Contours of Old Testament Theology

16. Prophecy in Priestly Tradition

16. PROPHECY IN PRIESTLY TRADITION The message OJthe great, but enigmatic, prophet Ezekiel belongs essentially to the symbolic world portrayed in priestly imagination. To be sure, there are major differences between Ezekiel's vision and that of the Priestly writers (P). First, Ezekiel does not present a comprehensive view that begins with creation,- indeed, creation theology has no place in Ezekiel's message. Ezekiel traces God's purpose back to the promise of land made to Israel's ancestors (20.42), specifically to Abraham (33:24) and Jacob (37:25), and above all to the time of the exodus from Egypt, when God "chose" Israel (20:5-7). Also, there are major differences between the portrayal of the temple in Ezekiel 40-48 and that of the tabernacle/temple in Exodus 25-40 and Leviticus. Literary and theological affinities are especially strong with the so-called Holiness Code (H) in Leviticus 17-26, which is closely related to Priestly tradition (P).' Also, there are impressive similarities to the Priestly portrayal of the revelation of Yahweh's "glory" to the people Israel at Mount Sinai (Exodus 25-40). A Priestly Prophet Ezekiel's theological task was to interpret the events leading up to and after the fall of Jerusalem in 587 B.C., events in which he was personally involved. His message stands primarily in Priestly tradition but overlaps with Mosaic covenant tradition (to be considered later), as evident by affinities with Jeremiah's preaching. Ezekiel is a complicated figure who cannot be put into a theological pigeonhole. Moreover, the final form of the book of Ezekiel, which is the basis for theological exposition, betrays evidences of a history of composition. The Glory oj God In Ezekiel's imaginative construal of God's world, the key word is "glory" (kabod). The prophet was clearly familiar with the Priestly portrayal of the Sinai theophany in which the glory was an envelope of light, associated with the pillar of cloud and fire, that both revealed and veiled God's holy presence (Exod. 24:15-20). As we have seen, the divine glory was associated especially with the tabernacle, the suc­ cessor of the tent of meeting (Exod. 40:34-38), which prefigured the temple. Just as the glory settled over the tabernacle, so in Ezekiel's vision it settled over the cherubim that flanked Yahweh's throne-seat (the ark) in the Holy of Holies, 1. In his commentary Leviticus f-*6 (AB 3,- New York: Doubleday, 199l),JacobMilgrom main­ tains that the P tradition, which stems from about 750 B.C., was finally shaped by Holiness Code editors (symbolized by H). 128 Prophecy in Priestly Tradition 129 the innermost cella of the Jerusalem temple.2 Yahweh's glory filled the temple, sig­ nifying God's presence in the midst of the people (8:4,- 9:3,- 10:4,- 37:26-27). But God is not bound to a sanctuary,- God is free to move on with the people and to display divine "glory" in unexpected and undeserving ways, a point that is made in Old Epic tradition: Moses said, "Show me your glory, I pray." And he [Yahweh] said, "I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, The LORD' [Yahweh],- and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy." —Exod. 33:18-19 Just as the pillar of cloud and fire lifted from the tabernacle and accompanied the people in their journey, so Yahweh's glory moved with the people into exile (Ezekiel 8-11 ),• moreover, in Ezekiel's vision of the restoration, Yahweh will return with them to the land, at the center of which is the temple (3:12, 23,- 10:4-5,- etc.). The holy God is free to move with the people and to lead them into the future. Thus the glory of God is not confined to a sanctuary separated from the profane world (the tabernacle), but radiates out into the profane world (cf. Isa. 6:3). In this case the glory is manifest in a foreign land to which God has exiled the people and from which God will bring them back. Speaking of God's return with the people to their homeland along a marvelous "highway," a later poet announced: Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together. —Isa. 40:5 God's Holiness The manifestation of...