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BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 5: Ezekiel 37:15-28

by atozmom, posted in BSF Exile & Return: A Time to Build 2025/2026

Summary of Ezekiel 37:15-28

God promises to bring together His people (Judah and Israel) into one land, one nation, with one king. They will be God’s people, and He will be their God.

David will be king over them. They will keep God’s decrees. They will live forever in the land God gives them. God will make an everlasting covenant with His people.

BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 5: Ezekiel 37:15-28

11a) God told Ezekiel to take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’  Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.

b) It illustrates how God promises to bring together His people (Judah and Israel) into one land, one nation, with one king.

12) The covenant of peace and our eternal salvation that God is speaking about that will be everlasting is the New Covenant granted to us by our belief in Christ. Jesus is an ancestor from the line of David.

13a) God will dwell with us forever. He will always be our God. He will make His people holy forever.

b) Christians can be role models to others of what God can do in their lives since He has done so much in the lives of His people. There is a different way to live than what culture says, and Christians can demonstrate this in their daily lives.

14) The knowledge that He is always with me, working for me and through me, and everything is for my good and will work for good. I also know that circumstances are temporal, but He and His promises are forever. I’ve learned that God loves us so much that He always cares for us, comforts us, and provides for us. He is always there when we need Him. Nothing is without His knowledge. He guides us and protects us always.

Conclusions BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 5: Ezekiel 37:15-28

Great lesson on how God always watches over His people and works for good in their lives.

End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 5: Ezekiel 37:15-28

Ephraim refers to Israel here since Ephraim was the largest and most powerful tribe in the Northern Kingdom. We see this a couple of times in the Old Testament.

Despite the people having been scattered, they are all still God’s people. All would be restored.

Purity, cleansing, and relationship with God are all the result of the New Covenant.

Ezekiel had previously said David would be the king (Ezekiel 34:23-25).

While we can see Jesus in this passage, the clear reference is to David. We reason this because God would not have said David specifically if He hadn’t meant him.

That being said, God does seem to describe the New Covenant here with his reference of peace  (Ezekiel 34:25 and Isaiah 54:10), everlasting (Ezekiel 16:60, Isaiah 55:3, and Hebrews 13:20), and the multiplication of His people (Ezekiel 36:10-11).

The sanctuary is referring to the temple, as Ezekiel continues to outline in Ezekiel 40-48.

God is alive, and Israel is His people.

END NOTES SUMMARIZED

This passage, centered on the prophetic sign-act of joining two sticks, succinctly outlines God’s plan for the complete political and spiritual restoration of Israel.

The analysis can be broken down into four key movements:

  1. The Sign-Act: God commands Ezekiel to take two sticks, one representing the southern kingdom of Judah and the other representing the northern kingdom of Joseph/Ephraim, and join them into a single stick. This physical act serves as a powerful, tangible symbol of the promise to come.
  2. The Promise of Reunification: The core message is the end of the centuries-long division of Israel. God Himself will gather His people from exile and reunite the two estranged kingdoms into one nation, permanently ending the political schism.
  3. The Restored Kingdom: This unified nation will be ruled by one king, identified as “my servant David,” signifying the restoration of the ideal Davidic monarchy. This unified kingdom will be characterized by spiritual purity (cleansing from idolatry) and obedience to God’s laws, all sealed by an everlasting “covenant of peace.”
  4. The Climax of Divine Presence: The ultimate goal and guarantee of this restoration is God setting His sanctuary (dwelling place) in their midst forever. This permanent, divine presence is the final seal on their security and serves as the ultimate witness to the surrounding nations that Yahweh is the one true God who has set Israel apart for Himself.

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BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 4: Ezekiel 37:1-14

by atozmom, posted in BSF Exile & Return: A Time to Build 2025/2026

Summary of Ezekiel 37:1-14

Ezekiel saw a valley of bones while in the Spirit of the Lord. The Lord told Ezekiel to prophesy over the bones to come back to life. He did as commanded, and the bones obeyed.

The Lord says these bones are the bones of the people of Israel. God will bring them back to Israel, so they will know He is God. He will breathe His Spirit in them so that they will live.

BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 4: Ezekiel 37:1-14

8 ) Ezekiel saw dry bones in a valley. His answer reveals that He knows that God can do anything He wants, and God knows everything.

9a) The Lord told Ezekiel to prophesy over the bones to come back to life. He did as commanded, and the bones obeyed. The bones came together. Tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin, but there was no breath in them.

b) The second time Ezekiel prophesied, the bones came to life fully with breath.

