- Sunday, March 29, 2020: Fifth Sunday in Lent
Ezekiel 37.1-14; Psalm 130; Romans 8.6-11; John 11.1-45
And the LORD said to me,
Man, these bones are all the house of Israel.
They say, ‘Our bones are dry and our hope is lost.
We have been cut off.’
Therefore prophesy and say to them,
Thus said the Master, the LORD:
I am about to open your graves,
and I will bring you up, my people, from your graves
and bring you to Israel’s soil. …
And I will put my breath in you, and you shall live,
and I will set you on your soil.
Man, these bones are all the house of Israel.
They say, ‘Our bones are dry and our hope is lost.
We have been cut off.’
Therefore prophesy and say to them,
Thus said the Master, the LORD:
I am about to open your graves,
and I will bring you up, my people, from your graves
and bring you to Israel’s soil. …
And I will put my breath in you, and you shall live,
and I will set you on your soil.
The vision of the valley of the dried bones is the most famous in the book of Ezekiel. It’s strange, yet alluring, as skeletons are put back together by mere words, then animated by breath.
In many if not most churches, this vision will be understood as a prophecy about the resurrection of the dead. And that may very well be appropriate. Prophecy often has multiple fulfillments.
That said, Ezekiel was writing from exile — and it’s clear that he had the conquered nation of Israel, living in captivity in Babylon, in mind.
And he speaks with the language of (new) creation.
Today, globally, we are in our own exile of sorts. And the word of (new) creation is as relevant today as ever.
The LORD says to Ezekiel, “Man, can these bones live?”
Yes. We know the answer: These bones can indeed live. The exile will end, and there will be a new creation.
And we are learning now what the new creation should include:
healthcare, income, and community.
healthcare, income, and community.
May it be so.
Gungor, “Dry Bones”
Life is breaking out
It’s breaking out
It’s breaking out
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