And the Sunday before the conference we went back to Ezekiel chapter 38 just to revisit this pivotal prophecy in the Word of God. God willing next Sunday we will get back into regular routine with our series in both Exodus and 1st Corinthians. But I felt that it would be fitting just to finish this off. since we commenced this the week before conference and particularly because of what is happening in the world at the moment with Iran and Russia and these things often people have questions about that and we have here an ancient prophecy that deals with a future conflict in the tribulation period involving some of these key nations that we often hear about in the news. So Ezekiel 38 and I encourage you to also read chapter 39 which also deals with this invasion but Ezekiel chapter 38 and let's reread the passage together why don't we read it responsibly so you can help me out this morning so I'll read verse 1 you read verse 2 and we'll go back and forwards like that to the end of the chapter Ezekiel chapter 38 and the word of the Lord came unto me saying And say, thus saith the Lord God, behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them, all of them with shield and helmet. Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them. After many years, for thou shalt be visited. In the latter years, for thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and it is gathered about for many people against the enemies of Israel, which have been in war against Israel. But it is for all for our obligations, and they shall Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm. Thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou and all thy bands, and many people with thee. Thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages. I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls and having neither bars nor gates. Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? Hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey, to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil? Now shalt come from thy place out of the north parts, thou and many people with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company and a mighty army. Thus saith the Lord God, art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them? For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken. Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel. So there were a vision of the sea, and the clouds over them, and the beasts of the field, and all the living things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the city of Persia shall fall. And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God. Every man's sword shall be against his brother. Thus will I magnify myself, this is God speaking, and sanctify myself and I'll be known in the eyes of many nations and they shall know that I am the Lord. Let's pray. Father, we thank you we can be here this morning. We pray for your inner strengthening now by your spirit in the inner man. Lord again, we pray for those who are unwell who would normally be here we just pray Lord that you would bring us out of this season of illness Lord and Strengthen us in body in heart and we pray now that you would minister to each one the necessary portion we pray that you take this passage of scripture and help us by the Spirit of God we acknowledge that this is the God-breathed Word of God and we just pray that you would grant us your wisdom your guidance and your understanding father now and that you would bless in Jesus name Amen okay Israel versus Iran Well, we know that Iran is mentioned in this chapter as Persia and we have in this chapter a coalition of nations aggressive towards the nation of Israel and throughout this passage we see that ultimately God is on the throne, God is moving and God does deal with nations, doesn't he? God is moving here to bring many of Israel's ancient enemies to a place of judgment. And God is working in this chapter, God is working in this occasion to magnify himself that Israel might know that he is God and that the world might know that he is God. And so, of course, Iran has been very much the focus of attention of late with the recent bombing of the nuclear facilities by the Americans and the Israelis. And that's the B-2 stealth bomber there that was used to deliver that massive bomb. which is the biggest non-nuclear bomb they have available, these bunker busters. And that's one of the nuclear sites there that was bombed. And so there's been much attention on this. And it's important, isn't it, as we mentioned in our last lesson, that we learn to look at the world through the lens of Scripture and not at Scripture through the lens of the world. Very important that we have a biblical worldview and that we learn to look at world events from a scriptural standpoint. And that is so important in a day when there is a chorus of voices, many competing voices, especially in an age of social media and digital technology. There are so many voices out there with various opinions, various ideas. But as believers, we need to learn to see things from the perspective of scripture. And we certainly support the idea of defending Israel. That is certainly something you would have to see as the right thing to do. And I believe, personally, one of the reasons that America has been so blessed of God is because of her support of the nation of Israel. And so what we are seeing