Ezekiel 39:1-20

The Disposal of Gog

1 "As for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog and say: This is what the Lord God says: Look, I am against you, Gog, chief prince of^[a] Meshech and Tubal.^[b]

2 I will turn you around, drive you on,^[c] and lead you up from the remotest parts of the north. I will bring you against the mountains of Israel.

3 Then I will knock your bow from your left hand and make your arrows drop from your right hand.

4 You, all your troops, and the peoples who are with you will fall on the mountains of Israel. I will give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and to the wild animals.

5 You will fall on the open field,^[d] for I have spoken." [This is] the declaration of the Lord God .

6 "I will send fire against Magog^[e] and those who live securely on the coasts and islands. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

7 So I will make My holy name known among My people Israel and will no longer allow it to be profaned. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel.^[f]

8 Yes, it is coming, and it will happen." [This is] the declaration of the Lord God . "This is the day I have spoken about.

9 "Then the inhabitants of Israel's cities will go out, kindle fires, and burn the weapons-the bucklers and shields, the bows and arrows, the clubs and spears. For seven years they will use them to make fires.

10 They will not gather wood from the countryside or cut [it] down from the forests, for they will use the weapons to make fires. They will take the loot from those who looted them and plunder those who plundered them."^[g] [This is] the declaration of the Lord God .

11 "Now on that day I will give Gog a burial place there in Israel-the Valley of the Travelers^[h] east of the Sea. It will block those who travel through, for Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So [it] will be called the Valley of Hamon-gog.^[i]

12 The house of Israel will spend seven months burying them in order to cleanse the land.

13 All the people of the land will bury [them] and their fame will spread on the day I display My glory." [This is] the declaration of the Lord God .

14 "They will appoint men on a full-time basis to pass through the land and bury the invaders^[j] who remain on the surface of the ground, in order to cleanse it. They will make [their] search at the end of the seven months.

15 When they pass through the land and one of them sees a human bone, he will erect a marker next to it until the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon-gog.

16 There will even be a city named Hamonah^[k] [there]. So they will cleanse the land.

17 "Son of man, this is what the Lord God says: Tell every kind of bird and all the wild animals: Assemble and come! Gather from all around to My sacrificial feast that I am slaughtering for you, a great feast on the mountains of Israel;^[l] you will eat flesh and drink blood.

18 You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the earth's princes: rams, lambs, male goats, and bulls, all of them fatlings of Bashan.

19 You will eat fat until you are satisfied^[m] and drink blood until you are drunk, at My sacrificial feast that I have prepared for you.

20 At My table you will eat your fill of horses and riders, of mighty men and all the warriors." [This is] the declaration of the Lord God .

Ezekiel 39:1-20 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 39

This chapter is a continuation of the prophecy of the destruction of Gog, which is both repeated, and more largely described, Eze 39:1-8, then follows an account of the burning of his weapons of war, which will last seven years in burning, during which time there will be no need of the use of wood, Eze 39:9,10, and of the burial of him, and many of his army; the place where, and the time that will be taken up in doing this, even seven months, are observed, Eze 39:11-16, and every feathered fowl and beast of the field are called upon to feed on the flesh of those that are left unburied, Eze 39:17-20 and by all this the glory of the Lord will be seen, known, and acknowledged, both by the Heathens, and by the house of Israel, Eze 39:21,22, and the former will also be informed that the present captivity of the Jews has been for their sins and transgressions, Eze 39:23,24, and the chapter is concluded with a promise of their return from captivity, when they shall know the Lord, and their interest in him; who will after this no more hide his face from them, but pour out his Spirit upon them, under whose influence they shall ever continue, Eze 39:25-29.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or Gog, prince of Rosh,
• [b]. Ezk 38:2-3
• [c]. Ezk 38:4
• [d]. Ezk 32:4
• [e]. Rv 20:9
• [f]. Ezk 36:23
• [g]. Ezk 38:13
• [h]. Hb obscure
• [i]. Hordes of Gog
• [j]. Or basis, some to pass through the land, and with them some to bury those
• [k]. Hamonah is related to the Hb word for "horde."
• [l]. Rv 19:17-18
• [m]. Rv 19:21