ESV Global Study Bible :: Footnotes for Ezekiel 36

Ezek. 36:1–15 Earlier God announced judgment on the mountains of Israel (ch. 6). Now he announces their restoration.

Ezek. 36:8–15 But you signals a transition. The focus shifts from Israel’s bleak past to its promising future. As in the “covenant of peace” (34:25–30), the people’s well-being is connected to the land’s fruitfulness. Verses 8–11 of ch. 36 present a series of blessings; the new is even better than the old.

Ezek. 36:16–38 This key passage summarizes Ezekiel’s prophecy: in spite of their failings, God will restore his people for the sake of his name.

Ezek. 36:22–32 This passage is often compared to Jeremiah’s “new covenant” text (Jer. 31:31–34). The structure of this passage reinforces its message. The outer verses relate the responses of God (Ezek. 36:22–23) and people (vv. 31–32). Nested within the next layer are the return and purification brought about in renewal (vv. 24–25, 28–30). At the heart of the passage is the divine gift of the new heart and spirit, which enables a correct response (vv. 26–27).

Ezek. 36:22–23 It is not for your sake. The fundamental reason why God acts on Israel’s behalf is not grace and mercy, though he is certainly gracious and merciful; rather, God acts primarily for the sake of my holy name. The phrase will know that I am the Lord concludes the oracle and summarizes its purpose. People should give God the recognition and honor that is rightfully his.

Ezek. 36:24–25 Restoring God’s reputation first requires the renewal of his people. The reference to cleansing by sprinkling clean water on you recalls the cleansing by sprinkling for touching a dead body (Num. 19:13, 20). This may suggest that the idols of Ezek. 36:25 are comparable to dead things. Many interpreters see this picture of cleansing by water as the background to Jesus’ words in John 3:5, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God”; compare the mention of “my Spirit” in Ezek. 36:27.

Ezek. 36:26–27 God’s work moves from external to internal with the gift of a new heart and new spirit (see 11:19; compare 18:31). The outer purification will be no use without the inner desire to live rightly before God (36:27). The connection of “water” (v. 25) and “Spirit” (v. 27) lies behind John 3:5. I will put my Spirit within you predicts an effective inward work of God in the “new covenant.”

Ezek. 36:28–30 With God’s people now inclined to keep faith with God, they will be restored to the land. Linking the restoration of people and land is a continuing theme in this part of Ezekiel (e.g., 34:25–31).

Ezek. 36:31–32 you will loathe yourselves. The response of the renewed people is to see themselves as God sees them. not for your sake. The fact that God is acting for his own sake reaffirms v. 22.

Ezek. 36:33–36 As seen in vv. 28–30, the land enjoys the benefits of the people’s cleansing. The mention of Eden emphasizes the nature of this act as re-creation (see 28:13; compare 37:1–14). One purpose for Israel’s experience in the land was to show the whole world a restored Edenic life, lived in God’s presence and with his blessing.