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Ezekiel 35:1-15
“Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Son
of man, set your face against Mount Seir and prophesy against it, and say to
it, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, O Mount
Seir, I am against you; I will
stretch out my hand against you, and make you most desolate; I shall lay your
cities waste. Then you shall know
that I am the LORD. Because you have an ancient hatred, and
have shed the blood of the children
of Israel by the power of the sword at the time of their calamity, when their
iniquity came to an end, therefore, as I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I will prepare you for
blood, and blood shall pursue you; since you have not hated blood, therefore
blood shall pursue you. Thus I will
make Mount Seir most desolate, and cut off from it the one who leaves and the
one who returns. And I will fill
its mountains with the slain; on your hills and in your valleys and in all your
ravines those who are slain by the sword shall fall. I will make you perpetually desolate,
and your cities shall be uninhabited; then you shall know that I am the LORD.’ ‘Because you
have said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will
possess them,’ although the LORD was there, therefore, as I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘I will do according to your anger and according to the
envy which you showed in your hatred against them; and I will make Myself known
among them when I judge you. Then
you shall know that I am the LORD. I have heard all your blasphemies
which you have spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are
desolate; they are given to us to consume. Thus with your mouth you have boasted
against me and multiplied your words against me; I have heard them.’ Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘The whole earth will rejoice when I
make you desolate. As you rejoiced
because of the inheritance of the house of Israel was desolate, O Mount Seir,
as well as all of Edom---all of it! Then they shall know that I am the LORD.’” Edomites are
rejoicing “that the mountains of Israel are desolate, and given to us to
consume.” The Palestinians under
Hamas, if given their way, would, and may yet be saying this. Why do I say that? Because in context with the very next
chapter, Ezekiel 36, God prophecies about the “mountains of Israel” leading
right into the time of Jesus Christ’s 2nd coming, and how the
mountains of Israel, which have been desolate, will
yet be inhabited, inhabited with all of Israel (all 12 tribes). The mountains of
Israel right now are not uninhabited, they are inhabited with Israelis. So this has to be an unfulfilled
prophecy, yet for the future. Putting all of this in context, it would strongly indicate the Mount
Seir that the LORD is talking about, the Edomites,
by direct reference are none other than the Palestinians, as well as the Turks
who reside in Turkey, who have since World War I always been allied with
Germany and the Central Axis Powers. This prophecy going right into chapter 36 shows God at first directly
addressing these very same “mountains of Israel”, so this statement near the
end of Ezekiel 35 referring to the “mountains of Israel” carries right on over
into Ezekiel chapter 36, putting Ezekiel chapter 35 in direct context with
chapter 36, which ties directly into the time just after the 2nd coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Understand, it is this Palestinian Edomite-Ishmaelite mixture which is
proving to be so hostile to the Israeli nation since 1948. The actual Ishmaelite Arabs are far more
benign, and as such God has shown he has no quarrel with them in any of these
prophecies. I just want to make
that perfectly clear. Edom and the
Edomites are a far different story though, and that is according to God’s Word,
and not out of any personal belief of my own. Why is Iran so anti-Israeli? Remember Edomites moved into Iran, and
even supplied some of their kings early on, and then the Ottomans moved back
into Iran, and practically worshipped Persian culture? There has to be a good deal of Edomite
within the Persian race as well.
Ezekiel 36:1-5, 6-38
The
Regathering of all Israel into the Promised Land
Ezekiel 36:1-5, “And you, son of man, prophesy
to the mountains of Israel, and say, ‘O mountains of Israel, hear the word of
the LORD! Thus says the Lord GOD: Because the enemy has said of you,
‘Aha! The ancient heights have
become our possession,’ therefore prophesy, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Because they made you desolate and swallowed you up on every side, so that you became
a possession of the rest of the nations, and you are taken up by the lips of
talkers and slandered by the people---therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear
the word of the Lord GOD! Thus says the
Lord GOD to the mountains and hills, the rivers, the valleys, the desolate wastes, and
the cities that have been forsaken, which became plunder and mockery to the
rest of the nations around---therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Surely I have spoken in my burning
jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom [King James
Version: Idumea], who gave my land to
themselves as a possession, with wholehearted joy and spiteful minds, in order to plunder its open country.’” In
Ezekiel 35:12 we read “I have heard all
thy blasphemies which thou hast spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying
‘They are laid waste, they are given to us to consume.’” Verses 1-5 of Ezekiel chapter 36 are
a direct response to verse 12 of Ezekiel 35. By context this is very close to the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ. And as we
learned about who the Palestinians are---a racial mixture of Turkic-Arab
(Edomite-Ishmaelite) extraction---this is during the time-period of the Great
Tribulation, nearing the end of it. The Beast Power has made its capital city Jerusalem, with its
Euro-occupying forces within Israel’s borders. These Edomite-Arabic Palestinians have
been given Carte Blanche permission to “occupy” the Land of Israel, The
Promised Land. They have finally
succeeded in their 60+ year quest to re-occupy “Palestine.” The Israeli Jews, what’s left of them,
must be in some form of slavery in their own land (cf. Zechariah chapter
12-14). Since these
Edomite-Ishmaelites have said ‘the mountains of Israel…are given to us to
consume’, God’s response to that comes in Ezekiel chapter 36:1-5. These first five verses put the whole 36th chapter of Ezekiel in context with Ezekiel 35.
The
LORD prophecies
to the Mountains of Israel
Verses 6-15, “Therefore prophesy concerning
the land of Israel, and say to the mountains, the hills, the rivers, and the
valleys, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I
have spoken in my jealousy and my fury, because you have borne the shame of the
nations.’ Therefore thus says the
Lord GOD: ‘I have raised my hand in an oath that
surely the nations that are around
you shall bear their own shame. But
you, O mountains of Israel shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit
to my people Israel, for they are about to come. For indeed I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and
sown. I will multiply men upon
you, all the house of Israel, all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited and
the ruins rebuilt. I will multiply
upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and bear young; I will make you
inhabited as in former times, and do better for
you than at your beginnings. Then you shall know that I am the
LORD. Yes, I will cause men to walk on you, my
people Israel; they shall take possession of you, and you shall be their
inheritance [ “you” God still addressing the mountains]; no more shall you
bereave them of children.’ Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Because they say to you, ‘You devour
men and bereave your nation of children,
therefore you shall devour men no more, nor bereave your nation anymore,’ says
the Lord GOD. ‘Nor will I
let you hear the taunts of the nations anymore, nor bear the reproach of the
peoples anymore, nor shall you cause your nation to stumble anymore,’ says the
Lord GOD.” In
these verses God, Yahweh, is now addressing these same mountains of Israel,
telling them what he is going to do for them immediately after his return to
earth. It will amount to a Garden
of Eden type restoration of the land of Israel, which is filled with mountain
ranges (cf. Isaiah 11:6-10). Verse
8 prophecies the actual repatriation and regathering of all 12 tribes of Israel
(whoever and wherever they are), saying “They
are at hand to come.” Verses
8-15 describe this repatriation of all Israel, upon the mountains of
Israel. Throughout verses 1-15 the
LORD is speaking to, addressing the ‘mountains of Israel’ and
not the actual people of Israel.
