Major Prophets · Chapter 37 of 48
Ezekiel 37
God sets Ezekiel in a valley of very dry bones and asks whether they can live. At God's command Ezekiel prophesies; the bones rattle together, take on flesh, and, when he calls the breath, stand up as a vast army. God explains the bones are exiled Israel, whose hope is lost, and promises to open their graves and give them his Spirit. He joins two sticks into one, promising one nation under one shepherd.
What happens in Ezekiel 37
The hand of the Lord sets Ezekiel down in a valley full of bones, very many and very dry, and asks whether these bones can live. Ezekiel answers that God alone knows. God commands him to prophesy to the bones, promising to lay sinews and flesh on them and put breath in them so they will live and know he is the Lord. As Ezekiel prophesies, there is a noise and shaking, and the bones come together, bone to bone, covered with sinew, flesh, and skin, but with no breath. God tells him to prophesy to the breath from the four winds, and when he does, breath enters them and they stand up, an exceedingly great army.
God explains that the bones are the whole house of Israel, who say their hope is lost, and promises to open their graves, bring them home, and put his Spirit within them. Then he tells Ezekiel to join two sticks, Judah and Joseph, into one, symbolizing one reunited nation under one king, David, in an everlasting covenant of peace, with God's sanctuary among them forever.
Ezekiel 37 in context
Ezekiel prophesies among the exiles in Babylon after Jerusalem's fall, when the people despair that the nation is dead beyond recovery. This vision of the dry bones answers their cry that their hope is lost. Beyond the immediate promise of national restoration, the imagery of resurrection and God's indwelling Spirit resonates deeply with the New Testament's message of new life, and the promise of one shepherd points toward the Messiah.
Main themes of Ezekiel 37
Ezekiel 37 (KJV)
1The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, 2And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. 3And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. 4Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. 5Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: 6And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 7So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. 8And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. 9Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. 10So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. 11Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. 12Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. 13And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, 14And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD. 15The word of the LORD came again unto me, saying, 16Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: 17And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. 18And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? 19Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. 20And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes. 21And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: 22And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all: 23Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God. 24And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. 25And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. 26Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. 27My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 28And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.
Verses to carry from Ezekiel 37
“And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest.”Ezekiel 37:3
“Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:”Ezekiel 37:5
“My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”Ezekiel 37:27
Messianic prophecy
How Ezekiel 37 points to Jesus
The vision's promise of one shepherd and God's servant David reigning forever points beyond the historical David to the Messiah. Jesus called himself the good shepherd and spoke of one flock and one shepherd, gathering God's scattered people into one. The resurrection of the dry bones by God's breath foreshadows the new life Christ gives; he is the resurrection and the life, and on the evening of his own resurrection he breathed on his disciples and said, Receive the Holy Spirit, echoing this very scene.
God's promise to put his Spirit within his people is fulfilled at Pentecost through the risen Christ, and his pledge that his sanctuary will dwell among them forever finds its end in the Lamb who is the temple of the new creation.
Questions about Ezekiel 37
What does the valley of dry bones mean in Ezekiel 37?
God tells Ezekiel plainly that the bones are the whole house of Israel, exiles who say their hope is lost and they are cut off. The vision promises that God will restore his seemingly dead nation, opening their graves and bringing them home. It is a picture of hopeless people brought back to life by God's Spirit.
What does the breath entering the bones represent?
The breath, from the same Hebrew word meaning wind and Spirit, is the life-giving power of God. The bones come together but remain lifeless until God's breath enters them. It represents God putting his own Spirit within his people so that they truly live, pointing toward the new life and indwelling Spirit given through Christ.
Reflection
Ezekiel stood over a valley of bones as dry as any lost cause, and God asked if they could live. Where have you concluded that hope is lost, in a relationship, a calling, your own heart? God specializes in raising what is dead. Invite his Spirit, the breath of life, into the very places you have given up on.
A prayer from Ezekiel 37
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