Sermon outlines · Ezekiel 37:1-14
Ezekiel 37: dry bones explained and a sermon outline
Study Ezekiel 37:1–14 with the exile context, an explanation of the valley of dry bones and a sermon outline on Israel’s restoration.
Passage context
Ezekiel prophesies among the Judean exiles in Babylon. The vision of dry bones belongs to the part of the book announcing restoration. It follows the promise of a new heart and God’s Spirit in Ezekiel 36:24–28. The chapter itself explains the image: in verse 11, the bones represent the whole house of Israel, which considers itself without hope. Verses 12–14 announce that God will bring his people to their land and give them life. This study covers 37:1–14; from verse 15, the people’s reunion is developed through the image of two sticks.
Read the chapter: Ezekiel 37:1-14 →The passage explained
Verses 1–3: the question before the impossible
The number of bones and their dryness make the severity of the situation visible. The prophet is led to examine it before receiving a command. When God asks whether the bones can live, Ezekiel acknowledges that the answer belongs to the Lord. The scene does not depend on the prophet finding hidden resources in the bones. Begin the sermon with the people identified by the text rather than immediately replacing the bones with any personal project. The hope about to be announced addresses a community that believes it has reached its end.
Ezekiel 37:1-3 →Verses 4–10: the word proclaimed and life received
Ezekiel speaks because God commands him, proclaiming the word he has received. The vision first shows bones joining and bodies being formed; life is still absent. They rise only when breath enters them. The Hebrew ruach, used throughout this sequence, can express wind, breath or spirit; context guides the reading of each occurrence. The passage culminates in verse 14 with the promise of God’s Spirit. The prophet’s role is to obey and proclaim; the power to give life belongs to the Lord. This keeps the scene from becoming a technique for producing outcomes through the force of one’s own words.
Ezekiel 37:4-10 →Verses 11–14: God explains the restoration
God’s explanation is the key to the vision. The bones are Israel, and the image of graves conveys the condition of a people who have lost hope. God promises to bring them to their land, put his Spirit within them and make them recognize that the Lord fulfills his word. This language of life and death can be related to Christian resurrection hope, but that connection should respect the first meaning supplied by the passage itself: the people’s restoration. In applying the passage to the church, show how trust in God’s faithfulness grows from this story without replacing Israel with an unrestricted promise of personal success.
Ezekiel 37:11-14 →Preparing the sermon
Include the explanation in verses 11–14 in the public reading. Without it, the image of the bones can acquire a meaning the chapter does not give it. When speaking of restoration, identify who receives the promise and who brings it about. Application can invite the community to prayer, attention to the word and care for discouraged people. Do not set deadlines for healings, reconciliations or financial solutions that the passage does not promise.
Study mode preview
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5Thus the unto these ; Behold, I will cause to into you, and ye shall :
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Ezekiel 37:5
Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live:
✦ Understand this verseרוּחַ
rûwach · Hebrew · H7307
- In this verse
- breath
- What it means
- spirit, wind, breath
- How the King James translates it
- spirit206wind76breath27
Appears in 348 verses · See them all in the app
Sermon outline
Sermon title
God gives life to a people without hope
Main idea
The restoration announced to Israel depends on the word and Spirit of the Lord, who remains faithful to his people.
Text
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.
Ezekiel 37:1-14 · Read the chapter →
Introduction
Ezekiel 37 presents a people who consider their hope lost. The vision makes that despair visible in a valley of dry bones. Read the explanation in verses 11–14 as well: it shows what God announces through the image.
1. Acknowledge the situation and trust God’s knowledge
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones, And caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest.
Ezekiel 37:1-3 · Read the chapter →
The prophet looks at the bones without disguising their condition. Faced with God’s question, he acknowledges that the Lord knows whether they can live. Hope begins with that trust, without denying the people’s pain.
Application: Make room for the congregation to bring its suffering into prayer without demanding ready answers from those who are hurting.
2. Proclaim the word and depend on the giver of life
Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD. Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone. And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above: but there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
Ezekiel 37:4-10 · Read the chapter →
Ezekiel proclaims what God commands. Bodies are formed, but they still need to receive life. The prophet participates through obedience; the Lord brings about what he has promised.
Application: Prepare and proclaim Scripture faithfully. Pray for the congregation and serve people, recognizing that the outcome is not under your control.
3. Ground hope in the Lord’s faithfulness
Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the LORD.
Ezekiel 37:11-14 · Read the chapter →
God identifies the bones as the house of Israel and promises to restore his people. The purpose is that they recognize the Lord who speaks and fulfills his word. Application to the church should begin with this promise in its context.
Application: Encourage those who have lost hope with God’s faithfulness and practical presence: listening, prayer and help, without promising what the text has not promised.
Conclusion
The vision ends with the Lord giving life and enabling his people to recognize his faithfulness. Invite the church to hear the word, depend on the Spirit and care for discouraged people. The hope proclaimed rests in the God who acts, and the sermon should keep him at its center.