Two factors played an important in the writing of Ezekiel: (1) the prophets' conviction that the Lord's relationship to Israel had reached a crisis point; and (2) the fact that Israel faced a new kind of enemy, a superower (Assyria) against which it could not defend itself.
The earliest prophet, Amos, it is true, did not mention Assyria, but stated decisively that Israel's special relationship to the Lord had ended (8, 1-3) and that Judah and Israel, like the nations, now stood under the severe judgment of God (2, 4--3, 2). Before the rise of the writing prophets, prophets fought for the Lord and the cause of righteousness in Israel, but never called into question the relationship itself. Reform measures would bring the people back into right relationship with the Lord, they thought.
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