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When we think of the vision of living creatures and the wheels full of eyes in Ezekiel 1, we think of the glory of God revealed to the prophet Ezekiel. To that I say we are correct to say this vision signifies the revelation of the glory of God in all its heights. However what others might not realize is that this vision is not simply an exposition to the supreme compass of celestial beings, but rather an express look into the works and judgements of God. “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” (Romans 11:33-36)
To understand this chapter, you must also understand what is the central theme of the whole book of Ezekiel. The book of Ezekiel dives into themes that come in concurrence with the fall of Jerusalem which includes the judgements of God, call to repentance, redemption and the result of sin. These lessons of value can be evidently seen with prophecies of Jerusalem’s destruction in Ezekiel 5 and 17, prophecy of the revival of God’s people in Ezekiel 37, and the consequence of sin in Ezekiel 7-9. These matters in question are what Ezekiel 1 makes reference to and is centrally what God tries to signal as an intended message to his people.
In such a vision as this one, Ezekiel 1 is not in actuality a prophecy if we go by the definition that it is a foretelling of a specific future event. Ezekiel 1 does not specify any fulfillment other than what has already taken place repeatedly, rather this chapter is a broad concept that is entrenched upon all of humanity since the time Adam and Eve first sinned.
So what is the intended purpose of this vision? This vision is a diagram or blueprint based upon how exactly sin affects society, what are the circumstancess needed for there to be an increase in evil, specific conditions on what is needed for God to execute judgement, and the result of God’s judgement on a sin-driven society. Ezekiel 2-3 gives a general piciture of the intended motive for which reason God had demonstrated to Ezekiel the vision. In these chapters, God called Ezekiel on a commission to call back the people of God to repent and find their way back to God’s feet. “And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me. And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.” (Ezekiel 2:2-7)
If what I am proposing about Ezekiel 1 is correct, then the first chapter would correspond well to the following call which God had commissioned Ezekiel to accomplish in warning his people of their sins. It is within this chapter which God intentionally designed for human minds to understand the complexity of his work of judgement which is needed to take place if his people were to ever appear before his presence without sin.
To place it more plainly, this chapter outlines the inner-workings of a system which God had placed to ensure that sin is placed in check. This has a lot of implications. One of those implications is that based upon the conditions that are described in this chapter, we would have the ability to recognize when God’s judgement is in close proximity. Another takeaway is knowing how incrementation of sin works will also equip us on how to properly address this issue. It is also vitally important for the reason that this chapter has numerous ties to prophecies in the books of Zechariah, Daniel and Revelation. What can ultimately be gained from this vision above all else is our comprehension of the character of God as a God of order and justice. In this clear comprehension of the knowledge that can be gained from this vision, this vision is meant to awaken in God’s people the seriousness of the work of the Gospel in saving and rescuing those from taking part in the upcoming judgements which will soon befall humanity in all its forms and desolation.
Ezekiel 1:1-3:
1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.
2 In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,
3 The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.
Verse 1-3: The first three verses of Ezekiel 1 have a lot of background knowledge we can unpack from here. Usually whenever God shares a vision or prophecy with his prophets or his people, that vision or prophecy is usually a direct answer towards a specific situation in which the people of God are situated. From the context that can be discovered in these verses, it will also give us an idea on why God decided to show Ezekiel a vision about living creatures and wheels.
The river Chebar is a geographical location which is a part of the Babylonian Empire. An opinion that has been supported is that the Chebar river was the royal canal of Nebuchadnezzar which connects the Tigris with the Euphrates. In that region there was also an excavation that was probably employed by Jewish exiles. From here we can take away that Ezekiel was among the Jewish exiles around the time when Babylon was rising as an empire. Interestingly enough, the name Chebar also means “far-off”, describing perfectly the feeling of despair and hopelessness the Jews must have felt from being held captive and dragged away from their homes.
As evidently understood in verse 3, Ezekiel used to be a priest, most likely being from the priestly lineage of Zadok that was established during the reign of David. So how did Ezekiel end up in this situation? From verse 1 we know that the thirteen years is referring to thirteen years of captivity. The fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity being contemporary to the thirteen years of captivity in verse 2 is the very key that will unlock our understanding on the how, why, and when of Ezekiel’s circumstances.
