Ezekiel Chapter 36

Jun 5

Ezekiel 36

A New Covenant for Israel’s Land and People

Ezekiel 36 is one of the clearest chapters in the Bible on the restoration of Israel’s land and people. After the judgment of Edom in Ezekiel 35, the LORD now speaks directly to the mountains of Israel. The nations had mocked the land, claimed it for themselves, and treated Israel’s exile as proof that the land was abandoned. But the LORD declares that the land is still His concern, that Israel’s enemies will bear their shame, and that the mountains of Israel will again be fruitful for His people. The chapter then moves from the renewal of the land to the renewal of the people. Israel had defiled the land through bloodshed and idolatry, but God promises to act for His holy name’s sake. He will gather Israel from the nations, bring them into their own land, cleanse them, give them a new heart, put His Spirit within them, and cause them to walk in His statutes. From a literal, Baptist, dispensational, premillennial understanding, this chapter is foundational to the New Covenant promises for Israel: national regathering, spiritual regeneration, cleansing, land restoration, agricultural blessing, and the future vindication of the LORD’s holy name before the nations. The uploaded notes emphasize the restoration of Israel’s land, the sanctification of God’s name, the New Covenant transformation of Israel, and the final rebuilding of the desolate places.

A. A promise to renew the land of Israel.

1. Ezekiel 36:1-5, A prophecy to the mountains of Israel.

Ezekiel 36:1, Also, thou son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD:

Ezekiel 36:2, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha, even the ancient high places are ours in possession:

Ezekiel 36:3, Therefore prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of the people:

Ezekiel 36:4, Therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken, which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about;

Ezekiel 36:5, Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea, which have appointed my land into their possession with the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds, to cast it out for a prey.

Prophesy unto the mountains of Israel answers Ezekiel 35, where the prophet was told to set his face against Mount Seir. Now he speaks to the mountains of Israel. The focus is not only on the people, but on the land itself. The land had been desolated, mocked, coveted, and treated as abandoned by the nations. The LORD now speaks to the land and promises renewal.

Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD shows that the land itself is addressed as a witness and object of God’s covenant concern. This is important because the LORD’s promises to Israel are never detached from the land He swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The land promise began with Abraham.

Genesis 12:1, Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:

Genesis 12:2, And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:

Genesis 12:3, And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Genesis 13:14, And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward:

Genesis 13:15, For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.

Genesis 17:7, And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.

Genesis 17:8, And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all-the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.

The land was also promised to Jacob.

Genesis 28:13, And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy-father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and-to thy seed;

Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha shows the mocking attitude of Israel’s enemies. As Edom rejoiced over Judah’s fall, the nations looked at Israel’s devastated land and saw opportunity. Their Aha was the sound of scorn and selfish delight.

Even the ancient high places are ours in possession records the enemy’s claim. They thought Israel’s ancient heights, mountains, and inheritance had become theirs. They believed exile meant the land could be seized.

This connects directly with Edom’s sin in the previous chapter.

Ezekiel 35:10, Because thou hast said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas the LORD was there:

The enemies of Israel assumed that the land was abandoned. But the LORD had already answered: the LORD was there. The land was still His land, and His purpose for Israel had not been canceled.

Because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side means the nations had treated the land like prey. They acted like ravenous beasts, ready to devour what belonged to God’s covenant people.

That ye might be a possession unto the residue of the heathen means the surrounding nations wanted to possess Israel’s land for themselves. They saw Israel’s judgment as their opportunity.

Ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and are an infamy of the people means the land became the subject of slander, gossip, mockery, and reproach. People talked about Israel’s land as if it were cursed, abandoned, and available for plunder.

The word of the LORD comes not only to the mountains, but also to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes, and to the cities that are forsaken. This repeated geographic language makes it impossible to erase the land emphasis from the passage. God is promising to deal with the literal land of Israel: its mountains, hills, rivers, valleys, waste places, and cities.

Which became a prey and derision to the residue of the heathen that are round about means Israel’s land was plundered and mocked by surrounding nations.

Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken shows the intensity of God’s response. His jealousy is not petty envy. It is covenant zeal. He is jealous for His name, His land, His people, and His promises.

God’s jealousy is connected with His covenant holiness.

Exodus 34:14, For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

Against the residue of the heathen, and against all Idumea specifically includes Edom. Edom becomes the representative enemy who coveted Israel’s land and rejoiced over Israel’s calamity.

Which have appointed my land into their possession is a crucial phrase. The land is not merely Israel’s land in a political sense; it is my land, says the LORD. The nations claimed what belonged to God.

