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Understand the book of Ezekial

September 3, 2025

Ezekiel 36:24-26(NKJV) For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.


Author

  • Ezekiel
  • Ezekiel means either “God Strengthens” or “God is Strong”
  • He was married. It is believed that his wife died during captivity.
  • Ministered at the same time as Daniel
  • Highly educated, from a priestly family
  • He was 25 years old when taken into captivity


Date

  • 593-573 B.C.
  • During the Babylonian captivity, Judah was taken captive in three stages:
    • Daniel and companions taken in first invasion
    • 9 years later Ezekiel was taken during the second invasion
    • 11 years after the second invasion Jerusalem fell and those remaining (except for the very poor) were taken into captivity
    • The journey to Babylon took 3-4 months, approximately 1500 miles (many died along the way)


Theme

  • Destruction of Jerusalem because of disobedience and the future restoration because of the covenant promises of God

Purpose

  • Ezekiel addressed the personal responsibility for morality. We find two major doctrines within the book.
    • The Doctrine of Man
      • Ezekiel 18:4(NKJV) “Behold, all souls are Mine; The soul of the father As well as the soul of the son is Mine; The soul who sins shall die.
    • The Doctrine of Grace, Rebirth, and the Work of the Holy Spirit
      • Ezekiel 37:1-14
        • The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,
        • 2 And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.
        • 3 And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.
        • 4 Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
        • 5 Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:
        • 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
        • 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.
        • 8 And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.
        • 9 Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.
        • 10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
        • 11 Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.
        • 12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.
        • 13 And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,
        • 14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.


Content

  • Ezekiel’s call Chapters 1-3
    • Ezekiel 2:3-8 And he said unto me, 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.
    • 4 For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God.
    • 5 And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
    • 6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
    • 7 And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.
    • 8 But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.
    • Ezekiel 3:17(NKJV) “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me:
  • Judah’s judgment Chapters 4-24
    • Ezekiel 6:2-8 on of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them,
    • 3 And say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God; Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys; Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
    • 4 And your altars shall be desolate, and your images shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.
    • 5 And I will lay the dead carcases of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars.
    • 6 In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished.
    • 7 And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
    • 8 Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries.
  • Prophecy concerning heathen nations Chapters 25-32
    • Ammon
    • Moab
    • Edom
    • Philistia
    • Tyre (Ezekiel 28 & Isaiah 28 – The Fallen Star (Satan))
    • Egypt
  • Future blessings and restoration Chapters 33-48
    • Ezekiel 36:22-30 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.
    • 23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.
    • 24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
    • 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
    • 26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
    • 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
    • 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
    • 29 I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.
    • 30 And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.
  • Restoration of the Temple Chapters 40-46


Christ in the Book of Ezekiel

  • Ezekiel as a type of Christ
    • “Son of Man” (90 times within the book)
  • Jesus as the Chief Shepherd
    • Ezekiel 34:23,24(NKJV) I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them-My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken.
  • Jesus as the river of life flowing from the temple
    • Ezekiel 47:1-12 Then he [my guide] brought me back to the door of the house [the temple of the Lord]; and behold, water was flowing from under the threshold of the house (temple) toward the east, for the front of the temple was facing east. And the water was flowing down from under, from the right side of the house, from south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate by the way of the gate that faces east. And behold, water was spurting out from the south side [of the gate]. When the man went out toward the east with a measuring line in his hand, he measured a thousand cubits, and he led me through the water, water that was ankle-deep. Again he measured a thousand [cubits] and led me through the water, water that was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand [cubits] and led me through the water, water reaching the hips. Again he measured a thousand [cubits]; and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen, enough water to swim in, a river that could not be crossed [by wading]. And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he brought me back to the bank of the river. Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other. Then he said to me, “These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the Arabah (the Jordan Valley); then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the waters of the Dead Sea shall be healed and become fresh. It will come about that every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there will be a very great number of fish, because these waters go there so that the waters of the sea are healed and become fresh; so everything will live wherever the river goes. And it will come about that fishermen will stand beside it [at the banks of the Dead Sea]; from Engedi to Eneglaim there will be dry places to spread nets. Their fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great [Mediterranean] Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh [and wholesome for animal life]; they will [as the river subsides] be left encrusted with salt. By the river on its bank, on one side and on the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither and their fruit will not fail. They shall bear every month because their water flows from the sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.”
    • Revelation 22:1-4 Then the angel showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb (Christ), in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer exist anything that is cursed [because sin and illness and death are gone]; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve and worship Him [with great awe and joy and loving devotion];  they will [be privileged to] see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads.
      • The marks on the foreheads are important because they declare who you belong to. This is a spiritual mark.
        • Ezekiel 9:3-6 Then the [[Shekinah] glory and brilliance of the God of Israel (the cloud) went up from the cherubim on which it had rested, to [stand above] the threshold of the [Lord’s] temple. And the Lord called to the man clothed with linen, who had the scribe’s writing case at his side. The Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, throughout all of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh [in distress] and grieve over all the repulsive acts which are being committed in it.” But to the others I heard Him say, “Follow him [the man with the scribe’s writing case] throughout the city and strike; do not let your eyes have pity and do not spare [anyone]. Utterly slay old men, young men, maidens, little children, and women; but do not touch or go near anyone on whom is the mark. Begin at My sanctuary.” So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple [who did not have the Lord’s mark on their foreheads].

Category:

Old Testament Survey, Scriptural Articles

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