Глава 37

Revival of dry bones and the union of Ephraim with Judah The first, under which the restoration of Israel is most closely represented (v. 11), is a development of the thoughts of Ezek. 36.10 et seq. 37 et seq., second - thoughts Ezek.36.24. Thus, the prophet, having spoken about the restoration of the state (chap. XXXIV) and the country (XXXV-XXXVI), now speaks of the restoration of the people. But the people, exterminated in great numbers in recent wars and scattered everywhere, are now in such a hopeless state for restoration that this restoration can only be equal to their complete resurrection. It will happen to him (vv. 1–14), after which or together with which the enmity of Ephraim with Judah, as old as the people (cf. Pokrovsky F. Ya. Division of the Jewish Kingdom into the Kingdoms of Judah and Israel. Kyiv 1885), will be destroyed and their unification under the rule of one king will take place (vv. 15–28). But although the first part of the chapter, which constitutes one of the most amazing visions in the Old Testament (see 1-10) and its explanation (v. 11–14), has in mind, as the entire train of thought in this part of the book and the direct indication of the prophet (in Art. 11) shows, means the revival of Israel as a people (national), not without reason by the most ancient interpreters (Just. Apol. II, 87; Irenaeus Prot. ep. V, 1; Cyprian Ad Ouir. III, 49; Tertul. De ress. sag. 30; Cyril, Catech. 18; Augustine, doctr. III, 34) chapter a prophetic vision of the resurrection of the dead, contrary to the opposite statement of almost all the newest Western interpreters, who had the Gnostics as their predecessors in this regard (Tert. I. c). The belief in the resurrection of the dead was not only not alien to the Old Testament, but found very clear expression in Job 19:25–26; Isa 26.19; Dan 12.2. The real vision of Ezekiel surpasses all these passages in the clarity of its expression. Of course, the prophet is talking here about the revival of Israel (although it is not clear from anywhere that he expected this revival in the near future, e.g. during the liberation of the Jews from Babylonian captivity), but he contemplates this revival not under the guise of only the resurrection of the dead, but together with this future shocking event (with which the future actual restoration of Israel, its salvation, may have some connection hidden from us), and the contemplation of the latter completely pushes aside the immediate topic of his speech and he returns to it only in explaining the vision. In addition, as Tertullian says, “they do not take an image from an object that does not exist at all” (De ress. car. VI, 30). The church charter therefore very successfully prescribes the reading of this vision over the tomb of the Savior. Ezek.37:1. The hand of the Lord was upon me, and the Lord brought me out by the Spirit and set me in the middle of a field, and it was full of bones, "Was" . Asyndeton (without conjunction), as in Ezek.40.1; Wed opposite Ezek.1.1. – “The hand of the Lord is upon me” see explanation of Ezek.1.3. - “Brought out.” The indication seems to be bodily movement; Wed Ezek.3.10, 24. – “By the Spirit” – in vision, ecstasy (Ezek.3:14, 8:3, 11:24). – “In the middle of a field”, perhaps the same as in Ezek.3.23, but more likely than the other, because it was full of bones. This refers to the battlefield, which the prophet could have seen more than once. - “Bones” not buried, so that the prophet could see what would happen to them. Ezek.37:2. and he led me around around them, and behold there were quite a lot of them on the surface of the field, and behold they were very dry. “And he led me around around them” to see how many there are, what they are like and how little, for human reasons, there is hope for their revival. - “There are quite a lot of them on the surface of the field.” The field was littered with them. - “Very dry” - from a long stay in the air and, therefore, all the less capable of living. It seems to a person that it is somehow easier for the soul to return to a body that has just been left by the soul and has not decayed: 1 Kings 17.17 et c. 2 Kings 2.18 et c. Acts 20.9 et c.; opposite John 11. Ezek.37:3. And he said to me: Son of man! will these bones live? I said: Lord God! You know it. The question is proposed to show the greatness of the miracle. The prophet answers evasively, but in response shows an almost Christian faith in the omnipotence of God. At the same time, the answer shows that the belief in the resurrection of the dead in the Old Testament was not universal and firm. A Christian would answer, “yes.” Ezek.37:4. And he said to me: Prophesy against these bones and say to them: “Dry bones! listen to the word of the Lord!” “What the prophet receives is not only an answer, but also a commission.” (Skinner by Bert.). The revival of bones is not carried out directly by the power of God, but through the prophetic word, because this word itself is “a real agent, extending its action to the external world; Wed for example, Ezek.32.18 (Bert.; see explanation there) and because the quickening of bones is carried out by the same Holy Spirit by whom the prophet is animated. – “Dry” increase, which aims to remind of the natural impossibility of fulfilling the one who now has to follow the command. - “Listen.” Beautiful prosopopoeia (Trosh.), especially appropriate in view of the fact that the bones represent captives (Grotius). Ezek.37:5. