B511, B512 Ezekiel I
Ezekiel I deals with the first three of the four main movements in the book of Ezekiel: the
commission of the prophet (chapters 1-3), God’s judgments on Jerusalem (chapters 4-24), and
the future destinies of the nations (chapters 25-39). Interesting features include: the
magnificent typology contained in Ezekiel’s visions of the four interlocked cherubim with
their spinning wheels full of eyes and the man on their throned canopy; detailed explanations
of the strange symbolic pantomimes enacted by the prophet, such as building a clay model of
Jerusalem and besieging it, lying on his left side for 390 days and on his right side for 40 days,
binding himself, eating bread made from each kind of grain, breaking into his own house to
steal his goods, and weighing and dividing the hair he shaved from his head so he could bum
one-third, chop one-third with a knife, and scatter the last third in the wind. In Ezekiel, the
student finds the most detailed description of the future invasion of Israel to be found
anywhere in Scripture. These, along with Ezekiel’s account of Satan’s fall, the prophet’s
virtual speechlessness, and his vision of the horrible deeds in the Temple, make Ezekiel one of
the most colorful of all prophetic books. The instructor gives a comprehensive explanation of
each of Ezekiel’s utterances, some of which are virtually unequalled by any of the other
prophets. 4 credits. Prerequisite: five semesters.
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