Ezekiel's Theology of Holiness and Impurity as a Key to Understanding the Description of the Departure of the 'Glory of YHWH' from the Temple (Ezekiel 8-11). (English)

Ezekiel's account of his first visionary journey to Jerusalem (Ezekiel 8-11) contains two narratives of simultaneously occurring and intersecting events. The first describes in detail the abominations that the prophet observes during his tour of the Temple; the second describes the gradual departure of the 'Glory of YHWH' - the kābôd- from the Temple. The description of the departure of the Glory raises a number of exegetical questions. What is the exact location of each of the several stations where the Glory stops as it departs? What is the relationship between the Glory's movement noted in 9:3 and that described in 10:4? Precisely how does the Glory proceed from station to station? What is the relationship between the Glory proper and the Cherubim - the stationary Cherubim in the Temple and the flying Cherubim that serve as the celestial Chariot? This article suggests that the ascent mentioned in 10:4 is an independent vertical movement and not merely a doublet of 9:3. The description of the abominations in the Temple raises a number of issues as well. What is the precise character of each abomination? Where exactly within the Temple precincts did each of the abominations occur? And did these outrages really take place in Ezekiel's own time, or are they past or perhaps even imaginary misdeeds? To answer these questions, the article presents Ezekiel's unique theology of holiness and impurity and the relationship between them as compared with that found in the Priestly literature. Ezekiel perceives the potency of both holiness and impurity more intensely than did the Priestly literature, and this attitude has influenced his description of the future Temple (Chapters 40-48), some of his laws, and other aspects of his teaching. It has also influenced the description of the departure of the Glory, and to understand the vision of Chapters 8-11, it is suggested that the two intertwined narratives should be read as connected not only chronologically but ideologically and literarily as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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