Almost all my blogs originate from horrific teachings or conversations which demonstrate how little we know or understand. The Wars of the End Times is no exception.
There are a number of wars connected with the end times. Names associated with these wars include God and Magog; Armageddon. Locations are the mountains of Israel and the Megiddo valley.
The Gog/Magog war of Ezekiel 38 and 39
What are the questions that concern us as we try to answer when this battle takes place and who is involved?
Where does this person or army come from?
Ezekiel 38:15 NASB "You will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great assembly and a mighty army;
Magog is considered to be in the North, and it is often defined as Moscow, the capital of Russia. However, there are other nations that lie directly north of Israel, and they are Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.
Ezekiel 38:2 NASB "Son of man, set your face toward Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him
Although traditional generalizations point to Moscow, there is another city, which fits in many compelling ways, called Ankara; this just happens to be the capital of Turkey. Because they are a Muslim nation, they may easily exceed Russia in their hatred for Israel.
So when does this war take place?
All we seem to have is a logical assumption. Verses 19 and 20 may give us some clues, though.
Ezekiel 38:19-20 NASB "In My zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare that on that day there will surely be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. (20) "The fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; the mountains also will be thrown down, the steep pathways will collapse and every wall will fall to the ground.
Because these events sound much like the events we find in Great Tribulation - God's wrath, it is easy to assume that they take place within this time period.
There are some considerations we have to entertain:
The temple must be rebuilt, and as yet, there is no clear decision where to put it. There may be a solution for that, and we find it in Ezekiel 39:1-6
Look at phrases like:
- “I am against you and will bring you against the mountains of Israel.”
- “I will strike your bow from your left hand and dash down your arrows from your right hand. And, I will send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands in safety;”
- On that day I will give Gog a burial ground there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea, and it will block off those who would pass by.
The strongest potential for a war like this would be now or right after the rapture of the church. And yet, if you apply logic to scripture, where you see the Antichrist crying peace peace, you know must be a reason. Just look around you, and all you see is an escalation of violent talk and actions. As I pointed out, Magog will descend upon the mountains of Israel when the fire from God comes down. The potential for that fire destroying the Mosque that sits there is good, and, this may allow for immediate action in building the third and final temple.
All these considerations have a time frame, and therefore it makes sense that this Gog Magog war is poised to happen quickly and soon.
Do yourself a favor and read Ezekiel 38 and 39.
Another contender for last days Wars is Psalm 83
When you read this, you have to ask, is this present tense or a future event. This question is one of the main reasons why people will say that understanding the Bible is so difficult. The question, however, is necessary; will prompt you to study further, and, give you a greater understanding, should you pursue the answer.
Psalms 83:1-18 NASB A Song, a Psalm of Asaph. O God, do not remain quiet; Do not be silent and, O God, do not be still. (2) For behold, Your enemies make an uproar, And those who hate You have exalted themselves. (3) They make shrewd plans against Your people, And conspire together against Your treasured ones. (4) They have said, "Come, and let us wipe them out as a nation, That the name of Israel be remembered no more." (5) For they have conspired together with one mind; Against You they make a covenant: (6) The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites; (7) Gebal and Ammon and Amalek, Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre; (8) Assyria also has joined with them; They have become a help to the children of Lot. Selah. (9) Deal with them as with Midian, As with Sisera and Jabin at the torrent of Kishon, (10) Who were destroyed at En-dor, Who became as dung for the ground. (11) Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb And all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna, (12) Who said, "Let us possess for ourselves The pastures of God." (13) O my God, make them like the whirling dust, Like chaff before the wind. (14) Like fire that burns the forest And like a flame that sets the mountains on fire, (15) So pursue them with Your tempest And terrify them with Your storm. (16) Fill their faces with dishonor, That they may seek Your name, O LORD. (17) Let them be ashamed and dismayed forever, And let them be humiliated and perish, (18) That they may know that You alone, whose name is the LORD, Are the Most High over all the earth.
The common assumption is that Psalm 83 is segregated from all other wars; but is it?
Ezekiel 38:8-10 NASB "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. (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." (10) 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "It will come about on that day, that thoughts will come into your mind and you will devise an evil plan,
Does the following statement, extracted from the paragraph above, have the potential for demonstrating that Israel will be surrounded?
"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."
