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EZEKIEL 36
page 759
Sovereign Lord says: I have taken a solemn
oath that those nations will soon have their own
shame to endure.
8 “But the mountains of Israel will produce
heavy crops of fruit for my people—for they will
be coming home again soon! 9 See, I care about
you, and I will pay attention to you. Your ground
will be plowed and your crops planted. 10 I will
greatly increase the population of Israel, and
the ruined cities will be rebuilt and filled with
people. 11 I will increase not only the people, but
also your animals. O mountains of Israel, I will
bring people to live on you once again. I will
make you even more prosperous than you were
before. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
12 I will cause my people to walk on you once
again, and you will be their territory. You will
never again rob them of their children.
13 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The
other nations taunt you, saying, ‘Israel is a land
that devours its own people and robs them of
their children!’ 14 But you will never again devour your people or rob them of their children,
says the Sovereign Lord. 15 I will not let you hear
those other nations insult you, and you will no
longer be mocked by them. You will not be a
land that causes its nation to fall, says the Sovereign Lord.”
16 Then this further message came to me from
the Lord: 17 “Son of man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land, they defiled
it by the evil way they lived. To me their conduct
was as unclean as a woman’s menstrual cloth.
18 They polluted the land with murder and the
worship of idols,* so I poured out my fury on
them. 19 I scattered them to many lands to punish them for the evil way they had lived. 20 But
when they were scattered among the nations,
they brought shame on my holy name. For the
nations said, ‘These are the people of the Lord,
but he couldn’t keep them safe in his own land!’
21 Then I was concerned for my holy name, on
which my people brought shame among the
nations.
22 “Therefore, give the people of Israel this
message from the Sovereign Lord: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it.
I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which
you brought shame while you were scattered
among the nations. 23 I will show how holy my
great name is—the name on which you brought
shame among the nations. And when I reveal
my holiness through you before their very eyes,
says the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will
know that I am the Lord. 24 For I will gather you
up from all the nations and bring you home
again to your land.
25 “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you,
and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed
36:18 The Hebrew term (literally round things) probably
alludes to dung; also in 36:25. 36:26 Hebrew a heart of flesh.
away, and you will no longer worship idols.
26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put
a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony,
stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.* 27 And I will put my Spirit in you so
that you will follow my decrees and be careful
to obey my regulations.
28 “And you will live in Israel, the land I gave
your ancestors long ago. You will be my people,
and I will be your God. 29 I will cleanse you of
your filthy behavior. I will give you good crops
of grain, and I will send no more famines on
the land. 30 I will give you great harvests from
your fruit trees and fields, and never again will
the surrounding nations be able to scoff at your
land for its famines. 31 Then you will remember
your past sins and despise yourselves for all
the detestable things you did. 32 But remember,
says the Sovereign Lord, I am not doing this
because you deserve it. O my people of Israel,
you should be utterly ashamed of all you have
done!
33 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
When I cleanse you from your sins, I will repopulate your cities, and the ruins will be rebuilt. 34 The fields that used to lie empty and
desolate in plain view of everyone will again be
farmed. 35 And when I bring you back, people
will say, ‘This former wasteland is now like the
Garden of Eden! The abandoned and ruined
cities now have strong walls and are filled
with people!’ 36 Then the surrounding nations
that survive will know that I, the Lord, have
rebuilt the ruins and replanted the wasteland.
For I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do
what I say.
37 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am
ready to hear Israel’s prayers and to increase
their numbers like a flock. 38 They will be as numerous as the sacred flocks that fill Jerusalem’s
streets at the time of her festivals. The ruined
cities will be crowded with people once more,
and everyone will know that I am the Lord.”
• Desires
E ZE K I E L 36:26
If we truly desire to follow God, he will
put his Spirit in us; this will enable us to
desire the life we were created to live. He
who gave us the capacity to desire can
also help us direct those desires. He who
gave us the capacity to hunger and thirst
can also help us control our appetites.
God offers us a fresh start. But we must
rely on his strength and resources to
develop healthy desires and follow
through on them.