Prologue: Three hundred years ago, two believers in Christ were having
discussions about Bible prophecy. They were reading prophecies in the
Old Testament about the restoration of Israel back to the Land in the
last days. One of them said, “Could this happen literally?” His friend
replied, “Of course not, all the conditions of the world are against it.
The Jews are scattered all over the earth; the nations of the world
would not stand for it; the Arabs would not tolerate it; it is
unthinkable that such a turn of events could occur.
We must interpret these prophecies allegorically. It would take more than a miracle for this to occur.”
We must interpret these prophecies allegorically. It would take more than a miracle for this to occur.”
Indeed. Now, three hundred years later, against all odds, we have lived
through just such a miracle. Israel is once again a nation among the
family of nations, and is in the world news almost every day. Jesus
said, “Not one jot or tittle shall pass from the Law until all is
fulfilled.” (Matthew 5:18) Will all the prophecies of the Word be
fulfilled literally or just some of them?
I have long believed that the next great prophetic event between the
Rapture of the Church and the beginning of the Tribulation will be the
Gog and Magog War of Ezekiel 38-39. There may be other smaller
prophetic and/or non-prophetic wars between now and then, but the focus
appears to be on Gog and Magog during that time frame. The Gog and
Magog War is a critical step in the divine plan of restoring all of
Israel to the Promised Land, as well as the developments during the
Tribulation, Armageddon and the Second Coming of Christ.
Every day it seems like the stage is being set for the events of the Gog and Magog War. For Example:
- Iran (i.e. Ancient Persia) is increasingly in the international spotlight as it moves inexorably closer to nuclear capability.
- Israel’s vulnerability from nuclear attack from Iran is causing it to ramp up its ability to mount a pre-emptive strike against the nuclear facilities in Iran.
- They are also forging an agreement with Saudi Arabia to use its airspace in case of such an attack.
- The U.S. administration and the European powers are attempting to solve the Iran problem diplomatically, but in the process they are alienating and marginalizing Israel.
- In addition, Russia is supplying Iran and much of the Middle East with military and diplomatic support.
- Israel’s discovery of vast natural gas reserves in the Leviathan field in the Mediterranean Sea and shale oil reserves under the Valley of Elah on land are making that miracle nation even more of a desirable target for Russia and the Magog alliance to attack.
What else has to happen, besides the Rapture, before the Gog and Magog War actually comes to pass?
Well, there are some aspects of Ezekiel’s prophecy that appear to be out
of sync with current conditions. For instance, the warfare described
in Ezekiel 38-39 is primitive compared to modern weapons:
Ezekiel 38:4 4 “And I will turn you about, and put hooks into your
jaws, and I will bring you out, and all your army, horses and horsemen,
all of them splendidly attired, a great company with buckler and shield,
all of them wielding swords (NASB);
There are no planes, tanks, missiles and so forth in the prophet’s
narrative.
The customary interpretation is, of course, that Ezekiel knew nothing about modern weapons when he wrote some 3,500 years ago, and so he had to describe the events in the terms of ancient warfare such as swords, shields, bucklers, and horses. That may be the case, but is it possible that by the time the War takes place military power may be so degraded that the nations are reduced to fighting with ancient weapons? Could some kind of nuclear war or other events occur that would make modern weapons inoperative?
The customary interpretation is, of course, that Ezekiel knew nothing about modern weapons when he wrote some 3,500 years ago, and so he had to describe the events in the terms of ancient warfare such as swords, shields, bucklers, and horses. That may be the case, but is it possible that by the time the War takes place military power may be so degraded that the nations are reduced to fighting with ancient weapons? Could some kind of nuclear war or other events occur that would make modern weapons inoperative?
There are at least two features of the Gog and Magog War that seem to
make modern weapons unlikely. One is the vast array of horses used
(along with soldiers) that provide the multitude of vultures and beasts
with an enormous feast at the conclusion of the battles.
