An Intertextual Analysis of Ezekiel 38 (Part 1)

Introduction

For several reasons Ezekiel 38 is a difficult prophecy to understand. It presents difficulties in identifying the protagonists, the ancient geographical regions, the chronology and the initial fulfilment (is there a contemporary fulfilment or is it all placed in the future?). The inherit ambiguity in this prophecy lends itself to various interpretations that are often forced onto current geo-political circumstances. One can speak of eisegesis rather than exegesis. In other words, the interpreter makes the prophecy “fit” his/her worldview rather than letting the prophecy ‘speak’. The intention of this article is to offer a new intertextual approach after which a separate article will discuss some of the more traditional approaches.[1]

Earlier Prophecies

A cursory reading of the chapter brings to attention the following enigmatic passage,

“Thus saith the Lord God; Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them?” (Ezek 38:17)

The reference to earlier prophecies is affirmatively confirmed in the next chapter:

“Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God; this is the day whereof I have spoken.” (Ezek 39:8)

The LXX of Ezek 38.17 actually addresses the protagonist as the Gog, leaving no doubt that the subject “he whom I have spoken” is Gog. But which ‘earlier’ prophecy is here being referenced? Sverre Bøe lists three options (1) Unknown prophecies lost to posterity; (2) A reference to Num 24.7; and (3) A reference to similar enemies that do not specifically mention Gog.[2] There is little we can do with option (1) and option (3) is too generic but option (2) requires further examination:

“He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed [Jacob’s] shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.” (Num 24:7)

This is the Balaam Oracle when the King of Moab sought to hire the prophet to curse the nation of Israel when they were about to enter the land. The prophecy is concerned with the ‘latter days’ (Num 24.14) and the “star out of Jacob” (Num 24.17) is interpreted as a messianic reference. Note the words in v.19: “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Num 23:19) This is very similar to Ezek 39:8, “this is the day whereof I have spoken”.

It might be objected that Num 24:7 mentions Agag and not Gog, however, both the Septuagint (LXX) and the Samaritan Pentateuch (SP) have Gog in this prophecy and there is a certain phonetic similarity between Agag and Gog:

“There shall come a man out of his seed, and he shall rule over many nations; and the kingdom of Gog shall be exalted, and his kingdom shall be increased”. (LXE Num 24:7)

Commenting on the work done by Bøe, Myrto Theocharous summarises as follows:

“Bøe notes the early shift from Agag to Gog in the LXX, and possibly in other Greek versions such as Theodotion, in the Vetus Latina and in the Samaritan Pentateuch (SP). As Bøe says of the last-named, “This is surprising since Gog elsewhere is not witnessed in the Pentateuch, but rather in the latter prophets. These writings did not come to hold any canonical position for the Samaritan society.” Nevertheless, in agreement with Gerleman, Bøe recognizes the weight of this tradition in pre-Christian times, meaning that Gog, not Agag, was the common reading. Normally it is a strong indication of a different Vorlage when the LXX and the Samaritan Pentateuch agree against the MT. Bøe’s thorough work on Gog and Magog covers a very broad range of extra-biblical tradition…”[3]

Bøe concludes,

“Several of the texts studied read Gog where other versions or manuscripts have names which are quite similar to Gog either phonetically or in written form, such as “Agag” (Num 24,7), “the Agagite” (Esth 3.1 and 9.24), and “Og” (Deut 3.1,13; 4,47). There is no indication that “Goug” in 1 Chr 5.4 ever was a part of the Gog and Magog traditions. Other texts referring to Gog may have had a Vorlage with Hebrew words that easily could be confused with “Gog”, such as in Amos 7.1 and Sir 48.17.”[4]

Of particular interest to us is Esther (3:1 and 9.24) where Haman is described as an “Agagite” thus linking Esther with Agag in the Baalam oracle of Num 24.7(Gog, LXX). This is interesting as A. Fowler has suggested that a partial fulfilment of Ezekiel 38 can be found in the genocide planned by Haman;

