The Gog Magog War in the Final Days - Ezekiel 38 & 39
David J. Nixon
I remember a few years ago describing our passage of scripture today as one of the most important apologetic resources for defending the divine inspiration of the Bible that this generation has had to date - why? Well the answer is that its fulfilment could potentially be one of the most unmistakeable direct fulfilments of 2500 year old prophecy that we have seen, ranking up alongside the rebirth of Israel in 1948 in a single day and recapture of Jerusalem in 1967. The Bible was clear that Israel was going to be reborn in the land - it happened. The Bible is also clear that this latter days nation of Israel will come under attack from an alliance of nations, which are named, and will require the supernatural intervention of God to save her - it will happen, and indeed today we are seeing the posturing towards its fulfilment
As always we need to set out our Biblical basis (our metaphorical tent peg holes) and only then see if any pegs fit into what the scriptures say. There can be no doubt that in the past predictive prophecy has been fulfilled exactly and so we should not doubt that it would be any different today for He is the same God yesterday, today and forever.
Setting the scene:
The scriptures indicate that the focal point of this attack will be the land of Israel: "After many days you will be mustered. In the latter days you will go against the land that is restored from war, the land whose people were gathered from many peoples upon the mountains of Israel, which had been a continual waste. Its people were brought out from the peoples and now dwell securely, all of them" (38:7-8). It was said by Mark Twain when he visited the Holy Land in the 19th century that the land was completely desolate, and it was only after the Jewish aliyah and rebirth of Israel that the desert began to bloom again - although it would be wrong to attribute Isaiah 35:1 to this since that chapter is seemingly about the Millennial Kingdom.
The scriptures seem to indicate that God considers these events as happening in the latter days, the time after Israel has returned to the land. Throughout the previous 2000 years the Lord has seemingly paused His redemptive plan for the nation of Israel as a whole to instead focus on the rest of the world through the evangelism of the Church. However, the uncompleted 70 weeks of Daniel (Daniel 9) indicate that the Lord will still finish His purposes for Israel and only usher in the physical reign of the Kingdom; indeed the Apostle Paul makes clear that the Lord is far from finished with Israel and will use the Church to provoke her to jealousy (Romans 11). In previous articles we have looked at how the rebirth of Israel was one of the definitive signs given by Jesus of the final days commencing and us being put on definite standby for the Lord's imminent return (Matthew 24). However, the rebirth of national Israel is still missing one crucial element: its spirituality!
There is currently no rebuilt Temple of Solomon upon the Temple Mount, and nor is there any realistic swell of support for it either. There are groups such as the Temple Mount Faithful and Temple Institute who are busy preparing and campaigning for the recommencement of Temple life, but they have yet been unsuccessful. However, scripture clearly records the words of both Jesus and Paul that the Temple will be the centre piece of the Antichrist's work in the Abomination of Desolation wherein he will declare himself to be God (Matthew 24:15; 2 Thessalonians 2:4). How is it then that this prophecy can be fulfilled in a mostly secular Israel today? I believe based on my understanding of this passage of scripture that Gog Magog could be the turning point for the spiritual rebirth of Israel - but please note the critical words of Paul in Athens: "I perceive that in every way you are very religious" (Acts 17:22) because that is the same charge Paul would level against the future Israel for it will still not accept the Lord Jesus as Messiah (something that will only happen immediately before the Second Coming when they declare: "Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord"). Ezekiel prophesies that once God delivers them from the hands of the invaders: "And my holy name I will make known in the midst of my people Israel, and I will not let my holy name be profaned anymore" (39:7); "The house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God, from that day forward" (39:22); "Then they shall know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then assembled them into their own land. I will leave none of them remaining among the nations anymore. And I will not hide my face anymore from them, when I pour out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, declares the Lord God" (39:28-29). I would contend these passages are a strong basis to conclude that there will be a spiritual rebirth in Israel ahead of the recommencement of the 70 weeks prophecy through until the Second Coming of the Lord.
Israel immediately before the attack will be apparently enjoying a time of believed security. She is described by the Lord, who is narrating the thoughts in Gog's mind: "I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will fall upon the quiet people who dwell securely, all of them dwelling without walls, having no bars or gates [...] Thus says the Lord God: 'On that day when my people Israel are dwelling securely, will you not know it?" (Ezekiel 38:11,14). If we abide by our strict method of Biblical interpretation then it is very hard to see this war as being likely to happen in the imminently near future because Israel is anything but living in a state of security: what with Hamas engaged in a rocket war from the Gaza Strip; posturing with Syria over the Golan Heights coupled with that nation's attempts to construct nuclear weapons; and the growing threat of a nuclear armed Iran with the capability to hit anywhere within Israel with a wide array of unconventional weapons. Indeed, when we take this passage further and particularly look at the portion "land of unwalled villages" then I cannot but wonder why the Lord chose to highlight this point. In my mind it can do nothing but indicate that this prophecy is not yet ready for fulfilment because Israel's settlements require to be heavily fortified, her borders are some of the most secure in the world, and she is continuing to build a massive wall around the West Bank to keep out terrorists.
