Monday, September 21, 2009

The New Kingdom

Ezekiel 37:24-28
(24) "My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes.
(25) They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children shall dwell there forever, and David my servant shall be their prince forever.
(26) I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore.
(27) My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
(28) Then the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore."

This is one of the passages that makes me have some Covenental leanings in my theology. It comes at the end of the chapter where Ezekiel has the vision about the valley of dry bones. If we take this simply at face value, it looks like Ezekiel is speaking about the nation of Israel proper.

However, the imagery of "David my servant" seems to imply to me that Christ is involved here. It looks to me like it predicts the end of days when Christ is reigning in glory. That is when everyone will be united under Him. I just have a hard time reading this and separating Israel from the church.

Either way, this is a powerful prediction. God has a plan and He means to accomplish it. Let's not forget His reason stated in verse 28. This is all for the sake of His name. No matter how you read this passage God must still get all the glory. Let's give it to Him, amen?

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