at the moment is not the events described in the Bible themselves, but we do see the world very much shaping up for these future events. And that's definitely what we can see. So we should not see these current conflicts as being the fulfilment of Ezekiel 38, 39, but certainly we can see how the stage is being set. Okay, before there is a play, the props have to be put into place. Okay? And the various things there on the stage are put into place, the backdrops, et cetera, ready for the drama to take place. And so what we're seeing at the moment is this shifting around, as it were, this moving of things, men and nations, into place. And we can see how the world is moving so quickly towards these end-time events. And certainly Bible prophecy should convince us that God's Word is truth. It's one of the ways we know that the Bible is the Word of God because of the fulfilled prophecy, the prophecies that have already been fulfilled, and then these breathtaking prophecies concerning the future. Now, if you're going to understand Bible prophecy, it's very important that you have a proper understanding of the nation of Israel. You cannot understand Bible prophecy correctly unless you understand God's plan for Israel. God is not finished with Israel. God has a plan for Israel. In fact, Ezekiel 38, when you look at it, is really all about Israel. Israel is the central focus of this prophecy. God is moving there with the children of Israel that have been regathered to the land and God is going to draw this northern power with a coalition of nations into the mountains of Israel and God is going to deal with them there very forcefully and very powerfully. This chart here is a very useful summary of biblical truth, just to help us to understand the overall scheme of what lies in the future. You notice over here the church, the little church here, and so we are currently in the church age. Is this thing even working? It's not working, is it? Okay, my pointer's not... working for some reason but you see the church there and then we have the moving from left to right we the next event on the calendar as it were or the next it's not on the calendar we don't know when it is but the next event is the rapture of the church that's what we're waiting for okay and that's why we know that these other events have not happened yet these events connected with the seven-year tribulation because the rapture hasn't happened yet but after the rapture of the church we have a seven-year tribulation period which is described in detail in the book of Revelation chapter 6 through 18. And you have all these things taking place in that tribulation period. Then that culminates in the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan is bound and cast in the bottomless pit for a thousand years. That'll be great, won't it? A thousand years without the devil. And there'll be the 1,000 year reign of Christ. And then we have the great white throne judgment taking place at the end of that. And then obviously on into the new heaven and the new earth. So when it comes to this Ezekiel 38 prophecy, when does this battle occur? And we dealt with this at length in the last message, but just to review, it occurs firstly in the last days or the end times. And we have those clear references to the end times in the chapter. The latter years, verse 8, the latter days, verse 16. And so very clearly, this is a future battle that takes place in the end times. Then it occurs when Israel is back in the land. That's very clear. Verse 8 talks about the land that is brought back from the sword. That certainly is a valid and very clear description of Israel, isn't it? Israel, that tiny stretch of land that has been so fought over, continues to be fought over, and God describes there it as the land that is brought back from the sword and is gathered out of many people. Okay, so Israel is back in the land now, which is amazing. It's a fulfillment of Ezekiel 37, the previous chapter, the dry bones there coming together. Israel is yet unregenerate, but back in the land. And that is a modern day miracle. And we need to be reminded that Israel is not back in the land illegally. She is there by divine appointment. God has regathered and is regathering his people to the land that he gave to them. And it's absolutely vital you have a proper understanding of that as a believer because Israel has to be back in the land in order for these future events to be fulfilled. So Christians who are out there complaining about Israel being back in the land and saying Israel is illegally occupying the land simply do not know their Bibles. Israel is there by divine appointment. And so God is at work. That's the amazing thing. It's amazing 1948 Israel became a nation again Incredible how these things are taking place and how the stage is being set for these future events and then it occurs when the desolate places are inhabited and Israel has riches that certainly describes Israel today where they are turning desolate places into lush farmland and and and inhabitable land and of course Israel has great wealth today and it occurs when Israel feels safe and is disarmed And this to me makes it very clear that we're dealing with events that take place in the first half of the tribulation period when Israel has this false sense of security. that comes through the chapter here very clearly okay they shall dwell safely all