10. So I prophesied as I had been told. Breath entered the bodies, and they came to life and stood up. There were enough of them to form an army.
11. God said to me, “Mortal man, the people of Israel are like these bones. They say that they are dried up, without any hope and with no future.
12. So prophesy to my people Israel and tell them that I, the Sovereign Lord, am going to open their graves. I am going to take them out and bring them back to the land of Israel.
13. When I open the graves where my people are buried and bring them out, they will know that I am the Lord.
14. I will put my breath in them, bring them back to life, and let them live in their own land. Then they will know that I am the Lord. I have promised that I would do this — and I will. I, the Lord, have spoken.”
15. The Lord spoke to me again.
16. “Mortal man,” he said, “take a wooden stick and write on it the words, ‘The kingdom of Judah’. Then take another stick and write on it the words, ‘The kingdom of Israel’.
17. Then hold the two sticks end to end in your hand so that they look like one stick.
18. When your people ask you to tell them what this means,
19. tell them that I, the Sovereign Lord, am going to take the stick representing Israel and put it with the one that represents Judah. Out of the two I will make one stick and hold it in my hand.
20. “Hold in your hand the two sticks and let the people see them.
21. Then tell them that I, the Sovereign Lord, am going to take all my people out of the nations where they have gone, gather them together, and bring them back to their own land.
22. I will unite them into one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. They will have one king to rule over them, and they will no longer be divided into two nations or split into two kingdoms.