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But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they are at hand to come.
Ezekiel 36:8 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB But you, mountains of Israel, you shall shoot out your branches, and yield your fruit to my people Israel; for they are at hand to come.
  • BSB But you, O mountains of Israel, will produce branches and bear fruit for My people Israel, for they will soon come home.
  • NKJV But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are about to come.
  • NASB But as for you, mountains of Israel, you will grow your branches and bear fruit for My people Israel; for they are about to come.
  • NLT “But the mountains of Israel will produce heavy crops of fruit for my people—for they will be coming home again soon!

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The mountains of Israel will again grow branches and bear fruit for God's people, who are soon to return. Restoration is near at hand.

Overview

Addressing the land directly, God promises renewed fertility 'for my people Israel,' 'for they are at hand to come.' The barren hills will flourish again as the exiles return. This reverses the desolation and signals that the promise is imminent, not distant. The fruitful land foreshadows the abundant life God grants His people in the renewed creation through Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 13

  • Isa 27:6He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.
  • Heb 10:37For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
  • Ezek 34:26–29And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
  • Ezek 17:23In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell.
  • Ps 85:12Yea, the LORD shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her increase.
  • Hos 2:21–23And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth;
  • Isa 4:2In that day shall the branch of the LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.
  • Isa 30:23Then shall he give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.
  • Jas 5:8–9Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.
  • Phil 4:5Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
  • Ezek 12:25For I am the LORD: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord GOD.
  • Ps 67:6Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us.
  • Amos 9:13–15Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Ezekiel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Ezekiel 36:8YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on EzekielMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.

How Ezekiel 36:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.