Faith in the Incarnate Son of God

Everyone who believes(A) that Jesus is the Christ(B) is born of God,(C) and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.(D) This is how we know(E) that we love the children of God:(F) by loving God and carrying out his commands. In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands.(G) And his commands are not burdensome,(H) for everyone born of God(I) overcomes(J) the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.(K)

This is the one who came by water and blood(L)—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.(M) For there are three(N) that testify: the[a] Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept human testimony,(O) but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God,(P) which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony.(Q) Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar,(R) because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life,(S) and this life is in his Son.(T) 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.(U)

Concluding Affirmations

13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God(V) so that you may know that you have eternal life.(W) 14 This is the confidence(X) we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.(Y) 15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know(Z) that we have what we asked of him.(AA)

16 If you see any brother or sister commit a sin that does not lead to death, you should pray and God will give them life.(AB) I refer to those whose sin does not lead to death. There is a sin that leads to death.(AC) I am not saying that you should pray about that.(AD) 17 All wrongdoing is sin,(AE) and there is sin that does not lead to death.(AF)

18 We know that anyone born of God(AG) does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one(AH) cannot harm them.(AI) 19 We know that we are children of God,(AJ) and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one.(AK) 20 We know also that the Son of God has come(AL) and has given us understanding,(AM) so that we may know him who is true.(AN) And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.(AO)

21 Dear children,(AP) keep yourselves from idols.(AQ)

Footnotes

  1. 1 John 5:8 Late manuscripts of the Vulgate testify in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. And there are three that testify on earth: the (not found in any Greek manuscript before the fourteenth century)

Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.

By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.

And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.

If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.

10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.

16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.

17 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.

18 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.

19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

Psalm 137

By the rivers of Babylon(A) we sat and wept(B)
    when we remembered Zion.(C)
There on the poplars(D)
    we hung our harps,(E)
for there our captors(F) asked us for songs,
    our tormentors demanded(G) songs of joy;
    they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”(H)

How can we sing the songs of the Lord(I)
    while in a foreign land?
If I forget you,(J) Jerusalem,
    may my right hand forget its skill.
May my tongue cling to the roof(K) of my mouth
    if I do not remember(L) you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem(M)
    my highest joy.

Remember, Lord, what the Edomites(N) did
    on the day Jerusalem fell.(O)
“Tear it down,” they cried,
    “tear it down to its foundations!”(P)
Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,(Q)
    happy is the one who repays you
    according to what you have done to us.
Happy is the one who seizes your infants
    and dashes them(R) against the rocks.

137 By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion.

We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.

For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.

How shall we sing the Lord's song in a strange land?

If I forget thee, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning.

If I do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.

Remember, O Lord, the children of Edom in the day of Jerusalem; who said, Rase it, rase it, even to the foundation thereof.

O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed; happy shall he be, that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us.

Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones.

Hope for the Mountains of Israel

36 “Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel(A) and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says:(B) The enemy said of you, “Aha!(C) The ancient heights(D) have become our possession.(E)”’ Therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because they ravaged(F) and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of people’s malicious talk and slander,(G) therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys,(H) to the desolate ruins(I) and the deserted(J) towns that have been plundered and ridiculed(K) by the rest of the nations around you(L) this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my burning(M) zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, for with glee and with malice in their hearts they made my land their own possession so that they might plunder its pastureland.’(N) Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I speak in my jealous wrath because you have suffered the scorn of the nations.(O) Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand(P) that the nations around you will also suffer scorn.(Q)

“‘But you, mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit(R) for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor; you will be plowed and sown,(S) 10 and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins(T) rebuilt.(U) 11 I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful(V) and become numerous. I will settle people(W) on you as in the past(X) and will make you prosper more than before.(Y) Then you will know that I am the Lord. 12 I will cause people, my people Israel, to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance;(Z) you will never again deprive them of their children.

13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because some say to you, “You devour people(AA) and deprive your nation of its children,” 14 therefore you will no longer devour people or make your nation childless, declares the Sovereign Lord. 15 No longer will I make you hear the taunts of the nations, and no longer will you suffer the scorn of the peoples or cause your nation to fall, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AB)’”

Israel’s Restoration Assured

16 Again the word of the Lord came to me: 17 “Son of man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land, they defiled it by their conduct and their actions. Their conduct was like a woman’s monthly uncleanness(AC) in my sight.(AD) 18 So I poured out(AE) my wrath on them because they had shed blood in the land and because they had defiled it with their idols. 19 I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered(AF) through the countries; I judged them according to their conduct and their actions.(AG) 20 And wherever they went among the nations they profaned(AH) my holy name, for it was said of them, ‘These are the Lord’s people, and yet they had to leave his land.’(AI) 21 I had concern for my holy name, which the people of Israel profaned among the nations where they had gone.(AJ)

22 “Therefore say to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name,(AK) which you have profaned(AL) among the nations where you have gone.(AM) 23 I will show the holiness of my great name,(AN) which has been profaned(AO) among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord,(AP) declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy(AQ) through you before their eyes.(AR)

24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.(AS) 25 I will sprinkle(AT) clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse(AU) you from all your impurities(AV) and from all your idols.(AW) 26 I will give you a new heart(AX) and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone(AY) and give you a heart of flesh.(AZ) 27 And I will put my Spirit(BA) in you and move you to follow my decrees(BB) and be careful to keep my laws.(BC) 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people,(BD) and I will be your God.(BE) 29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine(BF) upon you. 30 I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.(BG) 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices.(BH) 32 I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord. Be ashamed(BI) and disgraced for your conduct, people of Israel!(BJ)

33 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day I cleanse(BK) you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins(BL) will be rebuilt.(BM) 34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. 35 They will say, “This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden;(BN) the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.(BO) 36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.’(BP)

37 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea(BQ) and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep,(BR) 38 as numerous as the flocks for offerings(BS) at Jerusalem during her appointed festivals. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(BT)

The Valley of Dry Bones

37 The hand of the Lord was on me,(BU) and he brought me out by the Spirit(BV) of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley;(BW) it was full of bones.(BX) He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.(BY)

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!(BZ) This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath[a] enter you, and you will come to life.(CA) I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.(CB)’”

So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.

Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath;(CC) prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds(CD) and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” 10 So I prophesied as he commanded(CE) me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.(CF)

11 Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’(CG) 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.(CH) 13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord,(CI) when I open your graves and bring you up from them.(CJ) 14 I will put my Spirit(CK) in you and you will live, and I will settle(CL) you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.(CM)’”

One Nation Under One King

15 The word of the Lord came to me: 16 “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites(CN) associated with him.(CO)’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’ 17 Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.(CP)

18 “When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’(CQ) 19 say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them into a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’(CR) 20 Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on 21 and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.(CS) 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel.(CT) There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.(CU) 23 They will no longer defile(CV) themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding,[b](CW) and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.(CX)

24 “‘My servant David(CY) will be king(CZ) over them, and they will all have one shepherd.(DA) They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.(DB) 25 They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your ancestors lived.(DC) They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever,(DD) and David my servant will be their prince forever.(DE) 26 I will make a covenant of peace(DF) with them; it will be an everlasting covenant.(DG) I will establish them and increase their numbers,(DH) and I will put my sanctuary among them(DI) forever.(DJ) 27 My dwelling place(DK) will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.(DL) 28 Then the nations will know that I the Lord make Israel holy,(DM) when my sanctuary is among them forever.(DN)’”

The Lord’s Great Victory Over the Nations

38 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face against Gog,(DO) of the land of Magog,(DP) the chief prince of[c] Meshek and Tubal;(DQ) prophesy against him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of[d] Meshek and Tubal.(DR) I will turn you around, put hooks(DS) in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords.(DT) Persia, Cush[e](DU) and Put(DV) will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer(DW) with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah(DX) from the far north(DY) with all its troops—the many nations with you.

“‘Get ready; be prepared,(DZ) you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. After many days(EA) you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations(EB) to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety.(EC) You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm;(ED) you will be like a cloud(EE) covering the land.(EF)

10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind(EG) and you will devise an evil scheme.(EH) 11 You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people(EI)—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars.(EJ) 12 I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the center of the land.[f] 13 Sheba(EK) and Dedan(EL) and the merchants of Tarshish(EM) and all her villages[g] will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?(EN)”’

14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety,(EO) will you not take notice of it? 15 You will come from your place in the far north,(EP) you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army.(EQ) 16 You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud(ER) that covers the land.(ES) In days to come, Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me when I am proved holy(ET) through you before their eyes.(EU)

17 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You are the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel. At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against them. 18 This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign Lord. 19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake(EV) in the land of Israel.(EW) 20 The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble(EX) at my presence. The mountains will be overturned,(EY) the cliffs will crumble(EZ) and every wall will fall to the ground.(FA) 21 I will summon a sword(FB) against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.(FC) 22 I will execute judgment(FD) on him with plague and bloodshed;(FE) I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones(FF) and burning sulfur(FG) on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.(FH) 23 And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(FI)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 37:5 The Hebrew for this word can also mean wind or spirit (see verses 6-14).
  2. Ezekiel 37:23 Many Hebrew manuscripts (see also Septuagint); most Hebrew manuscripts all their dwelling places where they sinned
  3. Ezekiel 38:2 Or the prince of Rosh,
  4. Ezekiel 38:3 Or Gog, prince of Rosh,
  5. Ezekiel 38:5 That is, the upper Nile region
  6. Ezekiel 38:12 The Hebrew for this phrase means the navel of the earth.
  7. Ezekiel 38:13 Or her strong lions

36 Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord:

Thus saith the Lord God; Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha, even the ancient high places are ours in possession:

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:

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;

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.

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:

Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are about you, they shall bear their shame.

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.

For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown:

10 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 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 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 Thus saith the Lord God; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations:

14 Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord God.

15 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.

16 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

17 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 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 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 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 But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.

22 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 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.

24 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 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 an heart of flesh.

27 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 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 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 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 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 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.

33 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 And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.

35 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 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 Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.

38 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.

37 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,

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.

And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.

Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.

Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

13 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,

14 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.

15 The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying,

16 Moreover, 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:

17 And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.

18 And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these?

19 Say 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.

20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.

21 And 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:

22 And 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.

23 Neither 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.

24 And 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.

25 And 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.

26 Moreover 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.

27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

28 And the heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

38 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,

And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:

And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:

Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:

Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.

Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.

After many days thou shalt be visited: in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many people with thee.

10 Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought:

11 And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages; I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates,

12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.

13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog, Thus saith the Lord God; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?

15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou, and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company, and a mighty army:

16 And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.

17 Thus saith the Lord God; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?

18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord God, that my fury shall come up in my face.

19 For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;

20 So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.

21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God: every man's sword shall be against his brother.

22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.

23 Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord.