A reading from the prophet Ezekiel (36:16-17a, 18-28)
The word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, the members of the House of Israel used to live in their own territory but they defiled it by their conduct and actions. I then vented my wrath on them because of the blood they shed in the land and the idols with which they defiled it. I scattered them among the nations and they were dispersed throughout the lands. I sentenced them as their conduct and actions deserved. They have profaned my holy name among the nations where they have gone, so that people say of them, “These are the people of the Lord; they have been exiled from his land.” But I have been concerned about my holy name which the House of Israel has profaned among the nations where they have gone.
‘And so, say to the House of Israel, “Thus says the Lord God: I am acting not for your sake, House of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. I am going to display the holiness of my great name which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord – declares the Lord God – when in you I display my holiness before their eyes. For I shall take you from among the nations and gather you back from all the lands and bring you home to your own land. I shall pour clean water over you and you will be cleansed; I shall cleanse you of all your filth and of all your foul idols. I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I shall remove the heart of stone from your bodies and give you a heart of flesh. I shall put my spirit in you and make you keep my laws and respect and practise my judgements. You will live in the land which I gave your ancestors. You will be my people and I shall be your God.’
The final chapters of the prophet Ezekiel look to the time beyond the exile and describe the new life brought about by God. Those familiar with these chapters might have expected Ezekiel 37, the vision of the raising of the dry bones, symbol of the restoration of Israel, to be chosen. (Ezekiel 37:1-14 was in fact included in an earlier collection of readings for the Easter Vigil.) Ezekiel 36, however, has the added dimension of interior renewal. This last reading from the Hebrew Scriptures presents the new life of the individual, which is made accessible to the believer through baptism, by which Christians share in the new life of the risen Christ.
The words of God first look back at the behaviour of the people in their own land, and how they defiled it by shedding blood and by idol worship. They were then scattered among the nations, but in those new places things got worse as the nations ridiculed the God who had not defended them, and profaned the ‘holy name’ (shem qodshi).
The actions which God proposes to take are ‘not for your sake’ but ‘for the sake of my holy name’. God is determined to display the holiness of his name, so that the nations will know that ‘I am the Lord.’ They ridiculed the God who was apparently unable to look after his people: ‘This is the people of God, and they have been exiled from their home.’ But the nations will now be struck with awe that God has never ceased caring and does in fact provide abundantly for them, both in gathering them together and renewing them inwardly.
Once gathered in their own land the people of God will be cleansed with water, and rid of their ‘filth’ and ‘foul idols’. This enables God to give them a ‘new heart’ (leb hadash)and a ‘new spirit’ (ruah hadashah). A heart of stone is replaced with a heart of flesh. The symbolism of a stone heart reflects the absolute necessity of God intervening dramatically and urgently to remove a dead heart and replace it with something new, for stone suggests a complete lack of life and growth. The spirit given them is the principle of new life, and means that they obey God’s laws and respect God’s judgements. After the trauma of exile the relationship is healed, and God reaffirms the covenant, so often undermined, with the people: ‘You will be my people, and I shall be your God.’
In this ‘night of salvation’ the darkness of exile and loss gives way to new life. Inner transformation and new hope is what the Messiah achieves through his death and resurrection. The reference to cleansing water brings us to the threshold of baptism.
Psalm 42 vv. 2-3,5, 43:3-4
The yearning for new life is vividly expressed with the image of the deer thirsting for ‘running streams’. The exile thinks back to the days when the temple still stood, and the crowd entered the temple with cries of joy. ‘Light’ (’or) and ‘truth’ (’emet) are the new gifts of God, and the hope is expressed of once again reaching the ‘holy mountain’ (har qodesh) where God dwells.
Psalm 51 vv.12-15 18-19
Psalm 51, with which Lent began, can now be used with the absolute certainty that the prayer will be heard. The ‘pure heart’ (leb tahor) is actually to be ‘created’ (bara’) by God, for hearts of stone must be replaced. A ‘spirit of strength’ (ruah nakon) is bestowed. A renewed heart and contrite spirit will be accepted by God.