“The events recorded in Esther probably occurred in the reign of Xerxes during the 60-year ‘silent period’ between the completion of the temple in B.C. 516 and the return under Ezra in B.C. 458). During this period, Jerusalem was without walls and the Israelites were dwelling safely because the Samaritans had been suppressed by the decree of Darius (Ezra 6:7-13)”.[5]

This suggestion holds merit for several reasons. (1) The restoration “prince” was the legitimate Davidic descendant Zerubbabel; (2) the villages and Jerusalem were without walls;[6] (3) the Jews were extremely wealthy; (4) the surrounding nations were hostile; (5) this was a planned genocide; and (6) the temple was rebuilt.

Of course, there are anomalies as this was but a partial fulfilment (curtailed because of disobedience) – the Davidic prince was not the Messiah and the rebuilt temple was not Ezekiel’s visionary temple and the genocide organised by Haman (the Agagite or Gogite) was not the latter day invasion of Gog. However, the incident prefigured the final confrontation and 75,000 of Israel’s enemies perished (Esth 9:16). As Fowler notes, “…there [is no] mention of any loss of life amongst the Jews. It was, therefore, no ordinary war”.[7]

Some form of divine intervention (besides Esther’s mediation) must have occurred and the Gog invasion was thwarted on the mountains of Israel but (obviously) also in the dispersed provinces and satrapies of Persia. It seems that a coordinated pogrom was organised to target diaspora Jews as well as those in the land, who would all be extinguished on the same day (the planning of this event took twelve months). It was motivated by greed and jealousy and involved merchant nations (Tarshish) prepared to fence the stolen wealth. As Fowler observes the Jews were the bankers[8] of the Persian Empire, they held important positions and accumulated great wealth: “Haman also had a financial motive for his genocide. He had calculated that the spoils would enable him to offer the king 10,000 talents of silver. Herodotus tells us that the annual revenue of the whole Persian Empire was about two thirds of this sum. This would not have included spoils for Haman and his army.”[9] Although, of course we must make a distinction between poor Jews (some who remained in the land during the exile) and rich diaspora Jews in the satrapies who held properties and wealth throughout the Persian Empire including the wealthy returnees to the land.

In support of this reading we note the similarity between Esth 3:1 (MT[10]) “Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite” and Ezek 39:11: “They bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it ‘The valley of Hamongog’”. Although lexicons point here to different roots, the sound of the Hebrew suggests a word-play between Haman-Agag and Hamon-Gog which would be appealing to the Semitic mind.

However, there is more, as M. G. Kline^[11] recognises a word play on Abraham’s new name in Gen 17:4, “thou shalt be a father of many nations” or ‘Father of a Great Multitude’ (´ab hámôn Gôyìm). Abraham’s descendants would be like the sand on the sea shore (Gen 22:17) and the hordes of the latter day Gog would number like the sand of the sea (Rev 20:8). Once again, this contrasts with Num 24:7 where Jacob’s descendants are described,

“And his seed [Jacob’s] shall be in many waters. His king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted”.

Note Num 24:20,

“Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perishes for ever”.

Amalek was the first nation to war against Israel (in the wilderness) and will be the last nation to war against Israel (at the End of the Age) for, “the Lord hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from [the first] generation to [the last] generation”.

It is also worth noting that there is evidence of a link with Medo-Persia, perhaps deriving from earlier deportations from the territory of Amalek. The name of ‘Haman’ as well as ‘Hammedatha’ are Medo-Persian and some scholars have argued that the country or tribe of Agazi in Mesopotamia is related to the Agagites of Amalek.[12] Of course, we know little of the dispersal and absorption of the Amalekites, and therefore likely subjects of Assyria and subsequently of Persia. Nevertheless, Agag the Amalekite becomes an archetype in Jewish traditional writings, a sort of “bogeyman” bent on the destruction of Jews. Esau the brother of Jacob married two Hittite wives (Gen 26:34-35; 36:1-2) as well as the daughter of Ishmael (Gen 28:9; 36:3) his descendants formed the Edomites and the Amalekites (and other Semitic peoples through Ishmael’s daughter). All these people became implacable enemies of the Jews.

