New Living Translation
Ezekiel 37:4
4Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord!
Ezekiel 37:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
- New International Version (NIV)Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then he said to me, "Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord!
Context of Ezekiel 37:4
2He led me all around among the bones that covered the valley floor. They were scattered everywhere across the ground and were completely dried out. 3Then he asked me, “Son of man, can these bones become living people again?” “O Sovereign Lord,” I replied, “you alone know the answer to that.” Then he said to me, “Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! 5This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! 6I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”
Read all of Ezekiel 37Ezekiel 37:4 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֔י הִנָּבֵ֖א עַל־הָעֲצָמ֣וֹת הָאֵ֑לֶּה וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֲלֵיהֶ֔ם הָעֲצָמוֹת֙ הַיְבֵשׁ֔וֹת שִׁמְע֖וּ דְּבַר־יְהוָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Ezekiel 37:4
- Ezekiel 37:11Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones represent the people of Israel. They are saying, ‘We have become old, dry bones—all hope is gone. Our nation is finished.’
- Numbers 20:8“You and Aaron must take the staff and assemble the entire community. As the people watch, speak to the rock over there, and it will pour out its water. You will provide enough water from the rock to satisfy the whole community and their livestock.”
- 1 Kings 13:2Then at the Lord’s command, he shouted, “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: A child named Josiah will be born into the dynasty of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests from the pagan shrines who come here to burn incense, and human bones will be burned on you.”
- Matthew 21:21Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen.
- John 2:5But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
- Ezekiel 36:1“Son of man, prophesy to Israel’s mountains. Give them this message: O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord!
- Isaiah 26:19But those who die in the Lord will live; their bodies will rise again! Those who sleep in the earth will rise up and sing for joy! For your life-giving light will fall like dew on your people in the place of the dead!
- Isaiah 42:18“Listen, you who are deaf! Look and see, you blind!
- Jeremiah 22:29O earth, earth, earth! Listen to this message from the Lord!
- Micah 6:2And now, O mountains, listen to the Lord’s complaint! He has a case against his people. He will bring charges against Israel.
- John 5:25“And I assure you that the time is coming, indeed it’s here now, when the dead will hear my voice—the voice of the Son of God. And those who listen will live.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 37:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Prophesy upon these bones - Declare to your miserable countrymen the gracious designs of the Lord; show them that their state, however deplorable, is not hopeless.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Prophesy - Not in the sense of predicting what was to come to pass, but simply in that of speaking under the inspiration of God. In Ezekiel 37:5, not “I will cause,” but I cause or am causing.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-6God wanted these bones to live. He communicated this through the message that Ezekiel was to deliver to the bones. Ezekiel declared they would become living, breathing bodies again, with flesh, muscles, and breath. The word translated as breath can also mean "spirit" or "wind," a wordplay that continues throughout this chapter.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Prophesy--Proclaim God's quickening word to them. On account of this innate power of the divine word to effect its end, prophets are said to do that which they prophesy as about to be done (Jr 1:10).Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 37:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 37
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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