- Tents of Edom: Palestinians and Southern Jordanians
- Ishmaelites: Saudis (Ishmael is the father of the Arabs)
- Moab: Palestinians and Central Jordanians
- Hagrites: Egyptians (Hagar is the matriarch of Egypt)
- Gebal(Byblos): Hezbollah and Northern Lebanese
- Ammon: Palestinians and Northern Jordanians
- Amalek: Arabs of the Sinai area
- Philistia: Hamas of the Gaza Strip
- Tyre: Hezbollah and Southern Lebanese
- Assyria: Syrians and Northern Iraqi’s
Considering that Saudi Arabia is an ally of the US and a foe of Iran, it may seem that it is not involved in a coalition against Israel.
Nevertheless, Saudi Arabia voted “no” to the 1947 UN resolution to create a Jewish state and supported the Arab invasions of 1948, 1967 and 1973 with troops as well as finances. They do not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
And the ten horns . . .--The explanation of the ten horns. They are the kings, not necessarily, as we have seen, personal kings, but rather kingdoms or nationalities, who received not a kingdom as yet; as they are on the seventh head, the hour of their power is not yet, but comes at the fall of the sixth head: then they receive power one hour. (Comp. "short time" in Revelation 17:10.) But though these are sundered powers, they are one in their subjection to the wild beast. They have one mind or judgment, and their power and authority they give to the wild beast. The universal empire idea may disappear, but the spirit and principle of mere earthliness will remain; it needs no vast power like Rome to illustrate its spirit. The ten horns are united in one mind; they move as the wild beast directs; their work and tendency of their power is hostile to Christ. They shall make war with the Lamb; and the Lamb shall conquer them because He is Lord of lords, and King of kings. When do these powers make war with the Lamb? The answer is, they make war when the direction of their policy and morals is in favour of oppression, wrong, worldliness; whenever nations or peoples allow the secular spirit to breathe through all they do, they are not with Christ, they are against Him. There are hints that some "special outbreak" of hostility may take place on the eve of the full manifestation of the righteous King and His kingdom (Revelation 19:16-19); busy evil spirits, lawless utterances, unbrotherly federations, unspiritual conceptions, may pave the way for such; the great crisis will then come, when the issue will be secularity and spirituality. It is not necessary to define the ten kings; the number does not need to be pressed as literal; for in Hebrew, "when a whole was to be divided into parts, ten was the number commonly adopted" (Bahr, quoted by Dr. Currey). The war of the ten kings against the Lamb is brought out more fully in Revelation 19. There the King of kings is seen victorious; in His victory they who are with Him, the called, and chosen, and faithful, shall share. This threefold description is a brief summary of the Christian life. This is the only place where St. John employs the word translated "called." (Comp. Matthew 20:16.)
Verse 12. - And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet. The horns, as we have seen, are symbolical of power (see on Revelation 13:1), and tensignifies completeness and sufficiency (Revelation 13:1). By the ten horns, therefore, is expressed widespread, complete power. But this power, says the seer, has not come into existence as yet. He thus points to a coming power, hostile to God, such as is described in that part of the account of the seven kings which states "the other is not yet come" (ver. 10). If; seems probable, therefore, that in describing the forces opposed to God - those past, those present, and those yet to come - St. John foresees that the hostile world power will not be always pre-eminently wielded by one nation, as in his own time; but will be divided into many parts, here represented by the number ten, though not necessarily exactly ten in number. This, indeed, exactly describes what has really been the case since St. John's time, and what, humanly speaking, seems likely to continue to the end of the world. These ten horns seem thus to be identical with the seventh king of ver. 10. Compare the account given of the horns in Daniel 7. But receive power as kings one hour with the beast; authority(Revised Version). One hour denotes "a short time," in which way the Bible constantly describes the period of the world's existence, and especially that period which intervenes between the time of the writer and the judgment day (cf. Romans 16:20; 1 Corinthians 7:29; Revelation 6:11; Revelation 12:12; Revelation 22:20, etc.). This sentence thus declares that, though in the future divided into many parts, and thus not being visibly as potential as former single united kingdoms, nevertheless this hostile world power will be still formidable, having ranged itself on the side of the beast, acting for and with him, and receiving power from him. Ver 13. - These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast; they give (present tense) their power and authority, etc. That is, though apparently split up into many sections, they form practically one, acting by and for the beast on whose side they range themselves (see on ver. 32).
According to former Palestinian terrorist Walid Shoebat, the nations in Psalm 83 are Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.
4. According to Bill Randles the nations are Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Saudi Arabia, the Gaza Strip, Palestinians, and Iraq. Thus:
- “Edom- which extends from Jordan to Saudi Arabia
- Gebal – According to the Unger’s bible dictionary, this is in Lebanon,
- Philistia – Gaza, today the center for Hamas
- Ishmaelites and Hagarites – Arabs in general.
- Assyria – These are Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. At its height it included Egypt and Iran as well. Assyria, the great empire, covered the areas now known as Iraq, parts of Syria, and Turkey.
- Amalek – Jordan, southwest of the Dead Sea.
“These are the players of the next great war.”[3]
5. Dr. F. Kenton Beshore, author of The Millennium, The Apocalypse and Armageddon argues as follows: “Psalm 137 is a prayer for God to judge Edom, and Psalm 83 is a prayer for God to judge the enemies of Israel — Edom (Southern Jordanians), the Ishmaelites (Saudi Arabians), Moab (Central Jordanians), Hagarites (Egyptians), Gebal (Northern Lebanese), Ammon (Northern Jordanians), Amalek (Arabs south of Israel), Philistines (Palestinians of Gaza), inhabitants of Tyre (Southern Lebanese) and Assyria (Syria).” He believes that this particular coalition of Arab and Islamic states and peoples are going to attack Israel at the same time as the Gog prophecy.[4]
It is worth noting that Psalm 83 declares that the peoples of these nations are also God’s enemies who form an alliance against Him as well, by seeking to destroy His people and His land, Israel. (Psalm 83: 2, 5, 13). Significantly, they are all Muslim nations/peoples and Islam’s specific and intense anti-Judeo-Christian theology is to the point.
I believe that Psalm 83 seems to precede the Ezekiel 38 invasion. Dr. Chuck Missler is one of many who believe that in Psalm 83 there is a great victory for Israel that sets the stage for the Ezekiel 38 coalition to take the spoils of Israel. If the Israelis thoroughly route their Muslim enemies that surround them and increase their geographical size some ten-fold, Israel would certainly have a good deal of additional spoils waiting to be taken.
According to Missler in Jeremiah 49:2, 8, 19 the war starts between the Psalm 83 Confederacy and Israel, but Israel decisively defeats the Confederacy. (See: Obadiah 1:9, 18; Ezekiel 25:13-14; Jeremiah 49:10, 20, 21, 23-26; Isaiah 11:12-14; Isaiah 17:1; Isaiah 19:16-17). After Israel wins this tremendous battle, they become an exceedingly great army (Ezekiel 37:10; Jeremiah 49:21); they take prisoners of war (Jeremiah 48:46-47; Jeremiah 49:3, 6, 11; Zephaniah 2:10-11), and the whole geographical region is reshaped (Isaiah 17:1 Jeremiah 49:2, 10, Zephaniah Ch. 2). This is when Damascus is apparently nuked in Isaiah 17:1 and Israel expands its borders back to the original borders of the Abrahamic covenant given in Genesis 15 (cf. Obadiah 1:1, 9; Jeremiah 49:2; Isaiah 19:18-19). This is also when Israel comes to dwell securely in the land and because of its size, power and wealth, the attack of Ezekiel 38 happens.