King Jehoiachin is the nineteenth King of Judah and the son of King Jehoiachin. He started ruling at the age of 18 years old and started his reign in 598 BC. In 2 Kings 24:36-37 and 2 Chronicles 36:9, the bible describes him as a King who does evil before the eyes of the Lord. 2 Kings 24 10-16 and 2 Chronicles 36:9-10 describes Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon going forth against Jerusalem and besieging the city, taking Jehoiachin as prisoner three months after the start of his reign, giving us 598 B.C as the year when the captivity of Jehoiachin started.
When subtracting and adding the numbers with the synchronized years in Ezekiel 1:2, this would give us 606 BC as the start of the thirteen years of captivity and 593 B.C as the year when the chapter of Ezekiel 1 takes place. To recognize what took place in 606 B.C, we must look into the king who came before Jehoiachin, more specifically King Jehoiakim who ruled from 609 BC to 598 BC.
In 2 Kings 23:31-37 and 2 Chronicles 36:1-4, following the defeat of Eliakim the son of Josiah by Pharoaohnechoh the King of Egypt, Jehoiakim becoming the next King of Judah came under servitude to Egypt and was obliged to pay tribute to the nation. In the subsequent following chapters in 2 Kings 24:1-2 and 2 Chronicles 36:5-8, the text recounts Jehoiakim becoming a servant to Babylon for three years until he decided to rebel against his authority, ultimately causing Nebuchadnezzar to come against him and take him away as a captive. In between the two sets of passages we just review there's a gap in transition from Judah serving under Egypt to suddenly becoming a servant to Babylon.
Using historical knowledge to fill in those gaps, in 606 BC the Egyptian army besieged Kimuhu near Carchemish. Later the same year the Babylonians were defeated at Guaramati. The Egyptians were then subsequently defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish in 605 BC and then went on to defeat a second Egyptian army at Hamath. The battle of Chachemish was foretold in Jeremiah 4, placing the date of the battle to be in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim, confirming the time of that battle to indeed be in the year 605 B.C. “The word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles; Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.” (Jeremiah 46:1-2)
Accordingly, historical narratives tell us that it is after the battle of Carchemish when Judah started to come under servitude to Babylon. In Daniel 1:1-7, Daniel and his friends who were among the captives came to Babylon as a result of Nebuchadnezzar conquest and expedition. We can assume that the captivity of Daniel started at the same time and from the same captivity of that of Ezekiel, placing the date as indicated in the first chapter of Daniel to be in 606 B.C.
However if it is true that the captivity of both men did indeed take place on this same exact date, then this would make a presumption that the captivity started before Jerusalem was fully conquered. This theory that the captivity took place before the Battle of Charcemish is supported by Jeremiah 25:1-14: “The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; The which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened. And the LORD hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear.”
In these verses, Jeremiah during the fourth year of Jehoiakim prophesied the fate of the nation of Judah to inevitably be conquered by Babylon. If we contrast this passage to Daniel 1:1, at first glance the fixture of dates between both instances would be considered a discrepancy until we realized that the time when Jeremiah delivered the prophecy and when the captivity took place are in fact two separate events. If we place the occurrence of Jeremiah’s prophetic ministry in its respective timeline and we were to assume that our dating of Daniel’s captivity is correct, then Jeremiah prophetic foretelling would take place in 605 B.C, meaning that Jeremiah’s prophecy is fulfilled within the same year as when he announced it.
With inclusion to the coherent and historical accuracy of the dating of Jeremiah’s prophetic declaration, Daniel 2:1 gives more ample evidence to the captivty being prior to the Battle of Charemish. From this verse, Nebuchadnezzar was during his second year as ruler when he recieved the vision of the statue of different metals. Within that same year, Daniel was successfful in deciphering and interpreting the dream. In Daniel 1:5-7, Daniel and his friends are given to be nourished by the eunuchs for three years and at which time at the end of those three years they would be able to appear before the king: “And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego.”
We know from historical evidence in Babylonian chronicles and data that Nebuchadnezzar took power in 605 B.C. If Daniel did happen to come before the king at the end of those three years, then this is consistent with the timeframe of 606 B.C being the date when the three years of Daniel’s training began, placing 604 B.C as the date when Daniel chapter 2 would occur.
