Ezekiel: A Picture of Baptism

John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, was known as John the Baptist because he called for his followers to be baptized as a sign of repentance for their sins. This act of baptism mirrored the act of cleansing oneself before entering the holy temple, but this baptism was not for external cleansing—it was meant to be an act for the cleansing of the soul. Today, we view baptism as an act of dying to ourselves when we go down into the water and rising to a new life in Christ when we rise out of the water. Almost six hundred years before John began baptizing people and preparing the way for the Lord, we receive a picture and explanation of baptism in the book of Ezekiel.

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” (Ezekiel 36:25-27)

God is speaking to Ezekiel about the new covenant and restoration of Israel, and in this description we can see a picture of baptism. When we are washed clean through the act of baptism, we are washing away the old life. God says after he washes us clean “you will no longer worship idols.”

“This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

This old life of living for ourselves and our sinful nature is done and gone when we put our faith in Christ. When we repent, we are turning from our old ways and walking in the new ways of the Spirit. We must be done with the old life of worshiping the idol that is our sinful nature. God promises us a new heart, replacing our heart of stone and giving us a tender and responsive heart. Life before Christ is a self-centered life, focused on ourselves and our sinful desires. After Christ, our focus is taken off ourselves and placed on Him. Our hearts are no longer hard to others but are soft and responsive to the needs of everyone around us, and in this way we become more like Christ.

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.” (John 14:16)

“And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.” (Acts 2:4)

Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would come, and in Acts 2 we see Him arrive with the believers on the day of Pentecost. But it was nearly six hundred years before this that God had promised to send His Spirit so that we may follow His decrees and obey His regulations. We cannot do this alone and our Helper has come. We know that we cannot do this life and live in obedience to God by our own power—it is the Holy Spirit who helps us.

In Ezekiel 37, Ezekiel is shown a valley of dry bones and God gives Ezekiel a message to speak to them.

“Then he said to me, ‘Speak a prophetic message to these bones and say, ‘Dry bones, listen to the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Look! I am going to put breath into you and make you live again! I will put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ (…) Then he said to me, ‘Speak a prophetic message to the winds, son of man. Speak a prophetic message and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, O breath, from the four winds! Breathe into these dead bodies so they may live again.’” (Ezekiel 37:4-6, 9)

So Ezekiel delivers the first message and the bones start to move and connect into complete skeletons and muscle and flesh begin to form over the bones. Then Ezekiel delivers the second message “and breath came into their bodies. They all came to life and stood up on their feet—a great army” (Ezekiel 37:10). The Valley of Dry Bones recalls the creation of man in Genesis 2 when God made man from the dust of the earth and breathed His Divine breath of life into him. This vision that Ezekiel sees is the promise of a new act of creation; a redemption of His people.

“Therefore, prophesy to them and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: O my people, I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again. Then I will bring you back to the land of Israel. When this happens, O my people, you will know that I am the Lord. I will put my Spirit in you, and you will live again and return home to your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken, and I have done what I said. Yes, the Lord has spoken!’” (Ezekiel 37:12-14) 

This is yet another picture of what happens when we are baptized, when we decide to die to ourselves and live in Christ. It is God who gives us this breath of life and makes these dry bones live again. We often look to the New Testament for answers to questions concerning baptism and what happens after we are baptized, but we have one of the clearest depictions of baptism in chapters 36 and 37 of Ezekiel. The entire story of the Bible is about our need for Jesus and how God is constantly moving closer to His people, first in His presence near us, then through Jesus among us, and now in His Holy Spirit in us. When you give your life over to Christ and die to yourself, God will make you clean, give you a new heart, and put His Spirit in you. If you haven’t done that, please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions you have.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

—Redeemed