The Israelites have spent years in exile in Babylon and in other nations in the surrounding area. Now, the Lord is telling Ezekiel that they will someday return and be a nation once more.
We will learn that King Cyrus defeated the Babylonians and let those Israelites who chose to return, return and he sent them back with animals to rebuild their herds and flocks and money to rebuild the temple. He also returned to them the sacred vessels that had been stolen by the Babylonians from the temple.
Cyrus wasn't Jewish, but was used by God to help his people and to return them to the land that he had given them. We might think that God wouldn't use us, but we can't be sure of that.
I was once stranded on a country road in Maine with a flat tire and no jack. Police cars and tow trucks passed by without a glance. An old truck pulled up with two men and a woman in the front seat.
Not only did they change the tire for me, they refused to take any money. As it happened, as they began to leave, their truck wouldn't start. I didn't have jumper cables but they did so I turned my car around and gave them a jump start.
It seemed as though God put both of us in the right place at the right time to help one another.
We never know how God might use us, but he does it all the time. We just need to answer the call when it comes.
