Ezekiel 37:15-23

One Nation Under One King 15The word of the LORD came to me: 16“Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’

17Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand. 18“When your people ask you, ‘Won’t you tell us what you mean by this?’ 19say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to take the stick of Joseph—which is in Ephraim’s hand—and of the Israelite tribes associated with him, and join it to Judah’s stick. I will make them into a single stick of wood, and they will become one in my hand.’ 20Hold before their eyes the sticks you have written on 21and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will take the Israelites out of the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them back into their own land. 22I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. There will be one king over all of them and they will never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms.

23They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and vile images or with any of their offenses, for I will save them from all their sinful backsliding, Many Hebrew manuscripts (see also Septuagint); most Hebrew manuscripts all their dwelling places where they sinned and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.