Verses 16-20, “Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
‘Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they
defiled it by their own ways and deeds [Comment: remember who the House of Israel is in
Biblical history, in Kings and Chronicles, it refers to the 10 northern tribes
of Israel, their capital city being Samaria. See http://wwww.unityinchrist.com/kings/1.html if in doubt]; to me their way was like
the uncleanness of a woman in her customary impurity. Therefore I poured out my fury on them
for the blood they had shed on the land, and for their idols with which they had defiled it. So I scattered them among the nations,
and they were dispersed throughout the countries; I judged them according to
their ways and their deeds. When
they came to the nations, wherever they went, they profaned my holy name---when
they said to them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, and yet they have gone out of his land.’ Now the LORD switches from
addressing the mountains of Israel to directly addressing the people of Israel. And he is addressing “the House of
Israel.” Remember, the focus is the
Land of Israel, called by the world right now Palestine. The Jews (made up of the tribes of Levi,
Benjamin and Judah) are already in the land, those who have survived their
captivity at the hands of the Euro-army of the Beast and the Idumeans. So this
regathering is talking about Yahweh bringing back the other 10 tribes, the
northern House of Israel. He
explains why he had originally scattered and driven them from the Promised Land
both the House of Israel and then later the House of Judah (verses 17-19; see
the Kings & Chronicles series at: http://www.unityinchrist.com/kings/1.html). God uses the analogy of an unclean woman
(cf. Leviticus 15:19-24) to describe how his chosen people---the very people he
wanted to display God’s ways to the pagan world around them---had been such a
bad influence that they had actually helped pollute the very Gentile nations
they were supposed to be a shining example to. This occurred back in the 700s through
600s BC, and it is occurring right now, in ever-increasing intensity. America and the English speaking
nations, along with the nations of northwestern Europe---supposed ‘Christian
nations’---are leading the world on its moral toboggan-slide down into the
cesspool of immorality, violent crime and godlessness.
Why
the LORD will step in and save the House of Israel
Verses 21-24, “But I had concern for my holy
name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever
they went. Therefore say to the
house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel,
but for my holy name’s sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever
you went. And I will sanctify my
great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned
in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘when I am hallowed in you before their eyes. For I will take you from among the
nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land…” Now
the LORD gives the reason why he is stepping onto the world scene
and rescuing the House of Israel---and it isn’t because of how good they’ve
been, because they have been evil. He is stepping in to save them for his own name’s sake and out of pure
underserved grace. Also, if he
didn’t none of Israel would survive, and his promise of multiplying Abraham’s
seed as the sand on the seashore would fail to be fulfilled, at the very time
he is about to resurrect Abraham to immortality (cf. Hebrews 11; 1st Corinthians 15:49-54). Verse 24
clearly explains all of Israel has been scattered amongst the nations, and that
the LORD will now regather them back into the Land of Israel, the
Promised Land.
Spiritual
Salvation comes to all of Israel, the LORD places his Holy Spirit upon all Israel
Verses 25-27, “…Then I will sprinkle clean
water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your
filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take
the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and
cause you to walk in my statutes, and you will keep my judgments and do them.” A
spiritual revival will now take place. Up until now, God has chosen to call relatively few in number from
Israel (cf. Romans 11), compared to the world’s unconverted, uncalled
population, to become his spiritual sons and daughters, Holy Spirit indwelt
believers in Jesus Christ (Yeshua haMeshiach). Now the LORD promises to grant his Holy Spirit on all of Israel. And by direct extrapolation, then the
entire surviving world receives God’s calling and the Holy Spirit. Shortly after this point, the world is
spiritually grafted into Israel and Abraham. Romans
2:28-29, “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that
which is outward in the flesh; but he is a
Jews who is one inwardly; and
circumcision is that of the heart, in
the Spirit, not in the letter; whose praise is not from men but from God.” Galatians 3:26-29, “For you are
all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into
Christ have put on Christ. There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male
nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to
the promise.” This is the exact
moment, Ezekiel 36:25-27, when Jeremiah
31:31-33 is fulfilled, which states, “Behold,
the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah---not according to the covenant that I made with
their fathers in the day that I took
them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. My covenant which they broke, though I
was a husband to them, says the LORD. But this is the covenant that I will make with
the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put
my law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will
be their God, and they shall be my people.” The
apostle Paul showed us in Hebrews 8:6-13 that believers in Jesus Christ are
already living in the new covenant, having God’s laws written in their hearts
and minds by the Holy Spirit. With
the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ along with all the resurrected
immortal saints depicted in Revelation 19, and the putting away of Satan and
his demons, depicted in Revelation 20:1-3, the call for repentance, and the
placing of God’s Holy Spirit on mankind of all races will go worldwide. But apparently, as we’ll see in Ezekiel
38 & 38, Jesus Christ will start with Israel first. He will also use God’s Holy Days to
teach the world, as evidenced by Zechariah 14:16-19. Since all Israel receives the Holy
Spirit, guess what that makes them? See http://www.unityinchrist.com/history2/index4.htm. All Israel, and then the world, will
go through the process we went through to become believers in Jesus Christ.
Garden
of Eden Conditions Come Upon the Land
Verses 28-39,
“‘Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be my
people, and I will be your God. I
will deliver you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and
multiply it, and bring no famine upon you. And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your
fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the
nations. Then you will remember
your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities
and your abominations. Not for your
sake do I this,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘let it be known to
you. Be ashamed and confused for
your own ways, O house of Israel!’ Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘On the day
that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, and the
ruins shall be rebuilt. The
desolate land shall be tilled instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who
pass by. So they will say, This
land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the wasted,
desolate, and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’ Then the nations which are left all
around you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken it,
and I will do it.’ Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘I will also let the house of Israel inquire of me to do this for them; I will increase their men like a flock. Like a flock offered as holy sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem
on its feast days [Hebrew: “appointed feasts”], so shall the ruined cities be
filled with flocks of men. Then
they shall know that I am the LORD.’” God
now transforms the Land of Israel, and a little bit later the whole world into
a Garden of Eden paradise physically (verse 35). This directly cross-references to Isaiah 11:6-11, “The wolf also shall dwell
with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the
young lion and fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their
young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the
ox. The nursing child shall play by
the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s
den. They shall not hurt nor
destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge
of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a Root of
Jesse, who shall stand as a banner to the people; for the Gentiles shall seek
Him, and His resting place shall be glorious. It shall come to pass that the LORD shall set his hand
again the second time to recover the remnant of his people who are left, from
Assyria [Germany] and Egypt, from Pathros and Cush [India & Pakistan], from Elam [Persia] and Shinar [Iraq], from Hamath [Syria] and
the islands of the sea…” Isaiah
2:2-4, “Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain [Comment: the word “mountain”
when used in a prophetic book of the Bible is symbolic language for nation or
kingdom, as well as having it’s literal meaning] of the LORD’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains,
and shall be exalted above the hills [“hills”,
i.e. lesser nations]; and all nations
shall flow to it. Many people shall
come and say, ‘Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the
God of Jacob; he will teach us his ways, and we shall walk in his paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth the law,
and the Word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall
beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation
shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” Cities will be
rebuilt, lands repopulated, not just in Israel, but around the whole
world. This is the beginning of the
Millennial Kingdom of God. (see http://www.unityinchrist.com/kingdomofgod/mkg1.htm for a more complete Biblical picture of this incredible time which is just
right around the corner.)
