Ezequiel 38
Warren Wiersbe · Citado em PreceptAustin
Ezequiel 38
Wiersbe - The prophet encourages his listeners (and readers) by telling them the end of the story even before he begins: God will defeat this vast coalition army and rescue His people Israel in their land (Ezek 38:3-4a). O Gog, prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal - Much has been written about who these names represent. I think that as the events of these two chapters begin to unfold, those who are living (and have the spiritual eyes to see) at that particular time will readily discern to whom these names refer. In the meantime, we must be cautious in offering interpretations which are too dogmatic. Joel Rosenberg - In my first novel (written in 2001 before 9/11, but published in November 2002), The Last Jihad, I wrote that in order for Israelis to feel secure enough to set into motion Ezekiel’s “War of Gog and Magog,” Saddam Hussein could no longer be the ruler of Iraq. After all, Iraq is not mentioned as one of the countries that is part of the Russian-Iranian alliance against Israel. Moreover, how could Israelis feel secure with the “Butcher of Baghdad” in power, a man who fired 39 Scud missiles at Israel and threatened to use chemical weapons to “scorch half of Israel” back in 1990? They couldn’t, which is why I wrote about a kamikaze attack by radical Islamic terrorists against an American city that would lead to a war between the U.S. and Saddam Hussein over fears of a link between Iraqi-sponsored terrorism and weapons of mass destruction. Remarkably, these events have actually come to pass in real life. In my second novel, The Last Days, I wrote about the death of Arafat and a civil war that would ensue afterwards between the secular nationalist forces of the Palestinians (Fatah) and the Islamic Jihadists in the West Bank and Gaza (Hamas), vying for control in Arafat’s absence. That was fiction, but in real life Arafat ended up dying 13 months after the novel was published, and the battle between Fatah and Hamas erupted almost immediately. Ezekiel 38:4 "I will turn you about and put hooks into your jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them wielding swords: I will turn you about - God's sovereign control is clear in these events (cp Pr 21:1). This is not simply Gog's evil plan, but is God's good plan to bring an enemy against His chosen people. Why? I would propose His ultimate purpose is His glory and acclaim because at the end of this chapter He says... So the nations may know Me when I am sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog...And I shall magnify Myself, sanctify Myself, and make Myself known in the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am the LORD.” (Ezek 38:23, cp Ezek 36:23) Turn...put...bring - God orchestrates this assembling of forces. The implication is that Gog will not be able to resist God's hooks! However in Ezek 38:10 God acts freely to accomplish his evil goals. Compare Ezekiel 38:16 "I will bring you against My land." Ezekiel 38:5 Persia, Ethiopia and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet: Persia, Ethiopia, and Put - Here we see a confederation of forces that join with God to oppose Israel (the other members of the confederation are seen in Ezek 38:6). Persia is surely modern day Iran. Ethiopia is a modern nation in 2013. Put is thought by many to be Libya. "Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya" are all ancient nations; they are still important nations collaborating "after many days" (Ezekiel 38:8), with the northern confederation to go against Israel. Shield and helmet - This pictures these nations as prepared for war. and are heavily armed. Ezekiel 38:6 Gomer with all its troops; Beth-togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops--many peoples with you.: Gomer - Also pictured as prepared for war with "all its troops." Beth-togarmah - Is prepared for war. With you - The Lord God is addressing Gog who clearly is the leader of the multinational forces. Ezekiel 38:7 "Be prepared, and prepare yourself, you and all your companies that are assembled about you, and be a guard for them.: God continues to address Gog calling him into the fray. God instructs Gog to be prepared. Prepared for what though? From the previous context (as well as the following), God is commanding Gog to be ready for war. Application: If the enemies of God are supposed to be prepared, how much more should the Church of Jesus Christ be ready at all times! Ezekiel 38:8 "After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them.: After many days (literally "in the end of years") (Expressions of time should always prompt questions like "When?," "Why?", etc) - After how many days? After which days? The context does not allow one to be dogmatic. After many days "alludes to the nearly identical phrase "end of days," which designates the time of the messianic kingdom (Gen 49:1-days to come; Isa 2:2-last days; Jer 23:20-last days; Jer 30:24-note- latter days; Hos 3:5-last days; Mic 4:1-last days)." (HCSB) You will be summoned - You refers to Gog. He will be visited (KJV) or mustered (as soldiers are mustered) as an army who would come the land. Who summons Gog? This text does not say, but the context suggest this is God's summons. Scripture refers to God's sovereignty over earthly kings, as when Jehovah called "Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon My servant" who would defeat Judah and take her captive (as well as other nations) into a seventy year exile in Babylon. (Jer 25:9, 11), but who would also be held responsible for his willful actions (cp Ezek 38:10-11 where we see Gog has an evil plan)! This mysterious juxtaposition of divine sovereignty and human responsibility permeates the pages of Holy Writ! The land (Erets) - The Promised Land. Israel. God's land ("My land" - Ezek 38:16) It is notable that Israel is NEVER called "Palestine" in the Bible. Other names of "the land" include "Canaan" and "the land of Israel." The Land - This specific phrase 12x in 12v - Ezek 38:2, 8, 9, 11, 16, 18, 19; 39:12, 13, 14, 15, 16 and all but Ezek 38:2 refer to the Land of Israel. In the latter (acharith) years (shanah) =This would seem to be synonymous with the similar phrase "Last days" Ezekiel 38:16 - and you [Gog] will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It will come about in the last days that I shall bring you against My land, in order that the nations may know Me when I shall be sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog.” - The Greek (Lxx) literally reads "upon last years." This is the only occurrence of this specific phrase in Scripture. While we can answer the question of "who" are the "players" in Ezekiel 38-39 (albeit their literal interpretation is more problematic), "when" the latter years occur is less clear. It is not surprising that there have been a number of future fulfillments proposed by conservative, premillennial scholars regarding the "when" of Ezekiel 38-39... 