Iconographic windows to Ezekiel's world

"The biblical book Ezekiel, often castigated by its critics, has in recent years found those who draw comparisons between the literary descriptions in the book and the art of the ancient Near East. But while drawing such parallels is helpful, it does not illuminate the intense programmatic nature of a writing which claims to be both historical and prophetic. Clearly something more is needed. The use of iconography to interpret biblical writings is in its infancy, in part because ancient Near Eastern iconographic systems are only beginning to be understood. And while efforts have advanced studies of poetic texts and isolated views of "historical moments," no adequate model for the interpretation of a writing like Ezekiel had been undertaken. An adequate tool to apply the iconographic record from the ancient Near East was needed, a significant methodological advance necessary..."