10a) The Lord says these bones are the bones of the people of Israel. God will bring them back to Israel, so they will know He is God. He will breathe His Spirit in them so that they will live.

b) What has God NOT done? Everything is from God. He has blessed me beyond my wildest dreams, and while I have my own problems and issues, He is the One behind it all.

Conclusions BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 4: Ezekiel 37:1-14

I love this visual of God giving life to bones, like He gives us life via the Holy Spirit. So powerful!

End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 4: Ezekiel 37:1-14

Note that the bones were just lying around. This means they did not receive a proper burial, so the people who died were most likely disgraced.

This was a resurrection by God, a restoration of life. God’s words gave the bones life.

We can be reborn with God’s words, too.

Ezekiel 37:1-14 is about God’s promised restoration of Israel. God was referring to the restoration of His people from Babylon and Assyria, but many believe it speaks to the Second Coming, too.

END NOTES SUMMARIZED

Ezekiel 37:1-14 presents the powerful vision of the Valley of Dry Bones to deliver a message of radical hope to a despairing Israel. The analysis breaks down as follows:

  1. The Problem: The vision begins with a scene of utter death and hopelessness—a valley full of bones that are “very dry,” signifying a long-dead state. God explicitly identifies these bones as “the whole house of Israel,” who are in exile, saying, “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.”
  2. The Process: God demonstrates His power through a two-stage restoration, commanding the prophet to participate. First, Ezekiel prophesies, and a physical reassembly occurs: a rattling sound, bones coming together, and the appearance of sinews, flesh, and skin. However, this creates an army of lifeless bodies. The second stage requires a prophecy to the “breath” (or Spirit), which comes and animates the bodies, bringing them to life as a vast army.
  3. The Promise: The vision is not about individual, literal resurrection but is a potent metaphor for national and spiritual restoration. God promises to reverse Israel’s “death” in exile. He will “open your graves,” bring His people back to the land of Israel, and, most importantly, put His Spirit in them, causing them to live.

In essence, the passage is God’s dramatic answer to Israel’s hopelessness, demonstrating that no situation is beyond His power to restore. He can bring back His people from a state of national death, renewing them both physically (returning them to the land) and spiritually (indwelling them with His Spirit).

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BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 3: Ezekiel 36:24-38

by atozmom, posted in BSF Exile & Return: A Time to Build 2025/2026

Summary of Ezekiel 36:24-38

Ezekiel then relays God’s promises to His people. God will bring them back home, cleanse them from their sins, give them a new spirit and flesh, and He will give them the Holy Spirit within. They will be His people, and God will be their God. They will prosper because of God’s desire to keep His name holy.

God will restore His people so that all (the Israelites and the other nations) will know He is God.

BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 3: Ezekiel 36:24-38

5a) God will bring them back home, cleanse them from their sins, give them a new spirit and flesh, and He will give them the Holy Spirit within. He will ensure they are abundant.

b) When Jesus died, all believers received the Holy Spirit as their guide in this world.

The promises in Ezekiel 36:24-30 are considered by Christians to be a foundational Old Testament preview of the spiritual realities of the New Covenant, which is fulfilled in the person and work of Jesus Christ. The passage provides a rich blueprint for what happens in the heart of every person who experiences salvation.

How Ezekiel’s Promises Relate to Salvation in Christ

The prophecy in Ezekiel moves beyond a mere physical restoration of national Israel to describe a deep, internal, and spiritual transformation that directly parallels Christian salvation:

  1. Gathering and Cleansing (vv. 24-25):
    • Ezekiel’s Promise: God will gather His people from the nations and cleanse them from their sin (“sprinkle clean water on you”).
    • Salvation in Christ: In Christ, God gathers people from every nation, tribe, and tongue into one body, the Church (Revelation 5:9). This spiritual gathering rescues us from the “domain of darkness” (Colossians 1:13). The cleansing is fulfilled not by literal water but by the blood of Christ, which “cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Salvation brings complete forgiveness and justification, declaring us clean before God.
  2. A New Heart and Spirit (v. 26):
    • Ezekiel’s Promise: God will perform a divine “heart transplant,” removing the unresponsive “heart of stone” and providing a living, receptive “heart of flesh.”
    • Salvation in Christ: This is a perfect description of regeneration, or being “born again” (John 3:3-7). Before salvation, the human heart is described as “hardened” and unresponsive to God. Through Christ, we are made a “new creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17), with new desires and the ability to love and respond to God.
  3. The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit (v. 27):
    • Ezekiel’s Promise: God will put His own Spirit within His people, which will cause them to walk in His ways and obey His laws.
    • Salvation in Christ: This is a hallmark of the New Covenant. Upon salvation, every believer is sealed with and indwelt by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14). The Spirit is the agent of sanctification; He empowers believers from the inside out to live a life that pleases God (Galatians 5:16, 22-23). Obedience is no longer a matter of external rule-following but the fruit of the Spirit’s internal work.
  4. Restored Relationship and Provision (vv. 28-30):
    • Ezekiel’s Promise: The covenant relationship will be restored (“you shall be my people, and I will be your God”), and God will provide for and deliver His people.
    • Salvation in Christ: Through Christ, we are adopted as children of God (Galatians 4:4-7) and enter into this restored covenant relationship. The promise of provision is fulfilled in Christ, who supplies all our spiritual needs and grants us an eternal inheritance (Ephesians 1:3, Philippians 4:19).

Other Scripture That Comes to Mind

The themes in Ezekiel 36 echo throughout the New Testament. Here are some of the most prominent connections:

  • The New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34): This is the most direct parallel. Jeremiah prophesies a New Covenant where God says, “I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.” This is precisely the “new heart” and internal law that Ezekiel describes. The book of Hebrews quotes this passage extensively to explain Christ’s work (Hebrews 8:8-12).
  • Regeneration and Cleansing (Titus 3:5): Paul explicitly connects cleansing and spiritual renewal: “…he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”
  • The Heart of Stone and Flesh (2 Corinthians 3:3): Paul uses the same imagery as Ezekiel: “And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”
  • The Necessity of the New Birth (John 3:3-7): Jesus’ famous conversation with Nicodemus about being “born again” by “water and the Spirit” directly reflects Ezekiel’s prophecy of being cleansed by water and given a new Spirit.
  • The Indwelling Spirit as a Source of Life (Romans 8:9-11): “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you… If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

6) Grief over our sin can help us not to sin again and to repent, turn to Jesus, and live our fullest lives. It makes us humble, knowing all is by the grace of God, and this grief is profitable because it leads to a deeper gratitude, a more passionate worship, and a greater love for the God who saved us not because we were good, but because He is gracious.

7) I hope others see God in me when they look at me and see His goodness and glory. God has provided for me, protected me, comforted me, and guided me when I’ve needed it. He has turned me towards Him. And, Jesus has saved me for all of eternity, a true gift from God. The result is more appreciation for God and hopefully more converts to Jesus.

End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 3: Ezekiel 36:24-38

God promises to bring His people back to their land and cleanse them spiritually (via the New Covenant). He will give them a new nature, along with the Holy Spirit. God will bless the land. This work would be a powerful testimony to the nations around Israel of God’s absolute power.

END NOTES SUMMARIZED

This passage is a divine promise of Israel’s complete restoration, moving from physical return to deep spiritual renewal. It can be analyzed in three succinct parts:

  1. The Action: Radical Regeneration. God promises a multi-faceted restoration initiated entirely by Him. It begins with a physical gathering of His people from the nations back to their own land. This is immediately followed by a profound spiritual cleansing (“I will sprinkle clean water on you”) that purges them from the filth of their idolatry. The core of the promise is a divine “heart transplant”: God will remove their unresponsive “heart of stone” and give them a living “heart of flesh,” enabling them to obey. He will put His own Spirit within them, creating an internal transformation that leads to obedience not by force, but by a changed nature.
  2. The Result: National & Agricultural Renewal. The internal, spiritual renewal of the people has a direct, visible impact on their external world. The once desolate and ruined land will be cultivated and become astonishingly fruitful, compared to the “Garden of Eden.” The population will multiply, and the ruined cities will be rebuilt and inhabited. This external prosperity serves as undeniable public evidence of God’s miraculous intervention.
  3. The Motivation: God’s Reputation and Israel’s Repentance. The ultimate purpose of this grand restoration is twofold. Primarily, it is for the sake of God’s holy name (as established in the previous verses), so the nations will see His power and know that He is the LORD. Secondarily, the memory of their past sins, contrasted with God’s incredible blessing, will cause the people of Israel to feel a deep sense of shame and self-loathing. This God-given prosperity will not lead to pride, but to a lasting, humble repentance.