According to Dr. Missler, “We have been plunged into a period of time about which the Bible says more than it does about any other time in history.”[5
b. The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites: The psalmist listed ten nations or peoples that were part of this confederacy againstIsrael and her God. It seems the children of Lot (specifically, Moab and Ammon) led this attack and the other eight nations helped them.
i. “The Hagarites (v. 6) were a tribe against whom the Transjordanian tribes of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh fought at the time of the Jewish conquest of Palestine.” (Boice)
ii. “Gebal is probably not the northern city of that name (better known as Byblos, and associated with Tyre: Joshua 13:5; 1 Kings 5:18) but a locality south of the Dead Sea.” (Kidner)
The psalmist mentions ten different nations which had banded themselves together against God’s chosen people Israel. Ten against one is long odds but then God was on the side of Israel.” (Spurgeon)
iv. Selah: “There was good reason for a pause when the nation was in such jeopardy and yet it needs faith to make a pause, for unbelief is always in a hurry.” (Spurgeon)
9-12) Grant victory and deliverance as in the days of the Judges.
Deal with them as with Midian,
As with Sisera,
As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon,
Who perished at En Dor,
Who became as refuse on the earth.
Make their nobles like Oreb and like Zeeb,
Yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,
Who said, “Let us take for ourselves
The pastures of God for a possession.”
a. Deal with them as with Midian: God’s victory over Midian through Gideon is described in Judges 6-8.
i. “Faith delights to light upon precedents, and quote them before the Lord; in the present instance, Asaph found a very appropriate one, for the nations in both cases were very much the same, and the plight of the Israelites very similar.” (Spurgeon)
b. As with Sisera: God’s victory over the Canaanite king Jabinand his general Sisera, through Deborah and Barak, is described in Judges 4.
i. Who perished at En Dor: “This refers to the defeat of the Midianites by Gideon, who were encamped in the valley of Jezreel, at the foot of Mount Gilboa, and near to Tabor, Judges 6:33; 7:1, and consequently in the environs of En-dor. There Gideonattacked and defeated them; and, in various places during their flight, they were destroyed.” (Clarke)
ii. Who became as refuse on the earth: John Trapp noted that this means “they lay unburied, rotted above ground.” This added to the defeat and disgrace of Israel’s enemies.
c. Make their nobles like Oreb: Oreb, Zeeb, Zebah and Zalmunna were all princes of the Midianites, defeated by Gideon in Judges 7.
i. Make their nobles: “Smite the great ones as well as the common ruck. Suffer not the ringleaders to escape. As Oreb fell at the rock and Zeeb at the winepress, so do thou mete out vengeance to Zion’s foes wherever thou mayest overtake them.” (Spurgeon)
ii. “Oreb signifieth a crow, Zeeb a wolf, Zebah a cut-throat, Zalmunna a forbidder of shadow, or quiet, to his subjects; fit names for tyrants and persecutors of God’s people.” (Trapp)
d. Let us take for ourselves the pastures of God for a possession: Israel faced threats to her existence in the days of the Judges, and God delivered her. Asaph’s prayer reminded Israel of God’s previous rescue of Israel, using it as a reason to trust Him in the present crisis.
i. The phrase, the pastures of God reminds us again of what high regard God has for the land of Israel. He regards it as His pastures. “So the enemy’s thoughts are re-phrased in the prayer, to bring out the truth about the territories they had coveted: these were the pastures of God, not simply the holdings of Israel.” (Kidner)
ii. “The Midianites had despoiled the land of the crops and had caused great fear among the Israelites. This spoiling of Israel’s crops is probably referred to in the bold claim ‘Let us take possession of the pasturelands of God’.” (VanGemeren)
2. (13-15) Bring them to destruction.
O my God, make them like the whirling dust,
Like the chaff before the wind!
As the fire burns the woods,
And as the flame sets the mountains on fire,
So pursue them with Your tempest,
And frighten them with Your storm.
a. Like the chaff before the wind: Asaph prayed that God would take these many enemies, determined to destroy Israel, and scatter them like chaff before the wind and the whirling dust. He prayed they would be consumed like fire burns the woods.
i. Like the whirling dust: “The word rendered ‘whirling dust’ in Psalm 83:13 is somewhat doubtful. It literally means a rolling thing, but what particular thing of the sort is difficult to determine.” (Maclaren)
ii. “‘Tumbleweed’ (galgal lit., ‘wheel’) is a plant of the wild artichoke family (Gundelia Tournefortii), a plant with wheel-shaped stems and thistles.” (VanGemeren)
b. Pursue them with Your tempest: To the ancient Hebrew, there was nothing more powerful than the tempest or the storm. The psalmist prayed that God would not only defeat Israel’s enemies, but also pursue and frighten them with His great power.
3. (16-18) Bring these enemies to the knowledge of the true God.
Fill their faces with shame,
That they may seek Your name, O LORD.
Let them be confounded and dismayed forever;
Yes, let them be put to shame and perish,
That they may know that You, whose name alone is the LORD,
Are the Most High over all the earth.
a. Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek Your name: Asaph ended this psalm with an unexpected turn. After praying for the destruction of Israel’s enemies, he prayed that they would be thoroughly humbled (fill their faces with shame) so they would be led to seek Yahweh.
i. Asaph understood what we often forget: people will often only seek the LORD if they are first laid low before His power. There is a sense in which God must defeat us before He will save us.
ii. “But there is a deeper desire in the psalmist’s heart than the enemies’ destruction. He wishes that they should be turned into God’s friends and he wishes for their chastisement as the means to that end.” (Maclaren)
iii. “Shame has often weaned men from their idols, and set them upon seeking the Lord.” (Spurgeon)
iv. “The punishments inflicted by heaven upon wicked men are primarily intended to humble and convert them.” (Horne)
b. That they may know that You…are the Most High: This great humbling (let them be put to shame and perish) would lead to their surrender and submission to the God who is Most High over all the earth.
i. This psalm began with a plea that God would not remain silent, and ends with the idea of His fame and glory going out to all the earth. “When the silences of God are broken by His noises, men learn that the God of Grace is the Most High over all the earth.” (Morgan)
For they have consulted together with one consent." They are hearty and unanimous in their designs. They seem to have but one heart, and that a fierce one, against the chosen people and their God. "They are confederate against thee." At the Lord himself they aim through the sides of his saints. They make a covenant, and ratify it with blood, resolutely banding themselves together to war with the Mighty God.
Verse 6. "The tabernacles of Edom." Nearest of kin, yet first in enmity. Their sire despised the birthright, and they despise the possessors of it. Leaving their rock built mansions for the tents of war, the Edomites invaded the land of Israel. "And the Ishmaelites." A persecuting spirit ran in their blood, they perpetuated the old grudge between the child of the bondwoman and the son of the freewoman. "Of Moab." Born of incest, but yet a near kinsman, the feud of Moab against Israel was very bitter. Little could righteous Lot have dreamed that his unhallowed seed would be such unrelenting enemies of his uncle Abraham's posterity. "And the Hagarenes"—perhaps descendants of Hagar by a second husband. Whoever they may have been, they cast their power into the wrong scale, and with all their might sought the ruin of Israel. Children of Hagar, and all others who dwell around Mount Sinai, which is in Arabia, are of the seed which gendereth to bondage, and hence they hate the seed according to promise.
Verse 7. "Gebal" was probably a near neighbour of Edom, though there was a Gebal in the region of Tyre and Sidon. "And Ammon, and Amalek." Two other hereditary foes of Israel, fierce and remorseless as ravening wolves. In the roll of infamy let these names remain detestably immortalised. How thick they stand. Their name is legion, for they are many. Alas, poor Israel, how art thou to stand against such a Bloody League? Nor is this all. Here comes another tribe of ancient foemen, "the Philistines;" who once blinded Samson, and captured the ark of the Lord; and here are old allies become new enemies; the builders of the temple conspiring to pull it down, even "the inhabitants of Tyre." These last were mercenaries who cared not at whose bidding they drew sword, so long as they carved something for their own advantage. True religion has had its quarrel with merchants and craftsmen, and because it has interfered with their gains, they have conspired against it.
