Ezekiel

EZEKIEL, the son of Buzi, a prophet Ezek. i. 3.of the sacerdotal race; was carried captive to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, with Jehoiachin King of Judah, in the year of the World 3405, before Jesus Christ 595, before the Vulgar Æra 599. God communicated the Spirit of Prophecy to him, only during the captivity; for it does not appear that he had prophesied before his coming into Mesopotamia.

He began his ministry in the thirtieth Ezek. i. 1. Ezek. i. Ezek. iii. Ezek. iv.year of his age, according to the general account, or rather in the thirtieth year after the covenant was renewed with God in the reign of Josiah; which answers to the fifth year of Ezekiel’s captivity, in the year of the World 3409, and he prophesied twenty years to 3430, which was the fourteenth year after the taking of Jerusalem, before Jesus Christ 570, before the Vulgar Æra 574.

One day therefore, when Ezekiel was among the captives upon the river Chebar, he had a vision, wherein the Lord appeared to him upon a throne, or kind of chariot borne by four Cherubims, supported upon four sorts of wheels. He heard the voice of the Lord, who sent him to declare what Ezek. ii.would happen to his people. There seemed to be presented to him a book rolled up, and he thought that he did eat it. After which, he went among the captives, and continued there for seven days sitting by the river Chebar, and weeping without ceasing. At that time the Lord directed his word to him, and made him the watchman of his people; and again appeared to him in his glory, commanded him to shut himself up in his house, and foretold to him, that he should be seized on, and bound with chains as a mad man, which happened accordingly.

While he was thus confined in his apartment, God commanded him to delineate upon a brick, or piece of soft earth, the city of Jerusalem besieged, and surrounded with ramparts, after the old way of besieging cities; to put a wall of iron between him and the city; to fix his eyes upon it, and to continue three hundred and ninety days lying upon his left side, to signify the iniquity of the children of Israel; and after this to turn again, and lie forty days upon his right side, to signify the iniquities of Judah. By these four hundred and thirty days was denoted the siege of Jerusalem by¹ Nebuchadnezzar, its duration, and that of the captivity of the ten tribes, which was to last three hundred and ninety years; and the captivity of Judah, which was to continue forty years, beginning at the last time of Jerusalem’s being taken in the reign of Zedekiah, or rather in the fourth year after this siege, when Nabuzaradan carried away what remains there were of the Jews in the country, and transported them to Babylon, in the year of the World 3420, and ending at the death of Belshazzar, about the year 3466, according to Usher; or reckoning from the taking of Jerusalem, in 3416 to 3457, which according to our computation is the first year of Cyrus’s reign at Babylon.

God afterwards commanded him to take Jerem. lii. 30. Ezek. iv. 9, 10.wheat, barley, beans, lentiles, millet, and fitches, and with these to make as many loaves as he was to continue days lying upon his side, and to rub them over with excrements issuing from an human body. Ezekiel expressing some reluctancy as to this last article, God permitted him to use cow-dung instead of it. All which was a figure of what was to happen in Jerusalem, where the Israelites were reduced, during the siege, to the necessity of eating unclean bread, and that too in small quantity, and in continual apprehensions and uneasiness. After this he was directed by God to cut off his hair, to Ezek. v.divide it into three parts; to burn one, to cut another to pieces with a sword, and scatter the rest in the wind; to shew that the inhabitants of Jerusalem should partly be consumed by famine and pestilence; that another part of them should be put to the sword, and a third dispersed into different places in the World.

In the year of the World 3410, before J. C. 590, before the Vulgar Æra 594. Ezek. viii.The year following Ezekiel was transported in spirit to Jerusalem; and God shewed him the abominations and idolatries committed by the Jews there, which were to draw down upon them the most terrible effects of divine vengeance. While he was yet in the Temple, God commanded five Angels, who carried each an instrument of death, to kill all those in Jerusalem, who were not distinguished by the sign of life; and at the same time enjoined an Angel, who was with the other five, to go into the midst of the city, and mark all those with the letter T, who sighed, and were afflicted at the disorders of Jerusalem. All this was executed, and vengeance began at the Temple of the Lord, which was soon filled with blood and slaughter. The Lord having Ezek. x.again appeared in his glory, commanded the same Angel, who had impressed the character of life on those, who were to be saved, to take coals of fire from between the Cherubims, which bore the throne of the Lord, and scatter them over the city: this was an indication of the fire of war, and of divine vengeance, which was to fall very soon upon it.

