September 19
Ezekiel 36:22 — 38:23
 

22 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Not for YOUR sakes am I doing [it], O house of Israel, but for my holy name, which YOU have profaned among the nations where YOU have come in.”’ 23 ‘And I shall certainly sanctify my great name, which was being profaned among the nations, which YOU profaned in the midst of them; and the nations will have to know that I am Jehovah,’ is the utterance of the Sovereign Lord Jehovah, ‘when I am sanctified among YOU before their eyes. 24 And I will take YOU out of the nations and collect YOU together out of all the lands and bring YOU in upon YOUR soil. 25 And I will sprinkle upon YOU clean water, and YOU will become clean; from all YOUR impurities and from all YOUR dungy idols I shall cleanse YOU. 26 And I will give YOU a new heart, and a new spirit I shall put inside YOU, and I will take away the heart of stone from YOUR flesh and give YOU a heart of flesh. 27 And my spirit I shall put inside YOU, and I will act so that in my regulations YOU will walk, and my judicial decisions YOU will keep and actually carry out. 28 And YOU will certainly dwell in the land that I gave to YOUR forefathers, and YOU must become my people and I myself shall become YOUR God.’

29 “‘And I will save YOU from all YOUR impurities and call to the grain and make it abound, and I shall put upon YOU no famine. 30 And I shall certainly make the fruitage of the tree abound, and the produce of the field, in order that YOU may no more receive among the nations the reproach of famine. 31 And YOU will be bound to remember YOUR bad ways and YOUR dealings that were not good, and YOU will be bound to feel a loathing at YOUR own person on account of YOUR errors and on account of YOUR detestable things. 32 Not for YOUR sakes am I doing [this],’ is the utterance of the Sovereign Lord Jehovah, ‘let it be known to YOU. Be ashamed and feel humiliation because of YOUR ways, O house of Israel.’

33 “This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said, ‘In the day of my cleansing YOU from all YOUR errors I will also cause the cities to be inhabited, and the devastated places must be rebuilt. 34 And the desolated land itself will be cultivated, whereas it had become a desolate waste before the eyes of every passerby. 35 And people will certainly say: “That land yonder which was laid desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the cities that were a waste and that were laid desolate and that were torn down are fortified; they have become inhabited.” 36 And the nations that will be left remaining round about YOU will have to know that I myself, Jehovah, have built the things torn down, I have planted what has been laid desolate. I myself, Jehovah, have spoken and I have done [it].’

37 “This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said, ‘This is what I shall yet let myself be searched for by the house of Israel to do for them: I shall multiply them like a flock with men. 38 Like a flock of holy persons, like the flock of Jerusalem in her festal seasons, thus the cities that had been a waste will become full of a flock of men; and people will have to know that I am Jehovah.’”

37 The hand of Jehovah proved to be upon me, so that he brought me forth in the spirit of Jehovah and set me down in the midst of the valley plain, and it was full of bones. 2 And he had me pass along by them all round about, and, look! there were very many on the surface of the valley plain and, look! they were very dry. 3 And he began to say to me: “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” To that I said: “Sovereign Lord Jehovah, you yourself well know.” 4 And he went on to say to me: “Prophesy over these bones, and you must say to them, ‘O YOU dry bones, hear the word of Jehovah:

5 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said to these bones: “Here I am bringing into YOU breath, and YOU must come to life. 6 And I will put upon YOU sinews and cause to come upon YOU flesh, and I will overlay upon YOU skin and put in YOU breath, and YOU must come to life; and YOU will have to know that I am Jehovah.”’”

7 And I prophesied just as I had been commanded. And a sound began to occur as soon as I prophesied, and here there was a rattling, and bones began to approach, bone to its bone. 8 And I saw, and, look! upon them sinews themselves and flesh itself came up and skin began to be overlaid upon them above. But as regards breath, there was none in them.

9 And he went on saying to me: “Prophesy to the wind. Prophesy, O son of man, and you must say to the wind, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “From the four winds come in, O wind, and blow upon these killed people, that they may come to life.”’”

10 And I prophesied just as he had commanded me, and the breath proceeded to come into them, and they began to live and stand upon their feet, a very, very great military force.

11 And he went on to say to me: “Son of man, as regards these bones, they are the whole house of Israel. Here they are saying, ‘Our bones have become dry, and our hope has perished. We have been severed off to ourselves.’ 12 Therefore prophesy, and you must say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Here I am opening YOUR burial places, and I will bring YOU up out of YOUR burial places, O my people, and bring YOU in upon the soil of Israel. 13 And YOU will have to know that I am Jehovah when I open YOUR burial places and when I bring YOU up out of YOUR burial places, O my people.”’ 14 ‘And I will put my spirit in YOU, and YOU must come to life, and I will settle YOU upon YOUR soil; and YOU will have to know that I myself, Jehovah, have spoken and I have done [it],’ is the utterance of Jehovah.”

