s ministry in Babylon, Jeremiah was still preaching to those who remained in Judah. Daniel served in the palace of King Nebuchadnezzar. The place of exile of Judah was by the Chebar canal, where Babylon and the Euphrates met. God communicated with Ezekiel through visions to reveal God’s truth. These visions are revelatory, so they look strange. The people in exile do not understand the will of God for them. Ezekiel brought the vision from God to them, showed them the awesome glory and holiness of God, and warned people of the consequences of their sins as early as possible. “A likeness with a human appearance” (v26) revealed the God sitting on the throne. In a similar way, Christ revealed God to people in the image of man, and prepared the message of salvation for us. Before the glory of the Lord, Ezekiel fell face down to the ground, seeing the holy God and the sinful self, completely surrendering to God. Today, although we cannot see God with our eyes, the Holy Spirit and our heart testify that we are children of God, allowing us to see the glory and holiness of God with our spiritual eyes, and causing us to have a deep and incomparable awe.
PRAYER:
Come to God in awe, open your spiritual eyes and focus on God’s holiness and glory; thank God that although you are filthy and insignificant, He covers your sins with the blood of Christ so that you can walk with Him; ask God to cleanse you and illuminate the darkness of your heart so that you can live a holy life and glorify God.
HYMN:
Only A Holy God – youtu.be/Jxn_fu6rdCU
