LIFE-STUDY OF EZEKIEL
Read and pray: “I will raise up for them a memorable planting, and they will no longer be consumed by famine in the land, nor bear the reproach of the nations anymore.” (Ezek. 34:29)
The book of Ezekiel has four main sections, each containing a crucial point. The first section, consisting of chapter 1, speaks of the glorious vision of God and reveals the holy God in His glory.
The second section, composed of chapters two through thirty-two, speaks of God’s judgment to deal with all things and matters that are not compatible with His righteousness, holiness, and glory. God judges everything among Israel and among the nations that is incompatible with His nature.
The third section, which includes chapters thirty-three through thirty-nine, concerns God’s restoration of a remnant of His people. When God comes to judge, He remembers His covenant of grace and thus preserves a group of His chosen ones and brings them back to their own land. This indicates that the main idea in the third part of Ezekiel is the Lord’s restoration.
The fourth section, which consists of chapters forty through forty-eight, speaks of God coming to build up His beloved and restored people in His dwelling place. This means that the last section is devoted to the matter of God’s building.
In the book of Ezekiel, there are three chapters that may be considered great chapters in the Bible: chapter one, chapter thirty-seven, and chapter forty-seven. These chapters occupy a special position, not only in Ezekiel but in the Bible as a whole.
Each of these chapters may be represented by a single word: chapter one — fire; chapter thirty-seven — breath; and chapter forty-seven — water. No chapter speaks of God as fire in the way Ezekiel 1 does. John 4 and 7 and Revelation 22 speak about water, but not in the way Ezekiel 47 does.
In the same way, Ezekiel 37 is unique in its way of speaking about the breath of God. This chapter reveals how the Spirit of God enters into us in order to enliven us so that we may become a corporate person, formed into an army, and also built up as the dwelling place of God. Only in this chapter do we see the result of being enlivened by the breath of life. From this we see that Ezekiel 37 occupies a particular position in the Bible.
Chapters thirty-three through thirty-seven of Ezekiel describe God’s restoration of His people from different aspects. Chapter thirty-four emphasizes the coming of the Lord as a shepherd who seeks the lost sheep and brings it back to its own land.
In chapter thirty-six, we see that the Lord restores His people by life, not only outwardly but also inwardly, giving them a new heart and a new spirit and putting His Spirit within them.
Chapter thirty-seven reveals that the Lord comes to revive His dead and scattered people and make them one. From this we see that God’s captive people needed to be restored in different aspects. Because they had been driven out and scattered like sheep, they needed the Lord to seek them as their Shepherd.
Since their inward condition was impure and old, they needed a new heart and a new spirit. Because they had become dead and dry bones, they needed to be revived and united.
THE MEMORABLE PLANTING AND THE GARDEN OF EDEN
Before beginning to consider chapter thirty-seven, I would like to say a word about two matters: the memorable planting (34:29) and the garden of Eden (36:35). The memorable planting, a famous plant, is Christ. Christ is not only the good land, containing many trees whose fruits are good for food; Christ is also a memorable planting.
With regard to the expression like the garden of Eden, we need to see that, ultimately, the Lord’s restoration will reach the point where it is like the garden of Eden. Then, wherever we are in the Lord’s restoration, we will be in the garden of Eden.
Frequently, in the meetings of the local churches, we have the sense of being in the garden of Eden. In the garden of Eden we have Christ as a famous plant, the memorable planting. This means that in the church life we can enjoy the riches of Christ in a special way daily.
Ezekiel 34 covers mainly the outward aspects of the Lord’s restoration. In this chapter, God comes as the Shepherd who seeks and finds His people and brings them back to their good land.
Ezekiel 36 covers the inward aspect of the Lord’s restoration. In His restoration, the Lord not only brings us back outwardly but also inwardly gives us a new heart and a new spirit and puts His Spirit into our spirit.
If we see this, we will realize that the Lord’s restoration is not merely a matter of outward position and outward circumstances, but also a matter of inward nature and disposition.
In the Lord’s restoration, which is something both outward and inward, not only have our position, circumstances, and environments changed, but we also have the inward renewing of our heart and our spirit, and we receive the Spirit of God.
Outwardly there is a change, and inwardly there is a conversion. Ezekiel 36, however, does not tell us in a clear and complete way how we can have a conversion, how we can have a new heart and a new spirit, and how we can obtain the Spirit of God.
We are simply told in a general way that the Lord will give us a new heart and a new spirit and put His own Spirit within us. Thus, we need Ezekiel 37 to show us how God renews us and regenerates us.
🌿Enjoy more:
Hymn: So attractive You are! “Draw me more, Lord”
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