以西结书 48章35节 到 48章35节 背景资料 上一笔

     * and the name.
     # Ge 22:14; Jer 33:16; Zec 14:21|
     * The Lord.  Heb. JEHOVAH shammah.
     # Ex 15:26; 17:15; Jud 6:24; Ps 46:5; 48:3,14; 68:18; 77:13; 132:14|
     # Isa 12:6; 14:32; 24:23; Jer 3:17; Joe 3:21; Zec 2:10; Re 21:3; 22:3|

                CONCLUDING REMARKS ON THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL.

     The character of Ezekiel, as a Writer and Poet, is thus
     admirably drawn by the masterly hand of Bishop Lowth:  "Ezekiel
     is much inferior to Jeremiah in elegance; in sublimity he is not
     even excelled by Isaiah; but his sublimity is of a totally
     different kind.  He is deep, vehement, tragical; his sentiments
     are elevated, animated, full of fire and indignation; his
     imagery is crowded, magnificent, terrific; his language is
     grand, solemn, austere, rough, and at times unpolished; he
     abounds in repetitions, not for the sake of grace or elegance,
     but from vehemence and indignation.  Whatever subject he treats
     of, that he sedulously puruses; from that he rarely departs, but
     cleaves, as it were, to it; whence the connexion is in general
     evident and well preserved.  In other respects he may perhaps be
     exceeded by the other prophets; but, for that species of
     composition to which he seems adapted by natural gifts, the
     forcible, impetuous, grave, and grand, not one of the sacred
     writers is superior to him.  His diction is sufficiently
     perspicuous; all his obscurity arises from the nature of his
     subjects.  Visions (as for instance, among others, those of
     Hosea, Amos, and Zechariah,) are necessarily dark and confused.
     The greater part of Ezekiel, particularly towards the middle of
     the book, is poetical, whether we regard the matter of the
     language."  Abp. Newcombe judiciously observes, The Prophet is
     not to be considered merely as a poet, or as a framer of those
     august and astonishing visions, and of those admirable poetical
     representations, which he committed to writing; but as an
     instrument in the hands of God, who vouchsafed to reveal
     himself, through a long succession of ages, not only in divers
     parts constituting a magnificant and uniform whole, but also in
     different manners, as by voice, by dreams, by inspiration, and
     by plain or enigmatical vision.  "Ezekiel is a great poet, full
     of originality; and, in my opinion, whoever censures him as if
     he were only an imitator of the old prophets, can never have
     felt his power.  He must not, in general, be compared with
     Isaiah, and the rest of the old prophets.  Those are great,
     Ezekiel is also great; those in their manner of poetry, Ezekiel
     in his."  To justify this character the learned prelate descends
     to particulars, and gives apposite examples, not only of the
     clear, flowing, and nervous, but also of the sublime; and
     concludes his observations on his style, by stating it to be his
     deliberate opinion, that if his "style is the old age of Hebrew
     language and composition, (as has been alleged,) it is a firm
     and vigorous one, and should induce us to trace its youth and
     manhood with the most assiduous attention."  As a Prophet,
     Ezekiel must ever be allowed to occupy a very high rank; and few
     of the prophets have left a more valuable treasure to the church
     of God than he has.  It is true, he is in several places
     obscure; but this resulted either from the nature of his
     subjects, or the events predicted being still unfulfilled; and,
     when time has rolled away the mist of futurity, successive
     generations will then perceive with what heavenly wisdom this
     much neglected prophet has spoken.  There is, however, a great
     proportion of his work which is free from every obscurity, and
     highly edifying.  He has so accurately and minutely foretold the
     fate and condition of various nations and cities, that nothing
     can be more interesting than to trace the exact accomplishment
     of these prophecies in the accounts furnished by historians and
     travellers; while, under the elegant type of a new temple to be
     erected, a new worship to be introduced, and a new Jerusalem to
     be built, with new land to be allotted to the twelve tribes, may
     be discovered the vast extent and glory of the New Testament
     Church.