The Second Book of Ezekiel the Prophet
The Prophet Ezekiel, it would appear wrote more than one book. The only book that remains in it's entirety is found in the Bible. The second book, of which only a few fragments remain, has also been preserved in the Christian tradition. What remains of the Apocryphon of Ezekiel is rather scarce. Of the fragments that remain, only one tells a story. The first fragment is a story of a blind man and a lame man and their attempt at thievery. The story tells how a king has had his figs stolen by the blind man and the lame man as a team. Neither of the two men can accomplish this on their own, but by working together, they could do so. The fragment ends with a stated moral of the story which says that the body and the soul of a person will be judged by God for the acts that both commit, for they go through life as a team. This fragment is the only one of the five to have survived on its own. The remainder have been saved only as citations in other works.
4QPseudo-Ezekiel, referred to in older reference sources as 4QSecond Ezekiel, is a fragmentary, pseudepigraphic Hebrew text found in Cave 4 at Qumran, and therefore belongs to the cache of manuscripts popularly known as the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is also classified as "parabiblical" and considered, in some accounts, as "apocalyptic" as well. Not known even in the scholarly world until the late 1980s, and not published until 2001, Pseudo-Ezekiel has emerged as one of the most controversial texts among Qumran finds in the early years of the twenty-first century. Some scholars have suggested that the Pseudo-Ezekiel material might fit in somewhere among the brief, scattered, surviving bits of The Apocryphon of Ezekiel.
4Q385-389
Fragment 1
1 And my people shall be [. . .] with contented heart and with willing soul [. . .] and conceal yourself for a little while [. . .] and cleaving [. . .] the vision that Ezekiel saw [. . .] a radiance of a chariot, and four living creatures; a living creature [. . .] and they would not turn backwards while walking; each living creature was walking upon two legs; its two legs [. . .] was spiritual and their faces were joined to the other. As for the shape of the faces: one was that of a lion, and one of an eagle, and one of a calf, and one of a man. Each one had the hand of a man joined from the backs of the living creatures and attached to their wing. And the wheels [. . .] wheel joined to wheel as they went, and from the two sides of the wheels were streams of fire and in the midst of the coals were living creatures, like coals of fire, torches, as it were, in the midst of God the wheels and the living creatures. Over their heads was a firmament that looked like the terrifying ice. And from above the firmament came a sound [. . .].
Fragment 2
2 [. . .] in place of my grief [. . .]. And my heart is in confusion, together with my soul. But the days will hasten on fast, until all humankind will say, "Are not the days hurrying on in order that the children of Israel may inherit [their land?" And the Lord said to me: "I will not refuse you, Ezekiel. Behold, I will measure the time and shorten the days and the years [. . .] a little. As you said to [. . .]. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken these things."
Fragment 3
Column 1
3 And I said: "Lord, I have seen many men from Israel who loved your Name and walked in the Ways of Righteousness. And these things, when will they happen, and how will their Piety be rewarded?" The Lord said to me, "I shall show the children of Israel, so that they will know that I am the Lord." Then he said, "Son of Man, prophesy over the bones and say: "Draw together, bone to its bone and joint to its joint." And it was so. Then he said a second time, "Prophesy, and let flesh cover them, and let them be covered with skin from above [. . .] and let sinews come upon them." And it was so. Then he said again, "Prophesy to the four winds of Heaven, and let the winds blow on them, and they will stand up; a great people, men [. . .].
Column 2
4 And they will know that I am the Lord." And he said to me, "Consider carefully, Son of Man, the land of Israel." And I said, "I see, Lord; it is desolate. When will you gather them together?" And the Lord said, "A son of wickedness will plan to oppress my people, but I will not allow him to do so. His rule shall not come to pass, but he will cause a multitude to be defiled and there will be no seed left. The mulberry bush will not produce wine, nor the bee honey [. . .]. I will slay the Wicked in Memphis, and leading My sons out of Memphis, I will turn upon the rest. Just as they will say, "Peace and quiet is ours", so they will say, "The land rests quietly." Just as it was in the days of [. . .] ancient [. . .], so [. . .] in the four corners of heaven [. . .] like a consuming fire [. . .].
Column 3
5 [. . .] nor shall he have mercy on the Downtrodden, and he shall go to Babylon. Now, Babylon is like a cup in the Lord’s hand; like refuse he will hurl it [. . .] in Babylon, and it will be [. . .] the dwelling of your fields [. . .] their land will lie desolate [. . .].
Fragments 4-6
6 [. . .] and sovereignty will devolve upon the Gentiles for many years, while the children of Israel [. . .] a heavy yoke in the lands of their captivity, and they will have no Deliverer, because [. . .] they have rejected My Laws, and their soul has scorned My teaching. Therefore I have hidden My face from them, until they fill up the measure of their sins. This will be the sign for them, when they fill up the measure of their sin [. . .] I have abandoned the land because they have hardened their hearts against Me, and they do not know that [. . .] they have done Evil again and again [. . .] and they broke My Covenant that I had made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In those days a blasphemous king will arise among the Gentiles, and do evil things [. . .] Israel from being a people. In his days I will break the Kingdom of Egypt [. . .] both Egypt and Israel will I break, and give them over to the sword. [. . .] high places of the land [. . .] I have removed its inhabitants and abandoned the land into the hands of the Angels of Mastemoth. I have hidden My face from Israel. This will be their sign: in the day when they leave the land [. . .] the priests of Jerusalem to serve other Gods [. . .] three kings who will rule [. . .].
Apocryphon of Ezekiel
Fragment 1
The lame and blind men in the garden
7 A certain king of this world had a beautiful fig garden. In this garden he had growing some beautiful and ripe figs. In his kingdom were living two men which he had neglected. They were a blind man and a lame man. One night, the lame man conspired with the blind man to steal into the garden and help themselves to some of these figs. Leading the blind man to him with a rope, the lame man climbed upon his back, and acted as the eyes for the blind man. In this way, the two men managed to get into the garden, and eat the figs growing therein. When the king discovered that his figs were missing, he went to the blind man and asked him how such a thing could happen. The blind man responded by saying; "How could I have done this, I who cannot see?" Then the king went to the lame man and asked of him the same question. The lame man responded by saying; "How could I have done this, I who cannot walk?" The king then put the lame man on the blind mans back, and demonstrated how the two had worked together to accomplish there goal, and they were unable to deny it. It is in this way that the body is connected to the soul, and the two will be judged by what both have done, and endure no separate judgment.
Fragment 2
8 Repent, house of Israel, from your lawless ways. I say to you, my people, "Even if the list of your sins stretches from heaven to earth, and if they are as black as they can be, and you turn to me, and with all of your heart say, 'Father', I will forgive you, and look on you as holy."
Fragment 3
9 Look at the cow, She has calved, and yet she is pregnant.
Fragment 4
10 "It is what I have seen you doing that I will judge you for."
Fragment 5
11 [Therefore, he told Ezekiel . . .] "I will cure the lame, and heal the ill, those who have wandered away, I will return to the fold, and I will feed them upon my holy mountain [. . .] and I will be their shepherd and I will be as close to the as a second skin."