EZEKIEL 38 THE INVASION OF ISRAEL2010 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Ezekiel 38 The Invasion Of Israel

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2010. Chapter 38, and then I really wanted to do chapter 38 and 39 together this evening, but as hard as I tried to prepare, the Lord would not allow it. And so we're just going to be looking at chapter 38 and then continuing because chapter 38 and 39...

really go together. They're part of the same vision. And there's some incredible and powerful things that are happening here in these chapters. And that's why we just don't have the time to be able to go through both chapters together. But here in chapter 38 of Ezekiel, we're looking at something that is not yet happened, something that is prophetic, that is yet to happen. And it's about or in regards to an invasion of

Of the land of Israel. It's an invasion of the nation of Israel. And so we pick it up in chapter 38, verse 1, it says, Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, Son of man, set your face against Gog of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal, and prophesy against him.

And say, thus says the Lord God, behold, I am against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal. Verse 4. I will turn you around, put hooks into your jaws, and lead you out with all your army, horses and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords.

Here in chapter 38, we see God now calling Ezekiel to address someone by the name of Gog, or someone with the title of Gog. Not to be confused with God, okay? Totally different things. So God is speaking to Ezekiel, and he's telling him to address this leader that will come on the scene. Now,

Now, if you remember back in chapter 37, we dealt with the regathering of the nation of Israel and how we see that already being fulfilled. The ultimate fulfillment will be during the millennium, but it's partially fulfilled. The people of God are being drawn back to the land of Israel. They're inhabiting the land once again. They're being regathered back there. And so now for us today, it's commonplace. The nation of Israel exists again.

It is established. There are boundaries. There are borders. It has a government. It's something that is established. And it was not so for almost 2,000 years. So it's pretty radical that the nation of Israel even exists.

Well, here in Ezekiel chapter 38, now we're talking about after the nation has been established and been regathered, been brought back into existence and reestablished as a nation, that there's going to be an invasion of the land of Israel. There's going to be an attack on Israel. God is addressing this prophecy. He tells Ezekiel to prophesy against Gog of the land of Magog.

Now this is where it can get a little bit confusing and complicated or difficult, and I'll try to keep it as simple as possible. Basically Gog is a title, it's the leader, it's the position of the leader of Magog. You could perhaps relate it to the Pharaoh was the king of Egypt, right? And the Pharaoh, that was his title, that was his role in...

in the nation of Egypt. Well, it seems that Gog is similarly that title, that role of the leader of the land of Magog, the area known as Magog.

Now,

Now, these names that are mentioned here are locations, but they're not locations like we might think of locations as, you know, we would say Corona or Riverside or that kind of thing. You know, names...

of places change throughout the years and especially when you're talking about thousands and thousands of years and so generally when these prophecies are speaking forth these names it's the names of people or families and it's speaking about where this family lived whatever the name might be you know thousands of years later the name is changed but the family lived in this location in this place and so

Scholars have done a lot of work going back through the archives and searching the data banks and going through and doing the research and finding out and retracing where these different families lived. And you can go through Genesis chapter of 10, which is referred to as the table of nations.

And it describes there each of Noah's three sons and their families, their children, and how they spread out and the directions that they went. And you can map out the different locations of these families as they were repopulating the earth. Well, it comes down to the land of Magog is the land of what we would call Russia today.

Rosh as well is that area of Russia. Meshech is the area of Turkey. And Tubal is also in Turkey. It's where these families set their roots down and began to establish themselves in the land. And so I want to just kind of give you an idea with some maps on the screen here. I'll scoot back a little bit so that...

The front row can see over here. I'll give you an idea about what we're talking about here. Here's a map of, well, you see the land of Israel there right in the center. It's highlighted in blue, and you'll notice it's not very big. The land of Israel is actually very small. As far as square miles are concerned, it's roughly the same size as San Bernardino County.

And so it's a very small piece of land. And yet that's the land that God has given to his people. And he's promised it to them as an inheritance. And so that is the land of Israel. Now, these references to Magog, Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal are references to the land of Russia and the land of Turkey.

