Ezekiel
38
The present and the following chapters, comprising the next
oracle, or “word of God,”
delivered by the prophet, relate to the expedition (vs. 1-13),
overthrow (vs. 14-23),
and
destruction of Gog (ch. 39:1-20), with the results of
the same to the heathen world
and
to
which the world’s
hostility to the
it should be
utterly and finally broken. The uprising
of Gog is located in
“the latter
days,” and by the author of the book of
Revelation, who seems to
allude to the
same event, the
last battle between the powers of evil and the
emergence of the new
heavens and the new earth (Revelation 20:8).
Verses 1-13. - The announcement of Gog's
expedition against
1 “And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,” Although this
oracle is
unaccompanied by any note of time, it was obviously delivered before
the
twenty-fifth year of the Captivity (ch. 40:1), and most likely in immediate
succession to the preceding prophecy, with which also it has a
close relation in
respect of purport, being designed to show that against restored and united
i.e. against the
force would not prevail, but would fall back
defeated and self-destroyed.
2 “Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the
prince of Meshech
and Tubal, and prophesy against him,”
Magog mentioned in Genesis 10:2, along with Tubal
and Mesech, are among the
descendants of Japheth. From the circumstance that in the
table of nations Magog
stands between Gomer (the
Cimmerians) and Madai (the Medians), and that Gomer
appears in Gog’s army, it has
been not unreasonably concluded that to Ezekiel, Magog
represented a fierce Northern tribe, most likely, as
Josephus (‘
the Scythians, whose territories
lay upon the borders of the sea of Azov and in the
distinct reference to
vs. 8 and 16
According to Halley’s Bible Handbook, Ezekiel, by speaking
of the “north quarters” –
(v. 6, ch. 39:2) – there can be
little doubt but that he means the nations beyond the
known as
the
same words “Gog and Magog” are used as representing the nations that Satan
will use in his final and furious attack or the people of God – Revelation 20:7-10
Henry Morris in his book The Genesis Record says that the word
from the word “rosh” in this
verse – and that generally speaking, the three sons
of Japeth, Magog,
Meshech and Tubal can be
considered as the progenitors of the
modern Russian people.
but
recently seems to be making a comeback.
“Set thy face against (or, toward) God.” Although occurring in 1 Chronicles 5:4
as the name of a Reubenite, Gog was probably a title formed by Ezekiel himself
from the word Magog,
the syllable ma being treated as
equivalent to "land."
A similar freedom appears to have been exercised by the
author of the
Apocalypse, who out of Magog,
here a territorial designation, makes a military
power co-ordinate with Gog (Revelation 20:8). That Gog was not an actual
person -
though the name reminds one of that of the Lydian king Gyges, as it appears on the
monuments, Gu-gu, Gu-ug-gu, aud of that of one Sa-gi, or Sa-agi,
the ruler of
another Eastern territory not yet identified (see Schrader, 'Die
Keilinschriften
und dos Alto Testament,' p. 427; and comp. 'Records of the
Past,' first series,
vol. 9:46) - but an ideal character, must be held as proved
by the composite
structure of his army, which was drawn from the four comers of the
globe.
The words, the
to be interpreted as the local or geographical terminus of the
prediction, as
if the word of God had said, "Set thy face toward Gog, toward the laud of
Magog;" but, with the majority of expositors, as a
territorial designation
signifying that Gog was in or of the laud
of Magog, which is here marked
with the article, probably to identify it with the well-known
Magog mentioned
in Genesis 10:2,
along with Tubal and Mesech as among the descendants of Japheth.
From the circumstance that in the table of nations Magog stands between Gomer
(the Cimmerians) and Madai (the Medians), and that Gomer
appears in Gog's
army, it has been not unreasonably concluded that to Ezekiel Magog
represented a fierce Northern tribe, most likely, as Josephus ('
asserts, the Scythians, whose
territories lay upon the borders Of the sea of
Azov and in the
he may well have come into contact with these Scythian
tribes, either as part
of Nebuchadnezzar's army or by a journey on
his part into the
regions north of Ararat" ('Ezekiel: an Ideal
Biography,' Expositor, vol. 8. p. 291,
second series). Yet, could both of these hypotheses be
established, it would not
follow that Ezekiel was thinking merely, as Knobel
and Gesenius suppose, of a
future struggle which
immanes et innumerabiles, as Jerome in his day described them. In addition to
being named from his land, Gog is
further distinguished by the peoples over
whom he rules, Ezekiel styling him the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal -
a
translation adhered to by Hengstenberg, Ewald, and Smend; or, according
to
the Septuagint, which most expositors and the Revised
Version follow,
the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. The former
rendering is obtained
by interpreting נְשִׂיא רלֺאשׁ after the analogy of הַכֹּהֵן רלֺאשׁ, "chief priest,"
or "minister," in 1 Chronicles 27:5; and is supported by a similar use of the
word rosh on
coins under the government of the Persian satraps; yet the
second rendering is not devoid of considerations that may be urged
in its favor.
Besides being grammatically possible, it yields a sense
which is not improbable.
Byzantine and Arabian writers of the tenth century were
acquainted with a people
called οἱ Ρῶς - Ros - who
were Scythian mountaineers, dwelling north of the
Taurus,
on the shores of the Black Sea and on the banks of the
of a
connected with present-day Russians, as Gesenius
suggests - an hypothesis which
Hengstenberg protests deals hardly with the poor Russians - must be
left undecided.
So must the question whether the people inquired after
can be identified, as
Delitzsch suggests, with the inhabitants of the
the Inscriptions, which was Situated on the confines of
(see Schrader, 'Die Keilin-schriften und das Alto Testament,' p. 427; and
compare 'Records of the Past,' vol. 9. p. 84, 11. 122, 124). At
the same time,
Jerome's objection will scarcely hold good against
understanding Resh as the name
of a people, viz. that the Bible elsewhere has no knowledge of any such
people,
since, as Havernick observes,
"one cannot know beforehand whether to Ezekiel,
in his then place of abode, the knowledge of such a people was not
likely sooner
to come than to any Old Testament writer," and it is certain that
the Book of
Ezekiel is not wanting in names that occur only once, as e.g. Chilmad (ch. 27:23)
and Chub (ch. 30:5). Hitzig points out that in Genesis 10, along with Mesech
and Tubal, is mentioned a third
nation, Tiras,
which Yon Hammer has attempted
to connect with Rosh; while Schroder sees in
Rosh (allied to Ross, "horse") an
indication that the people were equestrian in their habits, like
the Scythians.
The other peoples, Meshech and Tubal, were undoubtedly the Mosohians
and
Tibarenes, who, according
to Herodotus (3:94; 7:78), dwelt south of the
3 “And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I
am against thee, O
Gog, the chief prince of Meshech
and Tubal:” I am against thee, O Gog - Just
because Gog was against
land
would be a declaration of war against
rather be between Jehovah and Gog
than between
this prophecy Jehovah is represented as the principal actor
on the side of
seeks her defense, not in walls and bulwarks or in earthly alliances and military
combinations,
as in the days of the monarchy before the
exile, but in THE PRESENCE
OF JEHOVAH in her midst.
4 “And I will
turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will
bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of
them clothed with all sorts of armor, even
a great company with
bucklers and shields, all of them handling
swords:”
I will
turn thee back and put hooks into thy jaws
- this is God speaking –
God’s superior might and omnipotence is brought into play – notice the
references to armaments – in those days no one could
visualize the “weapons
of mass destruction” with which
we have to deal today but they will be NO
MATCH FOR JEHOVAH GOD, especially when His fury comes up in His face
(v. 18).
I will turn thee back. שׁובַבְתִּיך (pilel of שׁוּב,
and signifying "to cause to return") has
by Hitzig, Havernick,
Ewald, and Keil, been interpreted
in the sense of "enticing,"
"misleading,"
decoying to a dangerous enterprise, as in Isaiah 47:10; but the ordinary
meaning seems sufficient, that Jehovah would turn him back from
his own self-devised
career, or turn him about like a wild beast, putting hooks into
his jaws (compare
ch. 29:4; II Kings 19:28), and so compelling him to follow the lead of
a power superior to himself. It is as evident that a
turning back from the
cannot be intended, as it is that a turning back to the
unless, with Hengstenberg and Ewald, one regards Gog as the Chaldeans, or,
with Hitzig, and Schroder, as the Scythiaus,
though these latter never were
in
as yet formed the design of invading
suggesting that the thought expressed in the verb is simply that of
the superior
might of Jehovah. I will bring thee forth. That the
power which stirs up Gog is
here represented as that of Jehovah, while in Revelation 20:8 it is affirmed to be
that of Satan, need occasion no more difficulty than the similar statements, in
II Samuel
24:1, about God and in 1 Chronicles 21:1 about Satan, stirring up David
to number
the Scythians, who, according to
Herodotus (4:46, 136), were mostly equestrian
tribes, although the Scythian remains
discovered at Kerteh do not give an example
of a Scythian horse-archer (see Rawlinson's 'Herodotus,' vol. 3. p. 34, note 6).
