Ezekiel 36 Study Notes

36:1 Chapter 36 is set in antithesis to chap. 35. When God intervenes on Israel’s behalf, the “mountains” of Israel’s enemies will be judged (35:1-3,8) but the mountains of Israel will be blessed. The terrain of Israel was an elevated region between the Jordan Valley and the Mediterranean Sea coast characterized by mountainous areas (Dt 11:11). Thus, this reference to the mountains of Israel should be understood as a reference to the entire nation.

36:2-3 That Israel would become the object of ridicule had been foretold in Dt 28:37 and reiterated in Jr 24:9. The term translated slander (Hb dbh) recalls the faithless Israelite scouts and their evaluation of the promised land (Nm 13:32). Now this appraisal was spoken from every side about the nation of Israel.

36:4-5 The phrase burning zeal occurs elsewhere only in v. 6. Formerly God’s passion was kindled by Israel’s rebellion against him; now it flares against the arrogant Gentiles. Edom is once again pictured as representative of all nations that sought to harm Israel (Is 34; 63:1-6). The theological foundation of God’s reaction is based on Gn 12:1-3 where God promised that all nations that opposed Israel would be cursed. God’s personal identification with the land of Israel is demonstrated by the phrase my land (see Lv 25:23). The term for possession (Hb moresh) is from the same root as “will possess” in 35:10, connecting Edom to the current prophecy as well. Edom’s claim of the promised land ridiculed Israel but also insulted God because the land was his, and he had given it to his people. In the legal prescriptions for the celebration of the Year of Jubilee, God announced, “The land . . . is mine” (Lv 25:23).

36:6 The word translated “land” (Hb ’adamah) is not the normal term used in the expression the land of Israel. This term could be rendered “soil” in this context. It would be appropriate in this prophecy of renewal of the land’s fertility (Gn 4:2; Pr 12:11).

36:7 The phrase I swear means literally “with uplifted hand.” This gesture accompanied the taking of an oath (20:5,15,23; 47:14).

36:8 In the OT, agricultural abundance was seen as a blessing from God (Dt 30:9) and a preview of the blessings of the coming Messianic Age. The emphasis on fruit-bearing trees and arboriculture before agriculture shifts the focus to the narratives about the garden of Eden (Gn 2:15-16; 3:17-19). This oracle reverses the judgments on the mountains of Israel in Ezk 6.

36:9 The phrase I will turn toward you also occurs in Lv 26:9 in the context of the covenant blessings that would accompany obedience to the Mosaic law. Thus the renewed abundance of fruitfulness in the land will coincide with the blessings that accompanied obedience to the Mosaic law (Lv 26:1-13).

36:10 The phrase whole house of Israel refers to the twelve tribes that had originally made up the nation, not just Judah alone. As in 37:15-23, Ezekiel was speaking of the restoration of all Israel.

36:11 The references to increased fertility and population growth (increase and be fruitful) refer back to the creation account where God’s blessing upon animals (Gn 1:22) and humans (Gn 1:28) resulted in them filling the earth (Gn 9:1,7). What is promised in this verse is a return to Eden-like conditions, where blessings flow from God’s presence among his people. This new fertility will exceed anything the land had ever experienced (Lv 26:9).

36:12 God’s people will be able to roam freely in the land of Israel because it will no longer be possessed by her enemies. Walking through land was a way to claim ownership (Gn 13:17; Jos 24:3; 1Kg 21:16). This promise reverses the desolation predicted in Ezk 6:14.

36:13-15 The threat of the land “devouring” (Hb ’klt) inhabitants not only recalls 5:13-17, but also echoes, for a second time, the statements of the faithless spies about the land of Canaan: “The land we passed through to explore is one that devours [Hb ’klt] its inhabitants” (Nm 13:32).

36:16-17 Since a woman’s monthly menstrual period rendered her unclean under Jewish law (Lv 15:19-30; 18:19), God categorized the conduct of Israel as uncleanness or defilement. Isaiah used a similar description (Is 30:22; 64:6). A woman in this condition was not eligible to take part in religious activities. Her impurity lasted seven days, after which she was considered clean and fit to return to the house of the Lord.

36:18 The dual offenses of blood they had shed on the land and idolatry summarize Israel’s social injustices and idolatrous practices (22:3). The people have sinned against God and their fellow man—the two categories of sin outlined in the Ten Commandments.

36:19 To be faithful and loyal, God had no choice but to bring on his people the curses of the covenant they had broken, namely scattering them among the nations (see Dt 29:22-28). Moreover, by God’s policy the homeland vomits out its inhabitants when it becomes defiled (Lv 18:25,28).

