11, 12. (a) How does Jehovah prophetically assure his people that he would bless their restored homeland? (b) What was pictured by the trees along the banks of the river?

¹¹ Would Jehovah bless their land? The prophecy answers this question with a heartwarming picture. A stream flows from the temple, widening as it goes, becoming a torrent by the time it enters the Dead Sea. There it revives lifeless waters, and a fishing industry flourishes on a stretch of the shoreline. Along the riverbanks are many trees that bear fruit year-round, giving nourishment and healing.​—Ezekiel 47:1-12.

¹² To the exiles, this promise echoed and confirmed earlier restoration prophecies that they held very dear. More than once, Jehovah’s inspired prophets had described a restored, repopulated Israel in paradisaic terms. Dead regions coming to life had been a recurring prophetic theme. (Isaiah 35:1, 6, 7; 51:3; Ezekiel 36:35; 37:1-14) So the people could expect that Jehovah’s life-giving blessings would flow forth like a river from the restored temple. Consequently, a spiritually dead nation would revive. The restored people would be blessed with outstanding spiritual men​—men as righteous and firm as the trees along those visionary riverbanks, men who would take the lead in rebuilding a ruined land. Isaiah too had written of “big trees of righteousness” who would “rebuild the long-standing devastated places.”​—Isaiah 61:3, 4.

Jehovah’s temple was restored, and his provisions for life​—the blessings of living by his covenant—​again flowed forth. (Deuteronomy 30:19; Isaiah 48:17-20) One blessing was knowledge. The priesthood was restored to duty, and the priests instructed the people in the Law. (Malachi 2:7) As a result, the people revived spiritually and again became fruitful servants of Jehovah, as pictured by the Dead Sea being healed and generating a productive fishing industry.