All of them clothed with all sorts of armor, better, clothed with perfection,
i.e. splendidly
attired, all
of them. A
characteristic of the Assyrian army
(compare ch. 23:12; Nahum 2:3). The arms of the warlike host - a great company,
as in ch.17:17 (compare Revelation 20:8, "the
number of whom is as the sand
of the sea") - are described as consisting of bucklers, or shields large enough
to cover the whole of the soldier, and not so suitable for cavalry as for infantry
(compare ch. 23:24); shields, i.e. bucklers of
smaller size than the proceeding,
such as Assyrian warriors were accustomed to carry (Sayce, '
Princes,
Priests, and People,' p. 126); and swords, or weapons for laying waste.
The Assyrian soldiery employed
"the short dagger, or dirk, and the sword, which
was of two kinds. The ordinary kind was long and straight,
the less usual kind
being curved, like a scimitar" ('
the allied nations in v. 5, only the small "shield" and "helmet" are mentioned.
Gog
and Magog (vs. 1-4)
If we take these names as representing the Scythians and their king, we
have a description of God’s judgment of the most wild and
remote heathen
tribes and of their relation to
Gog and Magog — it is intended to
reach the Scythians. It has to
do with
all people in the
world. The
Hebrew prophet was not permitted to narrow
his thoughts to the parochial
mind; His vision was world-wide. A Jew of
the Jews, he was nevertheless a
preacher to mankind. Much more is the
Christian apostle a preacher to
all men. Here is a great motive for
circulating the Scriptures among
all nations.
to Gog
and Magog. God’s hook will be put in the jaws of the
distant
prince. The heathen are under
God’s notice and affected by His supreme
authority. To be far from the Church of God IS NOT TO BE FAR FROM
THE POWER OF
GOD! The ends of the earth feel His great energy. The
arms of God are long. This is a reason for our seeking to enlighten the most
remote and heathenish people; for they all belong
by right to God.
times were about the wildest
known people; they were to the Easterns of
the past what the cannibals of
was difficult to make civilized
nations feel that they belonged to the same
species with such wild men of
the Northern forests. Yet God knew these
people. God does not ignore the
most degraded savages. They, too, are
naturally made
in the image of God. Judged according
to their poor,
obtuse, perverted consciences, even they will have to give account to THE
GOD OF ALL! They
are not responsible for the ignorance and degradation in
which they are born, and surely
God will deal very leniently with these
unhappy races. Yet for their
acknowledged evil even they must be
punished. But if there is a
judgment of Gog, much more
must there be a
judgment of
deeds done in the body, much more must the Christians of
gracious outlook; Paul taught that the Scythians were to
share in the
common brotherhood of the Christian Church (Colossians 3:11).
Ø
The gospel is suited to the lowest heathen. This fact is proved
by its
effects. While the dreamer at
home pronounces the Christianizing of
savages to be an impossibility,
the worker in the missionary field
answers effectually by quietly
accomplishing the so-called impossible
feat. Charles Darwin was so
struck with the good work of missionaries
in civilizing the inhabitants of
as about the most degraded
savages on the face of the earth, that he
subscribed to the society from
which the missionaries had gone forth.
Ø
The gospel should be spread among the lowest heathen. We have no
excuse to despair of any. The
very dedication of heathendom is a call to
Christians for help. Rousseau’s
fancy of the innocence and happiness of
the simple savage is not
justified by experience. Oppressed with cruelty
and superstition, degraded in
uncleanness, the savage greatly needs
THE
Divine Control (v. 4)
The picture of
heart depending upon human aid, defense, or deliverance. Gog and his
armies, the hostile nations in league with him, are described
with all the
pomp and circumstance of war. Yet, when Jehovah declares,
“I will turn
thee about, and will put hooks into thy jaws,” this declaration outweighs all
the professions, all the threats, all the designs of the
enemy. We are
reminded — and the whole Church in every age needs, in time
of danger
especially, to learn the lesson — that above all the plans and purposes of
men there reigns DIVINE CONTROL!
matured, nothing is further from
the mind of the enemies of God’s people
than the unquestionable fact
that the Lord of all is supreme. Some poor,
faint human opposition may be
anticipated; but it is not expected that a
superior Power should intervene.
the dragon? Shall the wild horse
of the desert be bridled? Shall the lion of
the jungle be tamed? The very
thought is repudiated and resented. The
mighty of the earth are not
wont to brook restraint or interference. Those
who plan the ruin of the cause
of God, of the religion of Christ, of the
Church on earth and all its
agencies — whether they so plan in the name of
atheism and secularism, or in
the name of worldly policy — spurn and
contemn the
restraint of Heaven. They see no power which they need to
fear, and in their view it is
superstition to fear the unseen.
by natural causes and
instrumentalities. The destroying angel comes down
upon the camp and smites the
host; pestilence decimates the bands of the
enemy; an earthquake opens the
prison-doors; the storm scatters the
invader’s fleet. Sometimes God
controls the foe by human agency. One
enemy of God makes war upon
another, and cripples the forces which were
on the point of being employed
against the Lord’s people. Or a great
deliverer is raised up, whose
valor and heroism crush the enemy, and set
the threatened free from fear
and danger. In any case God is never at a
loss
for means by
which He may bring His counsels to pass.
God’s enemies, and it may be
ignored or distrusted by His friends. But it
exists, and it is superior to
all earthly powers and machinations. Revelation
is full of instances of this
control as manifested in the history of
in the history of the infant
through long centuries, contain
abundant confirmation of the great and
blessed truth — “ the Lord reigneth.”
may withhold the confession. But
sooner or later it shall be publicly
admitted that all powers are
subject to the King of kings. (“at the name
of Jesus every
knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in
earth, and things
under the earth; And that every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Philippians 2:10-11)
Sent Back by God (v. 4)
“I will turn thee back.” “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man,
but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12). There are
paths that attract us, that we enter upon with keen
expectancy, that we
pursue with pleasure, but that, in time, we find to be wrong; then is it best
to turn back, and to “return on our way” at once.
Ø
Extravagance. A larger expenditure of our means than we can properly
afford, pointing toward and
leading to financial embarrassment and grave
difficulty and distress.
Ø
Unregulated activity. Such mental or physical work as, either in measure
or in method, draws too largely
on our resources, and ends in nervous
disorder or some serious
illness.
Ø
Self-indulgence; either in unwholesome literature
or in the grosser
gratifications of the
flesh.
Ø
A skeptical habit. The disposition, which in time becomes a habit, to
regard everything with a cynical
and distrustful eye, and would rather
accept the uncharitable view
than the generous one.
Ø
Worldliness. The way in which the multitudes are walking; the endeavor
to find satisfaction and rest in
the interests and engagements, in the
treasures and the pleasures, of
time and sense.
the way that has been chosen is the
wrong one. This assurance may come
through one of many channels;
it may be the utterance of one of many
voices; it may be the solemn
warning of some providential occurrence; or it
may be the faithful rebuke of
a true and fearless friend; or it may be a deep
and bitter sense of
insufficiency, of failure, of heart-ache, of perversion of
power and misuse of
opportunity, a sense of wrong and sin; or it may be
the direct enlightenment and
appeal of the Spirit of God. But the
conviction is written on the
tablet of the soul that the way is wrong; a voice
is heard in the inner chambers
of the spirit. “Turn back, return on thy way,
pursue a different course, start
in an opposite direction, seek another and a
better goal.” (There is no right way to do the wrong thing!)
Ø
We can afford to return.
It may cost us something; there may be some
companions to forsake, but these
are best at a distance; there may be some
tender regrets, but these are
temporary and will soon be left behind; there
may be some humiliation to
endure, but this is not of an unmanly kind, but,
on the contrary, honorable and
commendable; there may be some sacrifice
of enjoyment or of treasure, but
this can very well be borne with a
moderate measure of fortitude, —
we shall very soon reconcile ourselves
to that. But:
Ø
We cannot afford to go on.
If we do, we must prepare for the very
worst that we can suffer; the
wrong road leads:
o
to
embarrassment,
o
to saddest loss,
o
to bitter
disappointment,
o
to helplessness,
o
to ruin, and eventually
o
TO DEATH!
Moreover, God has met us
with a Divine encouragement. He has
taught us that:
Ø
There is a way upward, which we can all take. One has come to us to
say, “I am the Way” (John 14:6).
Intimate association, living union,
with Him is:
o
the way of
wisdom,
o
the way of righteousness,
and
o
THE WAY OF LIFE!
5 “
helmet:
6 Gomer, and
all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north
quarters, and all his bands: and many
people with thee. 7 Be thou prepared,
and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy
company that are assembled unto
thee, and be thou a guard unto them. 8 After many
days thou shalt be visited:
in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the
sword, and is gathered out of many people,
against the mountains of
which have been always waste: but it is
brought forth out of the nations,
and they shall dwell safely all of them.”
in
context – think
of the attitude of Mahmoud Ahmadinijad,
the former president
of
THINGS ARE
SHAPING UP LIKE THE BIBLE HERE AND ELSEWHERE
SAYS! (Since this was posted in 2009, there is a new player on the world stage today
called
ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and
goals – CY – July, 2014)
These allied nations are depicted as coming
from the four
quarters of the globe.
