Ezekiel 37:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

I will impart my Spirit to you, and you will be revived. The Spirit of life will enter you, and you will truly live. This is how God communicates with the prophet regarding resurrection, revealed to him through the Spirit in a vision. Although the resurrection of the dead is equally attainable for God's limitless power in both vision and reality, God chooses to demonstrate this resurrection in vision to highlight the disbelief of the Jews, who lamented, ‘Our bones are gone, our hope is lost’ (Ezekiel 37:6, 10-11). Their statement, ‘Our bones are withered,’ indicates that they were not dead; if they had been truly lifeless, how could they voice such words?

Thus, the prophet speaks to the spirit, proclaiming, “Thus saith the Lord God, Come, spirit, from the four winds,” so that the new creation, which is the resurrection of the dead, may be animated by the breath of the spirit. Just as God breathed into the nostrils of man during the original creation, imparting the breath of life that enlivened his soul (Gen. 2:7), when the spirit enters human bodies, they spring to life and rise on their feet. Consequently, the resurrection of the dead is referred to as a grand gathering or assembly, and in Hebrew, it is described as a great multitude. At this moment, the Scripture is fulfilled: “After Thy spirit they will be built up and renew the face of the earth” (Psalm 103:30).

The Lord employs the Prophet as His servant and means for the resurrection that unfolds in the vision, and through his voice, He instructs these lifeless and, in essence, deceased bones to generate flesh, sinews, and skin, and to be infused with a living spirit. This event serves not only as a foreshadowing of the Jews’ restoration from exile but also as a symbol of the ultimate resurrection of all. As the divine Apostle states, "He shall sound the trumpet, and the dead shall rise incorruptible" (1 Cor. 15:52).

Recall Ezekiel's vision of the valley filled with human bones. According to his prophecy, the bones came together, forming connections of bone to bone, and were subsequently clothed with sinews, flesh, and skin; yet the breath of life had not yet entered them. The Lord instructed the Prophet to ‘Proclaim to the Spirit,’ and upon his command, all became alive. This valley of bones symbolizes humanity in its fallen state, devoid of life and the Spirit, as the Apostle states.

I will place a spirit of life within you. This indicates that a transformation akin to that which took place at the creation of the first human will occur with the bones (Genesis 2:7). Regarding humanity's creation, it states, 'And God created man, and formed him from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.' Initially, the human body was formed, followed by the infusion of the soul. This same breath of life, or spirit of the living being, is what God promises to impart to the bones. However, for this to take place, the bones must first be restored to the bodies they belonged to when they were alive, reconnected with sinews and enveloped in flesh and skin.