Reading for April 25th

Read Ezekiel 37.15-28 The two sticks.
Ezekiel's symbolic action represents the unification of Israel and Judah under the
rule of a Davidic king.
See Isa 11, which also employs the image of a growing tree to symbolize the unification
of Israel and Judah under a Davidic king.
In verses 15-19 God instructs Ezekiel to write the names Judah and Joseph on two sticks
(see Num 17.1-13).
Judah is the southern kingdom, and Joseph is the father of Ephraim, the central tribe
of the northern kingdom, Israel.
Stick: literally "tree" or "wood".
In verses 20-27 just as one gathers sticks for a fire (Isa 27.11), God will gather the exiles
 to establish them as one nation.
Ezekiel draws upon the tradition of permanent Davidic rule (2 Sam 7; Ps 89; 132), the eternal covenant of peace granted to the priest Phineas the son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron (Num 25.10-13; see also Ezek 34.25), and the role of the Temple as the center of both Israel and all
creation (Ex 40; see also Gen 2.1-3).
Comments or Questions...