Ezekiel 38 - 39 Study Notes, Part 1

There is much speculation and false teaching about the End Times prophecy of Ezekiel 38-39. This series of articles will show where the “Gog-Magog War” fits into the overall scheme of End Time events.

For decades, many have taught that the Gog-Magog War will be the first major conflict of the End Times; whereas actually, multiple Bible prophecies reveal that it will be the last, concluding battle before the Millennium. Of these multiple parallel prophecies, the most significant ones are found in Zechariah 14 and Revelation 16 and 19. This series of articles will set together the relevant parallel passages out of these prophecies (and some others), topic by topic, to show the agreement between them.

Topic 1: Horses and Birds

Ezekiel 38:4 “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. … 15 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.” … Ezekiel 39:17 “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. … 20 You shall be filled at My table with horse and rider, with mighty man and with every man of war,” says the Lord GOD.

Revelation 19:17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the great supper of God, 18 that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.”

Zechariah 12:4 “In that day,” declares the LORD, “I will strike every horse with confusion, and its rider with madness; I will open My eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.” … 14:15 …[there will be a] plague on the horse and the mule…

A common false teaching about these “horses and horsemen,” with their “bucklers [small shields] and [large] shields,” is that they are only representative of modern military equipment and warriors. Nothing could be further from the truth. Ezekiel 38-39 is a prose prophetic narrative from God through His prophet. It is not a vision, neither poetry, wherein prophecies are clothed in symbolic meaning. Rather, here horses mean horses, and birds mean birds, literally. This is made absolutely clear because birds don’t ‘eat the flesh and drink the blood’ of military vehicles.

Armies of our time have neither enough horses nor trained riders to outfit “all of them riding on horses.” 38:15 Nor would they fight with swords and shields and bows and arrows. Nor is modern Israel “a land of unwalled villages.” 38:11 So this prophecy reveals to us that it about a post-apocalyptic era in the future, one wherein modern technology has been destroyed, and so people have reverted to a more primitive, pastoral lifestyle.

So when will that be? As Revelation 16 and 19 make clear, the Gog-Magog War will be at the time of the final Battle of Armageddon, during the fulfillment of the 6th and 7th Bowls of Revelation 16. Rev. 16:12ff. Which tells us that apocalyptic devastation upon Earth shall have taken place during Revelation’s prior 7 Seals and 7 Trumpets. That devastation will be the result of both natural-world catastrophes and ruthless warfare, in particular the 6th Trumpet war that will “kill a third of mankind.” Rev. 9:15 These will result in the demise of our modern technological era.

See also:

51. The End Times and the Exodus, Part 4 The Seven Bowls. https://worthychristianforums.com/blogs/entry/2069-the-end-times-and-the-exodus-part-4/

64. Egypt, Part 1: Its Coming 40-Year Desolation

Provides the evidence, from rarely-quoted biblical End Time prophecies, that reveals the length of, and details about, God’s coming End Time judgment of, and later healing of, Egypt. https://www.worthychristianforums.com/blogs/entry/2753-egypt-part-1-its-coming-40-year-desolation/

https://www.worthychristianforums.com/blogs/entry/2814-index-and-summaries-of-articles/

https://www.worthychristianforums.com/blogs/entry/3571-index-of-articles-by-topic/