Ezekiel Chapter 37 Part One

In verses 1-14 the resuscitation of the nation is compared to dry bones coming to life. At this point the Israelites were like a valley of dry bones, nationally dead, and with no hope of restoration. Yet God promises to them here that just as the bones came to life in Ezekiel’s vision, so God says: I will bring you into the land of Israel … and shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live.
Again, this is both a physical regathering to the land and a spiritual regathering to God Himself. The present day existence of the state of Israel is the beginning fulfillment of this prophecy, but it can only be completely fulfilled when Christ returns to establish His kingdom.

Ezekiel 37:1
"The 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,"
The 62nd prophecy of Ezekiel. This means that he was strengthened by divine power for his mission, which at the earliest point would be difficult and hard on him. This is an experience far above that of common man. This is God reaching to Ezekiel, not Ezekiel reaching to God. The touch from God brings this about.
Ezekiel is miraculously transported by the spirit to the valley of the dry bones. Not literally, but God gives him a vivid inward sense that he has been taken to a valley “full of bones.”
This is a valley of death. It appears from the natural eye, that there is no living here. This is like a cemetery, where the people are not buried, and just their bones remain. This is a highly elevated spiritual experience. It is not just a vision, but is a visual example from God of what He can do.
This passage, part of a series of revelations received during the night before the messenger came with the news of the destruction of Jerusalem, was to ease the gloom of the people. “In the midst of the valley” represents the world area wherever the Israelites were scattered.

Ezekiel 37:2
"And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, [there were] very many in the open valley; and, lo, [they were] very dry."
In the sense of the physical house of Israel, we know that many died in the attack of Babylon. So many, in fact, they were not buried, but left where they fell. All of humanity, before they are saved, is just as dead as these dry bones. There is no spirit of life.
This pictures the dead nation lifeless, scattered and bleached, just as a dry tree pictures a dead nation, to which only God can give life. The bones were on every side... this side and that side.

Ezekiel 37:3
"And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest."
In the natural or physical sense, no they cannot. They cannot bring themselves back to life. Only God can cause these dry bones to live. Ezekiel knew that he had no power within himself to make them live, but he, also, knew that God could make them live, if He desired to.
The many dry bones picture the nation Israel, v.11, as apparently dead in their dispersion, and waiting for national resurrection. The people knew about the doctrine of individual resurrection, otherwise this prophecy would have had no meaning.
In verses 4-6, Ezekiel is to proclaim God’s pledge to reassemble Israelites from the world and restore the nation of Israel to life, (v.5) and give them His Spirit, (v.14) in true salvation and spiritual life. Clearly, God is promising the resurrection of the nation of Israel and its spiritual regeneration.

Ezekiel 37:4
"Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD."
Here again Israel is here symbolized under the figure of a valley of dry bones being brought back to life in the bodies of a great army of men. It pictures scattered Israel being brought back from the nations and living again as a nation themselves, in their own land. In the physical sense, these dry bones could not hear anything. We must look at this from the spiritual standpoint. Those who are dead in sin are like these dry bones. They must listen to the Word of the LORD, and receive Him into their being, to be able to live.
Physical Israel had a remnant left. They could live, if they listened to the Word of the Lord. God had made man from the dust of the earth in the beginning. Man was but a clay doll, until God breathed the breath of life in him. It was the breath of God that gave him life.
The Word of God created all things. The Word of God can revitalize these bones and make them live.
John 1:1-4 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." "The same was in the beginning with God." "All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made." "In Him was life; and the life was the light of men."
The Word created. The Word brought life.

Ezekiel 37:5
"Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:"
The sight of these dead bones is the view of a world who knows not God. It is God that causes us to live. Jesus Christ the Son of God gave the power to live to all who would believe. The breath that enters in is His Spirit, which brings life. These bones of the physical house of Israel are dead, as far as the world is concerned. Notice, this is not an act of these dry bones, it is the gift of life from God. This is speaking of the gift of salvation. Man cannot earn life; it is a gift from God.

Ezekiel 37:6
"And 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."
Note... The order of Making a body as described by the Father Himself. This speaks of the dead bones, which take on new life in Jesus Christ. This, also, is speaking of God strengthening His people Israel. He will give them a body that is pleasing unto Him. Only God can give life. All who have been given this life will know He is the LORD.

