QT 9/14/2023 Ezek 38:1-9, Is Gog the leader of Babylon?

Ezekiel 38:1–9 (ESV) —

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him 3 and say, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. 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 clothed in full armor, a great host, all of them with buckler and shield, wielding swords. 5 Persia, Cush, and Put are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; 6 Gomer and all his hordes; Beth-togarmah from the uttermost parts of the north with all his hordes—many peoples are with you.

7 “Be ready and keep ready, you and all your hosts that are assembled about you, and be a guard for them. 8 After many days you will be mustered. In the latter years you will go against the land that is restored from war, the land whose people were gathered from many peoples upon the mountains of Israel, which had been a continual waste. Its people were brought out from the peoples and now dwell securely, all of them. 9 You will advance, coming on like a storm. You will be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your hordes, and many peoples with you.

 

NOTE: There is a major question on the identity of Gog. One of the more interesting analyses is the lack of a message against Babylon in Ezekiel's prophecies. Maybe that has to do with his location at the time. There is some work that identifies it as a cryptogram referring to Babel or Babylon. The prophecies against Babylon have never been completely fulfilled. In this case, God is a symbol of the forces of the Antichrist seen in the last days before the Messianic kingdom. The Sumerian word for Gog means darkness, which would fit the prince of this world and the character of the ruler of end-time Babylon. The probable partners would be primarily Iran, Ethiopia, Libya, Armenia (or parts of Russia). But the Antichrist will manage to organize most of the world against Israel in the last days. It is hard to say when this battle occurs, prior to the tribulation, at the end of the tribulation, or at the end of the millennial kingdom.

 

PONDER:

1. What nation is Babylon?
2. Who is the Antichrist? Has he been born yet?
3. We really don't know these answers but we can identify our belief in an end times so that when we are raptured, those who knew us will have one more witness of the truth of the bible. What are we doing to share our faith in the coming age?

 

PRAYER: Father, help me to not shrink back when discussions come up on end times. I don't want my timidity to be the cause of anyone not knowing the truth.