Ezekiel 37
New Living Translation
A Valley of Dry Bones
37 The Lord took hold of me, and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley filled with bones. 2 He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. 3 Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?”
“O Sovereign Lord,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.”
4 Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! 5 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! 6 I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”
7 So I spoke this message, just as he told me. Suddenly as I spoke, there was a rattling noise all across the valley. The bones of each body came together and attached themselves as complete skeletons. 8 Then as I watched, muscles and flesh formed over the bones. Then skin formed to cover their bodies, but they still had no breath in them.
9 Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’”
10 So I spoke the message as he commanded me, and breath came into their bodies. They all came to life and stood up on their feet—a great army.
11 Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel. They are saying, ‘We have become old, dry bones—all hope is gone. Our nation is finished.’ 12 Therefore, prophesy to them and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again. Then I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 When this happens, O my people, you will know that I am the Lord. 14 I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live again and return home to your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken, and I have done what I said. Yes, the Lord has spoken!’”
Reunion of Israel and Judah
15 Again a message came to me from the Lord: 16 “Son of man, take a piece of wood and carve on it these words: ‘This represents Judah and its allied tribes.’ Then take another piece and carve these words on it: ‘This represents Ephraim and the northern tribes of Israel.’[a] 17 Now hold them together in your hand as if they were one piece of wood. 18 When your people ask you what your actions mean, 19 say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take Ephraim and the northern tribes and join them to Judah. I will make them one piece of wood in my hand.’
20 “Then hold out the pieces of wood you have inscribed, so the people can see them. 21 And give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: I will gather the people of Israel from among the nations. I will bring them home to their own land from the places where they have been scattered. 22 I will unify them into one nation on the mountains of Israel. One king will rule them all; no longer will they be divided into two nations or into two kingdoms. 23 They will never again pollute themselves with their idols[b] and vile images and rebellion, for I will save them from their sinful apostasy.[c] I will cleanse them. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God.
24 “My servant David will be their king, and they will have only one shepherd. They will obey my regulations and be careful to keep my decrees. 25 They will live in the land I gave my servant Jacob, the land where their ancestors lived. They and their children and their grandchildren after them will live there forever, generation after generation. And my servant David will be their prince forever. 26 And I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give them their land and increase their numbers,[d] and I will put my Temple among them forever. 27 I will make my home among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 28 And when my Temple is among them forever, the nations will know that I am the Lord, who makes Israel holy.”
Footnotes
- 37:16 Hebrew This is Ephraim’s wood, representing Joseph and all the house of Israel; similarly in 37:19.
- 37:23a The Hebrew term (literally round things) probably alludes to dung.
- 37:23b As in many Hebrew manuscripts and Greek version; Masoretic Text reads from all their dwelling places where they sinned.
- 37:26 Hebrew reads I will give them and increase their numbers; Greek version lacks the entire phrase.
Ezekiel 37
Legacy Standard Bible
Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones
37 The (A)hand of Yahweh was upon me, and He (B)brought me out [a]by the Spirit of Yahweh and caused me to rest in the middle of the (C)valley; and it was full of bones. 2 He caused me to pass among them all around, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley; and behold, they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Son of man, (D)can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord Yahweh, (E)You know.” 4 Then He said to me, “(F)Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, (G)hear the word of Yahweh.’ 5 Thus says Lord Yahweh to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause [b](H)breath to enter you that you may come to life. 6 I will put sinews on you, make flesh come up upon you, cover you with skin, and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will (I)know that I am Yahweh.’”
7 So I prophesied (J)as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a [c]noise, and behold, a rumbling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 And I looked, and behold, sinews were on them, and flesh came up upon them, and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Come from the four [d]winds, O breath, and (K)breathe on these who were killed, that they may (L)come to life.”’” 10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the (M)breath came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an (N)exceedingly great military force.
11 Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the (O)whole house of Israel; behold, they say, ‘Our (P)bones are dried up, and our hope has perished. We are [e]completely (Q)cut off.’ 12 Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I will open your graves and (R)cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 Then you will know that I am Yahweh, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. 14 And I will (S)put My [f]Spirit within you, and you will come to life, and I will [g]place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, Yahweh, have spoken and done it,” declares Yahweh.’”
Israel Will No Longer Be Divided
15 The word of Yahweh came again to me saying, 16 “Now as for you, son of man, take for yourself (T)one stick and write on it, ‘For (U)Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions’; then take another stick and write on it, ‘For (V)Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and all the house of Israel, his companions.’ 17 Then (W)draw them together for yourself one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand. 18 And when the sons of your people speak to you saying, ‘Will you not declare to us (X)what you mean by these?’ 19 say to them, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will put them with it, with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in My hand.”’ 20 And the sticks on which you write will be in your hand before their eyes. 21 And speak to them, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I will (Y)take the sons of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and I will gather them from every side and bring them into their own land; 22 and I will make them (Z)one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and (AA)one king will be king for all of them; and they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms. 23 They also will (AB)no longer defile themselves with their idols or with their detestable things or with any of their transgressions; but (AC)I will save them from all their [h]places of habitation in which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be their God.
Yahweh Cuts a Covenant
24 “And My servant (AD)David will be king over them, and they will all have (AE)one shepherd; and they will walk in My judgments and keep My statutes and do them. 25 They will inhabit the land that I gave to Jacob My servant, which your fathers inhabited; and they will inhabit it, they, and their sons and their sons’ sons, forever; and (AF)David My servant will be their prince forever. 26 And I will cut a (AG)covenant of peace with them; it will be an (AH)everlasting covenant with them. And I will give them the land and (AI)multiply them and will set My (AJ)sanctuary in their midst forever. 27 My [i](AK)dwelling place also will be with them; and (AL)I will be their God, and they will be My people. 28 And the nations will know that I am Yahweh (AM)who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever.”’”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 37:1 Or in
- Ezekiel 37:5 Or spirit, so in ch
- Ezekiel 37:7 Or voice, thunder
- Ezekiel 37:9 Lit spirit, breath; cf. 37:1, 5, 9
- Ezekiel 37:11 Lit cut off to ourselves
- Ezekiel 37:14 Or breath
- Ezekiel 37:14 Or give you rest, cf. 37:1
- Ezekiel 37:23 Or backslidings
- Ezekiel 37:27 Or tabernacle
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