EZEKIEL’S SKELETON ARMY

SETTING UP THIS MESSAGE

• Let’s go back in time to a fascinating era for Israel. After generations with only God as their ruler, the Israelites decided to appoint kings.

• Saul was the first. He failed on a major scale.

• Next was David. After David, his son Solomon sat on his dad’s throne and likely added a couple of gemstones to it.

• David and Solomon were largely considered the best kings Israel had ever seen, despite a long list of major mistakes and missteps.

• After David and Solomon, the rest of Israel’s kings struggled.

• Sure, there were some half-decent ones. But the vast majority were bad, terrible, or flat-out evil.

• Generation after generation, God sent prophets to warn Israel that their idolatry would get them in trouble. Warning after warning, prophet after prophet, they didn’t listen. Sadly, God’s warnings were not empty threats.

• In 600 B.C., Israel was seized and burned to the ground, and the Israelites were sent as exiles to Babylon.

TENSION

• In modern times, we have a really hard time wrapping our heads around what this moment meant for Israel. The closest thing would be the atrocities of World War II and the mass exile in Europe.

• In Israel’s exilic era, God’s chosen people found themselves reeling as homeless refugees.

• The promises of God began to feel like a myth.

• They were hopeless, helpless, and in horrific conditions.

• What was God going to do?

• Despite their desperation, God was working. While God’s people were in exile, He appointed some of the most prolific prophets to speak on His behalf.

• Among those prophets was a man named Ezekiel. He was appointed to give good news to God’s people.

• His message contained a weird plot twist, though. Ezekiel delivered hope with the illustration of a skeleton army

WHAT DID THIS MEAN FOR ISRAEL?

• Ezekiel shared a perplexing vision of being transported into a dusty valley in the middle of the wilderness. It wasn’t full of plants, animals, or even a stream.

• Instead, the ground was littered with thousands of brittle human bones. With every step, bones crunched beneath his feet like autumn leaves.

• Ezekiel squatted toward the ground to lock eyes with a cracked human skull. A shiver went up his spine because he realized these bones were “dry.”

• What does that mean? They had been abandoned for decades. These bones were lost, abandoned, and forgotten.

• Tears began to trickle down Ezekiel’s cheeks at the ghastly sight. Then a voice cut through the clouds to say, “Prophesy life into these bones.”

• Ezekiel obeyed. He prayed, spoke God’s Word into the valley, and sat in silence.

• There was an unsettling stillness before a rattling sound reverberated through the valley.

• Rocks rumbled, bones shook, and a plume of dust lifted off the ground.

• In awe, the prophet watched as the bones came back together.

• Skulls attached to spines. Femurs attached to hips. Finger bones formed hands.

• Within minutes, a skeleton army marched through the valley.

• Ezekiel rubbed his eyes because the strangeness was just getting started.

• Tendons, flesh, and skin wrapped around the bones. A newly-formed army with perfect posture stood before Ezekiel like rows of dominos.

• Sure, they had bodies, but they were just shells. Basically mannequins, they were not alive...yet.

• A wind from heaven rushed through the canyon like an avalanche of air. This wasn’t ordinary wind, though.

• Ezekiel specifies that it was “the breath of God.”

• As God’s breath surrounded the army, their chests rose, their lungs filled with air, and their eyes sparked with life. I assume they cheered. Why?

• Because they were dead, and now they were alive.

• It’s both shocking and spooky, but what does this vision actually mean? Fortunately, Ezekiel tells us. God told him, “These bones are the whole house of Israel. […] I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them, My people, and lead you into the land of Israel. […] I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live…” (Ezekiel 37:11-14).

• In the midst of Israel’s suffering, God sent Ezekiel’s zombie vision to comfort His people.

• The nation felt abandoned, dead, rejected, and disjointed. God saw their suffering and had mercy on them.

• With a rushing wind, He filled them with something they desperately needed—revival.

• God lifted them up from their grave and brought life to the dead.

• Fascinatingly, this vision came true quickly. About 70 years after the Israelites were exiled, Persia conquered Babylon.

• Consequently, the Jewish diaspora returned home and re-established their lives in the Promised Land.

• They were able to build their homes, grow their families, and heal their hearts.

