The Valley of Dry Bones
Ezekiel 37: 1 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,
2 And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.
3 And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, thou knowest.
4 Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
5 Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:
6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone.
8 And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them.
9 Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.
10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
11 Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.
12 Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.
13 And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves,
14 And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.
When I first read this passage I really didn't understand it. I could tell there was some reference to the final resurrection on The Day of The Lord, but beyond that I was at a loss as to what the significance of this chapter was. As the Philip said to the Eunuch in the book of Acts 8:30-31, "Do you understand what you are reading?" and he replied, "Well, How could I, unless someone guides me?" By the grace of God, I was guided in this understanding, and as it is now my duty, I am here to guide you as well.
As we examine these words closely, we can see that the valley full of dry bones represents the whole house of Israel (verse 11). And continuing in that same sentence, we can see that the reason the bones are so dry is because Israel had lost all hope in God. What caused Israel to lose hope?
Israel is notorious for rebelling against The Lord constantly throughout the OT. Their very first choice after God supernaturally led the nation out from Egypt, showing his mighty hand raining down 10 plagues upon their enemies, giving them a Passover sacrifice to save their children, baptizing them in the waters of the Red Sea, leading them upon the dry land by His prophet, Moses, once Moses left to received the 10 commandments from Mt. Sinai, was to immediately apostatize by creating a golden calf, worshipping this abominable vain-show idol as God. From then on we can see Israel constantly resorting back to their whoredom, chasing the gods of the pagan nations and after Babylon (the back and fourth behavior from faith to rebellion is showcased in the book of Kings and Chronicles, but continues all throughout the saga). God responds with judgment, but always showcases great mercy each time this happens, restoring their faith, pleading for their obedience and loyalty. But still this is to no avail.
Whenever Israel goes into severe wickedness, God raises up a prophet to warn them of their ways and of the destruction they will reap if they continue. Israel often responded by murdering those prophets; Manasseh killed Isaiah, sawing him in half, Amos was killed, some sources say by a priest, others by an angry mob of Israelites, Micah was killed by one of Ahab's (King of Israel) sons, Habakkuk was stoned to death in Jerusalem, Jeremiah was stoned to death by Jews in Egypt, Ezekiel was slayed by a leader of the Jews for his criticism of their idol worship, Zechariah the prophet was murdered in the court of their sacred temple by the Jewish King Joash and his people, and Jesus himself was rejected, beaten, stripped, spit upon, humiliated, and crucified by the entire state of Israel during his time.
As many of the prophets were rejected and murdered by the house of Israel, this foreshadowed the ultimate rejection of their own Messiah. Their own scriptures testify against them and prophecy of this sad truth in Psalm 118:22, "The stone which the builders rejected has become the head stone of the corner." The stone represents The Messiah, also known as The Rock of Salvation (God), all throughout scripture (Deuteronomy 32:4, 1 Samuel 2:2, Genesis 28:11). The builders represent the patriarchs, prophets and Israelites, upon which the faith was built throughout history, thus the builders of the Faith. The head stone of the corner represents the foundational structure upon which all the faith comes from and is built upon. This was a prophecy of the house of Israel, rejecting their Messiah, who was God Himself manifested in the flesh (Isaiah 9:6, 7:14), sent into the world, so that the world may be saved through Him (John 3:16).