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will put breath into you, and you will live. “I will put spirit into you, and you will live.” “Spirit” – soul, breath of life; therefore LXX “the spirit is living” (without expressing “you will come to life”). This general expression is developed picturesquely in the details of Art. 6. Ezek.37:6. And I will cover you with sinews, and I will grow flesh on you, and I will cover you with skin, and I will bring breath into you, and you will live, and you will know that I am the Lord. “I’ll cover it.” Heb. verb karam (only v. 8 and Sir according to Hebrew Eze. 43.20); maybe an anatomical term. Sinew, flesh, skin - natural order. Evidence of the anatomical knowledge of antiquity: the role of nerves (veins) in the body. “Spirit” is the main thing, stated as such in Art. 5. in the first place, here it is put in its place: cf. Art. 9. LXX. “My Spirit”: The Holy Spirit, the source of life; visible tautology from Art. 5. – “And you will know that I am the Lord.” Nothing speaks more about the omnipotence of God than the resurrection. Ezek.37:7. I prophesied as I was commanded; and when I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a movement, and bones began to come together, bone to bone. “When I prophesied,” about which, v. 5 et seq.; see explanation of Art. 4. - “There was a noise,” at first probably so muffled and vague that the prophet could not determine where it came from; and then this noise was defined as “movement”, Heb. raash, the word which denotes an earthquake in Ezek.3.12 (but in Ezek.12.18 “trembling”), is therefore glorious. “coward”, there must be a movement between the bones from their impact against each other, the full horror of which is easy to imagine and which, if not in strength, then in impression, resembled an earthquake. Therefore, it is unnecessary for Qliphoth to assume that the noise was the sound of a trumpet or the voice of God, according to which bodies will be resurrected, and the movement is a shaking of the earth, which has the potential to open the tombs at the resurrection. “A bone with its bone,” with which it should be connected, for which each bone had to move a greater or lesser distance; hence the noise and movement. Ezek.37:8. And I saw: and behold, sinews were on them, and flesh grew, and skin covered them from above, but there was no spirit in them. The prophet could trace the revival of the dead only to the moment when they still lack one thing - the last and most important thing - life. This strong transition from life to death, the most decisive transition, is isolated from the rest by the process of restoring the dead and is highlighted as especially important (Bert.). Ezek.37:9. Then He said to me: Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man, and say to the spirit: Thus says the Lord God: come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe on these slain, and they will live. The action is described in all its individual moments, which enhances the impression of a miracle. The prophet must once again prophesy that the spirit should enter the body, although this was already done in v. 7, cf. 5 and 6 tbsp. This well marks the entire abyss that lies between the animate creation and the soulless one. If the spirit according to Art. 6 is given by God, but here he himself enters into bodies, then there is no contradiction in this, since here too he submits to the will of God. But still, the Spirit here, compared to Gen. 2.7, which is clearly meant here, is a more independent agent; it seems to fill the whole world, constituting, as it were, its breath, which in man is only, as it were, individualized. This breathing, of course, must be related to the Holy Spirit, precisely produced by it. From this it is clear that it enters the body according to the prophecy of the prophet, who also speaks by the Holy Spirit. Such is the power of the word of God even in the mouth of man; what it must have been like in the mouth of the Son, the Word of God! (Tr.). The spirit comes “from the four winds,” that is, from all ends of the earth, which was necessary in view of the multitude of those killed. Here, in addition, there