Gog and Magog
Gog and Magog is a prophecy found in the book of Ezekiel. Unfortunately, this famous prophecy has been grossly misinterpreted over the years. Today, much confusion remains regarding the timing, locations, and main characters of this series of events.
Gog and Magog: Russia wasn’t in Ezekiel’s vision
The conspiracy rose from Mr. Lindsey’s interpretation of a Bible passage in Ezekiel 38 and 39. I’ve written about that here and here. It’s in that passage that we find a detailed invasion of Israel. And we find that the Bible never mentions Russia. Not in those chapters or any other chapters. But Hal Lindsey found good reasons to point his finger at the Nation of Russia anyway.
You can find other articles that discuss Ezekiel’s prophecy and the future invasion of Israel. And I want to point out, that this is not an attempt to bash Hal Lindsey. Many people have taken swipes at him, but I won’t. To that point, I would say his books and teaching brought Bible prophecy into prominence. It was his work in that field, and the teaching of Pastor Chuck Smith, that piqued my interest in Bible prophecy. So, to be fair, there is a lot about Hal Lindsey’s ministry that we should be thankful for.
Gog and Magog: The wrong maps lead to the wrong facts.
What I will take issue with is Mr. Lindsey’s interpretation of the role of Russia. His prophetic views on Russia influenced most of the evangelical community and beyond. And it even crept into the regular news cycles and American politics. It became a fact beyond dispute that Russia would eventually lead an assault on Israel. Fiction books and Christian movies such as the “Left Behind” series expanded upon the idea of the Russian invasion.
I believe that view is incorrect. For a better understanding of why I disagree, the reader should first look at a previous article on this subject. In it, I show that ancient and even many recent Bible atlases show Russia is not in view of Ezekiel’s prophecy. But despite what the Bible atlases show, many Bible prophecy maps show Russia as the central player. The creators of such maps place the names found in Ezekiel’s prophecy where they will fit the interpretations suggested by Hal Lindsey and many other teachers. But just because a person makes a map and applies the Hal Lindsey theory, it doesn’t make it a biblical fact.
The Bible maps that take Russia out of the Ezekiel prophecy.
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