The
prophecy known as the Gog Magog War found in the book of Ezekiel is what the
vast majority of Bible teachers consider to be the seminal event which
immediately precedes the start of the seventieth week of Daniel, otherwise
known as the tribulation. Many are
watching the moves we see occurring in the Middle East by Russia and Iran with
a keen eye considering what we are told by the prophet Ezekiel. Many have no doubt, myself included, that the
stage is now set and this war could happen at a moment’s notice. Although we
have discussed this before here, I want to share with you today a wonderful
article written by Dr. Steve Elwart of Koinonia House which should serve as a
primer for anyone desiring to understand this future, if not imminent event.
Russia;
Looking for Spoil
Dr.
Steve Elwart
This
message from the LORD came to me: “Son of Man, turn your attention toward Gog,
from the land of Magog, the chief noble of Meshech, and Tubal. Prophesy this
against him: ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “Watch out! I’m coming after you,
Gog, chief ruler of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. I’m going to turn you around, put
hooks into your jaws, and bring you out—you and your whole army—along with your
horses and cavalry riders, all of them richly attired, a magnificent company
replete with buckler and shield, and all of them wielding battle swords.
Persia, Cush, and Libya will be accompanying them, all of them equipped with
shields and helmets. Gomer with all its troops, and the household of Togarmah
from the remotest parts of the north with all its troops—many people will
accompany you.”
Ezekiel
38:1–6, ISV
World
events have made many people turn to this passage and see if current events
mark the beginning of the fulfillment of this prophecy. As events unfold, these
verses take on more meaning than at any other time in history.
Ezekiel’s
Prophecy
The
meaning of the name “Gog” is uncertain. The name appears only here and in 1
Chronicles 5:4 in the Old Testament where it identifies one of the sons of
Reuben. In the New Testament it appears only once in Revelation 20:8. The
associated place name, Magog, appears in the table of nations in Genesis 10:2
with Gomer, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech and Tiras, all sons of Japheth. It
also is found in Revelation 20:8.
Modern
Day Players
The
above passage describes an invasion of Israel from the north. Later verses
describe its destruction once they reach the area of the mountains of Israel.
To fully understand the prophecy, one needs to identify the major players in
this divine drama.
In
verses 1–4, Gog is first mentioned. He is described as the leader of the land
of Magog. He is the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. This leader was as
unknown to Ezekiel as he is to us today. We do know “Gog” is not a proper name
but a title for the ruler of Magog, just as the terms “pharaoh,” “kaiser,” and
“czar” were titles for rulers and not proper names.
The
tribes identified as Magog, Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal can be identified by
Scripture and other ancient writings as peoples who once occupied the areas of
modern-day Russia. Magog, Meshech, and Tubal were between the Black and Caspian
Seas, which today include parts of Iran, Turkey and southern Russia. Some
historians[1] believe the tribes of Meshech and Tubal later gave their names to
cities that today bear the names of Moscow, Russia’s capital and Tobolsk, a
major city in the Urals in Siberia. Rosh was in what is now northern Russia.
The name Rosh is the basis for the modern name Russia. These names, then, cover
the modern territories of northern and southern Russia in Europe and Siberia to
the east in Asia. The modern nation of Russia encompasses all these areas
mentioned in Ezekiel. To highlight the point, verses 38:15 and 39:2 state these
areas lay in the farthest parts of the north. If one would head due north from
Israel, a traveler would find themselves in Russia, with Moscow being almost a
straight line due north from Jerusalem. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume
modern-day Russia is the country that leads this northern confederacy, with Gog
as its leader. This has also been the rabbinic view. The Artscroll Commentary
on Ezekiel states:
The
Gaonim had a tradition that these controls were indeed located in Russia… One
tradition passed down from the Vilna Gaon states: When the Russian Navy passes
through the Bospores [Bosporus Strait] (that is, on the way to Dardanelles), it
will be time to put on Sabbath clothes (in anticipation of the coming of the
Messiah).
In
the rabbinic view, during the Magog war, Messiah, the son of Joseph will be
killed which will then bring the coming of the Messiah, the son of David.
