The Valley of Dry Bones

The hand of the LORD brings Ezekiel by the Spirit into a valley of very dry bones and asks whether they can live. At God's command he prophesies, and the bones rattle together, receive tendons, flesh, and skin, and then receive breath from the four winds until they stand as a vast army. God identifies the bones as the whole house of Israel, crushed by hopelessness and exile, and promises to open their graves, raise them up, put His Spirit within them, and return them to the land so they know that He has spoken and acted.

T¹he hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out by His Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones. ²He led me all around among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, and indeed, they were very dry. ³Then He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” ⁴And He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and tell them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! ⁵This is what the Lord GOD says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will come to life. ⁶I will attach tendons to you and make flesh grow upon you and cover you with skin. I will put breath within you so that you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’” ⁷So I prophesied as I had been commanded. And as I prophesied, there was suddenly a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to bone. ⁸As I looked on, tendons appeared on them, flesh grew, and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. ⁹Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and tell the breath that this is what the Lord GOD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, so that they may live!” ¹⁰So I prophesied as He had commanded me, and the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet — a vast army. ¹¹Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look, they are saying, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’ ¹²Therefore prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘O My people, I will open your graves and bring you up from them, and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. ¹³Then you, My people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. ¹⁴I will put My Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it, declares the LORD.’”