Ezekiel 37: Two Sticks Joined in God's Hand

Introduction

A reader today who happened to open the book of Ezekiel "could be excused for concluding that this man was completely crazy." Rob Taylor, a preacher at South West Baptist Church in Australia, begins with that smile as he introduces a fascinating prophet whose name means "God strengthens."

Ezekiel often delivered his messages through actions. That evening, Rob Taylor focuses on one of the least spectacular: two pieces of wood joined together in the prophet's hand (Ezekiel 37:15-28). It is a simple gesture, yet he considers the prophecy just as relevant for us in the twenty-first century as any other.

The message follows the text: one nation, one king, one covenant. It ends with a personal question: what value does Jesus Christ have in your life?

Message outline

1. Ezekiel, the prophet of object lessons

Ezekiel was a younger contemporary of Jeremiah. He was a priest, the son of Buzi (Ezekiel 1:3). "We don't know who Buzi was," the preacher notes.
In 597 BC, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, deported King Jehoiachin along with about 10,000 captives: the royal family, the nobility, and the army officers. Ezekiel was among them. According to Josephus, he was a young man at the time. He would spend the rest of his life in Babylonia.
God asked him to illustrate his messages with astonishing actions: lying on his left side for 390 days and eating only one meal a day baked over dung (Ezekiel 4), shaving his head and beard (Ezekiel 5), and not mourning when his wife died (Ezekiel 24:15-27).
Each of these actions, carried out in obedience, was meant to open up an important spiritual truth.

2. Two sticks in the prophet's hand

God told Ezekiel to take one stick and write on it "For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions," then another stick marked "For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel his companions," and to join them together so that they would become one in his hand (verses 15-17).
The first stick represents the southern kingdom, Judah and Benjamin. The second represents the northern kingdom and its ten tribes. Joseph was the father of Ephraim and Manasseh, and Ephraim, the younger, dominated the politics of the north from the start.
In Ezekiel's day, the northern kingdom had disappeared about 150 years earlier. Yet God still regarded these tribes, scattered among the nations, as his people.
Rob Taylor draws a warning from this. In his view, these verses contradict the idea of "ten lost tribes" who supposedly ended up in Britain: the prophets knew that the northern tribes still existed. Nor do they support the Latter-day Saints' reading, which sees the Bible and the Book of Mormon in the two sticks.
"You must always look at the context before jumping to conclusions." The text itself says what the two sticks represent: the two houses, Israel and Judah.

3. One nation

When the exiles ask what this action means, God answers: "I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land. I will make them one nation in the land" (verses 21-22).
What the division had separated since the time of Rehoboam (1 Kings 12 to 14), despite centuries of history and prejudice, God will reunite by grace: Judah, but also Joseph and his companions.
The return after the 70 years of exile, in the days of Ezra, Zerubbabel, and Nehemiah, is only a shadow of it. The promise looks to a gathering from all the nations, not only from Babylon.
The preacher stresses the words "I will take" and "I will gather": this is God's sovereign promise. "What he promises is as good as done."
He sees a glimpse of this sovereignty in the twentieth century, particularly since May 1948: the nations make their own decisions, but God works through them. The final gathering will take place at the end of this age, when the Deliverer comes to take away the sins of Israel (Romans 11:27).
This is not because Israel deserves it, nor because the Jews are superior to other peoples. "We are all sinners saved by God's grace." It is the unconditional promise made to Abraham: "Now lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, for all the land which you see, I will give to you, and to your offspring forever" (Genesis 13:14-17).
An illustration: in August 2018, the BBC told the story of families from North and South Korea being reunited after being separated for at least 65 years by the war of 1950 to 1953. The oldest participant was 101. Those temporary reunions will "pale" next to the permanent reunion of the northern and southern tribes that God will bring about.
Verse 22 specifies that it will be one nation "in the land." For Rob Taylor, this means a real land. And God will change hearts: this people, today largely in unbelief, will no longer defile themselves with their idols and will serve the Lord with joy.

4. One king

"My servant David will be king over them. They all will have one shepherd" (verse 24). The preacher points out the difficulty: how can this verse be reconciled with Christ's reign on the earth?
First solution: David would be another way of referring to Christ. Rob Taylor does not accept it, because Jesus is often called "son of David" or "offspring of David," but never "David" in the Bible.
Second solution, which he considers more consistent with Scripture: this is David raised from the dead, who will share certain governing responsibilities as a prince. Christ's reign is shared: "You made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign on the earth" (Revelation 5:9-10).
He quotes the commentator William Newell: "David is not the son of David. Christ, as the son of David, will be king. And David, his father according to the flesh, will be prince." Christ is King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16), which implies other kings under his authority.
Other texts point the same way: "I will set up one shepherd over them, and he will feed them, even my servant David" (Ezekiel 34:23-24), "they will serve Yahweh their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up to them" (Jeremiah 30:9), and the prince who sits at the east gate to eat before the Lord (Ezekiel 44:1-3). "There are two persons here: the prince, and the Lord."
A consequence for you: if you are a believer, you will reign with Christ. "Each of us who is a believer will have something to do in Christ's kingdom."