Persia
In
this scenario Russia is not alone in the invasion of Israel. She is the leader
of a confederation. The other nations involved are listed in verses 5–6. Iran
(ancient Persia) is also part of that confederacy. Once a pro-West, pro-Israel
bulwark against the Arab States, Iran made a 180-degree turn in the aftermath
of the 1979 Islamic Iranian Revolution. Iran drew closer to the atheistic Soviet
Union and its successor, Russia. Make no mistake. This is only a marriage of
convenience as far as Iran is concerned. Jihadists may chant “Death to America,
Death to Israel,” but they hate the Russians just as much. Iran allies with
Russia only because it serves their immediate purpose. Iran, along with Sudan
and Syria, has been classified as state sponsors of terrorism according to the
U.S. Department of State.
Cush
& Phut
Another
one of the players is the land of Cush. The term is used both for a person (son
of Ham) and a place (Gen. 2:13; Psa. 68:31; Isa. 18:1.) Phut is mentioned next.
This nation is also descended from a son of Ham, but as a nation is commonly
identified as Libya, although it has been argued it was the Punt of Egyptian
records, somewhere along the northeast coast of Africa, perhaps Somalia. Its
association with Egypt, Cush, and Canaan and the usage of the name in the Old
Testament makes the Libyan location probable.
Gomer
and Togarmah
Next
comes Gomer. Gomer was a Son of Japheth (Gen. 10:2, 3; 1 Chr. 1:5, 6) The
Midrash calls Gomer Germania as does the Talmud. Last in the list is Togarmah,
which is present-day Armenia. Verse six adds the phrase, with all its
troops—many people will accompany you. This trope may simply define the numbers
of the nations already mentioned, or it may include other nations not
previously mentioned. In all probability, it is the former that is implied.
From
the text, it would appear the nations involved in an attack against Israel
include, but may not be limited to, an alliance involving Iran, Ethiopia,
Somalia, Germany and Armenia, with Russia as their leader.
One
thing that should stand out to the reader is not a single Arab nation
participates in this invasion. While some of the nations listed here are
Moslem, they are not Arab. Another observation is these nations are
geographically located both north and south of Israel, but it is Russia that is
the controlling nation and allied with Moslem, but non-Arab, states.
Before
1991, this passage of Ezekiel had been interpreted as being a communist
invasion. With the fall of the Iron Curtain and the dissolution of the Soviet
Empire, many have had to rethink this passage. One can find many works on the
bargain book table that became passé in view of modern events. While there is
no longer an “Evil Empire,” as President Reagan termed it does not mean the
“Russian” interpretation of the passage has to be completely abandoned. One needs
to remember a system of government was never mentioned in Scripture, merely
geographic areas. Place names may change, but geography does not.
The
Orthodox Jewish commentary Artscroll on Ezekiel 38:2 make this observation:
“Yerushalayim
Megillah 3:7, which renders Magog as Gutiya (or Gutya, …) the Goths, a group of
nomadic tribes who destroyed the Scythians and made their home in Scythian
territory.
Considering
that the Goths were a Germanic people, the identification of Magog’s
descendants as the Goths in accord with Targum Yonasan to Genesis 10:2, which
renders Magog as Geramemia, which in Bereshit Rabbah 37:1 is given as
Germanya.”
The
Nature of the Attack
The
next section of this passage, Ezekiel 38:7–9, answers the question as to where
the invasion takes place:
Be prepared. Yes, prepare yourself—you and
all of your many battalions that have gathered together around you to protect
you. “Many days from now—in the latter years—you will be summoned to a land
that has been restored from violence. You will be gathered from many nations to
the mountains of Israel, which formerly had been a continual waste, but which
will be populated with people who have been brought back from the nations. All
of them will be living there securely. You’ll arise suddenly, like a tornado,
coming like a windstorm to cover the land, you and all your soldiers with you,
along with many nations.
Ezekiel 38:7–9, ISV
Verse
7 continues to name Gog as the leader of this confederacy and verse 8 names the
specific location of where the invasion takes place: the Land of Israel, more
specifically in the mountains of Israel. Verse nine goes on to describe the
size of the invasion. It is absolutely massive, painting a picture of a storm
cloud that covers the entire land. These verses introduce a concept that was
not true until recent times: a modern Jewish state.
