Ezekiel 37:1-14
You can sponsor this page of The Text This Week
- Reading the Text:
- NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
- Hebrew Interlinear Bible, WLCv, WLC5, CHES, AV.
- The Bible Gateway: NRSV, RSV, NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
- The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
- The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
- Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
- Chapter LII, The First Apology of Justin Martyr. (c 150)
- V.XV.1, V.XXXIV.1, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180)
- Chapter XXIX-XXX, On the Resurrection of the Flesh, Tertullian (c. 211)
- Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
- From the Geneva Notes.
- "He shows by a great miracle that God has power and will deliver his people from their captivity, in as much as he is able to give life to the dead bones and bodies and raise them up again."
- From
Matthew Henry's
Commentary.
- "The wind was an emblem of the Spirit of God, and represented his quickening powers."
- From
Wesley's
Notes.
- "Of all the bones of all those numerous slain, not one was missing, not one missed its way, not one missed its place, but each knew and found its fellow. Thus in the resurrection of the dead, the scattered atoms shall be arranged in their proper place and order, and every bone come to his bone, by the same wisdom and power by which they were first formed in the womb of her that is with child."
- From the
Commentary on the Whole Bible
(Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
- "bones came together--literally, "ye bones came together"; as in Jer 49:11 (Hebrew), "ye widows of thine shall trust in Me." The second person puts the scene vividly before one's eyes, for the whole resurrection scene is a prophecy in action to render more palpably to the people the prophecy in word (Eze 37:21)."
- "Come
from the Four Winds, O Breath; Ezekiel 37:9," Charles H. Spurgeon, 1892.
- "Now, first, in using this text, as I have said, for practical purposes, I am going to make this remark upon it: WE ARE NOTHING WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT."
- Contemporary Commentary, Studies and Exegesis:
- "We Rattling Bones," John C. Holbert, Opening the Old Testament, 2015.
- "The day of Pentecost is far more than the birthday of the church. This is the reenactment of YHWH's promise for a rebirth of those of us who are dry bones in a valley filled to the brim with dry bones."
- "Labor Pains and Dry Bones," Eric Smith, LECTIO, 2015.
- Commentary,
Ezekiel 37:1-14 (Lent 5A), Margaret Odell, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2014:
- "Despite the exiles' fear of being cut off from God, God is as near to them as their own breath. Ezekiel's vision does nothing to alleviate them of their present difficult circumstances, though it does promise them a future in their own land."
- "Can These Bones Live?" Faith Element Discipleship System, "Setting the Bible Free," 2012.
- "These Dry Bones," Janet H. Hunt, Dancing with the Word, 2015.
- "What in your community, your congregation, your home, has seemed as dead as the dry bones before us now?"
- "Becoming Whole Again," John C. Holbert, Opening the Old Testament, 2014.
- "We are Ezekiel's dry bones, waiting for a fresh breath of the spirit to give us new sinew and flesh and skin so that we might become whole again."
- Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
- Commentary,
Ezekiel 37:1-14 (Lent 5A), Rolf Jacobson, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2008.
- "Is there a way for the preacher not just to explain the text, but to do more? As Ezekiel drew on the metaphor of the lamenting bones of the people and wrought from that image the vision of the valley of dry bones, can the preacher enter into the lives of the people and cast a vision for them of God's Spirit at work in their lives?"
- The Old Testament Readings (Lent 5A): Weekly Comments on the Revised Common
Lectionary, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church,
Melbourne, Australia.
- "...He must prophecy to the dry bones, which are clearly symbolic of the defeated people of Israel."
- Environmental/earth-centered
reflections, Nan Stokes, from the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota Environmental Stewardship
Commission.
- "So we have come full circle since Ash Wednesday, when we were reminded that we were but dust, and now we know what the Lord can do with a pile of bones and dust -- we can live and be part of the Lord's vast multitude. "
- "I Felt the Lord's Power,"Paul Bellan-Boyer, I heard of a city called Heaven.
- "A modern Ezekiel might be taken to a small town on the prairie, where the local business are dried up and the next generation is exiled to another land..."
- "Ezekiel," Frederick Buechner, Peculiar Treasures.
- The Old Testament Readings,
Ezekiel 37:1-14, Pentecost B, The Old Testament Readings: Weekly Comments on the
Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan,
Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church,
Melbourne, Australia.
- "Verse 14 clearly states that the source of the life that is bringing Israel back from the ?dead? is the ?spirit? of the Lord. When all life appears to have gone, the word of God is the means whereby God?s spirit revives and restores."
- Ezekiel 37:1-14 (Pentecost), Studies on Old Testament texts from Series B, Ralph W. Klein, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
- Commentary, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Luke A. Powery, The African
American Lectionary, 2008.
- "Hope is not lost. Though in the valley of despair or death, God will not leave us for dead but will give us new life and restore our hope."