Verse 8. "Assur is also joined with them." It was then a rising power, anxious for growth, and it thus early distinguished itself for evil. What a motley group they were; a league against Israel is always attractive, and gathers whole nations within its bonds. Herod and Pilate are friends, if Jesus is to be crucified. Romanism and Ritualism make common cause against the gospel. "They have holpen the children of Lot." All these have come to the aid of Moab and Ammon, which two nations were among the fiercest in the conspiracy. There were ten to one against Israel, and yet she overcame all her enemies. Her name is not blotted out; but many, nay, most of her adversaries are now a name only, their power and their excellence are alike gone.
"Selah." There was good reason for a pause when the nation was in such jeopardy: and yet it needs faith to make a pause, for unbelief is always in a hurry.
Verse 9. "Do unto them as unto the Midianites." Faith delights to light upon precedents, and quote them before the Lord; in the present instance, Asaph found a very appropriate one, for the nations in both cases were very much the same, and the plight of the Israelites very similar. Yet Midian perished, and the psalmist trusted that Israel's present foes would meet with the like overthrow from the hand of the Lord. "As to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the brook of Kison." The hosts were swept away by the suddenly swollen torrent, and utterly perished; which was a second instance of divine vengeance upon confederated enemies of Israel. When God wills it, a brook can be as deadly as a sea. Kishon was as terrible to Jabin as was the Red Sea to Pharaoh. How easily can the Lord smite the enemies of his people. God of Gideon and of Barak, wilt thou not again avenge thine heritage of their bloodthirsty foes?
Verse 10. "Which perished at Endor." There was the centre of the carnage, where the heaps of the slain lay thickest. "They became as dung for the earth," manuring it with man; making the earth, like Saturn, feed on its own children. War is cruel, butt in this case it avengements were most just,—those who would not give Israel a place above ground are themselves denied a hiding place under the ground; they counted God's people to be as dung, and they became dung themselves. Asaph would have the same fate befell other enemies of Israel; and his prayer was a prophecy, for so it happened to them.
Verse 11. "Make their nobles like Oreb, and like Zeeb." Smite the great ones as well as the common ruck. Suffer not the ringleaders to escape. As Oreb fell at the rock and Zeeb at the winepress, so do thou mete out vengeance to Zion's foes wherever thou mayest overtake them. They boastfully compare themselves to ravens and wolves; let them receive the fate which is due to such wild beasts. "Yea, all their princes as Zebah, and as Zalmunnua." These were captured and slain by Gideon, despite their claiming to have been anointed to the kingdom. Zebah became a sacrifice, and Zalmunna was sent to those shadowy images from which his name is derived. The psalmist seeing these four culprits hanging in history upon a lofty gallows, earnestly asks that others of a like character may, for truth and righteousness' sake, share their fate.
Verse 12. "Who said, Let us take to ourselves the houses of God in possession." Viewing the temple, and also the dwellings of the tribes, as all belonging to God, these greedy plunderers determined to push out the inhabitants, slay them, and become themselves landlords and tenants of the whole. These were large words and dark designs, but God could bring them all to nothing. It is in vain for men to say "Let us take," if God does not give. He who robs God's house will find that he has a property reeking with a curse; it will plague him and his seed for ever. "Will a man rob God?" Let him try it, and he will find it hot and heavy work.
Verse 13. "O my God, make them like a wheel;" like a rolling thing which cannot rest, but is made to move with every breath. Let them have no quiet. May their minds eternally revolve and never come to peace. Blow them away like thistle down, "as the stubble before the wind." Scatter them, chase them, drive them to destruction. Every patriot prays thus against the enemies of his country, he would be no better than a traitor if he did not.
Verse 14. "As the fire burneth a wood." Long years have strewn the ground with deep deposits of leaves; these being dried in the sun are very apt to take fire, and when they do so the burning in terrific. The underwood and the ferns blaze, the bushes crackle, the great trees kindle and to their very tops are wrapped in fire, while the ground is all red as a furnace. In this way, O Lord, mete out destruction to thy foes, and bring all of them to an end. "The flame setteth the mountains on fire." Up the hill sides the hanging woods glow like a great sacrifice, and the forests on the mountain's crown smoke towards heaven. Even thus, O Lord, do thou conspicuously and terribly overthrow the enemies of thine Israel.
Verse 15. "So persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm." The Lord will follow up his enemies, alarm them, and chase them till they are put to a hopeless rout. He did this, according to the prayer of the present Psalm, for his servant Jehoshaphat; and in like manner will he come to the rescue of any or all of his chosen.
Verse 16. "Fill their faces with shame; that they may seek thy name, O Lord." Shame has often weaned men from their idols, and set them upon seeking the Lord. If this was not the happy result, in the present instance, with the Lord's enemies, yet it would be so with his people who were so prone to err. They would be humbled by his mercy, and ashamed of themselves because of his grace; and then they would with sincerity return to the earnest worship of Jehovah their God, who had delivered them.
Verse 17. Where no good result followed, and the men remained as fierce and obstinate as ever, justice was invoked to carry out the capital sentence. "Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let them be put to shame, and perish." What else could be done with them? It was better that they perished than that Israel should be rooted up. What a terrible doom it will be to the enemies of God to be "confounded, and troubled for ever," to see all their schemes and hopes defeated, and their bodies and souls full of anguish without end: from such a shameful perishing may our souls be delivered.
Verse 18. "That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth." Hearing of the Lord's marvellous deeds in defeating such a numerous confederacy, the very heathen would be compelled to acknowledge the greatness of Jehovah. We read in 2Ch 20:30, that the fear of God was on all the neighbouring kingdoms when they heard that Jehovah fought against the enemies of Israel. Jehovah is essentially the Most High. He who is self existent is infinitely above all creatures, all the earth is but his footstool. The godless race of man disregards this, and yet at times the wonderful works of the Lord compel the most unwilling to adore his majesty.
Thus has this soul-stirring lyric risen from the words of complaint to those of adoration; let us in our worship always seek to do the same. National trouble called out the nation's poet laureate, and well did he discourse at once of her sorrows, and prayers, and hopes. Sacred literature thus owes much to sorrow and distress. How enriching is the hand of adversity! The following attempt to verify the Psalm, and tune it to gospel purposes, is submitted with great diffidence.
O God, be thou no longer still,
Thy foes are leagued against thy law;
Make bare thine arm on Zion's hill,
Great Captain of our Holy War.
As Amalek and Ishmael
Had war for ever with thy seed,
So all the hosts of Rome and hell
Against the Son their armies led.
Though they are agreed in nought beside,
Against thy truth they all unite;
They rave against the Crucified,
And hate the gospel's growing might.
By Kishon's brook all Jabin's band
At thy rebuke were swept away;
O Lord, display thy mighty hand,
A single stroke shall win the day.
Come, rushing wind, the stubble chase!
Come, sacred fire, the forests burn!
Come, Lord, with all thy conquering grace,
Rebellious hearts to Jesus turn!
That men may know at once that thou,
Jehovah, lovest truth right well;
And that thy church shall never bow
Before the boastful gates of hell.
EXPLANATORY NOTES AND QUAINT SAYINGS
TITLE.—"A Song or Psalm." When the two words (Shir, Mizmor,) occur together, the meaning seems to be, a lyric poem appointed to be sung.
