Ezekiel was one of God’s chosen prophets to Israel during their Babylonian captivity. History teaches us that he came from a family of priests who devoted themselves to the work of the Lord. Obviously, in the face of captivity, serving the one true God was much more difficult than things had been in the past. However, Ezekiel continued to prove himself as a faithful servant of God.
While all 48 chapters of the Book of Ezekiel are filled with powerful, beautiful verses that illustrate God’s power and His desire for His people to return to Him, chapter 37 is arguably the most famous portion of Ezekiel’s book. More specifically, Ezekiel 37:1-14 is incredibly popular, as it recounts Ezekiel’s vision in the valley of dry bones.
Obviously, we do not live in Babylonian captivity, so are there still lessons that we can learn from Ezekiel’s vision? Absolutely! The story of the valley of dry bones, God’s Word to Ezekiel and the prophet’s willingness to obey God provide several life lessons that we can apply to our own faith.
Sometimes God Leads Us to the Valley
Ezekiel 37:1 (ESV)
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones.
In modern Christian lingo, we have decided that valleys are undesirable areas. We often talk about “being on the mountain top” which means we are experiencing God’s blessings and victory. However, valleys are the opposite, and are often seen as places of defeat and despair. However, that’s not necessarily the case.
In the first verse, we find out that God’s hand was on Ezekiel. That is to say that Ezekiel’s entire life was under subjection to God. Where did God take His prophet? To a valley. And not just any valley. He took him to a valley that was full of skeletons, the only remains of Israel’s once powerful army.
If you find yourself facing a valley in your life, it does not mean that you have landed there through your own poor decisions or that you’re facing some sort of divine punishment from God. There are times where God takes us to a valley so we can see His power from a closer perspective.
Nothing is Impossible with God
Ezekiel 37:3 (ESV)
And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.”
Ezekiel was positioned at the edge of a valley that had been turned into a makeshift mass grave. Presumably, the skeletons which were piled up in the valley were the soldiers who had tried to prevent Babylon from carrying Israel into captivity. God asked Ezekiel if there was hope for these bones to live again.
Can you imagine if you were faced with a similar question? If you were standing at the edge of a valley full of skeletons, would you really have any hope for them to live again? On the surface, this looked like a hopeless situation full of lifeless bodies. However, God asked if the bones could live, and Ezekiel didn’t respond as dismissively as we probably would have.
Instead, Ezekiel pointed the question back to God. The prophet was fully aware that he lacked the capacity to bring life back into the skeletons. However, he knew that God was more than able to bring life into a seemingly dead situation.
If you’re facing something in your life that seems impossible for you, it’s still not impossible for God. In fact, nothing is! In the same way that Ezekiel turned over the need for life to be breathed back into the bones to God, you can hand your impossible situation to Him and rest in the fact that nothing is impossible for Him.
Obedience Often Defies Logic
Ezekiel 37:7 (ESV)
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
Just a few verses earlier, God had instructed Ezekiel to prophesy to the bones. That’s right; God told Ezekiel to talk to a bunch of skeletons that had been discarded into a valley. Faced with something that not only seemed impossible, but also borderline insane, Ezekiel simply did exactly what God wanted him to do.
This prophet, called by God and commissioned to deliver His Word to His people now found himself ministering to skeletons. Before Ezekiel could even get done with the message that God wanted to deliver, there was a sound in the valley. Bones began to rattle, and bones began to come back together. As Ezekiel finished the admonishment from God, the skeletons had skin on them again and were standing up!
Sometimes obedience doesn’t make sense. Abraham was told by God to give up conventional wisdom and move into a place that he had never lived before. Noah was commanded by God to build a boat even though it had never rained because there was a worldwide flood coming. Moses didn’t think he was qualified to deliver God’s people from Egyptian slavery, but he chose obedience in the face of his own shortcomings.
There may be times where God asks you to do something that defies your own logic. However, obedience isn’t always logical on the surface. But it’s always the right choice.
It’s What’s on the Inside that Counts
Ezekiel 37:10 (ESV)
So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
At the end of Ezekiel’s initial prophesy, the bones of the soldiers had been joined back together. Cartlidge had reformed between the bones, and they even had skin on the outside. On the surface, this looked like the same army that had found itself in battle many years before. However, something was missing. There was no life in them.
After God told Ezekiel to prophesy to the bones and bring them back together, they stood up but they “had no breath in them” (Ezekiel 37:8). In order to fully restore this army back to its former glory, they needed the breath of God, which is the Holy Spirit.
Our final lesson from the valley of dry bones is found in the fact that without God’s Spirit actively working in our lives, we are essentially nothing more than a lifeless bag of bones. God’s plan for His people is for us to be a powerful, life-changing, life-giving force that fulfills the Great Commission that Jesus gave to His disciples (and to us) at the end of Saint Matthew’s Gospel.
In order to do that, we have to have the Holy Spirit actively working in our lives. The Holy Spirit provides us with the strength that we need in order to carry His message to the world around us. The Holy Spirit provides the peace that we need to withstand the resistance that we are certain to face. Most of all, the Holy Spirit provides us with the correction that we need to ensure that we are operating according to God’s standard of living.
The story of the valley of dry bones provides us with powerful truths that should alter the way that we view ourselves and those around us. At its heart, it is a story of redemption and restoration. However, on the path to that restoration, we find multiple examples of practical lessons that we can apply to our own lives.
A Closing Prayer:
God, I want to be more in tune with what You want for me. Help me to stop viewing my valleys as a place of defeat. Instead, I will view them as a place where I can see your power. When things look impossible for me, remind me that nothing is impossible for You. Help me to be obedient, even when it doesn’t make sense to me. Finally, allow me to be filled with the Holy Spirit so I can carry your lifegiving message of restoration and hope to those around me. In Christ’s name, Amen.