Ezekiel 37:1–14 (NRSV)
Read Ezekiel 37:1–14 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 37The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. Verse 2He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. Verse 3He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord God, you know." Verse 4Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Verse 5Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. Verse 6I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord." Verse 7So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. Verse 8I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Verse 9Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." Verse 10I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude. Verse 11Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.' Verse 12Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Verse 13And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. Verse 14I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act," says the Lord.
Devotion
No matter where you are in the world, my guess is that you have experienced a storm that has stopped you and forced you to seek shelter or pull over to the side of the road. I have experienced this feeling in the middle of a dust storm turned monsoon in the Arizona desert, a torrential downpour in downtown Chicago, and a bitter-cold blizzard in the middle of Minnesota. Each of them came in strong, sudden, and forceful.
I think grief is like that. Our text today brings us deep into the valley of grief with a vision that is raw and palpable. It feels that all hope is lost and the dry, brittle bones will simply blow away in the wind. Yet, this wind is breath and this breath brings life. God has bound together our bones with hope. This storm is temporary and this hope will endure forever.
Prayer
O God of hope, bind us together in your love and compassion. May each day bring us closer to you. Amen.
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