The Lord has a plan. It is a plan for good for those that love righteousness. It is a plan for destruction for those that intend evil. Israel has fallen, the people in Ezekiel 37:11 “are saying … our hope is destroyed; we are cut off”. But the Lord says, in Ezekiel 37:12 “Look! I am opening your graves”. It is the Lord that makes a way were there is no way. It is the Lord that offers a future and a hope after all hope is lost. It is the Lord that delights in one that turns to righteousness. To that one, the Lord offers restoration. Of Israel the Lord says in Ezekiel 39:27 “When I restore them … I will show myself holy through them”. But to those that seek plunder, unrighteous gain and oppression, they will not stand because the Lord says in Ezekiel 37:21-22 “I will call against him in all of my mountains a sword” and in Ezekiel 38:23 “and I will show myself holy”. 

I Am Opening Your Graves

Ezekiel 37:11–20
Israel has been scattered and destroyed as a nation. The nations around are seeking to plunder them in Ezekiel 26:2 “Tyre said concerning Jerusalem, ‘Ah! The gates of the peoples are broken; it has swung open to me; I shall be filled, for it lies in ruins!’” This is a bleak situation. By every indication they are finished as a people and as a nation so naturally, “the house of Israel” in Ezekiel 37:11 “are saying … our hope is destroyed; we are cut off”.

But the Lord says, after everything is gone, after everything has been destroyed, after all hope is gone, in Ezekiel 37:12 “Look! I am opening your graves, and I will bring you up from your graves, my people, and I will bring you to the land of Israel!” The Lord says he will open their graves, and bring them “up from your graves” and in Ezekiel 37:14 “I will put my breath into you so that you may live”.

This promise though, is not just to the current exiles who have just been through the destruction of Jerusalem. This is to Judah and Israel that in Ezekiel 37:19 “so that they be one in my hand”.

I Am Taking the Israelites From Among the Nations

Ezekiel 37:21–28

You Will Devise Evil Plans

Ezekiel 38:1–12

I Will Make Myself Known Before the Eyes of Many Nations

Ezekiel 38:13–23
After the Lord restores Israel, at a time when “the idyllic peace and security of the Israelites, who do not even have city walls to protect them (cf. Zech. 2:4) and who are therefore an easy prey”.¹

It is at this time that, as it said in

Ezekiel 38:10 “ ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh: “And then on that day, things will come up on your mind, and you will devise evil plans.

It is at that time that as described in Ezekiel 37:2-9 Gog, and Persia, Cush, Put, and Gomer, “and many nations along with you” and here they will come to in

Ezekiel 38:13 “Sheba and Dedan and traders of Tarshish and all its strong lions, they will ask you, ‘To loot loot are you coming? To plunder plunder have you summoned your assembly, to take away silver and gold, to take livestock and goods, to loot great amounts of loot?” ’”

But the Lord will be the defender of the the land of Israel in Ezekiel 37:21-22 “I will call against him in all of my mountains a sword … And the sword of each person will be against his brother … I will execute justice with him with a plague and with blood and torrents of rain, and hailstones; fire and sulfur”.

We expect of the Lord would be their defender. And, we expect the Lord would show his strength and “exalt” himself and make himself “known” as he goes on to say in

Ezekiel 38:23 “And so I will exalt myself, and I will show myself holy, and I will make myself known before the eyes of many nations, and they will know that I am Yahweh”

But we may not expect to have the Lord include this statement, “I will show myself holy”. It is in this judgement though, that all will understand the difference between the holy and profane. It is in bringing down the plunderers and looters and “Thus will Jehovah prove Himself to be the almighty God by judgment upon His enemies, and sanctify Himself before all the nations (v. 23, compare v. 16 and Ezek. 36:23)”.²

On the Mountains of Israel You Will Fall

Ezekiel 39:1–10

You Will be Satisfied at My Table

Ezekiel 39:11–20

I Will Show Myself Holy Through Them

Ezekiel 39:21–29
All of this has purpose, the first is that “the nations will see my (the Lords) judgement” in

Ezekiel 39:21 “And I will display my glory among the nations, and all of the nations will see my judgment that I have executed and my hand that I have laid upon them”.

