Ezekiel 39:17

Ezekiel 39:17 says, And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.  God told Ezekiel that he was to command the fowl of the air and the beasts of the field that they were to feast on the slain presented by God like a sacrifice or gift to them.  Before they were buried, those slain would be food for the animals.  Once more, it really doesn’t matter what happens to our body after we die but only matters where our soul will live forever.  

Verse eighteen adds, Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan.  God said that the flesh of the mighty and blood of the princes would be of no more value than the flesh of the rams, goats, lambs, and bullocks that had died, which Matthew Henry says refers to the rich men who had grown fat by abusing the people of Israel.  It is not our body that separates us from other animals but our soul.  

Verse nineteen continues, And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.  God said that these beasts and foul of prey were to eat and drink until they were drunk.  God gave mankind the responsibility of caring for the animals, and even if we fail to do so, God will still provide for them.  

Verse twenty states, Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord God.  God said that these fowl and beasts of prey would be filled at His table.  Matthew Henry says that God keeps a table for His animals and provides for them.  Though animals will never be equal to people, they are still an important part of God’s creation, and I believe that we as followers of Christ are never to abuse them.  

Verse twenty-one adds, And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them.  God said that the heathen would see His judgment on those who fought against His people.  They would understand that it was God Who brought about the destruction of Gog.  Ultimately, it is God Who will bring about the destruction of all who fight against His people, those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.  

Verse twenty-two continues, So the house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God from that day and forward.   God said this was going to happen so that the house of Israel would know that He is God.  Today, when we look by faith to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, we will know that God is the only God.

Ezekiel 39:11

Ezekiel 39:11 says, And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place there of graves in Israel, the valley of the passengers on the east of the sea: and it shall stop the noses of the passengers: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude: and they shall call it The valley of Hamongog.  God said that the people of Gog would be destroyed in the valley of the passengers on the east side and would send up a great stench because they would not be buried.   Matthew Henry says this was between Egypt and Chaldea where many people passed through, and that they would have to hold their noses as they did.  Of course, the greater fact was that their souls would be in the stench of hell.  What happens to our body once we die is of little importance.  It is our soul’s destination that matters.

Verse twelve adds, And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.  God said that the number of dead would be so great that it would take the people of Israel seven months to bury them.  This would then help purify the land.  We as followers of Christ should bury our own sins so that they no longer are a stench to the world or God.  

Verse thirteen continues, Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord God.  God said that the people of Israel would bury the slain people of Gog, but they would do it so that He would be glorified.  Whatever we do as Christians should be done so that God may be glorified.  

Verse fourteen states, And they shall sever out men of continual employment, passing through the land to bury with the passengers those that remain upon the face of the earth, to cleanse it: after the end of seven months shall they search.  God said that the people of Israel assigned to bury these men would go throughout the land searching for those who had died.  God will always call on His people to reach out to the spiritually dead and if they accept His gift of salvation, their old self will be dead and should be buried spiritually.  

Verse fifteen adds, And the passengers that pass through the land, when any seeth a man's bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamongog.  God said those that passed through this area were to help in the burying of the dead by marking places where they found bones that needed to be buried.  We are all just passing through this world, and we should do all that we can to bury sin, and at times, even those who aren’t Cristians point out some of the things that need to be buried.  

Verse sixteen continues, And also the name of the city shall be Hamonah. Thus shall they cleanse the land.  After the dead were buried, the city there would be known as Hamonah which signified that the land had been cleansed.  As followers of Christ, we should be called people who have helped bury sin in the world so that God might be glorified.  

Ezekiel 39:8

 Ezekiel 39:8 says, Behold, it is come, and it is done, saith the Lord God; this is the day whereof I have spoken.  God said the day that He had spoken of had come, though we know that this refers to the latter days.  Time is of no importance to God, since He is eternal.  We may not live to see all of God’s prophecies come to pass, but we can be certain that they will.  

Verse nine adds, And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the handstaves, and the spears, and they shall burn them with fire seven years:  God said that when His prophecy came true that the people of Israel were to take all the weapons and burn them.  Matthew Henry said that they weren’t to burn them all at once, which would have been a waste, but were to use them for fuel for fires over a period of time and then be completely dependent on God for protection.  We have God’s commandment that we should beat our swords into plowshares and be totally dependent on Him for our protection.    

Veres ten continues, So that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall burn the weapons with fire: and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord God.   God said that during these seven years that the people of Israel were to depend on the weapons and spoils to provide fuel for their fires.  They weren't to cut down any trees for fuel.  Once we become a follower of Christ, we should be dependent on God alone to provide for our care. 

Ezekiel 39:1

Ezekiel 39:1 says, Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal:  Ezekial was to continue prophesying against Gog, telling him that God was against him.  I can think of no greater warning to people today than to know that God is against them, and if they don't accept His gift of salvation, He always will be.  As Christians, it is our responsibility to warn the lost people of the world about this and call them to repent and accept God’s gift of salvation.

Verse two adds, And I will turn thee back, and leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel:  God said that an enemy would come from the north and He wasn’t going to spare more than a sixth of the army of Gog.  Even though the enemy was another army, God was going to be the One Who allowed the defeat of Gog.  We may think that our army will protect us from the forces of evil in the world, but only God can.  

Verse three continues, And I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand.  The weapons of the people of Gog would do them no good.  The weapons that people think will bring them victory over God today are totally useless to defeat Him.    

Verse four states, Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.  God said that He was going to cause their army to be left as no more than food for the ravenous birds.  When God’s final judgment comes, people will be left in a much worse condition than just physical destruction.  They will be sent away to everlasting punishment.  

Verse five adds, Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord God.  God said that they would fall in the open field because that was what He had said would happen.  God’s word will always come true, and people have already been told about their fate if they don’t accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.  They have no defense against His coming judgment.  

Verse six continues, And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the Lord.  God said He was going to send fire on Magog and those that lived carelessly in the islands.  When this happened, they would know that He is God.  God has already said that when He destroys the world next time, it will be by fire and not by water.  When this happens, all the world will know that He is God.  

Verse seven adds, So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel.  God said that when this happened, the people of Israel would no longer pollute His land, and they too would know that He is God.   Israel often was defeated because they quit believing in God and living by His word, but when He sent His judgment on Magog, they would once again realize that He is still God and always will be and would no longer live lives that profaned God.  As followers of Christ, we can begin to live lives that profane God, but one day, when He returns in judgment, all the things that we have done to profane His name will be burned away and we will once more follow His commandments.