Episode 208: Gog and Magog

Ezekiel 38-48

I'm against you, Gog

38 ¹ The word of God came to me and said,

² Son of man, prophesy against Gog in the land of Magog, saying,

³ I'm against you, Gog.

^4-8 I'll put hooks in your jaws and force your large army to attack Israel.

A great shaking

^14-18 So, son of man, prophesy and say to Gog,

This is what God says,

When you attack Israel from the north, my fury, jealousy, and wrath will be satisfied.

¹⁹ And there will be a great shaking.

²⁰ Every fish in the sea, every beast and creeping thing, and every human on earth will shake at my presence. Every wall and mountain will fall down.

²¹ I'll summon everyone in the the world to fight against Gog and against each other.

²² I'll send blood and pestilences, with great hail, fire, and brimstone.

²³ This way I'll make myself big and holy. And everyone will know that I am God.

Eat flesh and drink blood

39 ¹ God said:

Son of man, prophesy against Gog, saying,

This is what God says,

I am against you, Gog.

⁴ I'll feed you to the birds and beasts.

⁶ I'll set a fire on Magog.

⁷ I'll make my holy name known.

⁹ Israel will burn the weapons. And the fire will burn for seven years.

¹⁰ And they'll kill and rob those who killed and robbed them.

¹¹ Gog and his army will be buried in the valley of Hamongog.

¹² It'll take Israel seven months to bury all their dead bodies.

¹³ On that day, I'll be glorified.

¹⁵ If anyone sees a bone on the ground, it'll be buried in the valley of Hamongog.

¹⁷ Say this to all the fowls and beasts,

This is God's sacrifice for you. Come eat flesh and drink blood.

¹⁸ Eat the flesh of the mighty and drink the blood of princes.

^19-20 Eat fat until you're full, and drink blood until you're drunk, of the sacrifice that I've sacrificed for you. Get a full meal at my table.

²² From that day forward, everyone in Israel will know that I'm God.

²³ The heathen will know that I hid my face from the Israelites because they disobeyed me. So I had them all killed with the sword.

²⁴ They were unclean. So I hid my face from them and did to them what they deserved.

²⁵ But now I'll bring them out of captivity and be jealous for my holy name.

²⁸ And they'll know that I'm God.

The brass man's measurements

40 ^1-2 In the twentieth year of our captivity, God's hand brought me to Israel and set me on a high mountain.

³ And there was a man who looked like he was made of brass, with a line of flax and a measuring reed in his hand.

⁵ The measuring reed was six cubits long. The building was a reed tall and a reed wide.

^6-49 He measured everything in and around the building with his reed.

41 More measurements 1-26

42 Even more measurements 1-20

43 The law of the house 1-12

Altar measurements 13-17

God's instructions for burnt offerings 18-27

Shut the gate

44 ¹ Then the brass man brought me back to the gate, which was shut.

² God said to me,

The gate will be shut. No one will open it because I went through it.

³ It's for the prince, who will sit and eat bread in front of me. He'll enter and leave through the porch gate.

No uncircumcised hearts

⁵ God said to me,

⁶ Say this to the people of Israel:

⁷ You've brought people with uncircumcised hearts and flesh into my house to pollute it, offering me fat and blood. You've broken my covenant with all your abominations.

⁹ No stranger, who has an uncircumcised heart, may enter my sanctuary.

Rules for priests 15-31

God's holy portion

45 ¹ God continues his instructions:

When you divide the land, set aside a portion for me.

My holy portion will be 25,000 by 10,000 reeds.

Some good rules

⁸ Don't oppress people.

⁹ Avoid violence. Be just.

¹⁰ Don't cheat.

God's measuring system 11-12

Animal sacrifices 13-25

46 More animal sacrifices 1-24

Wade in the water

47 ¹ Then the brass man brought me to the door of the house, where I saw water flowing under the door.

³ He measured the stream to be 1000 cubits long, and told me to wade through the water, which was ankle-deep.

⁴ He measured the stream again, and again it was 1000 cubits. This time, though, the water was up to my loins.

⁵ He measured it again, but the water was too deep to cross.

⁸ He said to me,

These waters go to the sea and will be healed.

¹¹ But the marshes will not be healed. They'll be salty.

God divides the land 13-23

48 God finishes dividing the land 1-35