Ezekiel 39 - Bible Study, Explanation, and Application
Ezekiel 39 Bible Study
TIMELINE:
A specific date is not provided for the prophecy in chapter 39.
Below is a list of kings of Judah and dates for their reign:
Amon (642-640 BC)
Josiah (640-609 BC)
Jehoahaz (also known as Shallum, 609 BC)
Jehoiakim (initially known as Eliakim, 609-598 BC)
Jehoiachin (also known as Jeconiah or Coniah, 598-597 BC)
Zedekiah (His reign ended when Babylon conquered Judah, (597-586 BC)
WHAT WE STUDIED PREVIOUSLY
Ezekiel 1 – Ezekiel had a vision of 4 living creatures, 4 wheels, and God’s throne.
Ezekiel 2 – God commissioned Ezekiel to be a prophet to his rebellious countrymen.
Ezekiel 3 – The end of the heavenly vision. Ezekiel ate a scroll of God’s words, and God called him to be a watchman over the people of Judah.
Ezekiel 4 – Ezekiel prophesies with an object lesson in the street by laying on his side for 430 days, eating rations of bread, and creating a siege scene with a brick that represents Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 5 – After the 430 days, Ezekiel cut off his hair divided it up into 3 parts and used it as a symbol for what would happen to the people of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 6 – Ezekiel prophesies against the idol worshipers in Judah, telling them their bodies will be thrown at the feet of their powerless gods.
Ezekiel 7 – God spoke to Ezekiel about the day of His judgement. The end was near for the citizens of Jerusalem, and their doom was on the horizon.
Ezekiel 8 – Ezekiel saw a vision of the Temple in Jerusalem. God guided him through the courts and gates of the Temple and showed him the secret idolatries that filled God’s house.
Ezekiel 9 – God sends a man with a writing case to mark the foreheads of those who hated the idolatries of Judah. Afterwards, God sends 6 executioners to kill everyone in Jerusalem who didn’t have the mark.
Ezekiel 10 – God’s glory departed the inner sanctuary of the Temple and ascended to His throne carried by the 4 living creatures.
Ezekiel 11 – God announced judgement on the wicked rulers of Judah. They thought they were safe in Jerusalem, like meat in a cauldron, but God promised to bring them out for death and captivity. At the end of the chapter, God spoke of a future day, when He would regather a remnant of His people and give them a new heart and new spirit.
Ezekiel 12 – Ezekiel prophesied about the downfall of King Zedekiah by carrying his possessions out of his house as if he were going into exile. God promised that His judgement was near, and anyone who suggested otherwise would be put to shame.
Ezekiel 13 – God confronted the false prophets and sorceresses amongst the people of Judah. The false prophets falsely claimed to speak with the authority of God, and the sorceresses hunted the souls of God’s people through witchcraft and divination.
Ezekiel 14 – God condemned the elders of Judah who harbored love for idols in their hearts. He told Ezekiel Jerusalem would not be spared even if righteous men like Noah, Daniel, and Job lived there.
Ezekiel 15 – God compared the citizens of Jerusalem to useless vine wood that was good for nothing except to burn.
Ezekiel 16 – God compared his people to a young woman who he had raised and cared for. When she grew up, she turned her back on God and prostituted herself with foreign nations and idols.
Ezekiel 17 – Ezekiel spoke a parable to the people of Judah about two great eagles. The parable indicated that the King of Judah would betray Babylon and be uprooted by them.
Ezekiel 18 – The people of Judah were accusing God of punishing them for the sins of their ancestors. God clarified that each man was responsible and would be held accountable only for his own sins.
Ezekiel 19 – God lamented the unfaithfulness of His people through two laments, the lament of the lion cubs and the lament of the vine.
Ezekiel 20 - The elders of Israel wanted to consult with God, but God refused them based on their continual and cyclical rebellion against His laws. God spoke of His future judgement on Judah and His future grace that would restore the nation.
Ezekiel 21 – Ezekiel spoke of the sword of the Lord that God had sharpened to punish Judah. The king of Babylon stood at a fork in the road, and God was going to direct him and his army to Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 22 – God condemned Judah for a litany of sins and their total neglect of any attempt to keep His commands. He told them He would melt them down like metal within the furnace of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 23 – God illustrated the unfaithfulness of Israel and Judah with a story about two sisters, Oholah and Oholibah.
Ezekiel 24 – God compared Jerusalem to a corroded pot that would be emptied and melted down. In the second half of the chapter, Ezekiel’s wife died, and God instructed him not to mourn for her publicly as a sign of the fate of the citizens of Jerusalem and their beloved city.
Ezekiel 25 – God prophesied against Ammon, Edom, Seir, Moab, and the Philistines.
Ezekiel 26 - God prophesied against the city of Tyre. God was going to judge them by bringing the nations against them and destroying them. Babylon would attack first, followed by the Greeks under the command of Alexander the Great (332 BC).
Ezekiel 27 – God described the downfall of the city of Tyre. His judgement on them was going to take them from the mountain of wealth, power, and influence, down to obscurity in the depth of the sea, never to rise again.
