Chapter 39
Another prophecy, or a repetition of a sort of things said in 38. God repeats that He is against Gog. This verse:
2 And I will turn you about and drive you forward, and bring you up from the uttermost parts of the north, and lead you against the mountains of Israel. [Eze 39:2 ESV] This shows that though Gog is "leading", it will be God that is determining the course of events. Gog is kidding himself that he is acting on his own will. God will send fire, on Gog and those with him, and on those who dwell securely in the coast lands. Other nations around Israel, maybe, who are protected by their proximity, though they are not following God? He will know their hearts, and destroy them with the invading army.
2025 - So there is this reference to the birds and beasts feasting on the dead from this battle. (I wonder if it will be Rosh who attacks both Pre- and Post-Millennial? Is that why it is so confusing here, so difficult to identify the time?) Jesus himself says that "where the vultures gather...37 And they said to him, "Where, Lord?" He said to them, "Where the corpse is, there the vultures will gather." [Luk 17:37 ESV], which is either about the rapture or the second advent...and this would put us back to the Pre-Millennial battle. At this point, after this long on it today, I am giving up. Maybe it will all click next year when I read it.
Those of Israel will go out and plunder the dead. They will use spears and weapons as fuel for 7 years there will be so many dead. It will take this long to clean up the bodies. They will all be buried in a place called Hamon-Gog. It gets confusing for me here. Now it is saying this is Armageddon, and that it will start at the end of the tribulation - the burial and clean up will start then - and that it will extend into the beginning of the Millennial reign. I though earlier it was indicating that this happens at the END of the Millennial. The last battle. Seven years of fuel, seven months to bury the dead. (2020-The verses strike me this year as the battle at the end of Great Trib, before the Millennial begins. Last year, I though this battle was after the Millennial. So...hmm....)
It goes on to say that the birds and beasts will be drunk with the blood of the dead. Israel will see that God is holy, and will understand that His punishment of them was justified and necessary, and that now, He is bringing them to the land. It will be forever this time. ALL the Jews will be brought home. None will be left out. This summary verse, the last verse of this chapter:
29 And I will not hide my face anymore from them, when I pour out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD." [Eze 39:29 ESV]
This sounds like the Millennial.
I need to spend some more time on these two chapters - 38 and 39 - and read someone besides MSB...though I need to go back and read ALL the MSB notes. I will also want to see what Ironside says about these chapters. Hopefully, there will be time to do this today and I can supplement these notes. This prophecy is so specific in its details of this battle that I have to believe it can be tied right into Revelation, as an expansion of the information there. Like a map folding out.
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A little later in the day 11/4/19. Looking at Ironside's book on Ezekiel, he holds that Chapters 38 and 39 are all one prophecy of "a vast confederation of nations from north of the Black and Caspian Seas, extending down to Persia on the east, and to North Africa on the southwest...." This will take place in the latter days. Ironside pins it down to the time toward the end of the great tribulation. So the church will be long gone, Antichrist will be in power, and recognized by all, the covenant he makes with Israel will have been broken. This fits with John MacArthur's position in the MacArthur Study Bible (MSB) that this battle will take place before, but very near the time when the Millennial Kingdom will be established by Jesus, possibly as a direct consequence of this great battle. The "clean up" described in Chapter 39 will therefore run into the Millennial itself. Ironside goes on to identify Rosh, Meshech and Tubal as Russia, all named in Eze 38:2. MSB disagrees on this part, saying that perhaps some of southern Russia is involved, but primarily Turkey. And remember, no matter who you listen to, the army will come from all around Israel, not just the north. This interpretation says the battle in Eze 38 is the same one described in Rev 19:17-21. Here, it tells the birds and beasts to get ready for a feast. That army is defeated by the rider on the white horse, named "The Word of God". This is Jesus coming at the head of his own army to establish the Millennial Kingdom. Neither Gog nor Magog is named. The combatants will be "the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled". So some of the language of Eze 38 is found in 19, at the pre-millennial battle. Gog and Magog are in chapter 20, at the post-millennial battle.
The other battle it could refer to is in Rev 20. Gog and Magog are spoken of directly in Rev 20. This battle is at the end of the Millennial, and is led by Satan himself. Satan is imprisoned in the bottomless pit with the Beast and the Antichrist during the Millennial but is released at the end. Once released, he raises an army - Gog and Magog - and attacks Jerusalem one last time. He is defeated. After this battle comes the White Throne Judgement. This is the second death. So...if all who just died in the battle are immediately resurrected for the White Throne Judgement, there'd be no need of a clean up. Since both 19 and 20 reference the kings of the earth, we can include Gog and Magog in both, whether specifically mentioned or not. Both battles will be the whole world against Christ.
I think this battle will be used to put an end to those born during the Millennial who are not saved, who still rebel against God and His Kingdom in Israel, and following the Battle, comes the second resurrection and the second death. This interpretation depends almost entirely on the phrase "Gog and Magog" being used in Rev 20, but not in Rev 19. In any case, there are two different battles, one in 19 and one in 20 of Revelation.
These notes from reading Isaiah 9 on 11/25/21:
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. [Isa 9:6 ESV]
In vs 7 is the phrase "...from this time forth and forevermore...". So this is all the way out to the new Jerusalem, this is post-Millennial I think...but maybe not. Jesus' reign begins during Tribulation, and he is never unseated.
2021 - It seems definitely about one of those last two battles. This is second advent stuff, and that probably makes this the end of Great Tribulation. So this places this prophecy, and Ezekiel 39.
2022 - If though, the defeat of this army wipes out all the lost remaining on earth, why, instead of going immediately to the GWT, do we have seven months of gathering and burying the bodes, of birds and beasts feasting on bodies and so on. If for seven months they are all to be buried, then how long after that are ALL the dead resurrected to stand before the GWT? How does that all work? AHHH!!!! Reading my own notes indicates that this battle is pre-Millennial and not the last battle.
I am too worn out to tackle it. Many things fit well together if this is the post-Millennial battle...but different ends are left loose - like that 7 months of burying. Might indeed be better to interpret this as the battle that occurs upon Christ's second coming. But that leaves us once again with many questions as to where that final army post-millennial comes from
There's just a whole lot of stuff in the Bible, and it takes a lot of time even to begin assimilating it all.
2024 - So after reading all this today, I want to summarize what I'm thinking. The Valley of Dry Bones tells us that Israel is to be restored. This may well include the resurrection of the Jews who died from Ezekiel's time until the day of Dry Bones. I think this will happen during tgt - but I can't say exactly where in there. My best guess is that it will begin just after the rapture. So the Jews will come home. Then, as they are getting established, and as tgt ends, Christ will appear for the second time, descend to earth, and sit on the throne of David in Zion, and all the Jews, on all the planet, and perhaps from all time, will gather there in the land. Satan, the beast, through the MoL, has had his way for some time, and when Christ appears, will seize it as a chance to confront him directly and depose him. This will not go well for the beast. Millions of dead will be food for the birds and beasts during the seven months it takes to bury the bodies of those slain. This time period likely overlaps into the Millennial. I think this makes pretty good sense of these three chapters.
2026 - The repetition goes on and on. Same phrases repeated over and over and over. It makes it hard to read. It begins to lose the 1,2,3 punch that it had at the first. I have never noticed it before, but it just goes on and on. One could pull out dozens of instances of this repetition. First "son of man speak the words of the Lord God", then say "Thus says the Lord God", then "The Lord God says"...that kind of repetition. Here's your job. Here's what you say. Then Ezekiel says it. Over and over.