—John Jebb.
Title.—This Psalm, according to the title, was composed by Asaph. In accordance with this, we read, in 2Ch 20:14, that the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jehasiel, of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. This Jehasiel is probably the author of the Psalm. Our Psalm is a true picture of the state of feeling which prevailed throughout the people during the danger under Jehoshaphat. According to the history of Chronicles, they praised God at that time, in the midst of their danger, with loud voice, 2Ch 20:19; and here in the title, which is an appendage to that of Psalm 48, the Psalm is called a song of praise; and it is such in reality, although it bears the form of a prayer, —a song of triumph sung before the victory,—no contest, no doubt, the distress is simply committed to God.
The mention of the Amalekites among the enemies of Israel, in Psa 83:7, renders it impossible to come down to times later than that of Jehoshaphat. The last remains of the Amalekites were, according to 1Ch 4:43, rooted out by the Simeonites, under Hezekiah. From that time they disappear altogether from history. Ewald's assertion that Amalek stands here "only as a name of infamy applied to parties well known at the time," is to be considered as a miserable shift. The Psalm must have been composed previous to the extension of the empire of the Assyrians over Western Asia. For the Assyrians named last, in the eighth verse, appear here in the very extraordinary character of an ally of the sons of Lot.
—E. W. Hengstenberg.
Verse 1.—"Keep not thou silence, O God." In Scripture there are three reasons why the Lord "keeps silence" when his people are in danger, and sits still when there is most need to give help and assistance.
1. Is the Lord doth it to try their faith, as we clearly see, Mat 8:24, where it is said that our Lord Christ was asleep: "There arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish." We read more fully in Mark 4 and Luke 8, he left them, when the ship was covered with waves, and they were rowing for their lives, their Lord was asleep the while, and he said to them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that you have no faith? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Truly, the Lord will not suffer his people to be overwhelmed, that is certain, but he will suffer them to come very near, that the waves cover them, and fear and horror shall cover their souls, and all to try their faith.
2. I find another reason in Isaiah 59, and that is, the Lord doth keep silence in the midst of the troubles of his people, to try men's uprightness of heart. For if God should always appearfor his cause, God and his cause should have many favourites and friends; but sometimes God leaves his cause, and leaves his people, and leaves his gospel, and his ordinances to the wide world, to see who will plead for it and stick to it.
3. There is a third reason: God, as it were, keeps silence in the midst of the greatest troubles, that he may, as it were, gather the wicked into one faggot, into one bundle, that they may be destroyed together. There is a great deal of ado to "gather the saints" in this world; and truly there is some ado to gather the wicked. So God withdraws himself from his people, yet he hath a hook within their hearts, he holds them up secretly by his Spirit, that they shall not leave him; yet the world shall not see but that God hath quite left them, and all their ordinances and his gospel and everything; and there the wicked come together and insult, whereby God may come upon them at once, and destroy them, as we find ten nations in the Psalm. And so in Genesis God stirs up the nations against Abraham and his posterity, and there are ten nations that God promised to cut off before Abraham at once, the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Canaanites, etc. So God heaps them together, and burns them like stubble. Those that burn stubble have rakes, and they gather it to heaps, and then they fire it. This is the way of God's keeping silence among his people, and sitting still in the midst of their miseries, thus God gathers their enemies in heaps as stubble, that he may burn them together.
—Gualter (Walter) Cradock, in "Divine Drops." 1650.
Edom - from Esau, the brother of Jacob (Jordan and the ‘Palestinians’)
Ishmaelites - descended from Ishmael, son of Hagar (the Arabs)
Moab - son of Lot (Jordan east of the Dead Sea)
Hagarenes - descendants of Hagar (Egypt)
Gebal - ancient Byblus (north of Beirut, Lebanon)
Ammon - son of Lot (capital of Jordan)
Amalek - descended from Esau (Arabs south of Israel)
Philistines - from Ham (Palestinians on the Gaza strip, Hamas)
Tyre - a Phoenician city (Lebanon. Hezbolah)
Assur - founded Assyria (Syria and Northern Iraq)
Children of Lot - Moab and Ammon (Jordan)
These are all nations nearby to Israel and surrounding her in an inner ring, but not mentioned in Ezekiel 38, which names nations further away on an outer ring (notice that the Midianites of Arabia and Persia are not included in this Confederation). Either (1) Psalm 83 generally describes what has been going on since 1948 which has been manifested through various wars. Or (2) it is an end-time invasion of Israel that is yet to come, that is separate from the Ezekiel invasion. Or (3) It gives us more information about “the many (other) nations” that will join with Russia in the Ezekiel Invasion. Since the outer ring nations need to pass through these inner ring nations and since they are all Muslim it makes sense they would also be part of this Invasion. According Psalm 83 also, God will supernaturally intervene to save Israel. He promises to destroy all those who seek to conquer “the house of God” in the land of the Jews (v12). As with Ezekiel’s account, His ultimate purpose in destroying these invaders is that many would come to know He is the true God (v16,18). God's supernatural deliverance of Israel will cause all people throughout the earth to recognise His supremacy and many will come to faith.
The end-time prophecies also point to the destruction of Damascus (Isaiah 17). They also imply that Jordan will turn more against Israel and face Judgement. Ezekiel 35-37 saw that the Jews would return to the Promised Land and find themselves violently opposed by the surrounding Arab nations, demonstrating a “perpetual hatred” that would motivate them to: “shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity” (Ezekiel 35:5). In Ezekiel 35, placed near the prophecy of the Restoration of Israel, the Lord describes His coming Judgement against Edom or Mount Seir, which is in present-day Jordan (see also Ezekiel 25). Isaiah 11:14 speaks of Israel’s end-time victories over their enemies in Gaza and Jordan. Also Daniel 11:41 indicates something will happen to cause Jordan to be off-limits to the antichrist, so Israel can flee there at Mid-Tribulation (Matthew 24:15,16, Revelation 12:6).
Out of some 5 million square miles of former Ottoman territory, Arab nations received 99.8 % of the land. This territory is now 21 independent countries with a total population over 200 million. Israel received less that 1/5 of 1% of the land - only 8000 square miles. But due to their ancient hatred, increased by Islam, these nations surrounding Israel still desire to remove her from the map. They know they can’t overcome her militarily. They realise that only a full Islamic confederation, together with the advanced military technology of the Russian army and its millions of well-trained troops, would enable them to obtain their dream: the conquest of Jerusalem and the elimination of Israel from the Middle East.
Some Bible prophecy experts are even wondering if there is a definite connection between the ancient territory of Assyria (Psalm 83:8), and the terrorist organization, ISIS. There are a few reasons for this:
- The ancient territory of Assyria (at the time that the Psalm was authored) closely resembles the vast area of territory now in the possession of ISIS.
- Assyria appears to play a dominant role within the Psalm 83 confederacy.
- The Psalm makes a definite connection between Assyria and Jordan, which is possibly the next country that ISIS will seek to invade.
Today, and with the advance of the Islamic State, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if they're involved.
A 3000 year old prophecy written in the book of Psalms appears to be alarmingly close to finding its final fulfillment! The exact timing of this war is not given. There are some who believe Psalm 83 war was completely fulfilled in the Six-Day War of 1967. However, logically, Psalm 83 in co-ordination with Isaiah 17 would seem to pave the way for the Gog/Magog War of Ezekiel 38-39. Nonetheless, the prophetic hourglass, that was turned on May 14, 1948, is certainly running out of sand in its top section!