Ezekiel 37:1-14
The Valley of Dry Bones Prophecy
This chapter will
be given in two parts, because there is a time-division of well over 1,000
years between the events depicted in verses 1-14 and verses 15-28 when
Revelation 20:4-6, 11-13, John 5:28-29 and Daniel 12:1-3 are taken into
account. You will understand as we
get into the description. While the
interpretation given in this commentary for Ezekiel 37:1-14 is not the widely
accepted interpretation given by mainstream Christianity, it is the most honest
and accurate interpretation. Verses
1-14 describe a massive resurrection back to physical life for all of Israel
that has ever lived, if this prophecy is interpreted literally and not figuratively. Mainstream Christianity likes to
interpret this prophecy figurative simply because a literal interpretation
doesn’t fit their interpretations about the dead either going to heaven or
hell. But as we’ve seen in this
series of commentaries, all the Old Testament prophecies that have been
fulfilled, have been fulfilled literally, backing up their literal
interpretation as being the only way to interpret Old Testament Bible
Prophecy.
Only Two Major Resurrections Prophecied in the Bible
We’ll let Jesus
Christ lay the foundation for how this prophecy fits neatly into the Bible’s
teachings about the major resurrections. Jesus said there would only be two major resurrections back to life for
all those who have died. John 5:28-29, “Marvel not at this: for the
hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life;
and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.” First, that word “damnation” is a
mistranslation. It is the Greek
word “Krisis”, which literally means “decision”, so this second resurrection
mentioned by Jesus is a resurrection to “decision”, i.e. nothing has been
decided about these folk who are to come up in this resurrection. The big point I want you to notice about
what Jesus is saying here, though, is
that there are to be only two major resurrections back to life, one, two, count
them. Those are the words of
Jesus Christ. You can’t get around
them. The Bible backs them up.
Jesus said in John 5:28-29 that there would be two major resurrections. Yahweh, the pre-Incarnate Christ
inspired Daniel in Daniel 12:1-3 to prophecy the exact same thing, Daniel 12:1-3, “At that time Michael shall
stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and
there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation,
even to that time. And at that time
your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the
book. And many of those who sleep
in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame
and everlasting contempt. Those who
are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many
to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.”
Revelation 20:4,6, and 5, 11-13 back
these two sets of Scriptures up, giving us three Scriptural witnesses that
there are only two major resurrections back to life. Putting Revelation 20 into context,
Revelation 19 just depicted the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ. Revelation 20:1-3 just depicted the
locking up and putting away of Satan (and by extrapolation, all the demons) for
the duration of the thousand years of the Millennium. What follows next describes the 1st Resurrection to immortality. Revelation 20:4-6, “And I saw thrones, and
they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had
been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not
worshipped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their
foreheads or on their hands. And
they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. But the rest of the dead did not
live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first
resurrection. Blessed and holy is
he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of
God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.” Verse 5 was not bolded, because it
really fits in with verses 11-13. Verse 7 of Revelation 20 shows the thousand years expire, Satan is
released for a short span of time, deceives those in the Millennium that did
not take God up on his offer for the Holy Spirit and Salvation, and then fire
devours them all, and Satan and his demons are banished forever in this
fire. Nobody really knows where he
and the demons go, some think he and they die, others don’t, and we really
don’t have enough Scripture about it to know for sure. Now comes the 2nd resurrection, and this one as we’ll see, is back to physical mortal life. Verses
5, 11-13, “But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years
were finished…Then I saw a great white throne and him who sat on it, from whose
face the earth and heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great,
standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is
the Book of Life. And the dead were
judged, each one according to his works. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered
up the dead who were in them.” Now
notice, everything in the Book of Revelation, all it’s prophecies, are
completely sequential, showing how they happen, one after another. In all the Old Testament, the prophecies
are not always sequential, but tend to jump all over the timeframe of God’s
plan of salvation. But we’ve
established that there are only going to be two major resurrections back to
life. 1st Corinthians 15:49-54 gives us another description of
the 1st Resurrection to immortality for all those God has called,
the saints of God, “And as we have borne
the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly
Man. Now this I say, brethren, that
flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit
incorruption. Behold, I tell you a
mystery: We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed---in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the
last trumpet. For the trumpet will
sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on
incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put incorruption,
and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the
saying, ‘Death is swallowed up in victory.’” So 1st Corinthians 15:49-54
just modified what Jesus said about the first resurrection in John 5:28-29,
Daniel 12:1-3 and Revelation 20:4-6. But if we can find anywhere in Bible prophecy a good description of a
major resurrection back to physical life, we know it absolutely has to be
describing this 2nd resurrection depicted in Revelation 20:5,
11-13. Most Christians blindly
assume all those coming up in the 2nd resurrection, because they
haven’t accepted Christ into their lives during their normal lifetimes on earth
get thrown into the lake of fire and are burned up. And the Book of Revelation being very
sequential, this would appear to be the truth, given the fact that the very
next two verses in Revelation 20, verses 14-15, describe this very event, “Then Death and Hades were cast into the
lake of fire. This is the second
death. And anyone not found written
in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” So the simplistic interpretation if just
looking at John 5:28-29, Daniel 12:1-3 and Revelation 20:5, 11-13, is that
everyone resurrected in the 2nd Resurrection is judged for their
sins and for not having accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior in their normal
lifetimes, and then they are all thrown into the Lake of Fire. Pretty nasty, considering that a good 95
to 98 percent of everyone who has ever lived has not accepted Jesus Christ as
their Savior in their normal lifetimes (to say nothing about all those who never
could have known about Christ before he was born). It would appear Satan has succeeded in
destroying most of mankind’s opportunity for Salvation and Eternal life. Or has he? We saw how 1st Corinthians modified and enhanced our understanding of the 1st Resurrection to immortality. If we
can find anywhere in the Old Testament a passage that describes a major
resurrection back to physical life (and we know from fulfilled Old Testament
prophecies, that they all have to be interpreted literally, and not
figuratively, you can’t switch in mid-stream because you don’t agree with a
passage)---then we know this prophecy has to be about the 2nd Resurrection described in Revelation 20:5, 11-13. And we know Jesus only predicted two
major resurrections. Now we’re
ready to read through Ezekiel 37:1-14. And realize, all of the human race has had to live a lifetime on a
planet infested with demons, with Satan as their king, from Genesis 3 on to the
present. They have lived in an evil
world, filled with brutal wars, famines and disease epidemics. They know the way of Satan well, but
most of them have never tasted the way of God, and strangely, it would appear,
when all is said and done, God never called them to a saving knowledge, never
called them to salvation. I know
this interpretation will “rub” many theologians the wrong way, but apparently
it is what the Bible teaches, when all the Scriptural passages are put together
in proper harmony. And it answers
all those knawing questions many believers in Jesus have had about the “unsaved
dead”, especially their loved ones and relatives. So lets read Ezekiel 37, verses 1-14 and
see how these verses modify Revelation 20:5, 11-13, John 5:28-29 and Daniel
12:1-3.