The prophetic players:
When first reading this prophecy you would be forgiven for getting immediately lost because you do not recognise any of the names of the nations listed in chapter 38. The names are derived from the sons of Noah and where their children settled in the post-diluvian world. This is not an exact science, that must be stated from the outset! Determining the modern day counterparts to the nations listed is not simple and I cannot claim to be an expert on it. Instead I can only rely on brief research into what the ancient historian Josephus records regarding the identity of these nations, and would refer someone wishing to go deeper to check out some of the scholarship on the matter. While there is room for some disagreement the broad picture seems to interpret the nations as following:
- Magog - the Scythian people who settled north of the black sea, and further identified as in the area now encompassed by Russia by Arabs who call the Great Wall of China as the "Great Wall of Al Magog" because it was built to keep out the northern people they called the Magonians.
- Persia - almost certainly Iran (seeing as Iran was called Persia until recent times and the Iranian people are fiercely protective of their Persian nationality, rather than Arab).
- Put - likely Libya.
- Cush - Horn of Africa (likely present day Somalia).
- Gomer - likely part of western Turkey.
- Bethtogarmah, Meshec, Tubal - likely the area around the Caucasus region in northern Turkey and southern Russia today.
- Sheba & Dedan - likely present day Saudi Arabia or Ethiopia.
Even if you disagree or find fault with what has already been admitted as a humble attempt to identify the Biblical nations, then the broad picture is clear: a coalition of Islamic nations surrounding Israel led by a northern power (our point of reference being north of Jerusalem which would allow for either Russia or Turkey - the 2 main proposed candidates today) - under the command of a leader identified as "Gog" of the land of Magog and ruler of Tubal and Meshec - will descend upon that tiny nation. I will go no further in attempting to identify Gog because I believe such speculation is too far removed from the Biblical text for there to be any certainty over it this side of its fulfilment. There are a number of candidates but if the Lord tarries another generation still such discussion would have been totally fruitless so I will save your time and my writing space by not touching on it - that remains part of the watching of prophecy unfold based upon the Biblical model which we are articulating here.
Strikingly missing from this list of nations is Syria. In the past 3 wars against Israel in 1948, 1967 and 1973 Syria has been an integral part of the Islamic effort to destroy the tiny nation. She remains a fervent enemy of Israel today and there is very little doubt that given the opportunity she would join in any attack against her. Indeed, her very strong military links with Iran - one of the other leaders of the attack - would implicate her as having a strong interest in participating in the Gog Magog attack. The Bible's silence on her involvement is conspicuous under these circumstances! Many attribute this absence to the fulfilment of the Isaiah 17 prophecy that Damascus will be completed destroyed as a city, and cite many historians who would contend that it is the longest continually inhabited city in world history. This is a very strong argument and given the Bible's record of complete fulfilment of its prophecies it is reasonable to consider this prophecy as still open to complete fulfilment exactly as written. There are many scenarios that immediately come to mind in which we could see the destruction of Damascus before any attack by Gog Magog - indeed if Israel is to be living in security it would appear that Syria must at least be tamed, and Iran's nuclear programme be tamed also if Israel is ever to feel secure again when it believes both nations to be their greatest modern existential threat! However, we will err on the side of caution and not indulge in such speculations in this article presently - again the prophecy will take shape and be fulfilled exactly so we are called to watch that happen within a Biblical mental framework, which again appears to warn us that the time is not yet ready (although in the Middle East things are known to change quickly!)
The 3 End Time Battles Compared:
I want to now turn to consider the outcomes of the Gog Magog War - and arguably the most significant one has already been covered in describing the implications for Israel's spiritual life as she will again remember the Lord God, their deliverer. The scripture passage also indicates that it will serve as a sign of God's might to the other nations of the world, who have stood aside while Israel is attacked merely discussing the invasion (38:13). The destruction on the attacking nations is extreme, but rather than risk repeating myself I want to discuss the outcomes of Ezekiel 38 & 39 in comparison with the Battle of Armageddon Revelation 19 and the Millennial Battle of Gog Magog in Revelation 20 because there is some argument as to whether these 3 battles (or some combination of them) are one event. I will attempt to set this done in tabular format to better facilitate your own comparison of the scriptural passages.
Ezekiel 38 & 39:
-The Participants: A Russia/Turkish led coalition of select Islamic nations
-The Time: A time of peace in Israel in the latter days, most likely prior to the initiation of the 70th Week of Daniel
-The Place: Attack on the nation of Israel which is thwarted on her mountainous Northern Border by Divine intervention on her behalf
-The Outcome: Destruction of the attacking forces upon the mountains of Israel by torrential rain, fire and sulphur; judgement (either divine or nuclear response from Israel) on the coastlands of the northern nation that attacks them. Israel has to embark on a massive cleaning exercise after the attack and is able to burn the weapons of war as fuel for 7 years.
