So I found and interesting article on this topic — just adding to the discussion 😉 Gog and Magog are mentioned in four books of the Bible—Genesis, 1 Chronicles, and Ezekiel in the Old Testament and the book of Revelation in the New Testament. They have become linked in our minds so that we usually think of them together as an inseparable pair—or at least individuals who lived at the same time. But a careful look at the verses in which they appear indicates otherwise. Let’s see what the Bible actually says about them. Gog and Magog in: Genesis 10 What Genesis says about Magog? Notice the heading does not say “What Genesis Says About Gog and Magog.” That’s because Genesis doesn’t say anything about Gog. Genesis simply says Noah had a grandson named Magog: “Now this is the genealogy of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. And sons were born to them after the flood. The sons of Japheth were Gomer, Magog, Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras” (Genesis 10:1, 2). So Magog was a real person, born after the flood to Noah’s son, Japheth. What 1 Chronicles says about Gog and Magog Gog’s name appears a few chapters later in a detailed genealogy of Jacob’s sons—the forefathers of the twelve tribes of Israel. Listing the families of Reuben, 1 Chronicles 5:4 says, “The sons of Joel were Shemiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son. . . .” So, according to this verse, Gog was a grandson of someone named Joel, who was a descendant of Reuben, the son of Jacob. Gog and Magog: hundreds of years apart What Ezekiel says about Gog and Magog Chapters 38 and 39 of Ezekiel refer to Gog several times but mention Magog only twice. God told the prophet Ezekiel: “Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold I am against you, O Gog” ’ ” (Ezekiel 38:2, 3). The prophecy went on to say of Gog: God also says that He will bring Gog “to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed” for his attacks against God’s people (verse 22). The next chapter, Ezekiel 39 continues to describe the destruction that will come to Gog and his forces when they make war and attack Israel. Verse 6 mentions Magog again: “And I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in security in the coastlands. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.” Prophecy during exile Gog and Magog: nations or places? In fact, a close look at the two verses in Ezekiel 38 and 39 that mention Magog suggests that they may not be referring to a person at all—but to a place or a nation. Ezekiel 38:2 refers to “the land of Magog,” and Ezekiel 39:6 says that God “will send fire on Magog and on those who live in security in the coastlands.” There is no historical record of a war or Israel being attacked by the forces of a ruler named “Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal” (Ezekiel 38:2). But whoever or whatever Ezekiel may have been talking about, it’s clear that he is talking about a force that was opposed to God and His people—an enemy who would fight against Israel only to be destroyed, by God. And that’s what we also find in the last book of the Bible that mentions God and Magog. What Revelation says about Gog and Magog? Revelation chapter 20 describes the final scene of Satan’s rebellion against God and His people. “Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them” (Revelation 20:7-9). This verse is the only verse in the Bible that actually mentions the phrase “Gog and Magog” together. This is where the two names are linked together in our minds. Elsewhere in the Bible, they are mentioned separately—except for Ezekiel 38:2, which refers to “Gog of the land of Magog.” * One interesting point to note is that neither Ezekiel 38-39 nor Revelation 20 mentions a war or battle at Armageddon or Megiddo. Similarities in Ezekiel and Revelation The apostle John, who wrote Revelation, had Ezekiel’s description of God’s judgments on Gog and his armies in mind when he described the final destruction of Satan and his armies. Notice the similarities with Revelation 20: Both armies are vast and cover the earth (Ezekiel 38:9, 15, 16). What does all this mean for us today? Conclusion https://www.bibleinfo.com/en/questions/gog-and-magog I have always believed that Gog and Magog do not represent an individual or group of individuals, but represent the forces of darkness that come against God and His people — we shall see, won’t we :unsure: — fair-use— Very informative, Tammie. :thankyou I believe Gog is a title. Rosh means head of or chief. For example, Rosh Hashanah means the head of the year. Many have wrongly concluded, IMHO, that Gog must be the leader of Russia since Rosh sounds similar to Russia. <p style="text-align: left;">Ezekiel mentions the uttermost north. That may make for an interesting word study -- no idea personally!