Detailed outline of the book of Ezekiel – oracles of judgment against nations, judgment and consolation for Israel

The name “Ezekiel” means “God strengthens”.  From the book, we know that Ezekiel was the son of a man named Buzi and that he was a priest taken captive to Babylon in 597 BC.  He lived in a home near the river Chebar, an irrigation canal that channeled the Euphrates River to the surrounding areas.  He was married but his wife died suddenly.

In the book of Ezekiel, as a reluctant prophet (he initially resisted God’s call), he reveals oracles from God to his people, sometimes in a bizarre manner that the audience found entertaining. Although much of Ezekiel’s message is directed at Jerusalem, a larger part is directed at his fellow exiles who refuse to accept that they have been exiled because of their rebellion against God.

The book is considered one of the major prophetic books in the Old Testament following Isaiah and Jeremiah.  Ezekiel records six visions covering judgement on Israel, judgement on other nations, and future blessings for Israel.  Although prophetic in nature, it’s primary theme is the concept of individual responsibility to God.

1. Oracles of Judgment against Israel (chs. 1–24)
   1. Ezekiel’s Inaugural Vision (chs. 1–3)
      1. Overwhelming display of the glory of the Lord (ch. 1)
      2. Ezekiel’s call to be a prophet (2:1—3:15)
         1. God delivers a scroll for Ezekiel to eat (2:1 – 3:3)
         2. God hardens Ezekiel’s heart (3:4 – 3:15)
      3. Ezekiel’s appointed a watchman (3:16–27)
   2. Symbolic Acts Portraying the Siege of Jerusalem (chs. 4–5)
      1. Ezekiel’s symbolic siege of Jerusalem (4:1 – 4:17)
      2. God’s razor of judgment at work (ch. 5)
   3. Oracles of Divine Judgment (chs. 6–7)
      1. Doom for the mountains of Israel (6:1 – 6:14)
      2. The end has come on the land (7:1 – 7:27)
   4. Corruption of the Temple and Its Consequences (chs. 8–11)
      1. Idolatry in the temple (8:1 – 8:18)
      2. Judgment on the idolaters (ch. 9)
      3. God’s glory departs from the temple (ch. 10)
      4. God’s sure judgment on Jerusalem (11:1–14)
      5. Those in exile to be restored (11:15–21)
      6. Conclusion of the vision (11:22–25)
   5. Ezekiel Symbolizes the Exile of Jerusalem (ch. 12)
      1. An exile’s baggage (12:1–16)
      2. Anxious eating (12:17–20)
      3. The nearness of judgment (12:21–28)
   6. Oracles concerning God’s Judgment on Judah (13:1—24:14)
      1. Condemnation of the false prophets (ch. 13)
      2. Condemnation of the idolaters (14:1–11)
      3. No mediators can turn back God’s judgment (14:12–23)
      4. Jerusalem likened to a piece of burnt vine (ch. 15)
      5. Jerusalem allegorized as an adulterous wife (ch. 16)
      6. Allegory of two eagles and a vine (ch. 17)
      7. The soul who sins will die (ch. 18)
      8. A lament over the fall of Jerusalem’s kings (ch. 19)
      9. Apostate Israel purged and renewed through judgment (20:1–44)
      10. Babylon, God’s sword of judgment (20:45—21:32)
      11. The sins for which Jerusalem is judged (ch. 22)
      12. Jerusalem and Samaria allegorized as adulterous sisters (ch. 23)
      13. Jerusalem cooked over the fire (24:1–14)
   7. The Death of Ezekiel’s Wife Symbolizes Jerusalem’s Fall (24:15–27)
2. Oracles of Judgment against the Nations (chs. 25–32)
   1. A Prophecy against Ammon (25:1–7)
   2. A Prophecy against Moab (25:8–11)
   3. A Prophecy against Edom (25:12–14)
   4. A Prophecy against Philistia (25:15–17)
   5. A Prophecy against Tyre (26:1—28:19)
      1. Tyre’s destruction announced (ch. 26)
      2. A lament over Tyre (ch. 27)
      3. A prophecy against the king of Tyre (28:1–19)
   6. A Prophecy against Sidon (28:20–24)
      1. (For Israel, a restoration, 28:25–26)
   7. A Prophecy against Egypt (chs. 29–32)
      1. Egypt a doomed monster (29:1–16)
      2. Egypt a payment to Nebuchadnezzar (29:17–21)
      3. Laments over Egypt (30:1–19)
      4. The pharaoh’s arms are broken (30:20–26)
      5. The pharaoh a felled Lebanon cedar (ch. 31)
      6. Lament over the pharaoh (32:1–16)
      7. The pharaoh consigned to the realm of the dead (32:17–32)
3. Oracles of Consolation for Israel (chs. 33–48)
   1. Renewal of Ezekiel’s Call as Watchman (33:1–20)
   2. Jerusalem’s Fall Reported and Its Remnant Condemned (33:21–33)
   3. The Lord to Be Israel’s Shepherd (ch. 34)
   4. A Prophecy against Edom (ch. 35)
   5. Israel’s Complete Restoration Announced (ch. 36)
   6. Israel’s Dry Bones Revived and Unity Restored (ch. 37)
      1. Israel’s dry bones restored to life (37:1–14)
      2. Again one nation under one King (37:15–28)
   7. The Great Battle of the Ages (chs. 38–39)
   8. The New Order for Purified Israel (chs. 40–48)
      1. The temple area restored (40:1–47)
      2. The new temple (40:48—42:20)
      3. God’s glory returns to the temple (43:1–12)
      4. Restoration of the great altar (43:13–27)
      5. Restoration of the priesthood (ch. 44)
      6. Restoration of the theocratic order (chs. 45–46)
      7. The river of life from the temple (47:1–12)
      8. The boundaries of the land (47:13–23)
      9. The distribution of the land (48:1–29)
      10. The twelve gates of the new city (48:30–35)