- Assur—Germany
- Edom/Amalek—Turkey
- Ishmaelites—Saudi Arabia (and other neighboring nations)
- Moab/Ammon—Jordan
- Hagarenes—Syria
- Gebal—Lebanon
- Tyre—Southern Lebanon (Hezbollah)
- Philistines—Gaza
Because of Turkey’s inclusion in this prophecy, we also watch for the development of German-Turkish ties.
Psalm 83:4 states that the goal of this alliance is to destroy the modern-day nations of Israel. “They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.” God uses the Psalm 83 alliance, led by Germany, to punish the nations of America, Britain and Israel for their rebellion against His law (Isaiah 10:5).
Israel doesn't need to capture the Arab oil fields to become a target of Russian-Islamic forces looking for “spoil and plunder.” Israel has its own wealth, and is rapidly gaining more. But that is simply a diversion of the Magog invaders. The real goal is not supposed Israeli-confiscated Arab oil fields. The Russians and the Muslims want the same thing Satan wants: The Chosen People and The Promised Land.
(see Note 2 below)
2. The “exceeding great army” of Ezekiel 37:10 is not today’s Israeli Defense Forces. It is the army of Jews saved and empowered by the Lord when He appears in the sky who subdue, once and for all, those same Psalm 83 nations at the time of Armageddon.
(see Note 3 below)
3. The realization of Israel’s extended national boundaries, from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates (Gen. 15:18-21), doesn’t happen in a pre-millennial conquest of the Arab countries and their oil fields. The expanded boundaries of Israel will come after the return of Christ, at the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom. (Daniel 2:44; 7:26-17; Matthew 25:31-34)
(see Note 4 & 5 below)
4. The target of Ezekiel’s Magog invasion is not the supposed expanded territories of Israel comprised of the entire Mid East oil fields, but rather a very specific geographic identifier called “the mountains of Israel.”(Ezekiel 39:2-4) The “mountains of Israel” territory is not the entire Mid East, but rather the spine of Israel proper, the mountain range connecting the whole country north to south.
(see Note 6 below)
5. Finally, Israel doesn’t have to capture the entire middle east to place itself in the secure position that is required before Magog can invade. Israel already perceives itself today as a people who are living “securely.” (more on this below)
Where are the Psalm 83 nations in the Russian-Islamic (Magog) Invasion of Israel?
The Psalm 83 theory was generated on the assumption that since the nations listed in Psalm 83 are not named among the nations in Ezekiel 38’s description of the latter-day Magog Invasion of Israel (Eze. 38:1-7), then Psalm 83 must represent an entirely different event. Theorists see a contradiction when the two prophecies—the Inner Ring nations of Psalm 83, and the Outer Ring nations of Ezekiel 38— are seen as the same event. (see Note 7 & 8 below, & maps, upper right) Yet, we will see Biblical evidence that makes a stand-alone Psalm 83 war untenable, and even un-Biblical.
As mentioned, some have proposed that Israel will use its IDF military superiority to hammer all of the surrounding Arab nations, capturing their oil fields and vast petrol-wealth, and actually expanding Israel’s borders in the process to gain the territory promised to them in the Millennial Kingdom, from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates River. The prophetic basis claimed for this scenario is Psalm 83.
To say that the Psalm 83 prophecy must be an entirely different event which must precede the Magog invasion because the Ezekiel and Psalm passages have a different listing of nations ignores this fact: The Bible, when describing an event, sometimes lists only the LEADER nations, and sometimes list only the FOLLOWER nations.
(see Note 9 below, & map 1,upper right)
It is probable that the Psalm 83 nations are those “many people with thee” FOLLOWER nations placed under the “guard” (Ezekiel 38:6-7) of the Magog-LEADER nations listed by Ezekiel.
Since the LEADER nations in the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel are ALL Muslim nations, except for Russia, it stands to reason that the “many nations” with them are none other than Israel’s perpetual enemies listed in Psalm 83—ALL of whom are Arab-Muslim nations today.
In map 1 (upper right), Ezekiel list the key LEADER (Outer Ring) nations, and captures the Psalm 83 FOLLOWER (Inner Ring) nations in the phrase “and many peoples [nations] with you.” (Eze. 38:6)
Gog & Magog—The Primary Timing Question: Is Israel Living Securely Today?
The Bible says that "On that day when My people Israel are living securely,” the Russian-Islamic (Magog) forces will invade Israel. (Ezekiel 38:14-15) The prerequisite to the Magog invasion is that Israel will be “living securely.” When will that be? We don’t have to search OUTSIDE of the Bible to find out. We find the answer INSIDE the Bible. In the Bible's own inspired 4-part prophetic history of the Jews covering the time since their dispersion from the land in 70 AD to their future Millennial Kingdom under Christ.
1. The first part, summarized in Deuteronomy 28:64-68, begins with the 70 AD expulsion of the Jews from their land and continues through centuries of persecution culminating in the Holocausts of World War II.
(see Note 10)
2. The second part of Jewish history picks up with the return of the Jews to their land in 1948 until our current time.
(see Note 11, page 8)
3. The third part foretells of the ultimate Jewish holocaust yet to come called Jacob’s (Israel’s) trouble and known as the Great Tribulation.
(see Note 12, page 8)
4. Finally, the fourth part prophesies that Jewish history will culminate in the restoration of all Jews to their land under their everlasting King, Jesus Christ
(see Note 13, page 8).
In part one and part three, the Jews are in a radically unsecure state. In part two and part four, they are living “securely.” But part four is the everlasting kingdom of security. Therefore, part two, with Israel living “securely” today, is Ezekiel’s reference (38:8,14-15) and must serve as the springboard for the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel.
Note especially the phrase, “they shall [be] dwell[ing] safely” [38:14, after Israel is re-gathered to their land, they will be “living securely”]. The evidence shows that time to be now. Here is why. Take another look at the four parts of Israel’s prophetic history above. First, 1900 years of pure fright—fright prompted by constant terror and “death camps.” It is all capped by the infamous Holocaust.
Next, look at part three of their history (yet future), the “time of Jacob’s trouble,” the Great Tribulation (Jer. 30:7; Mat. 24:21-22). Sandwiched in-between is part two of Jewish history—their return to the land in 1948—continuing up until today. Now, it is no stretch of one’s imagination to say that there is no comparison between the security of today’s Israel to either the Holocaust, or the Great Tribulation! By comparison, Israel today is absolutely secure.
Prophecy teachers’ even assure their tour groups that Israel is a safe place to visit!
(see Note 14 below)
In 1948 Israel came out of nineteen centuries of extreme ‘unsecurity’! During the coming Tribulation they will return for a short time to an even more intense period of ‘unsecurity.’ But today Israel is sandwiched into a brief period— by comparison— of super-security!
Interestingly, the word used by Ezekiel 38:8 for “safely” [“securely”], the Hebrew “betach,” is defined as “a place of refuge, security, safety.” (Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary) That is exactly what the State of Israel is for Jews worldwide since its inception in 1948. Today, Israel is a secure land of “refuge” from the nightmare of the previous 1900 years of Jewish suffering.
History verifies the fulfillment that Israel is living “securely” today, using the very words noted above; “refuge” and “secure.”
(see Note 15)
In light of both their previous history (Holocaust) and their future history (Tribulation), Israel today is far and away “secure.” Jews worldwide continue to migrate, right along with the tourist, to their “secure place.” Israel’s only other time of living “securely” will be in their eternal kingdom when ““...the LORD will be king over all the earth...and there will be no more curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security. “ (Zec. 14:9-11)
Summarizing the above, we find that after 70 AD, the Bible foretells TWO TIMES of security in Israel’s future, and Israel is in the first one NOW. And it is this time of Israel living “securely” that sets the stage for the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel. Therefore, the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel is an imminent event—it could happen any day!
