The word of the LORD came to me: “Son of man, while the house of Israel lived in their land, they defiled it with their conduct and actions. Their behavior before me was like menstrual impurity. So I poured out my wrath on them because of the blood they had shed on the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols. I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered among the countries. I judged them according to their conduct and actions. When they came to the nations where they went, they profaned my holy name, because it was said about them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, yet they had to leave his land in exile.’ Then I had concern for my holy name, which the house of Israel profaned among the nations where they went.
“Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: It is not for your sake that I will act, house of Israel, but for my holy name, which you profaned among the nations where you went. I will honor the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations—the name you have profaned among them. The nations will know that I am the LORD—this is the declaration of the Lord GOD—when I demonstrate my holiness through you in their sight.
“‘For I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances. You will live in the land that I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will summon the grain and make it plentiful, and I will not bring famine on you. I will also make the fruit of the trees and the produce of the field plentiful, so that you will no longer experience reproach among the nations on account of famine.
“‘You will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and detestable practices. It is not for your sake that I will act—this is the declaration of the Lord GOD—let this be known to you. Be ashamed and humiliated because of your ways, house of Israel!
“‘This is what the Lord GOD says: On the day I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the ruins will be rebuilt. The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of everyone who passes by. They will say, “This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden. The cities that were once ruined, desolate, and demolished are now fortified and inhabited.” Then the nations that remain around you will know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt what was demolished and have replanted what was desolate. I, the LORD, have spoken and I will do it.
“‘This is what the Lord GOD says: I will respond to the house of Israel and do this for them: I will multiply them in number like a flock. So the ruined cities will be filled with a flock of people, just as Jerusalem is filled with a flock of sheep for sacrifice during its appointed festivals. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’”
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View this work of art, Valley of the Dry Bones, by Donald Jackson, connected to Sunday’s sermon passage.
As you look at this week’s piece, take a few quiet moments to notice details, colors, or emotions that stand out to you. Ask God what he might be saying through the image, and listen for his insight in your thoughts, feelings, or prayers.
Commentary:
In this illumination from The Saint John’s Bible, artist Donald Jackson has placed God’s word in the literal gap between the human imagination’s capacity for violence and death and the visual evidence of God’s faithful promises to humanity. Not only has God promised to never again unmake the earth as he did in Genesis 6–7, he also promises Ezekiel to breathe life into the dry bones of a spiritually dead and wicked society.
In The Art of the Saint John’s Bible, Susan Sink writes,
The skulls are based on photos taken of the genocide and war in Armenia, Rwanda, Iraq, and Bosnia. The piles of broken glass suggest the broken windows caused by car bombs, suicide bombers, and terrorist attacks…. At the center is a pile of eyeglasses, a well-known image from the Holocaust. [...] For Donald Jackson, the waste of ecological disaster is part of the larger image…. The three automobile hulls are one sign of the spiritual death of society.
Across the image are seven menorahs, a symbol of God’s covenant with his people. Gold squares indicate the presence of the divine (and they echo the imagery of the Creation illumination). The black bars turn to gold as the viewer’s eye ascends the page toward the rainbow of God’s promise, a reminder that even the darkest places on earth will be redeemed one day as all God’s promises are fulfilled.
Art Source: Valley of the Dry Bones, Donald Jackson, © 2005 The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, Copyright 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
Ask the Holy Spirit to bring new life where you cannot manufacture it yourself.
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