With the joy of all their heart, with despiteful minds means their land-grabbing was not neutral politics. It came from spite, malice, and delight in Israel’s suffering.

To cast it out for a prey means they treated the land as plunder. But the LORD now rises in jealousy to defend His land and His covenant purpose.

2. Ezekiel 36:6-12, The land of Israel restored from her shame.

Ezekiel 36:6, Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains, and to the hills, to-the rivers, and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and-in my fury, because ye have borne the shame of the heathen:

Ezekiel 36:7, Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; I have lifted up mine hand, Surely the heathen that are about-you, they shall bear their shame.

Ezekiel 36:8, But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my-people of Israel; for they are at hand to come.

Ezekiel 36:9, For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown:

Ezekiel 36:10, And I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it: and the-cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded:

Ezekiel 36:11, And I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will-settle you after your old estates, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know-that I am the LORD.

Ezekiel 36:12, Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess-thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men.

Prophesy therefore concerning the land of Israel again keeps the land in view. The LORD is not ashamed to speak geographically. He addresses the mountains, hills, rivers, and valleys because His covenant promises include the physical land.

I have spoken in my jealousy and in my fury means God’s zeal is aroused because the nations have shamed His land and mocked His people.

Because ye have borne the shame of the heathen means the land of Israel had carried reproach before the nations. The enemies looked upon its desolation as proof that Israel was finished and that Israel’s God had failed or departed.

I have lifted up mine hand is oath language. The LORD solemnly swears that the nations around Israel will bear their own shame.

Surely the heathen that are about you, they shall bear their shame reverses the reproach. The shame they placed on Israel will come back upon them. God vindicates His people and His land.

But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel promises ecological and agricultural restoration. The mountains that had been mocked as desolate will again bear fruit for Israel.

This is consistent with the land blessings promised under covenant restoration.

Leviticus 26:3, If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them;

Leviticus 26:4, Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees-of the field shall yield their fruit.

Leviticus 26:5, And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye-shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.

For they are at hand to come means the people of Israel will return to the land. The fruitfulness of the land is connected to the regathering of the people.

For, behold, I am for you is a dramatic reversal of judgment language. Earlier the LORD had said I am against you to the enemies of Israel. Here He says to the mountains of Israel, I am for you. If God is for the land and people of Israel, the hostility of the nations cannot finally prevail.

I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown means the LORD will again favor the land with cultivation and life. Tilling and sowing imply settled life, safety, agriculture, and future hope.

I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it points to national restoration. The promise concerns all the house of Israel, not merely a token return. This looks beyond the partial return from Babylon to the fuller regathering promised in the New Covenant.

The cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded means ruined places will be restored. Desolation will give way to habitation.

I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit recalls creation blessing and covenant blessing. God’s blessing includes people, animals, fertility, and fruitfulness.

Genesis 1:28, And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,-and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the-air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

Genesis 9:1, And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish-the earth.

I will settle you after your old estates means Israel will be restored to former dwelling and inheritance. God’s restoration is not vague. It is tied to Israel’s historic covenant inheritance.

And will do better unto you than at your beginnings means the future restoration will exceed the past. God will not merely rewind Israel’s history; He will bring Israel into a greater and better restoration under His kingdom purpose.

Ye shall know that I am the LORD shows that the restoration of the land will reveal Yahweh. Judgment revealed Him; restoration will also reveal Him.

I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel again identifies the rightful possessors of the land. God’s people Israel will walk upon the land.

They shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance confirms the land inheritance. The land belongs to Israel because God gave it as an inheritance.

Thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men means the land will no longer seem to swallow up or rob Israel of life. The curse-like conditions of death, exile, famine, invasion, and child loss will be reversed.

3. Ezekiel 36:13-15, The nations will see and tell of the blessedness of the land of Israel.

Ezekiel 36:13, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations;

Ezekiel 36:14, Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel 36:15, Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou-bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith-the Lord GOD.

Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men records another reproach against the land. The nations looked at Israel’s history of war, famine, exile, and judgment and spoke as if the land itself devoured its inhabitants.

This echoes the unbelieving report of the spies in Numbers.

Numbers 13:32, And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel,-saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eateth up the-inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.

That unbelieving report was judged by God.

Numbers 14:36, And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation-to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land,

Numbers 14:37, Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before-the LORD.

And hast bereaved thy nations means the land was accused of robbing its people of children and life. In reality, Israel’s calamities came from covenant disobedience, not from any failure in God’s land promise.