A False Security
This raises the question, why would Magog attack Israel if they are actually secure in their armed forces? The answer we glean from Scripture is that there are three perspectives on what it means to be secure—
1. The perspective of Israel. (see Note16)
2. That of their enemy Magog (Russia)— (see Note 17 below )
3. And that of the Lord. (see Note 18, below)
Obviously, in Ezekiel 38, Israel believes that they are living “securely.” But from Magog’s perspective, that security can be breached, or else they wouldn’t risk an attack. And from the Lord’s perspective, any security apart from trust in Him is a false security. Israel’s confidence in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) apart from the Lord is a false security, and no one, including Israel’s superb defense forces, will receive the glory that is due to God alone, for “my glory will I not give to another.” (Isaiah 42:8)
Israel’s trust in itself and its IDF gives rise to a false security that the nation is self-secure behind “walls” and “barred gates.”
(see Note 19, below)
However, then “shall things come into thy mind,” and as a result the Russian-Islamic coalition will have a different perspective—Israel will be ripe for an invasion because Russia “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.” (Eze. 38:11) As to why Israel will find itself in this predicament, parallel phrases in the Bible (note below the bold print)about “safely,” “security,” “walled villages,” and “bars and gates” give us the answer.
1. Israel dwells ALONE among hateful neighbors in the Mid East. The Babylonians attacked a “secure”Arabian people precisely because they were isolated, alone without allies (no “gates nor bars,” Jer. 49:30-31). Israel did the same to the city of Laish in the days of the Judges because they also were living in an isolated false security, without allies to help them. (Jud. 18:7)
2. Israel is COMPLACENT about its security. Jeremiah’s indictment of the complacent, “at ease [safe and secure]” women of Jerusalem came as a warning about false security as Jerusalem faced Babylon.(Isa. 32:9)
3. Israel is PRIDEFUL and SELF-SUFFICIENT. God is not in the equation. Babylon trusted in its self-security in the same way. (Isa. 47:8; “dwells securely”) So did the 8th-century Assyrian super-city of Nineveh (Zep. 2:15)
4. Israel is ARROGANT about its own strength. With that same attitude (“who feel secure” and say “by our own strength”, Amos 6:1, 8, 13) in the eighth century BC, Israel fell to the Assyrians.
5. From our Ezekiel 38 passage on the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel, we find a remarkable similarity in the phrasing of the “security” conditions in the first four above.
“…but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely [are living securely] all of them… 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…” (Eze. 38:8, 11)
However, God will use the Russian-Islamic invasion of Israel to raise up a remnant of believing Jews who "shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward.“ (Eze. 39:22) These will be the 144000 Jewish “first fruits” of salvation (Rev. 7:1-8; 14:4) They will testify to the rest of Israel during much of the Tribulation period. After God miraculously destroys Magog, Israel will begin a transition to an everlasting trust in the Lord, and by the end of the Tribulation that follows, “all Israel shall be saved” (Rom. 11:26) and Israel’s false walls of security will then be changed to this,
“Jerusalem will be inhabited without walls … 'For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and will be the glory in the midst of her.” (Zec. 2:4-5)
NOTES:
Note 1
The 2 Great Wars
Bible prophecy emphasizes Magog and Armageddon, but mentions “nation against nation,” “kings of the north & south,” and other wars. Chronologically, Magog begins the End Time 7-year period, and Armageddon climaxes it. The other “wars” link Magog and Armageddon into one long process—Magog gives rise to World War 3, including various Mideast wars, the Antichrist ascends to global power, & then heads to Armageddon.
Note 2
The Real Goal—Not Spoil
Israel has the wealth. And it is growing
On Mar 29, 2013, Fox News reported, “Recent discoveries of massive offshore natural gas deposits [in Israel, offshore].” 1
On Jul 3, 2012 National Geographic reported, “New Natural Gas Wealth Means Historic Change for Israel.” 2
However, the “spoil and plunder” (Eze. 38:12) is not the real motive of the Magog-Islamic invasion of Israel, but is rather a pretext. The Magog-Islamic forces work for Satan. Satan’s plan has never been to get the goods. He already has them. Satan’s goal is to get the people and the land. And the text itself infers this. In the very context of the “spoil” passage, we read this,
'Thus says 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… to turn thine hand upon the desolate places [the land] that are now inhabited, and upon the people”
(Ezekiel 38:10-12)
Then, to confirm that the real goal of the invasion is to wipe out God’s chosen people from their God-given land, God Himself makes it clear what the real target is,
“...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”
(Ezekiel 38:16)
As wealthy as Israel is, or will ever get, the real goal of the invading Russian-Islamic coalition is to wipe out the people and take the land.
1. www.foxnews.com/.../with-natural-gas-discoveries-Israel
2. news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2012/07/120703-israel-new-natural-gas/
Note 3
Who Is the “exceeding great army”?
Ezekiel 37 gives a very clear sequence of the restoration to life of the “dry bones” & Israel’s “exceeding great army.”
First, there is the vision of Israel as a vast valley of “dry bones,” which is the graveyard of the nations into which Israel was dispersed for 1900 years. (37:1-2)
Next comes the reassembling of the bones into flesh covered bodies, physically alive (37:7-8), but still spiritually dead, and interpreted by the passage itself as “the whole house of Israel” returned to their homeland. (37:11-12)
Finally, the salvation of Israel occurs, when the “breath [of] my spirit” (37:9-14), is imparted to Israel by God. Only at that point—at the second coming of Christ (Rom. 11:26; Zec. 12:10) —does Israel become the “exceeding great army”
Two passages record
—what happens next—
1. Zechariah 12:6-10— "In that day ...[Israel] shall devour all the people round about [the final destruction of the Psalm 83 nations], on the right hand and on the left .... In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the LORD before them [the “exceeding great army” of Ezekiel 37:10]
2. Isaiah 11:11-15—When the Lord gathers the Jews “from the four corners of the earth” at His Second Coming, “they [the “exceeding great army” of Ezekiel 37:10] will swoop down on the slopes of [Philistia, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Egypt, Assyria, the Psalm 83 nations]. For the timing of Isaiah 11:11-15 .
(see Sidebar 4, page 4)
The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) is not the “exceeding great army” of Ezekiel.
Note 4
When will Israel “swoop down” and capture the Psalm 83 nations?
In Isaiah 11:11-15 Israel “swoops down” and captures the Psalm 83 nations. The passage says that this occurs when the Jews return a “second time” to the land of Israel. Is this “second” return the one of 1948? If so, Israel could conquer the Mid East nations at any time, as the Psalm 83 theory proposes. But the passage is actually describing events when Jesus returns at the end of the Great Tribulation.
Quoting Fruchtenbaum, we read that “the regathering spoken of in this passage is the one in faith in preparation for the Millennial Kingdom. This regathering in faith is specifically stated to be a second international regathering...the first international regathering is the one which would be in preparation for judgment [1948 to the Tribulation]...The second regathering will be...in preparation for blessing.” 1
Therefore, the events of Isaiah 11, including the conquest of the Psalm 83 nations, take place at the time of the Second Coming of Christ in preparation for the Millennial Kingdom.
1. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, Israelology: The Missing Link In Systematic Theology, Ariel Ministries, 1996, p. 718.
Note 5
When will Israel get the Psalm 83 lands?
In Genesis 15:18-21God promised that His Chosen People Israel would one day possess all of the land extending from the Mediterranean Sea to the Euphrates River. This is the land which today encompasses the lands of the Psalm 83 nations.
The possession of this ‘Promised Land’ has a clear chronological fulfillment in Scripture, as Fruchtenbaum says, “Following the regeneration of Israel [at the Second Coming of Christ], God will fully carry out the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant concerning the Land...for the first time in Israel’s history, she will possess all of the Promised Land.”1 No, Israel will not march out and conquer the Psalm 83 nations (Israel’s Promised Land) before the time prescribed in Biblical prophecy.
