Cooper, Lamar Eugene, Sr. Ezekiel. New American Commentary.
Vol. 17. Edited by E. Ray. Clendenen. Nashville: Broadman
& Holman, 1994.
Lamar Cooper, a thoroughly conservative scholar, produced an in-depth commentary that focused heavily on the riches unlocked by a knowledge of the Hebrew text. The author also rightly noted that visions “figure more prominently in Ezekiel that in any other Old Testament prophet except Daniel” (29). Cooper’s view of authorship, an important key to interpreting the work, is that Ezekiel composed the entire book.
The writer believed that the book of Ezekiel was largely a composition of theological tenets, listing the six most prominent ideas: 1) The holiness of God; 2) The sinfulness of humanity; 3) The inevitability of judgment; 4) Individual responsibility; 5) Hope of restoration; and 6) God’s redemptive purpose (40-43). As a whole, Cooper understood the underlying message of the work to be “largely an eschatological one” (45).
Although he takes Ezekiel’s visions as authentic, Cooper held that the images also contained symbolic imagery. The cherubim, who were described as being part angel, human, and animal were “fitting representatives of the whole created order” which demonstrated the might and authority of God (67). Additionally the mobility of the wheels that were a part of the Lord’s throne structure represented God’s omnipresence. The eyes represented God’s omniscience. Moreover, the elevated position of the throne portrayed God’s omnipotence (69).
Cooper accepted Ezekiel as the author of the entire book, treating the prophet’s call in chapters 1-3 as an authentic account. The writer also brought to light the judgments meted out by God, a significant portion of the composition. Not only was God willing to punish His own people for their sins (8-24), Cooper focused heavily on the judgments directed to other countries (25-32).
As to the relevance of 25-32, Cooper cited two applications: 1) All who oppose God will be judged; 2) Ungodly pride and idolatry will never be forgotten or ignored by the Creator. The author of the commentary thought it odd that Babylon was not addressed in 25-32
(243), leaving the question of why unanswered until his account of 33-39.
In the description of Gog in 38-39, Cooper understood the fulfillment of the passage to be a still future event although he did make reference to six other times periods that have been suggested as alternatives (331). Additionally, Cooper offered a number of options for the identity of Gog, a cryptic reference to future Babylon in his opinion (330-31).
Among other points, the author brought out the Edenic imagery in the latter portion of Ezekiel. Along with Ezekiel 36, chapter 47 demonstrates that the world will one day be restored to its pre-Fall state.
As far as the Temple is concerned in 43ff, Cooper asserted that a literal building would be constructed imbued with symbolic meaning. The Temple, according to the writer, would be a sign of God’s election, the visible sign of God’s holiness, a visible witness of God’s redemptive love, and a physical sign of the new covenant (379).
Cooper also addressed the intriguing question of the need for sacrifices in the new Temple since Christ will rule there. His position on the issue is that the sacrifices will allow Israel to understand for the first time in their history that Christ’s salvation is the meaning of the system of offerings.
As far as strengths are concerned, Cooper exhibited many. First, unlike many writers, the author of the present work offered compelling views for the positions he embraced. Furthermore, Cooper also exhibited evidence as to why opposing ideas were not the best solutions to any given passage.
Second, Cooper made good use of available research. His bibliography was extensive as well as fairly up-to-date because the work was published less than ten years ago. Moreover, Cooper was fair to the commentaries he employed, taking precautions to not put words in his associates’ mouths.
Third, Cooper demonstrated an excellent knowledge of Hebrew. His helpful insights shed light on important details that are not readily translated into the English language.
Fourth, the author did not treat the book of Ezekiel as a dusty account of a forgotten era, but a living book that is still relevant in the present age. Cooper’s applications established how believers should live in light of the amazing prophetic corpus of the book of Ezekiel.
No comments:
Post a Comment