The Upper Room Daily Devotion – Monday, 6 January 2014 “Prophet of the Impossible” Read Ezekiel The Valley of Dry Bones 37

The Upper Room Daily Devotion – Monday, 6 January 2014 “Prophet of the Impossible” Read Ezekiel The Valley of Dry Bones

37: The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. 2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. 3 He said to me, “Mortal, can these bones live?” I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” 4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath[a] to enter you, and you shall live. 6 I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath[b] in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord.”

7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath:[c] Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath,[d] and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” 10 I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.

11 Then he said to me, “Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.’ 12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. 14 I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord.”

Footnotes:

a. Ezekiel 37:5 Or spirit

b. Ezekiel 37:6 Or spirit

c. Ezekiel 37:9 Or wind or spirit

d. Ezekiel 37:9 Or wind or spirit

You shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act.(Ezekiel 37:14 (NRSV))

The bumblebee’s wingspan seems far too small to lift its abundant body off the ground. But the bumblebee flies anyway, and the impossible becomes possible. Many said it was impossible to get an incandescent light bulb to work, but Thomas Edison proved them wrong. Still others said a vaccine for polio would never be found, but Dr. Jonas Salk accomplished what seemed impossible. Seemingly impossible feats are also described in the Bible. The Hebrew prophet Ezekiel began his ministry among the exiled Jews in Babylon in the seventh century BC. He had to face a captured people cruelly buoyed up by false hopes of a quick return to their homeland. The people had not responded to calls for repentance from previous prophets like Amos and Hosea, and now it was too late. But those ancient people, like us, did not live without hope. They dared to believe in the seemingly impossible. Ezekiel encouraged such hope with his dramatic portrayal of a valley of dry bones miraculously taking on life. With God nothing is impossible, whether it happens in ancient Israel, our modern-day community, or our personal lives. Like a valley of dry bones when it seems there is no hope, we recover from a dreaded disease, accomplish a task in school, meet an ideal partner, or find a desperately needed job. In each case, God shows us that new life is possible.(The Author-Charles Dickson (North Carolina, USA))

Thought for the Day:

God accomplishes what seems impossible.

Prayer: O God, remind us that even though a situation may seem hopeless, you are the God of eternal possibilities. Amen.

Prayer focus: Someone who feels hopeless

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