Revelation 19:
-The Participants: The global armies of the Antichrist (see Revelation 16 also for details on the demonic influence in the gathering of this army as part of the 6th bowl judgement)
-The Time: Shortly before Christ's Second Coming at the conclusion of the 70th Week of Daniel
-The Place: The Valley of Jezreel (Har Mageddon - Mount Megiddo) north of Jerusalem
-The Outcome: The Second Coming of Christ who slays the armies with the words of His mouth and casts the Antichrist and False Prophet straight into the Lake of Fire; destruction of the Mystery Babylon (I will save comments on the possible identity of the city for another time); massive geological catastrophe (see Revelation 16 on the 7th bowl judgement). Binding of Satan for 1000 years, inauguration of the Millennial Kingdom with Christ reigning bodily from Jerusalem after judging the remaining living nations of the world.
Revelation 20:
-The Participants: The rebel sinful Millennial children who join Satan
-The Time: Shortly after Satan is unleashed from his 1000 year imprisonment in the Bottomless Pit at the conclusion of the Millennial Kingdom
-The Place: The camp of the Saints, likely Mount Zion wherein Christ is bodily reigning
-The Outcome: Fire comes down from Heaven to burn up all the rebels, with the casting of their leader Satan into the Lake of Fire for eternity and the final Great White Throne Judgement of the dead
It must be admitted that there are certain similarities between the 3 battles, but they do not go deep enough to suggest that any of them are the same battle being described in both the Old and New Testaments. There are many passages where such a comparison can be made, and very convincingly too - indeed such comparison is required to make total sense of the whole prophetic picture i.e. Daniel's 70th week and John's Revelation visions along with teaching of Paul all harmonize together. However, in this situation no such harmonisation appears to be immediately possible if we are going to remain faithful to interpreting the Word as we find it.
Concluding Thoughts:
It is a challenging text to write on because so much of it is tempting to speculate on and attempt to draw application with today's events - that is not a wrong thing to do in and of itself, indeed that is the purpose for many End Times ministries to inform people of how events are meeting the Biblical narrative. However, first we must have that clear Biblical framework in our heads which grounds all our applications. It can be so easy for us in our zeal to see the Lord's return to read too much into events and begin to write and teach unbiblically by pure accident. I remember whenever the Lebanon-war in summer 2006 caused a great stir in the prophetic community and I have to admit writing an article which excitedly was looking towards the imminent destruction of Damascus if she entered directly into the conflict against Israel, as she was threatening to do. We were wrong. We had people giving interviews on CNN but in the end we were wrong. So much of the resentment against the study of eschatology is too much eagerness and not enough patience and discernment and remaining Biblical. Speculation is ok, but it must be tightly controlled within what the Word actually teaches us.
Paul was someone who was eager for the Lord to return to. In closing let's consider his words which I have taken a lot from in recent years: "For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith" (Philippians 1:21-25). I would go one step further than Paul and say that our continuing here on this Earth is important for seeing many more people come to know Christ, because Peter reminds us that we are awaiting the Lord's timing for these events all to happen and flood to their conclusion because He is still waiting for those last people to repent and come to believing faith in Christ Jesus as their Lord and Saviour (2 Peter 3). Let us be busy, not in idle speculations at length, but in Kingdom business which is far more likely to see the Kingdom come sooner. Yes I absolutely advocate the apologetic and evangelistic place for eschatology, but those events being fulfilled and being the proof we desire is not dependent on us but God, so let us let Him work according to His good pre-ordained timing while we work busily for His glory!
Third Temple
I believe we are seeing a Indo-European Theory for the beginning process of Gog and Magog to include the nations descending from Japheth: Russia, the Caucasus(Turkey), Iraq, and the Islamic republics of Central Asia. The coalition is an alliance of Arab nations, Muslim republics, Georgia, southern Russia and the Black sea area.
"Hook in Jaw"
Ezekiel 38:1-6 The word of the Lord came to me; Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; prophesy against him and say: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.
I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army - your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords.
Persia, Cush and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops - the many nations with you.'
Russia Troops Enters Tskhinvali
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"Israel armed the Georgian army," Russian Deputy Chief of General Staff Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn told a Moscow press conference. Jerusalem provided Tblisi with "eight types of military vehicles, explosives, landmines and special explosives for the clearing minefields [sic]. "
"In 2007, Israeli experts trained Georgian commandos," he added.
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Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, has said he will use his visit to Russia to expand military ties with Moscow, whose previous arms sales to the Middle Eastern state have angered the West