Later
on is another passage that shows the necessity of the establishment of the
Jewish State and a regathering in unbelief. Israel has to be a state before
this invasion can occur. Regardless of one’s viewpoint as to when this invasion
occurs, each viewpoint does require the preexistence of the Jewish State. Verse
eight describes this Jewish State as:
A land that has been restored from
violence.
A land that will be populated with people
who have been brought back from the nations.
A land with mountains that have been a
continual waste. and
A land that is brought forth out of the
peoples.
Ezekiel
is not describing an Israel that ever existed in ancient times, but all these
statements are true of present-day Israel. This began occurring toward the end
of the nineteenth century, culminating with statehood in 1948. It was a nation
as Isaiah described being born in a single day.
Before
the formation of the State of Israel, what was known by many as Palestine was
indeed a wasteland. As Mark Twain wrote in The Innocents Abroad:
Nazareth
is forlorn … Jericho the accursed lies a moldering ruin today, even as Joshua’s
miracle left it more than three thousand years ago: Bethlehem and Bethany… have
nothing about them now to remind one that they once knew the high honor of the
Savior’s presence;… Bethsaida and Chorzin have vanished from the earth, and the
“desert places” round about them, where thousands of men once listened to the
Savior’s voice and ate the miraculous bread, sleep in the hush of a solitude
that is inhabited only by birds of prey and skulking foxes.
Since
then, the waste places have been rebuilt and resettled on a more massive scale.
Furthermore,
Israel in this passage is regathered in unbelief, for only after the invasion
do many in Israel turn to the Lord. So yet another passage demands a restored
Jewish State in unbelief.
The
Purpose of the Attack
Ezekiel
38:10–13, answers the question as to why this invasion takes place on the part
of Russia:
This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘This is
what’s going to happen on the very day that you begin your invasion: You’ll be
thinking, making evil plans and boasting, “I’m going to invade a land comprised
of open country that is at rest, its people living confidently, all of whose
inhabitants will be living securely, with neither fortification nor bars on
their doors. I’m going to confiscate anything I can put my hands on. I’ll
attack the restored ruins and the people who have been gathered together from
the nations, who are acquiring livestock and other goods, and who live at the
center of the world’s attention. Businessmen based in Sheba, Dedan, Tarshish,
and all of its growling lions will ask you, “Are you coming for war spoils?
Have you assembled your armies to carry off silver and gold, and to gather lots
of war booty?” ’
Ezekiel
38:10–13, ISV
The
Spoils of War
The
reason for the Russian-led invasion is to take spoil (booty). What Russia is
exactly looking for is not stated in the text. The text mentions livestock,
goods, silver and gold. However, these are general Old Testament references for
the spoils of war. Much speculation has been involved in what it is Israel has
that Russia would want. Given what a traveler would find in the land before the
formation of the State of Israel, one would think Russia was in dire need of
sand and rocks.
Closer
investigation of the region led to the realization that the answer could have
been found in the Dead Sea. The waters of the Dead Sea contain over 45 billion
tons of sodium, chlorine, sulfur, potassium, calcium, magnesium and bromide.
These chemicals have their uses; indeed, magnesium has been called “The King of
Minerals” because of its varied medical uses. Going to war, however for a bunch
of salt is unlikely.
After
the 1967 Six-Day War another explanation was offered for a Russian invasion of
the Promised Land. Scientists searching the Sinai Peninsula in the five years
after Israel captured it from Egypt found signs of copper, tungsten, and
feldspar deposits under the shifting sands of the desert. Tungsten is an
expensive, rare metal used for hardening steel and other high-grade metals.
Some believed these ores could be part of the spoils the Magog alliance would
try to wrench from the Israel.
The
year 2009, however, brought further clarity of the passage, for it was in
January of that year the Tamar gas field was discovered. The Tamar gas field
was a major gas find in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel. The
field is located in Israel’s exclusive economic zone, roughly 50 miles (80 km)
west of Haifa in waters over one mile (1,700 meters) deep. People’s interest
was really piqued the following year when in December 2010 another gas field
was discovered. The Leviathan gas field is a large natural gas formation in the
Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Israel, 30 miles (47 km) southwest of the
Tamar.
What
could be the final piece of the puzzle may have been supplied in October 2014
when oil was discovered in the Golan Heights.
