3. The difficulty of its style.
Concerning the style of Ezekiel, thus Jerome in his præfatione: His speech is not quite eloquent, nor is it rustic, but stands between the extremes. The same says to Eustochius, that the tradition of the Hebrews affirms the difficulty of Ezekiel. For, unless one among them had fulfilled the age for priestly ministry, that is, his thirtieth year, neither the beginning of Genesis, nor the Song of Songs, nor the beginning and ending of Ezekiel, were permitted to him to read, so that the full ripeness of human nature might be brought to perfect knowledge and mystical understandings. And certainly this divine book is replete, as with most salutary doctrine, so also with many difficulties, especially at the beginning and end. Insomuch as in the first chapter a certain extraordinary appearance of the divine Majesty is set forth, and a מֶרְכָּבָה/ chariot, tangled with extraordinarily difficult knots, is conjoined, so that Gregory rightly say, that the beginning of the book is shut up with great obscurities, and bound with knots of mysteries. But in the last part is contained a description of the city of Jerusalem and mystical Temple, so intricate and loaded with various ambiguities, that it is able deservedly to be esteemed as a work of heavenly wisdom, in which pious minds might be exercised.
Dr. Dilday's Lecture: "Prophetic Imagery"
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