Next, there will never again be any doubt and all of “the house of Israel will know” that the Lord is “their God” in

Ezekiel 39:22 “And the house of Israel will know that I am Yahweh their God from that day and beyond”.

And the last thing is that all will know it was the unfaithfulness, the uncleanness, the transgression of Israel that caused their exile in

Ezekiel 39:23 “and the nations will know that because of their guilt the house of Israel went into exile, because they acted unfaithfully against me, and I hid my face from them”.

Through these actions we understand the two ways that we see the holiness of God.

• One way, is through the destruction of anything unclean because the Lord is righteous and cannot abide with sin. But the Lord does not take any pleasure in this (see Ezekiel 18:23).
• The other way, the way God desires to show his holiness is through restoration in Ezekiel 39:27 “When I restore them from the nations and I gather them from the countries of their enemies, then I will show myself holy through them before the eyes of many nations”.

Study Verses

• Ezekiel 37:11–20 I Am Opening Your Graves
• Ezekiel 38:13–23 I Will Make Myself Known Before the Eyes of Many Nations
• Ezekiel 39:21–29 I Will Show Myself Holy Through Them

Today’s Reading

• Ezekiel 37:11-28
• Ezekiel 38:1-23
• Ezekiel 39:1-29

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References

• 1. Taylor, J. B. (1969). Ezekiel: an Introduction and commentary (Vol. 22, p. 239). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
• 2. Keil, C. F., & Delitzsch, F. (1996). Commentary on the Old Testament (Vol. 9, p. 336). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

The house of Israel had been removed from the land and dispersed to the nations because in Ezekiel 36:17 “they were dwelling on their soil, and they defiled it with their way and with their deeds”. But they didn’t get the bad reputation, the Lord and the land did. In Ezekiel 36:13 “they are saying to you (the land), “You are an eater of humans””. So, the Lord says in Ezekiel 36:23 “I will consecrate my great name, which was profaned among the nations. The Lord then speaks to the land to empower it to bring forth fruit because he is bringing his people back. He says in Ezekiel 36:9 “For look! I am for you, and I will turn you, and you will be tilled, and you will be planted”. Have you ever been in a situation where your reputation is tainted because of what someone else did or said? How do you clear your name and regain your reputation? Only by demonstration as the Lord says in Ezekiel 36:23 “when I show myself holy before their eyes”. 

Mountains of Israel Your Branch You Will Shoot

Ezekiel 36:1–10
Look at what the Lord says here to the physical environment of the earth. The Lord doesn’t just say that the mountains can be covered with trees and be fruitful, he empowers them to produce fruit in Ezekiel 36:8 “your branch you will shoot”. Anyone in agriculture knows that a crop places a burden on the ground so he also says “and your fruit you will carry”. But there is one more thing about the Lord, with his command in Ezekiel 36:6 “to the mountains and to the hills, to the river channels and to the valleys”, he gives purpose. The mountains are empowered to bring forth fruit and to carry it “for my people”. Then he says to the physical environment, the mountains and hills and valleys, to the dirt they will plant in

Ezekiel 36:9 “For look! I am for you, and I will turn you, and you will be tilled, and you will be planted”.

When the Lord speaks, expect a workout because “you will be tilled, you will be planted”. But he is still talking to the land. This is the land promised to the children of Israel but the words used here are in Ezekiel 36:10 “I will cause your population to increase for you”. It is as if the Lord is saying to the land, I will reward your labor of producing fruit with inhabitants. I know, this sounds a bit out there but think about it. How beautiful is an organic farm with produce flourishing as people also give thanks for abundance. And what good is an untended forest or field where fruit grows and rots as in

Romans 8:20 -23 “For the creation has been subjected to futility … creation itself also will be set free from its servility to decay … the whole creation groans together and suffers agony”.

They Were Dwelling on Their Soil

Ezekiel 36:11–20
But before this restoration occurs, there is an explanation. The land of Israel has come to be known as a destroyer of people in

Ezekiel 36:13 “ ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh, because they are saying to you, “You are an eater of humans, and you are one who makes childless your people.”