Because
of these three discoveries Israel has become a much more attractive target for
supplying the spoils of war. Together, the Tamar and Leviathan fields are
estimated to contain 1 trillion (1,000 billion) cubic feet of natural gas,
enough to supply Israel’s energy needs for the next 50 years. (Though those of
us who take the Bible seriously doubt it will need natural gas for that long.)
The
oil field in the Golan Heights is also looking to be a major energy find.
Israeli business website Globes quotes Yuval Bartov, chief geologist of Afek
Oil and Gas as saying:
We
are talking about a strata [sic] which is 350 meters thick and what is
important is the thickness and the porosity. On average in the world strata are
20–30 meters thick, so this is ten times as large as that, so we are talking
about significant quantities. The important thing is to know the oil is in the
rock and that’s what we now know.
The
estimated size of the field, if found to be true, would make Israel a world
player in the oil market.
Enter
Russia
This
is where things get interesting.
Assuming
Israel can get around its own bureaucratic morass and develop these fields, it
has a few export markets it can service. If they decide to export some of their
production, the only viable markets available to them are in Egypt, Jordan and
possibly Turkey. Given those countries current energy needs and the price they
would pay, those markets do not look very attractive.
There
is one other place, however, that could prove lucrative – Europe.
Europe
is starving for hydrocarbons. That continent was on a program of going nuclear,
but after the nuclear power plant disaster in Fukushima, Japan, the EU has
cooled to using atomic power for its energy needs. In fact, several countries,
Germany in particular, is shutting down their nuclear power plants. The EU is
trying to replace nuclear power with alternative energy sources, but they
cannot bring these sources on-line fast enough to make up the energy deficit.
That leaves hydrocarbons to fill in the breech.
Much
of the EU’s oil needs came from Libya, but since the Arab Spring, much of that
oil has dried up. That has left the three largest oil suppliers to Europe being
the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. (Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan
are largely under Russian influence.) As for gas, Russia has supplied Europe
with the lion’s share of its needs, which has left Europe beholden to Russian
interests. This became painfully clear in January 2009 when Russia shut off
natural gas supplies to Europe in the wake of the Ukrainian Civil War. Europe
imports about half its natural gas from Russia (about 15% of its total imports)
through the Ukraine pipelines. When Russia expressed its displeasure at the
European sanctions against it by closing the gas valves to the EU capitals, the
only thing Europe could do was shiver in the dark.
Russia
likes having this giant energy stick to use against the Europeans and will try
mightily hard to keep it.
That
is one reason Russia is in Syria.
The
Syrian Card
Even
before the Ukrainian gas embargo, Europe had been looking at alternative gas
pipeline routes bypassing Russia. There were two routes proposed, one through
Iran and Iraq, the other through the more pro-western Saudi Arabia and Jordan.
Both pipelines however pass through Syria. President Assad, wanting to curry
favor with his Russian patron (and realizing there was a major Russian naval
station sitting in his backyard in the port of Tartus,) would not approve
either pipeline, hence keeping Russia the dominant player in Europe’s natural
gas mix.
Many
believe that refusal bred the start of the Syrian Civil War. The natural gas
exporting countries, both Sunni and Shia, decided they needed Assad out of the
way to open an avenue for their gas to enter European markets.
Vladimir
Putin jumped into Syria with both feet to assure Assad stayed in power and
Russia’s dominance in the EU remained in place.
Here
comes Israel
Imagine
the Kremlin’s concern when huge gas and oil fields were found in Israel in an
area where both gas and oil could be transported under the Mediterranean to
Europe, bypassing Russia.
It
doesn’t take a large stretch of the imagination to see Russia moving in to
stabilize the situation in Syria and then moving further south into Israel.
Ezekiel’s
prophecy does not lay out Magog’s entire battle plan and maybe Russia only
would see a move on Israel as Act One of a bigger play of gaining a solid
foothold on the entire Middle East hydrocarbon supplies. A Russian takeover of
Israel would give Russia such a foothold without overly upsetting the Arabs
since they would be in favor of the destruction of Israel even though they
would be very nervous if it means a Russian army in the area.
