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September 18, 2010 Ezekiel 34:25-38:9

Then the Lord promised Ezekiel that His people would live in peace around His Holy mountain. They would be protected from wild animals and foreign nations. God would make the land as fertile and lush as the garden of Eden. They will have nothing to fear. They will be God's people and He will take care of them.

The Lord told Ezekiel to condemn the people of Edom. They had been Israel's enemy for a long time. Their towns would be destroyed so as to be uninhabitable. The Lord would punish them for their anger and hatred toward the Israelites. God heard them when they insulted Him too. Everyone would celebrate when they were destroyed, just as they had celebrated when Judah was destroyed.

The Lord gave Ezekiel a message for the mountains. Those nations who sneered at them would be punished. The fruit trees on them would be tended by God. The Lord promised them that they would be covered with people and taken care of better than ever before. Then the Lord gave Ezekiel a message for the people that He would restore them even though they didn't deserve it. He would do this so that all the people of earth would know He is God. The Lord would take away their stubborn hearts and replace them with obedient hearts. God would protect them and provide for them bounteously. As the people would remember their former ways they would be submerged in self-loathing. The Lord would once again answer their prayers.

Some time later, the Lord's spirit overtook Ezekiel and carried him to a field of bones. Everywhere he looked there were dry bones. God asked Ezekiel if he thought the bones could come back to life. (I love Ezekiel's faith here) Ezekiel said, "Lord God, only you can answer that." The Lord told Ezekiel what to say and the bones came back to life. As Ezekiel was saying the words God had told him to say, he heard a rattling noise and the bones moved back together. Then tendons, muscle and skin covered the bones, but there was no life. The Lord told him to tell the wind to breathe life into the dead bodies. Then there was an army! The bible doesn't tell us what happened to this army. Next, the Lord told Ezekiel to get two sticks and write Israel on one and Judah on the other, then hold them end to end so they look like one stick. When people ask, tell them that God would make them into one nation and their king would always come from the family of David. Everyone would know that they were God's chosen people.

The Lord told Ezekiel to condemn Gog of Magog. They believed they were invincible, and God would set them up to fail in their own evil schemes.

Tomorrow read Ezekiel 38:10-40:49

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