·
·
·
· Gomer (see Genesis 10:2-3; 1 Chronicles 1:5), the Cimmerians
of Homer ('Odyss.,'
11:13-19), whose abodes were the shores of the
Euxine and
(see Schrader, 'Die Keilinschriften,' etc., p. 80); with the house of Togarmah,
from the north, or the extreme
regions of the north, as in Isaiah 14:13 (see
ch.27:14). The first three are portrayed as armed with shield
and helmet, or
more accurately as being all of
them shield and helmet, which might signify
that they should serve as a shield and helmet to Gog, who in truth should be
unto them and their confederates a guard; i.e., according to Keil
and Schroder,
one who keeps watch over them; according to Miehaelis and Havernick, one
who gives them law; according to Hengstenberg,
one who is their authority;
according to Ewald and Smend, one who serves to them as an ensign, t.¢.
acts to them as
a leader or commander.
“After many days thou shalt be
visited” – Jehovah’s stirring up of Gog was the first
step towards his ultimate
overthrow – it is a judicial visitation.
“in the latter
years” - literally, at the end of the
years — a frequent prophetic
phrase (see Genesis 49:1; Numbers 24:14; Isaiah 2:2; Daniel 10:14; Micah 4:1), here
denoting the Messianic era, and should assume the form of
an invasion of the
been made to desist from
war, through being henceforth peacefully inclined
(Isaiah 2:4; Micah 2:8), or
of their having ceased to expect war, because of
living ever after securely
(v. 11), but in that of having been
recovered from
its devastations (ch. 6:3-5);
a phrase, which while starting
from and including the return from
manifestly looked beyond
that event to the wider dispersion of
should precede the final
ingathering. Consider that
“
put them in captivity and
they were dispersed throughout the world,
a dispersal from which they
never recovered until 1948 when
became a nation again –
also the capture of
Jesus said that “
until the times
of the Gentiles be fulfilled” - Luke 21:24 – CY – 2014)
waste continually. If such was their condition prior to the return from
captivity, it is undeniable that
such has practically been their condition ever
since, and such it is likely to
continue to be, until the final ingathering of
the dispersed of
It is because of
barren – Deuteronomy 28 gives the scenario:
consequences – we want to sin like
the devil and be blessed like the righteous –
our attitude is “it’s the
economy stupid” when in reality it is morality
that has
made this nation great –
Exhibit # 1 – The Economic Stimulus Package of 2009 –
the cost of disobedience – 800 billion dollars and that
does not even count our
souls – “What shall a man
profit if he gain the whole world and lose his
own soul?” (Mark 8:36)
After Many Days (v. 8)
Time is an element which needs to be taken into calculation
in the
consideration of all human affairs. We are too
short-sighted, too hasty, too
impatient. God has the leisure of eternity. (I recommend The
Preciousness of
Time by Jonathan Edwards – December, 1734 – this website # 7 – CY – 2014)
“The mills
of God grind slowly,
But they
grind exceeding small.”
We must learn to use the telescopes
of FAITH and HOPE, and look far beyond
the scene of the present, if we would form a right estimate
of any important
human event.
would be a pertinent
consideration in regard to the evil work of remote
Gog and Magog. (In the 21st Century,
CY – 2014)
Ø
The mischief may be slow to develop. At first men enjoy the pleasures of
sin; the pains come later.
Judgment is deferred. God is patient and
longsuffering (“not willing
that any should perish but that ALL should
come to repentance.” - II Peter 3:9), and He gives ample
time for
repentance. Nevertheless, the accumulations of wrath will at length,
finally burst over the heads of theimpenitent.
Ø
The mischief may long endure. It may last for many
days. A hasty sin
may be followed by a
lengthy penalty. The crime of a moment may be
punished with penal servitude for life. One man’s wickedness MAY
BRING MISERY ON
GENERATIONS.
Earnest men work, and yet see
but little results coming from their labors;
so that they seem to be laboring
for nothing. Like the disciples who toiled
all ‘night and took nothing,
perhaps they are ready to despair just when a
grand reward is within their
reach. We have to learn to WORK and WAIT
and to obey our Master’s command
even when we expect but little good to
come from our labor.
DAYS. The Christian
preacher may have to go forth weeping, but he bears
precious seed. (Psalm 126:4). Therefore, though he sows in tears, he will
reap
in joy. What we have to remember
is that our work is seed-sowing, not the
planting of full-grown trees.
The latter process would give us the more
immediate results; but it would
be the more precarious, for the trees would not
be easily kept alive. Now, since our work is a sowing of seeds, necessarily it
cannot produce
visible results at once. The field
that has been sown all
over with the best seed looks at
first much like one that has been left waste
and neglected. The Christian
preacher, the Sunday school teacher, the
missionary, have all to sow in patience.
Perhaps one may sow and another
reap. A man may not live to
gather the harvest of his labor; then his works
will follow him (Revelation
14:13).
ENJOYED AFTER MANY DAYS.
Ø
We may have to wait for them. Some inestimable
blessings may be
had at once. We have no delay in receiving the pardon of our sins
and the regeneration of
our souls when we truly repent and yield
ourselves to Christ. Still, “this is not your rest.” We are not yet in
heaven. The cross must now be carried; we must wait for the crown.
Ø
They will endure forever. We shall have them after many days, and
after many days more THESE BEST BLESSINGS OF GOD WILL
STILL ENDURE. The things which are
not seen are eternal
(II Corinthians 4:18). No moth nor rust corrupt the heavenly
treasures
(Matthew 6:20). When all things on earth fade these shall abide,
THE EVERLASTING INHERITANCE of God’s people.
9 “Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm,
thou shalt be like a cloud
to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands,
and many people with
thee.
10 Thus saith
the Lord GOD; It shall also come to pass, that at the
same time shall things come into thy mind,
and thou shalt think an
evil thought: 11
And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages;
I will go to them that are at rest, that
dwell safely, all of them dwelling without
walls, and having neither bars nor gates, 12 To take a spoil, and to take a prey;
to turn thine
hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon
the people that are gathered out of the
nations, which have gotten cattle and goods,
that dwell in the midst of the land. 13
Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall
say unto thee, Art thou come to take
A spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take
a prey? to carry away silver and
gold, to take away cattle and goods, to
take a great spoil?” Gog shall ascend like a
storm over the
The thought that
this sinful project. The world’s nations are depicted as following
in the wake of Gog,
like vultures in the rear of an army, wishing to be partakers of
the spoil. Instead literal
vultures will feast on them – see ch. 39:17-20 (Years ago I heard that vultures were
multiplying rapidly in the
Like a storm, and like a cloud. (v. 9) Gog's invasion, his "ascension," or "going up"
(compare the Greek term ἀνάβασις - anabasis - ascending - for a military expedition),
should be like a storm in its suddenness and violence, as in Proverbs. 1:27,
and like a cloud in its threatening aspect and overshadowing nearness (see v. 16;
and compare Jeremiah 4:13). Taken
together, the
images suggest that Gog's
invasion should:
· burst forth suddenly,
· rage violently,
· spread quickly,
· alarm greatly, but
· cease finally.
Storms roar and crash, alarm and destroy, but do not continue. Clouds diffuse
gloom and fear, but ultimately disperse.
Thou shalt think an evil thought;
(v. 10) "conceive a mischievous purpose"
(margin); or, devise an evil device (Revised Version). The
ultimate
responsibility for Gog's expedition should
rest on Gog himself, who should
be impelled thereto by his own lust of conquest. Ezekiel here recognizes
what the Bible is full of, the duality of existence,
according to which man is
both a free agent, acting out his own thoughts and plans, and
an unconscious
instrument in the hands of God carrying out His counsels and
designs.
Verses 11, 12 give voice to the things that should come into Gog's mind and
incite him to his enterprise against
i.e. securely and confidently, in a land of un-walled villages -
literally, a land
of open places, as opposed to fortified cities - i.e. of towns without walls,
and having neither bars nor gates (compare Zechariah 2:4-5; Deuteronomy 3:5;
1 Samuel 6:18), because of being no more apprehensive of invasion,
should
excite within his bosom the thought that
assault; and this thought again should kindle in his bosom the
lust of conquest
which should finally impel him to the sinful project
described, viz. to take a
spoil and to take a prey; literally, to spoil the spoil (compare ch. 29:19; Isaiah 10:6)
and
to prey the prey (Isaiah 33:23). In execution of this he would fall upon the once
desolate but then inhabited places, upon the once scattered but
then collected
population, upon the previously poor but then wealthy inhabitants,
who should then have gotten cattle and goods (cattle and chattel best
renders
the Hebrew parouomasia, mikneh vekinyan), as the
patriarchs of their nation
had once done (Genesis 34:23; 36:6), and who should then
be dwelling in
the midst of
the land; literally, in the height,
or, navel (Septuagint,
Vulgate),
of
the earth (compare Judges 9:37), the Hebrews generally regarding
as the Greeks did
if not as the highest (Gesenius), at least as
the fairest and most fertile portion
of the earth.
communities of the South, East, and West respectively (see on ch. 27:15,20, 22, 25).
