Gog, Magog, and Armageddon

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In the last lesson you learned about two men who will control the world during the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord.

The first will be a World Emperor, called “the Beast” (Revelation 13:4), who will be “given authority to make war for 42 months” (Revelation 13:5). During this 42-month period he will rule “over every tribe, language, and nation” (verse 7).

The second person is the False Prophet, who will cause people to worship the Beast, his image, and receive the Mark of the Beast (Revelation 13:11-17; 19:20).

At the end of this 42-month period, Jesus Christ will return.

When will these things happen, and what will happen after Jesus returns?

The Biblical Festivals Reveal the Timing

God reveals the timing of end-times events through the Bible’s seven annual festivals (Leviticus 23). All seven festivals are prophetic. They show how God will rescue humanity, and when.

Passover

Just before God rescued the Israelites from Egypt, He told the Israelites to kill lambs at the beginning of the Passover, and smear some of the blood around the doors of their homes. That night, when God killed the firstborn of Egypt, He passed over the homes of the Israelites, who had the lambs’ blood on their doors (Exodus 12).

The Passover lambs represent Jesus Christ. Jesus is called “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). And when was Jesus crucified? On the Passover. Notice that the type and the fulfillment were both on the same day of the year. God does everything on His pre-determined schedule.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Right after the Passover is the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread. The Jews usually call this festival “Passover,” but it is actually a separate festival (Leviticus 23:5-8). During this feast the Israelites left Egypt. On the last day of the feast, they crossed the sea on dry land and were free from slavery.

In 1945, when did the Americans begin to free the Jews from the death camps in Germany? On April 4, the last day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

The Bible describes a second Exodus of the Israelites that will be much greater than the Exodus from Egypt (Jeremiah 16:14-15). During the Day of the Lord, God will gather the Israelites from Babylon and all the other places they are scattered (Jeremiah 51:6; 30:3; Ezekiel 20:34). When will this Exodus occur? We should expect that it will begin during the Feast of Unleavened Bread which usually occurs in April.

Pentecost

After the Israelites left Egypt, God brought them into the wilderness and made a covenant with them at Mount Sinai on the day of Pentecost (Exodus 19-24). God also made a covenant with His Church on the day of Pentecost, by giving them His spirit on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4).

God will also make a covenant with Israel in the wilderness after He brings them out of Babylon, during the Day of the Lord:

“I will bring you out from the peoples, and will gather you out of the countries in which you are scattered with a mighty hand, with an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out. I will bring you into the backcountry of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the backcountry of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” says the Master Eternal. “I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant.” (Ezekiel 20:34-37)

“I will cause you to pass under the rod” refers to how farmers gave a tithe on their animals. The farmers would make their animals pass under a rod, and every tenth animal they would give to God. Likewise, only one-tenth of the Israelites who go into captivity will survive the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord (Amos 5:3; Isaiah 6:13). Those who remain will be holy.

God will require all the Israelites to obey Him. Those who refuse to accept His covenant will not return to the land of Israel:

“I will purge out from among you the rebels and those who disobey me. I will bring them out of the land where they live, but they shall not enter into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Eternal.” (Ezekiel 20:38)

The Feast of Trumpets

The Feast of Trumpets usually occurs in September. It is commonly called Rosh Hashana (the New Year) by the Jews.

The Feast of Trumpets represents the Day of the Lord, the time of God’s judgment on the world. This one-year period will begin right on God’s schedule—on the Feast of Trumpets.

The book of Revelation describes seven trumpets that will be blown during the Day of the Lord. The first trumpet will mark the beginning of the Day of the Lord, and the last trumpet will be blown the end of the one-year period. At the last trumpet, Jesus Christ will return and will become the king of the earth:

The seventh angel sounded, and great voices in heaven followed, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the Kingdom of our Master, and of His Christ. He will reign forever and ever!” (Revelation 11:15)

At that moment, the faithful who have died will be resurrected, and the chosen who are alive will be changed into immortal beings, and meet Jesus Christ in the sky:

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with God’s trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise first, then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)

The first resurrection, at the seventh trumpet, is also described in 1 Corinthians 15:

For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then those who are Christ’s, at His arrival. … we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:22-23, 51-52)

This is not a secret event. The whole world will see Christ come in the sky (Matthew 24:30).

