33:1
After the judgment messages in Ezekiel 1–24 and the messages against the nations in Ezekiel 25–32, Ezekiel describes the future renewal of the land, the covenant, the people, and the unity of Israel and Judah under new leadership.
Study notes
Ezekiel 33
33:1–37:28 Section
After God appointed Ezekiel to be a prophet, he stopped Ezekiel from being able to talk. Ezekiel was only to speak when sharing messages from God. God would allow Ezekiel to be able to talk normally again after important news reached him. That news came seven years later. It was the news that Jerusalem had been destroyed by Babylon.
During those seven years Ezekiel had faithfully shared God’s messages with the Jews in Babylon. He had tried to get them to change their ways. The Jews had finally recognised that they had sinned against God. But they didn’t put into practice what Ezekiel taught them. They talked about loving God. But their actions showed that they didn’t serve God with their whole heart. God described this as treating God’s name as if it were not holy.
It was clear that God’s people weren’t going to be faithful to his covenant with them. So God explained the new covenant that he had announced in Ezekiel chapter 16. God would make this new covenant for the honour of his holy name. He wanted all people everywhere to know that he is the holy Lord and King. God chose to make this clear to all nations by making a new covenant with Israel.
The new covenant was based on God’s Spirit being inside his people. This would change their hearts. They would no longer be stubborn but would want to obey God. God promised to save his people from all their uncleanness. He would make them pure from all their sins. This meant that he would save them from the power that sin had over them. He would forgive them and make them able to choose to obey him.
The new covenant included covenant blessings. These were even greater than the covenant blessings of the Mount Sinai covenant. They included more than peace, food, land and safety. They included a leader from the family line of David. This person would be a good and faithful shepherd. He would rule over the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom as one nation again. God himself would live with his people and would make Israel holy. This would last for ever.
The Spirit being breathed into the dry bones was a picture of new life. It showed that God’s people would live in their land again after the exile. It was also a picture of the new life they would have in the new covenant. God’s people would have new life because God’s Spirit would be in them. Some of the promises in these messages were fulfilled after the Jews returned from exile. Jews came to understand that some of Ezekiel’s prophecies would come true in the future. That would happen when the messiah came. New Testament writers showed that Jesus is the Messiah. He put the new covenant into effect.
33:2–4
watchman: See study note on Ezekiel 3:16219. The message about the watchman is part of Ezekiel’s public announcement, not a private task. It emphasizes that the listeners are responsible for acting on the watchman’s message.
Before Jerusalem's destruction, people ignored the warning. After the exile, they struggled to believe the message of hope. In both situations, Ezekiel faced rejection and was tempted to stay silent. God warned him again that he could not.
33:5–9
Ezekiel's message urged the people of Israel to repent so they could live. The Lord had warned of an army coming against their country, and this was happening. Ezekiel had been faithful as a watchman. No one who heard his prophecy could say he did not warn them of the coming judgment. But the people did not listen to the warning. If they did not turn away from their sin and return to God, they would die in their sins.
33:10–11
our sins are heavy upon us … How can we live?: At last, the people of Israel began to take the prophet’s warnings seriously. However, there was now a new danger. Instead of turning to God in repentance and faith, they might fall into despair.
God’s judgment is not like an unchangeable fate. It still allows room for forgiveness. The Sovereign Lord does not take pleasure in the death of wicked people.
Even those who have done great evil can live. If they repent (turn away from their sin) and change their ways, they will live.
33:12–16
The principle in Ezekiel 33:10–11 is explained through two examples.
The first example concerns righteous people. Some trust in their past good behavior to save them. But later they turn to sin. God says he will judge them for their present sin, even if they once lived righteously. Their past obedience will not protect them if they now reject what is right.
The second example concerns wicked people who repent. If they turn away from their evil actions and begin to do what is just and right, God will forgive them completely. No matter what they did in the past, they will live if they truly change.
This teaching repeats an earlier message. In Ezekiel 18, the people said they were suffering because of their parents’ sins. Here, they seem to say something different. They think their parents’ sins have placed the nation under a permanent curse. Because of this, they believe repentance is useless.
33:17–20
The way of the Lord is not just: People thought it was wrong for God to use Babylon to destroy Jerusalem. The Lord quickly corrected this idea (Ezekiel 33:18).
their way that is not just: The people's mistake was refusing to repent and accusing God of being unjust.
I will judge each of you according to his ways: The Lord's judgment is never random but matches their sins. If they repent, trust the Lord for salvation, and act justly and rightly, they have hope for the future (compare Ephesians 2:8–10).
33:21
A survivor came from Jerusalem, bringing an eyewitness account of the city's fall. It took over five months for this news to reach the exiles.
33:22
The news that Jerusalem had fallen marked a turning point for Ezekiel.
His ability to speak returned (see Ezekiel 3:26; 24:25–27). He was now free to speak openly to the people.
This change also brought new hope for God’s people.
33:23–26
Those who stayed in the ruined cities of Judah saw the Exile as a chance for personal gain, not repentance. They claimed to be the only heirs of Abraham's promise and sought to own all the land. Their actions showed they were not truly Abraham's children. They ignored laws against eating meat with blood (see Deuteronomy 12:23), worshiped idols, and killed innocent people. Their lives denied Abraham's faith, and they would not inherit his promise.
33:23–33
People in Judah (Ezekiel 33:23–29) and those in exile (33:30–33) continued to act as they had before Jerusalem fell.
33:27–29
The rebels in Jerusalem would continue to face the curses of the Mosaic covenant (violence, wild animals, and disease; see Leviticus 26:22–25). This would happen until the mountains of Israel were empty and these sinners were completely destroyed.
33:30–33
The situation was not much better among the exiles in Babylon.
Many of them talked about Ezekiel’s messages. They discussed what he said, but they did not change their attitudes or behavior. They were no different from the people still living in Judah.
They would sit in front of Ezekiel and appear sincere. However, they did not plan to obey what the Lord told them. They treated his messages as something pleasant to hear.
But the Lord warned them that, in time, the truth would be clear. Events would show that the words of a true prophet carry God’s power.
Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources