CHRIS ROSEBROUGH'S INTERPRETATION OF EZEKIEL 37 DEBUNKED

F4F | Patricia King Hijacks Ezekiel 37 to Rob You of True Prayer

I have no argument with Chris Rosebrough's evaluation of NAR false prophet/teacher Patricia King in the above video. I concur that King's interpretation of Ezekiel 37 is a wicked distortion of the text and is demonic. (1 Timothy 4:1). Rosebrough's warning that the practice of "decreeing and declaring" robs believers of true prayer is critical to note. No biblical text instructs believers to decree and declare anything! (John 10:10). Those who teach this dangerous nonsense cut believers off from vital communication with God through prayer and petition. (Luke 18:1; John 14:14; Acts 1:14; 1 Timothy 2:1; Philippians 4:6; Ephesians 6:18; Colossians 4:2 etc). Mark and avoid Patricia King (Romans 16:17-18).

However, Rosebrough's interpretation of Ezekiel 37 as "the resurrection on the last day" and his redefinition of Israel as all believers is very puzzling.

Rosebrough: "This is a prophecy regarding the resurrection on the last day (v13). The resurrection of the dead, you see, the dead in Christ will rise first. You say, well, this is talking about Israel. Oh I know it is talking about Israel. Do you understand how Israel is defined according to Romans chapter 9 or even Galatians?  

The hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out by His Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones. He led me all around among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, and indeed, they were very dry.
Then He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones come to life?”
“O Lord GOD,” I replied, “only You know.”
And He said to me, “Prophesy concerning these bones and tell them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Lord GOD says to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you will come to life. will attach tendons to you and make flesh grow upon you and cover you with skin. I will put breath within you so that you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”
So I prophesied as I had been commanded. And as I prophesied, there was suddenly a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to bone. As I looked on, tendons appeared on them, flesh grew, and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them.
Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and tell the breath that this is what the Lord GOD says: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe into these slain, so that they may live!”
So I prophesied as He had commanded me, and the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet—a vast army.
Then He said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Look, they are saying, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’
Therefore prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘O My people, I will open your graves and bring you up from them, and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, My people, will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put My Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it, declares the LORD.’” (Ezekiel 37:1-14). 

This passage unmistakably refers to ethnic Israel. Ezekiel prophesies to the people of Israel and the land of Israel. (Ezekiel 37:12,14,21,22,25). Ezekiel describes a particular valley full of dry bones; these are not the dead of the entire earth, but are confined to a specific location. The bones cry out, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished; we are cut off.’ (Ezekiel 37:11). Prior to the general resurrection, the dead in Christ will certainly have hope. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. (John 5:28-29). The general resurrection will occur instantaneously, whereas a process is described in Ezekiel 37, i.e. the bones reconnect; sinews, flesh and skin appear. Ultimately, when the breath enters them, they rise as a living army. (Ezekiel 37:7-10). From Ezekiel 37:15, the passage itself identifies the bones symbolically as two sticks, i.e., the separated tribes, consisting of the ten northern tribes and the southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin. The bones symbolise the Israelites spiritually dead and in exile. The general resurrection of the dead described in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 will not emanate from the words of a prophet; rather, the resurrection will be commanded by the Lord Himself. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. (1 Thessalonians 4:16; cf. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52)). 

Jerome originally interpreted this passage as the general resurrection of the dead, but he was corrected by other theologians. According to Keil and Delitzsch, the specific Hebrew word used in Ezekiel 37:9 is הרוּגים, which does not signify the dead of all kinds. 

Keil and Delitzsch: "Ezekiel 37:9 those who are to be raised to life are called הרוּגים, a word which does not signify the dead of all kinds, but simply those who have been slain, or have perished by the sword, by famine, or by other violent deaths, and which indisputably proves that Ezekiel was not shown the resurrection of all the dead, but simply the raising to life of Israel, which had been swept away by a violent death. Kliefoth would account for this restriction from the purpose for which the vision was shown to the prophet. Because the design of the vision was to comfort Israel concerning the wretchedness of its existing condition, and that wretchedness consisted for the most part in the fact that the greater portion of Israel had perished by sword, famine, and pestilence, he was shown the resurrection of the dead generally and universally, as it would take place not in the case of the Israelites alone, but in that of all the dead, though here confined within the limits of one particular field of dead; and stress is laid upon the circumstance that the dead which Ezekiel saw raised to life instar omnium, were such as had met with a violent death.  This explanation would be admissible, if only it had been indicated or expressed in any way whatever, that the bones of the dead which Ezekiel saw lying about in the בּקעה represented all the dead of the whole earth. But we find no such indication; and because in the whole vision there is not a single feature contained which would warrant any such generalization of the field of the dead which Ezekiel saw, we are constrained to affirm that the dead men's bones seen by Ezekiel in the valley represent the whole house of Israel alone, and not the deceased and slain of all mankind; and that the vision does not set forth the resurrection of all the dead, but only the raising to life of the nation of Israel which had been given up to death."1

Gentile believers are not described as part of Israel in the New Testament. While both Jewish and Gentile believers are included in the body of Christ, the term "Israel" primarily refers to the Jewish people, particularly in the context of the Old Testament and early Christian teachings.

What I hope to convey to Chris Rosebrough and other teachers is that they have an obligation to rightly divide the word of truth on ALL questions of theology. (2 Timothy 2:15). I therefore urge them to reevaluate their eschatology.

Unfortunately, many believers have received incorrect eschatology from their denominations rather than from the scriptures. As a result, they have bought into replacement theology (supersessionism) and are either indifferent or even hostile toward Israel. It should be noted that Luther and the Reformers did not give detailed attention to eschatology apart from its relevance to justification by faith alone. In other words, the Reformers generally accepted the flawed amillenial position of Roman Catholicism. Believers need to be on the right side of this question if they are to avoid a posture that puts them at odds with the word of God and in agreement with the Antichrist, who will persecute the Jewish people and Christians during the great tribulation. (Matthew 24:9,21; Revelation 12:14-17).

I caution readers of this post to avoid the pretrib rapture position of hyperdispensationalists. This view is unreliable and raises more problems than it solves.*

The links below give information from the prewrath perspective. 

Israel Archives | Bible Prophecy Answers with Alan Kurschner

Israel at the Center of It All | Zion's Hope

David Rosenthal on Revelation 6–7 (Prewrath Video) | Bible Prophecy Answers with Alan Kurschner

Topical Bible: Jewish and Gentile Believers

 1. Ezekiel 37 Keil and Delitzsch OT Commentary

* 7 Pretrib Problems and the Prewrath Rapture (Full Movie)