Fifth Day of Iyar 5708

A nation born in one day, in the midst of the valley of dry bones, in the land of the graves of the fathers. One called the Son of man speaks unto the bones the Word of the L-rd. As he prophesies there is a great noise and a terrible shaking as bone comes to bone, and then sinew and flesh and skin! Like a newborn child struggling for breath yet without breath, there is no breath in the whole house of Israel. Walking corpses, they cried out: “our hope is lost”, “we are cut off” … cast away of the world, smitten of the L-rd. Abiding “many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim” (cf. Hosea 3:4). “Thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron” (Deuteronomy 28:23).

“Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith the L-rd G-D; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live” (cf. Ezekiel 37:9).

He has opened your graves, and brought you up out of your graves, but has yet to put His Spirit in you, that ye shall live. “And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn” (Zechariah 12:10).

The hand of the L-RD was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the L-RD, 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 L-rd G-D, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the L-RD. Thus saith the L-rd G-D 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 L-RD. 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 L-rd G-D; 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 L-rd G-D; 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 L-RD, 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 L-RD have spoken it, and performed it, saith the L-RD (Ezekiel 37:1-14).