The young lions thereof - i.e. of Tarshish, not of the other communities (Keil) -
were probably intended to represent, not the"
authorities" of Tarshish, as Hitzig
suggests, but its smaller tradesmen who were equally rapacious
with its larger
merchants. All are depicted as following in the wake of Gog, like vultures
in the rear of an
army, and as inquiring whether Gog had come simply for the
purpose of destruction or in the hope of trading with the booty
he should capture.
In this case they intimate their wish to be partakers of
the spoil This (Plumptre),
rather than the thirst for booty which characterized them (Keil), their question
to Gog signified;
An Evil Thought (v. 10)
the mind. Like a bird of passage from a distant continent, like a
stray seed
dropped into a well-tilled
garden, like a breath of infection on a healthy
person, evil may come from without unsought and even unsuspected.
Every one must be conscious of
the way in which a thought will flash into
his mind. But often a suggestion
of evil may come from some visible
external thing. An evil sight
will suggest an evil thought; therefore we
need
to pray that God may turn away our eyes from beholding vanity. (Psalm
119:37). Bad companions will prompt evil thoughts;
therefore we have to be
on our guard as to
what society we frequent. We cannot
but be in the world,
though we should not be of it
(John 17:15). Sights and sounds of evil
assail
us on every side — in visible
occurrences, in conversation, in newspapers,
in books. It is impossible to
bar every avenue against the intrusion of an evil
thought. It may come to the purest
soul. (“You
can’t keep a bird from flying
over your head
but you can keep it from building a nest in your hair.”
(Martin Luther)
and the Australians are much
concerned at the character of persons who
pour into their territories from
the overflowing population of
(Written over two centuries
ago. The American people still feel this
way but the current executive
leadership in the
a sham of this! - Laws are not enforced and our borders are
insecure –
perhaps hastening the day of
this prophecy as the same leadership is
distancing itself from
Hence their regulations setting
conditions to the reception of emigrants.
We cannot always prevent the
incoming of evil thoughts, but we must
beware of the
mischief of their presence when they have come.
Ø
An evil thought tends to spread. It is like the
little leaven that leavens the
whole lump, like the worthless
seed which, growing up, produces a host
of new seeds, and so makes the
weeds take possession of the soil. A
striking idea starts a whole chain
of thoughts.
Ø
An evil thought tends to rouse an evil desire. The active evil from
without appeals to the latent
evil within the soul. Thus while in one place
James writes of Satan as our
tempter (James 4:7), in another he
says that we are tempted by our
own evil desires (Ibid. ch.1:14). The evil
thought is most dangerous because it is lodged in an evil nature.
(I wholeheartedly recommend Jeremiah
4 – Spurgeon Sermon – Bad
Lodgers and How to Treat Them – this website – CY – 2014)
Unhappily, the seed of evil
falls on congenial soil. The germ of sin
attacks one who has what the doctors would call a sinful diathesis,
a temperament that is naturally prone to sin.
cannot prevent its coming; but
we may refuse to give it quarter. If we
harbor it we consent to its presence, and take the guilt of it on ourselves.
Thus we make it no longer a
foreign intruder, but our own thought. The
practical question is how may
the evil thought be cast out?
Ø
Directly, by
resisting it. We should pray against
an evil thought, and
firmly set our foot upon it
when it has come near to us.
Ø
Indirectly, by
encouraging a better thought. An empty mind is always
ready to receive
bad guests (An idle mind is the devil’s workshop!
H. G. Bohn – 1855).
The last state of the house from which the
evil
spirit was cast out became worse
than the first, because, though it was
swept and
garnished, it was LEFT EMPTY (Matthew 12:44).
There are
plants the very vigor of which,
when they are once well established, will
prevent the growth of weeds
among them; in the struggle for existence
they are stronger
than the weeds. THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST IN
THE HEART is the
best antidote to evil thoughts.
An Evil Device (v. 10)
We have been taught by the Divine Master, Christ, that it
is from within that human
conduct takes its origin (Mark 7:15). It is the heart which
is the source alike
of good and of evil The tree bears fruit, whether sound and
wholesome and
palatable, or harsh and useless; the living well, the
fountain, sends forth
streams, whether sweet and cheering, or bitter and
polluted. So the
thoughts, intents, and devices of the heart find their
expression in the
words which reach men’s ears and in the deeds which draw
men’s eyes.
God, who knew the inmost nature of men, as well as their
individual and
political acts, revealed the secret spring of the malicious
efforts of the foes
of
into thy mind, and that thou shalt
devise an evil device.”
nature a principle assuming
various forms — impulse, propensity, passion.
If there were no such principle,
we cannot see how human life could go
forward. It is the spring, the
motive power, of the machine. It is not
implanted within us in order
that it may be eradicated, but in order that it
may be governed, directed,
controlled. In itself it is not bad. But
passions
become bad when
misdirected and uncontrolled by reason and conscience.
a certain course of action. The
mischief is wrought when the man, in the
exercise of choice, accepts as
the motive of his action, and identifies
himself with, a passion, the indulgence of which works evil, preferring such
a principle of action to a
higher and better one. The device thus adopted by
the enemies of
the expense of justice and good
feeling.
purpose, which usually accounts
for a man’s, a nation’s, evil ways. The
mischief, when isolated, might
be checked. But it is too often fostered and
thus encouraged, complicated,
and multiplied, as the mind broods upon it.
A mere fancy becomes, when
encouraged, a desire; a desire, when
encouraged, becomes a settled
purpose.
remain such; it tends to its
satisfaction. The device is a means to an end,
and achieves itself. God’s
mercies are permitted, in some cases and to
some extent, to “bring
wicked devices to pass .” (Psalm 37:7)
For wise
purposes, the Ruler of all
suffers men not only to think evil thoughts, but
to accomplish evil deeds.
proverb is a true one, “Man
proposes, God disposes.” (Thomas a Kempis)
The All-wise has His own plans,
the Almighty has His own means; and the
wisdom and the power of men,
measured against the Divine resources, will
surely be brought to nothing. “Hitherto
shalt thou go, and no further; and
here shall thy proud waves be stayed” (Job 38:11). There is no occasion for
the people of Christ to
be dismayed or overmuch distressed when evil devices
enter into the minds
of their adversaries. All is known to
their Divine Friend and
Protector, who is
abundantly able to defend and to deliver His own. “He
taketh the wise in their own craftiness” (Job 5:13; I
Corinthians 3:19), their
wisdom is seen to be but folly. “In
quietness and in confidence shall be your
strength;” (Isaiah 30:15); “The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall
hold
your peace.” (Exodus 14:14). The
enemy may devise; but he will not be
suffered to execute his
devices.
The Stability of God’s Kingdom (vs. 1-13)
The lengthened subjection of the Hebrews had sapped their
courage and
their hope. The promises of a return to
apathy and self-diffidence. A latent fear was growing up
that, even should
they regain their old possession, they would soon be
exposed to fresh
invasion from some grasping monarch. They felt their lack
of organization,
their lack of military prowess, and men devoid of energy
felt that it was
better to remain in exile than to be more completely
crushed alter a
temporary restoration. Hence Ezekiel was commissioned to
deal with this
form of indifference before it grew into active opposition.
A vision
respecting a great confederacy against
anticipates the gravest evil. He reveals to his people that
this criminal
conspiracy will end in complete disaster to its
originators, and that
triumph will be complete and perpetual. Ezekiel’s face was
set firmly
against Gog, because God’s face
was against him.
WORLDLY CONFEDERACY.
The theory that is propounded in this
prophetic picture is that
possibly all peoples adverse to righteousness will
combine against the
righteous nation. (We live in a day of godlessness
and many are prone to be vociferous and take sides against God, BUT
GOD’S WILL AND KINGDOM WILL STAND! – CY – 2014). The
empires of the extreme North
will, sooner or later, coalesce with the great
empires of Asia and
of
of a righteous and spiritual
kingdom. As darkness is the foe of light, water the
foe of fire, death the foe of
life, so selfish wickedness is the foe of goodness.
(Starting in the Garden of Eden
with Cain – Wherefore did Cain slay his
brother Abel? “Because his own works were evil, and his
brother’s
righteous!” - I
John 3:12 – CY – 2014) Sooner or later,
these two great
forces shall meet for final and
mortal combat on the earth. But the mightiest
forces are not those which are
visible. Victory will not finally sit on the
banners of largest battalions
(Those who get there firstest with the mostest –
Nathan Bedford Forrest - CY –
2014). These numbers count for nothing with
God. Minor rivalries are often forgotten by reason of a mightier
passion, viz.
a common hatred of truth and
God.
MILITARY TACTICS. Men
have enormous faith in swords and shields, in
rifles, cannons, and dynamite
(Now bombs, drones and technology – CY –
2014). Against the empire of righteousness
the most complete and prudent
preparations will be made. No
precaution foreseen by human sagacity will be
omitted. Each nation will fight
with such weapons as they can most skillfully
wield. The most clever
inventions in offensive artillery will be pressed into
service. The hostility will be
pressed on with all the arts and machinations
possible to the human mind. Yet there is a force enlisted upon the side of the
righteous kingdom
that shall baffle all human combination, and
make all
human energy to
appear as an embodiment of weakness.
