Ezekiel was a priest taken to Babylon with King Jehoiachin in 597 BC. That was about eleven years before Jerusalem fell. In the fifth year of that captivity, by the river Chebar, he saw “the likeness of the glory of the Lord.” That’s Ezekiel 1:1–3 and 28. In 3:17 and 33:7, the Lord calls him a watchman to warn the house of Israel. He served exiles who had lost their land and their king. In 33:21 news comes that the city has fallen. Then they’d lost their temple too.
This week’s block moves from judgment to restoration. In chapter 34 the Lord rebukes Israel’s shepherds. In 34:2–4 they fed themselves and never sought the lost. In 34:11 He promises, “I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.” In 34:23 He promises “one shepherd,” His servant David. The Savior fulfilled that when He called Himself the good shepherd in John 10:11. In 36:26–27 He promises to take away “the stony heart.” He’ll give “an heart of flesh” and His own spirit. Chapter 47 ends with water flowing from the temple. It grows deeper until it’s a river that heals everything it reaches.
This lesson centers on Ezekiel 37:1–14. The exiles were saying in 37:11, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost.” The Lord answered with a vision. A valley full of very dry bones comes together and takes on flesh. Then the bones receive breath and stand. The Hebrew word for breath here is ruach. It can also mean wind or spirit. So breath, the four winds and “my spirit” in 37:14 are all the same word. The Lord said the vision meant Israel’s restoration. Latter-day revelation also ties it to the Resurrection in Doctrine and Covenants 138:43.
Twenty-five minutes is enough for one chapter read well. Walk through Ezekiel 37 in five short readings: 37:1–3, 4–6, 7–10, 11–14 and 26–28. Bridge the two sticks in a sentence. Ask one question after each. Give the most time to the hope questions. Ezekiel 34’s seeking Shepherd is a short bonus. The watchman, the two sticks and the healing river are in the extras.
