unity and purity

Posted on December 18, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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unity and purity

Ezekiel 37:15-23 (JDV)

Ezekiel 37:15 The word of Yahveh happened to me. This is what it said:
Ezekiel 37:16 “Son of Adam, take a single stick and write on it: Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him. Then take another stick and write on it: Belonging to Joseph – the stick of Ephraim – and all the house of Israel associated with him.
Ezekiel 37:17 Then join them together into a single stick so that they become one in your hand.
Ezekiel 37:18 When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you explain to us what you mean by these things? ‘ –
Ezekiel 37:19 Tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: notice I am going to take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and put them together with the stick of Judah. I will make them into a single stick so that they become one in my hand.’
Ezekiel 37:20 “When the sticks you have written on are in your hand and in full view of the people,
Ezekiel 37:21 Tell them, ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: notice I am going to take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them into their own land.
Ezekiel 37:22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over all of them. They will no longer be two nations and will no longer be divided into two kingdoms.
Ezekiel 37:23 They will not defile themselves anymore with their idols, their repulsive things, and all their rebellions. I will save them from all their apostasies by which they sinned, and I will cleanse them. Then they will be my people, and I will be their God.

unity and purity

The LORD was not interested in reuniting the two kingdoms without purifying them of idolatry. A united kingdom was not part of his agenda if that united kingdom continued to rebel against him. So, the prophet was instructed to unite the two sticks, and to explain that both kingdoms would be united under a single king — a king loyal to Him.

Often we attempt unity only to sacrifice purity. God is not in that. He does not want us to unify with those who are disloyal to Him. He does not want us to sacrifice integrity to gain strength in numbers. A unity bought with compromise is obtained at too heavy a price.

LORD, unify us under our one king — with a pure conscience.

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when I open your graves

Posted on December 17, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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when I open your graves

Ezekiel 37:11-14 (JDV)

Ezekiel 37:11 Then he said to me, “Son of Adam, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Notice how they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’
Ezekiel 37:12 Therefore, prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: notice I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them, my people, and lead you into the land of Israel.
Ezekiel 37:13 You will know that I am Yahveh, my people, when I open your graves and bring you up from them.
Ezekiel 37:14 I will put my Breath in you, and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I am Yahveh. I have spoken, and I will do it. This is the declaration of Yahveh.'”

when I open your graves

This is a promise from the LORD to restore his people to their land. It is also a direct promise from our LORD Jesus to all who are part of the covenant, bought by his blood. He is going to open our graves and bring us up from them. The picture of the resurrection that he gave Ezekiel in the valley of dry bones will be fulfilled literally when Jesus returns. We have his word on it.

“For this is the will of my Father — for everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him to have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40 NET).

“For just as the Father has life in himself, thus he has granted the Son to have life in himself… Do not be amazed at this, because a time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and will come out” (John 5:26, 28-29a NET).

Never doubt that this life is not all there is. A better life is coming — a permanent life.

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Prophesy to the breath

Posted on December 16, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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Prophesy to the breath

Ezekiel 37:7-10 (JDV)

Ezekiel 37:7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded. While I was prophesying, there was a noise, I noticed a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone.
Ezekiel 37:8 As I looked, and noticed tendons appeared on them, flesh grew, and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
Ezekiel 37:9 He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of Adam. Say to it: This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Breath, come from the four winds and breathe into these murdered ones so that they may live!”
Ezekiel 37:10 So I prophesied as he commanded me; the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a vast army.

Prophesy to the breath

According to Davidson, “The breath needful to be life in the vast multitude now created must be furnished by wind coming from all quarters of the heavens” (268). Davidson points out that the same Hebrew word is used for both breath and wind here, and yet he insists they do not refer to the same thing. Instead, he speaks of “an intensification of meaning” in which the same word means “the living principle itself.” Why? Human traditions insist that we are made up of some divine spark that cannot die.

The only divine spark reflected in today’s text is a resurrection. It is not the result of any immortal entity inside these bones. It is the result of a loving God who chooses to breathe breath and life back into them. Before God’s intervention, they are dead. After God intervenes, they are alive.

Thank you, LORD, for the promise of a resurrection.

Davidson, A. B. Ezekiel. Cambridge: University Press, 1892.

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charnel house

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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charnel house

Ezekiel 37:1-6 (JDV)

Ezekiel 37:1 The hand of Yahveh was on me, and he brought me out by the Breath of Yahveh and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones.
Ezekiel 37:2 He led me all around them. There were a great many of them on the surface of the valley, and I noticed they were very dry.
Ezekiel 37:3 Then he said to me, “Son of Adam, can these bones live?” I replied, “Lord God, only you know.”
Ezekiel 37:4 He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and say to them: Dry bones, hear the word of Yahveh!
Ezekiel 37:5 This is what the Lord Yahveh says to these bones: notice I will cause breath to enter you, and you will live.
Ezekiel 37:6 I will put tendons on you, make flesh grow on you, and cover you with skin. I will put breath in you so that you come to life. Then you will know that I am Yahveh.”

charnel house

Cobern writes that Ezekiel “passed through this desolation and noticed that every vestige of life had disappeared from the dried-up remains. There was nothing left for even the vultures to feed upon. Long ago every skeleton had been cleaned by the jackals’ teeth and the broken parts scattered far and wide. The bones were many and they were very dry. The valley was a charnel house, visibly displaying the absolute victory of death over life. Then came the question from heaven, ‘Can these bones live?'” (197).

