THEOSISJerome of Stridon
And the Lord spoke to me, saying, Son of man, the people of Israel resided in their land but polluted it through their actions and idols. Their conduct is likened to the impurity of a woman during her purification. I unleashed my fury upon them due to the blood they spilled upon the land, defiling it with their idols. I scattered them among the nations and throughout the various lands, judging them by their actions and transgressions. Wherever they went, they profaned my holy name, for it was proclaimed, ‘They are the Lord’s people, brought out of His land.’ Yet, I have withheld my anger for the sake of my holy name, which the house of Israel tarnished among the nations to which they traveled.
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Therefore, declare to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God, I will act, not for your sakes, but for the honor of my holy name, which you have defiled among the nations. I will hallow my great name, which has been dishonored among them, so that they will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord of Hosts, when I am sanctified before them. For I will take you from among the nations, gather you from all lands, and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be cleansed from all your impurities; I will purify you from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will place within you; I will remove your heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you and enable you to walk in my statutes and keep my judgments. You will inhabit the land that I gave to your ancestors, and you will be my people, and I will be your God. I will rescue you from all your impurities; I will provide for you abundantly and will not let famine strike you. I will increase the yield of the fields and the fruit of the trees, so that you will no longer bear disgrace among the nations because of hunger. You will remember your wicked ways and abhor your iniquities and your vile deeds. Know this: I will not act for your sake, declares the Lord God. Be ashamed and humiliated by your ways, O house of Israel. Thus says the Lord God: On the day I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will restore your cities and rebuild the desolate places. The barren land, once laid waste before every passerby, will be cultivated. People will say that this desolate land has become like a garden, and the abandoned, ruined cities will be fortified. The nations remaining around you will see the deeds I, the Lord, have performed. Thus says the Lord God: The house of Israel will seek me, and I will multiply them like a flock, like a holy flock in Jerusalem during its appointed feasts. Then the desolate cities will be filled with flocks of men, and they will know that I am the Lord. The message is clear: the mountains of Israel, which were once desolate, will now be more clearly understood as restored. God reveals the reasons for previously abandoning the people of Israel and, in His mercy, promises to restore them to their homeland, granting them much more than was taken away. Some interpreters refer to the time of Zerubbabel, when, under King Cyrus of Persia, many of the tribes returned after their captivity. Others link it to the millennial reign, anticipating Christ's return to establish Jerusalem and rebuild the temple, a theme we will address later in this prophecy. Meanwhile, to avoid unnecessary disputes and endless speculation, we shall provide a brief overview of this chapter's teachings as they relate to the understanding of the Church. The house of Israel, the Jewish people, once inhabited their promised land, which they received upon their exodus from Egypt, but they defiled it through their actions and idols, resulting in their impurity being likened to that of a woman during her purification.