Ezekiel 37:1

THE VALLEY OF DRY BONES;

THE RESTORATION AND REUNION OF JUDAH AND EPHRAIM UNDER MESSIAH

Here is a remarkable prophecy of the ingathering of scattered, discouraged, and disillusioned Israel from the nations to which they had been dispersed, the repatriation of them in their homeland, and also of the unification of Ephraim and Joseph under the benign government of the Lord Jesus Christ. "This is a plain forecast of the conversion of the Jews to Christ."[1]

The first part of the chapter (Ezekiel 37:1-14) employs the vision of the valley of dry bones to teach the return of captive Israel to Palestine, an event which is appropriately illustrated here as a whole army which had been slain with their bones left to bleach in the sun, being suddenly raised to full life and strength! The return of any ethnic people from the borders of any conqueror who had captured and deported the whole people would have been viewed throughout the world of that era as a totally unimaginable and impossible happening. Under the will of God, however, it occurred; and nothing could have any more appropriately symbolized such a development than does this vision of the resurrection of a valley of dry bones.

The remainder of the chapter is devoted to a prophecy of the reunion of Judah and Ephraim under one king, called here "God's servant David," the scriptural name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Messiah.

Ezekiel 37:1-6

"The hand of Jehovah was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of Jehovah, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. And he caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, io, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord Jehovah, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy over these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of Jehovah. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah 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 Jehovah."

THE VISION OF THE VALLEY OF DRY BONES (Ezekiel 37:1-6)

As we understand this, it was an experience that came to Ezekiel in an inspired vision. It is not necessary to suppose that there was actually a whole valley of bleaching, unburied bones. It was the picture that came to Ezekiel in this vision. As we learn from the divine interpretation given a little later, "This prophecy does not refer to a literal resurrection of dead Israelites, but to a revival of the dead nation."[2]

"It almost surpassed conception in those days that a restoration of Israel was even possible."[3] Their state had been destroyed; their king had been captured, blinded and carried away to Babylon to die; countless thousands of the people had been slaughtered; the heart of the nation had been carried to captivity in Babylon; their beloved Jerusalem was destroyed; even the Holy Temple of God had been plundered and burned. No language could adequately describe how dead and hopeless were the peoples' dreams and ambitions.

The people themselves expressed this hopelessness, saying, "Our bones are dried; our hope is lost; we feel ourselves cut off." (Ezekiel 37:11). Skinner believed that this expression by the people might have suggested the figure of the valley of the dry bones.[4] Our own opinion is that God needed no help from the people in his choice of a metaphor.

Scholars are divided over the question of whether or not there are eschatological overtones here relating to the general resurrection at the end of time. Some believe that the meaning is limited to the resurrection and reconstituting of Israel as a unified and visible people.

It appears to this writer that the primary thrust of the passage regards the bringing of new hope and life to the discouraged and defeated Israel.

However, we strongly agree with Plumptre who stated that, "Even if the doctrine of a general resurrection had not been current in Ezekiel's times, this vision was enough to have called it into existence and to have lent strong probability to its truth."[5]

It has seemed very strange to us that several scholars have gone out of their way to affirm that Ezekiel had no knowledge or conviction with reference to life after death. Daniel believed in a general resurrection, and he was contemporary with Ezekiel (Daniel 12:2-4). The ante-Nicene fathers, Tertullian particularly referred this passage to the final resurrection, as did also Jerome.

It has been affirmed, and we believe it, that no orthodox Hebrew ever lived who did not believe that God was able to raise the dead. Certainly Abraham believed it, as it is dogmatically declared in Hebrews 11:19; and it appears to us extremely unlikely that the prophets of God would not also have believed it. In fact Isaiah eloquently confirmed faith in the resurrection of the dead in his great prophecy of Isaiah 25:6-8. (See my comments on this in Vol. 1 of the Major Prophets, pp. 230,231.) Also, Hosea 13:14 speaks of victory over death and the grave, a passage quoted by the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:55.

It would therefore be an incredible mystery if Ezekiel had been ignorant of the writings of the other prophets, and of the conviction of his illustrious ancestor Abraham, and was himself without conviction regarding the resurrection. We cannot accept such a notion.

"Son of man, can these bones live ..." (Ezekiel 37:3)? "This indicates that Ezekiel had learned a lesson which few learn. Situations such as this are better left to Yahweh's providence and knowledge."[6] "This answer by Ezekiel implies that, according to human judgment, it was inconceivable that the dry bones could come to life again."[7] It is noteworthy that the apostle John when confronted with a question regarding his inspired vision in the Apocalypse responded in these same words (Revelation 7:14).