Five years before the last siege of Jerusalem, the Lord said to a Ezekiel, Prepare thy self like one who quits his country to go to some other place; thou shalt remove thy goods before thy people in full day, and In the year of the World 3411, before J. C. 589, before the Vulgar Æra 593. a Ezek. xii.shalt pass from one place to another in their sight, to see if they will consider it. Dig through the wall of thine house, and go out through the breach which thou shalt have made. Thou shalt have men, who shall bear thee upon their shoulders in the dark, and thou shalt cover thy face with a veil, that so this spectacle may ingage their attention. Thou shalt tell them, that what thou dost shall be executed, when the enemy shall take Jerusalem, and that King Zedekiah shall be treated after this manner, and carried away from his palace. He added, that these things were not very remote, and that the accomplishment of them should be soon seen. Lastly, he makes a strong invective against false prophets and false propheteses, and against those, who suffer themselves to be seduced by their Ezek. xiii. xiv.vain preaching.

While these things passed in Mesopotamia, Zedekiah King of Judah entred into secret measures with the Kings of Egypt, Edom, and some other neighbour Princes, in order to rebel against Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon. This Prince marched against Jerusalem, and besieged it in the year of the World 3414, before Jesus Christ 586, before the Vulgar Æra 590, upon the tenth day of the tenth month in the ninth year of Zedekiah. On the same day of the same year, Ezekiel, who was in Mesopotamia, at above two hundred leagues distance from Jerusalem, declared this event to the Jews, who were with him in captivity; he represented the future ruin of Jerusalem and its inhabitants under the figure of a caldron full of flesh and bones set upon the fire, till the flesh and bones were consumed, and the very copper of the caldron melted and burnt. At the same time the prophet’s wife dying, God forbad him to weep and mourn for her. The people asking the prophet what was meant by all those figurative actions; he answered them, that God was going to deprive them of all that was most dear to them; of their Temple, City, Country, Relations, and Friends, and that they should not have even the sad consolation of mourning for them.

During the siege of Jerusalem, Ezekiel, prophesied against Egypt, and Tyre. He was informed, that Jerusalem was taken but not till the fifth day of the tenth month in the year of the World 3417, about six months after the city was surrenderedb; from whence we may judge, that the prophet dwelt in some very retired corner of the province, and very remote from Babylon, where this news without doubt was brought very soon. In the evening of that day when the messenger arrived, the Lord opened the Prophet’s mouth, and inspired him to foretel, that the remains of the people, which were still left in Judæa, and flattered themselves with the hopes of a speedy restoration, would likewise be dispersed, as it accordingly happened four years after. It was at the same time probably, that he foretold the calamities of the Zidonians, Tyrians, Edomites, and Ammonites, which happened five years after the destruction of Jerusalem c.

Ezek. xxvi. xxvii. Ezek. xxix. xxx. xxxi.The siege of Tyre and Nebuchadnezzar’s war against Egypt, are, next to the affairs of the Jews, what is most remarkable in Ezekiel. After these melancholy visions, God shewed him more comfortable objects, such as the return from the captivity, the rebuilding both of the Temple and City, the restitution of the Kingdom and Cities of Judah and Israel; their victories over their enemies, and the re-establishment of their state in a more flourishing condition, than it had been in before. All which is comprized in the xxxvi. xxxvii. xxxviii. and following chapters to the end of the book.

Hieron. in Ezek xii. p. 766. nov. Edit.St. Jerom is of opinion, that as Jeremiah prophesied at Jerusalem at the same time as Ezekiel did beyond the Euphrates, the prophecies of this last were sent to Jerusalem, and reciprocally those of Jeremiah into Mesopotamia, in order to comfort and encourage the captive Jews in their exile.

