Ezekiel 36:31

Ezekiel 36:31 says, Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall lothe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.  God said that when He blessed them materially once more that they would remember their evil ways and loathe how they had acted.  They wouldn't be able to stand the way they had looked before God before when they were not living in accordance with their covenant relationship with Him.  We should never look back on the way we lived before we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord with satisfaction, but we should always look back on that time with disappointment instead.   

Verse thirty-two adds, Not for your sakes do I this, saith the Lord God, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel.  God said that He wasn’t restoring the people of Israel for their sakes, or because they deserved it just because of who they were, but was doing so because of His promise to Abraham.  We will never be restored to God because we deserve it, no matter where we may have been born.  God restores us to a right relationship with Him because of His promise of salvation, and it will not be done for our glory but for His.   

Verse thirty-three continues, Thus saith the Lord God; In the day that I shall have cleansed you from all your iniquities I will also cause you to dwell in the cities, and the wastes shall be builded.  God said when He cleansed the people of all their iniquities and not when they did, that He would also cause them to once more live in cities in the promised land.  It is always God Who cleanses us spiritually by the shed blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, and we can never be restored by our own merit.  

Verse thirty-four concludes, And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by.   God said that where the land of Israel had been desolate in the sight of all the people that it was now going to be filled with His people once more.  Even if the world becomes desolate, we as God’s people will be at home in heaven, and all people will see the glory of God, even those who are forever separated from Him.   

Ezekiel 36:25

Ezekiel 36:25 says, Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.  God then added that once He restored the nation of Israel that He would cause them to be cleansed spiritually.  I don’t believe that this was because of their own professed righteousness but would be after they repented and put their faith in Him once more.  God will never just make some spiritually clean simply because they call themselves a Christian but have not put their faith in Him.   To be spiritually washed clean, we must have a personal relationship with God by accepting His gift of salvation.   

Verse twenty-six adds, A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.  God said that when He restored the people of Israel, He was going to give them a new heart that would be dependent on Him and take away their old stony heart and that He would also give them a new Spirit, which I believe refers to the Holy Spirit.  If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, then we will be washed clean spiritually and have a new heart that is guided by the Holy Spirit.   

Verse twenty-seven continues, And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.  God said that when He called the people of Israel to Himself once more that He would give them His spirit to live within them.  When He did this, they would walk in accordance to His word and keep His commandments.  Once we accept God’s gift of salvation, the Holy Spirit indwells us, and we should then live by His guidance and follow the laws of God.   

Verse twenty-eight states, And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.  God said that after the people of Israel began to live by faith in Him that He would give them the promised land to live in once more.   When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we are assured of a home in heaven, the final promised land.   

Verse twenty-nine adds, I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.  God said that when the people lived by faith in Him that He would cleanse them from all unrighteousness and that they would no longer suffer from famine.  Once we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we are cleansed of all unrighteousness and will never be spiritually hungry again because of a lack of spiritual food, as long as we live by faith since Jesus is the bread of life.   

Verse thirty continues, And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye shall receive no more reproach of famine among the heathen.  God said He was going to bless them with an abundance of crops so that the heathen would no longer reproach the people of Israel for their famine.  The heathen, or the unsaved people, wanted to use material blessings as a sign that God is Who He says He is.  There are still lost people today, and even some Christians, who believe that salvation also means that Christians should be materially blessed and this has never been the case.  Still, they believe the lack of material wealth is a sign that God either doesn't exist or doesn’t have much power if He does, but this is because they are wrong about Christianity being a means of material blessings.  God only promises us that we will be spiritually blessed when we accept His gift of salvation and instead of being materially blessed, we may be persecuted because of our faith.  This does not mean that He isn’t in charge if we are. 

Ezekiel 36:21

Ezekiel 36:21 says. But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went.  God said He would have pity on the nation of Israel because they were known as His people.  If the world was judging God’s power based on how the people of Israel fared in the world, and they were being allowed to be defeated because of their sin, then people might believe that God was powerless.  For this reason, He was going to restore them.  God may allow people who are called Christian to prosper for His glory, but if they are Christians in name only, they will never prosper spiritually.   

Verse twenty-two adds, Therefore say unto the house of Israel, thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name's sake, which ye have profaned among the heathen, whither ye went.  Again, God said that when He restored the house of Israel, it would be for His glory and not theirs.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, it will always be for His glory and not our own, yet we too often seem to believe that if we profess to be a follower of Christ that the world should glorify us instead of our calling on them to give Him the glory.   

Verse twenty-three continues, And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.  God said that even though the heathen had profaned His name, and I believe that ths means the people of Israel when they turned away from living in obedience to God as well, would see God’s name glorified once more.  He was not doing this so that the people of Israel would be glorified but so that the people of around them would know that He is God.  Still, this would only be a physical restoration and not a spiritual one if the people of Israel didn’t repent and put their faith in God once more.  If we profess to be a Christian nation or even a Christian personally and are not truly putting our faith in Him, He may allow us to prosper materially for a period of time to keep us from profaning His name, but this will always be a physical restoration and not a spiritual one.   

Verse twenty-four concludes, For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land.  God said to keep His name from being profaned that He was going gather the people of Israel from all nations and bring them back to the promised land.  Still, this did not mean that the people of Israel by their own merit were better than anyone else, but since they were known as God's people, He was going to restore them physically as a nation for His glory.  God may bless those who profess to be Christians today materially if the world is profaning His name by their defeat, but if they do not repent and return to Him, it will be but a temporary restoration.  It is only when we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord that we can be restored to God spiritually, and until we do, no matter how much He may bless us because we claim to be His people, it will only be a temporary blessing.