Now that's modern day borders and it doesn't have to be exactly like that. This is kind of an approximation to give you an idea. But for sure it's dealing with the nation of Russia. That's on the very top there. You see Rosh and Magog. And then Meshach, Tubal and then Gomer we'll get to in a couple of verses here. That's the land of Turkey. And isn't it interesting that there's a strong alliance being formed between

uh... between russia and turkey and uh... and turkey's been changing their stance on the land of israel uh... this past year things have been really changing a lot and uh... and turkey what which was once israel's allies and and people thought well how could these things be fulfilled with turkey being their ally well turkey has turned their back really on israel uh... just this past year and we've seen that fulfilled uh... in the news articles in that stories that have been going on

And so this is the particular groups that are being referred to here in verses 1 through 4. Rosh, Meshach, Tubal, the land of Magog. And God is speaking to them and He says there in verse 4, He says, I'm going to put hooks into your jaw and I'm going to lead you out and I'm going to lead out your army. And there's going to be this great multitude. They're all splendidly clothed. They're well armed. And this army,

armies from these areas, from these groups, are going to go down into the land of Israel to invade it, to attack it, to try to take over the land. Well, it's not the only places or the only countries that will be involved, as we see in verse 5 and 6. It says this,

Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them, all of them with shield and helmet. Gomer and all its troops, the house of Togarmah from the far north and all its troops, many people are with you.

So here we have some reference to some other lands that will be involved, kind of allies. The lands here in verses 1 through 4, Rosh, Meshach, Tubal, the land of Magog, they're kind of the primary lands

nations involved in this attack but along with them as they're leading the charge they've got with them these other countries these other nations that are joining with them joining the ranks to invade the land of Israel so it's going to be a united coalition against Israel

I think it's important to point out that as we're looking at these things, God's making it very clear here. He's the one behind this attack. He says there in verse 4 again, He's going to put hooks in their mouths. He's going to draw them out. He's going to take them into the land. It's going to be inspired by Him so that He...

can glorify His name so that He will be glorified and known by all the nations. And so He's going to be at work uniting these nations and bringing them down to the land of Israel to invade it and to attack it.

Now again, these are things that have not yet taken place. They are going to take place and we'll talk a little bit more about that as we get towards the end. So the lands now that are mentioned in verses 5 and 6 are Persia, Ethiopia, Libya, Gomer, and Togarmah. So where are these lands?

lands. What countries are these that are going to be involved? Well, here on the screen now we have those highlighted in orange. These are the allies with Russia and Turkey as they unite against the land of Israel. And so Persia there, it's the country of Iran. That's who the population of Iran is. They're Persians. Kush down there in the bottom, that's

Ethiopia, and then put, it's using the King James names, but that would be Libya. It's modern day Libya. And so you have Libya, Ethiopia, and Iran joining with Russia and Turkey to invade the land of Israel.

There's something interesting to take note of in this alliance that is being formed. All of these nations are very extremely Islamic nations. Russia is not exactly an extremely Islamic nation, but it's joining with these Islamic nations. Iran, of course, is. Ethiopia is. Libya is. And all of these nations, Turkey is. And so all of these nations are going to gather together

to attack and seek to invade the land of Israel. Going on to verse 7, it says, Prepare yourself and be ready.

He's speaking to Gog, to the leader of this attack, the leader of this invasion. He says, Verse 8, Verse 8,

Verse 9. Verse 10.

So here we see the actual invasion taking place really. He says, prepare yourselves, get ready. It's going to take place, he says, after many days or in the latter years. And so this was a prophecy that was given, but it wasn't going to be fulfilled for a long time. It's going to be in the end times, the days that we're living in now, which is why these things are so important for us, because these things will be unfolding in the near future.

And so he says this is going to happen in the latter days, in the last days, and there's going to be a gathering of many people on the mountains of Israel. And so it's going to be an invasion that takes place, and this army is going to actually march into the land of Israel. They're going to set foot on Israel's turf, on Israel's land, and they're going to begin this invasion. They're going to be involved in the attack.

as God is going to work. And we'll see that here in Ezekiel chapter 38. And so he says that you're going to ascend like a storm and you're going to cover the land like a cloud. It's

It's not going to be just, you know, a special forces, you know, group that goes in. It's going to be a massive army that gathers against Israel that seeks to just wipe them out, as even has been expressed by the leader of Iran and other Islamic leaders as well. And so he says, there's going to be you and all your troops and many peoples with you. It's

It's going to be a big army. It's going to be a great gathering. And they're going to try to overrun and invade the land of Israel. Now why? What is the purpose of this invasion that will take place? Well, he explains it to us in verse 10. It says, What plan is that? Verse 11.

