“This is what the Sovereign Lord says:”
Over and over in Ezekiel 36 and 37 is the phrase,
“This is what the Sovereign Lord says:”
According to The Journey (A Bible For Seeking God and
Understanding Life:
Sovereign: -having authority over everything; often used in
Scripture as a descriptive title for God, ‘Sovereign Lord.”
Sin after sin, disgrace after disgrace, offense after
offense, and idol after idol He is there. Disappointed? Probably, but forgiving
beyond our ability to comprehend. Angry? Likely, yet willing to give unclean
hearts another opportunity time and time again. Ezekiel 36: 20-22 “And wherever
they went among the nations they profaned my holy name, for it was said of
them, “These are the Lord’s people, and yet they had to leave his land. I had
concern for my holy name, which the house of Israel profaned among the nations
where they had gone.” After everything the Lord had done for the people of
Israel, this was the thanks He got. Yet still, in Ezekiel 36: 37-38 hear His
words: “This is what the Sovereign Lord
says: Once again I will yield to the plea of the house of Israel and do this
for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep, as numerous as the
flocks for offerings at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts. So will the ruined
cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the
Lord.”
The Valley of Dry Bones in Ezekiel 37, illustrates what
Israel was like, and reminds us of our world today in many ways. The people
were dried up and all hope was gone. There the dry bones laid, in the middle of
a valley, lifeless and worthless. Once they heard the word of the Lord, life
began to return to those bones. Ezekiel 37:14 “I will put my spirit in you and
you will live……Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done
it declares the Lord.”
Though these chapters in Ezekiel are pretty deep, the
truth remains clear. We need God’s word to truly be alive. He will forgive if
our hearts are sincere. He says near the end of
Chapter 37, “I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an
everlasting covenant…….My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their
God, and they will be my people. Then the nations will know that I the Lord
make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.” Forever,…… then
that includes us.
Read Ezekiel 36 and 37
Listen to Ezekiel 36 and 37
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