I HAVE PREACHED ON THIS BEFORE, AND WE HAVE VARIOUS ASPECTS OF IT IN PRINT, BUT IF THE LORD WILL ENABLE ME TO SAY TO YOU, WHAT I SEE HERE, I BELIEVE IT WILL PUT A PICTURE TOGETHER THAT WILL HELP YOU SEE WHAT IS SHORTLY TO COME TO PASS, ESPECIALLY IN THE MIDDLE EAST. I WANT TO USE THE LAST FIVE VERSES OF THE 39TH CHAPTER OF EZEKIEL FOR A TEXT, AND TITLE THE MESSAGE “WHEN GOD IS SANCTIFIED.” NOT THAT GOD HAS ANY NEED TO BE SANCTIFIED IN THE SENSE THAT WE THINK OF SANCTIFICATION, BUT HE IS THE ONE THAT WILL BE SET APART, IN THE SIGHT OF MANY NATIONS, WHEN HE INTERCEDES FOR ISRAEL IN THIS GREAT CONFLICT. WE WILL BE USING MANY SCRIPTURES TO SUBSTANTIATE WHAT WE SAY, FOR YOU MUST BE ABLE TO SEE, RIGHT FROM THE PAGES OF GOD’S HOLY WORD, THAT ALL OF THIS WAS PROPHESIED MORE THAN 2500 YEARS AGO. FURTHERMORE, YOU MUST BE ABLE TO SEE THAT THE EVENTS OF EZEKIEL 38 AND 39, HAVE NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON, WHICH WILL BE FOUGHT IN THE CLOSING DAYS OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION OF THE 70 WEEK OF DANIEL. THIS WAR WILL BE FOUGHT PRIOR TO THE TH BEGINNING OF THAT WEEK OF TIME. AS A MATTER OF FACT, I BELIEVE THIS WAR WILL BE WHAT SHAKES WORLD LEADERS TO THE POINT WHERE THEY ARE READY AND WILLING TO SIGN A PEACE COVENANT THAT THE ANTICHRIST WILL BE THE OVERSEER OF. IT TOOK A WAR TO BRING THE “LEAGUES OF NATIONS,” INTO BEING, AND IT TOOK A WAR TO GET THE “UNITED NATIONS,” ESTABLISHED, THEREFORE IT IS PERFECTLY IN LINE WITH SCRIPTURAL PROPHECIES TO BELIEVE IT WILL TAKE A WAR TO GET THE ANTICHRIST’S PEACE COVENANT SIGNED. NOT JUST ANY WAR, BUT THIS VERY PARTICULAR ONE. DO NOT EVER THINK GOD DID NOT HAVE A SPECIAL REASON FOR ANNOUNCING THIS PARTICULAR WAR; HE DID. I BELIEVE WE CAN SHOW WHAT IT IS TO ACCOMPLISH IN THE PURPOSE OF GOD, AS HE PREPARES THE WORLD FOR JUDGMENT, AND WHY HE WANTED HIS CHURCH TO BE ABLE TO SEE IT COMING, AND KNOW WHAT THE OUTCOME WILL BE. IT IS BECAUSE OF THIS, THAT WE ARE ABLE TO RECOGNIZE WHAT ALL THE DISTURBANCE OVER IN THE MIDDLE EAST, IS LEADING UP TO. IN OTHER WORDS, THE STAGE IS BEING SET ALREADY, FOR THE FULFILLMENT OF EZEKIEL 38 & 39, THEREFORE YOU NEED NOT LOOK FOR ANY PEACEFUL SOLUTION TO ALL THOSE PROBLEMS YOU HEAR OF, IN THE NEWS. THESE ARE JUST FORERUNNING THE BIG PROBLEM THAT IS ON THE WAY. EVENTS TO COME

Let us begin now, by reading our text scriptures, starting with verse 25, in chapter 39. “Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, (This has to be a time when all twelve tribes are sufficiently represented back in the land of Israel, and therefore, never could have been so until now.) And will be jealous for my holy name; After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land. And none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from my people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands. (Naturally this speaks of a time when all twelve tribes have been gathered back into the land, out of dispersion.) And am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: (The word heathen, applies to Gentile nations where the Jews have been 2 in dispersion for 2700 years. That is about how long the ten Northern tribes have been out of the land.) But I have gathered them into their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.” Now that 29 verse reaches all the way over to Revelation, chapters 7 and 11, where the two th witnesses reveal Jesus Christ to the house of Israel, and the 144,000 servants of God are filled with the Holy Ghost along with another great house of Israel, and the 144,000 servants of God are filled with the Holy Ghost along with another great host of believing Jews. God intervenes for them in this war in such a way that they cannot help but recognize that it was He, and while He has their attention, He sends His two witnesses among them, and through their prophecy, verse 29 is being fulfilled, and the last week of Daniel is being checked off, on God’s great calendar of time. The world is locked in a great peace covenant that will be broken by the old Antichrist after it has been in affect for 3 ½ years, and we all know that the next 3 ½ years after that, will be hell on earth, for every demon out of the pit, will be turned loose upon earth in those days. Some people think things are bad now, but I want you to know, that those who are still here during the last half of that week will look back and long for a return of the days such as we are seeing now, but it will do them no good, for their time will be running out. God’s mercy is still available for all who will receive it, but in that day, it will be only His wrath that mankind will partake of. When the Antichrist has fulfilled his days, God will pour out His wrath upon this old earth like never before. But what is so beautiful is that He has told us ahead of time what is coming, and has offered a way of escape to all who would accept it. That is why, not one soul that has ever lived can rightly accuse Him of being unjust. After all: when you are given a choice, with the consequences of each choice clearly stated, if you make the wrong choice, who is to blame?

GOD SPEAKS TO LAND

Ezekiel was a contemporary prophet, prophesying to the whole house of Israel. He, like Daniel, was among the captives carried to Babylon; therefore they, like the apostle John, prophesied while out of their homeland. Ezekiel’s prophecy followed Daniel’s by a few years, but you will not find one thing in it that contradicts anything Daniel spoke concerning the seventy weeks of years during which God would deal with Israel because of their transgressions. As we study these various scriptures, you will see for yourselves that everything they each spoke, harmonize perfectly. Furthermore we will run them right into the book of Revelation where the apostle John recorded the climax of all that Daniel and Ezekiel spoke of. But for the present, let us devote our attention to this prophecy of Ezekiel. God had given him an insight as to why the two southern tribes had been carried away to Babylon in captivity. He knew the ten northern tribes had already been out of the land for more than one hundred years. You can read in the 15 and 17 chapters of 2 Kings, and see how the Assyrian empire, through two invasions, had already th th nd captured, and carried to Babylon the ten Northern tribes, so that they had already been on their dispersion journey for more than 100 years before the two Southern tribes were taken. You can just imagine how conditions of being constantly sold and traded as slaves had pushed those ten tribes further and further from their homeland. That is why you read in Hosea, that the ten Northern tribes would never be restored to their homeland in tribal identity, until the latter times. Brothers and sisters: We are living in those latter times, and that is why this particular war is to serve one specific purpose. Ezekiel’s identity is with the two Southern tribes, and you will recall that it was these Jews that were brought back into the land to prepare for the first advent of Christ, (the two Southern tribes) in the first thirty some chapters, you will find Ezekiel dealing with present day conditions of his day, the purpose for which the two Southern tribes have been given over to their enemies and so forth, and the chastisement for their transgressions. Then, when you get over to chapter 34, you find a drastic change. He begins to lay out a beautiful picture of restoration, mercy, and forgiveness. In chapter 36, the prophecy is to the land itself. It speaks of how, in the last days it would be restored to its rightful owners, and how it would be tilled and sown, and how men would be multiplied upon it. Saints, I want you to just think about that for a moment. Those ten 3 Northern tribes have been out of the land for almost 2700 years, and the two Southern tribes for almost 2,000 years, yet God says that it will be restored to its rightful owners. Let us just take a moment to read a few verses from chapter 36. Notice verse 9, (speaking to the land) “For behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown: and I will multiply men upon you, ALL THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL, EVEN ALL OF IT: (that means all twelve tribes) and the cities shall be inhabited and the wastes shall be builded: And I will multiply upon you men and beast; and they shall increase and bring fruit: and I will settle you AFTER YOUR OLD ESTATES, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I am the Lord.” Let them talk about giving it back to the Arabs, all they want to; God says the twelve tribes are to inhabit it according to their old estates. How much plainer could it be written? You might like to read the whole chapter later, but for our purpose in the message: let us go to verse 22 and read a few more verses. This is to the people of the house, or nation of Israel. “Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God; I do not this for your sakes, O house of Israel, but for mine holy name’s sake which ye have profaned among the heathen, whether ye went. (While in dispersion among the Gentiles; they have profaned the name of the God they are supposed to worship, but God has His way of receiving recognition and honor, and we are going to see some of the ways He does it, before we finish this message.) And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen (Gentiles) shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.” You will notice that the word SANCTIFY, appears in this chapter, in connection with what God is going to do for Israel, but I want you to know that His great name has not yet been sanctified in the house of Israel to this date. There are a few orthodox Jews that have a strict religious code, but even then, they have so traditionalized the writings of Moses in their interpretations, that it does not bear a true message to them. If those orthodox Jews had a true interpretation of Ezekiel’s prophecy: they would have an altogether different view, and vision of the present day conditions all around them. This in no way annuls the fact that they believe they are back in the land to receive their Messiah; they believe that. It is just that they are so blinded because of their traditions, (which is a result of their misinterpretation of the scriptures) that God will do something to get their full attention, and we know what that something will be; it will be the war of Ezekiel 38 and 39, which is much closer than a lot of people want it to be. I am not looking forward to the war itself, but I know it must come before we can see that blessed event we are longing for, therefore let us delight in the precise way God fulfills every prophecy of this old book, and just be sure we are ready for whatever is next.