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BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 2: Ezekiel 36:16-23

by atozmom, posted in BSF Exile & Return: A Time to Build 2025/2026

Summary of Ezekiel 36:16-23

Ezekiel tells the Israelites the word of the Lord. He says that the people were unclean, worshipped idols, and shed blood in the land. Therefore, they faced God’s wrath. God dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered through the countries; they were judged according to their conduct and their actions. God is punishing His people because they have defiled His name. He will show the nations that He is holy so that they will know He is the Lord.

BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 2: Ezekiel 36:16-23

3a) They defiled the land by their conduct and actions. The people were unclean, worshipped idols, and shed blood in the land. They defiled God’s holy name. Therefore, God dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered through the countries; they were judged according to their conduct and their actions. God is punishing His people because they have defiled His name. He will show the nations that He is holy so that they will know He is the Lord.

b) Other people said, “These are the Lord’s people, and yet they had to leave his land.” This observation and belief by the other nations was a profound profanation of God’s name because it implied a critical failure on God’s part.

The core of the profanation lay in the perception that the God of Israel was either powerless to protect His own chosen people or that He was unfaithful to the covenant He had made with them. In the ancient Near Eastern context, the fate of a people was directly linked to the power of their deity. A victorious nation had a strong god, while a conquered and exiled people had a weak or non-existent one.

Therefore, when the nations saw Israel, who were known as “the people of the LORD,” driven from their promised land, they concluded one of two things:

  • God’s Weakness: They reasoned that the gods of the conquering nations, such as Babylon, were superior in strength to the God of Israel. In their eyes, if the LORD were truly all-powerful, He would not have allowed His own people to be defeated and displaced.
  • God’s Unfaithfulness: Alternatively, they may have seen the exile as a sign that the LORD had abandoned His people, breaking the covenant promises to protect and preserve them in their land. This painted God as unreliable and untrustworthy.

This international mockery directly challenged the character and reputation of God. His “name,” which in Hebrew thought represents the totality of a person’s character and attributes, was being dragged through the mud. The very people who were meant to be a testimony to His greatness and power had, through their sin and subsequent punishment, become a source of ridicule against Him.

c) God’s response in the subsequent verses of Ezekiel 36 makes it clear that His primary motivation for restoring Israel was not for their own sake, as they were undeserving due to their defilement of the land with idolatry and bloodshed. Instead, God acted “for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations.” He would bring them back to their land and cleanse them to demonstrate His holiness and power to the onlooking nations, so that “the nations will know that I am the LORD.” The restoration of Israel would serve as a powerful vindication of His name, proving that He is a faithful and sovereign God who is able to fulfill His promises and protect His people.
4a) When others see Christians sin, some think that God is not powerful enough to stop their sin (even though we all sin no matter what since we are fallen). They may think what’s the use of following God if you are still a sinner. People see Christians as hypocrites and God as powerless to change those who follow Him. Christians can judge others, which is harmful to others and turn them away from Christianity.
b) I am inspired to be a better person to please God and be better than I am. I want to not be as selfish and to do God’s will more. It inspires me to take on the daily battles of life to change and more more towards God.

Conclusions BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 2: Ezekiel 36:16-23

I love the emphasis of how our behavior can (and does) affect how others view God. It’s so crucial for us to set a good example so that other may know Him, too!

End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 2, Day 2: Ezekiel 36:16-23

Disobedience to God was like a defilement of the land. Therefore, they were judged and scattered among the nations.

This exile was seen by the other nations as God rejecting His people. God wanted to be seen as the only God. So, when Israel would turn to Him again, it would honor God.

END NOTES SUMMARIZED

Ezekiel 36:16-23 diagnoses the theological crisis caused by Israel’s exile. The passage lays out a clear chain of events:

  1. Israel’s Sin: The people defiled their land with idolatry and bloodshed.
  2. God’s Judgment: As a just consequence, God scattered them among the nations.
  3. God’s Name Profaned: The surrounding nations, observing the exiled Israelites, mocked God’s reputation. They essentially said, “These are the LORD’s people, yet He was too weak or unfaithful to keep them in His own land.” This conclusion, drawn from Israel’s punishment, dishonored God’s name.
  4. God’s Motivation: God declares He will act to restore Israel, but not for their sake, as they are undeserving. He will act entirely for the sake of His own holy name—to vindicate His reputation.

The central point is that God’s honor is paramount. His future restoration of Israel will serve as a definitive, public demonstration of His sovereign power and faithfulness, compelling the very nations who scorned Him to recognize His true identity as the LORD.

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