The land had suffered under drought, famine, and judgment because of Israel’s sin.

Jeremiah 14:1, The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.

Jeremiah 14:2, Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem-is gone up.

Amos 4:7, And also I have withholden the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest:-and I caused it to rain upon one city, and caused it not to rain upon another city: one piece-was rained upon, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered.

Amos 4:9, I have smitten you with blasting and mildew: when your gardens and your vineyards and your fig trees and-your olive trees increased, the palmerworm devoured them: yet have ye not returned unto me, saith the LORD.

Haggai 1:10, Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.

Haggai 1:11, And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and-upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men,-and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.

Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more means the LORD will reverse the reproach. The land will again become a place of life and blessing for Israel.

Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more means the taunts of the nations will cease. God will not allow the land to remain under reproach.

Neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more means Israel’s land will no longer be mocked as barren, cursed, abandoned, or devouring.

Neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more means the land will not be associated with Israel’s stumbling under judgment. The covenant curse will be reversed in restoration.

Saith the Lord GOD seals the promise. The renewal of Israel’s land rests on the word of the LORD.

B. A promise of a New Covenant, to renew the people of Israel.

1. Ezekiel 36:16-19, God’s judgment upon a disobedient Israel.

Ezekiel 36:16, Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

Ezekiel 36:17, Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their-own way and by their doings: their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman.

Ezekiel 36:18, Wherefore I poured my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and-for their idols wherewith they had polluted it:

Ezekiel 36:19, And I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and-according to their doings I judged them.

When the house of Israel dwelt in their own land looks back to Israel’s former occupation of the land before exile. God does not deny that it was their own land, but He explains why they were removed from it.

They defiled it by their own way and by their doings means Israel polluted the land through sin. The land was good, but the people defiled it. Their conduct made the land unclean before God.

The law had warned that the land could be defiled by sin.

Leviticus 18:24, Defile not ye yourselves in any of these things: for in all these the nations are defiled which-I cast out before you:

Leviticus 18:25, And the land is defiled: therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself-vomiteth out her inhabitants.

Numbers 35:33, So ye shall not pollute the land wherein ye are: for blood it defileth the land: and-the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that-shed it.

Their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman means Israel’s sin made them ceremonially and morally unclean before God. Ezekiel uses the language of ritual uncleanness to show how defiled Israel’s ways were in the sight of the LORD.

Wherefore I poured my fury upon them means exile was not accidental. God poured out judgment because of Israel’s sin.

For the blood that they had shed upon the land refers to violence, murder, injustice, and likely child sacrifice. Bloodshed polluted the land.

Ezekiel had earlier condemned Jerusalem for bloodshed.

Ezekiel 22:2, Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt-shew her all her abominations.

Ezekiel 22:3, Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD, The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it,-that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself.

For their idols wherewith they had polluted it means idolatry was another central reason for judgment. Israel sinned against God by worshiping false gods and polluting His land with idols.

I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries means the exile was the covenant curse God had long warned about.

Moses had warned that disobedience would bring scattering.

Deuteronomy 28:64, And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the-other; and there thou shalt serve other gods, which neither thou nor thy fathers have known, even wood and stone.

According to their way and according to their doings I judged them means God’s judgment was fair. Israel was judged according to what they actually did. Their exile did not prove God’s unfaithfulness; it proved His covenant warnings were true.

2. Ezekiel 36:20-23, God’s concern for His own holy name.

Ezekiel 36:20, And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they-said to them, These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land.

Ezekiel 36:21, But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen,-whither they went.

Ezekiel 36:22, Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I do not this for your-sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen,-whither ye went.

Ezekiel 36:23, And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned-in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD,-when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.

When they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name means Israel’s exile affected the reputation of the LORD among the nations. The nations saw Israel scattered and concluded that Israel’s God was unable to keep His people in His land.

These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of his land was the Gentile interpretation. They saw the covenant people expelled from the covenant land and treated it as a reproach against the LORD.

This was a danger Moses had understood in his intercession.

Numbers 14:15, Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame-of thee will speak, saying,

Numbers 14:16, Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them,-therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.

But I had pity for mine holy name means the motive for restoration is first God’s own glory. The LORD will act to vindicate His name.

Which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen means Israel’s sin and exile had dishonored the name of the LORD among the nations.

I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel is a humbling statement. Israel’s restoration is not based on their worthiness, merit, or righteousness.

But for mine holy name’s sake gives the true ground. God restores Israel because of His covenant faithfulness and His holy name. This does not minimize His love for Israel, but it makes clear that the ultimate reason is His glory.