LOVE AND PEACE, THEN WRATH

When you read chapter 36, and know that God is going to give back to them all the land that He promised to their forefather Abraham for an everlasting possession, and then you read this Saudi Arabia peace proposal for the Middle East, you can rest assured that they could not care less what the Bible has to say about it all. One thing they proposed was that Israel give back all the occupied West Bank land they acquired in the 1967 war. This would be given to the Palestinians for a state, making Jerusalem the capital. This would rip Bible prophecy all to pieces. If such a thing as that would take place, we would have to say that Ezekiel 36, is a long way off yet. Brothers and sisters, I want you to understand that Ezekiel 36 is hanging right over the Gentile nations today. They just simply do not realize it. What is looked upon as the church in this modern society, is all hung up on love. They could never bring themselves to believe that God would use a war to accomplish His purpose. Oh, no, He is a God of love. They read the New Testament and cannot see anything but a God that loves everyone. They will tell you, Jesus was a man of peace; He did not believe in wars. They only read part of the book. The same Jesus that rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey as a man of love and peace, will one day come again, in wrath, taking vengeance on all ungodly mankind. As King of kings, and Lord of lords, He will execute wrath upon His enemies, smiting them with the sword of His mouth. Just read Revelation 19:15, and see 4 if you can discover the fact that this same Jesus which was so meek and loving in His first advent, is going to return in wrath, to smite the nations and rule them with a rod of iron. He came the first time to exemplify the nature that God desired to lift us unregenerate people up into. But God knew the world in general would reject this great gift of life; therefore He also recorded, for all to see, what would be the consequences of rejecting life. Those who do so will see the wrath side of this humble man that never lifted a finger to defend Himself when He was on earth as the Savior of lost mankind, for He will be executing the wrath of the great eternal Spirit.

TRUE ISRAEL CLEANSED

Notice verse 24, now, what god is saying to the people of Israel. “For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into YOUR OWN LAND.” Does that mean that God will just give them back part of their heritage, and allow the Arabs to have all the rest? Every one of you know better than that. It is a pity that world leaders do not know it. For over 30 years now, God has been doing just exactly what He said He would do, and He is doing it precisely to fit the scriptures. During that same period of time, He has been doing something for us Gentiles also. He has been awakening us from our spiritual sleep, and returning us to the apostolic word of God. Verse 25, “Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my judgments, and do them.” That sounds like Revelation 7:1-8, 11:1-6, being applied. Would you not say so? This is exactly what will be taking place when those two prophets come on the scene there in Israel. This chapter makes it very clear, as to who will finally possess those disputable areas of land we hear so much in the news about, all the time. Therefore it matters not what Mt. Reagan, nor anyone else does or says; that land belongs to Israel, and we are living very close to the time when she is going to possess all of it. How will she get control of the rest of it? Some will say. This is in the hands of God of course, but I would invite you to recall to your memory how she gained control of the land she took in only six days, in the 1967 war. That was such a miracle, that even military men said, “This was an act of God.” You never hear any of them open their mouth about it any more; for they are too bound by world opinion to defend Israel’s rights. That is why you need not expect that issue to be settled by negotiations among politicians. When they get the rest of their land, it will be in such a way, that God will be sanctified before the eyes of many nations. However, you need not expect any mass conversions among Gentile nations because of it, for it will only serve to awaken an element of mortal people, and get them in a state of God-consciousness, to prepare them for the Millennium, and especially to make Himself known to Israel. One can only speculate as to how a bunch of educated, scientific-minded, atheistic Gentiles would record these events in history. I am sure a lot of them will have to hang their heads in embarrassment, but it will not mean that they are turning to God for salvation.

JOSEPH AND JUDAH REJOINED

Going into chapter 37, you find that Ezekiel’s prophecy turns from the land, to the people who will inhabit that land. In July 1977, we printed an article titled, “Forgotten Valley” in which we dealt with this 37th chapter in its full scope. You will find in verse 11, that this valley of dry bones represents the whole house of Israel that has been scattered among the nations for hundreds of years, but are revived and restored as a people. In their long period of dispersion, they had nationally died and went into a state of forgottenness. This is why God likened them to a valley of dry bones. But then we see that these bones are brought to life, with their flesh and sinews restored to them, and God is prophesying to them, what He will do to them, with them, and for them. Notice verse 19, what Ezekiel is to say unto them. “Say unto 5 them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, (that pertains to the ten Northern tribes, where the tribe of Ephraim was the predominate tribe,) which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, (that would be the other nine tribes of the northern kingdom,) and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, (Judah was the predominate tribe of the two Southern tribes) and will make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand.” I am sure most of you realize that this stick symbolizes the sceptre of the king, and that it does not mean, just any old stick someone might pick up. This sceptre symbolizes the authority the king holds over his subjects, but way back in B.C. time (I believe it was around 931 B.C.) That sceptre was broken. At Solomon’s death the kingdom became divided. Solomon’s son Rehoboam ruled in his place, but because of Solomon’s sin, God had already prophesied to Jeroboam which was the son of a servant, that ten tribes would be taken from Solomon and given to him to rule over. Thus the kingdom became divided and was never to be reunited again until the time of the end. Judah, under Rehoboam, kept Jerusalem as the city of worship, and the ten northern tribes under Jeroboam, established Samaria as a capital. They set up their own worship, and no longer went up to Jerusalem to worship as the former custom had been. About 350 years later, Ezekiel is found prophesying that the broken sceptre would be made one again, but little did he know then, that his prophecy would not be fulfilled for more than 2500 years later. Hallelujah! What a God we serve! He never forgets a promise, like we are so prone to do. Joining the stick of Joseph with the stick of Judah is God’s way of saying that the kingdom of Israel shall be no longer divided, so let us notice verse 21, and see what God was to do first, to accomplish this thing. “Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land: and I will make them (WHAT?) One nation (WHERE?) In the land upon the mountains of Israel; and ONE KING shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. Neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their dwelling places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.” Naturally this will not be a completed picture until Jesus Christ sits upon the throne of David, ruling them, for He is that one King that shall join them back together, and make them one nation again, and that is a Millennial setting. This is what Hosea prophesied; (We read it from the first chapter, just the other night, how the children of Israel would be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head) it was all symbolized through the names of his family. God works in strange and mysterious ways to fulfill every word that He has ever spoken. There may be times when we do not completely understand what He is doing, nor why He is doing it, but there is never a time that we cannot put our complete trust in Him. Everything He does, works for good to the true people that are called by His great name, whether they be Jews or Gentiles.

PROPHESY TO GOG

Brothers and sisters: We have just pulled a few verses from chapters 36 & 37, to lay a little platform for the main thrust of our message. In these two chapters, we see Israel being resurrected from their long forgotten state of dispersion among the nations, and we see their land being restored to them, but we do not see God being sanctified in them, in those two chapters. That is yet ahead, and that is what we want to deal with as we go into chapter 38. Let us begin right in verse 1, with our reading. “And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.” Saints, I want to be sure you get the picture, here. Almost 600 years before the first advent of Christ, God reached into the future almost 2600 years, to name a people that had never even been thought of, and tell what He would use them for in His final dealings with the nation of Israel, just before going into that last week of Daniel. Up until, we would say, the past 150 years, Russia had very little mention in history. She made very few headlines in the 6 newspapers of the world. Their largest headlines concerned the Bolshevik revolution, around the year 1917, out of which emerged the USSR, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The communistic spirit took over. Now Russia is very much in the headlines, almost daily. The stage is being set to fulfill these scriptures we are reading, God is putting it in the hearts of the world leaders to bring about conditions that will fulfill His purpose, (confirmation that God will do such a thing is found in Revelation 17:17.) We are living in the very hour that these two chapters are coming into their place for fulfillment. Israel does not yet have her temple grounds, and this in itself is proof that there must yet be another shaking event take place, through which this shall be accomplished. No. It will not be Armageddon. I am aware of the fact that many of you have Scofield Bibles, and that he includes these two chapters in with those that actually do pertain to the battle of Armageddon, but you can be absolutely sure of this one thing; Ezekiel 38 & 39 deals with a war that has no connection whatsoever to the battle of Armageddon. This sort of confusion runs rampant throughout the ranks of denominational religion; therefore none of them are in a position to know what time it is, dispensationally, and that is why so many of them are trying to crowd the events of 7 years of time, into a 3 ½ year period of time. (CONFUSION V-S REVELATION) Saints, do you realize what a blessed privilege it is, to be able to read God’s great time clock for the age we are living in? Israel had Daniel’s seventy weeks, that should have let them know when to expect their Messiah, but their traditions had them so busy, and so blinded, that they could not discern the time they were living in; therefore they rejected and crucified the very one they were supposedly waiting for. In other words, He did not come according to their traditional, Gentile expectations, so they rejected it. Now I ask you, Where does that leave denominational Christendom? It is sad to say, but great multitudes of them are headed for the lake of fire. Even the foolish virgins are locked outside the revelation, and must give their lives in martyrdom, because they bypassed their opportunity when it was presented to them. You can hear them on radio and television, talking about how Jesus could come for the rapture at just any moment, yet we know good and well that the rapture of the church cannot precede Ezekiel 38 & 39, nor the message of the 7 thunders of Revelation 10:3, etc., etc. Those who teach it so, will invariably run into a time problem, trying to make time for all the rest of the scriptural prophecies to be fulfilled. Do not despair though, for God has everything running right on schedule.

HOOKS IN THEIR JAWS

Let us take a few minutes to identify the characters if verse 2, before we read further. Gog is the ruler, or prince of the land referred to as Magog. Now the area of land that this name applies to mainly, is the area associated with the names of two sons of Japheth which was a son of Noah. When you go back to Genesis chapter 10, and read the genealogy of the sons of Noah, you will find that Meshech, and Tubal were two of the sons of Japheth. There are other names mentioned, further on down in the chapter, but they are not the names of the leaders, they are not the originators of this war. God’s message is to the chief prince of the land identified with Meshech and Tubal, which is identified with Russia. I was showing someone an old encyclopedia the other night, in which it showed that the people of Meshech later became known as Muscovites, and today they are the people of Moscow. The city was named after the people that were then known as Muscovites. Let me use a comparison here. The capital of the country called Jordan, is a city called Amman. Do you know where the name Amman originated? After the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, when only Lot and his two daughters escaped alive, the daughters got Lot drunk, and through acts of incest with him, they both gave birth to sons. One gave birth to Moab who became the progenitor of the Moabites. The other daughter called her son by the name of Benammi, and he was the progenitor of all the children of Ammon. Therefore the capital city of Jordan today, derives its name from the ancient Ammonite people, just like Moscow comes from the ancient Moscovites, which were descendants of Japheth. I have not yet been able to trace TUBAL, to any certain area of land, to my satisfaction, but one old dictionary did refer me to the Tiberians were, we would have to associate them in the area of the Baltic countries, bordering, or in the southern section of Russia. (I am still 7 searching this out.) Certainly we must keep these two, Meshech and Tubal associated together, for, notice verse 3; after Ezekiel is instructed to prophesy against Gog. God then continues thus, “And say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: And I will turn thee back, and put hooks into thy jaws, and will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed with all sorts of armor, even a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords: (You will notice how he leaves the land, and brings out the identity of the people involved.) Persia, (basically Iran) Ethiopia, and Libya with them; all of them with shield and helmet: Gomer, and all his bands; and the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands; and many people with thee.” Brothers and sisters, we know that Russia is not going to open the scriptures and believe anything that they could read therein, but if they did, they would see for sure that they are licked before they even start. Their destiny in such an endeavor was announced more than 2600 years ago, therefore there is no reason whatsoever for a true believer to be confused, nor worried about Ezekiel 38 & 39. God has a purpose in all of this, and He has allowed His Gentile church the privilege, of knowing in advance how it will all turn out. Great multitudes of people will realize for the first time in their lives, that there truly is a God controlling all of which they have so carelessly associated with pure chance, under the shadow of what they call evolution. We readily give evolution its place, but only with what God (the great eternal, sovereign Spirit) created. We can see how the one pair of everything that Noah saved in the ark has evolved into many species upon the face of the earth, but we do not have to be in doubt as to how the first pair got here. Praise God! A believer can learn in just a matter of minutes, something that great scientific minds have spent their whole lives searching for. All we have to so is open our Bible to Genesis 1:1, and start reading. Hallelujah! The things of God are so pure and simple, great intellectual minds can never humble themselves enough to believe what is so clear to a child of God.

