The fall of the Assad Regime in Syria is a key event in the Battle of Ezekiel 38

Image: Syria News, NDTV

According to Ezekiel’s prophecy in chapter 38, in the last days before the beginning of the Tribulation Period, a great battle will ensue between Russia, China, and several other nations—against Israel and the Jews.

Ezekiel writes that one of the reasons for the attack by Russia from the North will be to secure a warm water port. Before the fall of Assad in Syria, Russia had this warm water port. The loss of the Assad Rule in Syria has deprived Russia of this key strategic ability to possess a warm water port for several essential operations.

With the new Presidency of Donald Trump beginning in January 2025, we wonder about the many changes that will take place all over the world. One of these principle transitions is likely a renewal of American Military Power and Presence to stifle and subdue evil regimes globally. Even before Trump takes office on January 20, 2025, he is meeting with key leaders of nations to position the United States as a force to be reckoned with.

Whatever our view of Trump as a man, his ability to display immense power and might in the world has been proven during his former presidency. Leaders of nations respect Trump as a president who will act decisively to prevent malevolent forces from spreading terrorism and the instability of key nations.

When we examine the prophecy of Ezekiel 38, we see that the God of the Bible recorded through Ezekiel the specific events that will take place, either just before or just after the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation Period described by Jesus and Daniel in the Old Testament.

The prophet Ezekiel was given a view of events that would take place during the days we now live. A final battle will take place, either just before Jesus returns for His church (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) or immediately after.

Almost 2,600 years ago, God told Ezekiel the timing for events that are now taking place in the world. When Ezekiel wrote, Israel and the Jews had lost their nation as they fell away from the Lord and began to worship and serve other gods. The Jews lost their nation and were dispersed throughout the world.

At the end of Ezekiel’s prophecies, beginning in chapter 36, God promises Israel that in the Last Days, He would bring them back into their own land again—just before Messiah comes again to the earth—to establish His kingdom on earth for one thousand years.

• In 1948, in just a single day, Israel became a nation again. According to Ezekiel 36, God would draw the Jews back into their own land again.[1]
• In Ezekiel 37, God promises Israel that it will become a fruitful land. Today, Israel is one of the world’s top producers of fruit, vegetables, and flowers.
• In Ezekiel 38, God reveals that just before the final seventieth week of Daniel chapter 9:27 prophecy, nations to the distant north, Russia, Iran, Libya, and others, will come against Israel to take their natural resources.

When this war begins, the world should take notice because the final events that were determined for our present world will be set into motion.

We Are At This Point Right Now.

This battle is extremely important as it is the precursor to the removal of Jesus’ church from the earth—just before the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation. According to 2 Thessalonians 2, the antichrist, the beast, the world ruler who will come at the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation, cannot make his entrance until Jesus’ church is removed from the earth. Paul called the church “that which hinders, that is taken out of the way.” The Holy Spirit, working through the Church, has restrained the beast from making his entrance.

2 Thessalonians 2:1-8 “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.

5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.”

2 Thessalonians 2:1-8 begins with the context of what Paul had described before The timing of Jesus coming for His church and the beginning of the Tribulation. “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him.” This is what Paul has described previously in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, the Harpazo or Rapture, of Jesus’ church.

Having clarified why Paul is writing these words: to clarify the events that will take place after Jesus’ church is removed from the earth, Paul moves on to the events that will commence just before the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation:

2 Thessalonians 2:2-4: “We ask you, 2 not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. 3 Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

1. The day of Christ is the day when Jesus will return to earth with His church, as described in Revelation chapter 19.
2. That day will not happen unless a “falling away” happens first. The Greek word “apostasia.” As the time of the seven-year Tribulation approaches, people who formerly claimed that they were a Christian, a follower of Jesus, will fall away from Him. We have seen this mass exodus take place in the past 10 years. All of the pretend believers in Jesus have departed from Him in preparation for the removal of Jesus’ church and the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation.
3. When the apostasy takes place, this is a signal to the world that the Tribulation is very near.
4. The removal of Jesus’ church, as described by 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, will permit the antichrist to make his entrance.

• The Rapture: Jesus, Coming For His Church
• Jesus Is Coming To Establish A Kingdom
• See The Essays On Israel In The Last Days

Then Paul tells us that it was Jesus’ church and the Holy Spirit working through us that prevented the antichrist from showing himself to the world.

2 Thessalonians 2:5-8: “Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.”

What Are The Events That Will Take Place Before The Church Is Removed?

