Navigation:
|
Ezekiel 38, The Arab League, and The Pre-Trib Rapture
One could make the case that Ezekiel 38 is the ancient rabbinical version of Armageddon.
Authors like Hal Lindsey have made this case. Others, Like Dr. Chuck Missler and author Grant Jeffrey have
suggested that Ezekiel 38 happens just prior to or simultaneously with the beginning of the Tribulation Period.
When we consult rabbinical commentaries from the pre-Christian era we can find references that connect the invasion of Gog and Magog to the coming of Messiah. One example is the following commentary on Psalm 110, from the Midrash Alpha Betot...
"My firstborn, you sit on my right until I subdue the army of the hosts of Gog and Magog, your enemies, under your footstool."
-Midrash Alpha Betot-
Ezekiel 38 parallels the Battle of Armageddon in the book of Revelation in the way that the enemies of God and Israel assemble to destroy the Jewish nation. What differentiates the two events? Can we see that they are separate events? The clue to placing this event in a timeline lies in Ezekiel 39:9, when Israel is able to burn the enemy's weapons for seven years. This seems to indicate two things. 1- Nuclear Weapons are involved and are able to provide seven years worth of energy. 2- The invasion of Gog and Magog kicks off the Tribulation Period and foreshadows the final Battle of Armegeddon when the European Union and the Kings of the east join in. The most astounding part of this prophecy is that it was written about 2500 years ago, and describes the present situation so well, with the Arab-Muslim nations all allied against Israel. To begin with, let's take a look at our text...
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. (EZ 38:1-9)
Now the obvious questions are, where are these places, and who are these people?
For help we turn to the following sources;
Let's begin with the obvious, Persia and Libya. These are two names that still make sense to us today.
Libya is in northern Africa, next to Egypt. Persia changed its name to Iran only a few decades ago.
However, let's not stop there. Let's see what our reference books say. Perhaps something more or less was meant
when this was written 2500 years ago.
Persia; the empire Persia; encompassed the territory from India on the east to Egypt...
and included, besides portions of Europe and Africa, the whole of western Asia between the Black Sea, the Caucasus,
the Caspian and the Jaxartes on the north, the Arabian desert, the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean on the south... (BDB)
Wow! That's alot more than Iran. It includes Iraq and Arabia. Well what about Libya? Let's see what our reference books say,
perhaps something more or less was meant when this was written 2500 years ago. according to the Hebrew the word is 'Put',
#6316 in Strong's. This is what the ISBE says about it...
The common identification of Put is the Egyptian Punt (or Pwent) proposed by Ebers.
The assimilation of n to a following consonant is common in the Semitic languages, and would occasion no difficulty if the
vocalization be found to agree. The final "t" of Punt, however, seems to be the Egyptian feminine ending, whereas the "T" of Put is radical... Somaliland and Yemen: both sides of the sea (the Red Sea), Yemen would seem to be included. (ISBE)
Wow! Again, that's alot more than Libya. It includes Egypt, Somalia, and Yemen. Now let's move on to the unfamiliar lands and peoples...
Gomer
They were a barbaric horde of Aryans who in the 7th century BC left their abode in what is now Southern
Russia and poured through the Caucasus into Western Asia... (ISBE)
Togarmah
Probably Armenia... Both Kiepert and Dillmann regard Togarmah as having been Southeastern Armenia,
and this is at present the general opinion. (ISBE)
Mesech
A people on the borders of Colchis and Armenia (BDB)
Tubal
A region in east Asia Minor, perhaps nearly equal to Cappadocia (BDB)
Looking at ancient maps we see that is the part of Turkey that touches Lebanon and Syria.
Gog
the name of a district in the wild north-east steppes of Central Asia, north of the Hindu-Kush, now a part of Turkestan (Easton)
Magog
Josephus identifies the Magogites with the Scythians (ISBE)
The World Book Encyclopedia
Scythians, pronounced SIHTH ee uhnz, were ancient nomads who lived mainly north of the Black Sea in present-day
Ukraine and southwestern Russia. They originated in the plains of what is now southern Kazakhstan. But tribes from
China pressured most of the Scythians to move west during the early 600's B.C. Scythian territory expanded through the
years. By the 300's B.C., these people lived as far west as present-day Hungary and eastern Germany, as far south as Palestine, and as far east as India.
Now we begin to see the picture. This Biblical prophecy of 2500 years ago speaks of the peoples and lands now occupied by the Islamic world. It is no secret that from present day Libya to Iran, the Islamic world preaches the Koran to its people.
The Koran teaches Muslims to 'lie in wait' to ambush infidels. It teaches that Jews and Christians, 'people of the book' are the infidels. It teaches Muslims to use 'every stratagem of war' including the 'peace of Hubadaya' where one may declare a cease fire to reorganize, or even pretend peace in order to stab the infidel in the back. The Hadith (the commentary on the Koran) is even more radical, saying that no land, once under Muslim control, can ever be surrendered to non-Muslims. This is the heart of the issue. In spite of the fact that the Ottoman Empire controlled the Holy Land, it was not important until Jews drained the swamps and cultivated the land in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Before that the area had been described as a desolate wasteland.
Here I am going to add a little extra. These are 17 points, brought up by my Mennonite Pastor Friend, points that at once differentiate the Battle of Gog & Magog from the Battle of Armegeddon, and yet also may allow the anti-christ to say that the battle of Armegeddon has already taken place, that he is God, and the prophecies have been fulfilled. Note the subtle similarities and differences between the two events;
These are interesting times to live in. Prophetic events are lining up like dominos. When will they be toppled over? Only God knows. But we can see events leading towards that day soon. It is a good time to have a close and personal relationship with the
King of the universe, the creator of everything, the Lord of Lords, the lamb of God, Messiah Yeshua, Jesus Christ,
my Lord and Savior.
|
Warning: include() [function.include]: URL file-access is disabled in the server configuration in /home/phenomi/public_html/millfever/islam/footer.php on line 4
Warning: include(http://phenomi.net/magpiefetch2.php) [function.include]: failed to open stream: no suitable wrapper could be found in /home/phenomi/public_html/millfever/islam/footer.php on line 4
Warning: include() [function.include]: Failed opening 'http://phenomi.net/magpiefetch2.php' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/phenomi/public_html/millfever/islam/footer.php on line 4
|