 MILLENNIAL SUBJECTS PREPARED

Now saints, listen to me. The days of preaching to Gentiles is just about over. You can preach to young people these days, and they will just sit and stare off into space; it just simply does not penetrate. The simplicity of the gospel cannot get past all the other junk that they have crammed into their minds in this modern society of atheism. Of course we all realize that the stream of faith would one day, have to run out, in order for God to bring this thing to a close. In other words, there has to be that last Gentile soul somewhere, sometime, in order to fulfill the words of Paul, concerning the fulness of the Gentiles. (Rom. 11:25) But please do not think, just because I said that, that God will not still be the master of the whole thing; because in it all, He is going to prepare a remnant of natural people from every nation, to move right over into the Millennium. The preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ was, and still is for the purpose of preparing Him a bride, but there is coming a day when that bride will be ruling with Him, over an element of natural people, a people that has been prepared for their hour some way other than by the preaching of the gospel, as we have known it. Yes, God will be sanctified in the eyes of many people through the events of this Ezekiel 38 & 39, war. When God gets finished wit this great army of Russia and her allies, the Russian brand of communism will no longer be a threat to anyone. That will leave the way clear, for this Western Europe version of communism that the old Antichrist will use in his hour. Saints, it is a wonderful thing, the way God showed all this, through Ezekiel, Daniel, and John, hid it from the scholars, and revealed it to His church right at the end time.

WEAPONS AND PEOPLE

Now I have read articles where some men have told about how Russia is becoming the greatest breeder of horses, and they point out that it is for the purpose of fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophecy, “I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen,” and I have no doubt that from Russia’s standpoint, she sees a certain strategic advantage in having good horses, but I am wondering what Ezekiel would have wrote, 8 if he had seen an army tank, or helicopter, weapons carrier, and all the other mechanized infantry vehicles of our day? These words were not in his vocabulary, so what would he have written? We cannot give a literal interpretation to words such as these. We know they will be coming with much horsepower, for that is how all your motors and such like, are rated, but do not give a literal interpretation to horses and horsemen, here, nor to swords, shields and bucklers. What chance would a man with a sword in his hand, have against another army equipped with M-14 rifles, or whatever they are using now? This should help us to be more realistic about these things. Russia and her allies will come against Israel, but you can be very sure, they will not limit themselves to armor and weapons of twenty five hundred years ago. What did they use when they went into Afghanistan to take control? That should tell us something. The same kind of logic belongs to the reference about Persia, there in verse 5. What at one time was Persia, is now Iran, and they are not yet in the Soviet lineup, but everything is taking shape for it to be so. It all started when they overturned the government of the Shah. Under his leadership, they were a proWestern nation, and in sympathy with the Israelis, and also sold oil to Israel and the United States. He equipped his army with U.S. military equipment, and looked this way for friendship. It was such a tragedy and such a pitiful situation when those radicals who overthrew his government, took all those hostages and held them for so long, yet we know that scripturally, something had to happen to get that nation turned around, and in the lineup with the land of Magog, the MOSCOVITES, before time for this Ezekiel war to be fought. Concerning the Shah; they have screamed, around the world, about all the people he tortured, and how many he had executed, but you do not hear them say one word about all those that have been slaughtered by that miserable character Khomeni, since he took command. Furthermore he does not know the first thing about running the country. If there ever was a religious fanatic, he is one. Many of his own politicians have fled from under his control, and have made statements to the effect that he has set the country back 1400 years, at a very crucial hour of time. All we can say now, is that God is permitting it, because the country has to reach such a weakened condition that Russia will no doubt, be compelled by world conditions at a certain hour, just to step in there and do what she did in Afghanistan. Those who kept up with the news 8 or 9 years ago, will remember that conditions in Afghanistan back then, were just like they have been, in Iran, ever since they overthrew the Shah. Without positive leadership, the became so weak, and so divided in purpose, that Russia finally just moved in, and took over. Therefore it is my judgment that Russia will never stand by, and let Western nations step in there, when Iran gets to the place where she just simply cannot stabilize her government in any way. They will be ready to make their move. That will put Iran right where Ezekiel 38:5 says, Persia (Iran) will be. Just remember this, Any mortal human could make a mistake in judgment, but God Himself told Ezekiel what to say here, and He makes no mistakes.

RUSSIAN ALLIES

Let us consider the other two nations mentioned there with Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya. Brothers and sisters, there was a time when the United States had strategic air command bases in Libya. But I remember that when Israel fought that 6 day war back in 1967, and the U.S. did not do anything to hinder her, Libya broke all diplomatic relations with us, because she was ready to get involved in the whole thing. This rearranged the whole picture, and put Libya in a complete pro-Russian lineup. She has been a menace in the Middle East ever since. This Qadhafi is feared by everyone, because he is a fanatic, a radical, ready for war, and yet does not have enough men to fight a war. He has plenty of those petroleum dollars, to buy Russian equipment with, and he stays in the news headlines a great percentage of the time, all of which seems to make him a very important man. But the thing that gets my attention the most, is the fact that God, through Ezekiel, prophesied, 2600 years ago, that this little nation would be in the lineup with the Moscovites, in these last days, coming against Israel. As for Ethiopia, there was a time when they had a king, “HALLI SALASSE,” who claimed to be able to trace his genealogy all the way back to the queen of Sheba. I do not know anything about that, but I do know what happened to him 9 and those who were loyal to him in his government. The communists came in there, undermined his government, formed a coup and took over the government. Then they exterminated Salasse, many of his family members, and all those who were loyal to him. The world never did know just how much suffering there was in Ethiopia, to turn them from a pro-Western nation in sympathy with the United States and the Western world to the largest Russian equipped army in the Middle East. Nevertheless that put them right in their place, in the scriptural lineup against Israel. You might find it interesting just to look at a world atlas and see where Israel is positioned in the midst of this lineup of her enemies. The last part of verse 5 says, “All of them with shield and helmet.” That means that they are prepared for war. They are all equipped with Russian made military equipment. Also, as we go on into verse 6, we see Gomer and Togarmah, added to this lineup. When you take the time to search it out, you find that Gomer is actually the land of Turkey, and the house of Togarmah is Armenia. Therefore we need not wonder where Armenia stands in all of this, for ever since WW I, Russia has practically dominated them, but beyond all else, we have Ezekiel’s prophecy to show us exactly where they stand. Now we have some other names to consider as we go on, but let us read verse 7. “Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou a guard unto them.” Naturally this is speaking to the main leader, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, “Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself.” For over 30 years Russia has been preparing for something. From her standpoint, she is preparing herself, with the thought of one day taking over the whole world. Little by little she is reaching out, and naturally God is allowing her to be successful with it, while she is getting her forces together to fulfill this prophecy, but that is as far as she will ever get, with her plans for a world takeover, when she comes into the land of Israel to take a spoil and God Himself intervenes on behalf of Israel. When the allied commander of the WW2 period of time, gave East Germany to Russia, it greatly troubled a lot of people who tried to reconcile it with prophecies for the end time. Now from the standpoint of natural reasoning, that never should have been done, but from the standpoint of prophecy, right where the iron curtain divides the East from the West, is as far as the old Roman empire boundaries ever reached, so from that standpoint everything is all right. Nevertheless from that day until now, Russia has been constantly preparing herself for a day that is just ahead. It is her aim to rid the world of every form of religious belief in God, for she is atheist to the core. Even though they do not believe in God, we are reading a prophecy that is for them, and it will be fulfilled whether they believe it or not. God says, You get ready. You are the leader; you are the troublemaker. In other words, she is to be the guardian of all the rest, and that is the exact role she has been in for many years now. They do the supplying, and they do the guarding. That is why the scripture reads like it does, “Prepare for thyself, and all the company that is assembled with thee.” A little country like Libya could never fight a war with Israel by herself; she would not last a day and a half, but when they join with Ethiopia, Russia, and all those others, they will be feeling pretty good about their endeavor. The valley of Hamongog is waiting to receive their dead bodies though, and God is waiting until then to be sanctified in the eyes of many people. Now many people have asked me about this valley of Hamongog, “Where is it?” The word itself simply means the multitude of Gog. Wherever it is, it will not be known as the valley of Hamongog, until after it becomes the burial grounds for the great multitude of Gog, when they are slain, there in Israel.

