Simeon Western
The Rise of Russia Part 4
Over several articles we have been considering the prophecy of Ezekiel 38-39 and the Russian-Muslim coalition that will come against Israel in the first half of the tribulation period. We could ask ourselves the question, “What is Gog’s (Russia’s) primary motivation in this battle? God unmasks the evil heart motivations of Gog and his allies for coming against Israel. Ezekiel 38:10-11 “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, To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land.” From these verses we see that Russia and her allies will be motivated by a desire to exploit:
- The Weakness of Israel (Vs. 10-11). Israel is described as being without walls, bars and gates. In Ezekiel’s day a city’s gates and walls were there for defense and protection against invaders. So, this is a description of a nation that has given up its defenses. This certainly does not describe Israel at the present time which bristles with defensive and offensive capabilities. But in the future, Israel will disarm and it is highly likely she will do so as a part of her peace deal with the antichrist. Israel will trade her arms for peace. There is also a complacency and a false sense of security in Israel at this time – “go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely”. Russia and its allies will seek to exploit this vulnerability to their own greedy and murderous advantage.
- The Wealth of Israel (Vs. 12). The underlying desire of Russia will be to rob the land of its resources and the people of their wealth. Note the words ‘spoil’ and ‘prey’. There is an interesting reference to them turning their hand to “the desolate places that are now inhabited.” This is an exact description of what Israel has done and is doing within the land of Israel. Israel has masterfully transformed desolate places in Israel into habitable, productive areas. I had the privilege of doing a two-week tour of Israel in February this year and was amazed at the Israeli agriculture. They have greened the land in such a beautiful way. There are beautiful, tall gum trees in many places, so much so, you could think you are in Australia in some places! Our tour guide said the Australian gum trees were very useful to Israel for draining the Malaria swamps. Every bit of useable land is sown with crops and orchards. One article notes, “Desert agriculture in Israel is one of the country’s greatest successes, and something at which Israel leads the world. The Negev Desert which covers over 60% of the country has actually shrunk in size over the past century as agricultural activity has turned sand into green fields, the opposite to the desertification trend which much of the rest of the world is battling to prevent. Even in the depths of Israel’s Negev Desert are gems of agriculture amid the harsh, dry conditions, and relatively mineral-deprived sandy soil.” (https://www.ecoisraeltours.com/desert-farming/ Viewed 18/3/22.) Of particular interest to Russia is Israel’s development of the Leviathan gas fields off the coast of Haifa in the Mediterranean Sea. There is an estimated 16 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in the Leviathan field. (http://www.cronustec.com/projects/shallow/Leviathan%20Gas%20Field/details.php – Viewed 18/3/22.) According to the Times of Israel, “Leviathan, discovered 130 kilometres (81 miles) west of the Mediterranean port city Haifa in 2010, is estimated to hold 535 billion cubic meters (18.9 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas, along with 34.1 million barrels of condensate.” (https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-to-build-new-natural-gas-pipeline-from-its-offshore-rig-direct-to-egypt/ – Viewed 18/3/22.) This gives Israel the potential to become a major competitor to Russian gas into markets like Europe. Currently, Europe is very dependent on Russian gas. This gives Russia a huge amount of leverage over Europe and highlights the total foolishness of Europe bowing to the religion of climate change. Europe has bankrupted herself of reliable energy by pursuing its vain green dream and at the same time has foolishly enriched Putin’s coffers by purchasing Russian gas to keep the lights on. If Israel was to become a major competitor in gas, that could easily provoke the Russian bear! Could this end up being part of the catalyst for Russia’s invasion of Israel?
Interestingly there are certain nations which will protest this Russian lead invasion. Ezekiel 38:13 “Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?”
- Sheba and Dedan refers to modern Saudi Arabia and probably other Arab peoples allied with Israel.
- Tarshish is “generally identified with the lands of the far west of Europe, including perhaps a part of Spain but very definitely Great Britain. It was from Tarshish of old that the Phoenicians obtained tin, and the word Britannia means “the land of tin”.” (H.A. Ironside)
- Young lions of Tarshish are the nations are the offspring of Tarshish. If we are correct in identifying Tarshish with Great Britain, the “young lions” (offspring) would refer to the British colonies such as Australia, America and Canada
You will notice that while a protest is made against the invasion, there is no direct intervention by these countries to try and stop the Russians and their allies. We see a somewhat similar situation playing out with the conflict in Ukraine at present. The Western allies condemn Russia’s aggression with rhetoric but they are afraid of entering into any direct confrontation with Russia. In this end times offensive against Israel, the West and her allies will condemn the Russian/Islamic invasion with political words and rhetoric but will be powerless to try and stop it.
Israel will need intervention from a much greater power than her Western allies and she will get just that. Her help will come from Heaven itself! God intervenes supernaturally against the invaders in judgment. Refer to Ezekiel 38:18-23 and note the following:
- The Passion of God Described (Vs. 18-19a). Gog’s invasion of Israel will provoke the white heat of God’s righteous wrath. The word ‘fury’ literally means ‘heat’. God’s anger will wax hot against the invaders and righteous vengeance will be unleashed against these nations with their long and bitter history of persecution of God’s chosen people. The expression, “my fury shall come up in my face,” when used of men conveys the idea that a man’s anger can be seen in his face. In the case of Jehovah the evidence of His anger is in the severity of His actions and that the events come about by His sovereign power. The jealousy of God tells of His Holy zeal concerning His people Israel.” (D. Stevely)
- The Plagues of God Detailed (Vs. 19b-22) The actions of God’s fury are described in these verses. God will use a combination of natural disasters and Gog’s army turning against itself to bring about this destruction. Only one-sixth of the soldiers will survive (Ez. 39:2). There will be:
➢ The Shaking of the World (earthquake) (Vs. 19b-20). Israel will be at the epicentre of this earthquake but it will be so great, the shock waves will be felt throughout the globe. Why? Because God’s purpose in this supernatural intervention is that the world know He is God (Vs. 23). The animal kingdom and earth’s inhabitants will shake at God’s presence (Vs. 20). The magnitude of this earthquake is seen in the fact the mountains will be thrown down, the steep places will fall and every wall will fall to the ground (Vs. 20c). The world will know that something BIG is happening in Israel and that God has supernaturally intervened!
➢ The Slaughtering of the army (Vs. 21). God will employ a method He has used before in defence of His people and cause Gog’s army to turn against itself. God did something similar with a battle between Israel and the Midianites (Judges 7:22 – “and the LORD set every man’s sword against his fellow”) and Saul against the Philistines (1 Sam. 14:20). God will also send ‘pestilence’ (Vs. 22a) and “an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone” upon Russia and her coalition. - The Purpose of God Declared (Vs. 23). What is God’s grand purpose in all of this? Here’s the answer. “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.” (Vs. 23) Through these events, the world will know that there is an Almighty God on the throne in heaven!
