" he will revive us; in the third day, he will "raise us up, and we shall live in his fight'." Similar expreffions are used to denote their converfion, Hofea xiii. 14. "I will ranfom them "from the power of the grave: I will redeem "them from death: O death I will be thy "plagues; O grave I will be thy deftruction.". To the fame purpose the prophet Zechariah says, "They fhall live with their children, and turn "again;" Zech. x. 9. And the Apostle expreffes "the receiving them again" to be members of the church, and the confequent increase of converfion among the Gentiles, by these words, "Life from the dead; Rom. xi. 15. Further, the meaning of the refurrection in this paffage is clearly ascertained by the illustration annexed, "And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when "I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, and fhall put my Spirit in you, and ye fhall live;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 13, 14. So that, “ bringing "them up out of their graves," is, in other words, "putting his spirit in them;" that is, converting them. Their restoration to the land given their fathers, is an eyent pofterior to their converfion, not at all intended by the resurrec. tion of the dry bones, but typified by the emblematical

(1) See an illustration of this paffage, page 80.

blematical action of the prophet, in the following part of the chapter.

Having thus difcovered the general meaning of the paffage, by examining it more narrowly, we fhall find a minute detail of the manner of their converfion. "The hand of the Lord was

66

upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of "the Lord, and fet me down in the midst of "the valley which was full of bones;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 1. The valley into which the prophet is introduced, is the wilderness of Affyria; the bones are" the whole houfe of Ifrael" there collected: They are represented by bones, because of their hopeless condition, threatened with deftruction, and no appearance of God's interpofition for their deliverance. "They fay, Our "bones are dried, and our hope is loft; we are . cut off for our parts;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 11. Their hopeless condition proceeds from their infidelity, though for the prefent moment they are not confcious of the cause. "And caufed "me to pass by them round about; and, be"hold, they were very many in the open valley; "and lo, they were very dry;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 2. On a further furvey, the prophet difcerns the hoft to be numerous, but their infidelity to be rivetted, and to have exifted for a long time; the bones are very dry, as having continued in a state of death for ages before. "And he faid unto me,

"Son

"Son of man, can these bones live? And I " answered, O Lord God, thou knoweft;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 3. The prophet all along perfonates the teachers employed by God at the time appointed, as his inftruments to convert the multitude. He begins therefore by removing their fcruples; he queftions them if it was poffible to convert that infidel multitude to the faith of the Meffiah, whom their fathers crucified, and they fo long rejected and blafphemed? They aniwer, That the thing is not probable; however, that nothing is impoffible for Divine Power.

"Again, he said unto me, Prophefy upon "these bones, and fay unto them, O ye dry "bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus faith "the Lord God unto these bones, Behold, I will "caufe breath to enter into you, and ye fhall "live: And I will lay finews upon you, and "will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you " with fkin, and put breath in you, and ye fhall

live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord;" Ezekiel xxxvii. 4, 5, 6. Having removed the fcruples of the teachers, God exprefsly commands them to prophefy, that is, to illuftrate the truth; proving from the word, that Jefus of Nazareth is the Meffiah. Exhorting the people, at the fame time, to receive this truth as the only mean of making them fpiritually alive, reftoring them to the favour of God, and deli

vering them from their prefent diftrefs. Inti mating likewife, for their encouragement, that, the power of God was able to remove their fcru ples, however ftrongly confirmed, and long. continued.

"So I prophefied as I was commanded; and

as I prophefied there was a noise, and, be"hold, a fhaking, and the bones came toge"ther, bone to his bone. And when I beheld,

lo, the finews and the flesh came up upon, "them, and the skin covered them above: But "there was no breath in them;" Ezek. xxxvii,. 7, 8. In confequence of the teacher's exhortation, there is a ftir among the people; they give earnest attention to the truth, and, like the Jews of Berea, "fearch the fcriptures, to fee. "whether these things be fo." By this difpofition to receive the truth, there is a progrefs to-wards converfion; and their ftate now differs from that in which they entered the wilderness, as the ftate of a dead body entire in its parts, cloathed with flesh, and covered with skin, differs, from that of dry bones, separated each from the other." But there was no breath in them." They were still deftitute of that faith which unites the foul to Chrift, and derives life from him, the head of fpiritual influences.

"Then faid he unto me, Prophefy unto the "wind, (fpirit), prophefy, Son of man, and say

"" to'

1

"to the wind, (fpirit), Thus faith the Lord "God, Come from the four winds, O breath, "(fpirit), and breathe upon these flain, that "they may live," Ezekiel xxxvii. 9.1 God therefore commands the teachers to illuftrate another truth, namely, that converfion is the work of God's Spirit; and that, in order to receive his influence, it is neceffary to pray for him. "So I prophefied as he commanded me, " and the breath (fpirit) came into them, "and they lived and ftood up upon their feet, "an exceeding great army; Ezek. xxxvii. 10. In obedience to God's command, the teachers. inftruct the multitude, concerning the neceffity of the influences of the Spirit, in order to convert them. Afterwards they direct their prayers to God, in which the people join, requesting his influences. While they are thus employed, the Spirit defcends with his powerful and liberal influences, converting this great multitude, in

ftantly

(1) The word Ruach, in the original, fignifies wind and fpirit, and is commonly used to denote the Spirit of God. The repetition of the word prophefy in this verfe, intimates two distinct parts of the direction; first, to explain the doctrine concerning the influence of the Spirit; se condly, to apply the doctrine, by directing them to pray for him. Accordingly an addrefs to him immediately follows: "O breath, breathe upon these flain, that they "may live."