RUSSIA’S VISITATION

Notice verse 8, God still speaking to Russia. “After many days (2600 years) thou shalt be visited: (I believe God is visiting Russia; not in the way that we would like to think of it, but in a way that is causing her to rise up and fulfill scriptures,) in the latter years thou shalt come into the land that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people, (This is why we included chapters 36 & 37, so you could see what God has prophesied to the land of Israel, and to the people that would be restored to that land) against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste: but it is brought forth out of the 10 nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them.” Naturally we believe we are living in the latter years that this verse refers to, and we see Russia, that she is in a position to fulfill all that is prophesied of her, but I wonder just how many of you are actually aware of the fact, that it was the United States that kept Russia from being overrun by Germany during WW2? I have read stories, how our old obsolete P-39 airplanes was what saved Russia, against a German attack. Our supplies are what saved her. For what purpose? So she could fulfill this scripture. America has been an instrument in the hands of God in many ways, but she has followed a pattern set by other nations, and departed from the kind of faith in God that our founding fathers enjoyed; therefore she will have to suffer the consequences along with all the rest, when God pours out His wrath upon the nations. But that is not what we are looking at, here in Ezekiel. We are looking at a situation where God is restoring all of the land back to the people of Israel, that was promised to their progenitor, Abraham, and his seed after him. Practically the whole world is against such a thing, and many of their reasons sound so right, if you do not know what the word of God says about it, but one thing is sure, no matter what any of them say, or do, Israel will get back every inch of their promised land. Russia, nor anyone else can ever drive them out of it again. It is because of world opinion being what it is, that God will be so greatly sanctified through what He does on behalf of Israel. Do not ever think this will be some little insignificant skirmish that will be treated lightly by the press. No. It will be just exactly the opposite. God is going to magnify this event to the extent that great men the world over will stand in awe, and will admit for the first time, that there truly has to be a living God in control of things after all. The world is going to know then, that there is a God that rules from the heavens, and that He puts up whom He will, and also, that He takes down whom He will. In the meanwhile, you who may read this, and scoff at it: that is your privilege. If you want to be an atheist; that is your privilege, and if you want to side with Russia, go ahead. But when the hour of her visitation comes, if that is what it takes to cause you to turn from your atheism, there is no hope for you then. Those whom God chooses to live in the Millennium, will certainly not be any of those who have previously fought against Him, while He was dealing with Gentiles through the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are living in a day when mankind is exerting every effort to eliminate the mention of God in connection with anything whatsoever. At the same time, they are crying about over-population, and saying that we cannot possibly raise enough food to feed everyone in the very near future. Monetary systems are going bankrupt, and almost everyone seems to have the feeling that something is about to happen that will drastically change the whole picture, but very few of them know what it is. Every true believe should know that God has everything under His control, and that every true child of God will be provided for, no matter what happens, but there are still an awful lot of believers, that do not yet know what is coming. That is why we are printing this article. I realize that we have dealt with almost everything we deal with here, in other articles we have printed, but in the light of present world conditions, and the fact that these two chapters are just before us, perhaps there are some who can be helped by having the picture put together as we desire to do in this message. God has been fulfilling chapter 36 & 37, for the past 30 years now, getting everything, and everyone in proper position for the fulfillment of 38 & 39, and I do not expect Him to wait forever, once the stage is set. You will see what I mean, when we read verse 9, a little later. But first let me mention a couple of things in the last half of verse 8. It speaks of gathering the people of Israel out of many people, against the mountains of Israel, which have been always waste. Up until a few short years ago, that was the state of the land of Israel, just waste land. Throughout the centuries of time that the rightful owners have been in dispersion, the land of Israel has lain desolate, just a wilderness type of seemingly waste land. Empire after empire has through the years, possessed it, but somehow or the other, God has always kept them from farming the land. God wanted the land to rest, until its rightful owners returned. Those of you who have been over there in the last few years, would surely have to testify that the land must have regained its strength, for you have never seen more beautiful fruit and vegetables grown anywhere else in the world. It is no longer a waste land.

ATTACK LIKE A STORM

Another thing that I notice here, that could cause some to wonder, is that it says they are brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely all of them. Now in reality we all know that there has not yet been a time that it could be accurately said, they were dwelling safely in their land. They have been constantly harassed, and have had to fight ever so many times, just to hold what they have already, so what is meant by that statement? Simply this. They are safe, in the sense that they will never again be conquered and driven from their land. They have fought many battles since God began restoring them back to their land, but never to the point of defeat. Always to the point of victory, and it shall continue so. If we are in time where all the signs indicate we are, they could not even give that land away. They are back there, preparing for this very war, and many of them have no thought whatsoever about what the word of God has to say about their future. That is why verse 9 is so meaningful. Notice what it says, remembering that this is what God is saying to the Russians. “Thou shalt ascend and come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land.” This very verse lets me know that the world will not have a six month warning, when Russia gets ready to make her move. A storm usually comes up very suddenly. Most of the general public have very little warning, if any at all, when a storm sweeps through. That is how this thing will come about. World conditions that must transpire to set this thing up, have moved at such a slow pace, in most respects, that peoples hearts are becoming hardened, and they are treating the whole process just as a normal nominal procedure. Yet one day it shall break forth suddenly, just like the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, in Dec. 1941. Their attack came just like a storm, and so will this Russian attack on Israel, for God Himself said it would. “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.” All her bands, pertains to all her satellite nations that have lined up with her. “Thus saith the Lord God; It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought; And 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, (FOR WHAT PURPOSE?) To take a spoil, and take a prey.” Brothers and sisters, with all that is taking place in the world today, there is not one doubt about the fact that Russian leaders have it in their minds to protect all their interests in those Middle East countries. They have armed Syria, Libya and others, getting themselves into position where they feel that they can take control of the wealth of all the Middle East. Naturally they will realize that Israel must be conquered also, if they are to succeed in such a plan. Furthermore we do know that Israel is building up and inhabiting all the old ancient cities and villages that have lain waste and desolate for so long. Also, as they build them back, they are omitting the walls, for they know that those walls will not keep out tanks and rockets and such like. They are truly gathered there out of the nations of the world, and they certainly do have cattle, and large dairy herds. They also have beef cattle, and sheep, and great agricultural enterprises, and you would have to say, They are dwelling in the midst of the land.

WHO IS SHEBA AND DEDAN?

Verse 13, mentions some more names, but it is interesting to note that these are not in the lineup with Russia. Notice. “Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, (unto Gog, or Russia) 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?” Saints, this is a very interesting verse, right here in the midst of this prophecy. Sheba and Dedan applies to the people of Saudi Arabia, and you will notice that they are not making any kind of threat against Russia; but rather, they are asking a question, “What have you come to do? Have you come to take our silver and gold, and our cattle, and so forth?” Brothers and sisters, the gold that Russia in interested in is that BLACK GOLD they are pumping up out of the earth. Saudi Arabia to this present time, is still very much against Israel holding that land, and she is very scared of Russia coming into the Middle East, knowing that their great oil output would no doubt make them a target sooner or later. Russia would rather control all the oil of those Middle East countries, than to own all the bank accounts of the whole world, for with that oil she could make the whole world bow before her. Therefore it will be their black gold that Russia is most interested in, but in order to get control of that, she will need to conquer the people and everything they have. What we are saying is, It will not be their gold and silver, and their cattle and such like that Russia has her eye on. In ancient times, when an invading enemy came in to take over a territory, the wealth of the nation was looked upon in terms of gold, silver, cattle and other such goods. That is how the invading forces supported themselves a lot of the time. But this will not be the case with Russia. She has her mind fixed upon world dominion, and she believes that controlling all that Middle East oil would put her in that position, so she is after their black gold. Most of the Western world is almost completely dependant upon Middle East oil for their present way of life, so why would not a nation like Russia, desiring world dominion as they do, have a greedy desire to control all of it? Now for the sake of giving you something more than just my word, let us go to the 25 chapter of th Genesis, where we will pinpoint the identity and land association of Sheba and Dedan. This picks up where Abraham (after the death of Sarah, and after Isaac’s marriage to Rebekah) took another woman to be his wife, and gives the names of the sons she gave him. “Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bare him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah. And Jokshan begat SHEBA, and DEDAN. And the sons of DEDAN were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummin. And the sons of Midian; Eppah, and Epher, and Hanoch, and Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. (Now notice where these went when they went out from Abraham.) Verse 5, And Abraham gave all that he had unto Isaac. But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country.” Now you remember, I am sure, how God made a covenant with Abraham, and his seed after him, giving him all the land that He had showed unto him, for an everlasting possession, and how God established the fact with him, that Isaac was to be his heir. His seed was to be called through Isaac, the promised son born to him by Sarah, in her old age, after God opened her womb to receive seed. Therefore Ishmael, born to him by Sarah’s maid, who was actually his firstborn son as we would look at it, was forbidden by God, to be Abraham’s heir, so Ishmael is out of the picture here, when Abraham gives gifts unto the sons of Keturah, and sends them eastward from where he dwelt. Saints, when you look at a map, eastward from where Abraham was, you will see Saudi Arabia. Then, if you can get an old Bible atlas such as I have here, you will see most of the names of these sons of Keturah, right there in Saudi Arabia. Your Scofield Bible maps will show you some of them, so it is reasonably simple to satisfy our minds about the identity of Sheba and Dedan, but we are still left with the merchants of Tarshish. Who are they, and how do they fit into the picture here? That is what we want to look into.

MERCHANTS OF TARSHISH

I have read from different historians who claimed that these merchants of Tarshish were from the British Isles, but I could never quite accept that to my satisfaction. The very fact that it refers to them as the merchants of Tarshish causes me to feel like, whoever they are, it is because of their international trade with Saudi Arabia, that they are included in this lineup. Two radio preachers that I read after, both claimed that Tarshish was England. But, Brothers and sisters, even though my mind might like to accept that, when I tried to look it up, I realized that in the 6 century B.C. when the prophecy was spoken, there th was no country identified by the name of England, not even Germany, France, nor Italy existed as a country then. For centuries, you only had Nomadic tribes of people, moving from here to there, constantly at war with one another, trying to gain certain territories, which later were established as nations. There 13 is a lot that could be said about certain areas and their inhabitants, but for the purpose of moving on in the message, let me just say this. All of Europe today comes from Japeth, not Shem, nor Ham. If you are of German origin, you are a descendant of Japheth, but that does not mean that you are Russian. If you are English, you are a descendant of Japheth, but that does not connect you with the land of Magog, nor in any way make you Russian. Because Japeth peopled both the North and the West. That of course is a result of later generations migrating westward. What you need to realize is that in this message we are dealing with where the genetic roots of this Japeth line was first planted, when they were scattered upon the earth after the tower of Babel account, in Genesis, chapter 11. Various descendants kept migrating, naturally. I was reading in one place where the descendants of Gomer which was predominantly Turkey, migrated westward, and came to the areas of Germany, France, and even to England. It said, that is why certain people in England and Wales refer to themselves as the ancient Gomerians, or something like that. But that in no way connects England with Turkey. Therefore let us keep each identity where it originally belonged for the sake of the accuracy of applying this prophecy. Coming back now, to the merchants of Tarshish, the Edward Robinson Bible Encyclopedia, as well as some old maps, showing the probable settlements of the descendants of Noah, show Tarshish to be along the southern most part of what is the country of Spain. Now with that thought in mind, let us take a look at what we have here. In our day, there is not much commerce between Spain and Israel, but according to what I have been reading, in ancient times, the Tarshish people traded with the Hebrews in the line of copper and brass. However this is not so, in our day. Southern Spain grows their own oranges, just like Israel. They both export oranges and such like. My real point is, They do not trade with each other. The merchants of Tarshish have no need to go to Israel. Time and conditions has brought about a change of commerce, and the merchants of Tarshish, (SPAIN) and all the young lions (that would no doubt apply to outlying, or neighboring areas around Spain,) are mainly dealing with Middle East oil, instead of copper and brass, and their dealings are not with Israel. The lifeline of Europe today, is not Joppa oranges, it is oil; out of the Middle East, but not out of Israel. Saudi Arabia pumps more oil to the Western world than any other Arab country. The war between Iran and Iraq, has almost brought their oil export potential to a standstill. Their refineries have just about come to a complete halt. That leaves Saudi Arabia right out there as the main supplier of oil to the West. They have had huge pipelines running across the desert land for years. Before so much of Beirut, Lebanon was torn up by the war, oil tankers took on oil from those pipelines, there at Beirut. But that is just an example of what can happen. If something, or someone should destroy those huge pipelines that transport that oil across the desert, you can just imagine what the consequences could be in the whole Western world. Therefore I believe what we are looking at here in verse 13, is Saudi Arabia and their oil merchants in Western Europe, with Spain being the primary one that is mentioned here, but including the others by the mention of all the young lions. Like we pointed out earlier, they do not put up a fight with Russia; they just ask a question, “Have you come to take a spoil?” Don’t ever think these nations of the west are not extremely concerned about what might happen if a terrible war broke out in the Middle East. They know that some fanatic could have those oil lines blown up, just any day now, and that would cut off the oil flow to the Mediterranean. If that happens, the oil would then have to come completely around the Saudi Arabia peninsula, and through the Suez Canal. Then if they managed to sink a ship in there, the next route would be all the way around Africa. That would certainly cause the merchants of Tarshish (merchants of the world) to ask Russia such a question, What have you come to do?

