Reading: Ezekiel 37:7-14

Ezekiel 37:6b – “The Lord proclaims, Come from the four winds, breath! Breathe into three dead bodies and let them live.”

Continuing in Ezekiel 37 today, the prophet speaks as directed and the bones come together. Sinew, flesh, and skin cover them – and they lie strewn all over the valley floor. There was no breath in them, no life. So Ezekiel is instructed to prophesy to the breath. Doing this he declares, “The Lord proclaims, Come from the four winds, breath! Breathe into these dead bodies and let them live.” Just as God had done with Adam and Eve, the breath of God enters this multitude. Given life, they stand, ready for what comes next. In the same way, without the breath of life in us, we are just flesh and bone. Without the Spirit in us, leading and guiding us, we are chasing after death as we pursue the things of this world.

God confirms this fact about Israel. Ezekiel learns that the dry bones represent “the entire house of Israel.” Because of their time in exile, their hope was gone, they feel “completely finished.” And as with the bones, God will not leave them there in a place of despair and hopelessness. God will rescue them from death. God “will put my breath in you, and you will live.” They will be replanted in their own land, becoming fertile again, and then they “will know that I am the Lord.”

We too can wander from our faith. We too can chase and chase after things other than God. Eventually we feel as the Israelites felt: tired, empty, without hope. We feel as if we were once again dust. But even when we aren’t faithful, God is. The Holy Spirit stirs in us, brings our faith back to life, stands us up, readies us to walk again with the Lord our God. This too is how we know that the Lord is God. Thanks be to our God.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your love that never lets us go. Thank you for the grace that does not leave us in the dust, wallowing in our pride, greed, envy, lust, and more. Thank you for reviving us with the breath of the Spirit, giving us new life once again. Keep us close to you, O God, breathing deeply of your love and grace. Amen.