Commentaries:
Ezekiel's prophecy is of the institution of the New Covenant (see Jeremiah 31:33). The new man is the New Covenant man! What is it, exactly, that makes the new man new? Two things: his new heart and the new spirit within him, God's Holy Spirit, which enables him to walk in God's ways. Ezekiel's reference to "a new heart" parallels Paul's command for a renewed mind in Ephesians 4:24. Moreover, both Ezekiel and Paul (in Ephesians 5) make use of the walking metaphor. Did Paul have Ezekiel 36 in mind when he wrote his letter to the Ephesian church? Probably! The similarities are remarkable.
Charles Whitaker
Choosing the New Man (Part Two)
The keeping of the law is directly connected to this new Spirit—God's Spirit! In II Corinthians 3:3, He clarifies this even further.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace and Law (Part 11)
The New Covenant will not be made with mortals who cannot keep their promises?it will be established only with immortal spirit beings who have proved, by their lives, their willingness to obey their future Husband, the "LORD" of the Hebrew Bible who became, through human birth, the Jesus of the Greek New Testament.
Although the New Covenant has been proposed, and Christians today overcome sin and live by the laws of that covenant through the power of the Holy Spirit, it will not be finalized until the first resurrection. Only then will God's children be given the fullness of God's Spirit to enable them to resist all sin perfectly.
Pentecost: Only 'Firstfruits' Now Called!
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Other commentary entries containing this verse:
Deuteronomy 4:5-10
Jeremiah 30:18-20
Jeremiah 31:31-34
Matthew 5:8
John 6:44
Philippians 2:12-13
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