When the seventh trumpet is blown, Jesus Christ will become the ruler of the world. Currently, Satan is the ruler of the world (Luke 4:6; John 14:30; 2 Corinthians 4:4). At the end of this age, Satan will give the Beast authority to rule the world for 42 months (Revelation 13:4-5). But at the return of Christ, Satan and the Beast will no longer have authority to rule the world. The World Empire, led by the Beast, will come to a sudden end, at the end of 42 months.

But will the Beast and the kings of the earth accept Christ as their King?

No!

The Final Alliance

The Book of Revelation describes an alliance of 10 kings who will join the Beast to fight Jesus Christ when He returns:

“The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority as kings, with the beast, for one hour. These have one mind, and they give their power and authority to the beast. These will war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings, and those who are with Him are called chosen and faithful.” (Revelation 17:12-14)

Psalm 2 describes God laughing at this vain attempt to fight Christ.

The 10 toes on the image of Daniel 2 also represent these 10 kings that Christ will defeat at His return:

As the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom will be partly strong, and partly brittle…. And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will not be destroyed forever, and its kingdom will not be left to another people. It will break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it will stand forever. (Daniel 2:42, 44)

These 10 kings are also mentioned in Ezekiel 38 and 39. Notice that Ezekiel 38:1-6 lists the names of 10 ethnic groups. Here is a list of the 10 ethnic groups:

1. Gog
2. Magog
3. Rosh (sometimes translated chief)
4. Meshech
5. Tubal
6. Paras (Persia)
7. Cush (often translated as Ethiopia)
8. Put (often translated as Lybia)
9. Gomer
10. Togarmah

Seven of these are ethnic groups mentioned in Genesis 10. Gomer, Magog, Tubal, and Meshach were sons of Japheth (Genesis 10:2). Togarmah was a son of Gomer (Genesis 10:3). Cush and Put were sons of Ham (Genesis 10:6). Paras is the Biblical name for Persia, which is Iran today.

The other two names, Gog and Rosh, are the ones that people often misunderstand.

Rosh, in Hebrew, means head, so many Bibles translate Rosh as “chief” in Ezekiel 38:2-3. But in Ezekiel 38, Rosh is actually the name of an ethnic group that isn’t mentioned anywhere else in the Bible. Some scholars believe that it refers to the Rus people, who gave their name to Russia and Belarus.

Gog is the other name that is often misunderstood. Many people think that Gog is just the name of a person, not an ethnic group. But Gog is mentioned again in Revelation 20:8, a thousand years after the events described in Ezekiel 38. In Revelation 20, Gog clearly refers to a group of people, not a person who lived a thousand years earlier.

Bible prophecy often uses the name of a king and the name of a nation interchangeably. So Gog also refers to the leader of the land of Gog. Each of these 10 ethnic groups are led by a king, president, prime minister, or other type of national leader.

“Gog and Magog” refers to a group of 10 nations or ethnic groups led by 10 kings (or national leaders) at the end of the age. These 10 kings will fight Christ a short time after He returns.

The Seven Last Plagues

Immediately after Christ appears in the sky, seven angels will pour seven final plagues on the earth, to complete God’s punishment of the world.

The first six plagues are:

1. Painful sores on those who have the Mark of the Beast (Revelation 16:2)
2. All seas become blood (Revelation 16:3)
3. All rivers and springs become blood (Revelation 16:4-7)
4. People are scorched by heat (Revelation 16:8-9)
5. Painful darkness covers “the throne of the Beast” (the Beast’s kingdom in Europe) (Revelation 16:10-11)
6. The Euphrates River is dried up and “the kings from the east” gather at Armageddon (Revelation 16:12-16)

These six plagues will happen very quickly, one right after another. When all seas and rivers become blood, people will soon run out of water to drink.

