Ezekiel 37:26-28 shows that God will make a covenant of peace with His people which will last forever. He will dwell among His people forever. His people will prosper and grow. The whole world will know that God dwells with Israel. This prophecy points forward to when Jesus, the Son of God and heir of David, will rule the earth from Jerusalem in perfect righteous.
Ezekiel 37:26-28 closes the chapter with an everlasting covenant of peace, the placement of the LORD's sanctuary in the midst of the people forever, and the declaration that the nations will know the LORD when they see His dwelling place among Israel. The closing verses begin with a declaration from God regarding a new covenant:
"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever" (v. 26).
The covenant announced here is described with two terms, a covenant of peace and an everlasting covenant. The term covenant of peace carries the sense of harmony, wholeness, and right relationship. The Hebrew word "shalom" translated peace carries the idea of all things fitting together properly according to their design. The covenant God will apparently restore His original design.
The same phrase appears in Ezekiel 34:25, where the LORD promises to make a "covenant of peace" and cause harmful beasts to leave the land so that the people may dwell securely. This appears to apply to the era of the messianic kingdom, which will take place on the current earth. The reference to My sanctuary could apply to Ezekiel's temple, which appears to belong to the messianic kingdom era. God's glory returns to Ezekiel’s temple in Ezekiel 43:2-5. In the new earth, the temple is God Himself dwelling in the midst of His people on a new earth (Revelation 21:3).
The term everlasting covenant uses the same language applied to the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 17:7, which is also called an "everlasting covenant." Also the covenant with David in 2 Samuel 23:5 is called an "everlasting covenant." In each case, the Hebrew word "olam" is translated "everlasting." "Olam" has the idea of something that endures. This means that these covenant promises stack. Each adds to the other. God's promises are irrevocable (Romans 11:29).
The covenant announced in verse 26 carries both the Abrahamic and Davidic covenant language into what appears to be a final, permanent form. It likely points toward what Jeremiah 31:31-34 called the new covenant written on the heart.
The placement of the sanctuary in their midst forever gives the covenant a physical expression. The LORD's dwelling place will not be a tent in the wilderness or a temple that can be burned, but a permanent residence among His people:
"My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people" (v. 27).
This reference to dwelling place would seem to refer to Ezekiel's temple, which covers a substantial part of Ezekiel, showing its importance (Ezekiel 40-44). The descriptions indicate this temple will exist in a land with a substantially altered geography, including a new river that heals the waters of the Dead Sea (Ezekiel 47:1-12). This temple and the messianic kingdom will be a witness to all the earth:
"And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever"'" (v. 28).
Verse 27 restates the covenant formula—I will be their God, and they will be My people—with the addition of My dwelling place will be with them. The Hebrew word for dwelling place ("mishkan") is the same word used of the tabernacle in the wilderness—the portable dwelling structure the LORD commanded built in Exodus 25-40 so that His presence could dwell among His people.
The LORD is announcing that the tabernacle concept reaches its final form in the era of the current earth: He will live among His people permanently. In this case, it is more than His presence. His glory will fill the temple, but the resurrected Jesus will sit on the throne of Israel and rule the nations (Revelation 20:1-4). In the new earth, God will dwell with humans in a state of unveiled glory, rather than His glory only manifesting itself in the temple. In the new earth, the light of God's glory is so bright that there is no need of the sun (Revelation 21:23).
Revelation 21:3 uses similar words as Ezekiel regarding the tabernacle dwelling among humans: "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them." John's vision of the new Jerusalem is the full and permanent realization of what Ezekiel announced in verse 27—the permanent dwelling of the living God among the community He has gathered, cleansed, and placed under the Davidic shepherd-king.
In the Revelation 21 vision of the new earth, the entire creation becomes the LORD's temple, with His presence filling all the earth (Revelation 21:22-23). The image of a tabernacle can be viewed as beginning with a separation and ending with a union. Hebrews 8:5 tells us that Moses's tabernacle was a copy of something real in heaven. That means that initially the tabernacle humans could see was completely separated from the true tabernacle in heaven. At the end, as described in Revelation 21, God Himself becomes the temple and dwells on earth. The end of all things then is that heaven comes down and unites with a newly formed earth.
The tabernacle became a temple built by Solomon. It was destroyed and rebuilt under Zerubbabel, then renovated by Herod. It was this temple that prompted Jesus to say, speaking of His own body, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up," (John 2:19). Jesus was raised from the dead, defeating death. In the future there will be another temple in the messianic kingdom (Ezekiel 40-44). Jesus will reign there after His return. Then in a new earth, God becomes the temple and dwells among us.
Add to this image that believers are told WE are a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16). Just as God allowed Solomon's temple to be destroyed due to disobedience, so He allows sin to destroy our temple if we walk in sin (Romans 1:24, 26, 28, 1 Corinthians 3:17). But just as with Israel, New Testament believers are His, and nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:35-39).