Finally we also have more ample evidence from the prophecy of the captivity of seventy years from Jeremiah 25:11 and Jeremiah 29:10. The seventy years according to Jeremiah 25:9-11 is forecasted to be a realization of a bondage and captivity of the people of Judah under a pagan nation throughout the entirety of that specifed prophetic timeline: “Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”
It was not until 536 B.C when Cyrus the Great proclaimed a decree freeing the Jews from captivity, thus placing the captivity of Daniel and Ezekiel as the commencement and starting point for when the seventy years began. “For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. We now know that Ezekiel was among the captives as a result of Jehoiakim’s rebellion against Babylon.” (Jeremiah 29:10-11)
From all this context we can assess that Ezekiel most likely witnessed King Jehoahaz getting dethroned by Egypt, King Jehoiakim doing evil in the eyes of the Lord, and watched as Babylon emerged as an empire and made Judah submit to its authority. To top it all off, while Ezekiel was under captivity during those thirteen years, he may have heard news about what is taking place in Jerusalem under King Zedekiah and the situation with the prophet Jeremiah. Placing ourselves in Ezekiel’s shoes, Ezekiel is probably wondering and worried about the future of Judah as a nation of God’s chosen people. From this context we can assume that the vision that Ezekiel received is an answer to those questions he must have had during his years of captivity.
One last point we can examine from verse 3 is just before Ezekiel was being shown the vision, the verse describes the hand of the Lord being placed upon him. According to Numbers 27:18-20, the hand of God being placed upon someone is a sign of appointment, indicating God is ordaining Ezekiel for a specific task which becomes evident in the next two chapters following Ezekiel 1: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient.” When taking into consideration the context, the vision is most likely supposed to be an answer and a warning towards the inhabitants of Jerusalem as to the future destiny of their nation in relation to how God will procure his people’s salvation. As we’ll later see when starting to explain this chapter, it will become evident that this vision is not only meant to arouse the people of God as to its surrounding dangers, but to also be an assurance of comfort and hope for Ezekiel who is at a time unsure of the future of his people.
To understand this chapter, you must also understand what is the central theme of the whole book of Ezekiel. The book of Ezekiel dives into themes that come in concurrence with the fall of Jerusalem which includes the judgements of God, call to repentance, redemption and the result of sin. These lessons of value can be evidently seen with prophecies of Jerusalem’s destruction in Ezekiel 5 and 17, prophecy of the revival of God’s people in Ezekiel 37, and the consequence of sin in Ezekiel 7-9. These matters in question are what Ezekiel 1 makes reference to and is centrally what God tries to signal as an intended message to his people.
In such a vision as this one, Ezekiel 1 is not in actuality a prophecy if we go by the definition that it is a foretelling of a specific future event. Ezekiel 1 does not specify any fulfillment other than what has already taken place repeatedly, rather this chapter is a broad concept that is entrenched upon all of humanity since the time Adam and Eve first sinned.
So what is the intended purpose of this vision? This vision is a diagram or blueprint based upon how exactly sin affects society, what are the circumstancess needed for there to be an increase in evil, specific conditions on what is needed for God to execute judgement, and the result of God’s judgement on a sin-driven society. Ezekiel 2-3 gives a general piciture of the intended motive for which reason God had demonstrated to Ezekiel the vision. In these chapters, God called Ezekiel on a commission to call back the people of God to repent and find their way back to God’s feet. “And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me. And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD. And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them. And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.” (Ezekiel 2:2-7)
If what I am proposing about Ezekiel 1 is correct, then the first chapter would correspond well to the following call which God had commissioned Ezekiel to accomplish in warning his people of their sins. It is within this chapter which God intentionally designed for human minds to understand the complexity of his work of judgement which is needed to take place if his people were to ever appear before his presence without sin.
