Handout 1: Ezekiel Lesson 1

Ezekiel’s prophetic ministry covered a span of years from about 593-585/571 BC (see Ez
29:17 for the later date).

In this study, the Book of Ezekiel has been divided into four major sections that reflect
different aspects of Ezekiel’s ministry:
Chapters 1-3 contain Ezekiel’s heavenly vision and divine call to ministry.
Chapters 4-24 contain judgment oracles against Israel/Judah.
Chapters 25-32 contain judgment oracles against seven Gentile nations.
Chapters 33-48 contain oracles of salvation promised to Israel.

SUMMARY OF THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL

Biblical Period # 8 THE EXILE
Covenant Sinai Covenant
Ezekiel’s Call Judgment of the Judgment of Oracles of Salvation
Focus to a Prophetic Covenant the Nations and Promised
Ministry People Restoration
Scripture 1:1----------------4:1--------------------25:1----------------33:1-----------------48:35
Division Ezekiel’s first Ezekiel’s Judgment on 7 -Salvation for Israel
Of visions and mission Gentile (33:1-39:29)
Text divine call to -Signs Nations -The New Israel
service -Visions (40:1-48:35)
-Parables
Topic Before the siege of Jerusalem During the After the destruction
siege of and fall of Jerusalem
Jerusalem
Location Babylon
Time 593 BC – 587/6 BC c. 587/6 BC c. 585 BC – 571 BC

TIME LINE SUMMARY B.C. WORLD EMPIRES:

--ASSYRIA—-BABYLON-----------------------------------------PERSIA-----------------------
Divided Kingdom---Southern Kingdom

722 605 597 587 539 517

Assyria Babylon 2nd Babylon Persia Jerusalem Temple
conquers conquers deportation destroys conquers rebuilt
Israel & Assyria Jerusalem Babylon
exile of 1st Judahites & Temple - Edict of Cyrus allows
citizens deported to Babylon 3rd deportation exiles’ return to Judah
(the 70-year exile)

over 
The citizens of Judah believed Yahweh would never permit their defeat and deprived of
the Promised Land or the holy Temple (Jer 26:7-11). They based their confidence on
four pillars of belief concerning their relationship with Yahweh:
1. In the ratification of the Sinai Covenant, Yahweh chose Israel, out of all the other
nations of the earth to become His personal possession and His holy covenant
people.
2. God’s covenant with Abraham promised his descendants the land of Canaan
which they now occupied as the Southern Kingdom of Judah.
3. Yahweh’s covenant with David promised a Davidic descendant an eternal
kingdom.
4. Yahweh’s dwelling place among His people was His holy Temple in Jerusalem.

Ezekiel’s mission was to urge the Judahites:

1. To accept God’s judgment for their covenant failures and the penance of the
seventy years of exile that was ahead of them, their children, and their children’s
children.
2. To encourage them, despite their suffering, to reject the false gods of the
Babylonians in remaining loyal to Yahweh, the One and only God.
3. To assure them that Yahweh, their God, will never abandon them.

The reason for the exile, however, is the theme of the Book of Ezekiel. Yahweh tells the
people through His prophet that it is so You/they will know that I am Yahweh. It is a
statement repeated with slight variations seventy times.

Chapter 1 divides into five parts:

1. The introduction and historical background (verses 1-3)
2. The vision of Yahweh’s chariot-throne and the four living creatures (verses 4-14)
3. The wheels of the chariot-throne (verses 15-21)
4. The platform of the chariot-throne (verses 22-25)
5. The glory of God (verses 26-28)

Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017 [Link]

 Handout 2: Ezekiel Lesson 1
The Book of Ezekiel contains fifteen dates. The book begins with the initial date of his
divine calling. The first series of seven dates in the Book of Ezekiel relate to major
events in Ezekiel’s preaching ministry. The dates serve to show that the message he
delivered was perfectly in line with God’s divine plan as it moved through judgment,
disaster, and toward the promise of restoration. The second series of eight dates are
associated with judgment oracles against foreign nations in Chapters 25-32. Ezekiel
calculates all the dates from the year King Jehoiachin became king, which was the same
year as his exile in 598 BC.

Scripture Date in Scripture Equivalent Dates BC

(all dates beginning with Ez 1:2 are (all dates are from the
dated from King Jehoiachin’s exile) liturgical calendar)
Seven Dates Associated With Events in Ezekiel’s Ministry to the Exiles
Ez 1:1 30th year, 4th month, 5th day July 593
Ez 1:2 5th year, 4th month?, 5th day July 593
th th th
Ez 3:16 5 year, 4 month? 7 day (Sabbath?) July 593
Ez 8:1* 6th year, 6th month, 5th day August/September 592
th th th
Ez 20:1 7 year, 5 month, 10 day July/August 591
Ez 24:1 9th year, 10th month, 10th day December 589/January 588
th st
Ez 26:1 11 year, ? month, 1 day** December? 587 BC

