directly addressed the prophet, commissioning him and speaking to his personal condition. However, when Ezekiel records in his prophetic book the experience of his encounter with God, he is not doing so to instruct his original audience about how they might receive divine callings or act prophetically. Rather, this section of Ezekiel does two things. First, it validates the authority of the prophet. That is the function of call narratives in the Old Testament, to show that the prophet is invested with divine authority (see discussion under Context at Ezek 1:1–28). Call narratives also function to teach us about God and prepare us to read further in the prophetic book something about the nature of its message. In Ezek 3, the call narrative warns the audience about the stubbornness of their heart. So, in answer to the question, What is God doing in this passage?, it is not setting forth a template for a prophetic call to be applied to us today. But it warns us all of the universal human inclination to resist God’s truth and the necessity to receive the divine word for the truth that it proclaims. Neither the messenger nor the audience is at liberty to ignore the truth of God’s word.
Today, as in the case of Ezekiel’s generation, the message of the gospel is not one that the world naturally receives (John 15:18–25; Rom 1:18; 1 Cor 2:8; 2 Cor 4:1–4). Even for those who believe, it is a sweet and bitter message. We sincerely embrace the gospel with joyful hearts, yet know that for those who resist, it is a tragic message of death (2 Cor 2:14–17). The gospel contains both sweet and bitter news of the righteousness of God.
This passage might raise the topic about Christians and social engagement; what should be the expectations of believers when God’s truth conflicts with society at a moral level. Caution is in order. The New Testament calls upon Christians to live mindfully of the poor and powerless (e.g., Luke 18:22; 19:8; Gal 2:10; Jas 1:27); but focusing on the moral transformation of a post-Christian society is difficult to find biblical texts to support (in fact, contra-indicated in 1 Cor 5:12). On the other hand, accountability within the Christian community is encouraged (Gal 6:1; 2 Tim 3:16; 1 5:14), and at times bold confrontation is appropriate, because even the regenerate heart of a believer can harden to the word of truth (1 Cor 5:9–11; Gal 2:14; 1 Tim 5:20; 2 Tim 4:2).
19. Taylor, Ezekiel, 60.
20. See Bock, “Son of Man,” 894–900.
21. Cf. Ezek 35:10. Further, see Alexander, “Ezekiel,” 668, and comments at Ezek 4:4–5.
22. See Block, Ezekiel 1–24, 121–22; and Bodi, “Ezekiel,” 409.
23. Greenberg, Ezekiel 1–20, 69.
24. See Taylor, Ezekiel, 67; and for more detail Block, Ezekiel 1–24, 134–35.
25. Block, Ezekiel 1–24, 137. However, this need not mean that the prophet shared “some of the hardened disposition of his compatriots.”
26. Taylor, Ezekiel, 68.
27. See discussion under Context in Ezekiel for Ezek 1:1–28.
28. Alexander, “Ezekiel,” 671.
29. For democratization of the prophetic call to all New Testament believers, see Beale, A New Testament Biblical Theology, 603–4, 908–10.
Responsibility to Respond
3:16–27
Ezekiel’s Message
Consequences of obedience or disobedience rest on the response of individuals to heed the warnings of God’s word.
Key Themes
• God’s warnings can apply to the righteous to encourage a consistent walk of obedience.
• The responsibility for discipline or judgment rests on the person who fails to respond.
Context in Ezekiel
This unit opens where the last left off: “at the end of seven days.” The time had been sufficient for Ezekiel to recover somewhat from the dual trauma of encountering God’s glorious presence and receiving such a grave commission. Now God moves Ezekiel from his general call as a prophet to his first active assignment—a “silent watchman” who conveys his message by visual signs (horrifying siege of Jerusalem in chapter 4 and the slaughter in chapter 5). One could argue for isolating Ezek 3:16–21 from what follows. But these verses, which expand upon Ezekiel’s commission in Ezek 2:1—3:15, also introduce his assignment as a sign messenger, which begins in Ezek 3:22. Altogether, Ezek 3:16–27 leads into the following chapters 4 and 5, with Ezek 3:22–27 introducing his sign ministry.
Interpretive Highlights
3:17 a watchman: Cities posted watchmen atop walls to sound an alarm of news or approaching danger (2 Sam 18:24–27; 2 Kgs 9:17–20; cf. Ezek 33:1–6). So the image of “watchman” served as a fitting metaphor for the task of a prophet (Jer 6:17; Hos 9:8). In this immediate context, not only does Ezekiel warn his countrymen of the lethal danger of their sin, but as a watchman he also signals the siege in Ezek 4:1–3. Regarding Ezekiel’s call to be a watchman, see also the parallel passage in Ezek 33:1–20 and the commentary there.
3:18–19 you will surely die . . . saved yourself: The death sentence announced to the wicked in these verses, and the similar warning to the righteous in vv. 20–21, should not be confused with matters of eternal life. This over reading of the text is tempting only because from a contemporary Christian perspective, the matter of eternal life and death is the dominant issue associated with the New Testament gospel. However, from the perspective of the Mosaic Covenant, life and death were most immediately associated with covenant blessings or curses in the promised land (Deut 30:1–20, esp. v. 15; cf. Deut 4:1–4; 11:26–27; 16:20; Lev 18:5). Similarly, the psalmists and sages spoke of wickedness leading to premature death (Pss 37:35–36; 55:23; Prov 10:16; 11:19). So, Ezekiel’s warning would have been understood in the manner of Jeremiah’s (Jer 21:8–10).30
For Ezekiel, failure as a watchman results in moral and legal culpability: “accountable for their blood.” This is the expression for one who is held responsible for a capital crime and so forfeits life (Gen 9:5–6; 2 Sam 4:11–12).31 The Hebrew phrase rendered “saved yourself” (NIV; cf. NASB) is often translated “saved your soul” (ESV; NKJV). This adds to the confusion, since in modern parlance, “soul” is associated with the immaterial component of human nature that survives physical death to enter the eternal state. However, in Old Testament usage, the word often translated “soul” primarily refers to the whole person (Exod 1:5; Num 6:6; Ps 35:9–10) or physical life (Gen 19:17; Lev 24:17). The authority to announce life and death to specific individuals is an exclusively prophetic task (e.g., Moses [Num 14:35; 26:65]; Samuel [1 Sam 2:33–34]; Nathan [2 Sam 12:13–14]; Elijah [2 Kgs 1:4]; Isaiah [2 Kgs 20:1, 5]; Jeremiah [Jer 38:17–18]).32 For further