But this is simply the result of the people that had been living there in

Ezekiel 36:17 “Son of man, the house of Israel, they were dwelling on their soil, and they defiled it with their way and with their deeds; like the uncleanness of menstruation was their way before me”.

I Will Consecrate My Great Name

Ezekiel 36:21–29
The Lord explains further that what he is doing next is not because they deserve it. Just as these people had given the land a bad reputation, they have also defiled the name of the Lord in

Ezekiel 36:22 “Therefore thus say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh: “Not for your sake am I about to act, house of Israel, but for my holy name, which you defiled among the nations to which you went”.

It is only possible to clear your name by a demonstration of as in

Ezekiel 36:23 “And I will consecrate my great name, which was profaned among the nations … when I show myself holy before their eyes”.

And the Lord will show himself holy by in Ezekiel 36:24 taking them and gathering them “from all the lands” and bringing them “to your land”. Then he will “cleanse” them in Ezekiel 36:25 and in Ezekiel 36:26 “I will give a new heart to you”. And, just as the Lord spoke to the land and empowered it to become fruitful, here he gives of his spirit empowering the people to “go in my rules”, or as we might say today, be led by his spirit in

Ezekiel 36:27 “And I will give my spirit into your inner parts, and I will make it so that you will go in my rules, and my regulations you will remember, and you will do them”.

This Desolate Land has Become Like the Garden of Eden

Ezekiel 36:30–38
What was a desolate land, a land witnessed by everyone as desolate in

Ezekiel 36:34 “And the land that was desolate will be cultivated in the very place that it was desolate before the eyes of all of the persons crossing over”.

It is this same land that the Lord will cause to flourish.

Ezekiel 36:35 ‘And they will say, “This desolate land has become like the garden of Eden, and the wasted and desolate and destroyed cities, now being refortified, are inhabited.”’

And there is a purpose in the Lords action, it is so the nations will know his the true character and nature in

Ezekiel 36:36 “And the nations who are left all around, you will know that I, Yahweh, I built that which was destroyed; I planted the desolate land; I, Yahweh, I have spoken, and I will act.’

I Am Bringing Into You Breath and You Will Live!

Ezekiel 37:1–10

Study Verses

• Ezekiel 36:1–10 Mountains of Israel Your Branch You Will Shoot
• Ezekiel 36:21–29 I Will Consecrate My Great Name
• Ezekiel 36:30–38 This Desolate Land has Become Like the Garden of Eden

Today’s Reading

• Ezekiel 36:1-38
• Ezekiel 37:1-10

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The Lord has spoken against Tyre a city of merchandise, yet it says here in Ezekiel 28:14 “You were an anointed guardian cherub” and in Ezekiel 28:15 “until wickedness was found in you” so the king of Tyre also represents the fall of the devil. Sidon is spoken against as, in Ezekiel 28:24 “a painful thorn and a sharp thornbush for the house of Israel”. And, Seir (Edom, Esau’s descendants) is spoken against in Ezekiel 35:5 “because there has been to you an ancient hostility” and they are representative of the enemies of the Lord and the enemies of his people. But the Lord promises blessing that will come for his people in Ezekiel 34:23 “And I will set up over them one shepherd, and he will feed them”. For these, they will not need to take the land by force because in Ezekiel 33:24 “we are many”, but the Lord will give them the land to do, in Ezekiel 33:19 “justice and righteousness”.

You Were a Perfect Model

Ezekiel 28:11–19

Set Your Face Toward Sidon

Ezekiel 28:20–26 

You Want to Take Possession of the Land?

Ezekiel 33:21–33
There is in the heart of people, in the fallen nature of man, this desire to take and the word of the Lord comes first by repeating what people are saying among themselves in Ezekiel 33:24 “we are many; the land has been given for us as a possession”. Then the Lord says to them in Ezekiel 33: 24-26 “You eat blood in your meat, and you raise your eyes to your idols and you pour out blood … You rely on your sword … each man defiles the wife of his neighbor”.

What is the Lord saying? He is saying that he has first claim on the earth and he will not give it to the wicked. In

Psalm 24:1 “The earth is Yahweh’s, with its fullness, the world and those who live in it”

1 Chronicles 29:11 “To you, O Yahweh, is the greatness and the power and the splendor and the glory and the strength, for everything in the heavens and in the earth. Yours, O Yahweh, is the kingdom and exaltation over all as head!”