1) Before the Tribulation (Daniel's Seventieth Week - The Seven Year Period) 2) Near the beginning of the Tribulation (7 Years) 3) Sometime just before the middle of the Tribulation (before the beginning of the last 3.5 years which Jesus designated specifically as the Great Tribulation) 4) At the end of the Tribulation (7 Years) 5) Period between end of Tribulation and establishment of Messiah's millennial kingdom 6) At the end of the Millennium. MacArthur feels these events will occur at "the end of the future tribulation period of 7 years. Israel will have been under a false peace in treaty with the Antichrist (Da 9:27; 11:22, 24), before he turns on them in the “abomination of desolation” (Mt 24:15; cf. Da 9:27). The false peace will end in hostility lasting to the completion of the 7 years (Zec 14:1-3). When this final war occurs (cf. Rev 16:12-16), Christ will ultimately conquer the beast, the false prophet, and all the ungodly forces (Rev 19:11-21) in order to establish His millennial kingdom (Rev 20:1-10). Ezekiel 38:9 "You will go up, you will come like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the Land , you and all your troops, and many peoples with you.": Like a storm (cp parallel description in Ezek 38:16) - Suddenly, ferociously the anti-Semitic confederacy will come against the Promised Land. The invasion is most likely a "surprise attack" for it occurs at a time when Israel is dwelling securely (Ezek 38:11, cp Ezek 34:27, 28, 38:8, 14, 39:26). Like a cloud covering the land - descriptive of the extent of this invasion. "The cloud and the storm are common images in biblical literature announcing prophetic threats (Jer 4:13)." (HCSB) All your troops (bands = KJV) - Henry
Ezequiel 38
Wiersbe - The decisions made in the war room of Magog will conform to the will of the Lord who planned this invasion for His own purposes. God in no way violated their own freedom to think and decide, but He overruled Gog’s decisions for His own purposes, just as He did with Babylon (Ezek 21:18-24). “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Pr 16:33, nkjv). Ezekiel 38:11 and you will say, 'I will go up against the Land of unwalled villages. I will go against those who are at rest, that live securely, all of them living without walls and having no bars or gates,: I will go up against the land of unwalled villages - Gog plots her attack on unsuspecting Israel. Israel is unaware (except those who have read and understood this prophecy) that Yahweh will allow an assault on their secure land. Live securely (cp Ezek 34:27, 28, 38:8, 14, 39:26) - This indicates that this invasion will occur in a time of ostensible "peace" in the Land of Israel. We do know from Da 9:27 (note) that the Antichrist will make a seven year covenant with Israel, so that in the first 3.5 years Israel will be living in relative "peace" ("unwalled villages...living securely...without walls...bars...gates"). John MacArthur feels that after the Antichrist breaks his covenant with Israel at the midpoint (3.5 years) of the seven year covenant, "there is an escalation of hostility until the end of the 7 years when this great force (described in Ezekiel 38-39) comes to plunder Jerusalem and the Promised Land (Ezek 38:12)." This is a reasonable consideration but one cannot be dogmatic. Ezekiel 38:12 to capture spoil and to seize plunder, to turn your hand against the waste places which are now inhabited, and against the people who are gathered from the nations, who have acquired cattle and goods, who live at the center of the world.': Spoil...plunder - Greed and lust for wealth is one reason for Gog's invasion (although there may be others - see Wiersbe's comment below). Wiersbe speculates - "Perhaps these nations also want to prevent the rebuilding of the Jewish temple. The nations named are identified with Islam, and they would want to protect the “Dome of the Rock,” a revered Muslim monument which has stood on the temple site for centuries." Center (midst) of the world ("navel of the earth") - Some say this speaks of central in terms of God's purposes for Israel but others see Israel as the geographical center of the world. The Hebrew word for center (tabbur) can also be translated "navel." In the Septuagint, tabbur is translated with the Greek noun omphalos (Latin = umbilicus) which means anything central (like a navel as it is translated in Song 7:3!) HCSB - It could be argued that theologically Jerusalem will be both the center of the land of Israel and indeed of all the earth. Speaking of Jerusalem... Thus says the Lord God, ‘This is Jerusalem; I have set her at the center of the nations, with lands around her. (Ezekiel 5:5) Modern computer studies have shown that Jerusalem is, indeed, very near the geographical center of all the earth's land areas and, therefore, the "center of the nations". Here in Ezekiel (Ezek 38:14) refers to those who live at Jerusalem as those "who live at the center (navel) of the world." Why does God make this geographical point? God had called Israel to be a light to the nations and placed her strategically in their midst to facilitate the fulfillment of her calling. Yet she rebelled and rejected her "yoke" of responsibility. In Deuteronomy God had instructed Israel to "Faithfully obey these laws. This will show the people of the world your wisdom and insight. When they hear about all these laws, they will say, "What wise and insightful people there are in this great nation!" (New Living Translation) (Dt 4:6) Believers are given a similar charge by Jesus who reminds us that our purpose is to be "the salt of the earth but if the salt has become tasteless, how will it be made salty again? It is good for nothing anymore, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp, and put it under the peck-measure, but on the lampstand; and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." (Mt 5:13-16) Are you redeeming the time, letting your light shine? Or have you lost your savor like Israel and in danger of being thrown out and trampled under foot by men? As