Author Topic: How Chananiah the son of Chizkia saved the Book of Yechezkel from being banned  (Read 73 times)

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Offline edu

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The Talmud, for example in tractate Chagiga 13a states that the Rabbis had an inclination to ban the book of Yechezkel/Ezekiel from the Bible, because there were statements in that Biblical Book that seemed at first glance to contradict the Torah of Moshe/Moses.
However, because Chananiah the son of Chizkia, may he be remembered for good, devoted an extremely large amount of time studying Yechezkel and found ways to interpret the book, so that it would not contradict the Torah, so the Rabbis decided to keep Yechezkel in the Tanakh/Bible.
Rashi in his commentary on the page, says that the initial opposition was that there were things at the end of the book of Yechezkek, regarding sacrifices that contradicted what is written in the Torah.
As I said earlier, Chananiah the son of Chizkia, was able to find a satisfactory solution to the apparent contradictions, so the book was kept in.
I remember elsewhere other "problems" with the book of Yechezkel outside the issue of sacrifices, that were brought up by the Rabbis, but since those other sources aren't in front of me right now, I will make due with what I have written.

Offline Dan Ben Noah

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I heard about this before.  You know which passages are supposedly contradictory concerning sacrifices or what the solution was?  A lot of Jewish theology of the end times is found in Ezekiel.  At least the supposed sacrifice contradictions deal with future events in the future Temple, so Jews are not currently commanded to do anything contrary to Torah.  And at the time in question, the messiah will have already come and the Levitical priesthood will be re-established so Jews will have no worries about contradicting Torah at that time either.
Jeremiah 16:19 O LORD, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in time of distress, to you the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say, "Our fathers possessed nothing but false gods, worthless idols that did them no good."

Zechariah 8:23 This is what the LORD Almighty says: “In those days ten people from all languages and nations will take firm hold of one Jew by the hem of his robe and say, ‘Let us go with you, because we have heard that G-d is with you.’â€

Offline edu

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The Talmud states that Chananiah the son of Chizkia found the solutions to all the problems in the book of Yechezkel but unfortunately, the Talmud does not spell out, all of his solutions.
So other Rabbis of subsequent generations offered their solutions, not always agreeing one with the other.
For an example, of a problem together with its solution in the book of Yechezkel, see the Artscroll (english) commentary and translation of Yechezkel for Chapter 45 verse 18.