Verse 28 closes the chapter with the purpose clause: the nations will know that the LORD is the One who sanctifies Israel when His sanctuary stands in Israel's midst forever. The whole-chapter formula you will know that I am the LORD now expands its audience from Israel to the nations: And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever (v. 28).
What the LORD has done for Israel—gathered from all nations, cleansed of idolatry, placed under one Davidic king, entered with His own Spirit, given an everlasting covenant of peace, inhabited with His dwelling—becomes visible testimony to the nations. The LORD's commitment to Israel is always also a commitment to the world. Even in God's initial promise to Abraham, a blessing to all the nations of the earth is promised (Genesis 12:3).
That the LORD sanctifies Israel means that the LORD sets them apart for His service. This is attended with parental discipline (Deuteronomy 11:2,Proverbs 3:11,Hebrews 12:5). Malachi 3:2 calls God a "refiner's fire" and a "fuller's soap." A fuller is a launderer. God cleanses and He refines impurities in order to make His people fit for His service.
The two halves of Ezekiel 37 form a united argument. In verses 1-14, the LORD speaks life into what is dead, His Spirit enters the restored bodies, and a people come to life and stand on their feet. Verses 15-28 give the content of that restored national life: one reunited nation, one Davidic king who gathers and shepherds, one everlasting covenant of peace, one sanctuary permanently placed in their midst, and the covenant formula completed—the LORD dwells with His people, and the nations see it.
An original purpose of the Mosaic covenant was for Israel to serve a priestly function to surrounding nations, showing that a self-governing culture based on a culture of loving our neighbors as ourselves is a superior way to live (Exodus 19:6). Israel failed to keep their vows, so suffered the treaty provisions for covenant breach. Now, as promised, God has restored them and they are accomplishing the purpose of being a priestly nation, according to their design (Deuteronomy 32:36).
Daniel 7:13-14 places the throne of that everlasting kingdom in the hands of the Son of Man who approaches the Ancient of Days. Jesus is that Son of Man. Zechariah 9:9-10 pictures the king arriving in Jerusalem humble and riding on a donkey, cutting off the chariot and the war horse, speaking peace to the nations, and ruling from sea to sea. The first half of that occurred during Jesus's first advent, when He rode into Jerusalem. The second half will take place during the messianic reign.
Revelation 21:3-4 lands the dwelling-place promise on the new earth where there is no more death, mourning, crying, or pain. God's people will dwell on a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13). God is the temple. He dwells among us in His unveiled glory. And the kings of the nations will bring their glory into the city (Revelation 21:23-24).
Ezekiel 37:26-28
26 “I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever.
27 “My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people.
28 “And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever.” ' ”
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Ezekiel 37:26-28 meaning
Ezekiel 37:26-28 closes the chapter with an everlasting covenant of peace, the placement of the LORD's sanctuary in the midst of the people forever, and the declaration that the nations will know the LORD when they see His dwelling place among Israel. The closing verses begin with a declaration from God regarding a new covenant:
"I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever" (v. 26).
The covenant announced here is described with two terms, a covenant of peace and an everlasting covenant. The term covenant of peace carries the sense of harmony, wholeness, and right relationship. The Hebrew word "shalom" translated peace carries the idea of all things fitting together properly according to their design. The covenant God will apparently restore His original design.
The same phrase appears in Ezekiel 34:25, where the LORD promises to make a "covenant of peace" and cause harmful beasts to leave the land so that the people may dwell securely. This appears to apply to the era of the messianic kingdom, which will take place on the current earth. The reference to My sanctuary could apply to Ezekiel's temple, which appears to belong to the messianic kingdom era. God's glory returns to Ezekiel’s temple in Ezekiel 43:2-5. In the new earth, the temple is God Himself dwelling in the midst of His people on a new earth (Revelation 21:3).
The term everlasting covenant uses the same language applied to the covenant with Abraham in Genesis 17:7, which is also called an "everlasting covenant." Also the covenant with David in 2 Samuel 23:5 is called an "everlasting covenant." In each case, the Hebrew word "olam" is translated "everlasting." "Olam" has the idea of something that endures. This means that these covenant promises stack. Each adds to the other. God's promises are irrevocable (Romans 11:29).
The covenant announced in verse 26 carries both the Abrahamic and Davidic covenant language into what appears to be a final, permanent form. It likely points toward what Jeremiah 31:31-34 called the new covenant written on the heart.
The placement of the sanctuary in their midst forever gives the covenant a physical expression. The LORD's dwelling place will not be a tent in the wilderness or a temple that can be burned, but a permanent residence among His people:
"My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people" (v. 27).
This reference to dwelling place would seem to refer to Ezekiel's temple, which covers a substantial part of Ezekiel, showing its importance (Ezekiel 40-44). The descriptions indicate this temple will exist in a land with a substantially altered geography, including a new river that heals the waters of the Dead Sea (Ezekiel 47:1-12). This temple and the messianic kingdom will be a witness to all the earth:
"And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever"'" (v. 28).