1. Arnold Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps Of The Messiah, Ariel Ministries, 2003, p. 431, 438.
Note 6
Which ‘Israel’ Does Magog Attack?
The Psalm 83 theory says that Israel will conquer & occupy the entire Middle East BEFORE Magog invades Israel. (Eze. 38-39) If that were the case, Magog would have to attack an Israel whose boundaries span the Mediterranean Sea to Iraq. But Ezekiel says that these Russian-Islamic nations will attack “the mountains of Israel” (39:2,9,17). This term is used by Ezekiel 17 times as a specific geographic designator to identify the physical land of Israel as it exists today. The Ezekiel Magog attack knows nothing of Israel’s supposed occupation of Psalm 83 lands.
Note 7
The Psalm 83 Event
God is implored in this prayerful Psalm to judge certain long standing enemies of Israel in the war-like manner by which He judged other ancient foes. The nations involved, with their modern place-names, are: Edom, Moab, Gebal & Ammon {Jordan}; Ishmaelites & Hagrites [Saudi Arabia]; Amalek [Egypt]; Philistia [Gaza, Palestine]; Tyre [Lebanon]; Assyria [Syria, Iraq]; Children of Lot [scattered thru Mideast]. The prayer is prophetic because it is embedded in an end-timeframe (many turn to the Lord, v. 16), & their defeat is “forever” (v. 17), & the implication is that the prayer will be answered in the future, a prophecy as yet unfulfilled.
Note 8
The Ezekiel 38-39 Magog-Islamic Invasion of Israel
A massive military coalition led by a leader titled “Gog” from “the land of Magog” will launch an end-time invasion of Israel supposedly to “capture spoil.” Russia is Magog (including Rosh, Mesheck & Tubal). Other named nations include Persia [Iran]; Ethiopia; Put [Libya]; Gomer & Beth-togarmah [Georgia-Turkey area]; “and many peoples” [many other nations]. God will directly abort the invasion “on the mountains of Israel.” (39:1-5)
Note 9
THE INNER-RING NATIONS & THE WAR OF ARMAGEDDON
In passages clearly set contextually at the End Time, the time of Armageddon., we see;
1. Joel’s account of the War of Armageddon refers to “all the nations” in chapter 3, but there it makes specific reference only to these INNER RING nations—Tyre, Sidon, Philistia, Egypt, Edom.
2. Isaiah 11 (see Sidebar 5) lists only INNER RING nations Philistia, Edom, Moab, Ammon, Egypt & Assyria.
3. Zechariah 14, while making reference to “all the nations,” specifically names only INNER RING “surrounding nations” & Egypt
These passages leave out the LEADER nations (as does Psalm 83). No mention is made of the Antichrist, the ten kings, or the “kings of the east.” (Revelation 17:12; 16:12) Yet the LEADER nations are clearly implied by the phrase “all the nations.”
Likewise, the “missing” FOLLOWER nations of Ezekiel’s Magog-listing are not missing at all—they are also implied by the phrase “many peoples [same exact words translated “many nations” in 38:8] with you.” (Eze. 38:6)
Note 10
RADICAL UN-SECURITY
(70 AD to 1948)
Deuteronomy 28 sums up part one of Jewish history since 70 AD. It is a graphic prophecy of the entire 70 AD—1945-48 span of Jewish persecution.
"And the LORD shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other…And among these nations shalt thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the LORD shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind: And thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life. In the morning thou shalt say, Would God it were even! and at even thou shalt say, Would God it were morning! for the fear of thine heart …” (Deuteronomy 28:64-68)
Nineteen centuries of Jewish suffering culminated in the Holocaust during the Second World War where 6 million Jews disappeared in the Nazi death camps;
“…neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest... thy life shall hang in doubt before thee... and thou shalt fear day and night, and shalt have none assurance of thy life,”
...all of which couldn’t be more graphic in describing Jewish RADICAL UN-SECURITY throughout that period.
Note 11
GOD-given SECURITY
(1948 through Magog)
Part two of post-AD 70 prophetic history saw God bring the Jews back to the land of Israel. Ezekiel 38, our Magog passage, prophesied of that miraculous event, which was fulfilled in 1948, describing Israel as,
“...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. (Eze.38:8)
The important point at this stage is that when God Himself brought the Jews back to their land, He also gave them a nation, and He also gave them security—through four miraculous wars! (1948, ’56, ’67, ’73) This brought “confidence” (Hebrew, “batach”) But Israel still has not recognized her God (Messiah Jesus, John 5:23), or given Him glory.
Therefore, God will permit the Magog (Russian-Islamic) Invasion into Israel so that Israel will recognize that God IS their Security! (Eze. 39:7, 22)
Note 12
RADICALLY UNSECURE
(The Great Tribulation)
Part three of Jewish prophetic history shows many Jews will wake up to their need for ’God-Security’ after Magog, but most won’t. Thus Israel will enter the RADICALLY UNSECURE Tribulation, by far the worst ever! (Jer. 30:7; Mat. 24:21)
Note 13
SECURE FOREVERMORE
(The Millennium into Eternity)
Part four of Jewish prophetic history says that when Jesus Christ returns,“...the LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be the only one, and His name the only one...and there will be no more curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security. “ (Zec. 14:9-11)
—SECURITY NEVER ENDING—
Note 14
Questions about Israel’s
security today? Ask Your Tour-Leader!
Many claim Israel is not secure today. But ask any Christian tour leader to Israel what he tells his group about “tour safety in Israel” today. I’ve heard them, and I myself have said the same on a tour I led to Israel in 2004—”Today the streets of Israel are safer than the streets of Chicago and New York!” And it’s true!
The same couldn’t be said about a “tour” to visit the Jews in the 1945 Nazi death camps, or at any time in the preceding 1900 years! Nor could the same be said about a “tour” to Israel during the future Tribulation. But it can be said today! In fact, every Christian tour leader proclaims that today Israel is secure, terrorists and the 1948, ‘56, ‘67 and ‘73 wars notwithstanding. Those wars actually enhanced Israel’s security.
If Israel is not secure, neither is the tour group.
Note 15
History Recognizes Israel Today as a “Haven of Refuge”
“The world was shocked that such barbarism could take place in the 20th century” and so the world demanded a place of refuge for the surviving Jews— a national homeland— a return to the land of Israel.1
The world’s response was that “a Jewish national homeland was finally brought into being by a horrified, conscience-stricken international community which viewed Israel as a necessary refuge for Jews throughout the world.” 2
“Having their own country was …a practical answer to the problem of having a secure place to go to.” 3
Max Dimont, the great historian of the Jews, acknowledges that “the State of Israel today is a citadel of Judaism, a haven of refuge.” 4
John Walvoord writes, “being scattered to the ends of the earth has persisted until the twentieth century, and with it has come untold sufferings to the people of Israel climaxing in the terrible scourge of Hitler who murdered some six million of the people of Israel.” 5
Notice that Walvoord says that this first period of Jewish ‘unsecurity’ was climaxed by the Holocaust.
Today, Israel is a secure place of refuge for the Jews.