5. One covenant

"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them" (verse 26). For the preacher, this is another name for the new covenant, the only one that brings peace between God and sinful humanity.
He reads from John Walvoord's commentary: announced in Jeremiah 31:31-34, this covenant replaces the Mosaic covenant. Through Christ's death on the cross, God made the covenant of grace possible for those who trust in the Lord, the basis of salvation for every saved person, from Adam to the last.
God also promises to put his sanctuary among his people (verses 26-28). The preacher sees in this the temple described in Ezekiel 40 to 48.
Why sacrifices if Christ died once for all? In his view, they take nothing away from Christ's finished work. They will be a reminder, "like the Lord's Supper today: we have the grape juice, we have the bread."
He explains why this reminder will be needed: believers who have come through the seven years of tribulation will enter the kingdom in mortal bodies and will have children. "Not every child comes to faith," even if we hope and pray for it. These children will need to know the Lamb of God who shed his blood.

6. The King who brings peace

Isaiah 2:2-4 describes this reign: all the nations will stream to the mountain of the Lord. "They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war any more."
The preacher mentions that this verse is displayed at the United Nations headquarters. But, Rob Taylor remarks, the UN "is probably not doing a great job" of bringing about world peace. Only one person is able to: Jesus Christ. He will bring true justice and judge between the nations.
To those who think the Church has replaced Israel, he reads Jeremiah 31:35-37: if the laws of the sun, moon, and stars were to cease, then the offspring of Israel would cease to be a nation. "I don't think we're going to be able to do that."
Israel is not a perfect nation. They are sinners like each of us, in need of a Savior. The preacher encourages us to pray that the Jews will know the Messiah, who came 2,000 years ago, and notes that organizations are devoted to this.
He has not yet been to Jerusalem, but he rejoices: one day, we will worship the King of kings there. "Nothing escapes his jurisdiction. No one is his equal. No king is above him."

7. Preparing now to serve the King

This King of kings gave himself on the cross 2,000 years ago and died in our place.
Rob Taylor quotes Augustine: "Christ is not valued at all unless he is valued above all."
Hence his questions: what value does Jesus Christ have in your life? Do you bow the knee before him? Do you surrender your life to him? Do you serve him as best you can with the abilities he has given you?
Each person will receive a task suited to the gifts God has entrusted to them. The best preparation for serving in his kingdom is to serve him right now, by his grace and strength.
His closing prayer sums up the hope of the message: nothing in this world is out of control, everything is under God's sovereign hand, and his plan cannot be thwarted.

Key takeaways

Ezekiel's two sticks represent Judah and Israel. The context of the passage itself gives the meaning: always read a text in its context.
God promised to make his divided people into one nation. What he promises is as good as done, because his promise to Abraham is unconditional.
Christ will reign as King of kings, and believers will reign with him. Each person will have a place to fill in his kingdom.
The covenant of peace rests entirely on the blood of Christ, shed once for all.
The only lasting peace will come from the reign of Jesus. In the meantime, you prepare by serving him today.

Personal reflection

When you read a difficult passage in the Bible, do you take time to look at its context before drawing a conclusion?
What in your current situation makes you doubt that God keeps his promises? What does his faithfulness to Abraham teach you?
By Augustine's standard, is Jesus valued "above all" in your life, or only alongside other priorities?
What gifts has God entrusted to you, and how can you put them to work in his service this week?
Do you pray that the Jewish people will know their Messiah?

Verses cited

Frequently asked questions

What do the two sticks in Ezekiel 37 represent?

The first stick is inscribed "For Judah," the second "For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim." They represent the southern kingdom and the northern kingdom, divided for centuries. By joining them in his hand, Ezekiel announces that God will make them one nation. For Rob Taylor, the context of verses 15 to 23 rules out any other reading, such as the one that sees two books in them.

Who is "my servant David" in Ezekiel 37:24?

Some commentators see Christ himself here. Rob Taylor rejects this reading, because Jesus is called "son of David" but never "David" in the Bible. He sees David raised from the dead, a prince over Israel under the authority of Christ, the King of kings, drawing on Ezekiel 34:23-24, Jeremiah 30:9, and Ezekiel 44:1-3.

Why a temple and sacrifices in the coming kingdom if Christ died once for all?

For Rob Taylor, these sacrifices add nothing to Christ's work. They will serve as a reminder, like the bread and grape juice of the Lord's Supper today. Children will be born during this reign with a sinful nature and will need to understand the price the Lamb of God paid at the cross.