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Ezekiel 37 (1)

Ezekiel 37 (1). 37:1-10 vision 37:11-14 interpretation bones are very many and very dry (v. 2) reconstituting of bodies and giving them breath; cf. Gen 2:7 “breath” -- “wind” -- “spirit” a very, very great army (v. 10). Ezekiel 37 (2). These bones are the whole house of Israel

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Ezekiel 37 (1)

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  1. Ezekiel 37 (1) • 37:1-10 vision • 37:11-14 interpretation • bones are very many and very dry (v. 2) • reconstituting of bodies and giving them breath; cf. Gen 2:7 • “breath” -- “wind” -- “spirit” • a very, very great army (v. 10)

  2. Ezekiel 37 (2) • These bones are the whole house of Israel • “Our bones are dried up, our hope has perished, we are cut off” • Creation • Bring you up from your graves = resurrection • “Bring up” also = allusion to Exodus (aliah)

  3. The Future That Ezekiel Saw (1) • 37:24-28: landforever; princeforever; covenant of peaceforever; my sanctuary in their midstforever (2x) • Then they shall know that I am Yahweh their God because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then I gathered them into their own land….I will not hide my face anymore from them when I pour out my spirit upon the house of Israel 39:28-29

  4. Symbolic Numbers in Ezekiel’s Description of the Land and Temple • New Temple Measurements = multiples of 25 • Vision takes place in 25th year • Central Strip = 25,000 x 25,000; temple area 500 x 500 • City = 5,000 by 5,000; 7 + 8 + 10 stairs • Temple itself 50 by 100 • Gates 50 x 25; distance between gates 100 • Plaza in front of temple 100 by 100

  5. 40:1-6 • 40:7-19 • 40:20-23 • 40:24-27 • 40:28-31 • 40:32-34 • 40:35-37 • 40:44-46 • 40:48-49 • 41:1-4 • 42:1-14 • 46:19-24 • 42:15-20 • Porta haec clausa • erit 44:2 Binyan

  6. Temple

  7. The Future That Ezekiel Saw (2) • Temple Approachable only from N, E, S—not from west--per contra chap 8 • Outer and inner gates--ward off impurity; Solomonic in their architectural design! • Return of the chariot 43:1-4 • Glory of Yahweh filled the temple 43:5 • East gate closed = Yahweh is home to stay 44:1

  8. East Gate • Steps • Threshold #1 • Gateway itself • Threshold #2 • Vestibule • Square recesses • Walls of recesses • Wall before vestibule • West wall of gate • Boundary marker • Wall • Back walls

  9. Hazor Gezer Megiddo

  10. Ezekiel’s Picture of the Land • Only Cis-Jordan • Sacred area in the midst of the land; God’s presence at center • All 12 tribes have equal territory (Ephraim and Manasseh, but no Levi) • Full born tribes next to sacred area; then come tribes from concubines; then the nations • “City” separated from temple; city populated by all the tribes; land around the city is for its income • Prince (new David); not king

  11. A Land transformed by God’s Presence • Stream from temple. Cf. Garden of Eden; Psalm 46; and the home of the god El at Ugarit • Fruit trees in Judean desert--12 crops a year, leaves are good for healing 47:12 • Fish in the Dead Sea just like the Mediterranean 47:10 • There is nothing exempt from renewal

  12. Implications for the Future • It did not happen the way Ezekiel promised • Qumran--a priestly eschatological community--”Prepare in the desert a highway for our God”; they wanted to be the first to see the fish jump • John 2: body of Jesus is temple; John 7:37-38 from his or her heart flow…. • John 19:34 from his heart flow streams of living water; ancient utopia becomes Christian promise • Rev 22:1-2; river of life flowing from throne of God…tree of life with twelve kinds of fruit…leaves are for healing of the nations.

  13. A Postscript on Ezekiel--48:35 • The name of that city = Yahweh is there; 12-gated city • Not “Jerusalem,” “throne of Yahweh” (Jer 3:17); “Yahweh is the source of our vindication” (Jer 33:16); “Hephzibah” or “Beulah” (Isa 62:4), city of David, “city.” • The gates: North: Reuben, Judah, Levi (!); South: Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun; East: Joseph (not Ephraim and Manasseh), Benjamin, Dan; West: Gad, Asher Naphtali

  14. Gog of Magog • Unidentified, eschatological enemy from the north (38:15; 39:2) • Fulfills prophecy of the enemy from the north (Jeremiah 4-6), but also fulfills prophecy of the destruction of that enemy (I will shatter Assyria in my land Isa 14:24-25) • With the destruction of this enemy, God’s reign in chapters 40-48 can go on unchallenged. • Israel will spend seven months burying Gog and cleansing the land (39:9-16) • Birds and wild animals will feast on this enemy (39:17-20). • In Rev 20:7-10 Gog and Magog, inspired by Satan, march against Jerusalem, initiating God’s final victory over Satan and the reign of the Lamb in the new Jerusalem.

  15. “Ezekiel tells us that Gog, the nation that will lead all of the other powers of darkness against Israel, will come out of the north. Biblical scholars have been saying for generations that Gog must be Russia. What other powerful nation is to the north of Israel? None. But it didn’t seem to make sense before the Russian Revolution, when Russia was a Christian country. Now it does, now that Russia has become Communistic and atheistic, now that Russia has set itself against God. Now it fits the description of Gog perfectly.” Governor Ronald Reagan to the California Legislature, 1971

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