In sum: ‘Agag’ is either the name of an Amalekite dynasty based on a prominent founder or perhaps a title. There was an Amalekite king called Agag (‘Gog’, LXX/SP) in the time of Balaam and one slain by Samuel (1 Sam 15:9-33). Haman is given the appellation of Agagite and according to Josephus it is a reference to his Amalekite descent (Jos. Antiq. xi. 6, 5).

Seventy Nations

Jewish commentary on Esther describes the Exile as follows: “One sheep attempting to survive among seventy wolves” (Esther Rabbah 10:11). Israel in exile were not subjected to one kingdom but to seventy nations. The figure of ‘seventy nations’ comes from the table of nations in Genesis 10, the same nations from which the coalition of Ezekiel 38 is drawn.[13]

The reference to Magog, Japheth’s son in the table of nations in Gen 10:2 (and in 1 Chron 1.5) is crucial to establishing the connection, as well as references to the other nations of Genesis 10 mentioned in Ezekiel 38. The motif of ‘seventy’ is a recurring motif in the ANE (not just in Israel) based on the council of the ‘high god’ and his pantheon (seventy sons). One explanation is that this was demythologised and deconstructed by the prophets and depicts Yahweh and his divine council which is subsequently reflected throughout Israelite history. Seventy souls entered Egypt (MT), Moses appointed seventy judges (Sanhedrin), Jesus sends out seventy disciples, etc. The idea behind this is that the seventy angels (in heaven) and their proxies (the seventy rulers/judges on earth) would administer the seventy nations in the kingdom age. Moses’ Song in Deuteronomy 32 informs us that the boundaries of Israel were determined (delimited) by the seventy nations:

“Remember the days of old, consider the years of many generations: ask thy father, and he will shew thee; thy elders, and they will tell thee. When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel. For the Lord’s portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance”. (Deut 32:7-9)

The following is the Greek LXX version:

“Remember the days of old, consider the years for past ages: ask thy father, and he shall relate to thee, thine elders, and they shall tell thee. When the Most High divided the nations, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the nations, according to the number of the angels of God. And his people Jacob became the portion of the Lord, Israel was the line of his inheritance”. (LXE, Deut 32:7-9)

In the MT, the boundaries are delimited by the children of Israel (the 70 souls entering into Egypt) and in the LXX the boundaries are defined by the angels (70 archangels controlling the nations). Both versions are informing the reader that Israel is God’s portion (inheritance) and his sons (whether angelic or Adamic) function as arbitrators defining and delimiting the boundaries of the Gentile nations. Similarly, Israel (eretz = the earth) is metaphorically depicted as “dry land” emerging from waters (surrounded by the gentile sea) when God establishes the boundaries of land and sea as in Gen 1:9.

The scenario in Ezekiel 38 depicts the seventy nations breaching the divinely established boundaries and flooding the dry land and v. 9 uses the same word (cover) that describes the flood in Gen 7:19.

“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”. (Ezek 38:9)

The character of Gog is described as evil in similar terms to the pre-flood generation:

“And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen 6:5).

“Thus saith 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” (Ezek 38:10).

Only one man was righteous – Noah, whose name means ‘rest’ alluding to those who ‘rest’ (different Hebrew word) securely and peacefully in the land in Ezekiel’s oracle. The future time for the rebellious pre-flood generation was reduced to one hundred and twenty years (Gen 6:3) the same age as Moses when he died because he rebelled against God. In Deuteronomy 32, Moses is refused entry into the land

“…because ye sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel” (Deut 32:51);

contrast Ezek 38:16,

“….and I will bring thee against my land, that the heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes”.

We have then a number of contrasts established with Deuteronomy 32. The context of the Song of Moses is that the people are about to enter the land whose boundaries are delimited by the arbiters of the seventy nations. They are warned that a number of calamities would follow apostasy. Moses is not allowed to enter because he did not sanctify God. The Song of Moses had both a prophetic purpose (it predicted the nation’s falling away) and a didactic purpose (it taught the faithfulness of God and the consequences of sin). It warned against God’s wrath and advised them to consider their “latter end” (Deut 32:29) after all it was God who “makes alive” and God who “kills” (Deut 32:39).

