37:1 The hand of the LORD was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the LORD and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones.
37:2 He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry.
37:3 He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” I said, “O Sovereign LORD, you alone know.”
37:4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD!
37:5 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.
37:6 I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
37:7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone.
37:8 I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them.
37:9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’”
37:10 So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet–a vast army.
37:11 Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’
37:12 Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel.
37:13 Then you, my people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them.
37:14 I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares the LORD.’”
37:15 The word of the LORD came to me:
37:16 “Son of man, 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, ‘Ephraim’s stick, belonging to Joseph and all the house of Israel associated with him.’
37:17 Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand.
37:18 “When your countrymen ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’
37:19 say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph–which is in Ephraim’s hand–and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick, making them a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’
37:20 Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on
37:21 and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land.
37:22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.
37:23 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
37:24 “‘My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees.
37:25 They will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children’s children will live there forever, and David my servant will be their prince forever.
37:26 I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put my sanctuary among them forever.
37:27 My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people.
37:28 Then the nations will know that I the LORD make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.’”
37:1 The hand of Jehovah came upon me, and He brought me out in the Spirit of Jehovah and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.
37:2 And He caused me to pass all around among them, and there were very many on the surface of the valley, and they were also very dry.
37:3 And He said to me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord Jehovah, You know.
37:4 Then He said to me, Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of Jehovah.
37:5 Thus says the Lord Jehovah to these bones: I will cause breath to enter into you, and you shall live.
37:6 And I will put sinews on you and bring flesh back on you and cover you with skin and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you will know that I am Jehovah.
37:7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
37:8 And I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh came back, and skin covered them over; but there was no breath in them.
37:9 Then He said to me, Prophesy to the wind; prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.
37:10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them; and they lived and stood up upon their feet, an exceedingly great army.
37:11 Then He said to me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Now they say, Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.
37:12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, Now I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.
37:13 And you will know that I am Jehovah, when I open your graves and bring you up out of your graves, O My people.
37:14 And I will put My Spirit in you, and you shall live; and I will place you in your own land. Then you will know that I, Jehovah, have spoken and that I have performed it, declares Jehovah.
37:15 The word of Jehovah came again to me, saying,
37:16 And you, son of man, take one piece of wood, and write upon it, For Judah and for the children of Israel associated with him; then take another piece of wood, and write upon it, For Joseph, the piece of wood of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel associated with him;
37:17 And bring them together, one side to the other, into one piece of wood, that they may become united in your hand.
37:18 And when the children of your people speak to you, saying, Will you not tell us what you mean by these?
37:19 Say to them, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, I am about to take the piece of wood of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel associated with him; and I will put them upon it, that is, the piece of wood of Judah, and make them one piece of wood, and they will be one in My hand.
37:20 And the pieces of wood on which you write shall be in your hand before their eyes.
37:21 And you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord Jehovah, I am about to take the children of Israel from among the nations, where they have gone, and I will gather them from all around and bring them into their own land.
37:22 And I will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel, and one king will be king to all of them; and they will no longer be two nations, nor will they be divided into two kingdoms anymore at all.
37:23 They will not defile themselves any longer with their idols, or their detestable things, or any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, in which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them. Therefore they will be My people, and I will be their God.
37:24 And My Servant David will be King over them, and they all will have one Shepherd. They will also walk in My ordinances and observe My statutes and do them.
37:25 And they will dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, in which your fathers dwelt; and they will dwell in it, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever. And David My Servant will be their Prince forever.
37:26 I will also make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them there and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forever,
37:27 And My tabernacle will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.
37:28 Then the nations will know that I am Jehovah, who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary will be in their midst forever.