Regardless
of the publicly stated reasons for Russia’s interest in Syria, the main reason
for their involvement is self-interest. It is stated in verse ten that the
invasion is premeditated by the Russians, for they will be thinking, making
evil plans and resolve to invade for the purpose of spoils (vv. 11–12). (And whether
the others admit it or not, self-interest is the reason for the involvement of
the other players, both East and West. If the main export of Syria were
mangoes, no one would be there.)
In
verse 13, a second group of merchant nations are listed as protesting this
invasion, for they recognize it to be an invasion for spoil and for nothing
else Businessmen based in Sheba, Dedan, Tarshish, and all of its growling lions
will ask you, “Are you coming for war spoils? Have you assembled your armies to
carry off silver and gold, and to gather lots of war booty?”(ISV) Sheba and
Dedan are countries in northern Arabia, which shows that at least some of the
Arab states will not favor the Russian presence in the Middle East. Another
nation named is Tarshish, followed by the phrase with all the growling lions
thereof. This phrase is a Hebrew idiom meaning nations that have come out of
Tarshish. (The Revised Standard Version translates the idiom as all its
villages).
So
Where Is Tarshish?
While
the idiom may be clear, the identity of Tarshish and those other “growling
lions” are not. Some scholars place Tarshish as a place as distant from Israel.
Many countries have been proposed as the site for Tarshish, from Sardinia to
Great Britain. The most commonly accepted identification is Spain where the
name Tartessus hints at Tarshish. If Spain is the Tarshish of Ezekiel, the
nations spawned would include those of Central and South America, and possible
even Brazil if one accepts the texts as describing geography rather than
political systems. (Brazil was settled by Portugal, not Spain, but the two
countries share the Iberian Peninsula.) Another proposed location was in
England, and if this is what was meant by Tarshish, the growling lions could
include the United States of America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and other
present-day western democracies. (This would answer the question some ask,
“Where is the United States in End-Time Prophecy?”)
Regardless
of the exact identity of Tarshish, it is this group that issues a protest.
However, it does not go beyond the protest stage. Russia invades, and then the
invading army is disposed of with no help from the protestors.
God’s
Rebuke
In
Ezekiel 38:14–16, the invasion is seen as having begun and further answers the
question why, but this time it is seen from God’s viewpoint:
Therefore, Son of Man, prophesy to Gog and
tell him, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “When the day comes when my people
are living securely, won’t you be aware of it? You’ll come in from your home in
the remotest parts of the north. You’ll come with many nations, all of them
riding along on horses. You’ll be a huge, combined army. You’ll come up to
invade my people Israel like a storm cloud to cover the land. In the last days,
Gog, I’ll bring you up to invade my land so that the world will learn to know
me when I show them how holy I am before their very eyes.” ’
Ezekiel
38:14–16, ISV
In
verses 14–16a, the invasion begins and the confederate army covers the land
like a storm cloud in massive swarms. Hence, there is initial success by
Russia. In verse 16b, God’s reason is given for allowing this invasion to
occur, as over against Russia’s reasons given in the preceding verses: that He
might be sanctified in the eyes of the nations in light of what is about to
occur.
The
Final Act
In
the final demonstration of God’s power in the prophecy, Ezekiel 38:17–23
describes how God moves out in judgment (vv. 17–18) to destroy the invading
army. This is followed by the answer to the question of how the invading army
is disposed of and destroyed. Several causes are listed: earthquake (vv.
19–20); civil war breaking out among the invading soldiers themselves (v. 21);
pestilence, blood, flood, hailstones, fire and brimstone (v. 22). Since these
things destroy the invading army without the aid of other nations, God’s
purpose is seen as succeeding in its objective. God will show His holiness and
make Himself known in the eyes of many people (v. 23).
Watching
from the Mezzanine
However
these events unfold, if the pre-Tribulation view is correct (and we believe it
is), we will watch these events, the gathering, the final battle and the
aftermath from the mezzanine. All of these events will have been preceded by
the Harpazo, commonly called the Rapture.
In
the meantime, we are undoubtedly living in exciting times, times in which
prophecy is being fulfilled before our eyes. If the events seem too trying all
we need to do is look up and remember the last verses John wrote in Revelation:
“The one who is testifying to these things
says, “Yes, I am coming soon!” Amen! Come, Lord Jesus! May the grace of the
Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen.”
Revelation
22:20–21, ISV
Keep
watching.
