The Scroll of Ezekiel
2:1 And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak with thee.
In the last chapter, Ezekiel fell on his face after viewing the Shekinah Glory. God called Ezekiel “the Son of Man” over 90 times in the Book of Ezekiel. The Messiah was called the Son of Man once in Daniel 8:17. By the time of Jesus, the Son of Man was known in Judaism as a messianic title. The Son of Man representsd the humanity of Christ, as He was mortal and He could experience death and feel the temptations and results of sin. The Son of God represented the deity of Christ as He is the second person of the Triune Godhead.
2:2 And the Spirit entered into me when he spoke unto me, and set me upon my feet; and I heard him that spoke unto me.
In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit indwelt people for a short and temporary period of time. In the New Testament, the believer is indwelt with the Holy Spirit eternally, starting at the moment of regeneration. David prayed for God not to take the Holy Spirit from him, which was a valid Old Testament prayer. However, this is not a prayer that the New Testament believer can make. Notice that the Holy Spirit stood Ezekiel on his feet. The Holy Spirit will never ask the believer to perform a task without giving him the ability and tools to complete the task.
2:3 And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to nations that are rebellious, which have rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me even unto this very day.
Ezekiel was called to prophesy to both houses of Israel and Judah, even though Israel was taken in captivity 100 years earlier by the Assyrians. This meant that there were no lost tribes of Israel. The believers from the ten tribes of Israel had apparently relocated to Judah before the Assyrian Captivity. When Rehoboam established calf worship in Samaria, many of the true believers in Israel most likely moved to Judah so that they could worship the one true God. Notice that Ezekiel’s audience was rebellious and they would refuse to listen.
2:4 And the children are impudent and stiff hearted: I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah.
The two tribes of Judah and Israel were still extremely stubborn, even though both houses had experienced captivity.
2:5 And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
Ezekiel would pass the test of a prophet mentioned in Deuteronomy 18 by making local prophecies that were fulfilled in his lifetime. After Ezekiel had spoken and time had passed, the people discovered that Ezekiel was a true prophet of God.
2:6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.
God predicted that the people would not like the message of Ezekiel, but God commanded him not to be afraid of their words. The words were the mocking verbal assaults of the people. The briers were the defiant attitudes of the people. The thorns were the despising attitudes of the people. The dirty looks emphasized the gestures of hatred that were given to Ezekiel. The reason for this negative reaction towards Ezekiel was the rebellious attitude of the people. This negative reaction is the same reaction which a modern expository pastor receives from the community when he teaches book-by-book from the original languages.
2:7 And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear; for they are most rebellious.
Ezekiel was commanded to keep speaking, even if the two rebellious tribes refused to listen.
2:8 But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that which I give thee.
Moses was rebellious to the task that God had given him. Ezekiel was commanded not to be like Moses, nor like the rebellious houses of Israel and Judah. He was not to complain, but to say what God commanded him to say.
2:9 And when I looked, behold, a hand was put forth unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;
Ezekiel was given a scroll of prophecies that he was to teach to the people. This scroll was the prophecies of the Book of Ezekiel.
2:10 And he spread it before me: and it was written within and without; and there were written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.
The scroll contained lamentations (funeral songs for Judah), mournings (for Judah), and woes (judgments against Judah).