22 October 2002

Text: Ezekiel 36

RESTORATION OF ISRAEL

1. Israel- The Possession of the nations

a) The taunts of the enemies
"The enemy has said of you,
'Aha, the ancient heights have become our possession'"
Ezekiel. 36:2

"They have made you desolate and swallowed you up on every side…"
Ezekiel 36:3

b) The punishment of God
"I poured out My fury on them for the blood they had shed on the land, and for the idols with which they had defiled it.
So I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the countries; I judged them according to their ways and their deeds."
Ezekiel 36:18-19

2. The Nations- Rebuke of the Lord

"Surely I have spoken in My burning jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, who gave My land to themselves as a possession, with wholehearted joy and spiteful minds, in order to plunder its open country."
Ezekiel 36:5

3. Israel- Promise of Restoration

a) Restoration of the land
"But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are about to come.
For indeed I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown."
Ezekiel 36:8-9

b) Restoration of the people
I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt.
I will make you inhabited as in former times, and do better for you than at the beginnings"
Ezekiel 36:10

"I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land"
Ezekiel 36:24

c) No more taunts and reproaches
"Nor will I let you hear the taunts of the nations anymore, nor bear the reproach of the peoples anymore…"
Ezekiel 36:15

4. Reasons for Restoration of Israel

a) God's Concern for His Own Holy Name
"I had concern for My holy Name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever they went"
Ezekiel 36:21

b) For the sake of His Own Name
"Thus says the Lord God:
'I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel,
But for My own Name's sake, which you have profaned among the nations… "
Ezekiel 36:22

c) God's Great Name
"And I will sanctify My great Name, which has been profaned among the nations…"
Ezekiel 36:23

5. Millennial Kingdom in View

a) A Cleansed Nation
"Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean;
I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols"
Ezekiel 36:25

b) A New heart and spirit
"I will give you a new heart and a new spirit within you;
I will take the stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh"
Ezekiel 36:26

c) The Outpouring of the Spirit of God
"I will out My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments"
Ezekiel 36:27

d) Dwelling in the land as God's people
"Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers;
And you shall be My people, and I shall be Your God."
Ezekiel 36:28

e) Special Blessings Promised
"I will deliver you from all your uncleanness;
I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you.
I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields…"
Ezekiel 36:29-30

f) Israel to remember its past in shame
"Then you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good;
and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations."
Ezekiel 36:31

g) The certainty of the fulfillment of these promises
"I, the LORD, have spoken it, and I will do it"
Ezekiel 36:36

"THEN THEY SHALL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD…"
Ezekiel 36:38