1. G. & L. Klaperman, The Story Of The Jewish People, Behrman House, N. Y., 1958, p. 229.
2. From Time Immemorial, Joan Peters, ,1984, p. 80.
3. G. & L. Klaperman, The Story Of The Jewish People, 1958, p. 241.
4. Jews, God And History, Max I. Dimont, 962, p. 418.
The answer is today’s Islamic Middle-Eastern nations. Ironically, all ten nations in Psalm 83 correspond to modern Islamic nations. “The following are the modern locations for these ten nations: (1) Edom – Southern Jordan, (2) Ishmaelites – Arabs, (3) Hagarenes – Egypt, (4) Gebal – Lebanon, (5) Ammon – Northern Jordan, (6) Amalek – Sinai Peninsula, (7) Philistines – Gaza Strip, (8) Tyre – Lebanon, (9) Assur – Syria and Iraq, and (10) Children of Lot – Jordan,” Restoration Study Bible, Ps. 83:4.
In addition to the Ten Kings representing Islamic nations, there is also evidence that the Beast system is Islamic. According to Revelation, the Man of Sin’s empire will be established upon seven mountains, representing seven kings or kingdoms. “And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition” (Rev. 17:9-11).
Notice that these kingdoms are chronological. Five existed before John’s prophecy, one during, one that would come soon after, followed by an eighth, which would be based on the seventh. Since prophecy is always Israel centric, the first five nations likely refer to Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece. Except for Egypt, each of these nations succeeded the other. Since Rome was the superpower and governed Judea during John’s prophecy, Rome would be the sixth.
Who then would be the seventh kingdom? While many point to the barbarians and the fall of Western Rome, many ignore the fact that Rome was not defeated by the barbarians, but continued through its eastern half, which was later known as the Byzantine Empire. Interestingly, the Byzantine Empire was conquered by the Ottoman Turks in the 15th century. Based on these historical facts, the Byzantine Empire likely represents the seventh kingdom, making the eighth kingdom a revived Islamic empire or caliphate. The threat of a revived Islamic empire is certainly more probable today than it was decades ago. This is especially true with the recent upsurge of radical Islam.
Also, Revelation 20:4 speaks about the saints being beheaded as a testimony to their faith: “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Yahshua, and for the word of Yahweh, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Messiah a thousand years.” The only religion that employs dismemberment today is radical Islam, further establishing them as not only the Ten Kings, but the entire Beast system.
Isaiah refers to “that day” three times in this chapter. “That Day” is generally used in scripture to specifically refer to the “Day of the Lord”. Here, “that day” connects the destruction of Damascus with the “day” when the “glory of Jacob fades” and only “gleanings” remain. This is consistent with the Day of the Lord, or the “Time of Jacob’s Trouble”, where 2/3 of the Israelites will perish and 1/3 will be brought through the fires of testing (Zechariah 13:8-9). The Day of the Lord is not a single day, but a timespan of up to 7 years. This does not suggest the battle lasts for 7 years, but that the effects of it might – especially when coupled with all the other events of the great and terrible Day of the Lord.
Jeremiah 49:23-27 contains a prophecy concerning Damascus that connects its’ destruction with “that day” where they will “melt in fear”, and will be seized in panic when anguish and sorrows take hold of her as of a woman in labor. There are strong connections between a woman in labor and the Time of Jacob’s Trouble (Revelation 12:1-5, Isaiah 26, Isaiah 66). Jeremiah is certainly talking about the same event mentioned in Isaiah 17, which seems to be connected to the start of the “Tribulation” (Daniel’s 70th Week / the Day of the Lord).
Isaiah 17 also mentions that in “that day people will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel”. This is consistent with the purpose of the entire Day of the Lord, from start to finish – God will use judgment to get His people’s attention and draw them back to Him.
The “many nations” and “peoples” who are attempting to plunder Israel are “driven before the wind like chaff on the hills, like tumbleweed before a gale” in the span of one evening/night. It seems that the enemies flee, and are not destroyed.
The Arab-Israeli Promised Land War of Psalm 83
Psalm 83 is a prayer of the prophet Asaph. In it, he requests for God to break His silence towards Israel and protect her. He mentions a specific group of nations wanting to wipe Israel off the face of the map. The nations include Edom, Ishmaelites, Moab, Hagrites, Gebal, Ammon, Amalek, Philistia, Tyre, and Asshur. Modern day equivalents seem to be Egypt, Jordan/Palestinians, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Lebanon.
This war appears to have been at least partially fulfilled in the Six-Day War of 1967. The exact nations described in Psalm 83 issued a coordinated attack against Israel, and Israel was victorious.
It’s also possible that the complete fulfillment, or a dual fulfillment, of this war is yet future. An interesting detail noted in Obadiah is that it places the battle against Edom (included in Psalm 83) near the Day of the Lord – “For the day of the Lord is near upon all the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head.” (Obad 1:15 ESV). The reference of being near the Day of the Lord could refer to 1967, or it could yet be future. The Day of the Lord was drawing “near” upon all the nations 50 years ago… but it is certainly nearer now.
Gog and Magog War of Ezekiel 38 & 39
Ezekiel chapters 38 and 39 detail a very specific war against Israel. For it to occur, Israel must be existing in a state of “peace and safety” (“betach”). What this is exactly is debatable, but it seems that it involves either some overconfidence or lack of awareness (carelessness) on Israel’s part. She will not be actively at war when these nations attack her, and she will be caught by surprise.
A future leader or supreme commander, Gog (the spiritual entity behind the geographical region of “Magog”), of the land of Magog (Russia? Turkey?), will oversee a vast military alliance which will be heavily armed. The alliance appears to be primarily Islamic, and their goal will be to overtake Israel’s resources. It seems that Russia (Turkey?) will be joined by Iran and Islamic nations from north and east Africa (Ethiopia, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and others), plus Islamic nations of the Middle East and Central Asia (Turkey, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Tadzhikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and others). There may be mild protest to this invasion from unspecified nations (USA?), but there will be no intervention in support of Israel and Israel may not even have time to defend itself.
God will completely destroy the invading armies and send destruction to their homelands through a global earthquake, internal chaos and infighting, pestilence, torrential rain, hail, fire and brimstone. What begins as divine judgment on the troops surrounding Israel will expand to include the whole world. (Note there are strong connections to Seal 6 in Revelation 6 as well as the first Trumpet Judgment).
Basically, God will raise Israel’s enemies up against her in such a way as to guarantee her destruction, just so that He can prevent her from being destroyed.
God breaks His silence with Israel for the purpose of announcing to an unbelieving world – Israel herself and all the nations – that He is still here! He intends to fulfill His covenant promises and reclaim Israel as His people and His land. God mentions this purpose 70 times in the book of Ezekiel; four times in these two chapters alone, to ensure He gets His point across.
It’s impossible to overemphasize the significance that God Himself is arranging this war exactly according to His schedule. God has one final test for Israel. He will use Gog / Magog as a challenge for both Israel and the nations. It will be deliberately presented so that it can be interpreted by Israel as the final war (Battle of Armageddon). Will Israel then turn to Jesus as the true Messiah, or will she embrace the anti-Messiah that satan will raise up?
Gog, the commander, will die upon the mountains of Israel along with his armies. After God intervenes and destroys the army, Israel will spend 7 months cleansing the land and burying the dead. Israel will also be able to use the invaders’ weapons as some type of fuel source and will plunder their equipment. They will do so for a period of 7 years (but there may be more than 7 years’ supply available). At the 7 year point, something will happen to intervene with this use if the supply has not run out (I would suggest the Second Coming of Jesus Christ).
The Antichrist Rises to Power
I believe the 3 wars detailed above (Isaiah 17, Psalm 83, Ezekiel 38-39), in addition to the World Wars (Nation Rising Against Nation), occur in very close proximity to the rapture of the true church (those who have been “born again” through the blood of Jesus Christ). However, they may possibly be included in the description of the Antichrist’s rise to power. I am confident that it will become very clear at the time it occurs!
The details of the Antichrist’s rise to power is found in Daniel chapters 7, 11, and Revelation chapter 13.
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