CLARITY EDITION · OLD TESTAMENT
Ezekiel 36
Chapter 36 of 48
Chapter Overview
What happens in Ezekiel 36
After condemning Edom, God now speaks blessings over the mountains of Israel. The land that was mocked by the nations will be restored. God will bring his people back, not because they deserve it, but for the sake of his own holy name. He promises to give them new hearts and a new spirit.
Scripture
Ezekiel 36
Promise to the Mountains of Israel
Study note
God addressed the mountains of Israel directly, promising that the enemy nations who had mocked and plundered them would themselves face disgrace. The mountains would again produce crops and be settled with people. God would do even more for the land than before. The nations had said the land 'devours its people,' but God promised the land would never again be a disgrace or cause the nation to stumble.
1 "Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel. Say: Mountains of Israel, listen to the Lord's message!" Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD:
2 The Lord God says: "The enemy taunted you, saying, 'Ha ha! The ancient heights are ours now!'" Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha, even the ancient high places are ours in possession:
3 "So prophesy: The Lord God says -- Enemies crushed you and swallowed you up from every direction. They turned you into the property of the nations around you. People gossiped and talked badly about you." Therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of the people:
4 "So, mountains of Israel, listen to the Lord God's message. This message is for the mountains and hills, the ravines and valleys. It is for the abandoned ruins and deserted cities that the nations around you have looted and laughed at." Therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about;
5 "The Lord God says: With burning passion I have spoken against the nations around you. I have spoken especially against all of Edom. They gleefully seized my land with deep scorn so they could take over its pastures." Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.
6 "So prophesy about the land of Israel. Announce to the mountains and hills, ravines and valleys: The Lord God says -- I am speaking out of passionate jealousy because you have endured the taunts of the nations." Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and in my fury, because ye have borne the shame of the heathen:
7 "So the Lord God says: I raise my hand and swear that the nations around you will face their own shame in return." Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are about you, they shall bear their shame.
8 "But you, mountains of Israel, will grow branches and bear fruit for my people Israel. They are coming home soon." But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come.
9 "I am looking out for you and smiling on you. Your soil will be plowed and planted again." For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown:
10 "I will fill you with people -- all the people of Israel. Cities will be populated again and ruins rebuilt." And I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded:
11 "I will multiply your people and livestock. They will be fruitful and increase. I will resettle you as in the old days and make things even better than before. Then you will know that I am the Lord." And I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
12 "I will bring my people Israel to walk across you. They will possess you, and you will be their homeland. You will never again rob them of their children." Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men.
13 The Lord God says this. "People say about you, 'This land eats its own people. It takes away its nation's children.'" Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations;
14 "So from now on you will no longer devour people or steal your nation's children away, says the Lord God." Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD.
15 "I will make sure you never again hear the nations' taunts. You will no longer suffer their scorn or cause your nation to stumble, says the Lord God." Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord GOD.
Why God Will Restore Israel
Study note
God explained his reason for restoring Israel. When Israel lived in their land, they made it unclean through their behavior. God scattered them among the nations, but even there they dishonored his name. The nations said, 'These are the Lord's people, yet they had to leave his land.' God would restore Israel not because they deserved it, but to show the nations that his name is holy. Through Israel's restoration, the nations would know that he is the Lord.
16 The Lord's word came to me again. Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
17 "Son of man, when the Israelites lived in their own land, they polluted it with the way they lived and the things they did." Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way and by their doings: their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman.
18 "So I poured out my anger on them because of the blood they shed on the land and because of the idols they used to pollute it." Wherefore I poured my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had polluted it:
19 "I scattered them among the nations and spread them through foreign countries. I judged them based on their behavior and choices." And I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them.
20 "But wherever they went among the nations, they brought disgrace to my holy name. People said about them, 'These are supposed to be the Lord's people, but they had to leave his land.'" And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.
21 "I cared deeply about my holy name, which the Israelites were dragging through the mud everywhere they went." But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.
22 "So tell Israel the Lord God says: What I am about to do is not for your benefit, people of Israel. I am doing it for the honor of my holy name, which you have disgraced among the nations." Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.
23 "I will prove how holy my great name truly is -- the name you have profaned among the nations. When I display my holiness through you right before their eyes, the nations will acknowledge that I am the Lord, says the Lord God." And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.
New Hearts and a New Spirit
Study note
This is one of the most important passages in the Old Testament. God promised to gather Israel from all the nations, sprinkle them with clean water to purify them, give them a new heart and a new spirit, and put his own Spirit within them. He would remove their stubborn hearts of stone and give them soft hearts of flesh so they would want to obey him. The land would become like the Garden of Eden. This promise finds its fulfillment in the New Testament through Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
24 "I will pull you out of the nations, collect you from every country, and bring you home to your own land." For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
25 "I will sprinkle pure water over you, washing you completely clean. I will remove every stain your sins and idols left behind." Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
26 "A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh." A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 "I will put my own Spirit deep inside you. My Spirit will give you the power to follow my commands and faithfully keep my laws." And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
28 "Then you will settle in the land I gave your ancestors. You will be my people, and I will be your God." And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
29 "I will rescue you from everything that made you unclean. I will order the grain to grow abundantly and will never send famine against you again." I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.
30 "I will give you more fruit on your trees and bigger harvests in your fields. You will never again be shamed by hunger among the nations." And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.
31 "Then you will look back on your wicked ways and evil actions. You will be disgusted with yourselves for your sins and awful behavior." Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.
32 "I want you to understand clearly: I am not doing this for your sake, says the Lord God. You should be ashamed and embarrassed by your behavior, people of Israel!" Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.
The Land Restored Like Eden
Study note
After God cleansed the people from their sins, the ruined cities would be rebuilt and the desolate land would be farmed again. Passersby would say the land had become like the Garden of Eden. The nations around them would know that the Lord had rebuilt what was destroyed and replanted what was desolate. God would also increase the population like a flock of sheep at festival time in Jerusalem.
33 The Lord God says: "On the day I clean you from all your sins, I will fill your cities with people again. I will rebuild every ruin." Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded.
34 "The empty land will be farmed again. It will no longer lie bare for every passerby to see." And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.
35 "People will say, 'This land that used to be a wasteland now looks like the Garden of Eden! The cities that were destroyed and left in ruins are now fortified and full of people.'" And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited.
36 "Then the surrounding nations that remain will recognize that I, the Lord, rebuilt what was torn down and replanted what was stripped bare. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it." Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.
37 The Lord God says: "Once again I will answer Israel's prayers and do this for them. I will make their people grow as many as flocks of sheep." Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.
38 "Like the enormous flocks of sheep brought to Jerusalem for sacrifices during the great festivals, the ruined cities will overflow with crowds of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord." As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
Key Themes
Themes in Ezekiel 36
Restoration of the landA new heart and new spiritGod acts for his name's sakeSpiritual transformationGod's holiness
Prophetic Connections
How this chapter points to Christ
Ezekiel 25-27 John 3:5-7
Jesus told Nicodemus that a person must be born of water and the Spirit, drawing on Ezekiel's prophecy of God sprinkling clean water on his people and putting a new spirit within them.
Ezekiel 26-27 Romans 8:9-11
Paul's teaching about the Holy Spirit living in believers echoes Ezekiel's promise that God would place his Spirit within his people and move them to follow his ways.
Apply This Today
Living Ezekiel 36
God's promise to give His people a new heart and put His Spirit within them is one of the most beautiful promises in all of Scripture. We cannot transform ourselves by willpower alone — we need God to change us from the inside out. This chapter assures us that spiritual renewal is God's work, and He delights in doing it.
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