It is said, that Ezekiel was put to death by Vide Epiphan. de Vita & Morte Prophet.the Prince of his people, because he exhorted him to leave idolatry. We cannot well tell who this Prince could be of the Jewish people upon the river Chebar, where Ezekiel dwelt. It is affirmed for certain likewise, that his body was laid in the same cave, wherein Shem and Arphaxad were deposited, upon the banks of the Euphrates. Benjamin of Tudela says, that this tomb is behind the synagogue, between the Euphrates and the Chebar; that it is placed in a very fine vault built by King Jehoiachin; that the Jews keep a lamp always burning there, and boast, that they have there the Prophet’s book written with his own hand, which they read every year upon the great Day of Antiq. l. x. c. 6.Expiation.

Josephus says, that Ezekiel left two Antiq. l. x. c. 10.books concerning the captivity of Babylon. He says in another place, that this Prophet having foretold the ruin of the Temple, and that Zedekiah should not see Babylon, this writing was sent to Jerusalem; circumstances, Athanas. in Synopsi.which we do not read in the works of Ezekiel now remaining. Athanasius believed, that one of the two volumes written by Ezekiel was no longer in being. Spinoza thinks, that what we have of this Prophet is a fragment only of some larger writing. But we see no good proof of all this, nor do we know from whence Josephus got what he tells us of these two supposed works of Ezekiel.

The writings of this Prophet have been at all times acknowledged to be canonical; nor was it ever disputed that he was the author of them. Nevertheless the Jews say, that the Sanhedrim deliberated a long time whether his book should be put into the canon. The great obscurity of his prophecy both in the beginning and end of it, was objected; as also what he says, chap. Hieron. Præfat. in Ezekiel. & Comment. in cap. i. Prophet. b Exod. xxxiv. 7. & xx. 5. Clem. Alexand. l. 1. Stromat.xviii. 2, 20. that the son should not bear the iniquity of his father²; which is contrary to Moses b, who says, that the Lord visiteth the sins of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.

Clemens of Alexandria says, that some believed Nazaratus the Assyrian, Pythagoras’s preceptor, to be the same as Ezekiel. But for his part, he is not of this opinion: he does not believe that Pythagoras ever saw Ezekiel. This Philosopher lived long after our Prophet. Epiphanius and Dorotheus relate several things in the Life of Ezekiel, which are thought fabulous by the most learned criticks. They say, for example, that this Prophet wrought many miracles in Chaldæa; that he distributed the tribes of Gad and Dan in Babylon; that he sent serpents against them, which devoured their children and their cattle, as a punishment of their idolatry; that he brought the people back to Jerusalem, in order to confound the incredulous; lastly, that he was buried in the land inhabited by the Spiræ or Sapiræ. The time and manner of his death are very uncertain, whatever particular authors may say of them. The Jews did not permit any to read this Prophet, at least the beginning of his book, till they were thirty years of age.

They speak of this Prophet in a very contemptible manner³. They say he was Jeremiah’s boy, puer, servant; that he was the object of raillery and ridicule to his people; for which reason he was called the son of Buzi, that is to say, the son of contempt, or of the despised. They accuse him with teaching several things contrary to Moses; for example, relating to the matter of sacrifices, and with saying, that God would not transmit the punishment of the father’s sin upon the children; whereas Moses declares, that it descends to the third and fourth generation. Upon this pretence, the Sanhedrim Compare Exod. xx. 5. & Ezek. xviii. 2, 3, 4, &c.took it once under consideration, whether they should raze him out of the number of sacred Writers, and expunge his works out of the canon of Scripture.