The prophet rightly answered that only the Lord God knew.

Before any of us can hope for restoration and revival, we have to come to a revelation of who we are without God. We are bones in a building filled with dry bones: a charnel house. God knows that he can revive us, but he is waiting for us to realize that we cannot revive ourselves. If new life is to come, it must come from outside our egos and programs and traditions.

LORD, we know what we are. Only you know what we can be. Revive us, O Lord!

Cobern, Camden M. Ezekiel and Daniel. New York: Methodist Book Concern, 1901.

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filled with a flock

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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filled with a flock

Ezekiel 36:37-38 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:37 ” ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: I will respond to the house of Israel and do this for them: I will multiply them in number like a flock.
Ezekiel 36:38 So the ruined cities will be filled with a flock of people, just as Jerusalem is filled with a flock of sheep for sacrifice during its appointed festivals. Then they will know that I am Yahveh.'”

filled with a flock

Cowles writes: “The word “flock” comes from the previous figure which accounts the people as the Lord’s sheep and himself as their shepherd. The population would crowd the cities densely, as the throng filled Jerusalem in the great national feasts” (208).

Imagine a city once ruined and abandoned, but now so filled that it looked like Jerusalem overrun by sheep ready for the Passover sacrifice. This is the hope of a nation desolated by war. It is also the hope of a person who knows the destitution and shame of separation from God.

Cowles, Henry. Ezekiel and Daniel: With Notes, Critical, Explanatory, and Practical. New York: D. Appleton, 1870.

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rebuilt and replanted

Posted on December 13, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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rebuilt and replanted

Ezekiel 36:33-36 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:33 ” ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: On the day I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the ruins will be rebuilt.
Ezekiel 36:34 The land that had been a sinister desolation will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of everyone who passes by.
Ezekiel 36:35 They will say, “This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden. The cities that were once ruined, desolate, and demolished are now fortified and inhabited.”
Ezekiel 36:36 Then the nations that remain around you will know that I, Yahveh, have rebuilt what was demolished and have replanted what was desolate. I, Yahveh, have spoken and I will do it.

rebuilt and replanted

Blake writes: “As the nations had talked about the deserted and desolated condition of Judah, so they would be constrained to remark on the great change wrought by Jehovah when He caused the land again to be tilled and to become like the garden of Eden. Once again Jerusalem shall be filled with people, even as by the flocks that were in the past days sent up for sacrifice. This illustration is very appropriate to one like our prophet, who was also a priest, and who must have remembered the sacred feasts of his city, and particularly the great Passover celebrations of Josiah’s reign” (200).

As a priest, Ezekiel knew all about the good old days, when the land was both lush and unblemished by war. As a prophet, he called on his listeners to believe in a God who can reverse the damage caused by sin and violence.

LORD, use us to revive our land — starting with its present spiritual desolation.

Blake, Buchanan. How to Read the Prophets. Part IV. Ezekiel. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1844.

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living in the new covenant

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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living in the new covenant

Ezekiel 36:22-32 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:22 “Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: It is not with regard to you that I will act, house of Israel, but for my sacred name, which you polluted among the nations where you went.
Ezekiel 36:23 I will honor the sacredness of my great name, which has been polluted among the nations – the name you have polluted among them. The nations will know that I am Yahveh – this is the declaration of the Lord Yahveh – when I demonstrate my sacredness through you in their sight.
Ezekiel 36:24 ” ‘For I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries, and will bring you into your own land.
Ezekiel 36:25 I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.
Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new breath within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
Ezekiel 36:27 I will place my Breath within you and cause you to follow my prescriptions and carefully observe my rules.
Ezekiel 36:28 You will live in the land that I gave your fathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God.
Ezekiel 36:29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will summon the grain and make it plentiful, and I will not bring famine on you.
Ezekiel 36:30 I will also make the fruit of the trees and the produce of the field plentiful, so that you will no longer experience reproach among the nations on account of famine.
Ezekiel 36:31 ” ‘You will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good, and you will detest yourselves for your iniquities and repulsive practices.
Ezekiel 36:32 It is not for your sake that I will act – this is the declaration of the Lord Yahveh – let this be known to you. Be ashamed and humiliated because of your ways, house of Israel!

While in exile, Israel will come to a new attitude toward sin. They will be ashamed and humiliated by their past idolatry and humble themselves in repentance (31-32).

God will restore them by his grace, and this will result in a new attitude toward his name. He will be honored and appreciated by his people and revered by outsiders (22-24).