For nearly 50 years in studying the prophetic events of the Last Days, I have always been puzzled by the prophecy of Daniel 9:27, that the antichrist will make his entrance into the world by the initiation of a peace plan, or covenant, for seven years. How could a peace plan be initiated by the antichrist while Israel was living in relative peace in their land?

Of course, the answer is that he could not. For the antichrist to have the opportunity to institute a peace plan that will cause the Jews to receive him as their Messiah, there must be an urgent need. This present war with Hamas and Hezbollah, instituted by Iran, is the reason the antichrist will come now to broker a peace plan.

If you ask the orthodox Jews in Israel today how they will recognize their Messiah when He comes, they will tell you that He will do two things:

1. Make peace for the Jews and the surrounding nations.
2. Allow the Jews to rebuild their third Temple on the Temple Mount.

These are the precise things that Daniel 9 and Revelation 11 say the antichrist will do for the Jews when he comes to Israel. The peace that the antichrist will make for Israel and the Jews—requires the exact type of war that we now see in Israel—with Russia, China, and Iran coming against Israel to obliterate the Jews. The antichrist will likely come on the scene just after God destroys the armies of Russia, China, Iran, and those listed in Ezekiel 38 to make peace between the Jews and all the nations who sought her destruction.

Daniel 9:27: “Then he (the antichrist) shall confirm a covenant with many (nations) for one week (7 years), but in the middle of the week he (antichrist) shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. And on the wing of abominations shall be one who makes desolate (the image to be worshipped in the Holy Place), even until the consummation, which is determined, Is poured out on the desolate.”

The Jews will accept the antichrist as their Messiah until the mid-point of the seven-year Tribulation when a statue of this beast will be erected in the Holy Place of the new Temple. A command will be issued that all the world must worship the beast, the antichrist.

Jesus said to the Jews who were living in Jerusalem during the time He was there that when they see the “Abomination of Desolation” (command to worship the image of the beast) spoken of by Daniel the prophet, they should flee Jerusalem for the mountains immediately.

Matthew 24:15-18: “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), 16 “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 17 Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. 18 And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.”

Before Antichrist Is Revealed, Jesus Will Come For His Church

Does The Bible Teach a Rapture Before the Tribulation?

Jesus Predicted The Seven Year Tribulation:

Matthew 24:21-22: “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved.”

Paul Said That Everyone Who Trusts In Jesus—They Are Fully Ready For Heaven

Colossians 2:9-10: “For in Jesus dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

Jesus’ Church Does Not Need To Be Purified By The Tribulation To Be Ready For Heaven

1 Corinthians 6:11: “…washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, by the Spirit of our God.

Jesus Promised His Church That They Would Not Go Through The Tribulation

Revelation 3:10: “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”

The Tribulation is “The Wrath of the Lamb. Jesus Has Not Appointed His Church To Experience His Wrath In The Tribulation

Revelation 6:16-17:  “…hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can survive?”

1 Thessalonians 5:9-10: “For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

Jesus’ Church Is Not Waiting For The Appearance of the Antichrist, But For Jesus To Come For Us

1 Thessalonians 1:10: Paul said that we, who have placed our trust in Jesus, are to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

In these realities, we can see how important these present events taking place in Israel really are. If this is the precursor to the Battle of Ezekiel 38 and 39 and the introduction of the antichrist, then the Rapture is imminent and can happen at any moment.

In Jewish Eschatology, God and Magog are described as the enemies of the Messiah at the end of the age [3]

Many Scholars describe the nations of “Gog” as Russia and “the land of Magog” to include China. In several ancient writings, the Gog and Magog are described by the Mongol people (Mongolia) to be their distant ancestors. The descendants of Meshech and Tubal have also been described together throughout history.[4]

The Battle Of Ezekiel 38-39

Ezekiel 38 “Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal. 4 I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out, with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords. 5 Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all of them with shield and helmet; 6 Gomer and all its troops; the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops—many people are with you.

Ezekiel 38 describes an event of the Last Days in which ancient cities are described in current events. The names “Gog and Magog, Meshech, Tubal, Put, Cush, and Persia, are understood today as lands formerly known in the regions of the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. Rosh may be a designation for Russia. The Prince of Rosh could refer to the current ruler, Vladimir Putin. He will rule over Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal.

• Rosh: Russia;
• Meshech: Moscow;
• Tubal: Tobolsk.

This defines the nation that is the primary source of the invasion of Israel in the Last Days as Russia. Persia is the modern nation of Iran, threatening to enter the current war between Israel and Hamas. If we see Russia coming to join in this invading force, then it is certain that the prophecies of Ezekiel 38-39 are being fulfilled before our eyes.

ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2023, 8AM:  Russia entered the conflict with Israel. As of this morning, Russia is in negotiations with Hamas, further entering into the nations described by Ezekiel 38.

Other nations described as coming with Russia and Iran are Gomer and Beth Togarmah, as well as other allies of Russia (Gog): Persia (Iran), Cush (Ethiopia), and Put (Libya).

Ezekiel records the words of God in the Last Days that to finish the prophecies given to Daniel regarding Israel and the Jews, Russia will have a thought come into the mind of the Russian leader that he will come against Israel in the Later Days to take their natural resources. What event would cause this thought? Perhaps the current war between Hamas and Israel, with Iran entering in the next week, could cause this idea to form.

The prophecy of Ezekiel 38 states that it will be the Lord who puts “a hook into the jaw” of Russia and these other nations to draw them into the conflict. The purpose is to facilitate the final week of Daniel’s prophecy of 70 weeks. This event is the seven-year Tribulation. Before this event takes place, Jesus will come to the outer atmosphere of the earth and “catch away” all of those on earth who died loving Him and are alive, loving, and waiting for Him (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, 1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

Ezekiel 38:7-13 “Prepare yourself and be ready, you and all the companies that are gathered about you, and be a guard for them. 8 After many days you will be visited. In the latter years, you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely. 9 You will ascend, coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud, you and all your troops and many peoples with you.”

10 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “On that day it shall come to pass that thought will arise in your mind, and you will make an evil plan: 11 You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates’— 12 to take plunder and to take booty, to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited, and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and goods, who dwell amid the land. 13 Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, ‘Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?’ ” ’

It is important to notice that all of these final events are determined by the Lord. The evil intentions of men are also a factor in the events the Lord has determined. It is always the sovereignty of God and the evil acts of men that determine what takes place on earth. God determined what would happen—based on what He knew these nations would do in the Last Days.

v.10: “Thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will make a plan…”

Notice that these events, though known to the Lord, are the result of thoughts in the minds of these nations’ leaders north of Israel.

v.11: you will say, ‘I will go…”

Although God will put a hook into the jaw of these nations, His own sovereign acts, these men will say of their own minds, “I will go.”

v. 12: to take plunder…”

The purpose of the invasion by Russia and other nations was to acquire a warm water port and to take the natural resources of Israel.

v. 13: Sheb, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions…

Sheba and Dedan are the people of Saudi Arabia. The merchants of Tarshish are the nations instituted by Spain. The young lions of Tarshish are likely the United States, which was birthed out of Columbus and his expedition to the land that became America.

Saudi Arabia and the United States objected to the invasion. In previous years, many thought that the U.S. would take no military action when Russia came against Israel but simply objected. If this is the beginning of these events described by Ezekiel 38, then the former idea of no involvement is wrong. The United States is currently sending a massive military force to the coast of Israel. These Strike Groups are to stop Iran, Russia, and other nations from becoming involved.

Ezekiel 38:14-17 “Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “On that day when My people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it? 15 Then you will come from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. 16 You will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against My land so that the nations may know Me when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.” 17 Thus says the Lord GOD: “Are you he of whom I have spoken in former days by My servants, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied for years in those days that I would bring you against them?”

Out of the battle of Ezekiel 38, all of the world will know that the God of the Bible and the Jewish people are the central point of all these events of the Last Days. The prophecy of Daniel’s seventieth week, the seven-year Tribulation, is for Israel and the Jews. During this time, God will save “all Israel,” all those who can and will believe that Jesus is the One True Messiah that God sent.

The Key to All Bible Prophecy: Daniel Chapter 9

The Stunning Supernatural Destruction Of The Invading Russian and Iranian Forces By God

Judgment on Gog

Ezekiel 38:18 “And it will come to pass at the same time when Gog comes against the land of Israel,” says the Lord GOD, “that My fury will show in My face. 19 For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath I have spoken: Surely in that day, there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel, 20 so that the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things that creep on the earth, and all men who are on the face of the earth shall shake at My presence. The mountains shall be thrown down, the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.’ 21 I will call for a sword against Gog throughout all My mountains,” says the Lord GOD. “Every man’s sword will be against his brother. 22 And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. 23 Thus I will magnify Myself and sanctify Myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.” ’

v. 18: When Russia and Iran come against the nation of Israel, the God of the Bible states that He will intervene and “show My fury.”

v. 19: At the time of this battle and the intervention by the Lord, a great earthquake will take place in Israel.

v. 22: God will destroy the invading armies of Russia, Iran, and others by pestilence, bloodshed, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. This is very similar to what Yahweh did to the two cities of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19:24: “Then the LORD rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the LORD out of the heavens.”

