![]() ![]() He begins with Oholah, representing Samaria, the capital of Israel, the northern kingdom of the divided monarchy (remember: Saul brought everything together into one nation, David strengthened it, Solomon pissed it all away). The story moves on with Ezekiel spending time verbally maligning and molesting both of these "women" as a means of political and spiritual commentary on God's chosen people. In other words, Samaria/Israel set up "her own tent," while those in Jerusalem/Judah felt God's true "tent is in her." While it seems obvious that Ezekiel is showing some hometown bias in his metaphor, it should not be forgotten that in chapter 10, Ezekiel envisions God's glory leaving the southern Temple altogether. Scholars suggest that this is a reference to the location of worship. During the Exodus from Egypt (notice how Egypt keeps coming up?) the people lived in tents, and had one special tent set up for the worship and habitation of the divine presence, the Tabernacle (which was was later replaced by the Temple). However, when the kingdom was divided, new shrines were set up in the north. ![]() ![]() The names Oholah and Oholibah are important, as they translate from Hebrew to mean “Her own tent” and “My tent is in her” respectively. Knowing some people are a bit slow, Ezekiel pulls back the skirt of the metaphor, making the connections clear: "As for their names, Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem" (vs 4b). In chapter 23 of his book, Ezekiel presents the story of two sisters, Oholah and Oholibah. These women "played the whore in Egypt they played the whore in their youth their breasts were caressed there, and their virgin bosoms were fondled" (vs 3), until a strapping young man arrived (God) and rescued them from their debased lifestyle. ![]() While Jeremiah was primarily focused on the spirituality of this people, Ezekiel focused on both their spiritual and political failings, seeing the latter as a natural and moral extension of the former. However, Ezekiel went beyond Jeremiah in content. And remember fast fact #2: he's writing from Babylon. In this way, Ezekiel was no different: he was constantly warning about the bleakness of the future if his people continued down the path that they are on. The prophet Jeremiah warned his people to turn away from evil for fear of God's punishment, especially if that punishment would be coming from the hands of foreign powers. He's like Jeremiah 2.0, but even more pissed off. His stark words and warnings need to be interpreted as coming from the mouth of someone torn away from his home, his Temple, and his family (his wife even dies in Babylon, Ezekiel 24:15-25).ģ. In 587 B.C.E., when the Babylonians invaded Judah and took captives, Ezekiel was among them Yes Bob Marley fans, Ezekiel was one of the people "by the rivers of Babylon" ( Psalm 137). In my thirtieth year, in the fourth month on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles by the Kebar River, the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. He was writing from captivity in Babylon. However, being a priest possibly gave Ezekiel more clout with his listeners.Ģ. Not that this was unheard of, but the religious class were often at odds with prophets during this time period. ".the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi." (Ezekiel 1:3b) He was a prophet from a family of priests. Part 1: What He Said Five Fast Facts About Ezekielġ. ![]()
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