Day 251. Ezekiel 37-39

The Valley of Dry Bones is arguably the most well-known passage in the Book of Ezekiel, and one of the most celebrated in the Bible. Through the famous African American spiritual "Dem Bones" it has entered language of the popular culture and is familiar to many who have no idea where the words come from. Again, we are told, "the hand of the LORD" comes upon the prophet—it is Ezekiel's way of conveying that he felt the presence of God intimately and urgently. And "the spirit of the LORD" transports him in a vision to a valley "full of bones" (37:1). The "spirit" is the force behind this whole passage—it is that which inspires the prophet and it is also the same life-giving power—the "breath'-- that restores life to the corpses of the dead (37:10). The Hebrew word "ruach" can be translated in a number of ways--as "wind," as "spirit," and as "breath" (see Genesis 1:2 and 2:7)—all three meanings are present
in this passage. "The spirit"—notice the lower case—isn't exactly the Holy Spirit of Christian theology, but for Christians it is impossible not to associate the Spirit of the Risen Christ with the power that gives life to the dead.
We don't know if Ezekiel's vision corresponds to any real place. In all probability it is intended to be the site of some long-ago battle; the bones of the unburied slain are picked and scattered about and "very dry" (37:2). The Lord initiates a dialogue with the prophet—"Mortal, can these bones live?" The question touches on God's own power to give new life to the lifeless, and being to what does not exist. But the prophet, uncertain how to answer, refuses to commit himself-; "O LORD GOD, you know" (37:3), he replies. The bones are, after all, "very dry"—from the human point of view the situation is hopeless. But the LORD commands Ezekiel to prophesy his words to the bones, promising that he will "cause breath (spirit) to enter [them], and [they] shall live" (37:5). It is a theme that recurs again and again in the Bible—the Word of God gives life.
And the prophet does what he is told—he prophesies to the bones. And the scattered bones—in which must be one of the most impressive scenes in all of literature-they begin to seek out each other and reassemble themselves—they are "gathered" and flesh and sinews cover them. There is, however, "no breath (spirit) in them" (37:8)—they are still mere corpses. But then the LORD commands the prophet to say—"Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live" (37:9). And when the prophet does so, the dead live and stand on their feet—"a vast multitude" (37:10).
Then the LORD interprets the vision. The dry bones correspond to the despondent Judean exiles in Babylon, who see themselves as without hope or future and as good as dead. But God has a plan. He promises that his miraculous power working through history will "open [their] graves" (37:12) and give his chosen people a new life—an "inspirited" life. He will "put [his] spirit within them, and [they] will live" (37:14). In its original context this vision pointed to the return of the exiles to their "own soil" and to a reformed and restored kingdom of Israel. But Christians have seen Ezekiel's vision as an image of the final resurrection of the dead and a vision of their ultimate hope in Christ.
Then Ezekiel is commanded to enact a visual parable. He is to take two sticks. On one he is to write—"for Judah, and the Israelites associated with it" and on the other "for Joseph, and the house of Israel associated with it" (37:16). The first represents the two tribes of southern kingdom of Judah and the second represents the ten tribes of the northern kingdom of Israel. Then the prophet is ordered to bind the two sticks together into a single stick. And he is told that if asked to interpret this visual parable he is to say that God will gather the people of Israel—the twelve tribes that have been scattered-among the nations--and "make them one nation in the land" of promise. "One king shall be king over them all. Never again shall they be two nations, and never again shall they be divided into two kingdoms" (37:22).
They shall be united under the rule of "my servant David." And "they shall have one shepherd" (37:24)—God himself. The LORD will "save them from all the apostasies into which they have fallen" (37:23) and they will willingly and instinctively keep his laws. They will dwell forever in the land promised to Jacob, where "my servant David shall be their prince forever" (37:25). And God will make an everlasting "covenant of peace with them" and establish his temple—"his dwelling place"--among them (37:27). The temple in Jerusalem will be rebuilt and the worship of the LORD restored, and by this all the nations will see and acknowledge that the LORD has sanctified Israel as his own people—his particular possession-- making them holy, a people set apart. And having done this the LORD will establish them in security for a long time.
This millennium of peace and security, however, will be shattered by Gog of Magog, who represents all the forces of aggression and chaos. The king called Gog, the ruler of a nation called Magog which is identified with "Meshech and Tubal" cities in Asia Minor (38:1), is unknown to history. We cannot identify this ruler or his people with any particular king or nation. The names themselves convey nothing—they are symbolic of an evil world power to come. Gog has been identified with Napoleon, Hitler, and Stalin—take your pick. In our reading Gog is the apocalyptic ruler of the future who will sweep down "from the north," the biblical direction of threat and invasion, upon the hapless people of God. He gathers his forces from all the corners of the then-known world—from Asia and Africa and "the remotest parts of the north" (38:6); it is a truly international army representing the whole world—all lawless powers, all conquering empires.

"In the later years"—sometime in the future, perhaps the distant future—this terrible army shall sweep down on the land of Israel, where the returned exiles are living in peace. Their security will be shattered by a multinational invasion "coming on like a storm" (38:9). That storm will break over "a land of unwalled villages" and of "quiet people who live in safety" (38:11). Gog will take advantage of people "living without walls" to "seize spoil and carry off plunder" (38:12) and ravage the land.
But when "Gog comes against the land of Israel" the wrath of God will be "roused" (38:18). In [his jealousy" for his people he will bring a terrible earthquake upon the land, and "will pour down torrential rains and hailstorms, fire and sulfur, upon [Gog] and his troops and the many peoples that are with him" (38:22). God will make war upon war of Gog. Fire will fall from heaven and the king and his armies "shall fall on the mountains of Israel"; there the birds and wild animals will devour their bodies (39:4). And their homeland—Magog—and those nations which supported it in its imperial ambitions will also be destroyed by God's fire (39:6). God will make war on war itself. He will do all this in order to make his "holy name known among [his] people" (39:7). His victory is already won, as the text makes clear. It is in the future, but his triumph over the forces of chaos is also in the present—it is now--and it is in the
past—it has already happened (39:8). The people of Israel will burn the weapons of Magog "for seven years"—they will not need to cut firewood, for they will make cooking fires of the weapons of the fallen host (39:10).
And God will consign the bodies of Gog and his horde to a place of burial outside its boundaries, so that the land will not be contaminated. It will take seven months to bury them all; every bone shall be sought out and disposed so the land may be pure (39:15). And this will happen soon. The prophet is called to summon the birds and the wild animals for the "sacrificial feast," the feast of flesh and blood that God has prepared for them (39:17). They shall be filled "with horses and charioteers, with warriors and all kinds of soldiers" (39:20). They shall eat the remains of the forces of Gog, and peace will be restored to a cleansed world.
Before launching into his vision of the new temple—chapters 40-42--Ezekiel makes a summary of all that he has already said. God judges Israel for its sins in order to show forth his glory and "display [his] holiness in the sight of many nations (39:27); then for the same reason he restores Israel and re-establishes the house of David. When they are brought back from the places where they have been scattered, the people shall forget their shame and live securely. He will leave none of them behind, he will gather them all to the Holy Land, and he will "pour our [his life-giving] spirit upon the house of Israel" (39:29), giving to its dry bones both physical and spiritual life in abundance.