Chapter 13. 

Ezekiel.

The Structure of Ezekiel. 

        A. Chs. 1-24. Prophecies of Doom.

1 — Chs. 1-7. The Call and the opening message.

2 — Chs. 8-19. The Sin of Jerusalem.

3 — Chs. 20-23. The deeper meaning of the Sin.

4 — Ch. 24. Imminent Judgment.

        B. Chs. 25-32. Prophecies against the Nations.

1 — Ch. 25. Palestine’s Neighbours.

2 — Chs. 26-28. Tyre.

3 — Chs. 29-32. Egypt.

        C. Chs. 33-48. Prophecies of Restoration.

1 — Ch. 33. The Prophet’s function.

2 — Ch. 34. Rulers past and future.

3 — Ghs. 35, 36. The Land.

4 — Ch. 37. The People.

5 — Chs. 38, 39. The last Enemies.

6 — Chs. 40-48. The Redeemed People at Peace.

The problems connected with Ezekiel are of a very different kind from those dealt with in earlier chapters. There are no generally accepted problems of authorship, as in Isaiah. Still less does the book contain structural difficulties of the kind we find in Jeremiah. Ezekiel would seem to have put his book together himself, and he carefully dated the various sections, viz. 1:2; 8:1; 20:1; 24:1; 26:1; 29:1; 29:17; 30:20; 31:1; 32:1; 32:17; 33:21; 40:1. In addition, for reasons to be considered later, we have no longer the short oracles linked often only by spiritual connexions we have be­come familiar with in the earlier prophets; for the most part the book consists of full-length addresses or writings. The problems relate rather to the prophet’s personality and activi­ties, and to the interpretation of some parts of his book.