Ezekiel 20:33

"As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, surely with a mighty hand, and an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out, will I be king over you. And I will bring you out from the peoples, and will gather ye out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there will I enter into judgment with you face to face. Like as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I enter into judgment with you, saith the Lord Jehovah. And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the land of the covenant; and I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that trespass against me; I will bring them forth out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah. As for you, O house of Israel, thus says the Lord Jehovah: Go ye, serve every one his idols, and hereafter also, if you will not hearken unto me; but my holy name shall ye no more profane with your gifts, and your idols. For in my holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, says the Lord God, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them, serve me in the land: there I will accept them and there will I require your offerings, and the first-fruits of your oblations, with all your holy things."

"I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples ..." (Ezekiel 20:35). This new wilderness was not a geographical wilderness like the wilderness of Egypt, but a wilderness, "of strange peoples, unusual social customs, etc."[16] It was the wilderness of their captivity in Babylon; and the vast majority of Israel would not pass that test, any more than their fathers had passed it in the former wilderness. The most of them, enamored with the wealth and splendor of Babylon, would never leave for any return to Palestine, even when free to do so. Such persons were described by Cooke as, "Separated by the refining process, and not allowed to participate in the restoration."[17]

We agree with Keil who saw this ultimate gathering from the wilderness of the peoples, "As the gathering of the true Israel from the heathen world, which will ultimately be fulfilled in their conversion to Jesus Christ."[18] However, we cannot accept Keil's statement that, "The principal fulfillment is still future, when Israel as a nation shall be converted to Christ."[19] The Bible nowhere says that any nation whatever shall ever be converted to Christ.

"Go ye, serve every one his idols ..." (Ezekiel 20:39). This is the same kind of commandment that God gave to Judas Iscariot, when he said, "What thou doest, do quickly." God never restrains anyone from evil who has already made up his mind to sin. That would appear to be the condition of those elders who sat in front of Ezekiel.

A feature of this chapter here is the unchanging purpose of God to redeem all mankind through the posterity of Abraham, as he said at the beginning (Genesis 12:3). Many of Abraham's literal posterity will have no part of God's intention; but God will do it in spite of them. Jamieson paraphrased the thought of Ezekiel 20:40 -

"Although you, the rebellious portion of Israel, withdraw from my service, others of the believing remnant, will succeed after you perish, and will serve God purely."[20]

"In the mountain of the height of Israel, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them, serve me ..." (Ezekiel 20:40). As Cook noted, "All separation between Israel and Judah shall cease. This points to the times yet future, when in Messiah's kingdom, Jews and Gentiles alike shall be gathered into the kingdom, the kingdom of Christ."[21]