God had told Israel before that they did not receive the land because of their righteousness.

Deuteronomy 9:5, Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their-land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee,-and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Deuteronomy 9:6, Understand therefore, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy-righteousness; for thou art a stiffnecked people.

I will sanctify my great name means God will set apart His name as holy before the nations. He will prove that He is not weak, false, or defeated.

Which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them means Israel’s sin is not excused. They profaned God’s name, but God will sanctify it.

The heathen shall know that I am the LORD gives the purpose. The nations will know Yahweh through Israel’s restoration.

When I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes means God will use restored Israel as the public stage on which He vindicates His holiness. The nations saw Israel judged; they will also see Israel restored.

3. Ezekiel 36:24, A promise to gather scattered Israel.

Ezekiel 36:24, For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring-you into your own land.

I will take you from among the heathen begins the New Covenant restoration sequence. The LORD will personally regather Israel from among the nations.

Gather you out of all countries goes beyond the return from Babylon alone. The Babylonian return was real but partial. This promise speaks of a broader gathering from all countries.

Moses had already prophesied a future regathering after scattering.

Deuteronomy 30:1, And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the-curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither-the LORD thy God hath driven thee,

Deuteronomy 30:2, And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command-thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;

Deuteronomy 30:3, That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return-and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

Deuteronomy 30:4, If any of thine be driven out unto the outmost parts of heaven, from thence will the LORD-thy God gather thee, and from thence will he fetch thee:

Deuteronomy 30:5, And the LORD thy God will bring thee into the land which thy fathers possessed, and thou shalt possess-it; and he will do thee good, and multiply thee above thy fathers.

Jeremiah also spoke of this regathering.

Jeremiah 23:3, And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them,-and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase.

Jeremiah 32:37, Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger,-and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I-will cause them to dwell safely:

Ezekiel had already promised the same.

Ezekiel 11:16, Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen,-and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in-the countries where they shall come.

Ezekiel 11:17, Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble-you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

Will bring you into your own land is explicit and literal. God does not say He will bring Israel into someone else’s land, or into a merely spiritual symbol. He says your own land. The New Covenant promises include land restoration.

This is why it is a serious error to remove the land promise from the New Covenant. The same passage that promises cleansing, a new heart, and the indwelling Spirit also promises Israel’s return to her own land.

4. Ezekiel 36:25, A promise to cleanse filthy Israel.

Ezekiel 36:25, Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and-from all your idols, will I cleanse you.

Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you means God will cleanse Israel. This is the spiritual cleansing of the New Covenant. The sprinkling language draws from the Old Testament patterns of purification, where water and blood were used in ceremonial cleansing.

The law used water in priestly washing.

Exodus 30:17, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

Exodus 30:18, Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and-thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.

Exodus 30:19, For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:

Exodus 30:20, When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not;-or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the LORD:

Cleansing water was also used in purification rites.

Numbers 19:17, And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin,-and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

Numbers 19:18, And a clean person shall take hyssop, and dip it in the water, and sprinkle it upon the-tent, and upon all the vessels, and upon the persons that were there, and upon him that touched a-bone, or one slain, or one dead, or a grave:

Numbers 19:19, And the clean person shall sprinkle upon the unclean on the third day, and on the seventh day:-and on the seventh day he shall purify himself, and wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water,-and shall be clean at even.

Ye shall be clean is the promise of real cleansing, not merely outward ceremony. God will cleanse the defiled people.

From all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you directly answers Israel’s previous defilement. Their bloodshed and idolatry polluted the land; God promises to cleanse them from all filthiness and idols.

This cleansing is made possible through the finished work of Christ, who ratified the New Covenant by His blood.

Luke 22:20, Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which-is shed for you.

Paul speaks of believers as washed.

1 Corinthians 6:11, And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are-justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

Jesus likely had this Ezekiel promise in view when He spoke to Nicodemus of being born of water and of the Spirit.

John 3:5, Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and-of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

The cleansing is broad and deep: from all your filthiness. The New Covenant does not merely improve the sinner outwardly. God cleanses from the defilement of sin itself.

5. Ezekiel 36:26-27, A promise to spiritually renew Israel.

Ezekiel 36:26, A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and-I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:27, And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye-shall keep my judgments, and do them.

A new heart also will I give you is the promise of inward regeneration. Israel’s problem was never merely external exile or political weakness. The deepest problem was the heart. God therefore promises a new heart.

A new spirit will I put within you means God will renew the inner life. The New Covenant changes the person from within.