Certainly, it does; the problematic aspect is the lack of mountains in the Southern regions of Israel and the idea that Gog would be brought down upon the mountains of Israel - in the north. But we ignore verses like:
Ezekiel 39:5-6 NASB "You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken," declares the Lord GOD. (6) "And I will send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands in safety; and they will know that I am the LORD.
This verse also speaks of God's wrath falling upon those in the fields and the coastlands. Many see the coast lands as the islands of the Mediterranean. If that is the case, then the scene has been expanded far beyond the limitations of the mountains of Israel.
Since we like to see parallel evidence, then let's consider some other examples that demonstrate multiple nations arising against Israel.
Ezekiel 30:3-6 NASB "For the day is near, Even the day of the LORD is near; It will be a day of clouds, A time of doom for the nations. (4) "A sword will come upon Egypt, And anguish will be in Ethiopia; When the slain fall in Egypt, They take away her wealth, And her foundations are torn down. (5) "Ethiopia, Put, Lud, all Arabia, Libya and the people of the land that is in league will fall with them by the sword." (6) 'Thus says the LORD, "Indeed, those who support Egypt will fall And the pride of her power will come down; From Migdol to Syene They will fall within her by the sword," Declares the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 38:4-5 NASB "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; (5) Persia, Ethiopia and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet;
Jeremiah 46:7-10 NASB 7 Who is this that comes up as a flood, whose waters are moved as the rivers? 8 Egypt rises up like a flood, and his waters are moved like the rivers; and he says, I will go up, and will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof. 9 Come up, all of you horses; and rage, all of you chariots; and let the mighty men come forth; the Ethiopians and the Libyans, that handle the shield; and the Lydians, that handle and bend the bow. 10 For this is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood: for the Lord GOD of hosts has a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
A quick overview of potential nations are:
- Persia (Modern day Iran, however, the range was must larger encompassing all of the Assyria.)
- Ethiopia, Put (Most associate Put with Libya)
- Lydia “along with Caria, Mysia, and Phrygia, a part of the Roman province of Asia (see ASIA). Chief among its cities were Smyrna and Ephesus, two of the most important in Asia Minor, and Smyrna is still the largest and wealthiest city of that part of Turkey.” (Morrish)
- Lud, Ludim [Lu'dim] and the Lydians are one and the same. They are said to have inhabited northwest Africa. This may align with the Sudan.
- Nations that come against Israel and where they come from.
If it helps with understanding a look at genealogies will clear things up.
And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan. (Gen 10:6)
If this sounds familiar, that is because Ham was one of Noah's sons, and, he was the one who “saw” his father's nakedness and was cursed for it.
Son of Mizraim
Gen 10:13 (UKJV) And Mizraim brings forth Ludim, and Anamim, and Lehabim, and Naphtuhim,
1 Chronicles 1:11-12 NASB (11) Mizraim became the father of the people of Lud, Anam, Lehab, Naphtuh, (12) Pathrus, Casluh, from which the Philistines came, and Caphtor.
Mizraim's descendants are mentioned with Phut and are held to have inhabited the northwest of Africa. Isa. 66:19; Ezek. 27:10. The same district is called LYDIA (though the Hebrew is simply Lud) and its inhabitants, LYDIANS, in Jer. 46:9; Ezek. 30:5. (From a commentary by Moresh)
The Sons of Shem. Gen. 10:22; 1 Chr. 1:17. See SHEM.
Shem had five sons:
- ELAM — originally settled in the province of Persia, of which Susa was the capital.
- ASSHUR — strictly Assyria, but in an extended sense may have included Babylonia and the land of the Chaldees.
- ARPHAXAD — recognized by Josephus and others as the father of the Chaldees. The name is supposed to have been preserved in the province Arrapachitis in northern Assyria.
- LUD — said by Josephus to have been the father of the Lydians of Asia Minor (these are distinct from the Lud and Ludim in Africa).
- ARAM — the name of Syria, but more especially, referring to the high land of Lebanon. Gen. 5:32; Gen. 9:18-27; Gen. 10:21-31; Gen. 11:10, 11; 1 Chr. 17:24. In Luke 3:36 the same name is called SEM.
All of these have had deadly results upon Israel and played various roles in their captivity and dispersion among the nations.
So, we have one decisive battle, the Gog/Magog war, and one possibility, an unnamed war in which Israel is surrounded; however, Israel is and always has been surrounded by enemies. The descriptions we see in Psalm 83 could easily apply to the Gog/Magog war.
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