The Ezekiel Oracle reverses the Song of Moses; the saints are now in the land living peacefully the nation has been resurrected (made alive) by God (Ezekiel 37) and they have a “Davidic Shepherd” and dwell peacefully (Ezekiel 34); there is no more apostasy. The wealth of nations flows to them as they are the blessed of God and sanctified by him. However, Gog has an evil thought and heads up the nations of Genesis 10 (Ezekiel 38), and the gentile nations breach their God-established boundaries and converge from all directions to conduct genocide and to rob the peaceful saints. Bøe summarises as follows:[14]

The directions from which Gog’s army has been recruited give an impression of a universal plot against Israel; cf. the following list of nations according to their place on a (modern) map:

38.2 Meshech N	38.5 Put W	38.13 Sheba S
38.2 Tubal N	38.6 Gomer N	38.13 Tarshish W
38.5 Persia E	38.6 Bel Togarmah N	39.6 “The coastlands” NW
38.5 Cush SW

The contrasts and correspondences between Ezekiel 38 and Deuteronomy 32 in tabular form are laid out in the next table:

Ezekiel 38	Deuteronomy 32
Boundaries of nations breached 38.10 Thus saith 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. 38.9…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.	32.8…Boundaries of the nations established Seventy listed in Genesis 10[15] And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Gen 6.5). The flood covered the land (Gen 7.19)
38.8 …in the latter years 38.16 …it shall be in the latter days	32.29 …that they [Israel] would consider their latter end!
38.8 …that is brought back from the sword and is gathered out of many people, against the mountains	32.26 …I said, I would scatter them [Israel] into corners, I would make the remembrance of them to cease from among men
38.19 …For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken [against Gog]	32:22 …For a fire is kindled in mine anger [against Israel]
38.17…Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time (Gog LXX Num 24.7)[16]	32.7…Remember the days of old, consider the years… thy elders, and they will tell thee.
38.16…when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog	32:51…because ye [Moses] sanctified me not in the midst of the children of Israel

In Ezekiel 38, all the punishments reserved for apostate Israel are now poured out on Gog and his hoards as they had breached the ordained boundaries and failed to acknowledge that “Jacob was God’s portion (inheritance)”. God is now “sanctified” in his punishment of Gog.

“Were it not that I feared the wrath of the enemy, lest their adversaries should behave themselves strangely, and lest they should say, Our hand is high, (contrast Num 24:7, “his king [Jacob’s] shall be higher than Agag, and his [Jacob’s] kingdom shall be exalted”) and the Lord hath not done all this” (Deut 32:27).

We find then a complete reversal of fortunes. Israel is safe and secure in the land as there are no walls around Israel’s cities…this is as close as it comes to a lamb among seventy wolves. It is the story of Esther writ large; the genocide has been averted. The punishments that Israel were warned about when they entered the land have now been heaped on Gog and his hoards. Bøe posits the following considerations regarding the nations of Ezekiel 38.[17]

1. All the lands listed are remote nations, geographically as well as culturally.
2. Many of the nations listed were bygone powers, only heard of in historical accounts.
3. None of the peoples with whom Israel and Judah had actually been engaged in war are listed here, e.g. Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, Syria, Edom, Moab, Ammon, the Philistines, etc.
4. The only nation with whom Israel ever came to be politically involved with is Persia and that took place after the days of Ezekiel.
5. 5. All the names, except for Gog, are also found in the tables of the nations in Genesis 10 and 1 Chronicles 1.

Bøe is essentially correct (with the exception of Amalek), for it was not Israel but God himself who would conduct perpetual war against Amalek, “…the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation”.

