Problem: Ezekiel seems to predict that, in the messianic period, the sacrificial system used by the Jews before the time of Jesus will be reinstituted (chaps. 40–48). However, the NT in general and the Book of Hebrews in particular is emphatic in declaring that Christ has by one sacrifice forever done away with the need for animal sacrifices (10:1–9).
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Problem: The historic position of the LDS church is that the stick of Judah and the stick of Joseph in Ezekiel 37 are the Bible and the Book of Mormon, the “two sticks becoming one stick” being the work that Joseph Smith accomplished in bringing the Bible and Book of Mormon together as one body of scripture. Many Mormon missionaries repeat this interpretation still today. The prophecy reads:
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Problem: According to this prophecy of Ezekiel, Nebuchadnezzar would attack and devastate Egypt. However, the Greek historians made no mention of this event, and there does not seem to be sufficient historical evidence to substantiate the claim that there ever was such an invasion. Is this an error in the biblical record of history?
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Problem: Is the Lord good or bad to people? Psalm 145:9; Lamentations 3:38 and Isaiah 45:7; Jeremiah 18:11; Ezekiel 20:25, 26
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Problem: According to this verse, God declares, “I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies [in his sins].” Yet in Proverbs 1:26, God declares to the sinner, “I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes.” But, these seem to be contrary attitudes toward the doom of the sinner.
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Problem: In one area of Scripture, it appears that a son will bear the sins of his father, yet in other areas, it seems that that is not the case. So which is it? The answer lies, as always, in examining the context of the statements. Ultimately, the Bible has no internal contradiction. It just takes looking and reading to figure things out.
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Problem: Ezekiel says clearly God does not punish the sons for their fathers’ sins, but that “the soul who sins shall die [for its own sins].” However, in Exodus 20:5 we are informed that God visits “the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generations.” These seem flatly contradictory.
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Problem: While most Orthodox Jewish and Christian scholars have held the position that Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because of their rampant homosexual behavior (namely, sodomy), there are others who believe that those cities were destroyed because of their pride.
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Problem: Ezekiel described the sin of Sodom as selfishness: “Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy” (niv). No mention is made of homosexuality or related sexual sins. Contrary to the traditional view, they were apparently condemned simply because they were selfish, not because they were homosexuals.
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Problem: Ezekiel states, “If a prophet is deceived into giving a message, it is because I, the Lord, have deceived that prophet. I will lift my fist against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel” (Ezek. 14:9 NLT).
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This description demonstrates that the presence and glory of God was leaving the Temple (Ezek. 9:3; 10:4, 18). When a King travelled at this time, he would take a chariot. God is explaining his departure from the Temple in kingly terms (i.e. a chariot).
Problem: Critics of the Bible note that John writes of “the four corners of the earth” (Rev. 7:1). They argue that this demonstrates that the authors of Scripture believed in a flat earth. Is this the case?
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Ezekiel probably only laid on the ground for part of the day. The text doesn’t say that he lay there all day long—only that he had to lay there for 390 days. He was probably tied up with the rope for the time that he was laying there. This becomes clear, when we see the imperatives in verses 9-17. He is told to fix food for himself.
Problem: Why does God tell him to eat this scroll?
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Problem: Throughout the Bible, we see conflicting messages on the visibility of God. On the one hand, God appeared to Abraham (Gen. 17:1; 18:1) and Moses (Ex. 6:2-3). In fact, Moses recorded that the elders “saw the God of Israel” (Ex. 24:10). However, in this passage, Paul says that God is “invisible” (1 Tim. 1:17), and at the end of this letter, Paul writes that God “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see” (1 Tim. 6:16). God told Moses that “no man can see me and live” (Ex. 33:20), and John wrote, “No one has seen God at any time” (Jn. 1:18; c.f. 5:37; 6:46). Critics argue that the Bible seems to be offering a clear contradiction on the visibility of God.
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