Ezekiel 37:1-14
The Valley of the Dry Bones Prophecy
“The hand of the
LORD came upon me and brought me out in the Spirit of the LORD, and set me down in
the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones. Then he caused me to
pass by them all around, and behold, there
were very many in the open valley; and indeed they were very dry. And
he said to me, ‘Son of man, can these bones live?’ So I answered, ‘O Lord GOD. you know.’ Again he said to me, ‘Prophesy to these
bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Surely I will cause breath to enter into
you, and you shall live. I will put
sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, cover you with skin and put breath in
you; and you shall live. Then you
shall know that I am the LORD.’ So I prophesied as I was commanded; and
as I prophesied, there was a noise, and suddenly a rattling; and the bones came
together, bone to bone. Indeed, as
I looked, the sinews and the flesh came upon them, and the skin covered them
over; but there was no breath in
them. Also he said to me, ‘Prophesy
to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord
GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and
breathe on these slain, that they may live.’ So I prophesied as he commanded me, and
breath came into them, and they lived, and stood upon their feet, an exceeding
great army. Then he said to me,
‘Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say, Our bones are dry, our
hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off! Therefore prophesy and say to them,
‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, O my
people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves and
bring you into the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up from
your graves.” First, this is a massive physical
resurrection back to life. These
folks are not being resurrected to immortal eternal life, like in the first
resurrection. Second thing to note,
God identifies these as “these bones are
the whole house of Israel.” That would mean every Israelite going back to 11 sons of Jacob (11 of
the 12 sons of Jacob never had the Holy Spirit indwelling them). First, what about the rest of the
“unsaved dead”? When this passage
is taken in context with Revelation 20:5, 11-13, it means all of the “unsaved
dead” will be resurrected back to physical life, just as God has shown all of
Israel being resurrected back to life here. This is even shown in Ezekiel 16:55, “When I bring back their
captives, the captives of Sodom and her daughters, and the captives of Samaria
and her daughters, then I will also bring
back the captives of your captivity among them, that you may bear your own
shame and be disgraced by all that you did when you comforted them. When your sisters, Sodom and
her daughters, return to their former state, then you and your
daughters will return to your former state.” Now we all know “Sodom and her
daughters” got fried, they’re all dead and gone. God is showing Ezekiel that Israel in
this passage is enquiring of God about when they will be resurrected back to
life. God is basically saying that
it will be when Sodom and Gomorrah are resurrected back to life. Sodom and Gomorrah fit into “But the rest of the dead did not live
again until the thousand years were finished” category. So as all of Israel is resurrected back
to life, brought out of their graves, and brought back into their land, so will
be the whole Gentile populations of “unsaved dead.” Third thing to notice. All Israel here (and by direct
inference) the whole group of “unsaved dead” are brought back into their
lands. They are not thrown into the
Lake of Fire of Revelation 20:14-15! They are brought back into their lands. For all of Israel being resurrected
here, that would be the land of Israel (and whatever lands Israel inherited,
more than likely, while they were dispersed among the nations). This will be all 12 tribes of
Israel. Fourth Point: If they are brought back into their
lands, they must be given a period of time to live, and grow. There is a prophecy in Isaiah that shows
they will be given a space of time to live out their lives, a normal
lifetime. So the 2nd Resurrection will probably encompass about 100 years. Isaiah
65:20-25, “No more shall an infant from there live but a few days, nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days;
for the child shall die one hundred years old, but the sinner being one hundred years old shall be
accursed. They shall build houses
and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their
fruit. They shall not build and
another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for as the days of a
tree, so shall be the days of my
people, and my elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labor in vain, nor bring
forth children for trouble; for they shall
be the descendants of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them. It shall come to pass that before they
call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking I will hear. The wolf and the lamb shall feed
together, the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent’s food. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain,’ says the LORD.” Now this may
look like it applies to the period of time in the Millennial Kingdom of God,
and it may as well. But it also
applies to the period of time known as the 2nd Resurrection. How do we know this? Because of the next passage. If God calls a person to a saving
knowledge of Jesus Christ, most of the time, he gives that person the rest of
their lives to grow and overcome spiritually, being nurtured in the LORD. Also we saw
they were put back on their land. What for if they’re just going to be thrown in the lake of fire, as
others like to teach? This next
verse is the clincher, it shows the purpose for the 2nd Resurrection, as a super opportunity for all the “unsaved dead” to accept Jesus
Christ into their lives.
Salvation Offered to All in the 2nd Resurrection
Verse 14, “I will
put my Spirit in you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own
land. Then you shall know that I,
the LORD, have spoken it and performed it,’ says the LORD.” Now
we all know that when God gives his Holy Spirit to a person, they have been
given a saving knowledge, which leads to salvation and eternal life. Cf. Acts
2:1-4, “When the Day of Pentecost
had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from
heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they
were sitting. Then there appeared
to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they
were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak other tongues, as the
Spirit gave them utterance.” (see http://www.unityinchrist.com/history2/index4.htm) Acts
5:32, “And we are his witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit
whom God has given to those who obey him.” Romans 8:9-16, “But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if
indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But
if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised
Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His
Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors---not to the flesh, to live
according to the flesh. For if you
live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death
the deeds of the body, you will live. For as may as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of
God. For you did not receive the
spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by
whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the
children of God, and if children, then heirs---heirs of God and joint heirs
with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him,
that we may also be glorified together.” So clearly, we see what receiving the
Holy Spirit means. It means you
become a believer in Jesus Christ, and ultimately you receive Salvation,
Eternal Life. For many, this will
be the only chance they have ever had to receive salvation and the opportunity
for eternal life. At the end of
their lives, 100 years later, if they have spiritually grown and overcome,
sticking with the program, they will go through a change to immortality, just
as we have done in the 1st Resurrection. That is the final outcome for all who
receive the Holy Spirit and stick with God’s program for our lives now, as Paul
showed in 1st Corinthians 15:49-56. So if these people receive the Holy
Spirit, it will be the same for them. For all who are stupid enough to not accept the offer for God’s Holy
Spirit during this period of time, it is they, at the end of this 100 year
period of time, who will be thrown into the lake of fire. Revelation
20:14-15, “Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book
of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” I think we can see that when Ezekiel 37:1-14 is thrown inbetween
Revelation 20:5, 11-13 and Revelation 20:14-15, it acts as a HUGE modifier to
the events depicted, and reveals a hitherto totally misunderstand part of God’s
Word and his overall Plan of Salvation. This understanding is really Good News for all the “unsaved dead” and
for those who grieve over them.
