BIBLE BOOK GUIDE
Ezekiel
48 chapters
In the midst of exile and unfaithfulness, the glory of the LORD departs—yet only temporarily—for He will judge the nations, restore Israel, and dwell among His people as their sanctuary and King.
Ezekiel
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Why this book was written
Ezekiel prophesied among the exiles in Babylon. He was appointed as a watchman to the rebellious house, announcing judgment for idolatry and covenant unfaithfulness (chs. 1–24). After the fall of Jerusalem, he brought comfort, assuring the remnant that God's glory would return, that Israel would be restored, and that the LORD Himself would dwell among them in a new temple and on a renewed earth (chs. 33–48).
Structure
- 1–3Ezekiel's Call and Prophetic Commission
- 4–24Judgment on Jerusalem and the Rebellious House
- 25–32Oracles Against the Nations
- 33–39Promises of Restoration: Shepherds, a New Heart, and Victory
- 40–48The New Temple, New Worship, and the Return of God's Glory
Major themes
The Glory and Holiness of the LORD
From the throne-chariot in chapter 1 to the return of the divine glory to the temple at the end, God repeatedly displays His transcendent holiness and calls His people to be set apart.
Judgment and Justice
The prophet pronounces judgment on Jerusalem, the nations, and the temple, because sin has reached its full measure and God will act according to His righteousness.
Identity and Obedience of the Prophet
God gives visions, words, and strange signs (such as swallowing the scroll, lying on his side 390 days) to shape Ezekiel as a watchman for the house of Israel.
Restoration and the New Covenant Promise
After judgment, God promises to give a new heart and new spirit, revive the dry bones, rebuild the temple, and cause life-giving waters to flow again.
Shepherding and Individual Responsibility
Chapter 34 condemns the false shepherds; the LORD Himself becomes the Good Shepherd who seeks the lost, and each person is judged according to his own deeds.
The Fate of the Nations and God's Sovereignty
Chapters 25–32 address Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, and Egypt, showing that all nations are under the sovereign rule of God.
How it points to Christ
Ezekiel foreshadows Christ in multiple ways: He is the Good Shepherd and the Davidic descendant (Ezek 34:23) and the center of the visions of the Glory of the Lord; His Spirit revives the dead bones (ch. 37), pointing to new life for sinners; the new covenant of cleansing water and new spirit (36:25–27) is fulfilled in Him; and the life-giving river flowing from the temple (ch. 47) points to the outpouring of the Spirit and the river of life in the new creation (cf. Rev 22:1).
Key verses
- 1:28Ezekiel's inaugural vision of the glory of the LORD establishes the book's central theme: divine glory that departs will also return.
- 3:17The watchman mandate defines Ezekiel's prophetic role: to warn the wicked faithfully, with personal responsibility for the warning given.
- 11:19God promises to give a new heart and a new spirit—a prophetic anticipation of the inward renewal later fulfilled in the new covenant.
- 18:31A call to make yourselves a new heart and spirit, grounding Ezekiel's theology of personal repentance and divine justice.
- 36:26–27The climactic restoration promise: God Himself removes the heart of stone, gives a heart of flesh, and puts His Spirit within.
- 37:14The valley of dry bones receives life when God's Spirit comes—prophesying the eschatological resurrection and restoration of God's people.
- 43:2The glory of the LORD returns to the new temple—the literary climax that resolves the departure seen in chs. 9–11.
- 48:35The city is named 'The LORD Is There,' fulfilling the book's theology that God's presence is the goal of all redemption.
People in this book
Questions for reflection
- ·How does the manifestation of God's glory in Ezekiel's vision shape your awareness of God's presence today?
- ·How does God's word, 'Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked?' (Ezek 18:23), challenge your view of repentance and mercy?
- ·How does the vision of the valley of dry bones (ch. 37) encourage you to declare God's power in situations that seem hopeless?
- ·'I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you' (36:26)—how does this promise motivate you to seek daily renewal by the Spirit?
- ·If the watchman does not warn the wicked, he is held accountable (3:18)—what does this say about believers watching over one another today?
Want to read Ezekiel start to finish? Open the reader for parallel Chinese/English text and ask anything as you go.
Start reading EzekielEzekiel
Chapter 24
1Again, in the ninth year, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
2Son of man, write thee the name of the day, even of this selfsame day: the king of Babylon drew close unto Jerusalem this selfsame day.
3And utter a parable unto the rebellious house, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Set on the caldron, set it on, and also pour water into it:
4gather the pieces thereof into it, even every good piece, the thigh, and the shoulder; fill it with the choice bones.
5Take the choice of the flock, and also a pile of wood for the bones under the caldron; make it boil well; yea, let the bones thereof be boiled in the midst of it.
6Wherefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Woe to the bloody city, to the caldron whose rust is therein, and whose rust is not gone out of it! take out of it piece after piece; No lot is fallen upon it.
7For her blood is in the midst of her; she set it upon the bare rock; she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust.
8That it may cause wrath to come up to take vengeance, I have set her blood upon the bare rock, that it should not be covered.
9Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Woe to the bloody city! I also will make the pile great.
10Heap on the wood, make the fire hot, boil well the flesh, and make thick the broth, and let the bones be burned.
11Then set it empty upon the coals thereof, that it may be hot, and the brass thereof may burn, and that the filthiness of it may be molten in it, that the rust of it may be consumed.
12She hath wearied herself with toil; yet her great rust goeth not forth out of her; her rust goeth not forth by fire.
13In thy filthiness is lewdness: because I have cleansed thee and thou wast not cleansed, thou shalt not be cleansed from thy filthiness any more, till I have caused my wrath toward thee to rest.
14I, Jehovah, have spoken it: it shall come to pass, and I will do it: I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord Jehovah.
15Also the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
16Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet thou shalt neither mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
17Sigh, but not aloud, make no mourning for the dead; bind thy headtire upon thee, and put thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
18So I spake unto the people in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
19And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?
20Then I said unto them, The word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
21Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left behind shall fall by the sword.
22And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
23And your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away in your iniquities, and moan one toward another.
24Thus shall Ezekiel be unto you a sign; according to all that he hath done shall ye do: when this cometh, then shall ye know that I am the Lord Jehovah.
25And thou, son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their heart, their sons and their daughters,
26that in that day he that escapeth shall come unto thee, to cause thee to hear it with thine ears?
27In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him that is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb: so shalt thou be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am Jehovah.
