Valley of the Dry Bones
Finally! We come to about
the only chapter that I was familiar with in Ezekiel prior to working on my
blog. I may have been familiar with
snippets of other chapters, but this is really the only other chapter that I
had any recollection of reading prior to this 3 year study of scripture.
In a vision, God takes Ezekiel out into the wilderness in a valley
where there are bones. God begins to
lead Ezekiel through the bones and God asks Ezekiel a difficult question: Can
these bones live again? Ezekiel
punts. He says what any non-eternal and
non-omniscient person should say when they are in the presence of an eternal
omniscient God. Ezekiel says, “Only you
know.”
So God tells Ezekiel to prophesy over the bones. As Ezekiel speaks, the bones begin to
rattle. Then they rise up. Suddenly they are covered with sinew and then
flesh. Then Ezekiel is told to prophesy
to the winds. Ezekiel does, and suddenly
the bodies come to life. They appear as
a great army unto the Lord.
Here’s the thing about this chapter that I absolutely love. This chapter can absolutely be taken on two
levels. The first level is the literal
level. God is giving a literal vision to
Ezekiel about the restoration of the Hebrew people. In this sense, Ezekiel 37
is the vision to the words Gods gave to Ezekiel in the previous chapter. This chapter is absolutely a vision to help
Ezekiel know the promise of God.
However, this chapter is true on an entirely different level as
well. This chapter is true on an eternal
level. God asks if these bones will live
again. God doesn’t ask if the offspring
of these bones will live. God asks if
these very bones will live again. God is
planting the seed of the theology surrounding the resurrection of the dead
within Ezekiel. God is showing Ezekiel
that through God, even death is not the end.
This chapter shows so much promise to God’s people – whether Jew
or Gentile. Just because you are in a
place of judgment doesn’t mean God cannot raise you up. Just because your life may not be everything
you ever dreamed doesn’t mean that God can’t bring you into eternal life which
will be a fulfillment of everything we’ve ever dreamed and so much more.
But there’s one more really neat element to be found in this
story. Ezekiel is told to prophesy over
the bones. The dead find life through
proclamation. What is it that Paul says
in Romans? Faith comes by hearing. The proclamation process is absolutely
important in the Kingdom of God.
We have a job to do. Some
days that job seems so hopeless and fruitless.
But quite literally, proclaiming Christ to the world is a job that
brings life to the lifeless. How great is
it for us to know that God has invited us into that very task!
Two Sticks
God then gives Ezekiel another visual in order to teach the people
in captivity. Ezekiel is to take two
sticks, bind them together, and then hold the joint so that they look like one
stick. This object lesson is to be a
sign to the Hebrew people that God will indeed take the two Hebrew nations and
remake them into a single nation. As
with the vision of the dry bones, this object lesson has a literal
interpretation in the restoration of Israel.
However, this is not the only interpretation. As with the valley of the dry bones, there is
a deeper Messianic message within the object lesson. God tells Ezekiel that a single king – a son
of David – shall rule over them. Clearly
this is a reference regarding the Messiah.
Remember the history of the Hebrew people? Josiah was the last good king and three of
his sons reigned. Jehoahaz reigned for
three months before Pharaoh Necco put his brother Jehoiakim in charge. When Jehoakim died, his son Jehoiachin
reigned for three months before Nebuchadnezzar put Zedekiah – Josiah’s third
son – in charge. Zedekiah was captured
by Nebuchadnezzar and his sons were killed.
The line of kings through Josiah was terminated.
Therefore, in order for a son of David to reign upon the throne he
would have to come from God. Ultimately,
this passage finds truth in Jesus Christ.
Jesus, of the lineage of David, would reign in a way that could not be
expected. Jesus would teach people to
live according to God’s ways. Jesus
would give the Holy Spirit to live within people so that they could abide in
God’s ways. Jesus would be the prince of
David who would reign forever. Through
Jesus, humanity would be at peace with God.
They Will Know…
Then the nations will know that He is God. Again we see that it comes back to God. Even Jesus’ coming to redeem those who would
be found in Him would be about knowing that He is God.
I am surprised by how often this phrase appears in Ezekiel. I think there is a lesson here as well. God is incredibly interested in the world
knowing that He is God. I think it is
time that I consider that if it is God’s focus, then it needs to be my focus as
well. Proclaiming God to the world needs
to be my priority, not just something I do when an opportunity presents itself.
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