Jeremiah spoke of the same covenant transformation, emphasizing the law written in the heart.

Jeremiah 31:31, Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the-house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:

Jeremiah 31:32, Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by-the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an-husband unto them, saith the LORD:

Jeremiah 31:33, But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days,-saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts;-and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Jeremiah 31:34, And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know-the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith-the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh means God will remove the hard, unresponsive, stubborn heart. Israel’s history under the Mosaic covenant proved that external law could expose sin, restrain sin, and define righteousness, but it could not by itself change a stony heart.

I will give you an heart of flesh means God will give a soft, living, responsive heart. This is not weakness; it is spiritual life and responsiveness to God.

Jesus spoke of the necessity of new birth.

John 3:3, Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born-again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

John 3:6, That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is-spirit.

John 3:7, Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

Paul describes the believer as a new creature in Christ.

2 Corinthians 5:17, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away;-behold, all things are become new.

The new man is created after God.

Ephesians 4:21, If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is-in Jesus:

Ephesians 4:22, That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful-lusts;

Ephesians 4:23, And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

Ephesians 4:24, And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

I will put my spirit within you promises the indwelling Holy Spirit. This is one of the greatest blessings of the New Covenant. God does not merely give commands from outside; He places His Spirit within His people.

Paul teaches that the Spirit indwells every true believer.

Romans 8:9, But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit-of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Jesus promised the Spirit to His disciples.

John 14:16, And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide-with you for ever;

John 14:17, Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth-him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

The church received the Spirit in power at Pentecost.

Acts 1:5, For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

Acts 1:8, But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be-witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost-part of the earth.

Cause you to walk in my statutes means New Covenant obedience flows from inward transformation. God does not merely command; He empowers. The Spirit causes obedience from the heart.

Ye shall keep my judgments, and do them means God’s people will be enabled to obey. This does not teach sinless perfection in this age, but it does teach that true regeneration produces real obedience. In Israel’s future national restoration, this promise will be fulfilled in a powerful and covenantal way when Israel turns to the LORD and is spiritually renewed.

6. Ezekiel 36:28-30, A promise to bless the land and her agriculture.

Ezekiel 36:28, And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people,-and I will be your God.

Ezekiel 36:29, I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and-will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.

Ezekiel 36:30, And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall-receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.

Ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers again ties the New Covenant to the land promise. The same passage that promises cleansing, a new heart, and the Spirit also promises dwelling in the land given to the fathers. This cannot be honestly removed from the text.

The land was given to the fathers by covenant promise.

Genesis 26:3, Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee,-and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath which I sware-unto Abraham thy father;

Genesis 26:4, And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed-all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;

Genesis 35:12, And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy-seed after thee will I give the land.

Ye shall be my people, and I will be your God is covenant relationship language. The restoration is not only political or agricultural. It is relational. Israel will be restored to true covenant fellowship with the LORD.

This phrase appears in the New Covenant promise of Jeremiah.

I will also save you from all your uncleannesses repeats the cleansing promise. Israel’s problem was uncleanness, and God promises salvation from it.

I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you means God will command agricultural blessing. The land will not merely be inhabited; it will be productive.

I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field promises abundance. The land that had been mocked as desolate and devouring will become fruitful.

The prophets repeatedly connect Israel’s future restoration with agricultural abundance.

Isaiah 35:1, The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as-the rose.

Isaiah 35:2, It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given-unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the LORD, and the excellency-of our God.

Zechariah 8:12, For the seed shall be prosperous; the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her-increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to possess-all these things.

That ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen means the nations will no longer mock Israel as cursed, barren, or abandoned. God will remove the reproach.

7. Ezekiel 36:31-32, Israel’s response in light of their unworthiness for these promises.

Ezekiel 36:31, Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe-yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.

Ezekiel 36:32, Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you: be ashamed-and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.

Then shall ye remember your own evil ways means grace will not make Israel indifferent to sin. When God cleanses, renews, and restores them, they will look back on their former sins with grief and honesty.

Your doings that were not good refers to the actual sins that brought judgment: idolatry, bloodshed, uncleanness, rebellion, and covenant unfaithfulness.

Shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations means true repentance includes hatred of sin. The renewed heart does not cherish old sin as a memory to enjoy. It loathes the iniquity and abominations that dishonored God.

This same spirit of repentance appears in Zechariah’s prophecy of Israel’s future mourning when they look upon the pierced Messiah.

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.

