Can These Bones Live? - Columbia Theological Seminary (2025)

Ezekiel 37:1-3; 11-12

Thehand of theLordcame upon me and brought me outin the Spirit of theLord and set me down in the midst of the valley; itwasfull of bones.²Then the Lord caused me to pass by them all around and behold! –there werevery many in the open valley and indeed! –they werevery dry.³And YHWH said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” So I answered, “O LordGod,You know.”

¹¹Then the Lord said to me, “Son of man, these bones are thewhole house of Israel. They indeed say,‘Our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off!’¹²Therefore… prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the LordGod: “Behold,O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves andbring you into the land of Israel.”

Reflection

Earlier this year, I celebrated my 27^th birthday. Upon walking into my Old Testament class that Monday morning, my friend Ximena greeted me with kind wishes. Brimming with excitement, she asked what I wanted for my birthday. I paused for a moment then deadpanned and replied, “a free Palestine.”

Just a few days later, the Israel Palestine Mission Network hosted the Hosanna Preaching Project. The IPMN is a mission network that speaks not for the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), but to it. The purpose of the preaching project experience is “to struggle with and to address the serious theological problems which arise when the traditions of a religious community and its way of reading the scriptures assert that its members are somehow chosen, set apart, called or covenanted to be in a unique and specially privileged relationship with God to the exclusion of all others.”[1] Those who participated left with better media literacy and research skills, a wider grasp on doing good exegesis on the topic of Palestine, and the tools necessary to develop, write, and preach a sermon in their communities.[2]

There were a few other Columbia students in attendance, which showed me that this was, indeed, a pressing issue that we as preachers, teachers, and theologians should be addressing. This experience gave me the tools and space I needed to articulate the feelings and thoughts I was having. It made me acknowledge the privilege we hold as Americans. In my mind, I saw flashes of pictures and videos posted on social media. It made me wonder, can these bones live?

When you read this passage, especially out loud, you can hear Ezekiel’s weird amazement with what he was seeing. Typically, amazement has a positive connotation. However, I doubt that Ezekiel found this to be anything but unsettling. He recounts that “YHWH said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

One thought that comes to me is how the journalists– the ones who have been killed, the ones fleeing, the ones who are still there – could relate to this. They wander around in a valley of bodies and bones and dried blood wondering – can these bones live? …Will these people survive?… Will their heritage live on? Will their stories be told?

Ezekiel turns to God for what to do and in return, God commands him to prophesy. If you’re like me, you might have thought, “what kind of cruel and outlandish request is God making?” In fact, some during Ezekiel’s time might have likened this to grave robbing – taking bones or treasures from their resting place. To add some insight, the Enduring Word commentary shares that, “this was a work of revival; restoring life to something that at one time had life. This was not the creation of life from nothing; it was the restoration of life to something that had been long dead.”

In our midst, there is hope yet. That hope lives within us – in our advocacy, our words, our boldness. Ezekiel might not have known what to do with those dry bones, but he did have hope in God. God calls us to be a prophetic people in the face of death and destruction. In this case, it is genocide and ethnic cleansing.

The story being told in this chapter is one of revival. It also tells us what we must do as prophetic people of God. Based on this passage from chapter 37, we must:

• Acknowledge the dead bones in front of us
• Walk among the bones
• Have a seemingly foolish confidence and hope in God and God’s revival

The last few chapters of the book of Esther are often used to justify Israel’s rage and claims of “self-defense.” What is being done today is unjustifiable, undeniable, and unforgettable.

Consider this – how is your personal faith influencing your view on this horrific point in history? How is the Spirit calling you to respond?

Indeed, the whole house of Palestine includes the house (in this case, the physical land) of Israel. And indeed, peace and justice will prevail. Their lands will be reclaimed and restored. Their lineage will grow, and their families will sing songs of praise. Their graves – the stores, the houses, the schools, the hospitals – will come up from the ground and the dust. And their bones will live. And all the people of the Earth will say to each other, “peace be with you.”

[1] “Hosanna Preaching Project 2024,” Israel/Palestine Mission Network (IPMN), accessed August 10, 2024, https://www.theipmn.org/events/hosanna-preaching-project-2024.

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