God's Real Estate Program Text: Ezekiel 28:25-26
Introduction: Reading the Map Correctly
We live in an age of profound eschatological confusion, and nowhere is this confusion more apparent than in discussions surrounding the people of Israel and the land of Palestine. For many well meaning Christians, the promises of the Old Testament are read with a flat, newspaper literalism. They see a promise of land, and they look for a modern political state. They see a promise of gathering, and they look for airline flights to Tel Aviv. This approach, known as dispensationalism, for all its sincerity, fundamentally misreads the biblical map. It mistakes the scaffolding for the finished building.
The promises God made to Old Covenant Israel were absolutely true. They were glorious. But they were also types and shadows. They were arrows pointing to a greater reality. To insist that the ultimate fulfillment of these promises is a secular nation state in the Middle East is to shrink the promises of God. It is to trade a global inheritance for a postage stamp parcel of land. The New Testament does not cancel the promises; it expands them. It universalizes them. The promise to Abraham was not that he would inherit a strip of land between the Jordan and the Mediterranean, but that he would be the heir of the world (Rom. 4:13). The meek do not inherit Palestine; they inherit the earth (Matt. 5:5).
Ezekiel is prophesying to a scattered and defeated people. They are exiles in Babylon. The Temple is about to be, or has just been, destroyed. The surrounding nations, the ones Ezekiel has just finished pronouncing judgment upon, are gloating. They see Israel's defeat as Yahweh's defeat. Into this despair and humiliation, God speaks a promise of restoration. But this promise is not just about a return from Babylon. That return was a down payment. This promise, read through the lens of the New Covenant, is about the great ingathering of God's people into Christ, and the inheritance of the entire world.
The Text
‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples, among whom they are scattered, and will manifest My holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their land which I gave to My servant Jacob. They will live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards, and live securely when I execute judgments upon all who scorn them all around them. Then they will know that I am Yahweh their God.” ’ ”
(Ezekiel 28:25-26 LSB)
The Great Ingathering (v. 25)
The promise begins with the foundational act of redemption: gathering the scattered.
"‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples, among whom they are scattered, and will manifest My holiness in them in the sight of the nations, then they will live in their land which I gave to My servant Jacob." (Ezekiel 28:25)
First, consider the scattering. The immediate context is the Babylonian exile, a judgment for covenant unfaithfulness. But the ultimate scattering is the result of Adam's sin. Sin scatters us from God's presence, from each other, and from ourselves. The Tower of Babel was a monument to this scattering. So when God promises to "gather the house of Israel," He is promising to reverse the curse of sin.
This had a preliminary fulfillment when a remnant returned to Judah. But the true and final fulfillment began at Pentecost. On that day, the Holy Spirit gathered Jews "from every nation under heaven" (Acts 2:5) into one body. This was the great ingathering. And it didn't stop there. The gospel went out to the Gentiles, gathering them into the same olive tree from which unbelieving branches had been cut off (Rom. 11). The Church, the one new man in Christ, is the true gathered Israel of God.
And why does God do this? To "manifest My holiness in them in the sight of the nations." God's reputation is at stake. When His people were scattered in exile, His name was profaned among the nations (Ezek. 36:20). When He gathers and sanctifies a people for Himself, the Church, His holiness is put on display. The Church is God's billboard to the world, including the angelic world (Eph. 3:10), declaring His wisdom and righteousness. Our holy lives are the vindication of God's holy name.
Then, this gathered and sanctified people will "live in their land." And here we must be careful. The land given to Jacob was a type, a starter kit. It was the training ground. In the New Covenant, that promise of land explodes to encompass the whole world. Christ, the true Jacob, the true Israel, has inherited all things, and we are co-heirs with Him. The land is no longer a geographical location but a global dominion. Our inheritance is the earth.
The Culture of the Kingdom (v. 26)
Verse 26 describes what life looks like for the gathered people of God in their land. It is a picture of security, fruitfulness, and vindication.
"They will live in it securely; and they will build houses, plant vineyards, and live securely when I execute judgments upon all who scorn them all around them. Then they will know that I am Yahweh their God." (Ezekiel 28:26)
First, they will live securely. Our ultimate security is not in political stability or military might. Our security is positional; we are "in Christ Jesus." We are seated with Him in the heavenly places. Because our eternal security is already accomplished, we can live with a confident boldness in this world. We are not hunkered down in a bunker waiting for the end. We are secure, and from that position of security, we advance.
And what does that advance look like? "They will build houses, plant vineyards." This is cultural activity. This is the dominion mandate. The gospel doesn't just save souls; it creates a civilization. Secure in Christ, we are freed to be productive and fruitful. We build families, churches, schools, and businesses. We plant the seeds of the gospel, and as they take root, they produce the fruit of godly culture. This is the essence of our postmillennial hope. We are not waiting to be evacuated from a doomed planet. We are here to build and plant until the knowledge of the glory of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea.
This building and planting happens while God "executes judgments upon all who scorn them." The advance of the gospel is an act of war. It is an invasion. Every time a soul is converted, a demonic stronghold is overthrown. Every time a Christian institution is built, a beachhead for the kingdom is established. History is the story of Christ putting all His enemies under His feet, and He does this through the work of His Church. As we are faithful to our task, God brings down the proud and the rebellious. The empires of men, which scorn the church, are the empires of sand. The kingdom we are building is the one that will last forever.
And the result of all this? "Then they will know that I am Yahweh their God." This is the goal of all history. The gathering of the Church, the sanctification of Her people, the inheritance of the earth, the building of Christian culture, and the judgment of God's enemies all serve this one ultimate purpose: that God would be known. That the world would see the fruit of the gospel and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Conclusion: Your Global Inheritance
This promise in Ezekiel is a covenant promise, and all the promises of God find their 'Yes' in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20). This means this promise is for you. You who have been scattered by sin have been gathered into Christ. You are part of the true Israel of God.
Therefore, you have been made holy in the sight of the nations. Your life is an exhibition of the character of God. And you have been given an inheritance, not a dusty plot of land in a war-torn region, but the entire world. This world belongs to your Father, and He is giving it to you.
So live in that reality. Live securely. You are eternally safe in the hands of your Savior. And because you are secure, get to work. Start building. Start planting. Build a godly marriage. Build a faithful church. Plant the gospel in your neighborhood. Plant the seeds of Christian culture in your vocation. Do not be intimidated by those who scorn you. God is executing judgments on them even now. Their worldview is bankrupt and collapsing under its own weight.
The day is coming when all will know that He is Yahweh our God. Our job is to live like we already know it, and in so doing, to show it to the world. The great ingathering is underway, and the promised land is all around you.