Man’s strength
and skill are only borrowed instruments.
NEUTRALS. “Sheba,
and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish…
shall
say to thee, Art thou
come to take a spoil?” These peoples
were neighbors
to
desiring to see
aggressive leaders of the foe,
moved by a selfish hope that they might
avoid the toil and the peril of
war, and yet gain some advantage out of
scarcely minor to the crime of
invasion, and such neutrality will be covered
with disgrace. The most hidden
motive of man,
and in proportion to wrongdoing
will be the award. Neutrals are
usually
despised by both
sides. Nor can we forget how deeply
God felt a selfish
neutrality upon a former
occasion, when the voice of the angel said, “Curse
ye Meroz; curse ye bitterly the inhabitants of Meroz, because they came
not to the help of
the Lord against the mighty!” (Judges 5:23)
UNDER THE RESTRAINT OF JEHOVAH. Every selfish passion of man
is under the control of God. A
world of meaning is in that phrase, “I will
put hooks into thy
jaws.” At any point in the
development of the hostile
project, God could have defeated it. He could have bridled
the malicious
impulse of Gog,
the originator. He could have
deprived him of reason or of
life. He could have smitten with blindness all the leaders of
the expedition.
But God sees it to be best to
allow large liberty to wicked men. The inner
nature of wickedness is seen
when it bears its full and proper fruit. Some
plants look well in the shoot
and in the leaf, but the fruit thereof is deadly.
Men are seldom conscious of the
action of God upon them. He “girded
Cyrus” (Isaiah 45:5) with strength and courage for his work,
although Cyrus
knew him not. And Gog would pursue his brilliant march, proud of himself
and of his forces, least of all
imagining that his Royal Foe had put already
a
hook in his jaw,
and was simply leading him on to destruction. Utterly insane
is the man who dares
fight against God. The issue may be early foreseen.
The Invasion of Those
Who Dwell Secure (vs. 1-13)
The occurrence in this place of this and the following
chapters is somewhat
perplexing. The events here prophetically described take place after
the
restoration of the Israelites from their Eastern captivity. Yet they
are
altogether too stupendous to be applicable to anything which happened
in
the
time or soon after the time of Ezekiel. Thus many interpreters of
prophecy refer them to a period still in the future, when a final struggle
may take place
between the
The general moral and religious lessons of the passage are,
however,
independent of any special prophetical interpretation.
·
THE MANIFESTATION OF GOD’S FAVOR DOES NOT INVOLVE
PERFECT TRANQUILITY.
land of inheritance and promise. The hand of Divine retribution
had been
removed, and the hidden countenance of God had shone upon His
people.
But their troubles were not
over; their land was not to remain in their
undisturbed possession;
indicates a general principle of the Divine government. The Church of
Christ is a ransomed Church, a chosen and beloved
possession. But upon
earth it is the Church militant; there is a warfare to be waged;
this is not
our rest. Even in the latest period of this dispensation
repose may be
disturbed, enemies may arise, a conflict may be passed through. All
this
would be consistent with the favor and loving-kindness of the
God of
salvation.
·
SINFUL RAPACITY IS NOT DETERRED BY THE SIGNS OF
DIVINE PROTECTION. Not a few of the enemies of
defeated and put to shame, whilst
exalted. He who questioned the power and kindness of Jehovah might
well
be pointed to the history of the Hebrew people. Yet, as a
matter of fact,
there were enemies of
apparent lessons, renewed their assaults upon the objects of Divine
protection. Similarly, the
insidious, physical and moral. The enemies of religion, if they have studied
history, must be aware that Christ has built His Church upon a rock, and
that the gates of Hades do not prevail against it. (Matthew
16:18) Yet they
are not found to desist from their endeavors or to abate their
hostility. Nor
need the people of God expect to be exempt from “rude assaults
of raging
foes.”
·
THE ENEMIES OF GOD’S PEOPLE, CONSCIOUS OF THEIR
NUMBER AND THEIR POWER, REGARD THE APPARENTLY
DEFENSELESS AS AN EASY PREY. The foe is described in these
verses in a manner which depicts his formidable character. Gog and his
auxiliaries and allies are represented as preparing for the attack, as
mustering to make war upon those who are without the protection of
walls, bars, or gates. The unwalled
villages seem to invite the marauder,
and he counts the cattle and goods, the silver and gold, as
already a prey.
In like manner, the foes of the
Church, confident in their resources, relying
upon the force of their arms, encourage one another in their
hostile designs
against the Church, by observing how defenseless she appears, and
how
open to the hostile attack and the crafty strategy of her foes.
The
weapons
of her warfare are not carnal, and weapons of any other
kind are beyond
the comprehension of the foe.
·
THE AGGRESSOR SHOULD REMEMBER THAT THE LORD OF
ALL CAN CHECK AND DEFEAT THE ABLEST AND THE
MIGHTIEST. If
the Omnipotent do but say, “I am against thee,” it matters
not how formidable and vast are the hostile resources of the
enemy.
One
word from his lips, one glance from his eye, is enough to put to
confusion
all the boasted power of the foe.
·
THE DEFENSELESS SHOULD REMEMBER THAT GOD IS ABLE
IN ALL CIRCUMSTANCES TO DEFEND AND TO DELIVER HIS
OWN. The true
security of
Shield, the Stronghold of His people, and when they trusted in Him they
were safe. The Israel of God has a sure defense. “Fear
not,” says Jehovah;
“I am with thee.” The protection of the Church is not in the favor of kings
or in the arm of the warrior; it is the eternal God who is our Refuge, and
underneath us are the everlasting arms.
14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say unto Gog,
Thus saith the
Lord GOD; In that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely,
shalt thou not know it? 15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the
north parts, thou, and many people with
thee, all of them riding upon horses,
a great company, and a mighty army: 16 And thou shalt come up against my
people of
I will bring thee against my land, that the
heathen may know me, when I shall
be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.
17 Thus saith
the Lord GOD;
Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old
time by my servants the prophets of
against them? 18 And it
shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall
come against the
come up in my face. 19 For in my
jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have
I spoken,
Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of
Israel; 20
So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the
beasts of the field, and all creeping
things that creep upon the earth, and all
the men that are upon the face of the
earth, shall shake at my presence, and
the mountains shall be thrown down, and the
steep places shall fall, and
every wall shall fall to the ground.”
vs. 14-23 - The prophet is next directed to assure Gog of four things:
·
that in the latter days he should come up
against
· that he should not do so without Divine observation, permission and direction
(vs. 16-17)
· that nevertheless Jehovah’s indignation should flame forth against him
v. 18) and
·
that Jehovah would magnify himself in his destruction.
Shalt thou not know it? (v.
14) - that
Assuredly; because the barbarian chieftain will then be
on the watch, as it were,
to spy out
moment for an assault.
All of them riding upon horses (v.
15 - see on v. 4; and compare ch. 23:6;
26:7; Jeremiah 6:23; and Amos 2:15). The Scythians are said to have been
able to eat, drink, and sleep in the saddle (Schroder).
I will be sanctified in thee, O Gog. (v. 16) Jehovah meant that in taking vengeance
upon Gog for assailing
Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time? (v. 17) As no existing prophecy,
prior to Ezekiel’s time, mentions Gog
by name, it must be concluded either:
(1) that Ezekiel refers to propheies known in his day, though no longer extant, or
(2) that his words simply mean
that earlier prophets had predicted such an invasion of
The former opinion, though countenanced by Ewald, Kuenen, and Smend, is less
probable than the latter, which expositors both ancient and
modern favor.
Schroder considers the hypothesis that earlier prophets had
spoken of Gog by
name as excluded by the interrogatory form of the sentence,
since, had Cog
been thus explicitly pointed out, there would, he thinks,
have been no need
to ask, "Art thou he?" But it is doubtful if the
interrogatory form of the words
had any other intention than to lend emphasis to the
assertion that Gog was he
to whom the earlier prophets had unconsciously referred. As to which
earlier prophets he alluded opinions vary. Compare Isaiah10:6; 17:4;
Micah 5:11; Zephaniah 3:8; Isaiah 25:5, 10; Jeremiah 30:23-25;
Joel 3:2, 11; Deuteronomy 32; Isaiah 24-27; Isaiah 34; and
Numbers 24:17-24; Isaiah 14:28-32; Isaiah 18; Joel 3; Daniel 2:44-45; though
Schroder is probably correct in holding that all should be
included which
represent the hostility of the heathen world as culminating in the
latter days
in a grand concentrated attack upon
phenomenon that Ezekiel reflects upon earlier prophecies an
indication of
the declining spirit of prophetism;
it should, however, rather be regarded as
a
sign of superior spiritual insight on the part of Ezekiel, who could discern that
from the first the
prophets had been guided in their utterances by One who
was intimately
acquainted with the whole world-program, and knew the
end from the
beginning, so that however dark and
enigmatical their
predictions might be when taken separately, when viewed in
connection
they were recognized as forming parts of a harmonious whole.