Verse 13.

Sheba, Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, Have you come to take plunder? Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take great plunder?

Here in verses 10 through 13, we see the purpose of this invasion. Again, we see that God is involved in it. He says, look, it's going to come to pass in that day, you're going to have these thoughts in your minds. And you're going to make an evil plan. And you're going to decide, hey, you know,

Israel would be an easy target. They wouldn't be difficult to conquer, to overcome. They're a peaceful people. They've got a small military. They're an easy target, especially, again, looking at the map, it's a tiny piece of land. Look at the land, you know, in comparison, the inhabitants, the amount of people in Russia, Turkey, Iran, Ethiopia, and Libya. I mean,

They greatly outnumber the land of Israel. Hey, this is going to be a piece of cake. Let's get together and let's kick them out. Let's knock them down. And verse 12 is the key there. To take plunder. The reason why they want to invade Israel is to plunder the nation. They're seeking the goods, the valuables. They're seeking financial gain. There's wealth to be obtained by invading Israel.

And so they're going to be eyeing Israel, looking at Israel, wanting Israel's goods and resources and coming up with a plan. Hey, this wouldn't be that hard. Let's just invade. Let's take them over and then we can have all that is theirs. Now, a good question to ask is, what does Israel have that is so valuable that would warrant this type of invasion, this type of alliance?

What is it that they're seeking after? Well, just recently, in the past year or two, we've seen some interesting developments, haven't we? In the value of Israel. You know, for the most part, Israel is not that impressive. Again, it's a very small piece of land. There's not a whole lot there. The produce is good and the farming is good. But other than that, there's just not that much resources. There's great value in the Dead Sea.

But enough to warrant this? I'm not sure. But recently they've discovered, in fact it was in 2009, last year that they discovered that there's a huge...

natural gas reserve there as part of their territory underneath the Mediterranean Sea. And so there's this new, you know, work afoot for the natural gas that they're going to be harvesting and then providing and using for themselves as well. But then, of course, we've also learned this last year and just a couple months ago that oil has been discovered in the land of Israel and

They estimate it to be, I think, about 1.5 billion barrels of oil, which is a great deal. It's a huge reserve. And so now you can begin to piece together and think, well, that could very easily be the plunder that they're after. There's great resources, great wealth there in the oil reserves, in the gas reserves, and in the other things that are going on.

And so this alliance, this invasion is to get the resources of the land of Israel and take it for their own. There would be some, of course, military advantage as well to be able to have that port there on the Mediterranean Sea that's in the land of Israel and those types of things. Of course, the Islamic...

Fundamentalists, the Islamic extremists would love also just to get rid of Israel and wipe them off the map. And so there's a lot of motivations. But specifically it says to take plunder. And so it's very likely that these will be the things, the gas and the oil reserves that they'll be after.

Now it tells us in verse 13 that there's some people who protest against this invasion. They protest, but they don't really engage. They don't defend Israel. They don't come and fight back. They just kind of, you know, protest. They just say, hey, what do you think you're doing?

And the places that are protested here, or mentioned as protesting, are verse 13 says, Sheba, Dedan, and Tarshish. And again, going back, doing the work, following the families, Sheba, Dedan, and Tarshish are

are the areas in green here. Sheba and Dedan would be the land of Saudi Arabia and Tarshish is most likely the land of Spain. And it also says there though, and all of their young lions.

And some look at that and say, well, maybe that's a reference to the United States and England and those families that were from there migrated to England. And of course, the United States was established out of England, that kind of thing. So it could be all the young lions is a reference to these other nations as well. And that's where you might find the U.S. in the Bible prophecy. But for sure, these areas...

Sheba, Dedan, which is Saudi Arabia, Tarshish, which is Spain. They're standing on the sidelines. They're saying, hey, are you guys just going to plunder them? You're going to take over the nation? That's not right. Is that what you're doing? But they don't fight. They don't ally with each other and fight against these nations or try to stop this invasion. They just hold up a sign and say, hey, please don't do that. We don't agree with what you are doing.

And so there's this invasion, this massive invasion of the land of Israel, but Israel is left without allies. No one steps up, no one steps up to defend them, to protect them from this onslaught, this great army that is invading. That is, no one on earth will be stepping up to do that.