Upon the rejection and crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Jewish Messiah, Israel was sentenced to judgement and destruction. Christ was put to death in 30AD (possibly 33AD according to some sources). Thus Israel was guilty of rebellion once again, which is of no surprise considering their track record. Now, The Israelites first rejected God + Moses (a messianic prototype) when Moses left them for 40 days and nights to receive the 10 commandments atop Mt. Sinai. 40 is almost always a number that is associated with testing throughout the Bible. Israel had their faith tested by Moses's 40 day absence and failed. Then Israel proceeded to roam the wilderness eating manna for 40 years due to their constant doubting and stubbornness towards God. After Jesus was murdered by the house of Israel in 30AD, they were tested for 40 years by God, hoping for them to repent and turn back from their great sin. They did not, therefore exactly 40 years later, in 70AD, destruction came upon them. Jerusalem was under siege by the Romans and the entire city was destroyed. The Temple was torn down and burnt to the ground according to the prophecy told by Jesus in Matthew 24:1-2. Not one stone was left upon another. After this attack, Israel itself was eliminated as a country (Matthew 21:19 prophecy), and the 12 tribes were scattered for 2000 years (Matthew 24:32-33 prophecy). The reason for Israel's dry bones was due to their constant rejection of God's prophets, cumulating in the final rejection of their Messiah.
John 20:19 Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you.
The initial followers and disciples of Jesus Christ were all faithful Jewish believers, starting with those who followed John the Baptist (Isaiah 40:3). We can see as the faithful believers in Christ gathered after His crucifixion, even they were afraid of their non believing brethren (1 Thessalonians 2:14-16). These are the ones whose bones lay dry in the valley-with no hope in them. They suffer for their unbelief. Just as they persecuted the prophets before them, and their own Messiah, so too did they persecute His followers.
John 1:35-36 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples; And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
Our Bible is full of allegory (Galatians 4:24). The verse above is a great example of this, as Jesus was quite obviously not an actual lamb, but in the literary context of being The ultimate Passover Sacrifice for the propitiation of sins, allegorically, He was.
Exodus 12:21 Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover.
Using this example we can see Jesus Christ as the allegorical representation of The Passover Lamb, being the true soul saving sacrifice required to take away the sin of the entire world. Throughout the Bible, we can also see allegorical connections between Jesus and God's Word; Just as The Bible is known as a light (Psalm 119:105), so too is Jesus (John 8:12). Just as God's Word is figuratively described as bread (Deuteronomy 8:3, Amos 8:11), so too is Jesus described as the bread of life (John 6:48). What other ways can you see a connection between Jesus and the Bible?
The Bible itself is an allegorical representation of Jesus Christ. Just as Jesus was an actual human being, 100% man, so too was the fullness of God dwelling in Him, He was 100% God (Colossians 2:9). Just as the Bible was written 100% by man through the prophets, The Bible was also written 100% by God, by His spirit through these inspired men. Where else can we find this allegorical connection between The Messiah and The Bible?
Luke 24:39 Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.
A spirit alone does not have flesh and bone. But, in the resurrected body of Christ, we see that he still retained both the flesh and bone of his body. Just as Jesus is flesh and bone, so too is The Bible. Flesh and bone are each their own separate part. The Bible is also made up of two parts; The Old Testament, and the New Testament. Without the fulfillment of the Messiah, The Old Testament remains a dry bone. He was the very hope and prophecy foretold of in these Scriptures. Once the Scriptures were fulfilled in Christ, in our very reality by his birth, the bones regained their life, now having living flesh upon them. Thus the OT represents the bones of Scripture, and the New Testament represents the flesh. 2 parts. Just like Jesus, The Bible has both flesh and bone.
Psalm 34:20 He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken.
Psalm 34:20 is referring both to the Passover ritual practice, where the House of Israel was instructed not to break a single bone of the sacrificial lamb, but also to the prophetic fulfillment of Christ being the true Passover lamb sacrificed on the cross, where not one of his bones were broken either.
Exodus 12:46 In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.
John 19:31 The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
32 Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.
33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:
34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.
36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
37 And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
Jesus was crucified on the day of Passover, Nisan 14, perfectly fulfilling his duty as God's lamb, without blemish, giving his body as an offering to mankind in order that we might be saved. The man who knew no sin, became sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God through him (2 Corinthians 5:21).
