After many days you will be called to service; in the latter years you will invade a land that has been restored from the sword, gathered out of many nations, to the mountains of Israel, which have been desolate for a long time. The people will have come together from the nations, and they shall dwell there securely. But you will come against them like a storm, and like a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops and many nations with you. Thus says the Lord God: In that day thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will devise an evil plan. You will say, 'I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will come against those who are at rest, who dwell securely, all of them living without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to seize spoil and carry off plunder, to turn your hand against the forsaken places now inhabited, and against the people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell in the midst of the land.'
Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish will say to you, 'Have you come to seize spoil? Have you assembled your horde to plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to seize great spoil?' Therefore, prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog, 'Thus says the Lord God: On the day my people Israel dwell securely, will you not know it? You will come from your place, from the extremities of the north, you and many nations with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde and a mighty army. You will come up against my people Israel like a cloud to cover the land; in the latter days it shall be 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: You are he of whom I spoke in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who prophesied for years in those days that I would bring you against them. 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 shaking 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 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 judgment on him 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. It is essential to note that this is the final communication from the Lord to the prophet Ezekiel; afterward, nothing resembles this until it mentions the twenty-fifth year of the captivity of Jeconiah, when the hand of the Lord led me there, into the land of Israel, detailing the temple's construction and the arrangement of its priesthood.
Moreover, the prophet's attention is focused on Gog's land, or Magog. It’s crucial to approach this from multiple angles, so we can comprehend what is conveyed. As the apostle said, 'We all, with unveiled faces, behold the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory.' The Jewish people and certain Judaizers regard Gog as the wild and countless Scythian tribes that extend beyond the Caucasus mountains and the marsh of Meotida to the Caspian Sea and even into India. They believe that after a thousand years of reign, these tribes, instigated by the devil, will come against the land of Israel to battle the saints, accompanied by many other nations.
Among these, there are Mosoch, identified by Josephus as Cappadocians, and Tubal, seen as Iberians or Spaniards, along with the Hebrews, the Italians, Persians, Cushites, and Libyans. Additionally, Gomer and Togarmah are viewed as Galatians and Phrygians, along with the Sabaeans, Dedans, and Carthaginians, which aligns with what John articulates in his Revelation. He writes that when the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for battle — their number like the sand of the sea. They will ascend over the breadth of the earth and surround the camp of the saints and the beloved city. Fire will come down from God out of heaven and consume them, and the devil, who deceived them, will be cast into the lake of fire where the beast and the false prophet are. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
Notably, many overlook that the entire book of John, titled Revelation, contains profound mysteries, and we require enlightenment to echo the prophet's request: 'Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from your law.' Others, abandoning earthly knowledge and harmful fables, rise to new heights and concoct ideas about the devil’s wars and his legions in the heavenly Jerusalem. Through allegorical interpretations, they attempt to link each nation's name to evil spirits in heaven.
We shall leave the judgment of these matters to the discretion of the reader. Gog in Greek denotes a covering, and in Latin, it suggests a roof. Thus, the names signify arrogance and false wisdom rebelling against the knowledge of truth. Isaiah alludes to this concept by speaking of the vain coverings in the vision of Zion's valley. Therefore, we should understand those who subscribe to heretical ideas as the roofs, while Magog symbolizes those who embrace such teachings. Following many profound prophecies in this text, the concluding prophecy targets Gog and Magog, for as Peter asserted, the time begins for judgment at the house of God, and Ezekiel states judgment must begin at my sacred ones. The final enemy shall be committed to death, with Isaiah's initial proclamation directed at Judah, affirming the Lord’s truth, while the final one addresses the multitude in the wilderness, hence this ultimate declaration against Gog and Magog.
In the psalm, it references God honoring the troops of his people, described as a hailstorm that streams forth joy. As the prophet indicates, God is the first hail to face war. The Gospel affirms that light cannot be hidden upon a hill that stands tall. The psalmist depicts Jerusalem as built like a hill, where community combines in harmony. Surrounding mountains form a protection for the Lord's people.
Concerning Gog or Magog, recognized by the Seventy, Symmachus, and Theodotion as the chief ruler of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, the term Rosh translates as head, thereby suggesting that Gog is the principal of the head of Meshech and Tubal. Notably, the names do not appear in Genesis or other scriptural texts, nor are they mentioned in Josephus’s Antiquities where he interprets Hebrew names. Thus, Rosh signifies not a nation but rather authority. The prophet identifies Gog as the chief of the land of Magog, while Revelation describes Gog and Magog as two nations emerging from the earth's four corners.
As Israel derived its name from Jacob, later known as Israel, and other nations their names from their ancestral figures, those under Gog’s authority are termed Magog. Meshech implies madness, and Tubal denotes completeness. Hence, Gog represents the chief and head of arrogant madness and all manner of evil, epitomized by the fact that 'the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.' These adversarial nations, hostile to the saints, emerge from the earth's farthest reaches, forsaking the straightforward path laid out for the people of God. They neglect the promise that many shall come from east and west, north and south, and recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
Additionally, calls to 'bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth' do not apply to the specific corners from where Gog and Magog arise. Instead, these corners are metaphorically linked to the harlot enticing the foolish, representing the wide and easy path leading to destruction. Notably, the scribes and Pharisees sought acknowledgment before men, but they have already received their wages.
THEOSIS