The Battle of Ezekiel 38 and 39: This event takes place either just before or just after the Rapture and the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation. This will happen when Israel is dwelling in safety due to a new seven-year peace plan orchestrated by the antichrist at the beginning of the Tribulation.

“After many days, you will be visited. In the latter years, you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate; they were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely.” ~Ezekiel 38:8

For many years, the members of Islamic Jihad have stated that they are working to bring “the battle of all battles.” It appears that we may be on the verge of that battle here in October 2023. We wait to see what ensues as a result of this war between Israel and Iran.

The Battle of Gog and Magog Occurs at the end of the one-thousand-year reign of Jesus Christ on the earth, as satan is released from prison and goes out to deceive the nations.

“Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea.” ~Revelation 20:7-8

• The Battle of Ezekiel 38 and 39 occurs either just before or just after the Rapture, when a seven-year peace plan is signed by Israel and the surrounding nations.
• The Battle of Armageddon takes place seven years later, just after Jesus returns to earth.
• The Battle of Gog and Magog happens after the one-thousand-year reign of Jesus. This is according to Revelation chapter 20 (above).

There has been some confusion over the battle of Armageddon and the battle described in Ezekiel Chapters 38 and 39.

Armageddon and the Battle of Ezekiel 38 are different:

• In Ezekiel 38: Russia invades from the north.
• At Armageddon, the nations come from every direction.⁠ ~Revelation 19:17-19, Daniel 11:44
• In Ezekiel 38: Russia invades to take Israel’s wealth.
• At Armageddon: The invasion is to destroy Jesus and His saints.⁠ ~Revelation 19:19
• In Ezekiel 38, Gog leads the Russian invasion.
• At Armageddon: The antichrist leads the Battle.⁠ ~~Revelation 19:19

Jesus will fulfill this Old Testament Prophecy by His return to the earth with His church at the end of the seven-year Tribulation period. He is coming for the second time as King of kings and Lord of lords.

After the Battle of Ezekiel 38, the antichrist made his entrance into the world scene and proposed a peace plan for seven years between Israel and the surrounding nations who came to fight her.

An Excerpt From “The Book of Revelation Verse by Verse Commentary:”

According to the timeline of the last days, the final seven years of this present world will begin with a peace treaty between Israel and the surrounding nations. During the last 42 months or 3 1/2 years, Jerusalem will be trodden underfoot. When John saw the third Temple rebuilt on the existing Temple Mount, he was told not to measure the area outside the Temple because it belonged to the Gentiles.

Revelation 11:1-2

“Then I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months.”

So far, we have learned that the area outside of the third Temple is the Dome of the Rock. During the first 42 months of the Tribulation, the Jews will worship alongside the Arab people in peace.

Interestingly, all of the final preparations for this third Temple are now underway. There is currently a Yeshiva school to train the young men in the priesthood in Israel. These institutions teach young men how to sacrifice the animals that are required during the sacrifice for sins at the Temple, as commanded by the Hebrew scriptures. The Red Heifer is one of the items required for the purification of all of the articles in the Temple. Only in recent years has there been a Red Heifer found that meets the requirements of the Temple sacrifices according to Numbers 19:2-7.

What The Rapture And Beginning Of The Tribulation Will Mean For People Left On Earth

See Rob’s In-Depth Commentary on the Book of Revelation—describing all of these current events we see in the world today:

This is a developing story that will be updated as more information becomes available

Categories: Building the Third Temple, Evidence: The Last Days, Fulfilling Daniel's Chapter 9, God's Sovereignty, How Salvation Occurs, Israel and Iran, Israel in the Last Days, Jesus is the Messiah, Messianic Prophecies, Messianic Prophecy Bible, New Testament Apologetics, No man knows the day or the hour, One Way to Heaven, Prophecy, Rapture during Rosh Hashanah, Religion vs. Relationship, Robert Clifton Robinson, Rosh Hashanah and the Rapture, Salvation through Jesus, Sin and death, The Anti-Christ, The Battle of Armageddon, The Book of Revelation Commentary, The Last Days, The Rapture of the Church, The Rapture: Jesus Coming For His Church, The Seven Year Tribulation, The Sound of a Trumpet, The Time and Season of Jesus Return, The Tribulation Period, The Wrath of God, Thousand Year Kingdom

Tags: Battle of Armageddon, Battle of Gog and Magog, Ezekiel 38, Rapture before Tribulation, The beginning of the Tribulation, The Tribulation