Israel, even all of it: and the cities shall be inhabited, and the wastes shall be builded: and I will multiply upon you, man and beast and they shall increase and bring fruit; and I will settle you after your old estates, and I will do better unto you than at your beginnings; and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of men. Thus saith the Lord God, because they say unto you, thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations; therefore, thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more saith the Lord God. Neither will I cause men to hear in thee, the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord God." Then follows an address. to the people, in which in addition to restoration to their land, the fulness of the consolation of the Divine Spirit, the most unreserved forgiveness of their sins, and the revival of a spirit of prayer among them, are freely promised. 66 Moreover, the word of the Lord came unto me saying, Son of Man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their own way, and by their

doings their way was before me as the uncleanness of a removed woman, wherefore I proved my fury upon them for the blood that they had shed upon the land, and for their idols wherewith they had polluted it; and I scattered them among the heathen, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way, and according to their doings I judged them. And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, these are the people of the Lord, and are gone forth out of his land. But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the heathen, whither they went. 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. 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 before their eyes; for you I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean; from all your filthiness, and from all your idols will

your

I cleanse you. 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 flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 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. 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. I will also save you from all your un

leannesses, and I will call for the corn, and

will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. 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. Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and for your abominations. 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. 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, and the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas, it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. And they shall say, this land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate

and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant that which was desolate; I the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it. Thus saith the Lord God, I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them, I will increase them with men like a flock. As the holy flock, as the flock of Jerusalem in her solemn feasts; so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men and they shall know that I am the Lord."

These gracious promises had a strange sound by the banks of the rivers of Babylon. The dejected captives of Israel could not believe the joyful intelligence, our hope said they is lost, our long cherished expectations are withered, the heathen have trodden under foot our beautiful and pleasant land, we ourselves are helpless defenceless captives under a powerful enemy, how can we expect this glorious restoration of which the Prophet speaks? O! no, we are cut off for ever. To meet and dispel this cloud of despondency, God set before the Prophet a surprising vision, the explanation and application of which were well calculated to excite the liveliest hope, to give the most cheering and animating encouragement to the people. "The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, 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 Lord God, thou knowest. Again he said unto me, prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, 0 ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus saith the Lord God 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 Lord. I prophesied as I was commanded, and as I prophesied, there was a noice, 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 Lord God; 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."