What does this mean for us?

This is one of those passages where knowing a little Hebrew makes a big difference. God breathed life into the valley of dry bones, and they came back to life.

The Hebrew word for breath is ruach. This word is translated into a few English words—breath, wind, and spirit. Take a look at that last one: spirit. The wind that swept over this desolate valley was not just any wind. It was God’s Spirit. As the Spirit works within you, God wants to accomplish two important things: revival and restoration.

Revival

• Through the power of ruach, God brings the dead back to life. When your surroundings seem dead, desperate, and desolate, cry out to God.

• Allow the Holy Spirit to breathe life into your lifeless situations and surroundings.

• We see this in the life of both Ezekiel and Emmanuel. Jesus took Ezekiel’s prophecy to another level.

• Look at how God took everything one step further five centuries after Ezekiel.

• While this prophecy came to pass 70 years after exile, it was only partially fulfilled.

• The true magnitude of Ezekiel’s prophecy was unclear until a prophet named Jesus stepped onto the scene.

• As you know, Jesus was not just any prophet. He was God in the flesh. He healed the sick, preached about God’s Kingdom, and described a new way of living marked by love, peace, mercy, and justice.

• Tragically, He was murdered.

• Just like Ezekiel saw a valley of bones, Jesus found himself in a tomb full of decaying bones.

• After execution, His lungs were not moving, His heart was not beating, and life had left his body.

• All seemed lost until God stepped in.

• Three days later, breath rushed into Christ’s lungs, His veins filled with blood, and Jesus walked out of His bone-littered tomb.

• He was dead, and now He was alive.

• That wasn’t just a miracle for one man, either. The resurrection impacts every soul to ever walk the Earth.

• Jesus defeated death.

• Through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, He destroyed everything standing between you and God—even death.

• Revival is within you and around you.

Restoration

• This is a strange story with spectacular significance. The Spirit awakens what was once dead and decaying.

• Here’s a question worth asking: What is your valley of dry bones? What parts of your life feel abandoned, dead, or frightened?

• Is division tearing your friends apart? Let God restore your community.

• Has brokenness moved into your home? Let God bring restoration to your family.

• Has your heart shattered into a billion little pieces? Let God put those pieces back together, shard by shard.

• Look at the story of Jesus and Ezekiel. God breathes life into dead places, predicaments, and people.

Landing: Tragically, dry bones are all around us. But God wants to restore them.

• Hopelessness, chaos, division, hatred, lifelessness, and separation surround us like stacks of skeletal remains.

• When Ezekiel saw these dry bones, he spoke life over them.

• When He did, a miracle unfolded.

• The same thing God did with Ezekiel, He can do for you.

• Thanks to the Spirit, you can experience resurrection, revival, and restoration.

TALK IT OUT 

Go through these questions with your circle. Be honest. Be open. Talk through the tough stuff.

Ice Breaker: Go around your circle and share this week’s highs and lows. What was the best part of your week and the lowest part of your week?

Q1: What stuck out from the message?

Q2: What is your favorite memory? Why is it special to you?

Q3: Why do you think Israel found hope in such a strange passage?

Q4: What did this vision mean for Israel? What does it mean for us today?

Q5: If you’re comfortable sharing, what parts of your life feel like a valley of dry bones? How can you invite God to breathe life into those situations?

Application: Pray for God to breathe life into the difficult and dark circumstances around you. Pray for your school, community, and church as well, because darkness is all around us.

READING PLAN READ THESE PASSAGES IN ORDER EVERY DAY

Philippians 2:2-4

Colossians 3:15-17

Luke 18:9-14 Romans 3:21-24

Matthew 7:15 2

Corinthians 10:12

Mark 12:28-30

Do the following with each passage:

ASK– God to connect with you here. In prayer, start by slowing down and inviting God to be present. Begin with focus and openness to see what God has for you today.

READ– the selected section of Scripture slowly. Take note of the words and phrases that intrigue you, reading them a second time if necessary.

REFLECT– on what grabs you. How does this passage personally relate to your own life and experiences?

RESPOND– to the Scripture. Speak directly to God about what’s on your mind and heart. Look for ways to live out what you’ve uncovered.