is an allusion to the gathering of Israel, scattered to all the “4 winds” according to Ezek.5:10, 12:14, 17:21. In euros the result is a double ruach (“winds” and “spirit”), which could have been avoided, but such an expression must be intentional, since the breath of life in a gust of wind finds concrete expression. - “Killed”. For the first time we learn about the bones that they were from the dead, and not just the dead. But this previously went without saying: a field with so many bones on the surface of the earth could only be a battlefield. Ezek.37:10. And I prophesied as He commanded me, and the spirit entered into them, and they lived and stood on their feet—a very, very great army. “Horde”, since the bones were of the army that lay down on the battlefield; see explanation of Art. 9. But LXX: “cathedral.” The Talmud (Sanhedr. XCII, 2) proves that this resurrection actually took place, that those resurrected returned to Canaan and had offspring; The author of this opinion also counts himself among the descendants of one of the resurrected. Ezek.37:11. And He said to me: Son of man! these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say: “Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost, we are cut off from the root.” The vision is explained. As often, the prophet directly from the mouths of the people takes a current phrase, in turn borrowed from the mournful psalms and clearly expressing all the depression of the Babylonian captives (as well as the absence of the idea of ​​​​resurrection in the popular faith). – “Torn off from the root” of national existence, in which, according to the view of antiquity, the existence of an individual is possible; LXX: “kill by murder.” Ezek.37:12. Therefore prophesy and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will open your graves and bring you, My people, out of your graves and bring you into the land of Israel. “I will bring you out... from your graves” - from captivity, this national death of Israel. The Prophet freely leaves the first image - unburied bones (speaking of coffins). – “My people” is a necessary and comforting name, the opposite of the angry one: “thy people” (of the prophet) Eze.13.17, 33.2, etc. or even more angry: “a rebellious house” Eze.2.5, etc. Ezek.37:13. And you will know that I am the Lord when I open your graves and bring you, My people, out of your graves, “And you will know that I am the Lord.” Then God will reveal Himself in truth in all His being, which is love. Ezek.37:14. And I will put My spirit within you, and you will live, and I will place you in your land, and you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it, says the Lord. The “spirit” is close here. image as one that gives life to the body (vv. 6, 9); but since this revival is carried out by the same Holy Spirit, by whom the promised moral rebirth of man is accomplished in Ezekiel 36.21, the latter is also meant here. Ezek.37:15. And the word of the Lord came to me: First, under the guise of a symbolic action, the future unification of the two Jewish kingdoms under the messianic rule of the Descendant of David is depicted and then directly described. Since the time of Hosea (Hosea 2.2, 3.5), this feature - the unification of 2 Kings - has been constantly repeated in messianic aspirations (Am 9.11 and Isa 11.13; Micah 2.12). While Ephraim existed, this powerful kingdom was, in fact, Israel, bearing this name alone, and Judah next to it was an insignificant power, remaining so, in essence, even after the fall of Ephraim. If the glory of David's time must be restored, then even in later times it is unthinkable without Ephraim, especially now, when the smallest remnant of Judah remains. Although immediate news about this has not been preserved, it can be considered undeniable that colonies of Ephraim’s exiles then existed in Assyria. Jeremiah looks at them with eyes full of hope (Jeremiah 3:18 et seq.; cf. Jeremiah 31:15, 2:4, 5:11) and considers the simultaneous restoration of Ephraim and Judah to be self-explanatory (Jeremiah 31:9, 18, 20, 24, 33:16, 50:19, 51:5). "Rod", Heb. etz, a tree (Vulg. lignum), which could only be shaped like a rod, so that two such pieces of wood could be embraced with one hand; in addition, Numbers 17.6 et seq. must be meant; therefore LXX with the right: “rod”. “And the sons of Israel allied with him,” that is, Benjamin, Simeon, partly Levi, and perhaps also emigrants of different times to the southern kingdom. - “Joseph”. He is named instead of Ephraim to contrast him as a brother with Judah. Therefore, “Ephraim” is now explained. - “And the whole house of Israel,” which, indeed, for the vast majority was subordinate to Ephraim; LXX again to “sons” (in Hebrew, similar in outline to “house”). Ezek.37:17. And put them one with the other in one rod, so