Ezekiel 38, End Days Invasion by Gog

The prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah are given prophecies against Babylon (Isaiah 13-14; Jeremiah 50), but so far Ezekiel has not. Babylon is the tool in God’s hand to punish Israel and other nations. Some have conjectured that this prophecy (chapters 38 & 39) is a coded message (“If Magog (m-g-g) is written backward, one obtains Gagam (g-g-m). To this one applies the procedure of cryptic writing called atbaš by the rabbis, where each letter of the Hebrew alphabet is replaced by the preceding one. In this manner one obtains (b-b-l) or Babel or Babylon,” Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary) against Babylon. But it is more likely a prophecy against non-specific hordes that will attack the holy land in the end days.

1 The word of Yahweh came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshek and Tubal; prophesy against him 3 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Yahweh says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of Meshek and Tubal. 4 I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws and bring you out with your whole army—your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and a great horde with large and small shields, all of them brandishing their swords. 5 Persia, Cush and Put will be with them, all with shields and helmets, 6 also Gomer with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you.

“Ezekiel is using an ancient near Eastern literary cliché in order to designate the invading hordes. The names in Ezekiel’s list form a geographic pattern: Meshech, Tubal, Gomer, and Beth-Togarmah represent the northern extreme of the world known to Israel; Persia, Cush, and Put the eastern and southern extreme, suggesting that the whole neighboring world is involved in this attack against Israel.” (Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary)

7 “‘Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. 8 After many days you will be called to arms. In future years you will invade a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and now all of them live in safety. 9 You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm; you will be like a cloud covering the land.

10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Yahweh says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil scheme. 11 You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars. 12 I will plunder and loot and turn my hand against the resettled ruins and the people gathered from the nations, rich in livestock and goods, living at the center of the land.” 13 Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all her villages will say to you, “Have you come to plunder? Have you gathered your hordes to loot, to carry off silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods and to seize much plunder?”’

The thought will come into Gog, the prince of Magog’s, mind to attack the seemingly helpless Israel. Ezekiel tells us in chapter 39 that it is Yahweh who is rousing Magog for this purpose (39:2).

14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog: ‘This is what the Sovereign Yahweh says: In that day, when my people Israel are living in safety, will you not take notice of it? 15 You will come from your place in the far north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. 16 You will advance against my people Israel like a cloud that covers the land. In days to come, Gog, I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me when I am proved holy through you before their eyes.

The setting for the end time event is when Israel is living in safety, without walled cities. The only time this could be is during the Millennium. And this is the event depicted in Revelation 20 of when Satan, after his release from the Abyss, gathers an army from unbelievers during the millennial kingdom to attack Jesus in Jerusalem. 

[7] And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison [8] and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. [9] And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, [10] and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever. (Revelation 20:7-10, ESV)

There may be a partial fulfillment of this attack by Magog in the attack on Jerusalem by the antichrist recounted in Revelation 19 and Zechariah 14.

17 “‘This is what the Sovereign Yahweh says: You are the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel. At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against them. 18 This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign Yahweh. 19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Yahweh. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. 22 I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. 23 And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am Yahweh.’ (Ezekiel 38)

Yahweh will defeat Gog by earthquake, plague, rain, hailstones, burning sulfur, the swords of opposing armies, and confusion in Gog’s ranks that causes them to turn on each other. So great will be His anger against Gog that Gog will be completely destroyed.