Ezekiel 38

1 Yahweh gave me another message. He said to me,

And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying:

2 “You human, turn and face Magog, the country where Gog [is the king]. He is [also] the ruler of [the nations of] Meshech and Tubal. Prophesy about [the terrible things that will happen to] him,

'Son of man, set thy face unto Gog, of the land of Magog, prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy concerning him,

3 and say, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says: Gog, you who rule Meshech and Tubal, I am opposed to you.

and thou hast said: Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I [am] against thee, O Gog, Prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal,

4 [It will be as though] I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws and bring you [to Israel]—you and all of your army, [including your] horses and men carrying weapons who ride the horses, and many other soldiers carrying large shields and small shields, all of them carrying swords.

And I have turned thee back, And I have put hooks in thy jaws, And have brought thee out, and all thy force, Horses and horsemen, Clothed in perfection all of them, A numerous assembly, [with] buckler and shield, Handling swords — all of them.

5 [Armies from] Persia, Ethiopia, and Put/Libya will also come, all of them with shields and helmets.

Persia, Cush, and Phut, with them, All of them [with] shield and helmet.

6 An army from Gomer [north of Israel] will come, and an army from Togarmah far north [of Israel] will come. Armies of many nations will accompany you.’

Gomer and all its bands, The house of Togarmah of the sides of the north, And all its bands, many peoples with thee,

7 [Tell Gog, ] ‘Get ready and be prepared to be the commander of all those groups of soldiers.

Be prepared, yea, prepare for thee, Thou and all thine assemblies who are assembled unto thee, And thou hast been to them for a guard.

8 At some future time, I will command you to lead those armies to attack [Israel], a country whose [buildings] have been rebuilt after [they were destroyed in] wars. Their people will have been brought back from many nations [to live again] on the hills of Israel, which had been deserted for a long time. They had been brought back from [other] nations and will be living peacefully.

After many days thou art appointed, In the latter end of the years thou comest in unto a land brought back from sword, [A people] gathered out of many peoples, Upon mountains of Israel, That have been for a perpetual waste, And it from the peoples hath been brought out, And dwelt safely have all of them.

9 You and all those armies from many nations will go up to Israel, advancing like [SIM] a big storm. Your army will be like a huge cloud that covers the land.

And thou hast gone up — as wasting thou comest in, As a cloud to cover the land art thou, Thou and all thy bands, and many peoples with thee.

10 But this is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say: On that day, you will have an idea about [DOU] doing an evil thing.

Thus said the Lord Jehovah: And it hath come to pass in that day, Come up do things on thy heart, And thou hast thought an evil thought,

11 You will say [to yourself], “My [army] will invade a country where the villages do not have walls around them. We will attack people who are peaceful and do not suspect/think [that they will be attacked]. Their towns and villages do not have walls with gates and bars.

And thou hast said: I go up against a land of unwalled villages, I go in to those at rest, dwelling confidently, All of them are dwelling without walls, And bar and doors they have not.

12 So [it will be easy for] us to attack the people who are living again in those towns that were previously destroyed. They are people who have been gathered from many countries [where they had lived for many years], people who now live safely in their land with all their livestock and other possessions. They are living in the country that is in the middle of the most important countries (OR, [that they think is] [IRO] the most important country) in the world. Our soldiers will take away [DOU] all their valuable possessions.”

To take a spoil, and to take a prey, To turn back thy hand on inhabited wastes, And on a people gathered out of nations, Making cattle and substance, Dwelling on a high part of the land.

13 [Then people of] Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and nearby villages will come and say to you, “Are you gathering all your soldiers in order to [attack Israel and] take away all their silver and gold? [Do you plan] to take away their livestock and all their other valuable possessions [DOU]?”’

Sheba, and Dedan, and merchants of Tarshish, And all its young lions say to thee: To take a spoil art thou come in? To take a prey assembled thine assembly? To bear away silver and gold? To take away cattle and substance? To take a great spoil?

14 Therefore, you human, prophesy about Gog and say to him, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says: At that time, when my people of Israel are living safely, you will certainly think about that.

Therefore, prophesy, son of man, and thou hast said to Gog: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: In that day, in the dwelling of My people Israel safely, Dost thou not know?

15 So you will come from your place far north [of Israel], with the armies of many [other] nations, all riding horses, a huge army.

And thou hast come in out of thy place, From the sides of the north, Thou and many peoples with thee, Riding on horses — all of them, A great assembly, and a numerous force.

16 You will march toward my Israeli people, and [your soldiers] will cover the land like a huge cloud. Gog, I will bring your army to attack the country that belongs to me, but [what I do] for you will show the people of other nations that I am holy.

And thou hast come up against My people Israel, As a cloud to cover the land, In the latter end of the days it is, And I have brought thee in against My land, In order that the nations may know Me, In My being sanctified in thee before their eyes, O Gog.

17 This is what [I], Yahweh the Lord, say to Gog: In past years, when I gave messages to my servants, the prophets [in Israel], there were messages [RHQ] about you. At that time, they prophesied for [many] years that I would bring your [armies] to attack my people.

Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Art thou he of whom I spake in former days, By the hand of My servants, prophets of Israel, Who are prophesying in those days — years, To bring thee in against them?

18 [So] this is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say will happen: When your [army] attacks Israel, I will be very angry with you.

And it hath come to pass, in that day, In the day of the coming in of Gog against the land of Israel, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, Come up doth My fury in My face,

19 I will be very furious, and to show that I am angry, there will be a great earthquake in Israel, [where your armies will be].

And in My zeal, in the fire of My wrath, I have spoken: Is there not in that day a great rushing on the land of Israel?

20 The fish in the sea, the birds, the wild animals, and the animals/creatures that crawl on the ground, and all the people on the earth will tremble because of what I [am doing]. Mountains will fall down, cliffs will crumble, and walls everywhere will fall to the ground.

And rushed from My presence have fishes of the sea, And the fowl of the heavens, And the beast of the field, And every creeping thing that is creeping on the ground, And all men who [are] on the face of the ground, And thrown down have been the mountains, And fallen have the ascents, And every wall to the earth falleth.

21 Gog, on all the mountains in the country that belongs to me I will cause your soldiers to fight against each other with their swords.

And I have called against him, to all My mountains a sword, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah, The sword of each is against his brother.

22 I will punish [MTY] you [and your soldiers] with plagues and murders [MTY]. And I will send down [from the sky], on you and your troops that have come from many nations, huge amounts of rain and hail and burning sulfur.

And I have been judged with him, With pestilence and with blood, And an overflowing rain and hailstones, Fire and brimstone I rain on him, and on his bands, And on many peoples who [are] with him.

23 By doing that, I will cause [the people of] many nations to know that I am very great and holy, and they will know that I, Yahweh, [have the power to do the things that I say that I will do].’”

And I have magnified Myself, and sanctified Myself, And I have been known before the eyes of many nations, And they have known that I [am] Jehovah!