WHY HELP SAUDI ARABIA?

Why do you suppose it seemed so important for us to sell those radar planes to Saudi Arabia? To monitor all the activity in that area of the world. If you would ask Saudi Arabia, Why do you want them? You would hear, We want to be able to monitor what the Russians, or any other potential enemy would 14 do, in and around our borders, and especially in the area of the Persian Gulf. The thing that troubles Israel most about that, is the fact that those planes can serve more than one purpose. They can track more than one airplane at a time. Israel would never be able to put a plane in the air, without them being able to track it. Therefore from Israel’s standpoint, it is easy to understand why they would not want them to have such information. Some of the things they have needed to do in order to protect their interests, have been accomplished through secrecy and surprise. On the other hand, it is easy to understand why it seems to the advantage of this country, for Saudi Arabia to be able to know what is taking place around them. They are the next main strategic point of value in the Middle East. It is important that this country, as well as Western European countries, do whatever is necessary to keep them out of the hands of our common enemy, Russia. With Libya, a pro-Russian satellite, and anti-Israel, and Iran in the condition she is in, you can see where the oil potential for the rest of the world lies. Qadhafi according to news articles and reports, is the most fanatical person in the Middle East. Not that he himself has so much power, but because he is in a lineup with power, he is a potential threat to the leaders of the whole free world. As far as this war of Ezekiel 38 & 39 goes though, it cannot take place until all their satellite nations are in perfect alignment with Magog, Meshech, and Tubal, for Gog is to be a guard into all the others. One thing I am convinced of, is that this Ezekiel war sets up conditions for the last week of Daniel to go into effect. Because of its suddenness, and its scope, and the mass destruction, leaders of the nations of the world are going to be anxious to sit down, and hurriedly negotiate and sign a peace pact. They will not know that it is a seven year peace agreement to fulfill Daniel 9:27, but God will know it, and that is exactly when He will start marking off two consecutive periods of one thousand two hundred and sixty days each. One period for world peace and prosperity, (it will seem so to the world) and the other period for the great tribulation, which is the time of Jacob’s trouble. We will say more about that a little later, but for now, let us continue on by reading verse 14.

ISRAEL DWELLING SAFELY

The prophecy to Gog continues on, “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?” They surely will know it. It will be eating at them like a cancer. Like we said already, This does not mean that Israel does not yet have her problems with terrorists, for there is hardly a week goes by without some sort of incident, buses blown up, roads mined, and all such like. In spite of all their guards and precautions, it seems that the terrorists continue to find ways to get through into Israel, and then out again. But the real point of this verse is the fact that, since 1973, it seems that those other Arab nations, except for the terrorists, have given up the idea of driving the Jewish people out of the land. They are dwelling there, feeling secure, and safe, as far as being taken over by an enemy force. She, as well as her enemies, is aware that she has the advantage. None of those Arabs have what it would take to overthrow her. She knows it; they know it; and Russia knows it. That is why it says, “In the day when my people of Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it?” That is exactly why Russia will have to make her move against Israel. Because she stands in the way of what they plan to do. Therefore Russia is making her necessary moves now, to get her allies lined up, before she fulfills verse 15, which we will read next. “And thou 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. And thou shalt come up against my people of Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the latter days, and I will bring thee against my land, that he heathen may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee, O Gog, before their eyes.” Brothers and sisters, I feel that it is very important, that we understand what this war is for. There is not another war written in the scriptures, like it; and there have been many wars. Go back and read of the wars that Israel has fought through the ages of time. None of them were like this one. Titus was allowed 15 to go in there with a great army, and lay everything waste, without God intervening, in 70 A.D. It will not be like that ever agin. This will be a miracle war of such magnitude, that God Himself will literally be sanctified in the eyes of people that do not, at this very moment, know whether there is a God or not. Those people, along with multitudes of others, will be heard saying, Only God could do a thing like that. Many who have never been sure whether to believe in creation, or evolution, will suddenly come to the realization, Now I know for sure that there is a living God; and therefore I believe he created the world, and all that is in it, just like the Bible says. From such as these, God will preserve an element of people from every nation, that will be privileged to live right on throughout the Millennium. God will also use this war to purge the minds of a lot of Jews that have been fed Gentile junk, all the years while they were still in dispersion. They will be ready to listen to God’s two prophets when they arrive upon the scene in Israel. Do not even allow yourself to entertain any thought about this begin the battle of Armageddon. You will see as we go into chapter 39, that the dead carcasses from this war are going to be buried. Israel will be hiring men for continual employment, just to bury the dead. For seven months they will be busy burying dead bodies, and for 7 years, they (Israel) will be burning weapons that have been left there. You will not find anything like that following the battle of Armageddon. The fowls of the air are invited to come down and feast upon the dead bodies from the terrible battle, just like this one, but with no burial provision. Also because of something that Malachi wrote, we know that the righteous will be walking upon the ashes of the wicked, which lets us know that many of them will be consumed by fire. The closing verses of Revelation 19, is where it pictures dead bodies strewn throughout the land, and the fowls invited to feast upon them. Also, Jeremiah said (25:33) “And the slain of the Lord shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the ground.” Seeing that there is no particular area, nor effort to bury the dead, after the battle of Armageddon, this in itself should be enough to keep folks from getting the two battles confused, and trying to make just one out of them.

WHEN GOD GETS MAD

If the two prophets of Revelation 11:3 should show up in Israel tomorrow, they would hardly be noticed. But by the time this war with Russia is climaxed with intervention from God, scores of young people who never have a thought about God, will suddenly be ready to learn everything they can about this might God that has fought for them when the land was covered by enemy forces. At this time, I expect the Moscue of Omar to be destroyed, freeing Israel’s temple and altar spot so they can begin offering up sacrifices to Jehovah, as that week of Daniel starts. Satan has been busy for centuries of time, trying to stamp out the knowledge of God from among the human race, and in just a little short span of time, through the events of this Ezekiel war, God will bring to nothing all his efforts that he has expended upon this generation. Saints, if you can just grasp what God is doing in these days, a picture will unfold before your spiritual eyes, that will thrill your soul. I know some of you have wondered where God would find natural mortals worthy to live throughout the Millennium. We all know that if the bride of Christ is going to rule and reign with Him during this time, there has to be someone for them to rule over. Is that right? It says, they will be judging the nations, so that has to be natural people, not resurrected immortals. Gentiles have had the gospel of Christ for almost two thousand years, through which, an element from this dispensation has experienced the new birth, a spiritual process through which they are made into the likeness of Jesus Christ, and they will rule with Him, over the nations. (Rev. 2:26, 12:5, 19:15, 20:4, 21:24, 1 Cor. 6:2-3) Here are a few of the many references that let us know that. We also know that no st person who has rejected the gospel will be allowed to live through that period of time. Therefore there has to be some people somewhere upon the earth, that have not been faced with accepting or rejecting the gospel. They must be morally fit to be spared, and they have to be some from all nations according 16 to Matthew 25:31-32. Now I ask you, In the light of the rest of Matthew, chapter 25, where could such a people be found, unless something happens to change the present trend toward atheism and Antichrist dogmas? We have already stated it. There are countless numbers of people in the world that actually do not know whether to believe in creation or evolution, because they simply have not been convinced in either direction. They are not necessarily against either one; they just simply do not know. That is why God puts so much emphasis upon being sanctified in the eyes of the heathen. (The word heathen, applies to Gentile people.) He will be recognized, and acknowledged, and set apart in their minds for the first time. It will be too late for them to experience the new birth, for that dispensation will be closing out. But it will not be too late for Jesus and His bride to judge them, and usher those into the Millennium, who are found worthy. Many of them who have never heard anything good about the Israelis, will have great compassion for them, after they witness what God does for them in this Ezekiel war. They will be ready and willing to hide them from the Antichrist beast during the dark hours of the great tribulation when Israel is fleeing for her life. That is the basis upon which they are judged worthy to inherit the kingdom, there in Matthew 25. In other words, God will allow Antichrist forces to rule the world for a period of time, but He will never let Anti-God rulers attain world domain. Russia is anti-God, and God is using their Marxist brand of Communism as a tool to chasten many areas of the world that have been careless with the gospel, but He will never let the age close out with 90 percent of the world holding atheistic viewpoints and ideas. He has His way of changing that trend, and that is what we are looking at, in these two chapters of Ezekiel. Verse 15 tells us where Gog will come from (out of the north parts) and that it will be a mighty army that shall cover Israel like a cloud might cover the land. In verse 16, He goes on to say, (just paraphrasing) “The heathen (Gentiles) of the world will know me, when I get through dealing with you.” Not only the Gentiles, but also a great number of Israelis will come to know Him, or at least, that He is, that there truly is a God that fights for Israel. We do know who will be holding the reins in Russia when this hour arrives, but whoever it is, just try to imagine God saying to him, verse 17, “Thus saith the Lord God, Art thou he of whom I have spoke in old time by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days many years that I would bring thee against them? (Israel) 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.” Brother, when God gets mad it is going to be just too bad for someone. The world has never seen God mad, yet. But He is going to be mad one day soon, if I may use such a term. 19 “For in my jealousy (Jealousy over who? Israel of course.) 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.” That does not mean that God is doing this to get even with the Jews for something. No. Not that at all. Let us read verse 20, to complete what was actually said. All right now, a great shaking, “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, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.” All of that lets us know that God’s presence is going to be very evident in that hour.