But God will be stepping in and he will be supernaturally taking care of this army that is invading. And we'll see that as we go forward. Let's continue on in verse 14. It says, Therefore, son of man, prophesy and say to God, thus says the Lord God, on that day when my people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it?

Then you will come 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 that I will bring you against my land so that the nations may know me when I am hollowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes. Thus says the Lord God...

So in verses 10 through 13, we see the invading army's motivation. But here in verses 14 through 17, we see God's motivation for this invasion. And again, we see that He is inspiring it, that He is making it come to pass.

He says, speak to Gog, speak to that leader, speak to the one who's in charge of this invading army. And he says, I'm the one who told you. I'm the one who declared this. I'm the one who said this many, many years ago through the prophet Ezekiel.

That you would come out of your place. Notice he says out of the far north. It's interesting. I was just reading and heard from another pastor that the magnetic pole is changing. Magnetic north, you know, is right about the north pole. But it's not exactly at the north pole. And magnetic north is changing. It's actually changing about 40 miles per year, which is incredibly fast.

for a magnetic pole change and it's moving really into Russia and so the far north if you go north of Israel you basically hit Moscow and you hit Russia but magnetically you know if you follow the magnetic north it will actually hit Russia and it's moving closer and closer to Russia every year about 40 miles a year and so it's speaking of those these invading armies

from the north with its allies from all around Israel and they're going to invade it. He says, I'm going to bring you out of that far north. I'm going to bring you out. You're going to come against my people. Again, like a cloud, he says, you're going to cover the land. And so don't get the idea like it's just a couple people that are gathering together. It's going to be a massive invading army that comes against Israel. But notice there at the end of verse 16,

He says, I will bring you against my land so that the nations may know me when I am hollowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes. And so the nations, their motivation is to plunder. They want to get the valuables and the resources. But God's motivation is that all nations would know that he is God.

God is going to be bringing these things to pass. He's going to be bringing this invasion so that He can then defend His people and the world will know that He is God. The nations will know Him. Verse 18, Verse 18,

And it will come to pass at the same time when God comes against the land of Israel, says the Lord God, that my fury will show in my face. So you see here, God is now stepping in. No earthly nation is going to defend them. God is going to be their defender. Verse 19. For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath I have spoken. Surely in that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.

Verse 21.

Verse 23. Verse 23.

Thus I will magnify myself and sanctify myself, and I will be known to the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the Lord. Again, we see God's motivation. He is working these things. He is inspiring these things. He's bringing this to pass so that the world will know, that their eyes will be opened.

that He will be known in the eyes of many nations and that they will know that He is the Lord. God has been seeking to reveal Himself and to call all nations to Himself throughout all of history. And this is going to be an event that will catch the world's attention. They will know beyond a shadow of a doubt. The reality is He is the Lord.

God says, here's what's going to happen. When God comes down, when He leads this invasion against Israel, He says, my fury is going to show in my face. God's going to reveal Himself. There's going to be some supernatural events taking place.

There's been some incredible things that have happened in the land of Israel and in, you know, the Six-Day War and the different battles that have been fought. There's been some supernatural, miraculous things going on. But here, God says, He's going to show His face. It's going to be something different and unique than what the world has seen previously. And so He says, in my jealousy, I'm going to bring forth a great earthquake in the land of Israel.

Now the earthquake is going to be in the land of Israel. Why? Because that's where the invading army is. The invading army is in Israel. He doesn't stop it in the planning stages. He doesn't stop it while they're on the way. They invade. They're in Israel. And God brings this devastating earthquake. He describes it there in verse 20 and it sounds pretty severe. All the fish...

How big does an earthquake have to be to trouble the fish? All of the beasts, all of those who are alive on the earth, they are going to be freaked out by this earthquake. It's going to be so massive and severe. He says every wall is going to fall to the ground. The mountains will be thrown down. This is going to be a radical earthquake that's going to happen there in the land of Israel as this army is invading the nation.

So they have an earthquake that will take place and God's going to be dealing with the invading army in that way. But then there's also going to be some internal fighting. There in verse 21, he talks about he's going to call for a sword against Gog. Notice again, throughout all my mountains. So they're going to be in the mountains of Israel. God's going to call for a sword against them. And it says that every man's sword will be against his brother.

