Repeatedly throughout the book of Ezekiel, a theme emerges after Israel disobeys God, “Then you will know that I am the Lord.” Typically, this follows Israel disobeying God following the ways of foreign lands, and worshipping other gods. As the judgments of God and the resulting consequence of their sin approach, this phrase is uttered by the Lord. Toward the end of Ezekiel, a shift takes place.

While the scattered nation of Israel follows false gods in foreign lands, the Lord speaks of a return to the land of promise, “I am bringing you back, not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations” (Ezekiel 36:22). The Lord goes on to say He would reveal Himself in Israel among the nations where Israel had wandered. This would be a revelation in these nations “before their very eyes says, the Sovereign Lord, then the nations will know that I am the Lord” (vs. 23).

Then the Lord reveals His ultimate purpose to Israel, “And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart” (vs. 26-27).

The purpose of God’s instruction and His discipline of our disobedience is to bring us back to a place where our heart aligns once again with Him and our spirit is yielded to His will. He wants to make His people responsive again to His voice. The first sound of our repentant hearts is heard in the situations where our disobedience took us. God’s redemptive plan is not only experienced in the place of our original calling – our place of promise- but in the places where we ran to in our disobedience.

While the words of Ezekiel were spoken to the nation of Israel at a particular time in history, the truths revealed there are transferrable across the span of time. In many ways, the Church today has become a scattered people who are living among the nations of the world reflecting their mindset, and in some cases, their gods.

The Lord is calling us back, not to a place of hopelessness and punishment. He is calling us back to a biblically based understanding of His truth and to an adherence to prophetic announcements that remind us of the error of our ways. We are being called back to a place where a new heart and a responsive spirit await us. Then we will know that He is the merciful God.