AN URGENT APPEAL

Brothers and sisters, I absolutely believe, with all my heart, that only such a war as this, could break the spell Satan has on the world today, and change their course. I know it will not change everyone. There has to be a political element of people that will not be changed from their present way of thinking, or you would never have the peace covenant of Daniel 9:27 signed. Such a great shaking will have two affects. It will awaken one element of people to the reality of a living God, and it will scare another element into a hurriedly negotiated peace agreement, hoping that such a move will prevent a thing like that from ever happening again. Their search for an impartial mediator will lead them to the pope of Rome, and he will turn out to be the Antichrist that Jesus, Paul and John spoke of. Rest assured, brothers and sisters, 17 everything that is taking place in the world today is serving a purpose of God as He prepares to wind this thing up. That Marxist spirit is sweeping through the continent of Africa; it is invading every little country in South America, and even our own country is filled with their agents who are trying to destroy our way of life, and set us up for a target. I have a letter at home from one of the youngest senators in our government. He is making an appeal to young Americans to write their senators and congressmen, and try to get them to do something about what is going on in our colleges and universities. I will endeavor to relate to you, the contents of his letter. He said, I am the youngest statesman in our government. I attended Harvard University, out of which has come some of the greatest political leaders, doctors, lawyers and scientists that our country has ever known. He went on to say; But in my first semester there, when we went into one of the classes, the young instructor addressed the class on this wise. I want you to know, I am not a liberal, I am a fanatic. I am out to help overthrow this government, or any other form of government that differs from Marxism. The sad thing about it all, he went on, is that we have no less than ten thousand of these Marxist instructors in our colleges and universities, playing on the minds of our American youth. He went on to say, I have young children growing up, that I hope can enjoy the same kind of America that we have known in the past, but I am afraid that unless immediate steps are taken to assure that, it will never be so. Unless our young people wake up to what is taking place and demand changes, our precious freedom is doomed.

STEPPING STONES FOR RUSSIA

Saints, the first thing they try to destroy is any faith one might have in God. Then they destroy the image of the home, and after that, the image of America’s government, by the citizens. It is a gradual process whereby they get control of young minds, and then they just twist them in any direction they choose to. I do not know how many of you keep up with things like the condition in San Salvador, and other such places, but when you look at a map, you will notice that San Salvador is just a stepping stone for communism, in their efforts to work their way into this country. It would be San Salvador, then Guatemala, then Mexico, and then this country. It just adds up to the fact that we are living in a time when this spirit is being turned loose, to set the stage for God’s judgment upon the earth. However, as I have already stated, I am convinced that in this generation, God will allow this war to be built up to such a magnitude that the whole world will feel its effects, and many of their young people will be awakened to God-consciousness through His intervention. That is the main purpose of it, that God may be SANCTIFIED in the eyes of many people. Let us pick up verse 21, where we will begin to see how He is going to accomplish that. “And I will call for a sword against him (GOG) throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord God.” This is symbolic language, which means, out of all the nations that still have a knowledge of God, or a reverence for Him, and who refuse to knuckle down to that kind of atheistic spirit. Notice now. “Every man’s sword shall be against his brother.” Saints, that does not mean what it sounds like. It means, every man’s sword shall be FOR THE DEFENSE of his brother. If you think of this as every man against his brother, that would mean that God called a sword against Gog, and the whole Western world began to kill each other. In other words, what I am saying is this, you cannot call for a sword to defend the cause over in the Middle East, if all those that the call went out to, just began to kill each other. No. The western nations will be given their chance to rally to the cause, and it will not be a situation where they get involved in killing each other, for the whole west will have a stake in what takes place there. Sheba and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish will not be in an immediate position to defend their rights, themselves. That is why they ask Gog the question, What have you come to do? Are you going to take a spoil. Will you carry away our silver and gold, and our cattle and goods? But if Russia is allowed to do this, the whole Western world would be affected, therefore they cannot just stand idly by, and do nothing. Now let us see what else Gog is going to be confronted with. Verse 22, “And 18 I will plead against him with pestilence (Brother that could be hornets, bugs, frogs, lice, or any number of things, just like in Egypt, in days of old) and with blood; and I will 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.” We remember reading how God rained down great hailstones upon Egypt, when Moses was down there to lead the Israelites out of bondage. These hailstones will not be for the purpose of tearing up the crops of Israel, but his is how God Himself will conk some Russian soldiers on the head. God’s icemaker can make some pretty big ice cubes, you know. Not only will He pound them with hailstones, but He will also rain down upon them fire, and brimstone. That takes one back to Genesis 19:24,where God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone. Natural man has robbed God of His recognition, and glory and honor in many ways through the ages, but this will be one situation where the whole world (not every individual) will realize that only God Himself could do such a thing, to accomplish such a purpose, so He truly will be magnified in their eyes. 23 “Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself; and I will be known in the eyes of many nations, and they shall know that I am the Lord.” God’s emphasis on the whole thing, is that He might be recognized, set apart in the minds of many people, and glorified. After all, Why did God create man in the first place? Certainly not just so the Devil, old Lucifer could have some fellowship. No. God created man for Himself, for His own fellowship, so why would He not do something to turn things around when they get too far out of line?

LET US BE PREPARED

I believe we have sufficiently covered the main points of chapter 38, so now for a little while, let us look at this 39 chapter, for it goes hand in hand with 38. We are not setting any dates for any of these events th to take place, for anyone who believes what is written in the Bible, also knows that God has not given us those dates and times. We only have signs and seasons to guide us, and to prepare our minds and hearts for what God will do. Realizing the shape that this old world is in right now, I would have to say this, If God waited another 10 years to bring about this war, it would still be too soon for a lot of people who are supposed to be believers. They would still not be ready. They are too taken up with materialism. Brother! I want you to know, when those nuclear bombs start striking, your fine homes and shiny new automobiles will not do you one bit of good. Even if you survive, you will not be able to enjoy any of this, sitting somewhere in a bomb shelter. Bro. Jackson: Do you really think this war will include nuclear warfare? Yes, I do. I believe that will account for the fire and brimstone aspect of what is taking place. Not that God could not do such a thing supernaturally. We know that He could. But I believe nuclear warfare will come into the picture. It will not destroy that little land of Israel, but I believe the U.S. and Russia, could both be hit with some of it. Ezekiel focuses attention on the land of Israel as the target, but brother, this thing encompasses the interest and participation of many nations around the world. We have already explained why. If Russia was allowed to overrun the Middle East, there would be nothing to stop her from taking over world dominion. The lifeline of too many nations is attached to those oil lines, for the world to stand idly by, and allow her to do a thing like that. Because of what she has been used for, America will be one of the first ones to answer the call when God calls for a sword against Gog. America has been instrumental in rebuilding Europe, in order for those ten horns to be in a position to fulfill their end time role in prophecy. She has been in Middle East affairs, in Korea, Vietnam, and in one way or another, had a voice in affairs of nations around this world. Therefore when this Ezekiel situation arises, she will not be as slow to recognize her necessary role, as many of these other nations may be. Let us go on to chapter 39, for the present time, then maybe we will have some more to say about the role of various nations, a little later.

A GREAT SLAUGHTER

“Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, Brothers and sisters, if we have confidence in the word of God, this gives us hope. This gives us something to hold on to, when it seems that everything around us is crumbling and falling) and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel.” That 2 verse really stands out. For such a short war, something terrible would have to happen in order for nd 5/6 of those enemy forces to be destroyed. It says, Only a 6 part of them are left. Just think about that; th 2600 years ago God caused His prophet to utter those words; I will turn thee back, and leave but one sixth part of thee. With God, it does not matter how long ago He spoke a thing, it will still come to pass. “And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thy arrows to fall out of thy right hand.” This is the same language God caused Hosea to use, concerning the ten northern tribes of Israel, and what would happen in the valley of Jezreel. When God speaks like that to a person, or a nation, it literally means that they are licked even before they start. “Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee.” That means Russians, Persians, Ethiopians, Libyans, Turks and all the rest. No wonder they have to set aside a great valley in Israel, as a burying place for these people. Brother, they are going to be slain by the thousands. “I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord.” There is no contradiction here. This does not mean that all these dead bodies are going to be left for ravenous birds, and the beasts of the field to devour. Otherwise we would not be reading, that He gave them a place of burial, a little further on in the chapter. But you have to realize that with so many thousands of dead carcasses strewn upon the mountains, and in the fields, these birds and beasts are going to reach a lot of them before the burying party does. A few months ago, we read where someone had written articles about a certain type of vulture that has been multiplying in Israel, in recent years. They connected it with this scripture we just read. Now, verse 6, “And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the Lord.” I cannot help but believe that this is that first and brimstone of verse 22, in the previous chapter. In other words, nuclear retaliation. Not only upon Russia, but also upon those nations that border the land of Russia. We have a tendency to think of isles as little dots of land out in the ocean. But if marginal references mean anything to you, it also applies to coasts, which could mean bordering nations. I, for one, believe that is what the inference points to, here. So we can read that verse like this; I will send first on Russia and those nations that border her. That gives a different picture of the whole thing. Poland is getting a terrible shaking right now. She is already a bankrupt nation, with very little hope of recovering, and it seems that she is destined for Russian intervention. (As this message is being prepared for the press, conditions in Poland are much worse than when these statements were made back in August and September 1981.) God is letting these conditions develop, one by one, getting everything in line, as the hour for His judgment draws nearer. Not that I have any particular information on this subject, but I have said that I do not believe any form of communism could last much longer than 100 years. Something from within will rise to destroy it, for communism itself destroys initiative. It destroys the will of its people, and God never meant for individual souls to be just tools for some super state. If you lived under communism, and invented something, it would belong to the state. You as an individual would never receive any benefit from it. That is just one example, but let us continue. Verse 7, “So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord; the holy One in Israel.” Brother, those Jewish children will not be wearing T-shirts with, “I WAS BORN TO RAISE HELL” on them, after that. Let me explain that remark.

