Ezekiel was so dramatic and his visions so incredible, I wonder if I would have believed him, or if I would have thought he was insane! Even though his language is more metaphorical, his message reminds me of Jeremiah: Judah and Jerusalem will be destroyed, but a remnant will be saved, and ultimately Judah’s enemies will be destroyed for what they had done. Again I see God’s sovereignty in the predictions, as He shows Ezekiel even the details of what He was about to do. After our discussion about context in class, I can see that the passages that seem to deal with eternal security (e.g., 18:24; 33:12-13, 18) are actually about whether individual Jews would live or die in the coming destruction under Babylon, in accordance with the covenant blessings and curses of Deuteronomy.
Daniel reminds me of Joseph: God caused both to rise to political power in their country of exile by giving them the ability to interpret dreams. The dramatic shift in Daniel 7 from third person to first and from narrative to prophecy jumped out at me as never before. I must admit that I gave in to reading the study Bible notes in the prophetic section! Both Ezekiel and Daniel include end times prophecies; I wonder if that relates at all to the fact that both were exiles?
(This was a seminary class assignment originally dated October 28, 2006 for Ezekiel and November 28, 2006 for Daniel. For an introduction and table of contents for this series, see New Series: Old Testament Reading Journal)