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The book begins and ends with visions of the divine glory. It begins with exile and ends
with restoration. It begins with God present with his people in exile and it ends with him
present with them in restoration. Notice the closing line of the book: ‘THE LORD IS
THERE’. It is this presence of God with his people—a reality which Ezekiel is made aware
of in his visions—which guarantees the continued existence of Israel and its future
blessing under God.
The first part of the book is predominantly about judgement and the second
mainly about restoration. But while the focus changes in the second part, there are many
elements which match, either by repetition or contrast, elements which have occurred in
the first part. The watchman passage of 33:1-9 is one such element, repeating, with some
significant changes, the watchman passage of 3:16-21. Other matching elements include:
These matching elements are represented by the crosses in the following diagram:
3:16-21 33:1-9
Watchman Watchman
Structure
The chapter begins in vv. 1-9, with a passage in which Ezekiel is told again that he has
been made a watchman for the house of Israel. There then follows in vv. 10-20 an oracle
which Ezekiel is given—as a watchman—to speak to his fellow exiles. This oracle concerns
their individual responsibility before God (note especially v.20). There follows then in vv.
21-22 a brief report about the news of the fall of Jerusalem reaching Ezekiel and his fellow
exiles. This is followed in vv. 23-29 by a further oracle, this time addressed to those who
still remain in Judea. Perhaps it is spoken for the benefit of Ezekiel’s fellow-exiles, but it
may possibly have been taken to Judea by a return messenger. At any rate it concerns
land-grabbing by those still in Judea. The final part of the chapter, vv. 30-33, concerns the
way Ezekiel is now treated by his fellow exiles. They regard him as an entertainer (‘one
who sings love songs’). They enjoy listening to him but do not take his words seriously.
This contrasts sharply with the description of his true role at the beginning of the chapter.
So we have the following structure:
a b c b′ a′
E. as watchman Oracle Fall of City Oracle E. as singer
1-9 10-20 21-22 23-29 30-33
The chapter has a symmetrical design, with the report of the fall of Jerusalem as the pivot
on
which it turns. It is presumably the report brought by the messenger in vv.21-22 which
evokes the oracle to those still in Judea in vv.23-29. The report of the city’s fall vindicate
Ezekiel’s claim to be a true prophet (his predictions have come true). But the way th
chapter closes suggests there is still lack of depth in the way people respond to him (cf.
John
12:37).