WHAT DEFILES US

When we were leaving Norway to come home, we were taken by bus to an old military airport, that being a place that was equipped to handle the big 747’s. As we waited there in the terminal we became aware of a large group of Jewish boys and girls waiting there also. We learned that they were from the U.S., from New York, New Jersey, and even some from Missouri, and other parts. They had been in Israel for a number of months on one of those student study plans. Now I would never want to be guilty of belittling anyone from a racial standpoint, but we come to find out that the reason we were delayed from departing, was because those young folks had demanded kosher food be served on the plane. You know what that means. It had to be food that was prepared a certain way, blessed by the Rabbi, and so forth, in order that it not pollute their little stomachs, according to Levitical law. But I am here to tell you, when we finally were allowed to board the plane, I have never seen such carrying on, out of children before. Then what made it even worse, and gave occasion for my remark was that they were wearing T-shirts with various things lettered on them. Some of which had those words, “I WAS BORN TO RAISE HELL.” I just thought to myself, Why would anyone that conducts themselves like they did, whether Jew or Gentile, make such a fuss about what they eat? For it is not what goes into our mouth that defiles us, it is what proceeds out of our mouth, for it comes forth from our heart. But, Praise God! There is coming a day when God will not let any true Israelite pollute his holy name any more, a day when they will understand why there ever was such a thing as kosher food. Now notice verse 8. In the mind of God, He looks at all this as a completed picture. Therefore He is just awaiting the right hour for its windup. “Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God; this is the day whereof I have spoken.” Verse 9, lets us know what the inhabitants of Israel will be doing for the next seven years after this thing is over with. “And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the hand staves, and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years: So they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord God.” Brothers and sisters, I want to say this once again. After Armageddon, there will not be seven years left to clean up the mess, before the Millennium starts, but after this battle ends, Israel will be busy burning weapons and shipping crates and all such like for the next seven years. You just must try to imagine how much of all such as this, an invading army would bring with them. But the last half of verse 10 lets us know they will not be burning those useful things that are left behind. They are to take a spoil from those that came to spoil them. Naturally Russia will not bring cattle and sheep, and such like, that they can take as a spoil, but they will bring hundreds of new tanks and trucks, as well as other types of machinery that Israel will take to themselves and use. They will also take from the dead the valuable trinkets, and anything else of value that they have with them, for it says that they will rob those that robbed them. Verse 11, “And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: (That will be somewhere along the coast of the Mediterranean) and it shall stop the noses of the passengers.” Brother, Sister, that means that valley is going to stink something awful. But notice something else. “It shall stop the noses of the passengers.” That looks, or sounds like there is still going to be tourists going to that land when this is all over with. It seems to keep stressing this word, passengers. Therefore in the time between this war, and the last half of the week of Daniel, tourists will no doubt flock to Israel, maybe even more so than in the past, for this will focus the attention of the whole world upon that land.

VALLEY OF HAMONGOG

Ever since Israel became a state, the land has become more and more a tourist attraction, and it seems 21 that every war they have fought since then, has just served to draw the attention of more and more tourists to their land. Every war has produced many testimonies that have served to attract attention, and this one will be the greatest attention getter of all. People will want to see where all of this actually took place, so they will continue to come. All right, it will stop the noses of the passengers; “And there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude; and they shall call it The Valley of Hamongog.” Not only do they give them a cemetery there in Israel, they even name it to be a memorial. This is where Russia came to her end, when she met God face to face, so to speak. 12 “And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land. Yea all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown (widely acclaimed and honored) day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God.” Just try to imagine what those Israelites will be saying and thinking while they are out there burying those dead soldiers. They will be remembering how all those Ethiopians and Libyans poured into their little land at the same time Russia and Persia, and all those hoards poured in from the north parts. My, what a predicament to be in. Surrounded on every side. “If God had not intervened, what would we have done?” No wonder it says, “I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God.” He will be acknowledged, not only be Israel, but also from Gentiles from many nations. “And they (Israel) shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search. An the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man’s bone, then shall be set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog. And also the name of the city shall be Hamonath. Thus shall they cleanse the land.” Beyond any shadow of doubt, I believe these scriptures prove that this is not the much talked about war that will end all things. These scriptures allow us to see that Israel will clean up the land and continue their tourist trade projects. People of the world talk about the battle of Armageddon, not because they are spiritual minded, but because there has been so much said about it, and they are smart enough to realize that the present trend of greed and moral decay would have to lead mankind to a brink of destruction before too much longer. But very few ever looked at this war of Ezekiel apart from that one. They read some of the same language pertaining to both of them, and fail to take note of the rest of the language that definitely sets them apart, as two separate wars, to accomplish two different distinct purposes. One is to sanctify the Lord God in the eyes of a lot of people that have been prone to speak of Him only as a historical figure. The other is to fulfill the judgment and wrath of God upon all wicked and ungodly mankind. He will be cleansing the earth of all filthy, perverted, wicked and ungodly humanity, leaving only those that are moral and upright enough to pass into the Millennium. Therefore in the light of all the scriptures we have, from which to base our remarks, I am bound to say that there will be AT THE LEAST, seven years of time between the end of this war of Ezekiel and that war called, the battle of Armageddon.

SECOND DEATH

Naturally we know that at the end of one thousand years, which is the duration of the Millennial reign of Christ, God will have to cleanse the earth again, for there will be babies born throughout that time, and they will be born from parents that pass to them, through the genes, every potential attribute that has ever been found in mankind throughout his history upon earth. This of course immediately proceeds the great white throne judgment which God immediately sets in effect, whereby He will raise all the wicked dead from every age, to have their final judgment pronounced upon them, (the lake of fire) just before ushering the whole earth into the eternal age, the eighth day, which is the new beginning. This will be completely different from what it was with Noah and his family, for God will have purged out of the human race, every trace of sin and perversion. There will be no evil attributes carried over in the genes of mankind this time for they will all have been bred out, during the one thousand years of Christ’s righteous reign upon earth. 22 You can read about this, in chapter 20, of the book of Revelation. I would also invite you to read verse 8, of the 21 chapter, which says, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, st and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Overcomers will inherit all things, but any who fall into this category have only the lake of fire and brimstone to look forward to. What a contrast. Brothers and sisters, the reward for serving God with our whole heart, is so great, that our vocabulary just cannot find proper words to speak of it.

BANQUET TABLE IN ISRAEL

Let us return our thinking to the remaining verses of Ezekiel 39 now, that we may get the complete picture of all that is involved. “And, thou son of man, Thus saith the Lord God; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come: gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.” Yes there will be the flesh and blood of mighty men scattered upon the face of that land. Just think of all the military officers of the armies of all the different countries that are named as taking part in this attack upon Israel. Many of them will have their chest swelled out, so proud that they have been chosen to lead and command certain regiments of this great attacking force, yet they will die right along with all the rest, and the vultures could not care less what their status was in life. The sad part is, that they could have avoided being a part of all this, if they would have only had faith in this 2600 year old prophecy in this blessed old book. If they could not go AWOL, and get on Israel’s side, at least they could pray that they be spared, among the one sixth part that is allowed to live. “And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you. Thus shall ye be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord God.” Now Saints, you must realize that there is a certain amount of symbolic language involved here. God is not literally going to set up a table in the land of Israel to spread those dead carcases out on. Neither will those vultures be eating what we think of as a chariot. But the word chariot comes from a word that also means team, which better fits the setting. But the main thought here, is that everything, and everyone comes to the same end, strewn upon the mountains of Israel. Right there is where the vultures, and the beasts will find their great feast. So do not let this symbolic language give you any trouble. God has never written anything for the purpose of confounding a genuine believer; therefore a believer should never become overly disturbed about any of the language of the scriptures, whether it is all understood or not.

THREEFOLD PURPOSE

As we read verses 21 & 22, you will find that a threefold purpose of God is going to be accomplished through the events and outcome of this war. Notice now. “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. So the house of ISRAEL SHALL KNOW THAT I AM THE LORD THEIR GOD from that day and forward.” Never in all the history of Gentile people, has that spirit of atheism been so prevalent. When you think that after two thousand years of preaching the gospel, we have reached such an hour of atheism as we have, it could cause one to wonder, Just how could this be? But now, just think for another moment what the vast majority of the population have uppermost in their minds, pleasure, pride, prestige, material wealth, science and the great achievements of mankind. Teaching a concept of a living God to their children has been so secondary, that it is no wonder their 23 minds have been a choice playground for those who would like to get God out of the picture all together. They believe, and have taught, that the miracle of the Red Sea becoming a frozen wall of water, allowing the Jews to cross over on dry ground, is all a myth. Likewise, they call it a myth, concerning the walls of Jericho that came tumbling down at just the right moment, and also the manna in the wilderness, and the water from a rock, but God is going to change a lot of minds about all those things one day very soon. Many of those school teachers and professors will not even want to go back into their class rooms and face their students, after this. Then when they do go back, some of them may want to take a Bible to use, instead of their atheistic text books. Not all of them will be affected like that, but enough to accomplish God’s purpose. He will set his glory among the heathen, and that does not apply just to those naked tribes in the jungles of this world like some people are prone to think. Brother I want you to know, a person could have a dozen educational degrees, but if that person does not know God, he is still a heathen in God’s eyes. Therefore thousands of these are going to be made award of the fact that the Bible is right after all, and from those that do acknowledge God in all of this, will come an element of people that will be chosen to pass on into the Millennium, and those who do not properly acknowledge God, will wear the mark of the beast when it is forced upon believing mankind.

REVIVAL IN ISRAEL

All right now, the next thing we see here is that all the heathen shall see His judgment. Upon what? Russia of course. Russia and all those that come with her against Israel. What God does here against the enemies of Israel, will remind Bible believers of what He did for them in the days when He brought them out of Egypt, and into the promised land. Then, knowing what a warrior God has been on behalf of Israel in past days, we have a generation of people who want to teach that God does not believe in war, that God does not believe in capital punishment, and that He is just a God of love and peace. Well, I believe He is a God of love and peace too, but I am persuaded that He knows how to deal with those who do not follow His principles of love and peace. God’s grace, and mercy, and peace is for those who will abide by the principles that go with it, but His wrath and judgment are for those who follow a course of ungodliness and evil. They think that fools a lot of people is His longsuffering patience. He does not have to get in a hurry. He brings everything forth at a precise time, to accomplish His overall purpose. Just like what we read in verse 22, “So the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God from that day and forward.” Brothers and sisters, right there is where the revival is going to take place. What a beautiful setting for God’s two witnesses of Rev. 11:3 to walk into. That nation will be ready to hear the truth about Jehovah when they are awakened by this great event. While the rest of the world is taken up with their great peace plan, Israel will be given her opportunity to hear the word of the Lord, and receive the Holy Ghost. They cannot be left with the same understanding of God that their forefathers had three thousand years ago; those two prophets will be there to bring them up to date. All of this is for the latter days, and we are living in those latter days. Actually there was no reason for Bible scholars of former generations to understand these scriptures that are literally just for our day. That is why they have been treated so lightly in the past.