To place it more plainly, this chapter outlines the inner-workings of a system which God had placed to ensure that sin is placed in check. This has a lot of implications. One of those implications is that based upon the conditions that are described in this chapter, we would have the ability to recognize when God’s judgement is in close proximity. Another takeaway is knowing how incrementation of sin works will also equip us on how to properly address this issue. It is also vitally important for the reason that this chapter has numerous ties to prophecies in the books of Zechariah, Daniel and Revelation. What can ultimately be gained from this vision above all else is our comprehension of the character of God as a God of order and justice. In this clear comprehension of the knowledge that can be gained from this vision, this vision is meant to awaken in God’s people the seriousness of the work of the Gospel in saving and rescuing those from taking part in the upcoming judgements which will soon befall humanity in all its forms and desolation.
Ezekiel 1:1-3:
1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.
2 In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,
3 The word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.
Verse 1-3: The first three verses of Ezekiel 1 have a lot of background knowledge we can unpack from here. Usually whenever God shares a vision or prophecy with his prophets or his people, that vision or prophecy is usually a direct answer towards a specific situation in which the people of God are situated. From the context that can be discovered in these verses, it will also give us an idea on why God decided to show Ezekiel a vision about living creatures and wheels.
The river Chebar is a geographical location which is a part of the Babylonian Empire. An opinion that has been supported is that the Chebar river was the royal canal of Nebuchadnezzar which connects the Tigris with the Euphrates. In that region there was also an excavation that was probably employed by Jewish exiles. From here we can take away that Ezekiel was among the Jewish exiles around the time when Babylon was rising as an empire. Interestingly enough, the name Chebar also means “far-off”, describing perfectly the feeling of despair and hopelessness the Jews must have felt from being held captive and dragged away from their homes.
As evidently understood in verse 3, Ezekiel used to be a priest, most likely being from the priestly lineage of Zadok that was established during the reign of David. So how did Ezekiel end up in this situation? From verse 1 we know that the thirteen years is referring to thirteen years of captivity. The fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity being contemporary to the thirteen years of captivity in verse 2 is the very key that will unlock our understanding on the how, why, and when of Ezekiel’s circumstances.
King Jehoiachin is the nineteenth King of Judah and the son of King Jehoiachin. He started ruling at the age of 18 years old and started his reign in 598 BC. In 2 Kings 24:36-37 and 2 Chronicles 36:9, the bible describes him as a King who does evil before the eyes of the Lord. 2 Kings 24 10-16 and 2 Chronicles 36:9-10 describes Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon going forth against Jerusalem and besieging the city, taking Jehoiachin as prisoner three months after the start of his reign, giving us 598 B.C as the year when the captivity of Jehoiachin started.
When subtracting and adding the numbers with the synchronized years in Ezekiel 1:2, this would give us 606 BC as the start of the thirteen years of captivity and 593 B.C as the year when the chapter of Ezekiel 1 takes place. To recognize what took place in 606 B.C, we must look into the king who came before Jehoiachin, more specifically King Jehoiakim who ruled from 609 BC to 598 BC.
In 2 Kings 23:31-37 and 2 Chronicles 36:1-4, following the defeat of Eliakim the son of Josiah by Pharoaohnechoh the King of Egypt, Jehoiakim becoming the next King of Judah came under servitude to Egypt and was obliged to pay tribute to the nation. In the subsequent following chapters in 2 Kings 24:1-2 and 2 Chronicles 36:5-8, the text recounts Jehoiakim becoming a servant to Babylon for three years until he decided to rebel against his authority, ultimately causing Nebuchadnezzar to come against him and take him away as a captive. In between the two sets of passages we just review there's a gap in transition from Judah serving under Egypt to suddenly becoming a servant to Babylon.
Using historical knowledge to fill in those gaps, in 606 BC the Egyptian army besieged Kimuhu near Carchemish. Later the same year the Babylonians were defeated at Guaramati. The Egyptians were then subsequently defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish in 605 BC and then went on to defeat a second Egyptian army at Hamath. The battle of Chachemish was foretold in Jeremiah 4, placing the date of the battle to be in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim, confirming the time of that battle to indeed be in the year 605 B.C. “The word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles; Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.” (Jeremiah 46:1-2)
Accordingly, historical narratives tell us that it is after the battle of Carchemish when Judah started to come under servitude to Babylon. In Daniel 1:1-7, Daniel and his friends who were among the captives came to Babylon as a result of Nebuchadnezzar conquest and expedition. We can assume that the captivity of Daniel started at the same time and from the same captivity of that of Ezekiel, placing the date as indicated in the first chapter of Daniel to be in 606 B.C.