of them verse 8 verse 11 that refers to them that are at rest that dwell safely all of them dwelling without walls and having neither bars nor gates now understand during Ezekiel's time walls speak of security don't they that's a defensive structure and so if you're talking about a nation that is without walls And without bars and gates, that's referring to a nation that is clearly disarmed. And so we know that that certainly doesn't describe Israel at the moment. Israel is armed to the teeth, has a formidable defence force. Really, no one messes with Israel unless they want to get absolutely pummeled to pieces. And a very powerful military, tiny nation, and yet they punch way above their weight when it comes to this area of military technology. so clearly the prophecy must be looking into the future and to a time when Israel feels safe and safe enough to take down her walls as it were and to remove her gates and so I suggest that it's very likely that disarmament will be a part of the Antichrist's T's and C's now that he will require disarmament and he will present himself, the Antichrist will present himself as the ultimate peace broker and Israel will fall into that trap, feel safe and disarmed and then of course we have this Northern Coalition coming against Israel during that time. And then of course it occurs in connection with Israel's conversion. So we have two major wars taking place in the Tribulation period. We have that first war, the Russian-Muslim alliance that's described here in Ezekiel 38 and 39, taking place in the first half of the Tribulation. And then we have the Battle of Armageddon, that's when all the world is drawn there to that battle And so that's how we know, by the way, that this is not the Battle of Armageddon, because here we have only a selection of nations involved in this conflict, whereas the Battle of Armageddon involves all nations, and so that's how we know the difference. So we have two major wars in that Tribulation period, the first one there in the first half of the Tribulation, and then the second one in the second half of the Tribulation. Here's another useful chart, just to help us to summarize. Okay, again, we have the Rapture of the Church over there, and then we have the Daniel 70th week or the seven-year tribulation period and the seven-year tribulation period is broken up into two three and a half year segments and in the first three and a half years we have the seal and trumpet judgments and God very much dealing with Israel bringing them to repentance then things really heat up in the second three and a half years and so the whole period is likened to a woman in travail and any woman knows that you start off with those lighter contractions if you're giving birth and then as the birth process progresses you get more and more things intensify and so it is with the tribulation period things start out in the first half they're pretty bad but as you get into the second three and a half years they increase in intensity and So our outline for the chapter is as follows. We have number one, the invaders in this battle, verse 1 and 6, verse 1 through 6. Then we have the invasion of this battle, verse 7 to 9. The intention of Gog in this battle, verse 10 to 13. interrogation about this battle God is going to direct some pointed questions to this hostile army and then of course we have the intervention in this battle so just a quick bit of review what we covered last time and then we'll get into further into the text today so we have the invaders of this battle in verse 1 to 6 the invaders of this battle and the Bible describes here a huge army And so even the size of the army described here as you read through the text, it points to a formidable nation. It points to a large nation. This is not a small nation leading this charge against the children of Israel. This is a huge northern army coming down from the north. So we have what we could call the principal invader. The principal invader, as we demonstrated in our last message, is clearly Russia, because we have reference here to the north part. And thou shalt come from thy place, verse 15, out of the north parts, and you study the Hebrew words there, it has the idea of the far north or the uttermost north. Okay, and as you can see on the map there, if you go north from Jerusalem, all the way up, you end up in the nation of Russia. There's only one nation, that is to the north of Israel, and that is the nation, or to the far north, sorry, of Israel, and that is the nation of Russia. And so we should not be in any doubt about that, and it's not just the geographic location, but these ancient names, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshug and Shubal, you study out those, ancient place names and you'll find that they are connected with the area we know today as Russia, okay, and so very, very clear. So again, you can see on the map, if you go from Israel down here, you go far north, far north lands you in Russia. There's no other country that fits the bill. And it's very interesting to me how things are shaping up in this part of the world. You remember how Russia took over Georgia, I think it was, was it 2008? Russia took over Georgia, which is here. Okay, my pointer's not working. And then you have, of course, Turkey, which is an ally. You have Crimea that's now under Russian control, and Russia exerts a lot of control over the