15 And the word of Jehovah continued to occur to me, saying: 16 “And as for you, O son of man, take for yourself a stick and write upon it, ‘For Judah and for the sons of Israel his partners.’ And take another stick and write upon it, ‘For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and all the house of Israel his partners.’ 17 And cause them to approach each other into one stick for yourself, and they will actually become just one in your hand. 18 And when the sons of your people begin to say to you, ‘Will you not tell us what these things mean to you?’ 19 speak to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Here I am taking the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his partners, and I will put them upon it, that is, the stick of Judah, and I shall actually make them one stick, and they must become one in my hand.”’ 20 And the sticks upon which you write must prove to be in your hand before their eyes.

21 “And speak to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Here I am taking the sons of Israel from among the nations to which they have gone, and I will collect them together from round about and bring them onto their soil. 22 And I shall actually make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king is what all of them will come to have as king, and they will no longer continue to be two nations, nor will they be divided any longer into two kingdoms. 23 And they will no longer defile themselves with their dungy idols and with their disgusting things and with all their transgressions; and I shall certainly save them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them, and they must become my people, and I myself shall become their God.

24 “‘“And my servant David will be king over them, and one shepherd is what they will all come to have; and in my judicial decisions they will walk, and my statutes they will keep, and they will certainly carry them out. 25 And they will actually dwell upon the land that I gave to my servant, to Jacob, in which YOUR forefathers dwelt, and they will actually dwell upon it, they and their sons and their sons’ sons to time indefinite, and David my servant will be their chieftain to time indefinite.

26 “‘“And I will conclude with them a covenant of peace; an indefinitely lasting covenant is what there will come to be with them. And I will place them and multiply them and place my sanctuary in the midst of them to time indefinite. 27 And my tabernacle will actually prove to be over them, and I shall certainly become their God, and they themselves will become my people. 28 And the nations will have to know that I, Jehovah, am sanctifying Israel when my sanctuary comes to be in the midst of them to time indefinite.”’”

38 And the word of Jehovah continued to occur to me, saying: 2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog [of] the land of Magog, the head chieftain of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him. 3 And you must say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Here I am against you, O Gog, you head chieftain of Meshech and Tubal. 4 And I shall certainly turn you around and put hooks in your jaws and bring you forth with all your military force, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in perfect taste, a numerous congregation, with large shield and buckler, all of them handling swords; 5 Persia, Ethiopia and Put with them, all of them with buckler and helmet; 6 Gomer and all its bands, the house of Togarmah, [of] the remotest parts of the north, and all its bands, many peoples with you.

7 “‘“Be ready, and let there be preparation on your part, you with all your congregation, those congregated alongside you, and you must become their guard.

8 “‘“After many days you will be given attention. In the final part of the years you will come to the land [of people] brought back from the sword, collected together out of many peoples, onto the mountains of Israel, that have proved to be a constantly devastated place; even [a land] that has been brought forth from the peoples, [where] they have dwelt in security, all of them. 9 And you will be bound to come up. Like a storm you will come in. Like clouds to cover the land you will become, you and all your bands and many peoples with you.”’

10 “This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said, ‘And it must occur in that day that things will come up into your heart, and you will certainly think up an injurious scheme; 11 and you must say: “I shall go up against the land of open rural country. I shall come in upon those having no disturbance, dwelling in security, all of them dwelling without wall, and they do not have even bar and doors.” 12 It will be to get a big spoil and to do much plundering, in order to turn your hand back upon devastated places reinhabited and upon a people gathered together out of the nations, [one] that is accumulating wealth and property, [those] who are dwelling in the center of the earth.

13 “‘Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all its maned young lions—they will say to you: “Is it to get a big spoil that you are coming in? Is it to do much plundering that you have congregated your congregation, in order to carry off silver and gold, to take wealth and property, to get a very great spoil?”’

14 “Therefore prophesy, O son of man, and you must say to Gog, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said: “Will it not be in that day when my people Israel are dwelling in security that you will know [it]? 15 And you will certainly come from your place, from the remotest parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great congregation, even a numerous military force. 16 And you will be bound to come up against my people Israel, like clouds to cover the land. In the final part of the days it will occur, and I shall certainly bring you against my land, for the purpose that the nations may know me when I sanctify myself in you before their eyes, O Gog.”’

17 “This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said, ‘Are you the same one of whom I spoke in the former days by the hand of my servants the prophets of Israel, who were prophesying in those days—years—as to bringing you in upon them?’

18 “‘And it must occur in that day, in the day when Gog comes in upon the soil of Israel,’ is the utterance of the Sovereign Lord Jehovah, ‘that my rage will come up into my nose. 19 And in my ardor, in the fire of my fury, I shall have to speak. Surely in that day a great quaking will occur in the soil of Israel. 20 And because of me the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and the wild beasts of the field and all the creeping things that are creeping on the ground and all mankind that are upon the surface of the ground will be bound to shiver, and the mountains will actually be thrown down and the steep ways will have to fall, and to the earth even every wall will fall.’

21 “‘And I will call forth against him throughout all my mountainous region a sword,’ is the utterance of the Sovereign Lord Jehovah. ‘Against his own brother the sword of each one will come to be. 22 And I will bring myself into judgment with him, with pestilence and with blood; and a flooding downpour and hailstones, fire and sulphur I shall rain down upon him and upon his bands and upon the many peoples that will be with him. 23 And I shall certainly magnify myself and sanctify myself and make myself known before the eyes of many nations; and they will have to know that I am Jehovah.’