Now the
word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, set
your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and
Tubal, and prophesy against him, “and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against you, O Gog,
the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. “I will turn you around, put hooks into
your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all
splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and
shields, all of them handling swords.
Ezekiel 38:1-4 NKJV
Because
of the popularity of the “Left Behind” series of books, as well as many others,
most believers are familiar with the “Gog-Magog” prophecy from the book of
Ezekiel which details an attempted invasion of Israel by what is described as a
coalition of most of the countries which surround Israel today. Most understand and believe that this is the
conflict which produces the appearance and revealing of what the Bible
describes as “the man of sin”, or the anti-christ who enforces a covenant of
peace between Israel and its neighbors.
Many also believe that this event occurs at the beginning of the seven
year period of time which the Bible refers to as the seventieth week of Daniel..
The question that first came to my
mind when I began to study this prophecy was why would such a large coalition
of nations gather against Israel? It
seems to me, especially if you carefully read and compare the language used in
both the Isaiah 17 and Ezekiel 38, that the destruction of Damascus is the
event which produces the excuse for the attempted invasion of Israel. World opinion of Israel as it exists today
certainly would support this happening, especially if Israel uses a weapon of
mass destruction. History has shown that
no matter how justified Israel might be, they are always viewed
negatively. Logically, if this sequence
of events is true then it follows that the destruction of Damascus occurs
before both the Gog-Magog war, and the seventieth week.
Woe to
the multitude of many people Who make a noise like
the roar of the seas, And to the rushing of nations That make a rushing like
the rushing of mighty waters! The nations will rush like the rushing of many
waters; But God will rebuke them and they will flee far
away, And be chased like the chaff of the mountains before the wind, Like a
rolling thing before the whirlwind. Then behold, at eventide, trouble! And before the morning,
he is no more. This is the portion of those
who plunder us, And the lot of those who rob us. Isaiah 17:12-14 NKJV
These
verses at the end of Isaiah 17 describe the reaction of the world to the
destruction of Damascus at the hands of Israel.
The language used seems to clearly reveal that this is not just one or
two neighboring nations up in arms, but rather a reaction by what we are told
is a multitude of people and nations whose uproar is likened to the rushing
noise of a great flood. Most importantly
to this discussion, however, is the fact that rather than describing this
attack on Israel as vengeance, we are told that they come to plunder and
rob. Compare that then with the language
from Ezekiel 38 where that same description is used.
‘Thus
says the Lord GOD: “On that day it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise
in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: “You will say, ‘I will go up
against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell
safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor
gates’—“to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the
waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered
from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst
of the land. Ezekiel 38:10-12 NKJV
There
are two conclusions that I have come to from reading and studying these
passages. The first is that I strongly
believe that the attempted invasion we are told about in Ezekiel 38-39 comes
after, and is technically a response to, the destruction of Damascus at the
hands of Israel. Why technically? My second conclusion is that however “offended”
the world may be by Israels’ use of nuclear weapons, I believe this passage
tells us that Israel was justified in doing so.
I think it is reasonable to come to this conclusion when we see that the
invading forces “make an evil plan”,
which to my way of thinking is another way of saying they need to manufacture
an excuse for their aggression. Rather
than invading on the pretext of punishment for an offense, they are coming to “take plunder and to take booty”.
Another
question that always comes up when talking about the Gog Magog war is just who
is Gog, the leader of Magog? The
question of who is Magog has been answered in the minds of many scholars as a result of numerous studies and many hours
of research resulting in the identification of Magog as the land to the north
encompassing most of what we today call Russia.
Because of this, many have tried over the years to identify him by
attaching his identity to a current or former leader of that country, and
recently there has been speculation that Vladimir Putin might well be Gog.
I
tend to disagree, agreeably, due to something I noticed while studying this
passage. If you look at the description
we are given you find that Gog is referred to as the “prince” of Magog, as well
as Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. Notice he
is not the King, but a prince. Although
the NKJV translates this phrase as prince, in the Hebrew as well as in many
other translations the title is “chief prince”.
That phrase is found somewhere else in scripture which is what caught my
attention. Look at what we are told in
the book of Daniel about Michael the archangel trying to come to speak with
Daniel.
“But
the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold,
Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone
there with the kings of Persia. Daniel
10:13 NKJV
Most scholars agree that what is
being described here is a struggle between the angelic forces of God and the
demonic forces of Satan. The fact that
the title of chief prince is used of Michael, and that the term princes is used
to describe the forces behind countries leads me to believe that Gog is simply
the name of the satanic force behind Magog, inciting the desire to come up with
an excuse to invade Israel.
In short, the progression of end
time events as I see them is first the rapture of the Church, followed by the
Destruction of Damascus and then the evil plan revealed as the war of
Gog/Magog. Next week, things turn from
bad to worse.
If the thought of what is to come makes you uneasy,
understand that God has provided a way of escape for those who choose to
believe that He sent His Son to die for our sins. If you have never accepted that gift, I
encourage you to do that today. Simply
confess to Jesus you are a sinner in need of salvation, and ask Him to forgive
you of your sins. Tell Him you believe
that He died for your sins and that He has the power to give you eternal life
because you believe.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive
us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 NKJV
Keep watching.