Does this teach second chance theology?
Now we saw that there that the Bible teaches that there are
to be only two major resurrections back to life
prophecied. If you’re not in the 1st,
you’re in the 2nd. That
would mean that everybody who has been so wicked, or rejected God’s Holy Spirit
in this lifetime, those whom we in our own superior wisdom believe have lost their opportunity for salvation---will still receive a
chance for salvation in the 2nd Resurrection. That is a true conclusion based upon the
clear statements of all the Scriptures we’ve just covered. All I can say to that is this. Are you, oh pipsqueak man, going to
stand in front of Almighty God’s throne and tell him he can’t give someone else
a 2nd chance? If you
are, I don’t want to be in your shoes, that’s for sure, nor do I want to be
standing anywhere near you as you tell Almighty God that. As struggling Christians, how many
second chances do you think we receive every day, every week, every month,
every year as Jesus intercedes for us as our High Priest before God the Father?
Related links for
further study:
The Second
Resurrection:
http://www.unityinchrist.com/E-Mails/June%2014/FallHolyDays-short.htm
http://www.unityinchrist.com/destiny/2ndResurrection5.htm
The differing
beliefs about heaven and hell within the Body of Christ:
http://www.unityinchrist.com/plaintruth/battle.htm
Ezekiel 37:15-28
Back to the Restoration of Israel at the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ
Ezekiel chapter 37
is divided into two segments covering two separate periods of time
prophetically. Verses 1-14, as
we’ve seen, apply to the period of time just after the 1,000 year Millennium,
and depict the massive 2nd Resurrection back to life for all the
“unsaved dead.” By content, verses
15-28 return us to the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom of God, at the
period of time of the 1st Resurrection to immortality for all the
saints. Verse 24 in particular
identifies this set of Scriptures as 1st Resurrection with the
resurrection of King David, who is placed again as king over the 12 tribes of
Israel. We know from the New
Testament, in one of the Gospels, Jesus prophecied that each of the 12
apostles, in the resurrection, would be placed as king over one of the tribes
of Israel. The Jews in general (not
the Messianic Jews) not believing anything in the New Testament, tend to lump
both sets of verses---1-14 and 15-28---into their perception of the 1st coming of the Messiah (whom they sincerely believe hasn’t come yet). So verses 15-28 bring us right back to
the beginning of the Millennium and continue on with the restoration theme
started in Ezekiel 36, which will then continue on in Ezekiel chapters
40-48. These verses truly show the
re-uniting of the southern House of Judah with the northern ten-tribed House of
Israel (which historically disappeared off the face of the map in 721BC [see http://www.unityinchrist.com/kings/1.html and read through that series for more information about that event.]).
Verses 15-23,
“Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘As for you, son of man, take a stick
for yourself and write on it: For
Judah and for the children of Israel, his companions. Then take another stick and write on it,
For Joseph [Ephraim and Manasseh], and for all the house of Israel, his companions. Then join them one to another for yourself
into one stick, and they will become one in your hand. And when the children of your people
speak to you, saying, Will you not show us what you mean by these?---say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: Surely I will take the stick of Joseph,
which is in the hand of Ephraim, and
the tribes of Israel, his companions; and I will join them with it, with the
stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they will be one in my hand. And the sticks on which you write will
be in your hand before their eyes.’ Then say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Surely I will
take the children of Israel from among the nations, wherever they have gone,
and will gather them into their own land; and I will make them one nation in
the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them
all; they shall no longer be two
nations, nor shall they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. They shall not defile themselves anymore
with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their
transgressions; but I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which
they have sinned, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be my people, and I will be their God.” Now this never
happened historically in the sight of these Jews Ezekiel was preaching this
to. The ten tribed House of Israel
had long since gone into captivity or been driven out of the Promised Land, and
on into the southern Russian Steppes where they now resided. As we will see in a few verses, by
direct context, this is going to happen shortly after the time of the 1st Resurrection of saints, both Old Testament and New, to immortality, King David
among them, along with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, and all those
mentioned in Hebrews 11.
King David to rule over the 12 tribes of Israel
Verses 24-28,
“David my servant shall be king over them [“them” is his people Israel, the subject of this whole discourse from verses
15-23], and they shall all have one
shepherd; they shall also walk in my judgments and observe my statutes, and do
them. [Comment: The Holy Days of God listed in Leviticus
23 are considered to be part of the Statute section of God’s Law. Zechariah 14:16-19 and Isaiah 66:22-23
show these are to be the commanded “days of worship” for all Israel and for the
whole world in the Millennial Kingdom of God.] Then
they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob my servant, where your
fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their
children’s children, forever; and my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an
everlasting covenant with them [cf. Jeremiah 31:31-34]; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set my sanctuary
in their midst forevermore. My
tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall
be my people. The nations also will
know that I, the LORD, sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary is in their midst
forevermore.’” David is dead and buried, and has not passed into the heavens. He awaits the 1st Resurrection to immortality, as do all the saints of God who have died. Those aren’t my words, but the words of
Peter, as recorded by Luke in Acts 2:29,
34, “Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch
David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day…For
David did not ascend into the heavens…” But as we see here, the LORD is prophecying that David will be in the first
Resurrection to immortality, and then will be placed as king, ruling over the
whole 12 tribes of Israel, who have now been regathered into one nation. Verses 24-25 show us where verses 15-28
fit into the overall prophetic plan of salvation of God. They fit at the beginning of the
Millennial Kingdom of God, at it’s very establishment right after the 1st Resurrection to immortality.
