Professional Documents
Culture Documents
• Question for the exiles was not whether God Israel was dead, nor
whether God could raise the dead
o But what did God intend to raise the dead?
• Ezekiel’s vision in 37 shows that he did intend to do so new creation
There is basis for hope of life after all, and that is found solely in the will of God
Restoration
Virtual plan for restoration unlike piecemeal promises of other prophetic
books
Several themes reappear in various passages Chapter 36 contains the
most comprehensive base of reference
Reunification
o Monarchy period facturing of Israel into two kingdoms
o Exile further fracturing of Judah into Palestinian & Babylonian
communities (also an existing community in Egypt)
Pyschological Fracture
o Fracture not just physical buy psychological
o Palestinian community thought themselves true Israelites
(remnant)
• Ezek. 11:15 “Son of man, your brothers, even your brothers, your kinsmen, the
whole house of Israel, all of them, are those of whom the inhabitants of
Jerusalem have said, ‘Go far from the LORD; to us this land is given for a
possession.’
o Ezk says ‘no’ physical removal from land did not mean
excommunicating from Israel
o But it did raise serious questions about what it meant to be people of God
o If there is only one King, or one Shepherd (34) then then can only
be one people (37)
o Divine rule would therefore involve the gathering of scattered flock
into one united people