However if it is true that the captivity of both men did indeed take place on this same exact date, then this would make a presumption that the captivity started before Jerusalem was fully conquered. This theory that the captivity took place before the Battle of Charcemish is supported by Jeremiah 25:1-14: “The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; The which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened. And the LORD hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear.”
In these verses, Jeremiah during the fourth year of Jehoiakim prophesied the fate of the nation of Judah to inevitably be conquered by Babylon. If we contrast this passage to Daniel 1:1, at first glance the fixture of dates between both instances would be considered a discrepancy until we realized that the time when Jeremiah delivered the prophecy and when the captivity took place are in fact two separate events. If we place the occurrence of Jeremiah’s prophetic ministry in its respective timeline and we were to assume that our dating of Daniel’s captivity is correct, then Jeremiah prophetic foretelling would take place in 605 B.C, meaning that Jeremiah’s prophecy is fulfilled within the same year as when he announced it.
With inclusion to the coherent and historical accuracy of the dating of Jeremiah’s prophetic declaration, Daniel 2:1 gives more ample evidence to the captivty being prior to the Battle of Charemish. From this verse, Nebuchadnezzar was during his second year as ruler when he recieved the vision of the statue of different metals. Within that same year, Daniel was successfful in deciphering and interpreting the dream. In Daniel 1:5-7, Daniel and his friends are given to be nourished by the eunuchs for three years and at which time at the end of those three years they would be able to appear before the king: “And the king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat, and of the wine which he drank: so nourishing them three years, that at the end thereof they might stand before the king. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah: Unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names: for he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abednego.”
We know from historical evidence in Babylonian chronicles and data that Nebuchadnezzar took power in 605 B.C. If Daniel did happen to come before the king at the end of those three years, then this is consistent with the timeframe of 606 B.C being the date when the three years of Daniel’s training began, placing 604 B.C as the date when Daniel chapter 2 would occur.
Finally we also have more ample evidence from the prophecy of the captivity of seventy years from Jeremiah 25:11 and Jeremiah 29:10. The seventy years according to Jeremiah 25:9-11 is forecasted to be a realization of a bondage and captivity of the people of Judah under a pagan nation throughout the entirety of that specifed prophetic timeline: “Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations. Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle. And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”
It was not until 536 B.C when Cyrus the Great proclaimed a decree freeing the Jews from captivity, thus placing the captivity of Daniel and Ezekiel as the commencement and starting point for when the seventy years began. “For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. We now know that Ezekiel was among the captives as a result of Jehoiakim’s rebellion against Babylon.” (Jeremiah 29:10-11)
From all this context we can assess that Ezekiel most likely witnessed King Jehoahaz getting dethroned by Egypt, King Jehoiakim doing evil in the eyes of the Lord, and watched as Babylon emerged as an empire and made Judah submit to its authority. To top it all off, while Ezekiel was under captivity during those thirteen years, he may have heard news about what is taking place in Jerusalem under King Zedekiah and the situation with the prophet Jeremiah. Placing ourselves in Ezekiel’s shoes, Ezekiel is probably wondering and worried about the future of Judah as a nation of God’s chosen people. From this context we can assume that the vision that Ezekiel received is an answer to those questions he must have had during his years of captivity.
One last point we can examine from verse 3 is just before Ezekiel was being shown the vision, the verse describes the hand of the Lord being placed upon him. According to Numbers 27:18-20, the hand of God being placed upon someone is a sign of appointment, indicating God is ordaining Ezekiel for a specific task which becomes evident in the next two chapters following Ezekiel 1: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; And set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight. And thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient.” When taking into consideration the context, the vision is most likely supposed to be an answer and a warning towards the inhabitants of Jerusalem as to the future destiny of their nation in relation to how God will procure his people’s salvation. As we’ll later see when starting to explain this chapter, it will become evident that this vision is not only meant to arouse the people of God as to its surrounding dangers, but to also be an assurance of comfort and hope for Ezekiel who is at a time unsure of the future of his people.
