1“Son of man,” He said to me, “stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.”
2And as He spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and I heard Him speaking to me.
3“Son of man,” He said to me, “I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me. To this very day they and their fathers have rebelled against Me.
4They are obstinate and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says.’
5And whether they listen or refuse to listen—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them.
6But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns surround you, and you dwell among scorpions. Do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their presence, though they are a rebellious house.
7But speak My words to them, whether they listen or refuse to listen, for they are rebellious.
8And you, son of man, listen to what I tell you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I give you.”
9Then I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me, and in it was a scroll,
10which He unrolled before me. And written on the front and back of it were words of lamentation, mourning, and woe.
Ezekiel 2 Verse Notes
Ezek 2:1
Israel's Foreknowledge and Accountability
In Ezekiel 2, God instructs Ezekiel to warn the people of Judah about impending judgment, ensuring they have advance knowledge of the consequences of their actions. This means that whether they choose to listen or not, they cannot plead ignorance, and their punishment for disobedience will be fully deserved, as God has clearly laid out the choices before them.
Summarized by AI · The Hebrew Bible: Exploring the Literature of Ancient Israel · Lecture 19: Ezekiel the Visionary · watch the clip
Ezek 2:3
Wickedness as justification for Yahweh's wrath
A key difference in Ezekiel is that while Yahweh decrees and carries out destruction, it is explicitly justified by the wickedness and rebellion of the city and its people. This provides a moral framework for divine action, where humanity's transgression necessitates God's just punishment.
Summarized by AI · Before the Bible: Mesopotamia and the Myths that Shaped Scripture · Lecture 4: Why Did God Abandon Us? · watch the clip
Ezek 2:8-10
God's word becomes a text: Ezekiel eats the scroll
Enns says that in the Second Temple period God's speech becomes a text and the people of Judah become a people of the book: with prophets and kings gone, the written word of the old prophets is the tie to the past, so God now speaks through the text. He points to Ezekiel 2 and 3, where the prophet of the exile is commanded to eat the scroll: the divine word is given by ingesting the text rather than by hearing a voice, a shift of mentality that he says shows up within the Bible itself during the exile.
Summarized by AI · Jesus and the Old Testament · Lecture 2: The Rise of Scripture and the Need for Interpretation · watch the clip
