Chapters 38 and 39 deal with a new and great
victory. These chapters picture the famous battle of
Gog and Magog. Do not confuse this war with the Battle
of Armageddon, described in Revelation 19:11-21,
because Armageddon takes place at the end of the seven
year Tribulation Period that follows the Rapture of the
Church. Nor is it the same as the battle involving Gog
and Magog, mentioned in Revelation 20:7-9, for that
will take place at the close of the 1,000 year reign of
Christ, when Satan will again be loosed. The battle
given in Ezekiel 38 and 39 takes place at the time when
the Jews are safely living in their own land in the
latter years (chapter 38:8). You might wonder when this
will be. It seems probable that it will be during the
first three and one-half years of the Tribulation
Period, when Israel will be protected from Egypt and
Russia by her covenant with the head of the Roman
Empire. Chapters 40–48 constitute Ezekiel’s
remarkable vision of the restored land of Israel, with
the people occupying the land during the Kingdom Age.
The date was April, 573 b.c., on the occasion of the
25th anniversary of the prophet’s exile. Ezekiel was
supernaturally transported in vision to Israel, and
prophesied from a future idealistic standpoint “upon a
very high mountain.”