- Join the Feast, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Joshua T. Andrzejewski, Union PSCE,
2009.
- "Ezekiel?s report of the valley of dry bones comes up often in discussions of resurrection imagery in the Old Testament; however, this vision has more to do with restoration than resurrection."
- "Disaster Response," Chris Repp, Crossings, 2009.
- Radical Gratitude, lectionary-based stewardship, Northwest United Methodist Foundation. (.pdf)
- Commentary, Ezekiel 37:1-14 (Lent 5A), David G. Garber,
Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2011.
- "Our culture seems obsessed with death imagery."
- Commentary, Background, Insights from Literary Structure, Theological
Message, Ways to Present the Text. Anna Grant-Henderson, Uniting Church
in Australia.
- "The dryness of the bones emphasises the desolation and the miracle which will be wrought by Yahweh in bringing life to this people. This people who would have been feeling deserted by God, with no hope for the future are being reassured that God has the power to resurrect them."
- "New Life for Dry Bones," Alan Brehm, The Waking Dreamer, 2009.
- "I think any congregation can thrive if they become a place where people can sense God’s renewing Spirit at work, That happens by simply cultivating the Spirit’s presence through the practices that have characterized Christian discipleship throughout the centuries: prayer, study of scripture, service, fellowship and worship."
- Desert Scribblings, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Geoff McElroy, 2008. Reflection
and commentary.
- "Ezekiel's vision is not one that is regulated strictly to some distant time past, but one that speaks in the face of all places of spiritual and emotional exile and death. Restoration is possible, but true restoration will only occur when the spirit of God moves and is put within the communities and circumstances that need it."
- What About Dem Dry Bones?, Reflections on Ezekiel 37:1-14, John C. Holbert, Patheos, 2011
- "We Rattling Bones," John C. Holbert, Opening the Old Testament, 2015.
- Recommended articles
from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are
linked below.
ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of
selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices. Annotated list of "starting place" articles at ATLAS for this week's texts (includes direct links).
- Barnes, Craig, "Resurrected Hopes,"
The Christian Century, 2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Callahan, Allen Dwight, "Perspectives
for a Study of African American Religion from the Valley of Dry Bones,"
Nova Religio, 2003.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Horn, Ann, "Come from the Four Winds,
O Breath," The Christian Century, 2001. (Poetry)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Lemke, Werner E., "Life in the
Present and Hope for the Future," Interpretation, 1984. (Section
on this text begins on p. 177)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Olyan, Saul M.,
"'We Are Utterly Cut Off': Some Possible Nuances of ngzrnw lnw in
Ezekiel 37:11," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2003.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Qubti, Shadia, "Ezekiel 37: 'Can These Bones Live?
God, Only You Know,'" Review & Expositor, 2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Reed, Stephen A., "Imagining Resurrection in the Old Testament,'" Living Pulpit (Online), 2012.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Seitz, Christopher R., "Ezekiel 37:1-14, Expository
Article," Interpretation, 1992.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Taylor, Barbara Brown, "Can These Bones Live?" The
Christian Century, 1996.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Tuell, Steven Shawn, "True Metaphor: insights into reading Scripture from the rabbis," Theology Today, 2011.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Wink, Walter, "These Bones Shall Live," The
Christian Century, 1994.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Barnes, Craig, "Resurrected Hopes,"
The Christian Century, 2002.
- Sermons:
- "Making Skeletons Dance," Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington - Sermons from Seattle.
- Pentecost Sermon, 4 June 2006, Jim Mueller, Göttinger Predigten im Internet: Every Sunday Sermons based on the RCL by a team of Lutheran theologians/ pastors.
- Reviews:
- With Children:
- Worshiping with Children, Day of Pentecost, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2015. 2012.
- "Storypath Lectionary Links: Connecting Children's Literature with our Faith Story," May 24, 2015, Union Presbyterian Seminary. 2012.
- "Ezekiel," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
- "Dry Macaroni - Dry Bones," Children's Time, in Sermons and Liturgies. Richard J. Fairchild. (Scroll down in liturgies to find Children's Time.)
- "Come from the Four Winds, O Breath," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
- Drama:
- "New Life for Old Bones," Glenn A. Hascall, dramatix.
- Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
- Clip Art, Ezekiel 37:12, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
- Images for this week's readings, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
- Ezekiel 37: The Dry Bones, inclusive Christ, 2011. You Tube.
- Hymns and Music:
- "Wind of the Spirit," Hymn based on John 20:19-23, Ezekiel 37:1-14, Acts 2, Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia, 2012.
- Hymnary.org, hymns, scores, media, information.
- Hymn selections (United Methodist) and more from Hymnsite.com.
- Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
- Movies Listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
- Study Links and Resources for the Book of Ezekiel