God will also change them on the inside. He will give them a new heart and breath – his breath. Their purpose will be his word (25-28).

His new people will manifest the fruit and fruitfulness of his Sacred Breath. This will result in miraculous productivity for them and will rescue their reputation from the dishonor caused by their previous poverty and bondage (29-30).

When our great God invited people from every nation to be part of his new covenant, the same conditions to the covenant apply:

Access to the covenant is through repentance.

Repentance will result in regeneration and restoration.

Restoration will involve living in devotion to and obedience to God’s word.

Obedience will result in fruitfulness and miraculous evidence of God’s approval.

Are you living in the new covenant?

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polluted name

Posted on December 11, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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polluted name

Ezekiel 36:16-21 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:16 The word of Yahveh happened to me:
Ezekiel 36:17 “Son of Adam, while the house of Israel lived in their land, they defiled it with their conduct and actions. Their behavior before Me was like menstrual impurity.
Ezekiel 36:18 So I poured out my wrath on them because of the blood they had shed on the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols.
Ezekiel 36:19 I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered among the countries. I judged them according to their conduct and actions.
Ezekiel 36:20 When they came to the nations where they went, they polluted my sacred name, because it was said about them, ‘These are the people of Yahveh, yet they had to leave his land in exile.’
Ezekiel 36:21 Then I had concern for my sacred name, which the house of Israel polluted among the nations where they went.

polluted name

While in the land, the Israelites had defiled it with their idolatry. Once in exile, they did something even worse. They polluted God’s name among the heathen. Only God’s patience and his intention to bring his Christ into the world kept him from destroying these people.

This should be a lesson to all of us who take his sacred name today. Are we polluting that name? May we not do, say or think things that dishonor our God and Savior.

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you will be tilled and sown

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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you will be tilled and sown

Ezekiel 36:8-15 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:8 ” ‘You, mountains of Israel, will produce your branches and bear your fruit for my people Israel since their arrival is near.
Ezekiel 36:9 Notice! I am on your side; I will turn toward you, and you will be tilled and sown.
Ezekiel 36:10 I will fill you with people, with the whole house of Israel in its entirety. The cities will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt.
Ezekiel 36:11 I will fill you with people and animals, and they will increase and be fruitful. I will make you inhabited as you once were and make you better off than you were before. Then you will know that I am Yahveh.
Ezekiel 36:12 I will cause a people, my people Israel, to walk on you; they will possess you, and you will be their inheritance. You will no longer deprive them of their children.
Ezekiel 36:13 ” ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Because some are saying to you, “You devour people and deprive your nation of children,”
Ezekiel 36:14 therefore, you will no longer devour people and deprive your nation of children. This is the declaration of the Lord Yahveh.
Ezekiel 36:15 I will no longer allow the insults of the nations to be heard against you, and you will not have to endure the reproach of the peoples anymore; you will no longer cause your nation to stumble. This is the declaration of the Lord Yahveh.'”

you will be tilled and sown

The nations around the mountains of Israel accused them of being infertile — even worse — of devouring their people. Ezekiel promises a coming era in which that accusation will not apply. In fact, it will be reversed. The land will once again be tilled and sown, and produce an abundance. It will once again be filled with people — the whole house of Israel.

God wants to restore everything that sin and rebellion have taken away. He will do that for Israel’s mountains. He will do that for us. We need to return to him, and he will return to us — with abundance.

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the nations who took his land

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

20221209

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the nations who took his land

Ezekiel 36:1-7 (JDV)

Ezekiel 36:1 “And you, Son of Adam, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, hear the word of Yahveh.
Ezekiel 36:2 This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Because the enemy has said about you, “Aha! The ancient heights have become our possession,” ‘
Ezekiel 36:3 Therefore, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Because they have made you desolate and have trampled you from every side so that you became a possession for the rest of the nations and an object of people’s gossip and slander,
Ezekiel 36:4 therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord Yahveh. This is what the Lord Yahveh says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and abandoned cities, which have become plunder and a mockery to the rest of the nations all around.
Ezekiel 36:5 ” ‘This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Certainly in My burning zeal I speak against the rest of the nations and all of Edom, who took my land as their own possession with wholehearted rejoicing triflingly of the throat so that its pastureland became plunder.
Ezekiel 36:6 Therefore, prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: This is what the Lord Yahveh says: Notice, I speak in My burning zeal because you have endured the insults of the nations.
Ezekiel 36:7 Therefore, this is what the Lord Yahveh says: I swear that the nations all around you will endure their own insults.

the nations who took his land

God speaks to the nations who took his land. He had allowed the attacks as a judgment on Israel and Judah, but now it was time for him to attack the attackers. They would endure their own insults. They would experience the same desolation.

God is just. If there is a nation taking advantage of another nation’s weakness and vulnerability, our just God is watching. No individual sin will go without judgment, and neither will any national sin.

LORD, bring your justice to nations who attack other nations out of greed and spite.

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