“As I live, saith the Lord God, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out, will I rule over you: And I will bring you out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury poured out. And I will bring you into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to face. Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord God. And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant: And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the Lord.” (Ezekiel 20:33-38 KJV)

 

“As I live,” declares the Lord God, “with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I assuredly will be king over you. I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” declares the Lord God. “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I will purge from you the rebels and those who revolt against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they reside, but they will not enter the land of Israel. So you will know that I am the Lord.” (Ezekiel 20:33-38 NASB)

 

In prior verses, the prophet Ezekiel is speaking to the elders of Israel (Ezekiel 20:1). In the verses that follow, he recounts the history of Israel. He begins by describing Israel as a chosen nation (Ezekiel 20:5), then reminds the elders of their rebellion against God after being brought out of Egypt (Ezekiel 20:8). He continues by addressing Israel’s disobedience in the wilderness (Ezekiel 20:10–26), followed by their rebellion in the Promised Land (Ezekiel 20:27–29). Finally, Ezekiel confronts the elders with the reality of Israel’s rebellion in their own time (Ezekiel 20:30–32). 

 

33-34: God’s tone shifts in verse 33 as He states “as I live”  which is God using human language to express the absolute certainty and authority of His declaration. He will have a “mighty hand” and an “outstretched arm” which mirrors God’s deliverance of Israel in Egypt (Exodus 6:6; Deuteronomy 4:34; 5:15). However, this time the wording is more similar to that of Jeremiah 21:5 as both this verse in Ezekiel and that of Jeremiah is not talking about God’s deliverance but instead His judgement. The same verbiage used for deliverance in Exodus 6:6 is paired with “fury poured out,” showing that this verse is not about deliverance but instead judgement. Despite Israel’s rebellion, God will reign over them. God states that He will gather the scattered Israelites from the nations, also called the Diaspora. God uses Exodus imagery of them being delivered but He restates it will be accompanied by judgement (“and with fury poured out”). 

 

35-36: God will “bring you [Israel] into the wilderness of the people” which likely refers to the dispersion of the Jews in 70 A.D. There God will plead (Heb. wə·niš·paṭ·tî; meaning judgment) with Israel “face to face.” Before Israel can enter the blessings of the Millennial Kingdom, they must undergo a purifying judgment. This aligns with other prophetic passages like Malachi 3:2–3 and Zechariah 13:8–9, which speak of refining and testing Israel. God will judge Israel in the future just as He had before on their forefathers after the Exodus (Numbers 14). God states that in the future He will judge Israel, which will happen during the Tribulation. The goal of this judgment is to purify Israel of those who are rebellious (v. 38; Jeremiah 30:7; Malachi 3:2-3). 

 

37-38: God alludes to Leviticus 27:32 in which every tenth animal that passed under a rod was separated and consecrated to be holy. This allusion to Leviticus 27:32 further reinforces the idea of Israel’s purification. The Israelites will go through the Tribulation (rod) and the holy and purified will be separated from the rebellious. The Lord would also bring these purified people under obligation to keep the terms of a covenant. This is evidently a reference to the New Covenant (cf. Ezekiel 36:25-38; Jeremiah 31:31-34; Romans 11:26-27). God would weed out the rebellious, and take them out from the countries from which they lived, but they would not enter the promised land. This likely refers to the jews who will die during the tribulation (Zechariah 13:8; Revelation 12:15-17). Then the purified who will inherit the promised land will know that He is Lord.

 

Overall, Ezekiel 20:33–38 describes the future event of Israel’s restoration that has not yet been fulfilled. The global regathering of Israel mentioned in Ezekiel 20:34 has not occurred in its full, supernatural form. The purification and judgment described in the verses—such as passing under the rod and purging rebels—has not historically taken place and is seen as part of the Tribulation. These verses point to a future time when God will refine Israel, separating the faithful remnant from the rebellious (Zechariah 13:8–9; Malachi 3:2–3). The covenant renewal in Ezekiel 20:37 is linked to the New Covenant of Jeremiah 31, which Israel has not yet entered nationally. Since the Millennial Kingdom has not begun and Christ has not returned to reign, these events must still be future.