Related links:
More about the Millennial Kingdom of God:
http://www.unityinchrist.com/kingdomofgod/mkg1.htm
http://www.unityinchrist.com/E-Mails/June%2014/FallHolyDays-short.htm
Amazing events leading up to the 1st Resurrection to Immortality:
http://www.unityinchrist.com/revelation/Pentecost-Revetion1.htm
Ezekiel chapters
38-39, Eastern Alliance of Nations Attacks Millennial Kingdom of Israel
“Almost 2,000 years
ago, the aged apostle John saw in vision armies totaling 200 million
men---armies that will sweep across Europe and critical battlefronts elsewhere,
devastating [parts of] the final restoration of the old Roman Empire that will
have emerged just before the end of this age (Revelation 9:16). These great armies---which could be
mustered only by combining the forces of the Soviet Union [now the Russian
Federation] and their Asian allies [Communist China and Southeast Asia]---are
alluded to by the prophet Daniel (Daniel 11:44). He recorded that a sphere of power to
the east and north of the Holy Land (where the Soviet Union [Russian
Federation] is today) would become involved in a struggle, with the revived
Roman Empire in Europe, for control of the eastern Mediterranean…Ultimately, as
the prophesied United Europe rises to global super-powerdom, a fearful Kremlin
would be forced to settle its differences with China---to be free to deal with
the rising European religious, political and military leadership. However this happens, Russia and Asian
neighbors will ultimately find themselves in some degree joining forces out of
necessity to confront a power they perceive as challenging…[their
security].” [Keith Stump © 1985
Worldwide Church of God, “Russia & China in Prophecy”] “Some who claim to be authorities on prophecy assure people a war involving
Russia and the United States, Canada and Britain is prophesied in Ezekiel 38.”
[p. 15, “Russia & China in Prophecy”] By merely doing an online research of the strategic strength in arms,
men, and equipment of the Soviet Union of the 1950s up through the early 1980s,
as compared to those same strategic strengths within the Russian Federation
right now will show such a belief is preposterous right now. Also, from the late 1950s to the fall of
the Soviet Union, the Soviet Union had close to a third of its 3.7 million man
army stationed near the Sino-Soviet border, with close to 2,000 fighter and
bomber aircraft stationed within range of their border with China. China as well, with its 4.2 million man
People’s Liberation Army has much of that force stationed on this same
Sino-Soviet border. These military strategic force strengths
have not really changed even to this day, now between China and the Russian
Federation. As recently as a
year ago (2010) a Russian border city at a major Russian-Chinese
border-crossing was on full military alert and lock-down.
Key to Understanding Ezekiel 38 & 39
To come to a proper
understanding for the timing of Ezekiel 38 we need to study the Book of
Ezekiel, chapter by chapter clear through the book (which this commentary
does). As you do, and have done so,
it becomes clearly evident that for the most part the Book of Ezekiel and its
prophecied events are laid out quite sequentially. Just within the last section, chapter 34
shows Yahweh, the resurrected Christ must first deal with the false shepherds,
some short time before his 2nd Coming and on up to it. Chapter 35 shows he must also deal with
and put down Edom and the Edomites who have taken over the Land of Israel,
making it a Palestinian state under the protection of the occupying forces of a
Euro Superpower, called the Beast in the Book of Revelation. Next in Ezekiel 36, and quite
sequentially, comes the regathering and full restoration of the people of
Israel---all 12 tribes---back into the Promised Land. Then in the first half of Ezekiel 37
(vs. 1-14) it jumps ahead to the very end of the Millennium, filling in vital
details about the 2nd Resurrection, modifying and adding to our
understanding of Revelation 20:5, 11-13. Then in the second half of Ezekiel 37 (vs. 15-28) the timing goes right
back to just after the 2nd Coming of Christ, to the restoration of
Israel. So, Ezekiel 38 comes sequentially sometime after the literal physical restoration of Israel under the Messiah, Jesus
Christ. We can see clearly, as
this commentary has shown, that there is a time-sequence flowing through the
whole book. The story-flow in
Ezekiel chapters 36 through 37:15-28 shows Israel is at peace in the land,
dwelling safely (36:27-39) with their resurrected King David ruling over
them. Armageddon is past, over
with. But the remainder of the
allied Eastern Alliance of Nations [Russian Federation, China & S.E. Asia]
which was temporarily allied to the Beast to fight the returning Christ, have
not yet submitted to the rule of the returned Christ. The surviving parts of their massive
armies, navies and air forces have hastily retreated back north and east. So, in context with Ezekiel 36 and
37:15-28, Israel, now dwelling in the Promised Land, is at peace. Now we come to Ezekiel chapter 38. It has been a classic assumption that
once Christ returns to earth that all nations and peoples will quietly submit
to him. But look, as he was
returning, during the massive battle of Armageddon, they all were at war
against the returning Christ and his saints. Even Egypt and other neighboring nations
right after this massive battle don’t want to come up to keep the Feast of
Tabernacles in Israel to honor Christ (cf. Zechariah 14:1-15, 16-19). While Jesus is working with Israel to
turn it into his model servant nation, which he will use to set an example to
all the nations of the world, hostility still exists. And based upon what we’re about to read
in Ezekiel 38 and 39, a massive military power-bloc of nations has remained,
intact, to the north, northeast and east of Israel. Corny as it sounds, they are still under
the false belief that the returned Christ and all his resurrected saints are
‘alien space invaders’ who have now established a ‘beach-head’ in the land of
Israel. Further proof that Ezekiel
38 & 39 are post-Tribulation/2ndComing is found in verses 8, 11 and 14 “in the day when my people Israel dwelleth safely.” These “dwelling safely”
circumstances only occur after the 2nd Coming of Christ and the battle of Armageddon. But the major Asian alliances, as we
will see, will start to occur well in advance, and some are taking place now,
even though the two major blocs composing them are aligned against each other
(Russia-India verses China-Pakistan and eventually S.E. Asia).
Identity of nations mentioned in Ezekiel 38 & 39
“Gog in the land of
Magog” refers to the vast regions still found within the Russian Federation and
its C.I.S. allies, stretching from the Baltic to the Pacific. “Meshech” refers to Moscow, and “Tubal”
refers to Tobolsk. This alliance is
made up (Biblically speaking, from Genesis 10) of “Gomer”, “Togarmah,” “Magog,”
“Meshech,” “Tubal,” all sons of Japheth. Ethiopia and Phut are descendants of Ham.
“Tubal, son of
Japheth”
Part of Tubal moved
north, giving their name to the river “Tobol” and founding the Siberian city of
“Tobolsk.” (Mongoloid branches of
Tubal are also found in Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan…(Arabic sources tell us this). Together the Caucasian branches of
Meshech and Tubal form the two distinctive branches of the Great Russians. The Great Russians are the largest group
of the Soviet Union (now the Russian Federation).
“Cush & Phut”
These two
peoples---Ethiopia & Phut, descendants if Ham---divided into two segments, the
western segment living in Ethiopia and Libya (long before the Arabic races
moved into North Africa around 1000AD). The eastern segments of these two major races moved into the regions of
India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The eastern Cushites, are the brown peoples of
central and south India and part of Sri Lanka (the Dravidians, Tamils and
Telugus). Herodotus calls these
eastern Cushites “Asiatic Ethiopians.” During their migrations these Asiatic Cushites gave their name to the
Hindu Kush mountain range of Central Asia. The Western Cushites of course, settled in Ethiopia. That is why “Cush” is often translated
as “Ethiopia” in the Bible. Phut
was a son of Ham (Genesis 10). Phut
is often translated as “Libya” in the Bible. As with Cush, there is an Asiatic branch
of Phut or Put. Along with elements
of Shem, descendants of Phut settled in northern India and drove out the
Cushite Dravidians into the south of India in the 2nd millennium
BC. Thus elements of Phut are found
in states of northern India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, along
with China, will contribute heavily to the 200-million-man army of Revelation
9:16. Pakistan has just signed a major “peace & friendship” treaty with
Communist China, and India has a long-standing and very active military
alliance as well as a “peace & friendship” treaty with Russia.