Verse 27 restates the covenant formula—I will be their God, and they will be My people—with the addition of My dwelling place will be with them. The Hebrew word for dwelling place ("mishkan") is the same word used of the tabernacle in the wilderness—the portable dwelling structure the LORD commanded built in Exodus 25-40 so that His presence could dwell among His people.
The LORD is announcing that the tabernacle concept reaches its final form in the era of the current earth: He will live among His people permanently. In this case, it is more than His presence. His glory will fill the temple, but the resurrected Jesus will sit on the throne of Israel and rule the nations (Revelation 20:1-4). In the new earth, God will dwell with humans in a state of unveiled glory, rather than His glory only manifesting itself in the temple. In the new earth, the light of God's glory is so bright that there is no need of the sun (Revelation 21:23).
Revelation 21:3 uses similar words as Ezekiel regarding the tabernacle dwelling among humans: "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them." John's vision of the new Jerusalem is the full and permanent realization of what Ezekiel announced in verse 27—the permanent dwelling of the living God among the community He has gathered, cleansed, and placed under the Davidic shepherd-king.
In the Revelation 21 vision of the new earth, the entire creation becomes the LORD's temple, with His presence filling all the earth (Revelation 21:22-23). The image of a tabernacle can be viewed as beginning with a separation and ending with a union. Hebrews 8:5 tells us that Moses's tabernacle was a copy of something real in heaven. That means that initially the tabernacle humans could see was completely separated from the true tabernacle in heaven. At the end, as described in Revelation 21, God Himself becomes the temple and dwells on earth. The end of all things then is that heaven comes down and unites with a newly formed earth.
The tabernacle became a temple built by Solomon. It was destroyed and rebuilt under Zerubbabel, then renovated by Herod. It was this temple that prompted Jesus to say, speaking of His own body, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up," (John 2:19). Jesus was raised from the dead, defeating death. In the future there will be another temple in the messianic kingdom (Ezekiel 40-44). Jesus will reign there after His return. Then in a new earth, God becomes the temple and dwells among us.
Add to this image that believers are told WE are a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16). Just as God allowed Solomon's temple to be destroyed due to disobedience, so He allows sin to destroy our temple if we walk in sin (Romans 1:24, 26, 28, 1 Corinthians 3:17). But just as with Israel, New Testament believers are His, and nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:35-39).
Verse 28 closes the chapter with the purpose clause: the nations will know that the LORD is the One who sanctifies Israel when His sanctuary stands in Israel's midst forever. The whole-chapter formula you will know that I am the LORD now expands its audience from Israel to the nations: And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever (v. 28).
What the LORD has done for Israel—gathered from all nations, cleansed of idolatry, placed under one Davidic king, entered with His own Spirit, given an everlasting covenant of peace, inhabited with His dwelling—becomes visible testimony to the nations. The LORD's commitment to Israel is always also a commitment to the world. Even in God's initial promise to Abraham, a blessing to all the nations of the earth is promised (Genesis 12:3).
That the LORD sanctifies Israel means that the LORD sets them apart for His service. This is attended with parental discipline (Deuteronomy 11:2, Proverbs 3:11, Hebrews 12:5). Malachi 3:2 calls God a "refiner's fire" and a "fuller's soap." A fuller is a launderer. God cleanses and He refines impurities in order to make His people fit for His service.
The two halves of Ezekiel 37 form a united argument. In verses 1-14, the LORD speaks life into what is dead, His Spirit enters the restored bodies, and a people come to life and stand on their feet. Verses 15-28 give the content of that restored national life: one reunited nation, one Davidic king who gathers and shepherds, one everlasting covenant of peace, one sanctuary permanently placed in their midst, and the covenant formula completed—the LORD dwells with His people, and the nations see it.
An original purpose of the Mosaic covenant was for Israel to serve a priestly function to surrounding nations, showing that a self-governing culture based on a culture of loving our neighbors as ourselves is a superior way to live (Exodus 19:6). Israel failed to keep their vows, so suffered the treaty provisions for covenant breach. Now, as promised, God has restored them and they are accomplishing the purpose of being a priestly nation, according to their design (Deuteronomy 32:36).
Daniel 7:13-14 places the throne of that everlasting kingdom in the hands of the Son of Man who approaches the Ancient of Days. Jesus is that Son of Man. Zechariah 9:9-10 pictures the king arriving in Jerusalem humble and riding on a donkey, cutting off the chariot and the war horse, speaking peace to the nations, and ruling from sea to sea. The first half of that occurred during Jesus's first advent, when He rode into Jerusalem. The second half will take place during the messianic reign.
Revelation 21:3-4 lands the dwelling-place promise on the new earth where there is no more death, mourning, crying, or pain. God's people will dwell on a new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Peter 3:13). God is the temple. He dwells among us in His unveiled glory. And the kings of the nations will bring their glory into the city (Revelation 21:23-24).