Ezekiel

A priest taken to Babylon sees dramatic visions of God’s glory. He warns that Jerusalem will fall, then promises that God will give his people a new heart, bring dry bones to life, and dwell among them again.

Author

The prophet Ezekiel

Written

About 593 to 571 BC

Chapters

1. 1Ezekiel 1In exile in Babylon, the priest Ezekiel sees a vision of God’s glory: living creatures, wheels full of eyes, and a throne of sapphire.
2. 2Ezekiel 2God calls Ezekiel to speak to rebellious Israel, and he eats a scroll with words of lament.
3. 3Ezekiel 3The scroll tastes as sweet as honey. Ezekiel is made a watchman for Israel.
4. 4Ezekiel 4Ezekiel acts out the siege of Jerusalem with a clay brick and lies on his side for many days.
5. 5Ezekiel 5Ezekiel shaves his head and divides the hair, a sign of Jerusalem’s fate.
6. 6Ezekiel 6Judgment on the mountains of Israel, where idols were worshipped.
7. 7Ezekiel 7The end has come for the land.
8. 8Ezekiel 8In a vision, Ezekiel sees idolatry inside the temple itself.
9. 9Ezekiel 9Those who grieve over the city’s sins are marked and spared, while judgment falls on the rest.
10. 10Ezekiel 10God’s glory rises from the temple.
11. 11Ezekiel 11God promises to give his people “an undivided heart and a new spirit”, a heart of flesh instead of stone. The glory leaves Jerusalem.
12. 12Ezekiel 12Ezekiel acts out going into exile.
13. 13Ezekiel 13False prophets whitewash a crumbling wall with lies of peace.
14. 14Ezekiel 14Even Noah, Daniel and Job could not save the land by their righteousness.
15. 15Ezekiel 15Jerusalem is like a useless vine, fit only for fire.
16. 16Ezekiel 16An allegory: God found Jerusalem as an abandoned baby and made her beautiful, but she was unfaithful. Yet God will remember his covenant.
17. 17Ezekiel 17A parable of two eagles and a vine, and God’s promise to plant a tender shoot.
18. 18Ezekiel 18“The one who sins is the one who will die.” God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked: “Repent and live!”
19. 19Ezekiel 19A lament for Israel’s princes, pictured as lion cubs.
20. 20Ezekiel 20Israel’s history of rebellion, and God’s mercy for the sake of his name.
21. 21Ezekiel 21The sword of the Lord is drawn against Jerusalem.
22. 22Ezekiel 22Jerusalem’s sins. God looked for someone to stand in the gap, but found no one.
23. 23Ezekiel 23Two unfaithful sisters, Oholah and Oholibah, picture Samaria and Jerusalem.
24. 24Ezekiel 24Jerusalem is like a rusty cooking pot. Ezekiel’s wife dies, and he is told not to mourn, as a sign.
25. 25Ezekiel 25Judgment on Ammon, Moab, Edom and Philistia.
26. 26Ezekiel 26The proud trading city of Tyre will be destroyed.
27. 27Ezekiel 27A lament for Tyre, pictured as a magnificent ship that sinks.
28. 28Ezekiel 28The king of Tyre’s pride is condemned, in language that echoes the fall in Eden.
29. 29Ezekiel 29Egypt will be humbled.
30. 30Ezekiel 30Egypt will fall to Babylon.
31. 31Ezekiel 31Egypt is compared to a great cedar that will be cut down.
32. 32Ezekiel 32A lament for Pharaoh, who goes down to the grave with the nations.
33. 33Ezekiel 33Ezekiel as watchman again. News comes that Jerusalem has fallen.
34. 34Ezekiel 34God condemns Israel’s selfish shepherds and promises: “I myself will shepherd my sheep,” through a new David.
35. 35Ezekiel 35Judgment on Edom (Mount Seir).
36. 36Ezekiel 36God will cleanse his people, give them a new heart and a new spirit, and put his Spirit in them.
37. 37Ezekiel 37The valley of dry bones: at God’s word, the bones come together and breathe. Israel and Judah will be one nation under one king.
38. 38Ezekiel 38Gog of Magog leads nations against Israel.
39. 39Ezekiel 39God defeats Gog and pours out his Spirit on Israel.
40. 40Ezekiel 40A vision of a new temple begins, measured by a man of bronze.
41. 41Ezekiel 41The measurements of the temple continue.
42. 42Ezekiel 42The rooms for the priests.
43. 43Ezekiel 43God’s glory returns to the temple.
44. 44Ezekiel 44Rules for priests serving in the new temple.
45. 45Ezekiel 45The holy district set apart for the Lord.
46. 46Ezekiel 46Worship and offerings in the new temple.
47. 47Ezekiel 47A river flows from the temple, growing deeper and bringing life wherever it goes, with trees whose leaves bring healing.
48. 48Ezekiel 48The land is divided among the tribes, and the city will be called “The Lord Is There”.