New Heart

“And I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God (Ezek. 11:19-20). Ezekiel spoke these words from a Babylonian refugee camp far away from his homeland. Late sixth-century B.C. prophet anticipated a time when the Yahweh would bring back the exiles to the land of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

The people had broken their covenant with Yahweh. They had compromised their worship, and defiled their holy temple. The temple that David had conceived and Solomon built. The very temple the very Glory of the Lord had indwelt. When Solomon brought the Ark of the Covenant into the temple, the glory of the Lord filled the place, like a thick cloud, and the priests were unable to stand ministering (1 Kings 8). It was the very same temple that Ezekiel sees in a vision, and in that vision the prophet witnesses the glory of the Lord departing (Ezekiel 10, cf. v. 18).

Why did the temple come to an end? The temple, of course, was but a fresh memory in the mind of Ezekiel, for it was destroyed in 586 BC by Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 25:1-18; 2 Chron. 36:11-21). In Ezekiel 8, Yahweh, however, gives the prophet a visionary tour of the temple. As they examine the inner structures of the temple and in each place there are worshippers, but they are not worshipping Yahweh, but their affections are to pagan gods. Ezekiel describes the final scene: “Then He brought me into the inner court of the LORD’S house. And behold, at the entrance to the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east; and they were prostrating themselves eastward toward the sun. He said to me, ‘Do you see this, son of man? Is it too light a thing for the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they have committed here, that they have filled the land with violence and provoked Me repeatedly? For behold, they are putting the twig to their nose. Therefore, I indeed will deal in wrath. My eye will have no pity nor will I spare; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, yet I will not listen to them’ ” (Ezek. 8:16-18).

The Israelites had lost their way. They had broken their covenant. They experienced divine judgment. They were in a place far from their promise land. Yet, even with divine judgment executed, God still plans for redemption.

Yahweh then assures Ezekiel that the returning remnant would not be the same as those who left: “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances” (Ezek. 36:26-27). The sinful heart that brought them into sin and exile would be replaced with a heart directed to the things of God. The Spirit of God would dwell within the people, and the people would be empowered to walk in God’s ways. The idea of a new heart is yearned for by David, who in penitence for his own sin sang out, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10).

Ezekiel had another vision of a new temple, something far greater than that of Solomon’s temple, and the glory of the Lord filled this great edifice (Ezek. 40-48; cf. 44:4). The waters flowing out of the temple and turning the sea waters into fresh waters symbolizes the influence this new temple would have upon the world. Could the prophet be speaking of an actual building that is perhaps still yet to come? Maybe something even greater is in mind. Jesus identified His own body as a temple, one that would be destroyed and rebuilt in three days (John 2:19-22). It is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that is the central message of the church, which goes out into this world, to a sea of sinful people, and it through the saving message of the Gospel, that sea is made clean. Moreover, each person is a precious living stone in a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, the very cornerstone of this edifice is Christ (1 Pet. 2:4-8).

There is darkness in the world. This is self-evident truth. No one who takes a fair examination of the world can deny there is inequality. That some take advantage of others. That unspeakable evil is brought about by ordinary people. Yet, it need not always be that way. See the power to change and make those things come true really rest in God. He alone can renew the heart and draw us in the direction we ought to go. Ultimately change begins with receiving a new heart through faith in Christ. It is only then that we can accomplish all that we aspire to be.