“For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult: and they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They have taken crafty counsel against thy people, and consulted against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from BEING (capitals mine) a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance. For they have consulted together with one consent; they are confederate against thee:”
Psalm 83:2-5
First, let me declare there has been an ongoing, honest debate between prophetic scholars and historians for decades regarding whether those things foretold in Psalm 83 are merely history or a yet to be fulfilled prophecy of a coming war between Israel and her closest neighbors. If you are on the side of historians, you would say those things prophesied to occur have already happened, whether it was the war Israel’s Arab neighbors launched against her upon Israel’s Declaration of Independence on May 14, 1948, or any of the other wars they initiated, including those in 1967 and 1973. To this day there are still many missiles fired into Israel and terrorist attacks by her avowed enemies trying to destroy her in order to “…cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance”. Psalm 83:4
Secondly, some equate the War of Psalm 83 with the battle of Gog and Magog described in Ezekiel 38 & 39 (please review my earlier post on that war). There are substantial differences in these two wars. The most important difference is in who the named aggressors are and what happens to the attackers and Israel as a result of BOTH failed attacks.
Finally, if you agree with me that the Bible prophesizes a coming war where Israel’s closest neighbors will attack them and be defeated, what is the net result for Israel and how does it fulfill Bible prophecy?
Before we start, I encourage you to read the 83rd Psalm. It is very short, being less than a page long. Basically, Psalm 83 is a prayer to God by the Jews for Israel’s enemies to be defeated.
Yes, you could argue this has been attempted by Israel’s Muslim enemies many times for the past 75 years to no avail. Why now and why is this important? I believe the most critical issue that needs to be recognized is the location of the Promised Land God made to His chosen people, the Jews. He outlined in Genesis 15:18-21:
“In that same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt (Nile) unto the great river, the river Euphrates: the Kenites, and the Kenizzites, and the Kadonites, And the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Rephaims, And the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
While God is very clear on what land He gave to Abram (Abraham) as part of His Covenant, I find it very interesting that when the Jews prayed in Psalm 83 for their enemies to be defeated, the lands given to them by God are the same lands! Since the names have changed over time, I had to refer to Wikipedia’s map of those ancient lands given to the Jews and what you see below is the basis for the fact that the Jews today ARE NOT TODAY TOTALLY in their God given land. They do not have boundaries on the Nile, the Euphrates, the Mediterranean, etc. Today, Israel is comprised only of the ancient lands of Judah and Israel. But God promised them what is now (parts of) Egypt (Edom, Philistine), Syria (Aram Damascus), Jordan (Moab, Ammon), and Lebanon (Phoenician).
If you have watched the horrible news over the past few days and seen Hamas and Hezbollah unprovoked attacks on Israel and you have read this article, it is hard to imagine not automatically assuming the war of Psalm 83 has begun! The terrorists have “…consulted together with one consent” to“…cut them off from being a nation; that the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance”. Furthermore, when you examine the map above and see lands we today call the Gaza Strip, Syria, Lebanon, et.al (Iran?), it is hard to imagine the War of Psalm 83 has not begun. However, to be fair, the prophecy of Psalm 83 may not be fulfilled until we also see the following prayer/prophecy come true:
“So persecute them with thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy storm. Fill their faces with shame ; that they may seek thy name , O Lord. Let them be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let them be put to shame, and perish: That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.”
Psalm 83:15-18
When I have discussed the war of Psalm 83 and the war of Gog and Magog, the most notable difference is that in the first war (Psalm 83) it is Israel’s direct neighbors that will attack her and be defeated. Their defeat will then give the Jews ALL the Land originally promised to them by God. The later (and bigger) war of Gog and Magog ARE NOT made up by her surrounding neighbors! Rather, they are countries like Russia, Iran/Iraq, Turkey, Ethiopia, Sudan, and Libya, led by Gog, the leader of Russia (Magog). Not one of these countries today borders Israel! But many of them DO border the countries that today surround Israel who I believe will attack Israel and be defeated.
What a rallying cry to the anti-Jewish, anti-Israel people! Think about it. For some reason Israel’s surrounding neighbors decide to attack and are totally defeated giving her ALL the land originally promised by God. Russia then pulls together a coalition of 5 other countries to “finish” off the Jews in a way the first countries could not.
But guess what? They also are defeated in a miraculous way that sees 5 of every 6 invaders and those in their homelands killed with it taking 7 months to bury the dead and 7 years to burn their implements of war. And this defeat happens in 1 day (again, please review my post on the War of Gog and Magog for more details)! I simply do not believe the attack by those in Ezekiel 38 & 39 could do so by marching through those countries that surround Israel. I believe they would either be part of that coalition, or they previously had been subjugated by Israel.
After these two disastrous wars I believe at this time a world leader will emerge citing the fact that the Jews (who with the Blessing of God) have ALWAYS defeated their adversaries, MUST NOW be recognized as a true Jewish country. He will sign a global, 7-year peace treaty with the Jews to finally end the hostilities. Or so we will be told! Of course, this leader is the anti-Christ, and the signing of that treaty will begin the worst 7-year time period (referred to as the Tribulation) in the history of the world, ultimately resulting in the glorious return of Jesus Christ at the Battle of Armageddon.
Scary? Only if you are here when these things happen and DON’T know the ultimate outcome! The purpose of this blog is to inform you what the Holy Bible says will happen, not to scare you but to make you aware of God’s Plan and hope you see the Truth of it and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior. If you have been saved, please don’t hesitate to tell others and “…comfort one another with these words.”
May God Bless you as we continue to pray for Jerusalem and await fulfillment of His Promises!