Reuse of Ezekiel in the Apocalypse

Any approach that failed to address the reuse of Ezekiel in the Apocalypse would be remiss as Ezekiel 38 and Ezekiel 39 are intertextually linked with Revelation 19 and 20. Of course, the question must be asked why John splits Ezekiel 38 and Ezekiel 39 and reverses their chronological order, with Ezekiel 39 forming the subtext for Revelation 19 and Ezekiel 38 forming the subtext for Revelation 20. Critical scholars early in the last century tended to explain inconsistencies by a two-source theory of Ezekiel and the NT scholar Mealey (1992:131-132) went so far as to propose that Ezekiel 38 and 39 refer to two entirely different battles. Bøe observes that,

“From John’s perspective Ezekiel 38-39 probably appeared as an integrated unity held together by the uniform Yahweh speech and its consistent theme of Gog’s attack and defeat. He probably did not question its origin as a genuine Ezekielian prophecy, placed at this specific place among the many oracles of salvation for Israel. In spite of its penultimate place in the book of Ezekiel, it is not certain that it has been read as chronological information, like a timetable…”[18]

S. Crane suggests that the chronological order found in Revelation reflects the chapter order of the Greek version of Ezekiel preserved in Papyrus 967 (late 2c.-early 3c. AD),

“Although Revelation is a Christian book, and therefore one step removed from the focus of our investigation, it nevertheless has a significant thematic layout possibly reflecting both P ⁹⁶⁷ and the received text’s chapter order. Lust (1980, p.180) proposes that John likely utilised Ezekiel when writing Revelation’s end time events (Rev. 18-22), while observing a slightly different order of final events in Revelation than in the received text of Ezekiel. Of special interest is Rev. 20:11-15 that has a second resurrection after the battle with Gog and Magog (Rev. 20:7-10), therefore matching P ⁹⁶⁷ chapter order. It does raise the question of what may have inspired John to write of a second resurrection, if he was using Ezekiel’s order of events”.[19]

The fact that different Greek versions have slightly different chapter alignments is interesting. However, statistical analysis indicates that Ezekiel 38 and Ezekiel 39 form a unit within the restoration oracles of Ezekiel.[20] Moreover, although Crane argues for the last battle occurring after the second resurrection, the text in Revelation 20 seems to suggest that the battle and second resurrection are almost simultaneous events or at the very least closely related.

Even a cursory reading makes it quite clear that John places Ezekiel 39 at the start of the thousand years and Ezekiel 38 at the end of the thousand years. Although John echoes the language of Ezekiel 39, he omits to mention Gog in Revelation 16. The enemy in this chapter is the Beast, the kings of the earth and the False Prophet. At the end of the thousand years the enemy is named as Gog. Moreover, Ezekiel 39 relates to a cleansing procedure for removal of the dead bodies and the establishment of a memorial to the destruction of Gog — these elements are not necessary or even possible at the end of the thousand years as God will be “all in all” and the earth will be populated by immortals. Moreover, the mention of sacrifice and birds in Ezekiel 39 is an echo of the land covenant established at Passover with Abraham.[21] Finally, Gog is cast into the lake of fire where the Beast, the kings of the earth and the False Prophet already reside (for the past thousand years). Perhaps the best way to highlight the difference in Johannine usage is with a comparison table:

Ezekiel 39	Revelation 19	Ezekiel 38	Revelation 20
39:17 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.	19.1 Whore judged 19.7 Marriage of the Lamb 19.16 King of kings, and Lord of lords. 19.17 saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; 19.19-20 The Beast, and the kings of the earth False Prophet cast in lake of fire		20.4 First resurrection – start of the 1,000 years
		38.8 After many days thou shalt be visited	20.2 Satan bound for 1,000 years
			20.5 Second Resurrection at end of the 1,000 years.
		38:4 I will bring thee forth	20.7 Satan released at end of 1,000 years
		38:2 Gog, the land of Magog	20.8 Gog and Magog
		38.11 Land of unwalled villages…at rest, dwelling safely	20.9 Compassed the camp of the saints
		38:22 Fire, and brimstone.	20.9 Consumed by fire
			20.10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
			20.11-15 Second Resurrection described –wicked mortals condemned to death.