Within days, the kings from the east begin arriving at Armageddon:

The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates, and its water was dried up, that the way for the kings from the east might be prepared. And I saw coming out of the mouth of the Dragon, and out of the mouth of the Beast, and out of the mouth of the False Prophet, three unclean spirits, something like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole inhabited earth, to gather them together for the war of that great day of God Almighty. … And he gathered them together into the place which is called in Hebrew, Armageddon. (Revelation 16:12-16)

Armageddon, in Hebrew, means Mount Megiddo. This is a mountain in northern Israel, next to the valley of Jezreel. Here, the armies of the earth will gather as the prepare to fight Jesus Christ and plunder the Israelites who have been brought back into the land (Ezekiel 38:8-9).

Who Are Gog and Magog?

The Bible gives several clues that can help us identify the 10 main nations that will fight Christ as His return.

The book of Revelation says that demons will gather “the kings of the whole inhabited earth” (Revelation 16:14). So leaders and warriors from many nations will be present. However, the Euphrates River will be dried up to prepare the way for “the kings from the east” (Revelation 16:12). So the armies will come primarily from areas east of Israel—that is, from Asia.

Ezekiel 38 gives us the names of specific ethnic groups and some general locations. These are divided into three groups.

Group 1: Gog, Magog, Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal (Ezekiel 38:3)

The Bible says that Gog will come “out of the far north, you and many people with you” (Ezekiel 38:15). Russia is in the far north, directly north of Israel, and is the likely leader of this group of nations.

As mentioned before, Rosh is a name that is not found anywhere else in the Bible, and may refer to the Rus people, who gave their name to Russia and Belarus.

This group of five nations will most likely a group of nations led by Russia, possibly developing out of the Eurasian Economic Union.

Group 2: Paras, Cush, Put (Ezekiel 38:5)

Paras is Persia, modern Iran.

Cush, in the Bible, usually refers to a group of people south of Egypt, corresponding the modern Sudan or a larger area of Africa.

Put usually refers to an area west of Egypt, corresponding to modern Libya or North Africa.

All three of these areas are Muslim countries, and this may be a Muslim sub-group that exists at the end-time.

However, Sudan and Lybia are not in the east. If all 10 kings are from the east, it is possible that Cush and Put refer to nations east of Iran. Cush might refer to the area of the ancient Kushan Empire (modern Pakistan, Afghanistan, and northern India). Put may also refer to a nation in South Asia.

Group 3: Gomer and Togarmah (Ezekiel 38:6)

Togarmah was a son of Gomer, so Togarmah is an ethnic sub-group of Gomer. Togarmah is also from “the far north” (Ezekiel 38:6). These two nations are most likely from the northern parts of the Far East.

I expect that China would likely be the leader of this group. Since 1961, China has had only one formal ally: North Korea.

Regardless of the precise identification of these 10 nations, they are generally located in the east and the far north.

An End-Time World Map

During the end time, the Beast will have authority “over every tribe, language, and nation” (Revelation 13:7). However, the world is too large for one man to rule directly.

The throne of the Beast will be in Europe (see Lesson 1). The Bible says he will “divide the land for gain” (Daniel 11:39). So other regions of the world will be ruled by other national leaders, under a single World Emperor. Ezekiel 38 identifies the three main groups of nations outside of Europe that will exist at the end of the age.

When the World Empire comes to an end at the return of Christ, these 10 kings form a final alliance with the Beast, and gather to the land of Israel to plunder the Israelites and fight Christ.

The Battle of Armageddon

The battle between Jesus Christ and the nations will take place around Jerusalem, not Armageddon (Zechariah 14:2). The battle is described in detail in the prophecies of Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Revelation.

This is what will happen at the battle:

• God will cause the armies to fight each other (Ezekiel 38:21; Haggai 2:22; Zechariah 12:4; 14:13)
• God will rain huge hailstones, fire, and sulfur on them from the sky (Ezekiel 38:22; 39:6; Revelation 16:21)
• A plague will strike the soldiers and their horses (Ezekiel 38:22; Zechariah 12:4; 14:15)
• The greatest earthquake in history will shake the earth, and the armies will be completely defeated (Ezekiel 38:19-20; Joel 3:16; Micah 5:11; Haggai 2:21; Zechariah 14:4-5; Revelation 16:18-20)
• Birds will eat the dead bodies of the soldiers (Ezekiel 39:4, 17-20; Revelation 19:17-18, 21)

At the battle, the Beast and the False Prophet will be captured and thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 19:20), and the nations of the world will be defeated (Haggai 2:22).

