"Come, O Breath" - 18 x 24 inches acrylic on canvas
Painted for my Collectors Club, September 2021
“Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army.” Ezekiel 37:9-10.
“The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.” Isaiah 40:8.
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The style and imagery of this painting at first glance may come as a bit of a surprise. I don’t normally paint skulls. As I prayed into September’s painting, I heard the Lord say, “paint the breath of life, dry bones come to life!”
On their own dry bones and a skull often represent death and decay, however we must remember that the details in this painting do not simply end here. Rather, it is mirroring the anticipated beginnings of the biblical story that is found in Ezekiel 37. I would encourage you to make time, to review the whole chapter and meditate on the words from the Lord for this season and what it can mean for us today.
As we dive a little deeper, we begin to clearly trace the breath of the Holy Spirit enveloping over these dry bones; to both hear the word of the Lord and arise from the graves. This breath symbolically represents the rushing wind of Holy Spirit, bursting forth to clothe the body with skin and sinews of flesh. This breath, Ruach in Hebrew, means the creative life force of God. Just as God breathed life into Adam for the first time, forming a living man, He told Ezekiel to command the breath into these dry bones. I see this as a prayer strategy in this season, to command the breath of life into dead, dry places to come alive again! God’s presence & power drawing the four corners of the earth to woe all of creation back to Him.
Original artwork, acrylic on stretched canvas. Wrapped edges are painted white. Adding a beautiful custom frame will give your new painting added elegance, but is not necessary if you prefer the raw edge look.
