Why Did God Call Ezekiel Son of Man?
God Spoke to Prophets Personally:
God spoke to all the prophets in the Holy Bible (Old Testament) personally. But he only referred to one of them, Ezekiel, as “son of man” (Scriptures 1 – Ezekiel – Son of Man). Why didn’t he call the other prophets “son of man”? Was there something special or different about Ezekiel?
Jesus – The Son Of Man:
Also, in the New Testament, Jesus refers to himself as “the son of man” (Scriptures 2 – Jesus – The Son of Man). And just before Stephen died, he said “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
So, clearly Jesus is “the son of man”. Jesus is not the son of God, he is God. God came down to Earth as a human son – a man. Jesus is the “son” part of the holy trinity – Father, Son, & Holy Spirit. God is three in one. So calling Jesus “the son of man” can make a little sense.
Jesus – Son of God:
But still, it’s confusing. Being that there are scriptures like: John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. And: 1 John 4:15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. Those verses indicate that Jesus is God’s son. Not the son of man, but the son of God.
So which is it? Is Jesus the son of man or the son of God? Well, Jesus can be what ever he wants to be. He is God. So maybe he is both the son of man and the son of God.
Why Ezekiel Called Son of Man:
Going back to the original question – Why did God call Ezekiel “son of man”? There was something different about Ezekiel. God opened up the heavens for him and showed him part of the spiritual world (Scriptures 3. Ezekiel’s Vision of Spiritual World). Freaky things and creatures. He saw visions of God. And the Lord spoke to him in those visions (Scriptures 4. The Lord Spoke to Ezekiel in the Visions).
God didn’t give any other prophets these visions. So maybe seeing part of the spiritual realm did make him different. It made him special & unique. To be in the presence of God and all those creatures must have made Ezekiel feel something powerful. It gave him an insight that no one else had. Being in the middle of all that splendor may have made Ezekiel forget for a minute that he is just a man. But still, why call him son of man?
Conclusion:
The Bible doesn’t explain why, so all we can do is guess. That’s why I put this article under Part 5 – My Questions; because it is a question I don’t have the answer to. I don’t think God wants us to perfectly understand every little thing in the Bible. He wants us to ponder and meditate on things. And to faithfully trust that the Bible is the word of God; from God.
PDF: Why Did God Call Ezekiel Son of Man?
See: Free Bible Study Worksheets
Also See: Part 3 – List of Prayers
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