The Battle and the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)

Immediately after the battle, Satan and his demons will be put away for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-3; Zechariah 13:2). This event is foretold by ceremony that was performed every year on the Day of Atonement, described in Leviticus 16.

On the Day of Atonement, the high priest in Israel would take two goats. One goat he would sacrifice as an offering for sin (Leviticus 16:9). This goat represented Jesus Christ.

The other goat was led away to an uninhabited place and released (Leviticus 16:21-22). This goat represented Satan, who will be sent away for 1000 years.

When will Satan be put away? Right on schedule, on the Day of Atonement.

The great battle between Jesus Christ and the nations will happen at Jerusalem on the Day of Atonement, nine days after Christ first appears in the sky. The nations will be defeated. The Beast and the False Prophet will be thrown into the lake of fire. Satan and the demons will be removed.

Suddenly, everything will be different.

Healing Waters

During the nine-day period between the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement, all seas and rivers will turn to blood. All fish will die. Earth will be destroyed.

On the Day of Atonement, the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem will split in two (Zechariah 14:4) and Jerusalem will be raised up (verse 10). Then, two rivers of fresh water will flow from Jerusalem—one flowing east to the Dead Sea, and one flowing west to the Mediterranean Sea (Zechariah 14:8). As this water flows from Jerusalem, the polluted seas will be healed, and God will recreate fish to fill the rivers and oceans (Ezekiel 47:8-12).

These healing waters that flow out from Jerusalem are also symbolic. On that Day of Atonement, all of the Israelites who have survived will repent. God will forgive Israel, cleanse them, and give His spirit to them on that day (Ezekiel 36:25-28, 33).

This event is described in Zechariah 12:9-13:1:

It will happen in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. I will pour on David’s house, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they will look to Me whom they pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for his one and only, and will grieve bitterly for Him, as one grieves for his firstborn. In that day there will be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadad Rimmon in the valley of Megiddo. The land will mourn, every family apart…all the families who remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. In that day there will be a spring opened to David’s house and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.

All Israel will finally accept Christ’s sacrifice. Jesus Christ will redeem them from their sins and give them God’s spirit to empower them to obey Him (Isaiah 44:3, 22; Joel 2:28-29).

In that day…. It will happen, that he who is left in Zion, and he who remains in Jerusalem, will be called holy, even everyone who is written among the living in Jerusalem; when the Lord will have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and will have purged the blood of Jerusalem from within it, by the spirit of justice, and by the spirit of burning. (Isaiah 4:2-4)

“In those days, and in that time,” says the Eternal, “the iniquity of Israel will be sought for, and there will be none; also the sins of Judah, and they won’t be found; for I will pardon them whom I leave as a remnant.” (Jeremiah 50:20)

Israel will finally become a holy nation, an example for the other nations to follow. This is one of the main themes of Bible prophecy (Isaiah 10:20-22; 26:2; 52:1, 6, 8; 54:13-17; 59:20-21; 60:21; 61:6-11; 62:12; 63:8; 66:8, Jeremiah 31:1-2, 31-34; 32:38-39; 33:8; 50:4-5; Ezekiel 11:19; 20:40-41).

The people of other nations who survive will go up to the land Israel to learn about God:

“In those days, ten men will take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, they will take hold of the tassel of him who is a Jew, saying, ‘We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.’” (Zechariah 8:23)

In fact, all nations will be required to send people to Jerusalem every year to learn about God and keep the Feast of Tabernacles:

It will happen that everyone who is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, the Eternal of Multitudes, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. It will be, that whoever of all the families of the earth doesn’t go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Eternal of Multitudes, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt doesn’t go up, and doesn’t come, neither will it rain on them. This will be the plague with which the Eternal will strike the nations that don’t go up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. (Zechariah 14:16-18)

What else will happen after that day, during the next 1000 years?

You will learn all about it in the next lesson.

Next Lesson: What Is the Kingdom of God?

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