Ezekiel 38:15 15 “And you will come from your place out of the remote
parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on
horses, a great assembly and a mighty army (NASB);
Ezekiel 39:17-20 17 “And as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord
God, ‘Speak to every kind of bird and to every beast of the field,
“Assemble and come, gather from every side to My sacrifice which I am
going to sacrifice for you, as a great sacrifice on the mountains of
Israel, that you may eat flesh and drink blood. 18 “You shall eat the
flesh of mighty men, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, as
though they were rams, lambs, goats, and bulls, all of them fatlings of
Bashan. 19 “So you will eat fat until you are glutted, and drink blood
until you are drunk, from My sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
20 “And you will be glutted at My table with horses and charioteers,
with mighty men and all the men of war,” declares the Lord God (NASB).
The vultures and beasts surely would not be feeding on fallen planes and
tanks! The other is the fact that the victorious Israelis will be able
to use the debris of the fallen invaders for fuel for seven years after
the War, so that they will not have to cut down forests for fuel during
that time.
Eze 38-39 Intro
Ezekiel 39:9-10 9 “Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go
out, and make fires with the weapons and burn them, both shields and
bucklers, bows and arrows, war clubs and spears and for seven years they
will make fires of them. 10 “And they will not take wood from the
field or gather firewood from the forests, for they will make fires with
the weapons; and they will take the spoil of those who despoiled them,
and seize the plunder of those who plundered them,” declares the Lord
God. turn your hand against the waste places which are now inhabited,
and against the people who are gathered from the nations(NASB).
It is interesting that the length of time for the burning of the fuel is
the same time as the length of the seven years of the Tribulation.
Another area of scientific research is in that of climate change. This
has nothing to do with the Global Warming pseudo-science that claims
human activity is affecting the climate. Rather, it looks at validated
evidence that we may be headed toward a great cooling era which could
bring increasing rainfall to Israel and in turn could increase forests
and grassland. Extensive grassland in Israel would make possible the
development of herds of cattle throughout the Land. As noted above,
there is a description of forests and cattle in Israel, which do not
exist in abundance in the Land at the present time:
Ezekiel 39:10“And they will not take wood from the field or gather
firewood from the forests who have acquired cattle and goods, who live
at the center of the world (NASB).’
There is some anecdotal evidence that Israel is already experiencing
heavier rainfall and snow in recent years, and conversely, anecdotal
evidence that areas of Russia and the Ukraine are getting colder. If
these trends are confirmed and continue, it might make vast areas of
Russia too cold for many crops. It is speculated that some of this
climate change might be caused by activity on the surface of the Sun.
These climate events, if they develop, might also contribute to making
Israel an inviting target for Russia. We need more hard evidence from
reputable climatologists to determine if these trends are valid.
Some scientists, many of whom have no interest in Bible prophecy, are
doing research on the degrading of modern weapons systems. This includes
the disruption of the electric power grid and semiconductor devices
through such weapons as the Electromagnetic Pulse Bomb. The best known
example of the potential for severe damage to the electrical grid and
electronic devices is the Star Fish Prime Nuclear weapon test in
1962[1]. However, in order for swords to replace small arms, nitrate
manufacturing/supplies must somehow be compromised or, nitrates
themselves must be destabilized. No weapon or known natural process is
able to destabilize nitrates on a worldwide basis. (Nitro cellulose is
the propellant in all, or nearly all small arms)
The elimination of electricity and gunpowder would go a long ways toward
throwing warfare back to the primitive status described in Ezekiel, but
such drastic changes seem unlikely under the present circumstances.
Scientists are also looking at valid naturally caused climate changes
that would affect growing seasons around the world, especially in Israel
but again we need more evidence that this is actually happening.
I am attempting to gather as much research on this subject as possible,
and I am inviting our readers who have information on these matters to
respond. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Send email to: bigmac1936 at embarqmail.com (replace the 'at' with the @
symbol).