The Day of
Security (v. 14)
·
THERE IS A DAY OF SECURITY. Then God’s people dwell safely.
We talk of the warfare of the
Christian life. There is a lifelong war. But this
is not a perpetual battle. There are lulls in the storm, and
quiet seasons in
the Christian contest. At such times there is a temptation to
unreasonable
ease and confidence, just as in times of trouble people are
ready to despair
and imagine that “all these things are against” them.
Still, the day of
security has its blessing, and if this is not abused it may be
welcomed as
helpful.
Ø
It affords an opportunity for recovering strength. The soldier cannot
be
always fighting. Repose is essential as a preparation for
future exertion.
Ø
It enables us to perform quiet work. The whole of
Christian experience
is not covered by the idea of warfare. There are such things
as working in
the vineyard, fruit-bearing, building up the house of God,
etc., which His
servants have to attend to, and which can be best accomplished
without
distracting thoughts, in times of security.
Ø It offers us a foretaste of heavenly
blessedness. Heaven is a safe place,
and its blessed inhabitants dwell there securely. Their
security, indeed,
is sound and enduring; while ours on earth may
be but brief and
treacherous, like the calm on a mountain lake, which may be
broken at any moment by a sudden
squall. Still, while we enjoy the
peace we may be thankful for it, and gratefully accept it as an earnest
of that in the eternal home, “where
the wicked cease from troubling,
and the weary are at rest.”
(Job 3:17)
·
THE SECURITY OF GOD’S PEOPLE IS OBSERVED BY THEIR
FOES. Gog and Magog take note of the
security of
themselves. Satan watches his opportunity, and often finds it best
when the
servants of God are quite confident in the sense of safety. The
city gates
are left open and the walls unmanned because no enemy is
expected. The
doors are unbolted at night because the householder never
imagines that
any burglar will visit his home. But these very signs of
security tempt an
attack, and, when it comes, give fatal facility to the enemy’s
projects. The
Eurydice suddenly went down
with all on board, when struck by a squall
off the
leave all the port-holes open. It must have been observed by
every one who
has watched his own experience that seasons of spiritual peace
and joy are
commonly followed by times of severe temptation. Immediately after
the
Holy Spirit descended on Jesus
He was led into the wilderness to be
tempted. Peter’s boast was swiftly followed by his denial of his
Master.
“Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed
lest he fall” (1 Corinthians
10:12).
·
THE SECURITY OF GOD’S PEOPLE REVEALS THE
ATTRACTIVENESS OF HIS SERVICE. Gog and Magog
seem to take
note of the security of
confidence of the game they are scenting out; they might also observe
it
with admiration, as Balaam did that of the tents of
24:5), as
did in Balaam (ibid. v.
17), nor malignant envy as
represents it doing in Satan. The peace of God’s people may be shared by
all, for all may become God’s people. Even Gog and Magog
may enjoy the
same security.
nation, we may see the calmness of Christian experience, and take
it as a
witness to the blessedness of the Christian privileges. Thus the
gospel is
preached by the very countenances of God’s people.
The prophet is directed to assure Gog
of four things:
(vs. 14-16);
direction (vs. 16-17);
(v. 18) and
I will
be sanctified in thee, O Gog - Jehovah
meant that taking
vengeance upon Gog for assailing
Holy and Righteous God
(v. 16). I would like to recommend a perusal of
Ezekiel – Study of God’s Use of the Word Know on this web site – CY – 2014).
Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time? But
it is doubtful if the interrogatory
form of the words had any other intention than to
lend emphasis to the assertion that
Gog was he to whom the earlier prophets had unconsciously referred. As to which
earlier prophets the alluded opinions vary. Ewald cites Isaiah
10:6; 17:4; Smend
adding
Micah 5:11; Zephaniah 3:8; Keil,
Isaiah 25:5, 10; Jeremiah 30:23, 25; Joel
4:2, 11, etc.;
Hengstenberg, Deuteronomy ch. 32.; Isaiah chapters 24-27.; 34.; and Fairbairn,
Numbers
24:17-24; Isaiah
14:28-32; ch.18.; Joel 3.; Daniel 2:44-45; though Schroder is
probably
correct in holding that all should be included which
represent the hostility of the
heathen world as culminating in the latter days in a grand
concentrated attack upon
From the first, the prophets had been guided in their utterances by One
who was
intimately acquainted with the whole world-program, and
knew the end from the
beginning, so that however dark and enigmatical their
predictions might be when
taken separately, when viewed in connection, they were
recognized as forming parts
of A HARMONIOUS WHOLE!
“Known unto God are all His works from the beginning of the
world” – Acts 15:18
(Vs. 18-19 are not, as Hitzig, Kliefoth, and others explain, on the ground of the perfect,
“I have spoken” (v. 19), which, however, is rather a
prophetical present — a free
recapitulation of the earlier predictions, but a direct
announcement through Ezekiel that
when Gog should arrive upon the
scene Jehovah should take the field against
him, so that he should have
to fight against Jehovah rather than against
(in fact Zechariah 14:3 depicts God as going forth to battle as He
did in the days of
old - miracles
today being sneered at by the secular world – not only in this chapter
but sixty-two times in Ezekiel God, Himself, says “and
they shall know that I am
the Lord” (see Ezekiel – Study of God’s Use of the Word Know referred
to above) –
Micah
7:15 says that
God will work like He did when
remember the Ten Plagues, the drying up of the
arkdiscovery.com - read
about the children of
The expression, my
fury shall come up in my face;
or, my wrath
ascends in
my nose, has parallels
in ch.24:8; Psalm 18:9; and Deuteronomy 32:22, and
describes
the vehement breathing (inhalation
and exhalation) of an angry man through his nose.
The fire of
Jehovah’s wrath (ch.21:31; 36:5) would make itself known in that day by
a great shaking in
the land of Israel, which can hardly, as
Kliefoth surmises, refer to
the final judgment, or, as Keil
thinks, to the trembling of the whole earth, with all the
creatures, before the Lord, who comes to judgment, as in
Joel 4:16 and Zechariah
14:4-5, since the locality
in which this convulsion of nature is to happen is expressly
defined as “the
Smend, as a figurative description of the terrible overthrow which
Jehovah should
inflict upon Gog, and which
should produce within the heathen mind a
feeling of
consternation, as if the whole fabric of the globe were
falling into ruin. Grounding
upon what occurred at Sinai (Exodus 19:16-18), Hebrew
writers generally depicted
special interpositions of Jehovah as being witnessed to and
accompanied by awe-
inspiring natural convulsions (Psalm 18:7, 15; 46:2, 3;
55:2; Isaiah 13:9-13;
24:19-22; Jeremiah 4:23-26; Nahum 1:5; Zechariah 14:4); and
in the same manner
does Ezekiel delineate Jehovah’s intervention in behalf of
as so alarming that all
living creatures, irrational as well as rational — fishes of the sea,
fowls of the heaven,
beasts of the field, creeping things that creep upon the earth
(or, ground — adamah), and men upon the face of the
earth; or, ground (Genesis
1:26; 7:21-23) — should shake at its accompanying
manifestations, and that even
the mightiest objects in nature, such as the mountains, steep places, or, “reek-clefts”,
such elevations as can only be ascended by means of steps
as by a ladder
(Song of Solomon 2:14), and walls (Jeremiah 15:20),
including natural ramparts
as
well as humanly constructed erections, should be overthrown (v. 20).
(Apparently a
much larger version of the demise of
CY – 2014)
An
Earthquake (vs. 19-20)
In the day of God’s jealousy and wrath there is to be a
great shaking of
sea,
air, and land, so that the very fishes and birds, as well as the beasts of
the
earth, will feel its shock.
·
AN EARTHQUAKE MAY OCCUR.
There were once two opposed
schools of geology — one believing that our earth had reached its
present
condition after successive violent catastrophes had wrought great
and
sudden changes on its surface; the other holding that the most
striking
results could be produced, and, therefore — on the principle that
the
minimum cause is the only one that one can affirm — have been
produced,
by the operation of the very forces which we now witness.
This latter, the
uniformitarian
theory, has been so well established by Sir Charles Lyell,
that few would now think of reviving the more dramatic
hypothesis.
Nevertheless, even this theory
admits of many great and violent movements
under the operation of present laws and forces. Earthquakes do
now occur.
So is it in the world of men. We
are governed by orderly Divine laws. Yet
we meet with great shocks in political changes, when empires
topple to the
dust; in social changes, when the old order is upset, as in the
French
Revolution; in domestic changes,
when a man’s quiet home-life is
ruthlessly upset, and sudden poverty, or the death of those he loves
most,
or fearful family divisions, shake him like an earthquake.
There are
earthquakes in religion, when the old beliefs are shaken or the old
practices
disturbed. Such an earthquake occurred at the advent of Christ, at
the
Reformation,
etc. There are also spiritual
earthquakes in the breasts of
individual men. The crust of self-confidence is widely torn, and
great
chasms opened in well-settled notions. Some day the
easy-going sinner will
be astonished at the earthquake shock that will disturb his
misplaced
confidence.
