God Doesn’t Take Kindly To Those Who Would Harm His Beloved

¹⁷ “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You are the one I spoke of in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel. At that time they prophesied for years that I would bring you against them. ¹⁸ This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, my hot anger will be aroused, declares the Sovereign Lord. ¹⁹ In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. ²⁰ The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground. ²¹ I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Sovereign Lord. Every man’s sword will be against his brother. ²² I will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed; I will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones and burning sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him. ²³ And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.'”

Malicious Men

The nations gather and, in word and action, throw their vitriol towards God’s chosen people, the Israelites.  Time and time again, God uses the nations to discipline her for her adultery and idolatry.  But God, for His name’s sake, continues to be faithful to the promises He made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  God is faithful even when Israel is not.  And after 2000 years, He is gathering His people back to their promised land Israel.

Not everyone is heeding the call.  The pull of wealth and power has many Israelites loathing their own people.

For the love of money [that is, the greedy desire for it and the willingness to gain it unethically] is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves [through and through] with many sorrows.

So now, the Israelites will soon be dealing with all of the nations that hate the offspring of Jacob and the success and protection that God affords them (for more information regarding what God has done and is doing, read Ezekiel 36-39).  God will not turn a blind eye on Israel, but will protect the people and the land in such a way that He will be declared Holy before the nations.

Eventful Earthquake

A great and powerful shaking will occur in Israel and her mountains.   This is not some ordinary earthquake; it will level every wall, mountains will be overturned, and cliffs will fall.  But, as human beings, even such terrible natural disasters such as this type doesn’t keep our attention for very long.

Brother fights Brother

The weapons of the people who come up against Israel will be turned on each other.  Brother will kill brother during the ensuing chaos.  This will not be the first time that God has induced confusion into the armies of the enemy.  There will be a bloodbath.  Israel will need only to watch as God fights for them and rescues them from the blood-thirsty people who would see them harmed.

Powerful Plague

But just to make sure, God will send a plague among her enemies to ensure that any who did not die from the sword will be done in.  God will make certain that EVERY LAST ONE of the people who come against Israel at that time are utterly destroyed.  And then, for good measure, God will do something even better.

Nature’s Napalm

Not only will the enemy fight each other to the death; not only will God send a plague in addition to the bloodshed; God will use the very forces of nature that He sovereignly created and that He sovereignly controls to take care of the rest of Israel’s foes.  God will send torrents of rain, hailstones, and burning sulfur to take care of the rest.  There will be no doubt in ANYONE’S mind that it was God and God alone who did that.  Who else could send torrents of rain, hailstones, AND “nature’s napalm” – burning sulfur – at the same time?

He IS Holy

And when God has completed His thorough destruction of those who would dare come up against the people who are the “apple of His eye“, the nations will acknowledge that God is holy.  He is set apart from sin, and set apart to righteousness, for that is His character, His very essence – God IS Holy.

A Qualifying Question

Let’s ask a question:  Do my thoughts, words, and actions show that I for Israel, or against Israel?

A short prayer of preparation:

Father in Heaven, bless Your people Israel.  Protect them even now as they attempt to live in peace in the land that You created and gave to them.  Give them Your every support.  Bless them in all that they do, and may they be a blessing to all of the nations.  Strengthen their hands, their will, and their nation, that You would be glorified through them.  And reveal Your Son, Jesus Christ to them soon, so that they will embrace their Savior, and the prophecy You have given will be fulfilled.  Father, help me in thought, word, and deed to do anything and everything that I can to help Your people Israel.  Guard me and my family, for as we takes sides in this spiritual war, the enemy will surely try to overwhelm us.  Give us strength to remain steadfast, even unto death, that You would be glorified.  Amen.

Want more?  Why not try A. B. Simpson or A. W. Tozer?