I.
In every convent there are at least two sides.

As you take time to reflect on this passage, notice the two sides of this covenant – (1) What the prophet speaks of God doing; and (2) what the actions of the people are.

II.
Ezekiel 37:21-28 (NRSVue)

… then say to them, “Thus says the Lord God: I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone and will gather them from every quarter and bring them to their own land. I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king over them all. Never again shall they be two nations, and never again shall they be divided into two kingdoms. They shall never again defile themselves with their idols and their detestable things or with any of their transgressions. I will save them from all the apostasies into which they have fallen and will cleanse them. Then they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

“My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall follow my ordinances and be careful to observe my statutes. They shall live in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, in which your ancestors lived; they and their children and their children’s children shall live there forever, and my servant David shall be their prince forever. I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, and I will bless them and multiply them and will set my sanctuary among them forevermore. My dwelling place shall be over them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Then the nations shall know that I the Lord sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary is among them forevermore.”

III.
What does the prophet attribute to God?

“… I will take … gather … make them … I will save them from … cleanse them … shall be my people … be their God … make a covenant of peace …”

And what is left to the nation?

“… one nation … never defile themselves … have one shepherd … follow … be careful … live in the land that I gave … the nations shall know … “

What else?

What of the above (or maybe something else in the passage) captures and holds your attention?

How do you think the people should respond to this covenant?

If God were to enter such a covenant with you, how would you react?

charles
{ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est}