Black Sea area. And then now, of course, you have Russia taking over a large part of eastern Ukraine. what you can see taking place here is that there is a clear pathway for Russia to sweep down from the north just as the Bible describes here in Ezekiel 38 and so it's amazing again to see these current events and the movement of nations and how Russia is positioning itself for this future attack there and there's the Crimea and the current areas of Ukraine under their control and of course the Russian fleet controls a lot of the Black Sea and exerts tremendous influence there. So we can see how these things are shaping up. Then we have the participant invaders. We have a coalition of nations joining in with Russia. They're described in the text. We have Persia and again there's just no doubt as to who Persia is. Persia is the ancient forerunner of modern Iran. The name was changed in 1935. And that makes perfect sense, doesn't it? You have Russia, which historically has been very anti-Israel. You have Iran, which is very, very anti-Israel. And those who try and say otherwise are just simply ignorant, okay? And they do want a nuclear bomb. Again, those who say they don't want a nuclear bomb are ignorant. They want a nuclear bomb. Why? Because they want to literally wipe Israel off the face of the map. They hate Israel and so we can see clearly how Iran would be a part of this end times coalition of nations coming against Israel. So you have Russia acting as a leader really and a unifier in this invasion. The prophecy says here to Gog, be thou a guard unto them, verse 7. so Russia has this shepherding role or this role of leading this coalition and that makes sense because You study history and the Arab nations are very divided one against another Okay in fulfillment of his of Genesis 16 I think it is that that Ishmael's hand would be against every man's hand at every man's hand against him and so you have these these divides within the Arab world but it'll take Russia as that superpower to really unite all these nations together and bring them together under one banner. Ethiopia is in northern Africa, also has close ties with Russia, but if you study the location of ancient Ethiopia, it's where Sudan is located today. Again, that makes a lot of sense. Sudan is a radical Islamic nation, a lot of terrorism there. Then you have Libya, that's in northern Africa. Again, no doubt as to what nation is involved there. You have Goma, which appears to refer to central Turkey, according to the Jewish historian Josephus. You have Tagama, which refers to the former southern republics of the Soviet Union and to Turkey, and so that's also very significant. You can see that Turkey has become increasingly anti-Israel. It used to be a little more democratic or a little more West-leaning, although always a bit of a bias towards Russia there, but increasingly now you have Turkey very much against becoming increasingly anti-Israel and anti- NATO and etc and becoming more and more closely aligned with Russia and then you have some other unnamed peoples also swept up in the coalition as indicated by the words and many people with the verse 6 okay so there you have a little map showing this coalition coming against this tiny nation of Israel. You have Persia to Gama or Goma to the north there as well as Russia to the far north, Libya, Ethiopia or modern-day Sudan and so you have this coalition of nations that are hostile to Israel coming against Israel in this end times battle. Then you have the invasion of the battle. We have the leadership of the invasion, verse 7, that's very clearly Russia. Russia is to be a guard unto them and so Russia will really take the leading role in this. And then you have the location of the invasion, there's no doubt about that. Verse 8 is going to take place upon the mountains of Israel. And then you have the likeness of the invasion, verse 9, God likens this invasion to a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land. And so you have this description here of a very powerful army, very powerful coalition sweeping down like a storm over the land of Israel. That brings us to where we left off last time, the intention of this battle. Verse 10 to 13... And so through Ezekiel, God is addressing this northern power, Russia, and says you're going to have an evil thought that's going to come into your mind. By the way, God knows the thoughts of men, doesn't he? And thou shalt say, I will go up to the land of unwalled villages. See again the emphasis there on Israel being defenseless. I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates, to take a spoil, and to take a prey, to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations which have gotten cattle and goods that dwell in the midst of the land." So we see there the plan of Gog, and the plan of Gog is twofold. It is to exploit, number one, the weakness of Israel. The weakness of Israel. And that's very clear in the text. They're coming up against a land that is seemingly defenseless from a human standpoint. And again, that describes a nation that has disarmed. Israel is described as being without walls, bars, and gates. In Ezekiel's day, a city's gates and walls were there for defense and protection against invaders. So this is a description of a nation that has given up its defenses to deter aggressors from attack. That does not describe Israel at the present