that they are one in your hand. Just as it is easy for a prophet to unite two rods in one hand, so it is easy for God to unite its two parts, separated hitherto and from the beginning of the political existence of Israel. Ezek.37:18. And when the sons of your people ask you, “Will you explain to us what you have?” Wed. Ezek.24.19. Consequently, Ezekiel's symbolic actions were carried out in reality; Wed Ch. IV. Ezek.37:19. Then say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take the rod of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim and the allied tribes of Israel, and will put them to it, to the rod of Judah, and will make them one rod, and they will be one in My hand. "The rod of Joseph, which was in the hand of Ephraim". The tribe of Ephraim occupied a leading, dominant position in the northern kingdom. Jeroboam was also from him. - “And I will add them to him (the last word is not in LXX), to the rod of Judas.” The abnormal independent existence of the northern kingdom will not take place: it will submit, as it should, to Judah, forming one kingdom with it. - “And they will be one in My hand.” LXX: “in the hand of Judah” (one Hebrew hand “in his hand,” i.e. Judah), which, in essence, is the same, because God will rule through Judah’s descendant - the Messiah. Ezek.37:20. When the two rods on which you write are in your hand before their eyes, “When... they will be”, glory. more precisely: “and they will be.” During the entire time of the next prediction, the prophet must hold two rods connected in his hand. “The dramatic impression of the symbol was undeniable” (Smend). Ezek.37:21. then say to them, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they are, and will gather them from everywhere and bring them into their land. The explanation of the symbolic action is presented in more detail and is supplemented by other predictions. Ezek.37:22. On this land, on the mountains of Israel, I will make them one people, and one King will be king over them all, and they will no longer be two nations, and they will no longer be divided into two kingdoms. "King", Heb. melekh. Only here and in Art. 24. This word is used by Ezekiel to name the Messiah (in other cases always nasi, prince), because here we are talking about the unification of 2 Kings under his authority. The prediction relates most closely to post-exilic Israel; but it was fulfilled imperfectly (there were no kings from the house of David, except for Zerubbabel), but it was fulfilled more fully in the spiritual kingdom of Christ; and completely - on the future church, the kingdom of glory. Ezek.37:23. And they will no longer defile themselves with their idols and their abominations and all their vices, and I will free them from all their places of residence where they have sinned, and I will cleanse them, and they will be My people, and I will be their God. Jehovah can fulfill all these promises, because the people will no longer sin, and their previous sins will be forgiven. And, above all, the people will no longer fall into idolatry. - “And I will free them from all the places of residence where they sinned.” LXX make the thought clearer and simpler, reading instead of “residence” the similar outline of “lawlessness”, “sinning by them”. - “And they will be My people.” Ancient covenant relationships will be restored. Ezek.37:24. And My servant David will be King over them and Shepherd of them all, and they will walk in My commandments, and they will keep My statutes and do them. The connection between both halves of the verse is either such that the eschatological king (Messiah) will be the divinely appointed guardian of truth and law on earth (cf. Ezek. 34.23; Is. 9.1, 11.1, 32.1; Jer. 23.1), or such that the establishment of this truth on earth will make his reign possible. – “My servant David” – see explanation. Ezek.34.23. Ezek.37:25. And they will live in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, in which their fathers dwelt; there they and their children and their children’s children will live forever; and my servant David will be their prince forever. References to patriarchs in Ezekiel are not frequent (cf. Ezekiel 33.24). The promise of eternity is repeated twice. For the fulfillment of the prediction, see the explanation of Art. 22. Ezek.37:26. And I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant will be with them. And I will establish them, and multiply them, and set up my sanctuary among them forever. A clear prediction about the New Testament, Christianity. “Peace” see explanation of Ezek.34.25. - “I will establish” in the promised land; glory “I will root” but Greek. ταξω – “Sanctuary” – the mysterious church XL-XLVIII, the source of every blessing for the future of Israel; glory general: “sanctification”, but Greek. τα ᾿αγια – church.