17. Then join the two sticks together. In your hand, they will be one stick.
18. “Your people will ask you to explain what that means.
19. Tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim and his friends, the people of Israel. Then I will put that stick with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick. In my hand, they will become one stick!’
20. “Take the sticks that you wrote on and hold them in front of you.
21. Tell the people that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will gather the people of Israel from among the nations. I will gather them from all around and bring them back to their own land.