time, which bristles with military capability to deter countries even much larger than her from daring to attack. And so again, I would suggest that this disarmament is likely a part of this Antichrist peace treaty. And Antichrist, according to Daniel 9, will confirm a covenant with Israel for one week, one seven, okay, a seven year period. And in the midst of the week, in the middle of that period, which is a three and a half year mark, Jesus referred back to this very verse, didn't he, in the Olivet Discourse, and talked about the abomination of desolation, that takes place halfway through the Tribulation period. And then the plan of Gog is also to exploit the wealth of Israel. So the weakness of Israel is going to be an incentive for this northern army to come and attack. And then the wealth of Israel, they are hoping to plunder the land, to take a spoil and to take a prey, verse 12. to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations which have gotten cattle and goods that dwell in the midst of the land.' Well that certainly describes modern Israel doesn't it? The desolate places that are now inhabited. It's amazing what Israel is doing there, turning desolate places into habitable productive areas. One online article notes, quote, desert agriculture in Israel is one of the country's greatest successes and something at which Israel leads the world. The Negev desert, which covers over 60% of the country, has actually shrunk in size over the past century as agricultural activity has turned sand into green fields, the opposite to the trend which much of the rest of the world is battling to prevent. In most of the world, deserts tend to increase over time, but here Israel is reversing that trend. Even the depths of Israel's Negev desert are gems of agriculture amid the harsh dry conditions and relatively mineral-deprived sandy soil. So amazing what Israel has done and certainly you can see, just breathtaking, the prophecy here that this northern army is going to come against the desolate places that are now inhabited within Israel and that's what they've done. Israel, since they've come back to the land, have really made that land bloom. They've drained many of the swamps, used a lot of gum trees by the way to do that, Australian gum trees to help with dealing with the swamps and that sort of thing. And so this is one of the incentives for this Northern Army. They're going to come in with a desire to plunder the land. the desolate places that are now inhabited. Here's another interesting thought. Israel also has now the Leviathan gas field. And off the coast of Haifa in the Mediterranean Sea, there's an estimated 16 trillion cubic feet of natural grass in the Leviathan field. Now I mention that for a reason. Remember, this northern army is Russia and gas is a major Russian export, isn't it? And so it's very interesting to think about this. What would motivate Russia to come against the land of Israel? Well, this could be one of the main things that motivates Russia because Israel is fast becoming a competitor to Russian gas because of the Leviathan gas field. It's possible, we don't know for sure, but it's possible that this could also be part of the catalyst for this Russian invasion of Israel because of Israel now having those vast gas reserves and competing with the Russian market. But you notice, not only do we see the plan of Gog, but the protest against Gog. And there are some nations that are clearly allied with Israel that raise a protest in verse 13. And it's probably going to be very much like what we see today. There's a lot of verbal protest today against Russia and her actions, but really not a lot of follow-through as far as action is concerned. So here you have What's interesting really in the prophecy here, you have two coalitions. You have one aligned with Russia and then you have another group of nations described here that stand up and protest this invasion but without following it up with any action. So Sheba and Dedan refers to modern Saudi Arabia. and probably other Arab peoples allied with Israel, and that's interesting. There are some Arab nations that are aligned with Israel, and increasingly there are more nations aligned with Israel, so that's interesting. So you've got Sheba and Dedan, what we would know today as modern Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is very much aligned with the West, not as far as religion is concerned, but they are allies of America and allies, or not really officially allies of Israel yet, although that's probably likely to become so. And then you have Tarshish and the young lions thereof. And Tarshish is generally, on the right, is generally identified with the lands of the far west of Europe, including perhaps a part of Spain, but very definitely Great Britain. It was from Tarshish of old that the Phoenicians obtained Tin, and the word Britannia means the land of Tin. And so as you study this out, it seems quite likely that that Tarshish is a reference here to ancient Britain which would make a lot of sense because you have England and then the young lions of Tarshish or the offspring of Tarshish that raise this protest. And I think this is the closest, people ask countries like Australia or America in Bible prophecy, this would be as close as we get. Okay, if Tarshish represents Britain, and there seems to be evidence that it does, in the ancient