·
MEN SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR AN EARTHQUAKE. In
countries where such an occurrence is frequent it is necessary to
build the
walls with especial solidity, and to bind them together with
iron bands. Yet
even there the lessons of experience fade away in a season of
long security.
It is strange how villages creep
up the sides of slumbering volcanoes which
may at any moment overwhelm them in torrents of lava. We ought to be
prepared for the coming of trouble,
although all is now quiet and smiling.
This does not mean that we
should be “anxious about the morrow,” for
“sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” But the best way to dismiss
anxiety is to be well fortified against the possibility of
disaster. If we would
be prepared for the upset of our earthly home comforts, we
need to have a
deeper foundation on which to rest, so that when the things which
are
shaken are removed the things which cannot be shaken may remain
(Hebrews 12:27).
·
AN EARTHQUAKE MAY BE A BLESSING IN DISGUISE. At
first it is ruinous, and the destruction, misery, and death that
it spreads
make it appear as a huge calamity. But in changing the face of
the earth it
may prepare for a better future. Political and social
earthquakes throw
down old abuses and clear the ground for a new and better
order. God’
upsets a man’s life that He may lead the man to build afresh on a
more sure
foundation. Earthquakes in human affairs should make us look above
the
earth and have our treasure in heaven — “seeking first the
and His righteousness.”
(Matthew 6:33)
21 “And I
will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith
the Lord GOD: every man’s sword shall be against
his brother.” Every man’s
sword shall be
against his brother – in Zechariah 14:13 it is called “a great tumult
( a panic or confusion)
from the Lord shall be among them”. The consternation
produced by JEHOVAH’S
INTERPOSITION should be such that the ranks of
Gog should fall into utter
confusion, and his warriors exterminate each other, as
did the Midianites in the days of
Gideon (Judges 7:22), and the Moabites, Ammonites,
and
Mutual
Antagonism (v. 21)
·
MUTUAL ANTAGONISM IS COMMON. In primitive times it was
well-nigh universal. Pre-historic man seems to have lived in a state
of
perpetual warfare; and in the present day savages are often at war
one with
another; they maintain continuous feuds — tribe against tribe,
clan against
clan, family against family. In these later times, even in
enlightened
Christendom,
suspicious of its neighbor, which it regards as a possible enemy. The
same
miserable attitude of antagonism is held in the political world,
though here
it is generally found possible to avoid overt violence.
Government by party
means government in face of antagonism, for there is always “her
Majesty’s Opposition.” Business life is maintained on the principle of
mutual antagonism. The market is ruled by competition. Each house
of
business fiercely contends with its rivals for popular patronage.
The
relations between capital and labor have fallen into the same evil
condition,
and each side just
fights for what it can seize at the expense of the other.
Unhappily, the same spirit is observed in religion. When the Church should
be engaged in conquering the world for Christ, she is
consumed with
internal discord and the contention of mutually excommunicating
parties.
·
MUTUAL ANTAGONISM IS WRONG. It springs from an evil root
— selfishness. War is the awful fruit of national selfishness. In public
life
the good of the people is too often sacrificed to the ambition
of the
Politician or
the interest of the party. Business is
degraded into a horrible
scramble of selfishness, in which each clutches at whatever he can
lay
hands on without actually transgressing the law. Religious
selfishness is the
worst form of selfishness, for it belies the
faith it professes. In sheer bigotry
the antagonism may be honest; but bigotry is largely inspired
by a subtle,
unsuspected self-regarding spirit.
·
MUTUAL ANTAGONISM MAY BE OVERRULED FOR GOOD.
We see it in nature where no
moral ideas have dawned, and where,
therefore, no blame can be ascribed. The evolution of higher types
of life is
brought about by the struggle for existence, in which the strong
kill out the
weak, so that they only survive who are fittest for their
habitat. No doubt
national jealousy necessitates the maintenance of national vigor.
Political
partisanship keeps a watch on the government, and checks wrong-doing by
a perpetual shower of criticisms. Competitive business
cheapens produce
for the consumer; it also stimulates invention and enterprise,
and therefore
encourages progress which monopoly paralyzes. Perhaps even in
religious
rivalry we may provoke one another to good works. These results
cannot
excuse selfishness, but they may show how God overrules it for a
measure
of good.
·
MUTUAL ANTAGONISM CAN
ONLY BE CAST OUT BY
CHRISTIAN LOVE.
Reasoning will not destroy selfishness. The only cure
for war is the reign of Christ, the Prince of Peace. Internal
peace can only
be brought about by the influence of love in the hearts of
men. Christ came
to set up the kingdom of heaven on earth. One of the
essential
characteristics of this kingdom, as opposed to all earthly kingdoms, is
that
it does not appeal chiefly to self-regarding motives. It demands love of
God and of one’s
neighbor, and it inspires that love by the influence of the
constraining love of Christ.
22 “And I
will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I
will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and
upon the many people
that are with him, an overflowing rain, and
great hailstones, fire,
and brimstone. 23
Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be
known in the eyes of many nations, and they
shall know that I am
the LORD.” “Pestilence and blood (ch.
5:17; 14:19; 28:23)…..an overflowing
rain
and great hailstones” — literally, stones of ice (ch.13:11,13) — “fire, and brimstone,”
or, pitch (Genesis 19:24). The imagery here brought
together was probably borrowed
from the accounts given in the
Pentateuch of the destruction of
(Genesis 19:24), of the plagues in
the Canaanites (Joshua 10:11). (Apparently a modern example of what God did in
the Old Days happening in Contemporary Time - CY
- 2009) The result of the
whole would be to impress the
minds of “many nations” with the conviction that
HE IS GOD ALONE!
Again, I recommend arkdiscovery.com and check out what it
has to say about
The Invader Discomfited
(vs. 14-22)
Although it would be presumptuous to apply the language of
this prophetic
passage to any particular political event in the history of
many occasions upon which invasion was permitted and the soil of
invader retreated, overwhelmed with disaster and ignominy. It is
therefore
allowable to interpret great political incidences and occurrences in
the light
of
the principles here propounded upon the highest authority. At the same
time, it is just to observe that there is truth here which has a wider
range,
and
that the final confusion and destruction
of the enemies of the Lord and
of His Church are
intimated in terms which cannot be mistaken.
·
INVASION WAS PERMITTED BY THE GOD OF NATIONS. The
language which Jehovah is here represented as using, “I
will bring thee
against my land,” is very
remarkable, and must be interpreted, in
conformity with the common usage of Hebrew literature, as implying
that
all events happened by Divine permission, and may in a sense in this
universe, which is under Divine control, be attributed to the
Supreme. But
this not in such a sense as to charge God with men’s iniquity,
or to relieve
men of their proper responsibility.
·
THE INVADER WAS YET THE OBJECT OF DIVINE
DISPLEASURE.
The lust of aggrandizement and of political power was
the usual motive of the invader; and a knowledge of the Divine
character
assures us that action prompted by such motives cannot be other
than
disapproved and condemned.
·
THE INTERPOSITION OF THE MIGHTIEST CONFOUNDED
THE
MIGHTY. The terms employed to give expression
to the judicial and
retributive action of the Lord of all are most emphatic and
unqualified:
“My fury shall
come up in my nostrils; for in my jealousy and in the fire of
my wrath have I spoken I will call for a sword against him,” etc. The
means by which the invader is put to flight, and the people whom
he has
attacked are delivered, are described: “Every man’s sword shall be
against
his brother; and I will plead against him with pestilence and
with blood,”
etc.
·
GREAT AS WAS THE CONFIDENCE OF THE AGGRESSOR,
GREATER STILL WAS HIS HUMILIATION. The defeat and
consternation of the invader are forcibly depicted. He came in pride; he
departed in dishonor and disgrace. He came in numbers; he departed
a
mere remnant. He came amidst the terror of all beholders; he
departed
amidst hatred and contempt.
·
GOD GLORIFIED HIMSELF IN THE DESTRUCTION OF HIS
FOES AND IN THE DELIVERANCE OF HIS FRIENDS. God magnified
and sanctified Himself before many nations; and this He did by
openly
fulfilling His own predictions, by saving His own people, and by
confounding all the selfish and rapacious plans of His enemies.
·
APPLICATION. The principle contained in the prediction is one which is
always applicable to all God’s people, and which has an especial
reference
to those awful crises through which, it may be, the
to pass. Mysterious as it seems to us, it is yet a fact that
the Omnipotent
suffers the powers of error and of sin to gather themselves
together against
His people. But this should not strike dismay into the breasts of
Christians,
however they may feel themselves powerless and defenseless. When
they
gaze upon the hosts of their adversaries, let them remember
that “he
that
sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in
derision.”
(Psalm 2:4)
Human Malice a
Contribution to God’s Glory
(vs. 14-23)
God has a variety of methods for dealing with rebellious
men. Sometimes
He allows them to have their willful way up to the margin
of success, when
suddenly the tables are turned, and apparent success becomes
conspicuous
defeat. With vain confidence they press on their daring measures,
and are
led,
as it were, into an ambush and completely destroyed. Thus God dealt
with Pharaoh at the
unscrupulous monarch of the north. Their disastrous fortunes should
leave
on
our surviving minds the vital lesson that Jehovah is the Supreme King,
and that he is
worthy of universal homage.