36:20-21 Though Yahweh expelled his people from the promised land for the purpose of chastening and eventually restoring them, their exile reflected unfavorably upon God among foreign nations. The ancients believed that if a people were forced from their land—by conquest, famine, disease, etc.—it was a sign that their god was not strong enough to protect and care for them (2Kg 18:32-35; 19:10-12). Thus the Hebrew exile was taken as a sign that Israel’s God was weaker than the gods of the nations that defeated Jerusalem. The nations profaned God’s holy name, meaning they defamed his essence, character, and reputation.

36:22 In chap. 20 the expression but for my holy name states the reason for the withholding of divine punishment (20:9,14,22). Here it is the reason for divine restoration. In the NT, concern for God’s name is a central theme—“your name be honored as holy” (Mt 6:9; see Jn 1:12; 12:28).

36:23 The ultimate purpose of God’s plans for Israel was that Israel and the whole world would know the true God.

36:24-25 Once the Israelites have arrived in the land, God will sprinkle them with clean water so they will be clean. This figurative language is based on water purification practices when the priest threw water on persons or objects to cleanse them of impurity (Nm 19:13,20). Sprinkling with water or blood symbolized the cleansing that comes through forgiveness (Ex 12:22; Lv 14:4-7; Ps 51:7; 1Co 6:11). The first order of business for the Israelites when they return to their homeland will be to pay attention to their spiritual condition (Ps 119:9; Is 4:4; Zch 13:1; Heb 10:22). The Lord himself will sprinkle his people with clean water. On sprinkling with water as a ritual act of cleansing, see Ex 30:19-20; Lv 14:51; Nm 19:18 (cp. Zch 13:1; Heb 10:22). The most significant use of water as a cleansing agent occurred during the biblical flood. God inundated the earth to remove the impurities and wickedness that had been caused by humanity.

36:26 The statement I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you reflects the teaching of Dt 30:6-8—that the Lord will circumcise the hearts of his people so they may live in obedience. This radical new creation (Ezk 11:19; 18:31; Jr 31:31-34) was necessary to break the people’s bondage to the cycle of sin and retribution emphasized in Ezk 20. Regeneration is a secret act of God by which he imparts new spiritual life to dead hearts. Texts that address regeneration include Eph 2:5; Col 2:13; Jms 1:17-18; and 1Pt 1:3.

36:27 More than any other prophet, Ezekiel emphasizes the Holy Spirit’s role in regeneration. When God places his Spirit in his people, they will be able to follow his decrees and keep his laws. Thus, the people will be transformed, never again to profane God’s holy name. This work of the Spirit is attested in many passages of Scripture (11:19-20; 18:31; 37:14; 39:29; Jl 2:28-29; Ac 2:17-18; 2Co 3:16-18; Gl 5:16-26). This work of God to transform lives through the implementation of a new heart and a new spirit is referred to in the NT as the “new birth” or being “born again” (Jn 3:3-8).

36:28 This contains the covenant formula that first appears in Ex 6:7. (Also see Lv 26:12; Jr 7:23; 11:4; 30:22).

36:29-30 What is described in this passage (you will no longer experience reproach among the nations) does not refer to the return to Canaan under Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Rather, it looks to a final and complete restoration under the Messiah in the end times.

36:31-32 God’s unmerited grace causes sinners to loathe their ways, leading to reflection and repentance (you will remember your evil ways). This chapter moves beyond texts such as Lv 26:40-42 and Jr 31:18-20, where repentance is the driving motivation behind restoration.

36:33-36 In this prophecy for the land of Israel, God will restore the land to a “better than original” state. It will become like the garden of Eden, the ultimate symbol of fertility and fruitfulness (28:13; 31:9; cp. Is 51:3; Jl 2:3). It will be paradise regained (Rm 8:19-22; 2Pt 3:13; Rv 21:1-4). Supernatural fertility of the land is one of the characteristics of the messianic kingdom (Is 35:1-2; 55:13; Ezk 47:1-12; Zch 8:12). The replenishing of the land so that it resembles the garden of Eden (Gn 2-3) will reveal God to the nations. The mention of this idyllic state suggests a future fulfillment beyond that which occurred in the return from Babylon under the leadership of Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah. These conditions will not be realized until the Messianic Age. Romans 8:18-25 indicates that creation still longs for complete deliverance from sin’s curse.

36:37-38 The number of people is compared to the numerous sheep that passed through Jerusalem at the time of the appointed festivals (Lv 23). Through God’s sovereign empowerment the people can now replenish the earth in harmony with God’s purposes for creation—“Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth” (Gn 1:28; cp. Gn 9:1,7). The phrase a flock of people conveys the idea of abundance (1Kg 8:63; 1Ch 29:21; 2Ch 35:7).