prophecy here, you have the reference to Tarshish and the young lions thereof. And so you have nations like America, Canada, of course, Australia, New Zealand that are the the cubs of Tarshish. All right, and so that would again make a lot of sense. You've got the English-speaking world and the world that has been influenced by England and those nations raising that voice of protest against Gog's invasion. So there's a protest made but no direct intervention by these countries to try and stop the Russians and their allies. and then of course Sheba and Dedan which is Saudi Arabia. So very interesting to see this alignment of nations today and how this is shaping up with the nations that are very much allied with Russia versus the nations that are more allied with Israel and so you can see how this will take place there. Then we have the interrogation about this battle. through the Prophet, through Ezekiel, God addresses himself again to the leader of this hostile Confederacy in the form of two main questions. And God questions firstly Gog's knowledge of Israel's safety, look at verse 14 through 16, therefore son of man prophesy and say unto Gog, thus saith the Lord God, in that day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it. Okay, so God is questioning through Ezekiel this northern army and so really that's what you have in this chapter is you have a showdown between God Almighty and this northern power that's leading this hostile coalition against God's people in Israel. So you have the question, then you have the prediction, and here in verse 15 and 16, we have essentially a repetition of what has been discussed in the earlier part of the chapter. So we have the source of Gog's army, okay, the north parts. We have the size of Gog's army, many people, a great company. We have what we could call the strength of Gog's army, it's referred to as a mighty army, verse 15. The symbol of Gog's army as a cloud to cover the land. the season for Gog's army, it's going to be in the latter days, and then the sanctification of God through Gog's army that the heathen may know me. So God is working, God is drawing this northern power into this conflict, and God is going to magnify himself through this event. Now notice here the reference to my people, verse 14, and my land, can you see that? So God says, my people, referring to Israel, and my land. We do well to remember that. Israel, its land and its people belongs to God Almighty. God's land and the children of Israel are still God's people and God is going to defend his people and his land against this hostile Confederacy. And through this, God is working that the heathen might know that he is God. The heathen may know me. I will be sanctified in the Ogog. before their eyes. Now how can God be sanctified in this army or set apart in this army? Well I think Dr. Charles Feinberg explains it well. He says, But in the Lord's dealings with him, the God of all the universe will be recognized as holy. Just as circumstances lay bare the wickedness and godlessness of men, so the same conditions reveal in a blaze of glory the blessed God whom we delight to worship in Christ our Lord. And so God is going to be magnified very powerfully this event and God is demonstrating to the world that he is God. Then we have Gog's knowledge of divine prophecy, interesting reference in verse 17 there, Thus saith the Lord God, art thou he of whom I have spoken in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them. So what prophecies have been referred to here we're not sure but apparently this has been a frequent theme of God's prophets of old and And when the Russian invasion comes to pass, God will in some way remind them that he had long ago foretold their invasion by the prophets of Israel. And God's sovereignty is again highlighted here, that I would bring thee against them. So God is moving and working here. Then we come number five to this very powerful intervention. God is going to intervene now in this battle in a supernatural way. verse 18 and it shall come to pass at the same time when Gog shall come against the land of Israel saith the Lord God that my fury shall come up in my face you see that God is a God of grace but he's also a God of holy fury God's anger is going to be kindled very powerfully against this hostile Confederacy that's coming into the land of Israel against God's land and against God's people. God is going to settle the score. God is going to deal with these nations that have mistreated his people for millennia. God is going to deal with these nations that are hostile in their hatred against the Jewish people. And we have here what we could call the passion of God described here. God's fury will come up in his face. It's a very powerful and graphic description. Have you ever seen someone's face change when they get angry? hopefully not too often if you're a Christian, okay? But have you ever seen fury sweep over someone's face? Maybe the face turns red or it's very, very clear before anything comes out of the mouth that there is fury in the countenance of that person. And so God uses that figure of speech here to help us to understand in a very impactful way just how his wrath is going to be kindled. But when you read about the anger of God and the wrath of God in the Bible, you must not think of that in terms of sinful anger, God's anger is 100% pure, God's wrath against sin