Prophecy as Current Events
After a haftarah we say: "שכל דבריו אמת וצדק" - all the words of the Neviim are true (one of the 13 principles of faith). Regarding Ezekiel's prophecy contained in the haftarah for Parshat Parah: how did the Jews at the time understand it, how did our grandparents understand it, and how do we understand it?
A lot of what Ezekiel said 2600 years ago which we read as the haftarah for Parah we no longer need to believe, we are privileged to see it with our own eyes!
What is the chillul Hashem that Yechezkel describes (it says they came amongst the nations and desecrated Hashem's name) - it then says that He will bring them back - if they were not acting properly why are they being brought back? The commentators explain that the chillul Hashem is the fact that they (the Jews) have their own land yet they are living here in exile.
Delivered at the OU Israel Center, March 26, 2019 (19 Adar II 5779)