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Wednesday 5/26/21
Israel - God's Promise & Nation
📽️ Ezekiel 36 🔊

 1Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD:
 2Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha, even the ancient high places are ours in possession:
 3Therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of the people:
 4Therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about;
 5Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.
 6Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and in my fury, because ye have borne the shame of the heathen:
 7Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are about you, they shall bear their shame.
 8But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come.
 9For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown:
 10And I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded:
 11And I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
 12Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men.
 13Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations:
 14Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD.
 15Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord GOD.
 16Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
 17Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way and by their doings: their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman.
 18Wherefore I poured my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had polluted it:
 19And I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them.
 20And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.
 21But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.
 22Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.
 23And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.
 24For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.
 25Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
 26A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
 27And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
 28And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
 29I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.
 30And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.
 31Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.
 32Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.
 33Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded.
 34And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.
 35And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited.
 36Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.
 37Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.
 38As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.

Today's Scripture Meaning 

Written By: God through Inspiration
Penned By: Ezekiel
Date Penned: BC 571
Overview: Messages of Hope (c 33-48)
Theme: Restoring the People (c 33-39)
Message: God Promises that Good Times will Return (v 1-38)
 
Ezekiel: Chapter 36 Commentary
 
(36:1) in this chapter, Ezekiel said that Israel would be restored as a nation and would return to its own land. For the exiles in Babylon this seemed impossible. This message again emphasizes God‘s sovereignty and trustworthiness. He would first judge the nations used to punish Israel, chapter 36, and then restore his people.

(36:8) The growth prophesied here is in contrast to the desolation earlier prophesied for Israel in chapter No. 6. Only through God’s mercy would This be possible. God's Restoration was intended to show that he is the Lord.

(36:21-23) Why did God want to protect his holy name and his reputation among the nations of the world? God was concerned about the salvation of not only his people, but also of the whole world. To allow his people to remain in sin and be permanently destroyed by their enemies would lead other nations to conclude that the Heather God’s were more powerful than Israel’s God. Thus, to protect his holy name, he would return a remnant of he is people to their land. God will not share his glory with false gods, he alone is the one true God. The people had the responsibility to represent God properly to the rest of the world. Believers today have that same responsibility.

(36:25-27) God promised to restore Israel not only physically, but spiritually. To accomplish this, he would give them a new heart for following him and put his spirit within them as we see in chapter number 11 as to transform them and empower them to do his will. Again the new convert was promised to be fulfilled in Christ. No matter how impure your life is right now, God offers you a fresh start. You can have your sins washed away, receive a new heart for God, and have his spirit within you. If you simply accept God’s promise. Why try to patch up your old life when you can have a new one?

(36:32) God said his people should be ashamed of their sins. The people have become so callous that they have lost all sensitivity to sin. First they had to “remember” their sins, then despise them, and finally repent of them. As we examine our lives, we may find that we also have lost our sensitivity to certain sins. But if we Measure ourselves against God's standards of right living, we will be ashamed. To regain sensitivity we must recognize our sin for what it is, feel sorry for displeasing God, and ask his forgiveness. The Holy Spirit will guide us making us responsive and receptive to God’s truth as we see in John chapter 14 and 16.

(36:37-38) God said that if his people ask, he would come to their aid. We cannot expect his mercy, however, until we have sought new hearts from him as described in verse 26. We can be thankful that his invitation is open to all.
Today's Scripture Application

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue the Book of Ezekiel with Chapter 36. In our text today we see the prophecy of Israel reclaiming its original land in 1948 and being a nation as Ezekiel foretold. Not only does this event show the world that the God of the Bibles is real the continued existence of this little nation surrounded by those who want to destroy it also shows the power of our God. In making application we see how God keeps his promises and how He will do the same in your life. How about you? Do you see the reality of our God and How He keeps His Promises? Let us learn from our text today to see that the existence of Israel is a testament that the God of the Bible is real and all other promises from salvation to redemption are true so let us follow the Lord, be saved, and serve Him in these last days. 
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Sincerely,
Dr. Dave Burnette
Director, The United States Bible Society, Inc.
Today's Prayer Requests

  • Patricia | I need Prayers for open doors of Divine Favour for my children in all their heart desires, and for God's Abundant Blessings all round in their lives, open doors, turnaround encounter and breakthrough in Jesus Powerful Name . Thank You all for praying with us!!
  • Shalene | I need prayer for my two kids and I for protection,financial,safety,house,car,happiness, but need special prayer for my daughter Diamond to be able to walk again and be able to do the things she loved to do before her situation. 
  • Benny yesu. | Please pray for my Country. And my ministry.
  • vijay | Worried about debts
  • Simon Amaefule | I need you my brothers and sisters to pray for me for God innervation in my life. Also, God's mercy, peace of mind, good health etc.
  • Marissa | Please pray for Missy she is sick
  • Vijay | Worried about debts
  • Silas wabuti | My wife and mom have been very sick. Still very weak after discharge. Our income is low.