is 100% holy and here you have the holy, white, hot anger of God against this wicked invasion. That word fury literally means heat. God's anger is going to wax hot against these nations with their long and bitter history of persecution of God's people. So God's fury will come up in his face. And then we have reference to the fire of his wrath. For in my jealousy, that's a reference to God's zeal there, God's passion and his zeal for his people. And in the fire of my wrath have I spoken. Just insert this for more mature Bible students. Interestingly there are those who try and suggest that God's wrath does not start until the second half of the Tribulation, that's the pre-wrath view. Here we have God's fury and his wrath being described in the first half of the Tribulation, don't we? Okay, we've pinpointed this, it has to take place in the first half of the Tribulation and here you have the holy fury and wrath of God against this northern army in the first half of the Tribulation. So that really debunks that pre-wrath view, that God's wrath doesn't start to the second half. So the passion of God described, God is passionate about his people Israel. This is the heart of God. God is filled with righteous anger and righteous fury against this coalition of nations that's coming into the land of Israel there, against Israel with hostile intent. And I tell you what, I just wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of God Almighty when it comes to this issue of Israel. God's Word still says that He will bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse Israel and I want to be on the side of those who bless Israel not curse Israel. I don't want to have God Almighty against me, I don't want to be under the curse of Almighty God. So the passion of God described, God's anger is going to well up there as it were against this northern army and God is going to deal with them very powerfully. Look at the plagues of God, detailed. Now, God is going to pour out destruction on this Russian-led army. So much so that Ezekiel 39 tells us that only a sixth part of the army will be left alive. So this is going to be an absolute disaster for this Northern Confederacy. It's going to be an absolute wipeout. God Almighty is going to personally intervene and settle the score. And God is going to use a combination of natural disasters as well as Gog's army turning on itself to bring about this destruction. So look at the description of it there. Firstly there is what we could call the shaking of the world. I mean God is going to give this place a mighty shaking! Look at what it says here. Verse 19, for in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken. Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel. So God is going to bring about a mighty earthquake. So you have this army sweeping down from the north, coming into the mountains of Israel, and all of a sudden there's going to be a mighty earthquake. And if my reading of the text is correct, the shock waves of this earthquake are going to be felt right around the globe. because the shaking of the earthquake there is registered by the fishes of the sea, the fowls of the heaven and the beasts of the field, the things that creep upon the earth and all men that are upon the face of the earth. So this is clearly a An earthquake that has a global impact. Look at it there in verse 20. So that the fishes of the sea and the fowls of the heaven and the beasts of the field and all creeping things that creep upon the earth and all the men that are upon the face of the earth shall shake at my presence. Oh, I like that. That the inhabitants of the earth are going to literally shake at the presence of God. the mountains shall be thrown down and the steep places shall fall and every wall shall fall to the ground.' That sounds like quite a shaking doesn't it? Tell you what, this world is ready for a bit of a shake-up, don't you think? And the shock waves are going to be felt right throughout the globe. The animal kingdom is going to feel it. The fishes of the sea, even the fowls of the air are going to know that something is going on here. The creeping things upon the earth, all men that are upon the face of the earth are going to shake at the presence of God. And so mighty is this earthquake that mountains fall, steep places are thrown down, a fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. So God, this is the outworking of God's wrath. God is stirred in righteous anger against this northern army and God then intervenes and gives the land a mighty shaking. Then we have the slaughtering of the army. And I will call for a sword against him, says God, throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God. Notice this, every man's sword shall be against his brother. Now, if you've read the Bible, you know that this is often a method that God uses to defeat the enemies of his people, where they just turn their sword on each other. Now, it's very interesting, because when you think about it, like I mentioned, you have Russia acting as a guard to these nations that are often historically against each other or mistrusting of each other. So they're leading these Islamic nations against Israel but all of a sudden they turn on each other. This coalition turns on itself and I suggest it's probably those old suspicions and those old areas of mistrust that resurface and they think, hey, what's going