Not for your sakes do I this repeats the humbling truth from verse 22. Israel’s restoration rests on God’s grace, covenant faithfulness, and holy name, not on Israel’s merit.

Be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel means Israel must not turn grace into pride. God’s mercy should humble them. The restored people should remember that they were saved by grace, not by deserving.

8. Ezekiel 36:33-36, A promise to restore the desolate places.

Ezekiel 36:33, Thus saith the Lord GOD; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities-I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded.

Ezekiel 36:34, And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed-by.

Ezekiel 36:35, And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the-waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited.

Ezekiel 36:36, Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined-places, and plant that that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.

In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities connects spiritual cleansing with national restoration. God’s future for Israel includes both inward renewal and outward restoration.

I will also cause you to dwell in the cities means the restored people will inhabit real cities in the land.

The wastes shall be builded means ruined places will be rebuilt. The desolation of judgment will be reversed.

The desolate land shall be tilled means agriculture will return. The land will not remain barren.

Whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by means the land’s former condition was publicly visible. Travelers saw its ruin. But God will reverse what the nations saw.

This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden is a stunning restoration promise. The land once mocked as devouring and barren will be compared to Eden in fruitfulness and beauty.

Eden was the original garden of God’s blessing.

Genesis 2:8, And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had-formed.

Genesis 2:9, And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the-sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree-of knowledge of good and evil.

The waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited means the visible evidence of judgment will become visible evidence of restoration. Ruined cities will become fortified and inhabited.

Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined places means the nations will understand that Israel’s restoration is God’s work. The LORD Himself rebuilds.

And plant that that was desolate means He restores fruitfulness to what had been barren.

I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it seals the promise with divine certainty. God’s word and God’s action are joined together. The restoration is not wishful thinking. The LORD has spoken, and He will do it.

This matters because the New Covenant was inaugurated by Christ’s blood, but its full promises to Israel await completion in connection with Israel’s national restoration and the kingdom reign of Messiah.

Romans 11:25, For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be-wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles-be come in.

Romans 11:26, And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the-Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

Romans 11:27, For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

God will keep His covenant word to Israel.

9. Ezekiel 36:37-38, A promise to restore a relationship with God.

Ezekiel 36:37, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel,-to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock.

Ezekiel 36:38, As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities-be filled with flocks of men: and they shall know that I am the LORD.

I will yet for this be enquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them means God’s promises do not remove the place of prayer. The LORD has promised to restore Israel, yet He will have Israel inquire of Him for the fulfillment. God ordains both the promise and the prayer.

Daniel understood this principle. When he knew from Jeremiah that the seventy years were near completion, he prayed.

Daniel 9:2, In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof-the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations-of Jerusalem.

Daniel 9:3, And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting,-and sackcloth, and ashes:

Under the New Covenant, believers are invited to come boldly to God.

Hebrews 4:16, Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find-grace to help in time of need.

I will increase them with men like a flock means Israel’s population will be multiplied. The once-empty cities will be filled with people.

As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts compares the future multitudes of Israel to the large number of sacrificial animals brought to Jerusalem for the appointed feasts. The image suggests abundance, holiness, and worship.

Jerusalem’s feasts were times when multitudes came before the LORD.

Deuteronomy 16:16, Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which-he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the-feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:

So shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men means the ruined cities will be repopulated. The land once emptied by judgment will be filled again by divine blessing.

They shall know that I am the LORD closes the chapter with Ezekiel’s repeated theme. Israel will know the LORD by cleansing, new birth, Spirit-indwelling, land restoration, and covenant faithfulness. The nations will know the LORD by seeing Him sanctify His name in Israel before their eyes.

Ezekiel 36 is one of the central New Covenant chapters of the Old Testament. God promises to restore Israel’s land and renew Israel’s heart. The nations claimed the mountains of Israel, mocked the desolate land, and treated it as abandoned. But the LORD says the land is His, and He will make it fruitful again for His people Israel. Israel had defiled the land through bloodshed and idolatry, and God rightly scattered them among the nations. Yet for His holy name’s sake, He will gather them from all countries, bring them into their own land, sprinkle clean water upon them, cleanse them from all filthiness and idols, give them a new heart, put His Spirit within them, and cause them to walk in His statutes. He will rebuild the ruined cities, make the desolate land like Eden, fill the waste places with flocks of men, and sanctify His name before the nations. The chapter stands as a clear witness that God’s covenant promises to Israel include both spiritual regeneration and literal restoration to the land.

Clayton Taylor https://taylorbiblestudy.com