Future Russian-Chinese Alliance
Ezekiel 38, in
verses 6, 9 and 15 prophecies that the Russians under Gog will be allied with
“many people.” (The term “Gog” is used
here in the same way “the Beast” is used, to refer both to the leader of the
people of Gog, as well as the people of Gog themselves.) Obviously, the military-ideological
breach that now separates the Russian Federation and its allies (C.I.S. nations
and India) and China and its allies is healed. (at present China’s allies are
Burma and Pakistan, but will end up including most of S.E. Asia such as
Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore.) The impetus for the healing of that
breach and the forming of a major Eastern Military Alliance will come as the
future revival of the Holy Roman Empire swallows up the English speaking
nations and confederated Muslim nations along the Mediterranean coast (North
Africa and the Middle East). Such
massive military conquests have often driven diverse peoples and cultures
together for their common safety and security. Right now the Russian Federation is
behind the 8-Ball compared to the massive Chinese armament program now taking
place. And Vladimir has a lot of
work ahead of him, considering that this revived Euro-Holy Roman Empire is
going to ‘Blitzkrieg’ over Russian soil some time during the second half of the
Tribulation (WWIII). But
interestingly enough, it will be Europe getting wind of the secret formation of
this great Eastern Alliance that will cause the unleashing of this
Euro-Blitzkrieg on Russian soil (cf. Daniel 11:44). Mind you, this is all before the 2nd coming of Jesus Christ, and the great battle of Armageddon. So the relocation and stationing of
Russian troops, weaponry and heavy industry in eastern Siberia west of the
Urals, just as Stalin did prior to WWII, will be essential. This Euro-Blitzkrieg is none other than
the 1st Woe of Revelation 9:1-11. The Eastern Alliance counter-attack is
described in Revelation 9:12-21, which is called the 2nd Woe (see http://www.unityinchrist.com/revelation/revelation4-10.html). Then after that, the signs of the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ occur about four months before the actual 2nd Coming. This causes panic
worldwide, being mis-interpreted as an ‘Alien Space Invasion.’ This also causes a truce between the
Eastern (Russo-Chinese) Alliance of Nations and the Euro-Holy Roman
Empire. During that four months
most of the Euro forces and a portion of the Eastern Alliance of Nations have
mustered their forces in the Holy Land to fight the returning Christ. Their combined forces get decimated
badly by the returning Christ and his immortal saints. But obviously those making up the
Eastern Alliance have held back a good portion of their men and equipment (in
Siberia, China, India and S.E. Asia). (Perhaps they all wouldn’t fit in the small area of Palestine.) For a few years after Armageddon Israel
and the Middle East are at peace, with the returned Jesus Christ and his
immortal saints ruling over them. Now we come to the proper time-setting for Ezekiel chapters 38 & 39. These people in the Eastern Alliance
just don’t recognize the Divine Christ for who he is. They will now have to be taught a lesson
the hard way. With supernatural
power Jesus Christ causes 5/6ths of these Eastern Alliance armies to be
slain. That equals just over 83
percent of them.
Ezekiel 38:1-23
Verses 1-9, “Now
the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, set your face against Gog,
of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy
against him, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of
Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. I will
turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your
army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them
handling swords, Persia, Ethiopia [Hebrew: Cush],
and Libya [Hebrew: Put, or Phut] are
with them, all of them with shield
and helmet; Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops---many
people are with you. Prepare yourself and be ready, you and
all your companies that are gathered about you; and be a guard for them. After many days you will be
visited. In the latter years you
will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the
mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were
brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely. You will ascend, coming like a storm,
covering the land like a cloud, you and all your troops and many peoples with
you.’ It is clear now who these people are, “Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince
of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.” This
is the “prince” of the Great Russians, which is now the Russian Federation
(verses 1-2). From verse 8 we see that Israel is described as “those
brought back from the sword…gathered from many people on the mountains of
Israel…now all of them dwell[ing] safely.” So obviously the Tribulation and great
battle of Armageddon are past, and Israel, all 12 tribes, is dwelling safely on
the mountains of Israel in the land of Israel, the Promised Land. So this massive Eastern Alliance of
nations is prophecied by God to come “like
a storm, covering the land like a cloud, you and all your troops and many
peoples with you.” It’s pretty
hard not to get this one right, seeing that for the most part, the chapters in
Ezekiel are very sequential in their time-order of their prophecied
events. This massive invasion
starts after Jesus Christ and his immortal (recently resurrected) saints have
fought and won the climatic battle referred to by many as the Battle of
Armageddon. Israel is dwelling
safely under the loving rule of their Messiah along with King David, the 12
apostles and all of us saints. How
could anyone get “Russia will attack the United States, Great Britain, and
Canada” out of this? It’s time for
all of us within the Body of Christ to start interpreting the Word of God
properly and throw out all of our “pet” doctrinal interpretations.
The Messiah, Jesus Christ, is to be hallowed in Gog, before
their eyes
Verses 10-17, “
Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘On that day it
shall come to pass that thoughts will
arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: You will say, ‘I will go up against a
land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely,
all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’---to
take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste
places that are again inhabited, and
against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and
goods, who dwell in the midst of the land.’ Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say
to Gog, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: On that day when
my people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it? Then you will come
from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of
them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. You will come up against my people like
a cloud to cover the land. It will
be in the latter days that I will bring you against my land, so that the
nations may know me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.’ Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Are you he of whom I have spoken in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel,
who prophesied for years in those days that I would bring you against them?’” Taken in proper context with previous chapters, Ezekiel
37:15-28 and Ezekiel 36, verses 10-13 of Ezekiel 38 are obviously talking about
the regathered 12 tribes of Israel, who are now dwelling safely in the land of
Israel. In verse 14, the LORD actually identifies them in his statement “when my people Israel dwell safely.” You
see, this is regathered Israel, not the United States, England and Canada as
they exist right now. The
Tribulation and battle of Armageddon are over with. This is an estimated 3 to 10 years after
the end of the Tribulation. My
guess, it is about three years after the Tribulation and Jesus Christ’s 2nd Coming. The Lord Jesus, now the
real King of kings and Lord of lords, King of the whole world (Zechariah 14:9)
has mainly been working with the nation of Israel and her surrounding
neighboring nations, both bringing spiritual salvation to them, and
administering them in love with the Law of God, now being administered as a
Civil code of law, as well as a spiritual code for the Millennial Church of God
(cf. Jeremiah 31:31-34; Isaiah 2:2-4).
