Ezekiel 1-4

Chapter 1
Ezekiel the priest is called by God to prophesy against Israel.
Like Isaiah and John, the first thing he sees is God's glory and presence, emphasized poetically as the Spirit, able to go anywhere and see anything. God sees their sin, will exile them, but will go with them and - in the sign of the rainbow first given to Noah - will not utterly destroy them.

Chpater 2
Like Daniel and John, the Spirit makes Ezekiel able to stand before God and hear His voice without being utterly undone. God sends Ezekiel to a rebellious house - Israel - to say hard things. It won't be easy.

Chapter 3
Yet God's words are easy to understand, and they are sweet in the mouth, even if they are bitter to digest. If Ezekiel holds back from saying what God reveals to him, God will hold Ezekiel responsible.

Chapter 4
God has Ezekiel act out with a model the coming seige of Jerusalem and resulting famine. Like Paul, he objects to God's plan which goes against the ritual law.