When Jesus was corporately murdered by the House of Israel, the following day was The Sabbath, which was a high holy day as it was the time of Passover, leading into the feast of unleavened bread. There was no work to be done on the Sabbath and The Jews would not keep these dead crucified bodies hanging on crosses in regard for the high holy day. Typically, it took many hours or even days for a victim of crucifixion to die, due to blood loss or suffocation. In verse 22 we can see that in order to speed up the process of death for these three individuals, the soldiers would break their legs delivering a final blow. Because Jesus was pierced in the side (verse 23), he was already dead when the soldiers came to him, thus there was no need for his legs to be broken. God's prophecy was fulfilled in respect to both the preservation of his bones (Psalm 34:20) and as The Messiah being the "One whom they pierced" (Zechariah 12:10), identifying Jesus as God's only begotten son, and as God himself in the same verse.
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Just as the Passover sacrifice was used to deliver Israel from the destroyer in the Old Testament, so too does Jesus' sacrifice deliver the believer from the coming destruction to our eternal souls. How else can we see a connection between Christ, the Passover Lamb, and The Word of God coming together?
John 10:35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken
The Passover Lamb's bones could not be broken (Exodus 12:46), Jesus' bones could not be broken (John 19:33), and as the Old Testament represents the bones of scripture, neither could those scriptures/prophecies be broken! These were the very prophecies that predicted Jesus' coming as Israel's Messiah, hundreds and thousands of years in advance.
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
The birth of Christ brought to life the very words of the OT, being the fulfillment of it's prophecies (Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 7:14). Thus, the Word transformed figuratively and spiritually, from dry bones (Ezekiel 37:2), to living flesh (Ezekiel 37:10), by Jesus' entrance into our reality.
There is something noticeable in verse 2 of Ezekiel 37...the bones aren't just referred to as dry, but there's an emphasis on them being called very dry. Why the distinction? What would cause them to be very vs somewhat dry?
Proverbs 17:22 A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.
Our Bible always explains itself perfectly if we have the wisdom and diligence to seek out it's true meaning. Here we find that a broken heart, or broken spirit is what causes the dryness in one's bones. And we can come to understand how lost and broken Israel was by looking at their history; through the rejection of God's commandments, His prophets, and even their own Messiah, we can see how the nation has become so broken, and their bones dried up. So what then is the solution?
Proverbs 15:30 The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart: and a good report maketh the bones fat.
In Ezekiel 37:4 we can see that the solution to Israel's problem is to hear God's Word. In the modern Christian context, we call this hearing the Gospel! In the verse above we can see that the Gospel, or "Good News" was always part of God's plan in the New Covenant. "A good report (other word for 'news') makes the bones fat". Shriveled bones would be equivalent to having dryness, or no life in them. Fat bones means that there is a fulness of spirit, or life within them. The Gospel is the solution. The Good News is what brings us out of death, and into life.
Job 33:4 The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
When we speak, breath comes out of our mouths. When God speaks, His Breath comes out of His mouth. Although made in his image, there's a big difference between God's speech and our own. God created our entire universe by His Word (Christ), His speech, His breath, and His Spirit (Genesis 1:2). We can see the connection between God's Spirit, Breath (Spoken Word), and Life, all in the verse above. We can also see this exemplified "In the beginning" (Genesis 1:1) with the statements, "God said", in Genesis 1:3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 29. The resulting effects of His "breath" established heaven, earth, and all living creatures.
Genesis 2:7 And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
This idea of God's Spirit and Breath being the source of Life is further emphasized in the creation of mankind. It isn't until God breathes into Adam that he becomes a living soul. Also important to note, when The Old Testament was originally written in ancient Hebrew, the fifth letter of that alphabet is the "he/heh". Just trying to say this letter requires one to exhale, breathing outwards. The letter "heh" also means spirit, illustrating this connection between breath and spirit even more deeply. Much more can be said on the significance of this letter but we will leave that for another time. Back to the point at hand, it isn't until the dry bones receive God's breath (Spirit), that they can receive life (Ezekiel 37:5).