God’s Judgment comes on Gog
Verses 18-23, “‘And
it will come to pass at the same time, when Gog comes against the land of
Israel,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘that my fury
will show in my face. For in my
jealousy and in the fire of my wrath
I have spoken: Surely in that day
there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel, so that the fish of
the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things
that creep on the earth and all men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at my presence. The mountains shall be thrown down, the
steep places shall fall, and every wall shall be fall to the ground. I will call for a sword against Gog
throughout all my mountains,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘Every man’s
sword will be against his brother. And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will
rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great
hailstones, fire, and brimstone. Thus I will magnify myself and sanctify myself, and I will be known in
the eyes of many nations. Then they
shall know that I am the LORD.’ Obviously be the
wording of that last verse, the whole world has not been aware of who the LORD is, Yahweh, Jesus Christ, Yeshua haMeshiach. This applies especially to the nations
which have made up the Eastern Alliance of nations, Russia, all the C.I.S.
nations, India, China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and all of Southeast
Asia. These nation’s combined
population right now are upwards of 2.5 billion people. How many survived the Great Tribulation
is not known, but obviously it is a sizeable number, along with their military
hardware.
Ezekiel 39:1-29
Aftermath of the Battle
Verses 1-10, “And
you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal; and
I will turn you around and lead you on, bringing you up from the far north, and
bring you against the mountains of Israel. [Notice who it is that is drawing Gog,
the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal to attack Israel. It is the Messiah, Yahweh, Jesus
Christ. Somehow the nations of the
Eastern Alliance have survived the Tribulation in great numbers, and are still
fully armed for warfare. And as
nations, none of them have properly submitted to the rule of Jesus Christ.] Then I will knock the bow out of your left hand, and cause the arrows to
fall out of your right hand. You
shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the
peoples who are with you; I will give
you to birds of prey of every story and to the beasts of the field to be
devoured. You shall fall on the
open field; for I have spoken,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘And I will
send fire on Magog and on those who live in security in the coastlands. Then they shall know that I am the LORD. So I will make
my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel, and I will not let them profane my holy name
anymore. Then the nations shall
know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in
Israel. Surely it is coming, and it
shall be done,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘This is the day of which I have spoken. Then those who dwell in the cities of
Israel will go out and set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and
bucklers, the bows and arrows, the javelins and spears; and they will make
fires with them for seven years. They will not cut down any from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons; and they will
plunder those who plundered them, and pillage those who pillaged them,’ says
the Lord GOD.”
Burial of Gog and all those who came up against Israel
Verses 11-16, “It
will come to pass in that day that I
will give Gog a burial place there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by
east of the sea; and it will obstruct travelers, because there they will bury
Gog and all his multitude. Therefore they shall call it the Valley of Hamon Gog. For seven
months the house of Israel will be burying them, in order to cleanse the
land. Indeed all the people of the
land will be burying, and they will gain renown for it on the day that I am
glorified,’ says the Lord GOD. They will set
apart men regularly employed, with the help of a search party, to pass through
the land and bury those bodies remaining on the ground, in order to cleanse
it. At the end of seven months they
will make a search. The search
party will pass through the land; and when
anyone sees a bone, he shall set up a marker by it, till the buriers have
buried it in the Valley of Hamon Gog. The name of the city will also be Hamonah. Thus they shall cleanse the land.”
Great Feast for the Birds of Prey
Verses 17-20, “And
as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Speak to every sort of bird and to every beast of the
field: Assemble yourselves and come;
gather together from all sides to my sacrificial meal which I am sacrificing
for you, a great sacrificial meal on the mountains of Israel, that you may eat
flesh and drink blood. You shall
eat the flesh of the mighty, drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of
rams and lambs, of goats and bulls, all of the fatlings of Bashan. You shall eat fat till you are full, and
drink blood till you are drunk, at my sacrificial meal which I am sacrificing
for you. You shall be filled at my
table with horses and riders, with mighty men and with all the men of war,’
says the Lord GOD.”
Jesus Christ now becomes King of the world---the
regathering of Israel completed
Verses 21-29, “I
will set my glory among the nations; all the nations shall see my judgment which
I have executed, and my hand which I have laid on them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that
day forward. The Gentiles shall
know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity; because
they were unfaithful to me, therefore I hid my face from them. I gave them into the hand of their
enemies, and they fell by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I
have dealt with them, and hidden my face from them. Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Now I will bring back the captives of
Jacob, and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for
my holy name---after they have borne their shame, and all their unfaithfulness
in which they were unfaithful to me, when they dwelt safely in their own land and no one made them afraid. When I have brought them back from the
peoples and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and I am hallowed in
them in the sight of many nations, then they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who sent them into captivity among the nations,
but also brought them back to their land, and left none of them captive any
longer. And I will not hide my face
from them anymore; for I shall have poured out My Spirit on the house of
Israel,’ says the Lord GOD.” Now by the wording here, it almost looks like this is the
regathering of Israel, which Ezekiel 36 was all about. But in essence, this is when most of the
other 10 tribes get to really see Jesus Christ in action. They had previously been led out of
their slavery in Europe and wherever they were being held in bondage west of
Russia. So their return to the land
of Israel may have occurred shortly after the Battle of Armageddon. Now in a sense, they are witnessing the
LORD in action. Also other captives held within this Eastern Alliance of nations are now
able to be set free, as Jesus Christ’s reign now extends over the entire earth,
parts of which had not submitted to his reign previously---all of Russia,
Siberia, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China and all of Southeast
Asia. It is possible that a
significant number of captives from the tribes of Israel were being held within
these Eastern Alliance nations. Undoubtedly, the “bringing back
of the captives of Jacob” mentioned here is about those being held within
these Eastern Alliance nations. That would provide a good motive for Jesus Christ to inspire “Gog, the
prince of Rosh” to attack Israel in the first place (cf. verses 1-2). So in essence, there are two regatherings
that take place, the first for all those Israelites (the ten tribes) who were
being held in the Euro-Holy Roman Empire, and now this regathering of all those
who had been held in Eastern Alliance nations. The regathering of all Israel, all 12 tribes,
is now complete. That is what
verses 21-29 are all about. Now the
world is ready to experience the Millennial Kingdom of God gently ruling over
all nations. The prophetic chapters
that follow, Ezekiel 40-48 will cover some of that.
Related links:
Shifting alliances
in Euroasia:
http://www.ucg.org/commentary/eurasia-sco-supplants-us-dominance/
Complimentary
commentary by the United Church of God on this subject:
http://bible.ucg.org/bible-commentary/Ezekiel/Future-invasion-of-Israel-by-Gog-of-Magog/default.aspx
For a good study
paper about the Millennial Kingdom of God, covering what it will be like, log
onto:
http://www.unityinchrist.com/kingdomofgod/mkg1.htm
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