The Book Of Ezekiel

Who is the Author?

The author of this book is “Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi” (1:3).The name Ezekiel means “God will strengthen” or “God will harden. ”Like Jeremiah (Jer. 1:1) and Zechariah (Zech. 1:1; cf. Neh. 12:4, 16), Ezekiel was a priest (Ezek. 1:3). Ezekiel’s father Buzi is mentioned only in 1:3. Jeremiah, Zechariah, and Ezekiel were the only prophet–priests, and all three prophesied during the exilic or postexilic periods. Ezekiel’s priestly background explains in part his emphasis on the temple in Jerusalem, the glory of the Lord, the actions of Jerusalem’s priests, and God’s future temple. The date for Ezekiel’s ministry can be determined by observing the chronological notations in his book (1:2; 8:1; 20:1; 24:1; 29:1, 17; 30:20; 31:1; 32:1, 17; 33:21; 40:1).1 Ezekiel was among the exiles taken to Babylon in 597 BCE. He received his prophetic call in 593 and prophesied between 593 and 571, as indicated by the thirteen specific dates given in thebook.2 All Ezekiel’s prophecies are arranged chronologically (starting with “the fifth year of the exile” [1:2] and ending with “the twenty-fifth year of our exile” [40:1], except the prophecies introduced in 29:1, 17). The last dated prophecy in Ezekiel was “in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day” (Ezek. 29:17). Since Ezekiel began prophesying in 593 (the fifth year of Jehoiachin’s exile [1:2]), this prophecy was 571 (March 26). So, Ezekiel’s prophetic activity spanned at least 22 years (593–571 BCE), from age 30 to 52.3