The Lord then told Ezekiel to prophesy to the breath and to command it in the name of the Lord to come from the four winds (i.e, every direction) and give life to the bones (cf. Isaiah 43:5-6; Jeremiah 31:8). Ezekiel followed the Lord"s instructions, and breath came into the corpses (cf. Genesis 2:7; Romans 8:1-17). They came to life, stood up, and formed a very large group of people, as large as an army. [source][source][source]
"What is the significance of the two stages [1]? The difference between them is surely to be found in the direction of Ezekiel"s prophesying; first to the bones, telling them to hear, and secondly to the spirit, invoking its inspiration. The first must have seemed to Ezekiel very much like his professional occupation, exhorting lifeless people to listen to God"s word. The effect was limited: true, something remarkable happened, but the hearers were still dead men. The second action was tantamount to praying, as Ezekiel besought the Spirit of God to effect the miracle of Revelation -creation, to breathe into man"s nostrils the breath of life (cf. Genesis 2:7). This time the effect was devastating. What preaching by itself failed to achieve, prayer made a reality." [2][source]