·
WICKED MEN ARE THE DUPES OF SLENDEREST
TEMPTATION.
This ideal monarch-type of worldly kings-was seduced
into battle by the appearance of
nation without an army, without fortresses, without military
generals; a
nation having no visible means of protection. To evil men this
was an
irresistible bait. Now men with better dispositions would have argued,
“Here is a peaceful nation, bent
on the innocent arts of industry, devoid of
ambitious aims. They deserve our respect, and (if needful) our
protection.”
But impiety is as injurious to society as it is
offensive to God. The
slenderest hope of plunder and of territorial aggrandizement incites
them to
sharpen their weapons for human destruction. To get an empty
bubble of
fame, or gain rule over a few square miles, ten thousand precious
lives will
be sacrificed. WORSE STILL, GOD’S FAVOR WILL BE FORFEITED!
In this respect man has sunk to
a lower level than the beasts of the forest.
·
SEEMING SUCCESS IS OFTEN A SNARE TO COMPLETE
OVERTHROW. “Thou
shalt come up against my people
to cover the land.”
It seemed as if success were certain. What other result
was possible? Their multitudinous horde seemed omnipotent by
reason of
its very numbers. They could compass every town and village so
as to
prevent a single escape. This over-confidence was weakness; it
seemed to
underrate the opposing force; it served to relax discipline; it
blinded them
to the fact that invisible forces might be silently at work
against them. Thus
it happened to the first Napoleon- His brilliant successes
flushed him with
vain confidence, led him on to destruction. “Cursed
is the man who
trusteth in man” (Jeremiah 17:5); “He that trusteth
his own heart is a fool.”
(Proverbs 28:26)
·
HOSTILE INVASION AGAINST
FORESEEN BY GOD.
The knowledge of an enemy’s designs and tactics
is half-way towards defeating him. Many military commanders
succeed by
the secrecy of their projects. If one knows where and when the
foe will
strike, one can be well prepared. To be forewarned is to be
forearmed. In
this respect, the servants of God enjoy a great advantage. No design nor
project of our foes can escape the eye of our God.
The first formation of
the evil thought is clearly detected by Him, and He keeps us
well informed
of our adversaries’ schemes. In the case of Gog, the prophets
of Jehovah
had repeatedly foretold the formidable invasion; and, although
seemed unprepared for the assault,
the occasion. The issue
was secured for
·
GOD’S ENEMIES ARE OFTEN DEFEATED BY INTERNAL
STRIFE. A
confederacy cemented by wickedness is never durable. It will
not bear any strain of trial.
Men who fight for spoil soon discover that their
interests and their leaders’ interests are distinct and separate
things. Sin has
no principle of cohesion. In many cases an army has defeated itself by
internal discord.
Each man’s sword has been turned upon his comrade. So
God here announces that He will
dissolve their base alliance. “Every man’s
sword shall be against his brother.”
·
GOD’S ARMY IS COMPOSED OF UNEXPECTED FORCES. In
ancient times God has employed:
Ø
winds, storms, hail, fire, to defeat the enemies of
Ø
the sea was God’s triumphant army against Pharaoh.
Ø
the hornet to drive out the Canaanite.
Ø
Locusts have been used
as His invading regiment.
Ø
Flakes of snow to do
His destructive work.
Ø
Pestilence often as
his light brigade.
Ø
Hailstones as an irresistible artillery.
He has turned back an army by
the specter of its own superstitious fears.
Fire overthrew the cities of the
plain. The eruption of Vesuvius did a deadly
work. Every force in nature is a servant of the living God, and
in a
moment can be made a soldier, armed to the teeth. Men are slowly
discovering that God’s forces stored in nature are mightier than the brawn
of the human arm, and are depending more upon dynamite and gunpowder
than upon human strength and courage. So says God, “I will rain upon him,
and upon his bands… an overflowing rain, and great hailstones,
fire, and
brimstone.”
·
THE TRIUMPH IS WITH GOD, Mere overthrow of the enemy is not
the triumph that satisfies God. His aim is to bring light and
conviction to
men’s minds — to renew and elevate men’s best nature. “I
will plead
against him.” By means of
this defensive contest God will address Himself
to the minds and hearts of the people. “I will magnify myself.” (And
don’t
forget the 62 times in Ezekiel that God says “And ye shall know that I am
the Lord.” CY - 2022) Impossible! God cannot, magnify
Himself. He
cannot be greater than He is. But HE
WILL MAKE HIS GREATNESS
KNOWN! By such mighty deeds:
Ø
He will reveal to men His invisible power,
Ø
His matchless skill,
Ø
His various excellences,
Ø
His ineffable goodness.
Men shall discover more of His
compassion, His patience, His fatherly desire
for men’s good; and, instead of hating Him, they shall admire and honor Him.
To a large extent men fight
against God because they do not know Him. They
misconceive His government and His dispositions. Real knowledge of
God is
the road to life and bliss.
As the outcome of the final struggle, even the
“heathen shall know”
and serve the righteous King. “I will sanctify
myself.”
God Sanctifying Himself (v. 23)
Himself? Man is sanctified when
he is set apart for God; and this
sanctification is needed in the
case of man because he has been alienated
from God and devoted to the
world. Further, in the case of man,
sanctification involves
purification, and perhaps the first thought that
occurs to us when the word is
mentioned is that sin is to be purged out of
the heart, and holiness infused by
the influence of the Holy Spirit. But now
all these notions are
inapplicable to God. He is the Lord, not the servant,
and He is not, therefore, to be
thought of as set apart for any purpose. He
never failed in
His position, and He does not need the recovery and
rededication
which we understand by sanctification. Lastly,
He never sinned,
and therefore He
requires no purification. What, then,
is meant by God
sanctifying Himself? The idea
seems to be partly interpreted by the earlier
phrase, “Thus will I magnify myself.” God has not been
rightly appreciated
by men. His supreme
majesty and His ineffable holiness have been slighted.
The awful separateness of
character which distinguishes between God and
man has not been enough
regarded. Thus, though God Himself
has
remained
unchanged as He is unchangeable, His Name has been profaned.
When the Name of God is rescued
and restored to its true place of honor,
God is said to be sanctified.
God, how is it brought about? We
are here told that GOD ACCOMPLISHES
IT HIMSELF! He is the great Sanctifier. He sanctifies
His people by
His Spirit. He says, “Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself.”
Ø
This is done by revelation. God manifests
Himself. His Name was
dishonored while His greatness
was hidden. HE UNVEILS HIS
GLORY and then men are amazed to read HIS GREAT NAME!
Thus it is rescued from
degradation.
Ø
This is done in judgments. God comes down among
defiant men and
scatters His foes. The heathen once
regarded Him as on a level with their
own gods. (“These things thou hast done, and
I kept silence; thou
thoughtest I was altogether such a one as thyself: but I will reprove
thee, and set them
in order before thine eyes” Psalm
50:21). But now
His supremacy and therefore His separateness ARE SEEN!
Thus God is known among the
nations and sanctified among men.
Ø
This is done in spiritual experience. The sanctification by judgments is
an external process. It may
arouse wonder and even create conviction, but
it does not stimulate the
veneration which includes love and true worship.
But when God manifests Himself to His
people as He does not unto the
world, His holiness and His goodness are
brought home to them with a
FRESH FORCE!
Ø
This is done in the sanctification of God’s
people. They are called upon
to sanctify the Lord God in
their hearts (I Peter 3:15). When the heart
is consecrated to God, God’s
holiness is confessed as it never was before.
To be
devoted to God is the way to recognize GOD’S SUPREME GLORY!
While God can and does magnify Himself, it is our privilege and duty to magnify Him also!
Ø
It is the one
right thing for us to do. The Great One should be exalted;
the Holy One should be honored,
because He is great and holy, especially
because His greatness is the
greatness of goodness as well as of power, and
because His holiness is crowned
with patience and mercy.
Ø
To revere God and
magnify Him in our heart is the one way to our own
moral and spiritual
elevation, to nobility of character, to excellency of life.
Ø
It is distinctly the way to promote the happiness and
well-being of the
world.
Ø
In our spirit;
by cherishing in our hearts the reverence
that is “due to
His Name” (Psalm 29:2); i.e. due to Himself for all that He is and has
done for us.
Ø
In our life. (See Philippians 1:20.) By bringing all our actions into
harmony with the known will of
God; by living in such a way that we show
ourselves to be loyal subjects
of Jesus Christ, consulting His mind and
obedient to His Word in
everything; by making it clear that we are willing
to put forth any effort or
submit to any sacrifice in order that Christ may be
great in the esteem and in the
affections of men; thus we “magnify
and
sanctify” Him.
Ø
By our speech.
We need not always be introducing the
distinctive
language of religion into our
conversation; yet we may take opportunity in
the home, as well as at the desk
or in the pulpit, to commend Jesus
Christ
to the hearts of
young and old, as that Divine Savior in whom to trust, as
that Divine Lord
in whose service they will find freedom, rest,
and
ETERNAL LIFE!
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