And so they're going to turn their weapons against each other. There's going to be some internal fighting. There's going to be, you know, killing among the ranks of this army that is invading the land of Israel. Probably because they're so freaked out about this earthquake that they're killing one another. They're all shaken up. They're freaked out. And they begin to turn against one another.

Not only that, but verse 22, God says there's going to be some more things happening. There's going to be pestilence, which is a great disease or a judgment, and bloodshed, so there's going to be lots of death. God's going to rain down on him, that's on Gog, and on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him. So all of the nations who are involved in this invasion are going to experience hailstones, fire, and brimstone.

this is going to be a really radical event. As you see this army invading this little tiny portion of land, and then God concentrates these judgments against this army, with this earthquake, with the internal fighting, with these hailstones, with the fire and brimstone, it's going to be a massive work of God that He accomplishes in fighting against this army.

I don't believe that it's going to be some physical explanations or that Israel is so smart or that Israel did this and they had this in place because there in verse 23 God says, Thus I will magnify myself and sanctify myself and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. It's going to be clear. This is a miraculous work of God.

It's going to be a miraculous work of God. You know, you and I, we see miracles happen. And we see them happen in a variety of ways, right? Sometimes we pray for someone and perhaps they, you know, have a disease or a medical condition and they go to the doctor and through the process, you know, they get cured through the applying of medication. And we look at that and we say, that's a miracle, you know, God did, God brought healing.

It's not the only way He brings healing, but yeah, in that situation He brought healing. Now, the rest of humanity looks on and says, no, that's our intelligence. That's our science. That was just medical practice. And so they don't attribute that to God. Well, in the same way, this event that happens...

It can't be attributed to, well, you know, they're just really advanced technologically. Or they just have this going for them or that going for them. No, there's going to be something supernatural, something miraculous that the rest of the world can't deny. It will be known in their eyes. They will see, they will know that He is the Lord. And so this invasion...

It's going to be massive, it's going to be terrible in many ways, but it's going to be used by God to open the eyes of the world. Now, many will still reject God during this time, but they will do so knowingly. It won't be a matter of, you know, I just didn't know about God. Oh, we didn't know that He was King of kings and Lord of lords. It will be clear to the whole world at that point.

He is the one who reigns on high. The world will know that He is the Lord. And so this is the invasion that's going to happen. Now, next week as we go into chapter 39, we'll continue to deal with this invasion, some of the aftermaths and what God has to say about this invasion and the things that happens as He fights for Israel supernaturally.

But as we finish up chapter 38, it kind of brings us to the last really question that we need to answer in this chapter. And that is, when is this invasion going to take place?

And the timing of this invasion here in Ezekiel 38 and 39 is something that is up for a lot of discussion and there's a lot of different ideas about when this invasion takes place. And so I want to run through a few of those ideas with you that you can have a good understanding about the timing of this invasion. So Ezekiel 38, the timing of the invasion, one option is one group of people says this already happened.

They try to fit past historical events into the descriptions here of Ezekiel chapter 38. I can tell you very confidently, this view is invalid. In fact, let's just cross it off the list. It's not even a really valid option, but there's still some. They don't believe the Bible, and that's why they hold to that view.

So the second option, which is really a valid option, is this invasion of the land of Israel could take place before the rapture happens. This is not necessarily something, the timing of this is not so set that it could not happen before we're caught up to be with the Lord.

This is something that you and I could see. This is something that could happen tomorrow if God wanted it to happen tomorrow. It's something that could take place. And there's a lot of good scholars, good Bible teachers who believe and hold to the idea that this invasion will happen before the rapture. I'm not completely certain, but I think the Left Behind series actually, you know,

presents it in this way that the invasion happens and then the rapture of the church takes place and so that's a possibility it doesn't have to be that way but there's some good evidence that it is that way one of the things that's often mentioned in regards to this opinion

or this option, is that chapter 39 will deal with a seven-year period of cleanup, a seven-year period of the aftermath of this war. And so we'll be dealing with that next week. But if the tribulation period is seven years long and there's a seven-year aftermath to this war, then that maybe seems to coincide and maybe fits really well.

Well, the third option is that the invasion takes place after the rapture, but before the tribulation begins. Now, if you remember, the tribulation begins with the signing of a covenant by the Antichrist and the nation of Israel.