The land is the Lords to give to whomever he will and he has just told them in

Ezekiel 33:19 “And when the wicked turns from his wickedness, and he does justice and righteousness, because of it he will certainly live!”

and so the prophet speaks the rhetorical question after laying out their sin he says in Ezekiel 33:25 “and yet you want to take possession of the land?” This cannot be and the Lord says, for these people, in Ezekiel 33:29 “I make my land a desolation and a wasteland, because of all of their detestable things that they have done”. 

I Will Be For Them as God

Ezekiel 34:23-31

Here is the heart of God, to bring “a blessing ” in Ezekiel 34:26, to have a shepherd that cares for the people, a shepherd that will feed them in

Ezekiel 34:23 “And I will set up over them one shepherd, and he will feed them; that is, my servant David. He will feed them, and he will be for them as a shepherd”.

Then in Ezekiel 34:24 he says “I will be for them as God, and my servant David will be a leader among them” and here, there is the sense that “my servant David”, “He shall be ‘prince’ (Nasi in Hebrew), not ‘king,’ under Jehovah their God”.¹

In other words, that he will do exactly the will of God and will not rule as the kings of the earth have ruled, out of their own self-will and for their own benefit and desires. And the blessing is described in Ezekiel 34:25-29 in two ways:

1. Positive Benefit:
• “a covenant of peace”
• “rains of blessing” (no drought)
• “the tree of the field will give its fruit”
• “the land will give its produce”
• “they will be on their land safely”
2. Removal of Negative influence “when I break their yoke”:
• “I will put an end to wild animals”
• “I will deliver them from the hand of the ones enslaving them”
• “they will not be any longer plunder to the nations”
• “there will not be anyone frightening them”
• “they will no longer be victims of famine in the land”
• “they will not bear any more the insult of the nations”

There Has Been to You an Ancient Hostility

Ezekiel 35:1–8
Whose yoke is it that the the Lord will break? It is those that set themselves against the Lord as he now decrees in

Ezekiel 35:3 “Look! I am against you, mountain of Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you, and I will make you a desolation and a wasteland”.

But what is it that caused this decree? In

Ezekiel 35:5 “because there has been to you an ancient hostility, and you handed over the Israelites to the power of the sword at the time of their disaster, at the time of their final punishment”.

There was an unforgiven offense that stood between them and “Mount Seir—that is, Idumea (Ge 36:9) … (is) Singled out … to represent all their enemies everywhere and in all ages … perpetual hatred—(Ps 137:7; Am 1:11; Ob 1:10–16) … derived from Esau against Jacob … (and) consummated … when he exulted over Jerusalem’s downfall, and helped the foe to destroy it (Ps 137:7; Ob 1:11)”.²

The decree against Seir was not because the Lord was against them. The Lord was, and always is, against murder. Sometimes language and culture make translation difficult and this statement is written backwards for us. It says in Ezekiel 35:6 “since you did not hate blood, it will pursue you”. What this means, or maybe a better way for us to understand it is since you held offense and took on yourself to get vengeance, since you hated your brother and sought his destruction, that same hatred, that same destruction will come on you.

I Will Deal With You According to Your Anger

Ezekiel 35:9–15

Study Verses

• Ezekiel 33:21–33 You Want to Take Possession of the Land?
• Ezekiel 34:23-31 I Will Be For Them as God
• Ezekiel 35:1–8 There Has Been to You an Ancient Hostility

Today’s Reading

• Ezekiel 28:11-26
• Ezekiel 33:21-33
• Ezekiel 34:23-31
• Ezekiel 35:1-15

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References

• 1. Barnes, W. E. (1942). Ezekiel. In C. Gore, H. L. Goudge, & A. Guillaume (Eds.), A New Commentary on Holy Scripture: Including the Apocrypha (Vol. 1, p. 537). New York: The Macmillan Company.
• 2. Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 1, p. 608). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

We sometimes think that the nations and cities and economies of the world will always be as they are, but Ezekiel presents a very different picture. The Lord will bring righteousness and justice and all will be judged according to their actions. The city of Tyre is a great center of commerce, a place of wealth and influence and great beauty. But as they saw the fall of Israel, they were not moved by compassion, instead, they gloated and looked on looters would on empty stores when there is riot in the streets. The Lord issues a decree in Ezekiel 26:21 “you shall no longer exist” and the world will lament their fall.

