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Prophecy about Gog and Future Invasion of Israel

38 Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face toward (A)Gog of the land of (B)Magog, the (C)chief prince of (D)Meshech and (E)Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say, ‘This is what the Lord [a]God says: “Behold, I am against you, Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. So I will turn you around and put hooks into your jaws, and I will (F)bring you out, and all your army, (G)horses and horsemen, all of them magnificently dressed, a great contingent with shield and [b]buckler, all of them wielding swords; (H)Persia, [c](I)Cush, and (J)Put with them, all of them with buckler and helmet; (K)Gomer with all its troops; (L)Beth-togarmah from the remote parts of the north with all its troops—many peoples with you.

(M)Be ready, and be prepared, you and all your contingents that are assembled around you, and be a guard for them. (N)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 (O)gathered from many [d]nations to the (P)mountains of Israel which had been a continual place of ruins; but [e]its people were brought out from the [f]nations, and they are (Q)living securely, all of them. And you will go up, you will come (R)like a storm; you will be like a (S)cloud covering the land, you and all your troops, and many peoples with you.”

10 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “It will come about on that day, that [g]thoughts will come into your mind and you will (T)devise an evil plan, 11 and you will say, ‘I will go up against the land of [h](U)unwalled villages. I will go against those who are (V)at rest, who live securely, all of them living without walls and having no bars or gates, 12 to (W)capture spoils and to seize plunder, to turn your hand against the ruins that are now inhabited, and against the people who are gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who live at the [i]center of the world.’ 13 (X)Sheba and (Y)Dedan and the merchants of (Z)Tarshish with all its [j]villages will say to you, ‘Have you come to capture spoils? Have you assembled your contingent to seize plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to capture great (AA)spoils?’”’

14 “Therefore prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “On that day when My people Israel are (AB)living securely, will you not know it? 15 (AC)You will come from your place out of the remote parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding horses, a large assembly and a mighty army; 16 and you will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It shall come about in the last days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may (AD)know Me when I (AE)show Myself holy through you before their eyes, Gog.”

17 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Are you the one of whom I spoke in former days through My servants the prophets of Israel, who (AF)prophesied in those days for many years that I would bring you against them? 18 It will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel,” declares the Lord God, “that My fury will mount up in My (AG)anger. 19 In My (AH)zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare that on that day there will certainly be a great [k](AI)earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 (AJ)The fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the animals of the field, all the crawling things that crawl on the earth, and all mankind who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; and the (AK)mountains will be thrown down, the steep pathways will [l]collapse, and every wall will fall to the ground. 21 And I will call for a (AL)sword against [m]him on all My mountains,” declares the Lord God. “(AM)Every man’s sword will be against his brother. 22 With plague and with blood I will enter into (AN)judgment with him; and I will rain on him and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, [n]a torrential rain, (AO)hailstones, fire, and brimstone. 23 So I will prove Myself great, show Myself holy, and (AP)make Myself known in the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am the Lord.”’

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 38:3 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord, and so throughout the ch
  2. Ezekiel 38:4 I.e., small shield
  3. Ezekiel 38:5 Or Ethiopia
  4. Ezekiel 38:8 Lit peoples
  5. Ezekiel 38:8 Lit it was
  6. Ezekiel 38:8 Lit peoples
  7. Ezekiel 38:10 Lit words
  8. Ezekiel 38:11 Or open country
  9. Ezekiel 38:12 Lit navel
  10. Ezekiel 38:13 As in ancient versions; MT young lions
  11. Ezekiel 38:19 Or shaking
  12. Ezekiel 38:20 Lit fall
  13. Ezekiel 38:21 I.e., Gog
  14. Ezekiel 38:22 Lit an overflowing

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

A Message for Gog

38 This is another message that came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, turn and face Gog of the land of Magog, the prince who rules over the nations of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him. Give him this message from the Sovereign Lord: Gog, I am your enemy! I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws to lead you out with your whole army—your horses and charioteers in full armor and a great horde armed with shields and swords. Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya[a] will join you, too, with all their weapons. Gomer and all its armies will also join you, along with the armies of Beth-togarmah from the distant north, and many others.

“Get ready; be prepared! Keep all the armies around you mobilized, and take command of them. A long time from now you will be called into action. In the distant future you will swoop down on the land of Israel, which will be enjoying peace after recovering from war and after its people have returned from many lands to the mountains of Israel. You and all your allies—a vast and awesome army—will roll down on them like a storm and cover the land like a cloud.

10 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: At that time evil thoughts will come to your mind, and you will devise a wicked scheme. 11 You will say, ‘Israel is an unprotected land filled with unwalled villages! I will march against her and destroy these people who live in such confidence! 12 I will go to those formerly desolate cities that are now filled with people who have returned from exile in many nations. I will capture vast amounts of plunder, for the people are rich with livestock and other possessions now. They think the whole world revolves around them!’ 13 But Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish will ask, ‘Do you really think the armies you have gathered can rob them of silver and gold? Do you think you can drive away their livestock and seize their goods and carry off plunder?’

14 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy against Gog. Give him this message from the Sovereign Lord: When my people are living in peace in their land, then you will rouse yourself.[b] 15 You will come from your homeland in the distant north with your vast cavalry and your mighty army, 16 and you will attack my people Israel, covering their land like a cloud. At that time in the distant future, I will bring you against my land as everyone watches, and my holiness will be displayed by what happens to you, Gog. Then all the nations will know that I am the Lord.

17 “This is what the Sovereign Lord asks: Are you the one I was talking about long ago, when I announced through Israel’s prophets that in the future I would bring you against my people? 18 But this is what the Sovereign Lord says: When Gog invades the land of Israel, my fury will boil over! 19 In my jealousy and blazing anger, I promise a mighty shaking in the land of Israel on that day. 20 All living things—the fish in the sea, the birds of the sky, the animals of the field, the small animals that scurry along the ground, and all the people on earth—will quake in terror at my presence. Mountains will be thrown down; cliffs will crumble; walls will fall to the earth. 21 I will summon the sword against you on all the hills of Israel, says the Sovereign Lord. Your men will turn their swords against each other. 22 I will punish you and your armies with disease and bloodshed; I will send torrential rain, hailstones, fire, and burning sulfur! 23 In this way, I will show my greatness and holiness, and I will make myself known to all the nations of the world. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. 38:5 Hebrew Paras, Cush, and Put.
  2. 38:14 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads then you will know.

38 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him,

And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:

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 armour, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords:

Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet:

Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.

Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.

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 Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.

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 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of 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?

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 Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and 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 Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?

18 And it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord God, that my fury shall 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.

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.

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.

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.