By Daniel L. Black, Th.B; Th.M; Th.D
Who Wrote the Book of Ezekiel?
The Book of Ezekiel was written by a Jewish priest and prophet named Ezekiel. He is identified by name only twice in the entire Bible, and both times speaking of himself in the third person (Ezekiel 1:3; 24:24). The first verse of the Book of Ezekiel states that he was likely 30 years of age (“in the thirtieth year”) when he received his calling from God (“visions of God”) to be a prophet to captive Jews in the land of Babylon, living along the banks of the Chebar canal that connected the Euphrates and Tigris rivers north of the city of Babylon.
Ezekiel was a priest (Ezekiel 1:3) by virtue of his birth as a descendant of Aaron, the first priest of Israel, and as a member of the lineage of Zadok (high priest in the time of King Solomon). He became a prophet in obedience to the calling of God disclosed to him in a magnificent vision of the chariot throne of the LORD, the God of Israel (Ezekiel 1:4 – 2:5)
Ezekiel carefully dated his visions from God and major events in his life- 13 times throughout the book- starting in the first two verses. The vision in which God called him to be a prophet was on the fifth day of the fourth month (July) in the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity (592 BC). Ezekiel had been taken captive from Jerusalem to Babylon in 597 BC, along with King Jehoiachin and ten thousand other Jews (2 Kings 24:11-16; Ezekiel 33:21; 40:1).
Ezekiel was a contemporary of the priest and prophet Jeremiah and the prophet Daniel and may have known both men. All three were Jews born in the Kingdom of Judah in the final years of its existence (which ended in 586 BC). The prophet Daniel, having been in the first deportation of Jews to Babylon (606 BC), had been there nine years when Ezekiel arrived there.
Based on biblical records, Jeremiah likely lived 646–585 BC; Daniel lived 626–534 BC; and Ezekiel lived 622–570 BC. Jeremiah, the first born of the three, ministered in Judah until shortly after the end of the kingdom, but died in Egypt. By God’s providence, Daniel, to the end of his life was a counselor to the kings of Babylon and Persia. Until his death, Ezekiel served as God’s prophet to his fellow exiled Jews in Babylon. He had a house in Babylon that could accommodate a gathering of the elders of the Jews in captivity (Ezekiel 8:1), and he had a wife, “the desire of his eyes,” who died suddenly (24:15-18) on the first day King Nebuchadnezzar laid siege to Jerusalem (24:1-2).
What Is in the Book of Ezekiel?
The contents of the Book of Ezekiel, presented in chronological order and meticulously dated, provide an easy-to-follow scenario of Ezekiel’s life and ministry as God’s prophet to the captive Jews in Babylon. The book divides naturally into five parts: chapters 1-5 are about Ezekiel’s calling and ministry as a prophet; chapters 6-24 are prophecies denouncing Israel and Judah for the sins which brought their downfall under the judgment of God; chapters 25-32 are prophecies about God’s judgment against Gentile nations, including the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, Philistines, the cities of Tyre and Sidon, and Egypt; chapters 33-39 are prophecies about the coming spiritual and national restoration of Israel (especially chapter 37); and, finally, chapters 40-48 give a detailed description of a future temple, the worship therein, and the resettlement of the tribes of Israel in the land (Canaan) given to them by God.
The Relation of Ezekiel to the New Testament
Ezekiel is never mentioned by name in the New Testament, but his title, “son of man,” by which he is called 90 times in the Book of Ezekiel, takes on special significance for Christians because, as told 79 times in the four Gospels, Jesus called Himself “Son of Man.” For Ezekiel, this title meant simply that he was a man, a human. However, based on the prophecy about the “Son of Man” in Daniel 7:13-14, Jews in Jesus’ time understood this title as a reference to the Messiah. Jesus, using this title of Himself, clearly meant He was (and is) the Messiah (Matthew 9:6; 12:8; 13:41; 16:27; 24:30).
The New Testament emphasizes the personal experience of the Holy Spirit by believers in Christ, and Ezekiel, more frequently and explicitly than any other Old Testament writer, tells of his personal experience of the Holy Spirit. For example, in the Book of Ezekiel, he said, “the Spirit entered into me” (2:2; 3:24); “the Spirit took me up” (3:12); “the Spirit lifted me up” (3:14; 8:3; 11:1); “the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me” (11:5; compare Acts 10:44; 11:15); “the Spirit took me up” (11:24; 43:5); and “the hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit of the LORD” (37:1).
Additionally, the Book of Ezekiel is closely connected to the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament. In the Revelation there are 33 references to the Book of Ezekiel. Best-known among these are the Cherubim (Ezekiel 1; Revelation 4); eating the book (Ezekiel 3; Revelation 10); Gog and Magog (Ezekiel 38; Revelation 20); and the river of water of life (Ezekiel 47; Revelation 22).
Regarding the Last Nine Chapters of Ezekiel (40-48)
This last part of the Book of Ezekiel has been the most studied part of the book by Jews and Christians, seeking to determine the correct interpretation of Ezekiel’s vision of a rebuilt temple, the reinstatement of Levitical sacrifices, and the resettlement of the twelve tribes of Israel in the land (Canaan) promised to them by God.
Today, most Jews do not expect a literal reign of the Messiah on earth, with a restored temple and Levitical sacrifices in Jerusalem. They regard Ezekiel 40-48 as an idealized representation of the future, meant to encourage the captive Jews in Babylon. Nevertheless, “Jewish tradition regards these chapters as Ezekiel’s vision of the Third Temple to be built in the days of the Messiah” (The Jewish Study Bible, JPS).
Most Christians- Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican/Episcopal, Lutheran, and some other Protestants- do not interpret Revelation 20:1-6 literally and therefore do not expect Christ to reign on earth for a literal 1,000 years at the end of this age. They, like most Jews today, interpret Ezekiel 40-48 as having a spiritual or ideal meaning.
However, a substantial number of Christians today concur with the traditional Jewish view of Ezekiel 40-48. These believe there will be a literal millennial (1,000 years) reign of Christ on earth when He comes again, as told in Revelation 20:1-6. “Papias, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Cyprian, among the earliest [church] Fathers, all held the doctrine of a millennial kingdom on earth; and not until millennial views degenerated into gross carnalism was this doctrine abandoned” (JFB Commentary).
Christians who believe in the millennial reign of Christ, believe Ezekiel’s vision in chapters 40-48 will then be fulfilled. The temple described by Ezekiel in these chapters is believed to be the Millennial Temple, and the worship and conditions of life described are believed to be those during the millennial reign of Christ.