Decisive in this reading is the phrase “it is done” (Ezek 39:8) which links with “it is done” in Rev 16:17. Revelation 16 relates the battle of Armageddon, when Christ “returns as a thief” and the faithful are exhorted to keep their garments (Rev 16:15).

It is done

“Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God; this is the day whereof I have spoken” (Ezekiel 39:8).

The phrase “it is done” is used three times in the NT. The first occurrence is Lk 14:22 is in the parable of the wedding feast (a certain man made a great supper, and bade many, v.16) to demonstrate the unpreparedness of the guests (some attended without garments). The second occurrence is in Rev 16:15 in relation to the return of Christ and garments. The third occurrence is at the end of the thousand years when the heavenly Jerusalem is revealed (Rev 21:6). A fourth parallel occurrence (using a different Greek word) in John 19:30 relays Jesus’ last words as — “It is finished”. It seems then that versions of this phase are used at pivotal points in divine history.

The phrase is not, however, used in Revelation 19 because that chapter is an expansion of the sixth vial (Revelation 16); Revelation 19 fills in the details of Revelation 16. The Great Supper is the “messianic banquet” where the enemies of the Lord are depicted as sacrifices. Moreover, Psalm 22, which was recited by Jesus on the cross (and is connected with the sacrifice of Genesis 22)[22] ends with similar phraseology, (literally): “he hath done” (Ps 22:31). It cannot be coincidental that Revelation 19 echoes Psalm 22:

Revelation 19	Psalm 22
4. The four and twenty elders. And four living creatures.	22: In the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. 21. Thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns (the cherubim in the sanctuary).
5. Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.	23. Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.
6. The voice of a great multitude.	25. My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows (marriage vows?) before them that fear him.
6. Hallelujah, for the Lord God Almighty reigneth.	I will declare thy name unto my brethren.
7,9. The marriage supper of the Lamb.	26. The meek shall eat and be satisfied…your heart shall live forever.

Therefore, Armageddon (Revelation 16) and the Great Supper (Revelation 19) describe the same event in the figure of an anti-type. The Lord was crucified and had a “last supper” now the beast is metaphorically crucified and becomes the ingredient (sacrifice) at the “great supper” (wedding feast). This occurs at the return of Christ. The next time the pivotal “it is done” phrase is introduced is at the end of the thousand years after the recent Gog invasion and the abolition of death.

The release of Satan at the end of the millennium is the precursor to the recrudescence of evil. This is symbolised by the invasion of Gog and Magog based on the Ezekiel prophecies. There has already been one fulfilment of this prophecy in the banquet of the birds at the start of the millennium, so why is there a second fulfilment at the end of the millennium?

This invasion is different from the earlier one, for although the language of Gog and Magog was employed, the nations were never referred to by name in Revelation chapter 19. Now “Gog of the land of Magog” from the prophecy of Ezekiel has become a pair of nations in chapter 20, Gog and Magog. Gog is therefore, being treated as applicable to different historic situations. No longer does the attack come from the uttermost parts of the north (Ezek 39:2), or even from the east (Ezek 16:12), but from the four-corners of the earth (Ezek 20:7). In this chapter, Gog and Magog symbolise something greater than the constituent nations, for as the Abrahamic descendants are prophesied to be like the sand of the sea shore (Gen 22:17), so Gog and Magog will be like the sand of the sea itself. Abraham will be a blessing to all his spiritual descendants who come from many nations, but Gog and Magog will bring the curse of death on all their followers, who also originate from many nations.

The object of the attack is the camp of God’s people and the city he loves. ‘Camp. is the word used in the story of the Exodus for Israel’s wilderness home, and reminds us that Gods people, even in the golden age of the millennium, the ecclesia in the wilderness, is still the ecclesia in pilgrimage.[23]

In order to complete the picture, we must ask ourselves another important question. What occasion calls for all the saints to be gathered in the beloved city at the end of the millennium? We would expect the saints in their role as Christ’s agents and as part of his theocratic government, to be dispersed all over the world. What occasion calls for this summit meeting? The suggestion is that the only event that merits such a huge gathering is the last judgment. As king-priests it is not unreasonable to assume that they will participate in the judgment scenario just as they did in ruling the nations.