A lot of times we kind of, you know, unite in our minds the rapture of the church and the beginning of the tribulation. But there's actually no, you know, solid link between those two. We know the rapture happens before the tribulation, but there could be a span of time

After the rapture and before the tribulation begins. And so it could be that after the church is caught up, after the church is out of here, before the Antichrist is fully on the scene and in power, that this invasion takes place and God defends his people and everyone knows that he is God. Now there's some interesting things about that idea and that possibility because, well...

If the Islamic nations are wiped out by this invasion, when God defends them, then it would be very easy for Israel to rebuild their temple. And so that covenant and that agreement that the Antichrist will sign for the performing the sacrifices, the rebuilding of the temple, that would be a whole lot easier if these extremist Islamic nations were taken care of by God before it happened. And so that is one possibility.

It's also interesting because as you head into the tribulation period and you see the great judgments that come and the great rebellion against God, you have a good understanding that if this were to happen before the tribulation started, that there would be great reason for people to turn to God because their eyes have been opened and they've seen the supernatural, undeniable work of God in defending His people.

So that's the third option. The fourth option is that it could take place in the middle of the tribulation. That's another viewpoint. That's another perspective.

There's some corresponding things, events, you know, in the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and you look at the kind of the middle of the tribulation period and it's possible that this is something that happens in that time. It also corresponds with things that Daniel talks about and the king of the north that comes down to attack the beast.

We won't get into those details, but it's a possibility that it could take place in the middle of the tribulation. One of the difficulties with that is, okay, so there's a seven-year aftermath, and if it happens in the middle of the tribulation, then the aftermath extends into the millennial kingdom, which is not impossible, but it just seems a little awkward and doesn't fit exactly the way that we would expect it to.

Well, the fifth option is that this takes place at the end of the tribulation. This is another one that really you don't got to spend time thinking about. Some people try to equate this with the Battle of Armageddon. Whole different group of players and lots of different things that are not a part. And there's some good contrast between these two battles and invasions that take place. So I wouldn't worry too much about that one. The final option, option six, is that it could take place at the end of the millennium.

This is an interesting one, but I wouldn't waste too much time on it as well. At the end of the millennium, you remember, Satan is released to lead one final rebellion against God. And that's described in Revelation chapter 20. And so there is going to be a rebellion at the end of the millennium and Satan is going to lead it. And so some try to take Ezekiel 38 and apply it to that, that Gog is Satan and he leads this rebellion and then God defends his people.

But it's kind of a similar problem to what we saw before, and that is, well, if there's a seven-year aftermath, and that's the end of the millennium, and then we go into eternity, you know, why would we spend seven years dealing with the aftermath of this battle instead?

you know, that's the first seven years of eternity. It just, it really doesn't fit that well. But it's often referred to because Revelation chapter 20 actually makes reference to Gog and Magog. And so there seems to be a link, a connection, but not describing the same actual event. So the bottom line is,

Although we can't say for certain which of these it is, those three that I've circled there are kind of the best options. So if you want to play with the timings and think about when this might happen, before the rapture is definitely a good possibility. We could see this happen in our lifetime. After the rapture, after we're out of here, and before the tribulation begins, this invasion could take place. And then during the middle of the tribulation, it's possible that this event, that this invasion will take place.

Whatever the case, whatever the timing is, we don't know for certain, but what we do know is it is going to happen. It is going to take place because God has said it and what He says is what comes to pass. Amen?

Amen. John's going to come up and continue to lead us in some worship and let's finish off in prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for this evening. Lord, for this opportunity to look at these things that are going to take place and Lord, look at how you are working these things out for your glory and to accomplish your purposes. Lord, as we read these things, it causes our hearts and our minds to turn towards well, knowing that Lord, you are coming quickly. And so Lord, we look up

Lord, we recognize our redemption is drawing nigh. We say, come quickly, Lord Jesus. And Lord, as Paul reminded us in the book of Romans, it's high time to awake. Lord, I pray that you would wake us up. Lord, our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. We're a day closer to these things happening, to being with you.

Lord, draw us to Yourself. Help us to wake up, to be alert, to go forward in the things of You and to boldly declare Your Word and Your message of hope and salvation to the world around us. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Let's worship the Lord together.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.