</p> What do you make of this? Sounds like US is pulling Turkey into the conflict against Russia: -Fair Use- Turkey is a member of NATO. So, perhaps Erdogan sees an opportunity to diminish Russia and especially their presence in Syria. Here is a great article explaining that Magog is actually ancient Lydia. Here's a snippet of it: Assyrian Court Records The popular identification of the nations of Ezekiel 38-39 is not correct. Despite the traditional viewpoint, professional archeologists know the identity of these nations from the Assyrian Royal Court records. The reliable, clear and detailed records of Assyrian Royal Court show they dealt directly with each of these nations about 100 years before Ezekiel wrote. These are the same records that are referred to in Ezra 4:15, 19 and 5:17-6:7. These passages tell how the Jews of the fifth century BC 538 BC–457 BC overcame opposition by the local Persian governor to the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem by referring to these same Assyrian cuneiform court records. They are also the same records Bible scholars now use to provide independent verification and edification of the Bible’s historical accounts from about 805 BC to 530 BC. The Assyrian Royal Court records provide direct evidence and represent an incontestable primary source on this subject, since they were written during the time period in question by people who were directly involved. Primary sources have greater value than secondary sources, which can include generalizations, speculation and interpretations made long after the occurrence of the events. On this particular subject, too often what has been written about these countries constitutes secondary evidence and is not based on facts. In some instances statements are the product of mischief, bias or not studying all of the available information. The Assyrian Court records show dealings with Magog, Meshech, Tubal, and Togarmah (Ezekiel 38:3-6), the nations that stretched across ancient Asia Minor (modern Turkey) from west to east. From these records we also learn that the ancient nation of Gomer (Ezekiel 38:6), an enemy of the Assyrians invaded Asia Minor by coming down from an area around the northeast shore of the Black Sea. Archeologists know that the militant leader called “Gog” in Ezekiel 38/39 led a confederacy of these nations against invading Gomer. Who and what are Gog and Magog? Gog is a historical man who the Greeks called Gyges of Lydia. In Gyges of Lydia we have the leader the Assyrians called “Gugu, King of Ludu,” and “Gugu of Magugu,” who is referred to in the Bible as Gog of Magog. “Magog” simply means “the land of Gog.” In Akkadian ma means land, so in Akkadian Ma- gugu means “the land of Gugu,” which becomes our Ma-gog. (Just as the Assyrian eponym for the land of the leader called Zamua is rendered as Ma-zamua). Magog is an eponym for the ancient nation of Lydia that was in the westernmost part of Asia Minor. The Assyrians often referred to a new land by the name of the first leader they learned of from this land. The Assyrians dealt with Lydia through Meshech, who were subsequently defeated by Gomer, and thus the Assyrians finally came to deal with Lydia directly. In the prophecy of Ezekiel 38/39 Gog is being used as a “historical type” of the “antichrist” who is prophesied to come during the end times, and Magog is being used as a “historical type” of “the land of the antichrist.” It has been mistakenly believed that the ancient nation of “Magog” in western Asia Minor was the ancient “tribal name” of the “Scythians,” a group of Iranian speaking nomadic tribes from Central Asia (north of Iran) that traveled across the Russian steppes, and came to live in the territory north of the Black Sea. Then, in turn, and again in error, it has been believed that the ancient Scythians were the progenitors of the modern Russians. In Foes from the Northern Frontier Dr. Edwin Yamauchi, a professor of history at Miami University in Ohio emphatically explains that none of the ancient nations referred to in Ezekiel 38-39 can possibly be related to modern Russia. Further, Yamauchi says: “Even if one were to transliterate the Hebrew rosh as a proper name (as does the NAS) rather than translate it as ‘chief’ (as does the KJV, NIV, and Hebrew Tanakh), it can have nothing to do with modern ‘Russia.’ This would be a gross anachronism for the modern name is based upon the name Rus, which was brought into the region of Kiev, north of the Black Sea, by the Vikings only in the Middle Ages.” http://www.newscientificevidenceforgod.com/2012/02/debunking-russiawar-of-gog-and-magog.html?m=1 Interestingly enough, if ancient Lydia is indeed Magog, that was where the seat of Satan was relocated after the fall of Babylon. Pergamum was in Lydia. The seat of Satan was later relocated to Germany. Obama famously (or infamously) used it as a prop. Obama certainly fits the character of Gog... :scratch: Anyway, lots of rabbit trails to explore here. :mail: Talk about Props, check out this photo from a link from a Five Doves post: The picture was taken in the Oval Office of the White House and it was meant to convey a very important message to all of Obama’s supporters and to his enemies as well. The first message is delivered by the throne made of swords he is sitting on. I searched the internet and found the information on this throne as meant to be the swords of all his defeated enemies, so in the throne is the statement that he will destroy all who oppose him. I question those who may dismiss this as to why a president of the USA is sitting on a throne that is intimidating, to say the least, and implies by its very nature a ruthless tyrant bent on the destruction of any who opposes him? Is this a democracy where the president is subject to the laws, constitution, and the people? Second, the is a golden crown in his lap that has what looks like serpents rising above the ring. Crowns are worn by kings, emperors, or royalty, not by presidents. Most significant is the crossbow sitting on the table in front of him with no arrow in it. There are three spheres colored red, green, and white that could represent the colors of Islam. This picture is actually on the official Whitehouse Twitter page. Yes, "You will come from your place in the far North” (the Hebrew word means "the uttermost part of ... All to the fulfilling of scripture! Praise God! TR
1 Chronicles 1 & 5
Ezekiel 38 & 39
Revelation 20
There is one reference each to Gog and Magog in 1 Chronicles. Magog appears in 1 Chronicles 1:5. This verse merely repeats Genesis 10:2 word-for-word. It tells us again that Magog was Japheth’s son and Noah’s grandson. And that is the last we hear of Magog in the book of 1 Chronicles.
Now Jacob and his twelve sons lived a long time after the flood—centuries later, in fact (see Genesis 11). So Gog, a descendant of Reuben, would have been born even later. Therefore, Gog could not have been living at the same time as Noah’s grandson, Magog; they were separated by hundreds of years. So how did the two become linked in our minds—and in other Bible verses?
“You will come up from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. You will come up against My people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days” (Ezekiel 38:15, 16).
Ezekiel lived during the time the Jews were carried captive to Babylon. He told his fellow Jewish captives that their exile in Babylon was God’s punishment for turning away from Him. But he assured them God would restore them when they repented and followed Him faithfully. He prophesied that Gog and his armies would attack a restored Israel, but that God would destroy Gog and preserve His people. Who was Ezekiel talking about—this “Gog of the land of Magog” (Ezekiel 28:2)?
The Babylonian exile, during which Ezekiel lived and prophesied, took place later—much, much later—than either Noah’s grandson, Magog, or Reuben’s descendant, Gog. So Ezekiel’s prophecies could not be referring to the actual persons mentioned in Genesis and 1 Chronicles.
Both go out to destroy God’s people (Ezekiel 38:10-12)
Both are destroyed by fire and brimstone (Ezekiel 38:22).
Both are destroyed at a time of final judgment “in the latter days” (Ezekiel 38:16).
Revelation 20:8 clearly identifies “Gog and Magog” as “the nations which are in the four corners of the earth”—in other words, everyone who follows Satan and war against God and His people in the latter days, at the end of time.
In both Ezekiel’s prophecies and John’s description of the end of sin, Gog and Magog are symbols of the forces of Satan opposed to God and His people. They picture a battle and war between good and evil, sin and righteousness, God and Satan. And that is the main point in regards to Gog and Magog based on what the Bible says.
In the Bible, God wants to warn us of the terrible results of sin. He wants us to know that righteousness will triumph in the end. The enemies of God will be destroyed and sin will be ended forever. God is asking us to live each day in such a way that we are in “the camp of the saints” and not in the camp of Gog and Magog.
The White House tweeted this photo captioned “The Westeros Wing” while President Obama was at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner trading jokes with reporters on May 3, 2014 – U.S. President Barack Obama and other government officials in a meeting in the Oval Office in the White House. The photo has been edited to make Obama appear to sit on the Iron Throne from the TV series Game of Thrones, and props from the series have also been added to the image.