The Gates are Broken I Shall Be Filled

Ezekiel 26:1–10
The people of Tyre had no compassion for the fall of Jerusalem. Instead, they saw the siege of Jerusalem as an opportunity to take advantage. They could now take whatever they wanted because the city walls were broken down and the government and military had been removed. They said in

Ezekiel 26:2 “Son of man, because Tyre said concerning Jerusalem, ‘Ah! The gates of the peoples are broken; it has swung open to me; I shall be filled, for it lies in ruins!’

This is as looters we see in our day, These thought to pillage the city because it was unprotected and free for the taking. Who could stop them? There wasn’t anyone to prevent them from carrying out the evil that had come into their hearts against their neighbors.
 

You Shall No Longer Exist

Ezekiel 26:11–21
The word of the Lord against Tyre continues as the city is overtaken as in war. These who had thought to take advantage of Jerusalem’s demise will themselves be plundered so there is nothing left of value. No wealth, no merchandise, no protection, no buildings, and even the ground itself in

Ezekiel 26:12 “they will plunder your wealth, and they will loot your merchandise, and they will break down your walls, and the houses of your delight they will break down, and your stones and your timbers and your earthen dirt they will cast into the midst of the water”.

And also the people will be killed in Ezekiel 26:15 and they will no more be a place in Ezekiel 26:17 “inhabited from the seas”. So that in Ezekiel 26:21 “you shall no longer exist; and you will be sought, and you will not be found again forever”. 

Merchant of the Peoples to Many Coastlands

Ezekiel 27:1–11
Tyre has occupied a special place in not only the geography of the earth, but in the economy of the world. It is representative of the world system of trade. The Lord describes the city as, in Ezekiel 27:3 “the one who sits at the entrance of the sea as the merchant of the peoples to the many coastlands”. They were the center for distribution, for trade and so much so that in Ezekiel 26:16 “all the princes of the sea will go down from their thrones, and they will remove their robes” at their demise.

The city describes itself in Ezekiel 27:3 “I am perfect in beauty”. Certainly this city and her ships were made of the finest materials: pine and cedar and oak with “inlaid ivory” and sails of “fine linen with colorful weaving from Egypt” in Ezekiel 27:5-7. This city also had the most “skilled men”, “seamen”, “mariners”, “soldiers”, and “people … on the walls” and these people were immigrants from many other places in Ezekiel 27:8-11.

They Exchanged All These for Your Merchandise

Ezekiel 27:12–24 

Inhabitants of the Coastlands Are Appalled Over You

Ezekiel 27:25–36
The scale of trade is apparent through these chapters as the flow of goods and the employ of people is described in

Ezekiel 27:25 “The ships of Tarshish were carrying for you your wares, and you were filled, and you became very heavy in the heart of the seas”.

And in Ezekiel 27:26 “into many waters” and in Ezekiel 27:27 “Your wealth and your merchandise, your wares, your mariners, and your seamen, your shipwrights and the barterers of your wares and all of your soldiers who are in you, along with all of your crew”

The word of the Lord continues and to emphasize the impact of the fall of this city and the failure of this economic system on the world he says in Ezekiel 27:33 “When your merchandise went out from the seas, you satisfied many peoples with the abundance of your wealth, and by your wares you made rich the kings of the world. But now, in Ezekiel 27:34-36 “you are broken … you have sunk … All of the inhabitants of the coastlands are appalled … their kings shudder in horror”.

Will You Indeed Still Say “I am a god!”

Ezekiel 28:1–10

Study Verses

• Ezekiel 26:11–21 You Shall No Longer Exist
• Ezekiel 27:1–11 Merchant of the Peoples to Many Coastlands
• Ezekiel 27:25–36 Inhabitants of the Coastlands Are Appalled Over You

Today’s Reading

• Ezekiel 26:1-21
• Ezekiel 27:1-36
• Ezekiel 28:1-10

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