Bird's-eye view
In this brief and potent prophecy, tucked away at the end of a series of judgments against the nations, God gives us the punchline to all of history. After declaring judgment on Tyre and Sidon, the Lord turns His attention to the final state of His people. This is not some sentimental afterthought. This is the point of the whole exercise. God judges the wicked precisely in order to clear the ground for the planting of His people in their promised inheritance. The passage before us outlines the great restoration of Israel. This restoration is a gathering from the nations, a sanctification before the nations, and a secure settlement in the land promised to Jacob. It culminates in the execution of judgment on their enemies and the universal acknowledgment of Yahweh as God.
But we must be careful to read this with New Covenant eyes. The regathering of Israel spoken of here is not the establishment of a secular nation state in the 20th century. The true Israel of God is the Church, gathered from every tribe and tongue. The land promised to our father Jacob is the entire earth, which the meek inherit. The security and prosperity described is the fruit of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as it advances through history. And the judgments on those who scorn God's people are the historical outworking of the vindication Christ won at the cross. This passage, in short, is a glorious promise of the success of the Great Commission.
Commentary
Ezekiel 28:25
‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples, among whom they are scattered...
The first thing to notice is who is doing the acting. The Lord Yahweh is the one who gathers. The restoration of God's people is not a bootstrap operation. It is a sovereign work of grace from beginning to end. Israel was scattered because of her sin, her covenant infidelity. She is gathered because of God's covenant faithfulness. This gathering is from "the peoples," which is to say, the nations. While this had a near fulfillment in the return from Babylonian exile, the ultimate fulfillment is Pentecost and the mission to the Gentiles that followed. The true "house of Israel" is now, in this age of the Spirit, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ, gathered out of every nation on earth. God is not in the business of preserving ethnic bloodlines for salvation; He is in the business of creating one new man from the two, Jew and Gentile, making peace by the blood of the cross (Eph. 2:15).
...and will manifest My holiness in them in the sight of the nations...
And what is the purpose of this great ingathering? It is for the glory of God's name. God's holiness is His defining attribute, His sheer "otherness" and moral perfection. When His people were scattered, His name was profaned among the nations (Ezek. 36:20). The pagans looked at defeated Israel and concluded that her God was a tinpot deity, unable to protect His own. Therefore, the restoration of Israel is simultaneously the vindication of God's holy name. He makes them holy, setting them apart, and in so doing, He shows the world who He is. This is not accomplished through political maneuvering or military might, but through the creation of a holy people. The world is supposed to look at the Church and see a people so transformed, so marked by love, justice, and righteousness, that they are forced to conclude that our God is the one true God. The sanctification of the saints is the great apologetic.
...then they will live in their land which I gave to My servant Jacob.
Here we come to the land promise. Dispensationalists get tangled up here, insisting on a future fulfillment centered on a physical strip of land in the Middle East. But the promise to Jacob, and to Abraham before him, was always bigger than that. Paul tells us that Abraham was promised that he would be the "heir of the world" (Rom. 4:13). The physical land of Canaan was a type, a down payment, a shadow of the substance to come. The substance is Christ. In Christ, all the promises of God are Yes and Amen. And what has Christ inherited? "Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession" (Ps. 2:8). The land promised to Jacob is the whole earth, renewed and being brought under the dominion of his greater Son, Jesus. The Church, as the body of Christ, lives in this land as we participate in His reign, extending the borders of His kingdom through gospel proclamation and faithful obedience.
Ezekiel 28:26
They will live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards, and live securely...
This is the language of covenant blessing, drawn straight from the book of Deuteronomy. It describes a people at peace, enjoying the fruit of their labor under God's favor. This is shalom. This security is not, first, a matter of physical walls and armies. It is the spiritual security of being in Christ, reconciled to God, and safe from condemnation. But that spiritual reality works its way out. As the gospel takes root in a society, it produces tangible fruit. It overthrows chaos and brings order. It teaches men to be diligent, to build, to plant, to create culture for the glory of God. This is a postmillennial vision. We do not believe the world is destined to get worse and worse until Jesus comes back to rescue us from the flaming wreckage. We believe the kingdom of God is a mustard seed that grows into a great tree. The promise here is that as the Church is faithful, she will increasingly experience this security and prosperity in the here and now, as a foretaste of the new heavens and the new earth.
...when I execute judgments upon all who scorn them all around them.
Our security is directly linked to God's judgment on His enemies. God does not save His people in a vacuum. He saves them in a world that is hostile to Him and to them. Therefore, salvation necessarily involves judgment. The cross was the ultimate judgment, where sin was condemned in the flesh. The destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 was a catastrophic judgment on the apostate Jewish nation that had scorned her Messiah. And throughout history, God continues to execute judgments. He brings down proud empires and casts down insolent rulers. He is a man of war; the Lord is His name. He does this to vindicate His people and to clear a path for the advancement of His kingdom. We should not be squeamish about this. We should pray, as the saints under the altar do, "How long, O Lord?" and rejoice when His righteous judgments are made manifest in the earth.
...Then they will know that I am Yahweh their God.” ’ ”
And here is the final goal, the great telos of it all. God acts so that His people might know Him. This is not mere intellectual assent. To "know" Yahweh in the biblical sense is to be in a covenant relationship with Him, to trust Him, to love Him, to obey Him. This is the definition of eternal life (John 17:3). When God's people see His salvation, when they see His promises fulfilled, when they see their enemies judged, their faith is confirmed and their knowledge of Him deepens. They see His power, His faithfulness, His holiness, His love. They see that He is who He says He is. And in this knowledge, there is life and peace and security forever.
Application
First, we must understand that the Church is the true Israel of God, and these promises are for us. We have been gathered from the nations by the blood of Christ. Let us therefore live as a gathered and united people, putting away all ethnic pride and worldly division.
Second, our primary mission is to be a holy people, because our holiness displays God's holiness to a watching world. We are not called to be clever, or culturally relevant, or politically powerful in the world's eyes. We are called to be holy. Our sanctification is God's great marketing plan.
Third, we must embrace a robust, optimistic, world-conquering eschatology. We are not squatters on this planet, waiting for the evacuation shuttle. We are settlers, builders, and planters. Christ has inherited the earth, and we are His agents of reclamation. Let us work diligently, building Christian families, churches, schools, and businesses, knowing that our labor in the Lord is not in vain.
Finally, let us trust in the justice of God. The world scorns the church now, just as it scorned ancient Israel. But God will not be mocked. He will execute judgment. This should give us courage to be faithful in the face of opposition, and it should fill our hearts with a confident hope. He will vindicate His people, and in the end, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.