Those cast outside the city are the mortals found wanting at the last (second) resurrection – for,

“without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whoso loveth and maketh a lie” (Ezek 22:15).

“There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.” (Luke 13:28)

The elements, refused entry to the city, foment the last rebellion. The city is of course the community of saints known as the “New Jerusalem”, with Christ, the tree of life in the midst. The imagery comes from Eden with Satan (cf. the serpent) tempting the nations and the rejected sinners denied access to the tree of life and exiled from Eden (the beloved city). It cannot be coincidence that the last rebellion and the last resurrection both occur at the end of the thousand years. The angel with the key has the authority to release Satan from the pit, but the key is also symbolic of the authority to raise the dead from the pit, for Christ has the key of David and whatever he opens cannot be shut and vies versa (Rev 3:7). He has the keys to death and hades and can open or shut the doors of the kingdom on whomsoever he chooses. The prophet Isaiah seems to confirm that the release of Satan and the second resurrection are the same event.

“And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited. Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously.” (Isa 24:22-23)

If the release of Satan from the abyss equates with the wicked elements rejected at the second resurrection, what purpose does it serve? It seems that the wicked are not immediately condemned to the second death (lake of fire). Apparently they function as emissaries of Satan, going out into the world at the end of the millennium to preach rebellion. This is in contrast to the immortal ambassadors of Christ, who continued the gospel mission during the millennial age.

It is obvious that God has allowed this to occur in order to distinguish the “wheat from the chaff.” In an age of longevity and peace, man is again faced with the same choices that he had at the beginning – love of God or love of self. The antagonistic elements of the mortal population will show their hand – in their folly they will attack the peaceful and ostensibly unprotected camp of the saints. Those who join the insurrection will be instantly consumed by fire from heaven. Those who choose the side of Christ will be immortalised. The wicked elements that encouraged rebellion because they were rejected at the second resurrection will also be consumed by fire along with all the others. This second death is called the lake of fire. Gog and his supporters will in fact join the beast and the false prophet who had also been cast into the lake a thousand years previously (Rev 20:10).

Casting death and hades into the lake of fire (the second death – 20:14) is a metaphor for condemning back to their natural home those who have the nature of death. Death to death and ashes to ashes but Spirit to Spirit, the last enemy, death, has been abolished because, effectively, all those who bore the nature of sin and death were consumed in the last rebellion. “O death, where is thy victory? O grave, where is thy sting?” (1 Cor. 15: 55). Those mortals who remained loyal to Christ become immortals and unite with the rest of the beloved city. Then the entire globe will contain an immortal population and is prepared to be presented to the Father as a perfect gift, for it is covered with his glory (an immortal population who reflect his image).

Conclusion

The language of Ezekiel 39 is employed by John at the commencement of the thousand years to depict Armageddon in Revelation 16 and 19 without mentioning Gog by name.

In contrast, Ezekiel 38 is employed by John in Revelation 20 to depict the final Gog invasion at the conclusion of the millennium when sin (Amalek/Agag/Gog) is finally destroyed and all those with the nature of sin (mortality) perish leaving the earth populated with immortals. At that point the divine universal war against sin/Amalek/Agag/Gog is finalized – a war that lasted from generation to generation is not necessary when there are no more generations!

The “beloved city” (a play on the name of David) is actually a “camp” – a temporary dwelling place – even in the kingdom age the true fulfilment awaits the revelation of the “heavenly Jerusalem” when the entire earthly population is immortalised. Note that the context is not “entering the land” or even entering into the “Sabbath rest” (kingdom) but the final fulfilment of the age (it is done) when God will be all in all. The attack occurs immediately prior to this event when the saints are “dwelling safely without walls”. This is a kingdom picture as depicted in Ezekiel 34:24-27:

“And I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the Lord have spoken it. And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: (the beast destroyed at Armageddon) and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them”.