REWARD FOR MARTYRDOM

Let us read verse 23. “And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against me, therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them.” Now this is all recorded throughout the pages of the Old Testament, various accounts of God’s dealing with Israel, and why, and these 24 various prophecies have foretold what the end of it all would be, but all too many have just skimmed over them, as though it was just so many words to fill up space in the Bible. But when God’s hand stands out so marvelously in this Ezekiel war, many people are going to dust off their Bibles, and begin to search for whatever else they may be able to learn from it. When they do, they will find out exactly why God has allowed the Jews to be treated as they have been, throughout all the years of their dispersion. Many of them will read things in Daniel and Revelation, that will help them a little later when the mark of the beast is introduced. Even after grace to Gentiles is terminated, and God has turned back to the Jews with His convicting presence and power, foolish virgins and Jews in dispersion can still read things in the Bible that can direct their course, and let them know not to take the mark of the beast. Then when that dark hour does arrive, and the mark is a reality, God’s 144,000 Jewish servants will be scattered throughout the nations warning them also. That is why, when you read Revelation 7:9-17, you find there a great multitude that has gotten the victory over the beast, and come out on God’s side after all. Oh, yes, they will have to suffer martyrdom, but their reward for it is eternal life, and the privilege of being resurrected to live with Christ and His bride throughout the Millennium. (Rev. 20:1-6)

JOEL 2 FULFILLMENT

Beginning with verse 25, we find the prophecy reverting back to bring up to date what is happening, and why. “Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, (Using the word Jacob right there, is His way of encompassing the whole house of Israel, meaning all twelve tribes) and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid.” Verse 27 speaks of the hour when they are all back in the land. “When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies’ lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; Then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them into their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.” Praise the Lord, when this war is over, there will be no more reason for returning to their old ways, that is, to be scattered among the nations. These scriptures also let us know that there will not be an outpouring of God’s spirit upon them, until Revelation 7:1-8, 11:3-7, when the two prophets are on the scene. Brothers and sisters, we will be bringing this message to a close shortly, so let me remind you once again. Chapters 38 & 39, should always be read in conjunction with 36 & 37, for it takes all four of them to give you a profile of what God is doing to get Israel ready for her spiritual outpouring, and the rest of the remnant of the nations ready for the Millennium. Now when I say, spiritual outpouring, I am referring to Joel 2, for this is when chapter 2 of Joel’s prophecy really comes to a climax. When Peter used this reference on the day of Pentecost, almost 2,000 years ago, that was only a partial fulfillment, for in those days they did not experience the other signs that go along with it, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke, the sun turned to darkness, and the moon into blood. You say, What do all these signs mean? It means that Jehovah is on the move. We read Hosea 1:11 earlier, which speaks of the whole house of Israel, coming up out of the land, (the land of dispersion) appointing themselves one head, (Jesus Christ) and the great day of Jezreel, which actually pertains to the reconstruction of Jezreel. It was nothing but a swampland for years and years, but it never shall be again. They are already growing some of the most beautiful fruits and vegetables in that valley, that you have ever seen. There are still probably three million Jews in the land of Magog, many of them actually claiming to be descendants of the ten northern tribes that were carried away by the Assyrians, in the 7 century B.C. and Hosea the prophet said these Jews were never to be th looked upon and brought back until the last days. There are thousands of them behind the iron curtain 25 that want to go home, yet Russia has let out only a few, and then only at a great monetary expense. Jews in other parts of the world have had such advantages, that many of them have no desire whatsoever to go to Israel to live. Many who have gone, have returned to their good life in the western world later, simply because they could not adjust to that way of life. I believe that by the time this Ezekiel conflict is finished, the world’s economy will be so wrecked, those Jews that have gone to Israel will not have anything in the western world worth returning to. God knows how to do these things. Turn in your Bibles to Hosea 6:1 and we will find a cry of the Jewish people. It is a cry of the spirit of these people, after centuries of dispersion and oppression. “Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us.” How did He tear them: By allowing their enemies to overrun them. If you think He did not tear them, please read our article, The Abomination That Maketh Desolate, where we printed actual excerpts from Jewish history showing how they were starved to death, and how some of them even roasted and ate their little babies. They threw dead bodies over the wall, where they just lay and stank. When they finally were captured, they were sold as slaves, and eventually scattered to the four winds. Even Titus, a pagan, Roman army officer, proclaimed, This cannot be anything else but the wrath of their God upon them. All right, then, When will He heal them? When will He bind them up? This is symbolic language. It says, “He hath smitten, and He will bind us up. After two days (2000 years) will He revive us: (by sending them two prophets and pouring out the Holy Ghost upon them) in the third day He will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.” (In the Millennium.) That is when Jesus Christ will rule from Zion for 1000 years. It was Micah that wrote, “The law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.” Then Zechariah wrote, (14:16) “And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles.” Why? Because He will literally rule from the throne of David. That is why Hosea wrote the prophecy, “And we shall live in His sight.” What beautiful prophetic language we see portrayed here. Their two days was two thousand years of being scattered among the nations, and that third day will carry them right into the Millennium.

NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM

I want to read you a few verses from Acts, chapter 3, where Peter is found preaching his second sermon after their experience on the day of Pentecost. Notice what he says to them in verse 19. “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” Their individual sins will be blotted out when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord, under the ministry of those two witnesses of Rev. 11:3. Because Rev. 7:1-8, shows 144,000 men, being sealed with their Father’s name. This great outpouring of the Spirit of God that brings such a refreshing from the presence of the Lord will cause literally thousands of Jews to get a true revelation of who Jesus Christ really is, their long awaited, and once rejected Messiah. Not only does Peter speak of a refreshing, he also speaks of restitution. Let us read verses 20-21. “And He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heavens must receive (or retain) until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” Naturally this takes place over a period of time, but actually the last thing Peter mentioned was the first thing that began to be set in motion, the restitution of their land to the Israelites. The second thing is their refreshing, and the third is when Jesus returns in literal bodily form, to sit upon the throne of David, during which time Israel will be lifted up into her Millennial glory where she will fulfill the way John saw her in Revelation 12:1, “a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon (law age) under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.” Israel will truly shine, in the kingdom age. She brought forth a man child (Jesus Christ) who has become King of kings and Lord of lords, and 26 she has been completely restored, and is once again represented by all twelve tribes (twelve stars.) It took an evil man like Hitler to get them in the notion to go home, but from that incident, the way was opened up for Jews to return to the land of their fathers, and through a process of thirty some years, God has just about enough of them back there to bring Ezekiel 38 & 39 into focus. All through the centuries while they were in dispersion, the Jews would celebrate the day of atonement with a certain ritual that would always include these words, “Next year in Jerusalem,” but it has taken many centuries for that “NEXT YEAR” to arrive, and I imagine many of them gave up hope, but those who have held that hope surely must be excited in these days. Naturally we do not know exactly what it will take to get that Moslem mosque off of their sacrificial rock, but we do know that very soon, something will. Hallelujah! Those that first returned to the land, have had to fight to hold it, for those Arabs were determined to drive them into the sea, but those Arabs have discovered that they do not have what it would take to do that. That is why Russia will get her chance, no Arab nation is strong enough to attempt such a thing, without Russia leading the way. I will just say this, they are all in for a great surprise, simply because they have not read, or believed what God had His prophets write concerning that land and those people for these last days.

ENEMIES TREMBLE

Let us go back to Micah 7:15-17 for just a moment. Notice now, “According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I shew unto him (Israel) marvelous things.” Naturally that is comparing what God would do for Israel in the last days with what He did for them at the Red sea, and at Jericho, and so forth. Notice this 16 verse, the affect it will have upon the nations, the Gentiles. “The nations shall see and th be confounded at their might; they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf.” I know you have seen people slap their hand over their mouth in moments of great surprise, and at times when they were observing something they could hardly believe. It has already happened in Israel’s 1967 war that only lasted 6 days, and it is going to happen again when this next one is fought. 17 “They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth: they shall BE AFRAID OF THE LORD OUR GOD, and shall fear because of thee.” That is Israel’s defense, “They shall be afraid of the Lord our God.” You will remember how Joshua sent two spies to view conditions at Jericho, and how an harlot named Rahab hid them from the king’s men that came looking for them. In Joshua 2:8, let us notice what she said to them. “And before they were lain down, she came up unto them upon the roof; and she said unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land, (It is too bad some more people of our day do not realize that, it would save them a lot of fretting and fussing) and that your TERROR IS FALLEN UPON US, AND THAT ALL THE INHABITANTS OF THE LAND FAINT (or tremble) BECAUSE OF YOU. For we have HEARD how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side of Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed, and as soon as we heard these things our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the Lord your God, he is God in Heaven above, and in earth beneath.” This is the affect the Red Sea incident had on those that heard of it, and God caused Micah to write, that it would be like that again in the last days, so you can see why leaders of the nations of the world will rush together, and work out some kind of peace plan; they will be scared half to death, after witnessing what takes place in Israel. Russia will no longer be a thread to any of them, but their hearts will be trembling because they have been made to realize how quickly this old world could be destroyed, if they do not get everyone settled down, and get their fingers off of those nuclear panic buttons. Their peace plan will quiet things for a few years, while a lot of them think Armageddon has already been fought, but sad to say, for all who are not ready to meet God in judgment, Armageddon will be just a few years away, and Israel will once again have dead bodies lying everywhere. 27 That is when the valley of Jezreel will have blood running to the horses bridles. This is where God’s wine press is pictured: on ly the wine will be blood. Brothers and sisters, it is all, right here in the book. We do not have to imagine, nor guess about what all this Middle East turmoil will lead to. Therefore I would only say to believers, be sure you keep your head on straight as the pressure mounts, and keep your trust in God. To anyone else I will say this, Your time left to get right with God is very short now. He will not wait another hundred years. May the Lord be magnified in His true people in these days. Amen.