John 20:22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost
Just as God's breath equates to Spirit and Life, so too does Jesus' breath. Not only does the verse above confirm Jesus' identity as Yahweh in the flesh (John 8:58), as only God Himself possesses this life-giving breath, but it also shows us that the only one who can give us The Holy Spirit, God's breath, is Christ.
John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
We can see in John 20:22 above that Jesus is the one (the only way) who gives us the Holy Spirit. John 3:1-8 discusses the process of receiving His Spirit. This is called being born of the Spirit, or becoming born again. John 3:3 states that unless you become born again (unless you receive God's Holy Spirit into your heart), you cannot see the Kingdom of God. Well this is the exact problem Israel has, and why their bones are "very" dry. Not only has Israel not received God's Spirit, but they zealously rejected the only one who could provide Him. Anyone who does not believe in Jesus, does not believe in the New Testament. Remember; Just as Jesus is made of flesh and bone, so are the scriptures. If the OT represents bone, if you reject the New Testament, you cannot receive the flesh which brings the bone to life.
Zechariah 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon Me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
God, in his infinite grace and mercy, will once again give Israel another chance to turn to him at the end. We can see that the house of David and inhabitants of Jerusalem represent Israel. And Zechariah is clearly referencing Jesus' crucifixion. First off we can see that God states that Israel has pierced Himself personally! All of Zechariah 12 is God speaking directly from the first person, including verse 10, "I will pour out the spirit of grace and supplication" and they shall look upon "ME whom they have pierced", also referring to Jesus as "His only son" and His "Firstborn". Jesus is actually speaking by His Spirit, through the prophet Zechariah, about his future fate as the slain Passover lamb. We can see both the divinity of The Messiah in this verse, and his very body given as a sacrifice as an atonement and propitiation for the sins of the world. We can see back in John 19:34 that it was Jesus who was pierced by a roman soldier when he was on the cross. There will be an opportunity for Israel to have their bones filled with God's Spirit again...so long as they repent of their wickedness and receive the Gospel of Christ (Ezekiel 37:14).
Acts 2:2-4 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Before we come faith in Christ, we are all a walking bag of dead dried up bones. It is not until we receive God's Holy Spirit that we come to life. It is not until we accept Jesus that we can pass from this world onto eternal salvation. Once we obtain this new spirit and new understanding, once we accept the New Testament, our dried bones can then regain their living flesh.
In Ezekiel 37:9 God says, "Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." We can see in John 3:8 and Acts 2:2 that the Holy Spirit is figuratively described as the wind! So this prophecy in Ezekiel is foreshadowing the coming of the Holy Spirit, through Jesus, which is God's breath providing us everlasting life.
John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
While Israel may have been blinded to the first coming of their Messiah; rejecting Him, putting Him to death; piercing His hands, feet, and side (Psalm 22:16, Zechariah 12:10, Psalm 118:22), God will one day awaken them to the truth and give them a chance to turn back to Him. Once Israel accepts Jesus and the New Testament, their very dry bones will come back to life, receiving God's breath and Spirit (Ezekiel 37:14).
Finally, it's incredible to consider the modern Jewish holiday of the Passover in the context of The Valley of Dry Bones. The Jews call this meal the Passover Seder. In the meal there are many different foods/rituals that symbolize Old Testament teachings and practices. One of those symbols is that of having a lamb shank, or "Zeroa" on the table during the meal, which is a reference to Exodus 12:46 we saw earlier in this study. What's particularly interesting about the lamb shank is that this bone is not allowed to have any flesh on it. Because the physical sacrifice of a lamb is no longer custom, the modern rendition of this ritual is to keep a shank bone in remembrance of the true sacrificial meaning. Because this was a holy sacrifice made onto God, no flesh is allowed on the bone as the people were forbidden to eat it. If there is flesh upon the bone, it is no longer considered an actual "Zeroa". Thus, even their modern tradition shows that Israel will continue to lack living flesh, without placing their faith in the true Passover sacrifice, the body of Jesus.
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