Ezekiel 37:7
"So 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."
"Noise", in the verse above, means to call aloud, a voice, thunder, and many other meanings which indicate this, perhaps, is the voice of God. This voice brings life to dead bones. This voice causes the dead in Christ to rise first. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, read from the 13th verse to the end of the chapter. In the sense of the physical house of Israel, God causes them to receive strength, and to get up, and go to Israel.

Ezekiel 37:8
"And 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."
Bones without spirit are not alive. This is a body with flesh and bones, before it receives the Spirit. Physical Israel is just such a house today. They are a body, but the Spirit is not within them. In the sense of the Christians whether Jew or Gentile in makeup, we read the following.
John 3:5-6 "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and [of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

Ezekiel 37:9
"Then 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."
These slain... suggesting violent deaths of people who had once lived. Now they were being made to live again. Of course, the whole picture is symbolic of the nations of Israel who, once alive and in the grace and favor of God, had become dead because of sin, and now were being brought back into proper relationship with God to live again.
The number 4 means universal. This wind is from every direction. The wind of the Spirit of God is what this wind is. It is very similar to the wind in the following verse.
Acts 2:2 "And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting."
We see, in the following Scripture, a time when the Spirit of God will enter into the body of man and cause him to live.
Acts 2:17 "And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:"

Ezekiel 37:10
"So 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."
In the vision, Ezekiel did as he was told and the dead bones became a living nation.
Notice, these are spoken of as an army. This is that army of true believers, filled with the Spirit of God.

In verses 11-14 the energy that keeps God’s prophetic clock running on schedule is the Jewish nation. The gathering of the Jews to a Palestinian homeland is setting the stage for Christ’s return. God promised Ezekiel to restore Israel by returning the Jews to the land God had given Abraham, and by regeneration that people in the land. Even though many Jews have returned there today, most are still not believers.
God will probably use conditions in the Great Tribulation to draw His people to Himself as their savior. Thus “all Israel shall be saved”.
The national turning to God by Israel scripturally coincides with the return of Christ. While many Jews are being saved today, probably the greatest fruit of contemporary evangelistic efforts among them will not be reaped until after the Rapture.

Ezekiel 37:11
"Then 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."
Then... when the vision is completed, the interpretation was given so that there would be no misunderstanding of the true meaning.
The vision concerns Israel not dead churches or Gentiles, as some teach.

Three things Israel said:
1 Our bones are dried
2 Our hope is lost
3 We are cut off

The word "whole" is the secret to this verse. This means the 10 tribes, and also, the two tribes of Israel. In the spiritual sense, this is speaking of the physical house of Israel and the spiritual house of Israel. Another way of saying this is the Christians and the Jews.
Philippians 3:3 "For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,"
The physical house of Israel was so scattered, by the captivity in nations around the world, they could hardly be spoken of as a unit.
We are taught that the body of Christ is made up of many parts {believers}. In Romans chapter 11, we read of the Christians being grafted into the tree. The Jews were the natural branch.

Ezekiel 37:12
"Therefore 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."
The whole house of Israel, not a part of it; hence, there will be no division of the kingdom when this is fulfilled.
Behold... The whole house of Israel are my people, and I will open their graves and cause them to come out of them, and I will bring them into the land of Israel again.
The nations where the Jews are scattered are the symbolic graves of Israel. It is from these that all the tribes of Jacob will be gathered. At that time God will save them and put the Holy Spirit in them, and they will live in His presence eternally.

Ezekiel 37:13-14
"And 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," "And 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."
This was such an impossible thing that happened that it can only be credited to the LORD.
God’s reputation is at stake in the restoration and regeneration of Israel into the Land. He must do what He promised so all know that He is Lord.
We see from this, that it is the Spirit of God that gives the power to live. This had several fulfillment's for the Hebrews. Shortly after the Babylonian captivity, the Israelites returned to their homeland. The present day is another good example of their return to their homeland their own land the promised land of Palestine.
Then... when all this is fulfilled you (all Israel) will know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it. All this remains to be completely fulfilled. Of course it is now beginning to be fulfilled and a sufficient number of Jews have already gone back to their land to make a nation; they have had a nation since A.D. 1948. The prophecy will continue in fulfillment until the whole house of Israel is gathered back at the second advent of Christ to the earth. But the complete fulfillment of these predictions will not be until the Millennium in the future.
Question: What happens when God puts His Holy Spirit within you? Answer: “And Ye shall live”, which is the same as accepting Christ as your Savior today.
Jesus is the quickening Spirit. The Christian will be filled with the Spirit of God.
I Corinthians 15:45 "And so it is written, the first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam [was made] a quickening spirit."