Ezekiel 28 - God rebuked the king of Tyre, because in his pride, he elevated himself to the status of a God. Some believe the language is comparing the downfall of Tyre’s king to the fall of Satan. God promised to restore Judah, but Tyre would never be restored.
Ezekiel 29 - A prophecy against Egypt and the pride of Pharaoh. Pharaoh was like a dragon in the Nile, but God would draw him out with a hook and cast him into the desert. God would humble Egypt to a lowly nation and give them over to the Babylonians.
Ezekiel 30 - A prophecy against Egypt. The day of the Lord’s judgement would be a day of doom for Egypt. God would bring the nations against Egypt to crush their pride, throw down their idols, take their wealth, and diminish their nation. God said He had broken pharaoh’s arm so he could not take up a sword to defend his nation.
Ezekiel 31 - God warned Egypt by reminding them of the fate of the Assyrian Empire. Assyria was like a mighty ceder, tall and formidable. But when they grew proud, God chopped them down. God told Pharaoh He would do the same to Egypt.
Ezekiel 32 - Pharaoh, like a dragon in the sea, would be caught in God’s net and thrown into the desert to die. The inhabitants of Egypt would be sent down to Sheol with the Assyrians and all the evil nations who went before her.
Ezekiel 33 - Ezekiel was reminded of his role as a watchman. God invited the people of Judah to choose life, because He had no pleasure in the death of the wicked. The people accused God of being unjust. God said He would judge each according to their deeds. A fugitive from Jerusalem came to Ezekiel and informed him of the fall of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 34 – God rebuked the bad shepherds of Israel for neglecting his flock and scattering them among the nations. The Lord promised to send His “servant David” as a better shepherd.
Ezekiel 35 - A prophecy against Mount Seir (Edom). God was going to judge Seir because they encouraged and relished in the slaughter of the people of Judah. God’s anger was going to make Sier a desolate and uninhabited place.
Ezekiel 36 - God promised a future restoration for the land and people of Judah. He would restore them, not because they were righteous, but in order to vindicate His great name in the eyes of the nations. God would give His people a new heart and spirit to follow His commands.
Ezekiel 37 - Ezekiel saw a vision of a valley of dry bones. God’s Spirit put flesh on the bones and brought them back to life. It was a symbol of the new life God would give to Judah when He restored them. God revealed to Ezekiel that one day He planned to unify the nations of Israel and Judah again under the reign of His servant David (Jesus).
Ezekiel 38 - Prophecy against Gog, the king of Meshech and Tubal (in the far north). In the latter years, Gog would fight with the people of God, but God would destroy his army with an earthquake, a sword, pestilence, torrential rains, fire, hailstones, and sulfur.
OUTLINE:
THE BODIES OF GOG’S ARMY (39:1-21):
Ezekiel 39 is a continuation of the prophecy against Gog that began in Ezekiel 38.
Gog would attack the land of Israel. In one sense, he would be motivated by his evil intentions, but in a more ultimate sense, God would drive him to do it.
God said, “And I will turn you [Gog] about and drive you forward, and bring you up from the uttermost parts of the north, and lead you against the mountains of Israel” (39:2).
But after leading Gog to Israel, God would strike him and his army down, leaving their dead bodies strewn over the fields and mountains.
God also prophesied judgement on Gog’s kingdom. God would send fire to Magog and to the home of his allies.
With these actions, God would vindicate His name, and all the nations would recognize Him as the “Holy One of Israel.”
The leftovers of Gog’s army would be so immense that the people of Israel wouldn’t need to cut firewood for 7 years because they would burn the weapons of their enemies.
In order to cleanse the land, the Israelites would bury the bodies of their enemies for 7 months in a place called Hamon-Gog.
God invited the wild animals and birds to feast on the bodies of Gog’s army. He called it a “sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel” (39:17).
“And you shall eat fat till you are filled, and drink blood till you are drunk, at the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you. And you shall be filled at my table with horses and charioteers, with mighty men and all kinds of warriors,’ declares the Lord GOD” (39:19-20).
RESTORATION FOR THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL (39:22-29):
It was no secret that Israel and Judah’s captivity was because of their sins. God wanted the nations to know that He “dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their transgressions.”
But when their judgement was complete, God wanted the nations to know that He would vindicate His name.
God would restore them to their land, and they would no longer act treacherously towards the Lord.
God would not turn away from them again after He poured His Spirit out on them.
BIBLE COMPREHENSION:
My current best explanation for the identity of Gog is that he is meant to be understood symbolically, not as a specific man, but as any future evil force that attacks God’s people.
When God’s people are filled with His Spirit, living securely under His protection, any wickedness, no matter how big or threatening, will be led to destruction by God, and ultimately buried in His graveyard.
Even hidden evils, unexpected dangers welding extraordinary power, like mysterious armies from the north, will pose no threat.
God’s name will be vindicated repeatedly as His enemies are buried. Their weapons will be turned into blessings for God’s people.
