Ezekiel 38:16-23

16 and you will come up against My people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It shall come about in the last days that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may 1know Me when I am 2sanctified through you before their eyes, O Gog."
17 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "Are you the one of whom I spoke in former days through My servants the prophets of Israel, who 3prophesied in those days for many years that I would bring you against them?
18 "It will come about on that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel," declares the Lord GOD, "that My fury will mount up in My 4anger.
19 "In My 5zeal and in My blazing wrath I declare that on that day there will surely * be a great 6earthquake in the land of Israel.
20 "7The fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all the creeping things that creep on the earth, and all the men who are on the face of the earth will shake at My presence; the 8mountains also will be thrown down, the steep pathways will collapse and every wall will fall to the ground.
21 "I will call for a 9sword against him on all My mountains," declares the Lord GOD. "10Every man's sword will be against his brother.
22 "With pestilence and with blood I will enter into 11judgment with him; and I will rain on him and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, a torrential rain, with 12hailstones *, fire and brimstone.
23 "I will magnify Myself, sanctify Myself, and 13make Myself known in the sight of many nations; and they will know that I am the LORD."'

Ezekiel 38:16-23 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 38

This chapter gives an account of an enemy of the Jews, under the name of Gog, that shall invade their land, and disturb their peace, after they are settled in it; who is described by the countries over which he rules; and against whom the prophet is bid to set his face, and prophesy of him, the Lord being against him; and who would cause him to return from Judea unsuccessful, Eze 38:1-4, the number of his confederates, their warlike accoutrements and preparations for the invasion of the land of Israel, are foretold, Eze 38:4-9, his wicked designs and intentions to spoil and plunder the inhabitants of it, Eze 38:10-12, the notice taken of his projects by the merchants of Tarshish and others, Eze 38:13,14, his coming up to invade the land is again observed for the certainty of it; and the place from whence, and the time when he should come, are mentioned, as well as God's design in it, and which had been before predicted by his prophets, Eze 38:14-17, and the chapter is concluded with a denunciation of divine wrath, which shall be terrible to all the inhabitants of the earth, and to all creatures in heaven, earth, and sea; when he and his forces shall be destroyed by the sword, by pestilence, and by dreadful storms and tempests, Eze 38:18-23, of which destruction a fuller account is given in the next chapter.

the preceding prophecy did, as the copulative and shows; which predicts the restoration and conversion of the Jews; the union of their tribes under the King Messiah; and their settlement in their own land: and this respects some disturbance they should meet with upon it, for a short time, by a powerful enemy hereafter described:

\\saying\\; as follows:

29385-Eze38.2

Cross References 13

  • 1. Psalms 83:18; Ezekiel 36:23; Ezekiel 38:23
  • 2. Isaiah 5:16; Isaiah 8:13; Isaiah 29:23; Ezekiel 28:22
  • 3. Isaiah 5:26-29; Isaiah 34:1-6; Isaiah 63:1-6; Isaiah 66:15, 16; Joel 3:9-14
  • 4. Psalms 18:8, 15
  • 5. Deuteronomy 32:22; Psalms 18:7, 8; Ezekiel 5:13; Ezekiel 36:5, 6; Nahum 1:2; Hebrews 12:29
  • 6. Joel 3:16; Hag 2:6, 7, 21
  • 7. Jeremiah 4:24, 25; Hosea 4:3; Nahum 1:4-6
  • 8. Zechariah 14:4
  • 9. Ezekiel 14:17
  • 10. Judges 7:22; 1 Samuel 14:20; 2 Chronicles 20:23; Haggai 2:22
  • 11. Isaiah 66:16; Jeremiah 25:31
  • 12. Psalms 11:6; Psalms 18:12-14; Isaiah 28:17
  • 13. Psalms 9:16; Ezekiel 37:28; Ezekiel 38:16

Footnotes 4

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