Eight Dates Associated With Oracles Against Foreign Nations

Ez 29:1 10th year, 10th month, 12th day December 588/January 587
Ez 29:17 27th year, 1st month, 1st day March/April 571
th st th
Ez 30:20 11 year, 1 month, 7 day March/April 587
Ez 31:1 11th year, 3rd month, 1st day May/June 587
th th st
Ez 32:1 12 year, 12 month, 1 day February/March 586
th th th
Ez 32:17 12 year, 12 month, 15 day February/March 586
Ez 33:21 12th year, 10th month, 5th day December 586/January 585
th st th
Ez 40:1 25 year, 1 month, 10 day+ March/April 573
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017
* 10:1 in NAB
**Septuagint Greek text reads “twelfth year and first month,” i.e. March/April 586 BC

Ezekiel’s Twelve Object Lessons/Symbolic Acts

Object Lesson/Symbolic Act Scripture
1. Shut up in his house and bound with Ez 3:22-26
cords, he is forbidden to speak unless God
orders him to speak.
2. He inscribes a plan of the city on a clay Ez 4:1-3
tablet and models a siege, using an iron
skillet.
3. He lays on his left side for 390 days and Ez 4:4-8
on his right side for 40 days
4. He eats a meager diet and restricts his Ez 4:9-11
intake of water reflecting the diet of the
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people of a besieged city.
5. He bakes bread and is told to use human Ex 4:12-14
excrement for fuel, but God allows cow
dung.
6. He shaves his beard and head, divides Ex 5:1-3
the hair into three equal parts and then cuts,
burns, and scatters the hair.
7. He digs through the wall of his house Ez 12:1-16
and carries clothes as an exile but not
looking at the ground.
8. He is commanded to eat his bread Ex 12:17-18
trembling and drink his water shaking.
9. He is to recite a proverb to the exiles. Ex 17:1-8
10. He is to raise a lamentation over the Ez 19:1-14
prince of Israel.
11. He is to turn in the direction of Ex 21:6, 11-12
Jerusalem and groan.
12. He is ordered not to mourn the death of Ez 24:15-18
his wife.
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017

Ezekiel’s Parables
Parable Scripture reference Message
1. The Wood of the Vine Ez 15:1-8 Symbolized the way in which
Judah became useless to God and
now served no other purpose than
to be burned up in divine
judgment.
2. The Foundling Ez Chapter 16 Illustrated the covenant people’s
betrayal of God’s love and
compassion.
3. The Eagles and the Cedar Ez Chapter 17 Presented the foolishness of King
Tree Zedekiah rebellion against the
Babylonians that would bring
King Nebuchadnezzar’s army to
destroy Jerusalem.
4. The Fiery Furnace Ez 22:17-22 Explained God’s plan to purify
His people through the fires of the
siege of Jerusalem.
5. The Two Sister Harlots Ez Chapter 23 Symbolized the spiritual adultery
of covenant people of the
Kingdoms of Israel and Judah.
6. The Cooking Pot Ez 24:1-14 Illustrated the way God was
going to apply the “heat” to
Jerusalem to cleanse it of its
impurities.
7. The Shipwreck Ez Chapter 27 Symbolized the divine judgment

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 on the city of Tyre.
8. The Fallen Tree Ez Chapter 31 Egypt’s Pharaoh is like a fallen
tree.
9. The Failed Shepherds Ez Chapter 34 Signified the failure of Judah’s
civil and religious leadership and
God’s plan to deal with them.
10. The Dry Bones Ez Chapter 37 Symbolized the promised
spiritual renewal of the covenant
people.
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017

Parallels Between the Visions and Oracles of the Prophet Ezekiel

and the Visions of St. John in the Book of Revelation
Vision Book of Ezekiel Book of Revelation
1. The throne vision Chapter 1 Chapter 4
2. Opening the scroll Chapters 2-3 Chapter 5
3. The four plagues Chapter 5 Chapter 6:1-8
4. Those slain under the altar Chapter 6 Chapter 6:9-11
5. The wrath of God Chapter 7 Chapter 6:12-17
6. The seal on the Saint’s foreheads Chapter 9 Chapter 7
7. The coals from the altar Chapter 10 Chapter 8
8. The 1/3 destruction Chapter 5:1-4 &12 Chapter 8:6-12
9. No more delay Chapter 12 Chapter 10:1-7
10. The eating of the book Chapter 2 Chapter 10:8-11
11. Prophecy against the nations Chapters 25-32 Chapter 10:11
12. Measuring the Temple Chapters 40-43 Chapter 11:1-2
13. Comparing Jerusalem to Sodom Chapter 16 Chapter 11:8
14. The cup of wrath Chapter 23 Chapter 14
15. The vine of the land Chapter 15 Chapter 14:18-20
16. The great harlot Chapters 16, 23 Chapters 17-18
17. The lament sung over the city Chapter 27 Chapter 18
18. The scavenger’s feast Chapter 39 Chapter 19
19. The first resurrection Chapter 37 Chapter 20:4-6
20. The Battle of Gog and Magog Chapter 38-39 Chapter 20:7-9
21. The New Jerusalem Chapters 40-48 Chapter 21
22. The River of Life Chapter 47 Chapter 22
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017

Ezekiel’s visons in the Book of Ezekiel:

1. The inaugural vision of God’s chariot of fire and the scroll (Ez Chapters 1-3) in July,
593.
2. The vision of the Temple abuses and God’s glory leaving the Temple (Ez Chapters 8-
11) in September, 592 BC.
3. The vision of the bones in the Valley of Death (Ez Chapter 37); no date.
4. The vision of the future Temple (Ez Chapters 40-48) in March/April 573 BC.
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2017