Again a message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, take a piece of wood and carve on it these words: ‘This represents Judah and its allied tribes.’ Then take another piece and carve these words on it: ‘This represents Ephraim and the northern tribes of Israel.’ Now hold them together in your hand as if they were one piece of wood. When your people ask you what your actions mean, say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will take Ephraim and the northern tribes and join them to Judah. I will make them one piece of wood in my hand.’
“Then hold out the pieces of wood you have inscribed, so the people can see them. And give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: I will gather the people of Israel from among the nations. I will bring them home to their own land from the places where they have been scattered. I will unify them into one nation on the mountains of Israel. One king will rule them all; no longer will they be divided into two nations or into two kingdoms. They will never again pollute themselves with their idols and vile images and rebellion, for I will save them from their sinful apostasy. I will cleanse them. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God.
“My servant David will be their king, and they will have only one shepherd. They will obey my regulations and be careful to keep my decrees. They will live in the land I gave my servant Jacob, the land where their ancestors lived. They and their children and their grandchildren after them will live there forever, generation after generation. And my servant David will be their prince forever. And I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give them their land and increase their numbers, and I will put my Temple among them forever. I will make my home among them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. And when my Temple is among them forever, the nations will know that I am the Lord, who makes Israel holy.” [Ezekiel 37.15-28]
Ezekiel prophesied here in regard to Israel's reunion as a nation. While this reunion did occur between Ephraim and Judah after the Babylonian captivity, it can easily be argued that it did not occur in strict accordance with what Ezekiel described above.
Really, the prophecy above makes more sense when considered through Jesus and His work on behalf of the 'true Israel' - those who believe in Him. The allegorical application of Ezekiel's prophecy above very accurately describes what Jesus did on behalf of the Church.
As a matter of fact, Jesus' main theme throughout His prayer in John 17 is unity - the very basis of Ezekiel's prophecy many years before! And, Ezekiel's use of words like "covenant of peace"and "everlasting covenant" as well as his references to the Temple existing "forever", make me believe Ezekiel was speaking more in Messianic prophecy than he was in immediate relief from Babylon's rule. Furthermore, Ezekiel's prior mention of the unified "Israel" "never again" polluting themselves and their being cleansed can only refer to Jesus' work - because only by faith in Him is one truly made clean.
So, the take-away from this today for me is that Jesus has given and done everything described by Ezekiel for Israel and, that I am "Israel" by faith in Christ!
Father, thank You for Ezekiel's willingness to write what You inspired him to write! Thank You for the preservation of this and the many other inspired writings in what we know today as the Bible!
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