Another reason for their thus deliberating about the suppression of his works, was, their obscurity, and principally the vision of the mysterious chariot in the first chapter; the votes of almost all had been given for condemning him, if Rabbi Chananias, Ezek. xxxvii. 1.who was living at that time, had not offered to remove all these difficulties. His proposal was approved, and a present was made him of three hundred tun of oil for the use of his lamps, and to give him light while he was employ’d in this undertaking. We may easily comprehend, that this is all an hyperbole of the Talmudists, to exagerate the difficulty of explaining the prophecy of Ezekiel; and it is credible, that all which they relate concerning the deliberation of the Sanhedrim on this occasion is mere fable.

Benjamin of Tudela tells us in his travels, that he saw a magnificent Mausolæum at some leagues from Bagdat, upon the top whereof was a famous library. The Mausolæum was the prophet Ezekiel’s tomb, which was frequented every year by the Heads of the Captivity, who resorted thither with a numerous retinue. It is a place of devotion not only for the Jews, but likewise for the Persians, Medes, and for abundance of Mussulmen, who go thither to make their presents, and perform their vows. This place, among the people I have mentioned, is in singular veneration, their very armies never touch it. There is a lamp continually burning upon the prophet’s tomb, and the Head of the Captivity of Bagdat is at the expence of keeping it up. This pilgrimage continues still at this day with much devotion.

The tomb is upon the banks of the Chaboras. There are sixty towers belonging to it, and a synagogue in each. Near it is another edifice built by Jechoniah, when Evilmerodach restored him to his liberty. This palace has a view of the Euphrates on one side, and on the other of the Chaboras. The portrait of Jechoniah was still to be seen in the time of Benjamin of Tudela, in one of the vaults of this edifice; and the pictures of all the officers who accompanied him: in the rear of whom was the prophet Ezekiel.

As to the library which this traveller saw in the same place, he says it was very numerous, and that all who died without children augmented it, by sending their books thither. There too was shewn, as they say, the original of this prophet’s predictions, written with his own hand. This account is very circumstantial, and has pretty much the air of truth.

Notwithstanding, an author of good antiquity says, that he was killed by the General of his own nation, who was enraged at the Prophet’s censuring his conduct, and that he was buried in a cave, where Shem and Arphaxad, the ancestors of Abraham, were deposited. An author who lived in Constantine’s time, says, that Ezekiel lies buried at Bethlehem, in the same place as Jesse, David, and Solomon.

Ezekiel, we know, speaks of a famous resurrection, and that being conducted one day into a field full of bones, the Spirit of God induced him to walk round the field, and said to him, Do you believe that these bones shall be raised up? And at the same time he said, Prophesy upon these bones, and say to them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord, behold I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live. Accordingly as the Prophet was speaking, all these bones began to stir, and come together, and at last were restored to life. There has been much disputing concerning this event, whether it were real, or figurative only, and happened mentally, in spirit, to describe, in a more express and lively manner, the return of the Jews from their captivity. Many of the Rabbins have been of opinion, that the thing strictly did so happen, as the Prophet relates it; but the generality of Commentators believe, that it all passed in idea and vision only.

The Mahometans report it in the following manner. The little town of Davardan, D’Herbelot. Bibl. Orient. p. 942. Khazkhil.which is a dependant on the city of Vassith, having been attacked with the plague, many of the inhabitants forsook their habitations, and preserved their lives: Another year the plague broke out afresh, and all the inhabitants left it with their flocks. As they were got into a large valley, two Angels appeared at the two extremities of it, and declared to them from God, that they would die very suddenly; accordingly they all did so, together with their cattle. The inhabitants of the neighbourhood having been informed of it, came thither in order to bury them; but the number of the dead was so great, that they could not accomplish their design. They shut up the valley therefore with two walls at the two ends, and left a great part of the carcasses upon the ground, where they were very soon consumed, and nothing but the bones remained of them. The prophet Ezekiel going by this way some years after, put up this prayer to God: O Lord, as thou hast been pleased to manifest thy power upon these persons with great terror, look now upon them with an eye of clemency and mercy. God heard his prayer, and restored them to life. Such is the character of these eastern people, there is scarce any history which they do not disguise, and embellish after their own manner. The Mussulmen make Ezekiel the successor of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, who judged Israel after the death of Joshua. Which is one of the most absurd anachronisms.

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