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Gog as the Instrument of God

38 The Lord spoke to me. (A)“Mortal man,” he said, “denounce Gog, chief ruler of the nations of Meshech and Tubal in the land of Magog. Denounce him and tell him that I, the Sovereign Lord, am his enemy. I will turn him around, put hooks in his jaws, and drag him and all his troops away. His army, with its horses and uniformed riders, is enormous, and every soldier carries a shield and is armed with a sword. Troops from Persia, Ethiopia,[a] and Libya are with him, and all have shields and helmets. All the fighting men of the lands of Gomer and Beth Togarmah in the north are with him, and so are men from many other nations. Tell him to get ready and have all his troops ready at his command. After many years I will order him to invade a country where the people were brought back together from many nations and have lived without fear of war. He will invade the mountains of Israel, which were desolate and deserted so long, but where all the people now live in safety. He and his army and the many nations with him will attack like a storm and cover the land like a cloud.”

10 This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Gog: “When that time comes, you will start thinking up an evil plan. 11 You will decide to invade a helpless country where the people live in peace and security in unwalled towns that have no defenses. 12 You will plunder and loot the people who live in cities that were once in ruins. They have been gathered from the nations, and now they have livestock and property and live at the crossroads of the world. 13 The people of Sheba and Dedan and the merchants from the towns of Spain will ask you, ‘Have you assembled your army and attacked in order to loot and plunder? Do you intend to get silver and gold, livestock and property, and march off with all those spoils?’”

14 So the Sovereign Lord sent me to tell Gog what he was saying to him: “Now while my people Israel live in security, you will set out[b] 15 to come from your place in the far north, leading a large, powerful army of soldiers from many nations, all of them on horseback. 16 You will attack my people Israel like a storm moving across the land. When the time comes, I will send you to invade my land in order to show the nations who I am, to show my holiness by what I do through you. 17 You are the one I was talking about long ago, when I announced through my servants, the prophets of Israel, that in days to come I would bring someone to attack Israel.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

God's Punishment of Gog

18 The Sovereign Lord says, “On the day when Gog invades Israel, I will become furious. 19 I declare in the heat of my anger that on that day there will be a severe earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 Every fish and bird, every animal large and small, and every human being on the face of the earth will tremble for fear of me. Mountains will fall, cliffs will crumble, and every wall will collapse. 21 I will terrify Gog with all sorts of calamities.[c] I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken. His men will turn their swords against one another. 22 I will punish him with disease and bloodshed. Torrents of rain and hail, together with fire and sulfur, will pour down on him and his army and on the many nations that are on his side. 23 In this way I will show all the nations that I am great and that I am holy. They will know then that I am the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 38:5 Hebrew Cush: Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
  2. Ezekiel 38:14 One ancient translation set out; Hebrew know.
  3. Ezekiel 38:21 One ancient translation terrify … calamities; Hebrew unclear.

The Lord’s Great Victory Over the Nations

38 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face against Gog,(A) of the land of Magog,(B) the chief prince of[a] Meshek and Tubal;(C) prophesy against him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Gog, chief prince of[b] Meshek and Tubal.(D) I will turn you around, put hooks(E) 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.(F) Persia, Cush[c](G) and Put(H) will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer(I) with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah(J) from the far north(K) with all its troops—the many nations with you.

“‘Get ready; be prepared,(L) you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. After many days(M) 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(N) 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.(O) You and all your troops and the many nations with you will go up, advancing like a storm;(P) you will be like a cloud(Q) covering the land.(R)

10 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On that day thoughts will come into your mind(S) and you will devise an evil scheme.(T) 11 You will say, “I will invade a land of unwalled villages; I will attack a peaceful and unsuspecting people(U)—all of them living without walls and without gates and bars.(V) 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.[d] 13 Sheba(W) and Dedan(X) and the merchants of Tarshish(Y) and all her villages[e] 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?(Z)”’

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

17 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord 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 Lord. 19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake(AH) in the land of Israel.(AI) 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(AJ) at my presence. The mountains will be overturned,(AK) the cliffs will crumble(AL) and every wall will fall to the ground.(AM) 21 I will summon a sword(AN) against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord. Every man’s sword will be against his brother.(AO) 22 I will execute judgment(AP) on him with plague and bloodshed;(AQ) I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones(AR) and burning sulfur(AS) on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.(AT) 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 the Lord.(AU)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 38:2 Or the prince of Rosh,
  2. Ezekiel 38:3 Or Gog, prince of Rosh,
  3. Ezekiel 38:5 That is, the upper Nile region
  4. Ezekiel 38:12 The Hebrew for this phrase means the navel of the earth.
  5. Ezekiel 38:13 Or her strong lions