on here? And they turn on each other. Now maybe when there's that massive earthquake and all the chaos that ensues results there in this turning of the army against itself. And so God has used this method before. For example, remember the battle between Israel and the Midianites, remember that? With Gideon and how they shattered the jars there, the clay jars, and how God turned the Midianite army against itself. And so this is how God has worked in the past and God is going to work that way again to defeat this northern army. Then there's going to be the sending of pestilence. You say, what's pestilence? That's disease. So you think this flu's been bad? Boy, they haven't seen nothing yet. And I'll call for a sword against... verse 21, and I'll call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God. Every man's sword shall be against his brother, and I'll plead against him with pestilence. pestilence there is a reference to deadly infectious disease so again you can read about where God has done that in the Bible and it's like nothing that we've ever seen let me tell you where just when God sends a divine pestilence it just wipes out multitudes of people very very fast there's going to be the shedding of blood and I'll plead against him with pestilence and with blood and so there's a slaughter here the showering of rain, hailstones, fire and brimstone. And I'll rain upon him and upon his bands and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain and great hailstones, fire and brimstone. So here you have God dealing with this army from the north. You have this shaking of the land of Israel and so powerful is this shaking that the shocks are felt right around the world. so that all the earth knows that God is working. You have God sending pestilence, you have the army turning on itself, every sword against his brother there. And then you have this pouring out of an overflowing rain, great hailstones, fire and brimstone. So God is going to deal with this hostile Confederacy. Then you see the purpose of God declared and I want you to see this, I've mentioned a number of times, but see how that God is working here to magnify Himself. Look at verse 16... You know people deny God's existence don't they? But God is going to make it ample clear in the future, there'll be no one to be able to say there is no God. Verse 23, thus will I magnify myself and sanctify myself. So see what God is doing. God is going to magnify himself and set himself apart. That's what sanctify means. God is making it clear there is none like me. And I'll be known in the eyes of many nations and they shall know that I am the Lord. Chapter 39 verse 7... Verse 13... Verse 21, "...and I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them." Chapter 39 verse 21. Chapter 39 verse 22, "...so the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God from that day and forward." Do you get the message? God is making it very clear here. I am God. The heathen will know that he is God. The nations will know that he is God and Israel will know that he is God. I don't think we always stop to really consider how committed God is to his own glory and on demonstrating to a wicked world that he is on the throne. So, as we consider this future prophecy, we have to say time is certainly running out, isn't it? For this wicked world. These events are not far away. We believe that the rapture of the church is the next thing on God's calendar for us. That's what we're looking for, the rapture of the church. But are you ready for the rapture? Are you ready to meet the Lord? where will you spend eternity? So important as we look at future prophecy that we think about where we stand now with the Lord. Because the God described in this chapter is the real God of the Bible. he is a God who's angry against sin and he is a God of righteous wrath and you can either face him as Saviour, you can either receive his grace and forgiveness now or you can face him as judge and experience his righteous wrath against sin. So there we have the Ezekiel 38-39 conflict, and I hope that that'll bring some clarity to you. As we look at world events, as we see the alignment of nations, we see the rise of Russia and its military power, and the alignment of these hostile nations with her, we can certainly see how the stage is being set for these future events. but God is going to show himself strong isn't he and reveal that he is God and that is really the great theme of that chapter, those chapters, God is moving to magnify himself and so it's great to have this perspective on world events and to get that from Bible prophecy and as we look at Bible prophecy it should give us a greater zeal to live for the Lord now and to be prepared for the rapture. So let's bow for prayer. Dear Lord we thank you for your word and that you have revealed so much about the future. We thank you Lord that you are God and you are a righteous and a holy God and so help us to look at the world through the lens of scripture to understand the movement of nations, the alignment of nations and to see ultimately your grand plan in it all. Lord I pray for any today who have not yet received Christ as Saviour, we pray that they would turn from their sin and put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ who loved them and died for them on the cross, was buried and rose again. Bless us now we pray in Jesus name, Amen.