“My holy name I will make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel. Behold, it is coming and it shall be done,” declares the Lord God. “That is the day of which I have spoken (Ezekiel 39:7-8).

Then they will know that I am the Lord their God because I made them go into exile among the nations, and then gathered them again to their own land; and I will leave none of them there any longer. I will not hide My face from them any longer, for I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel,” declares the Lord God (Ezekiel 39:28-29).

There is a kind of finality in the language here so that the events described seem eshatological and still future. Even to this very day God's Name is profaned; therefore, the time has not yet come, where God has accomplished this prophetic word. Even to this very day there are Jews living outside of Israel; therefore, the time of their total return to the land seems not yet. Even though the Spirit came upon many at Pentecost, the Spirit has yet to fall on the whole house of Israel.

Friends, this expectation is not simply a Jewish expectation but ours as well. Our destiny is intricately interwined with the nation of Israel, for we share in the New Covenant promises that they received in Jeremiah and Ezekiel. In Christ, we have been adopted into the community of God's people, so that we share in their benefits. This is Paul's argument in his letter to the Ephesian church:

Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. 

Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit (Ephesians 2:11-21).

Friends, Israel's hope is our hope. What God desires to do through them, namely, making sure that His Name is no more profaned, He desires to do through us. Therefore, when we read of God's plans concerning Israel, we can embrace these promises as well. We should also embrace God's priorities concerning Israel, namely, to honor His Name. Let us do everything, then, as much as it depends on us, to honor the Name of the Lord in our lives.

Ezekiel 38
21 I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Lord God. Every man's sword will be against his brother.22 With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will rain upon him and his hordes and the many peoples who are with him torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur. 23 So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

I have held a premillennial view of the end times but over the past year I have started shifting towards Partial Preterism, which views many of the prophecies to have been fulfilled by 70 AD.

I am reading this year's reading with a perspective to not by default look at judgment references as premillennialism. So far I think it has been okay. I hope to look at my notes at the end of the 'year' and see what I think when I complete Revelation.

I have not completed this site's reading (http://kloposmasm.com/2010/04/05/revelation-20-four-views-of-gog-and-magog/) but this presents nicely a case for a Partial Preterism interpretation of this passage.

In summary, rather than viewing Ezekiel 38 & 39 as an event yet to happen, I think a case can be made for a time that has already occurred.
 
Events:
38:4 There will be a great army called against Israel.
38:5-6 The army consisted of people from Persia, Ethiopia, Put (Libya), and people of the North.
38:8 Israel will be a recently scattered people and brought back together. At the time of the attack they will be dwelling in security.
38:9 When the called army advances it will be a cloud numerous and great.
38:11-12 The Israelites will have gold and possessions, even after their time of being scattered. It will be enough to be considered plunder by the aggressors
38:36 A 'Gog' connection must be present.

38:19-23, 39:1-6 A great upset! What was thought as sure will be undone, God will deliver his blow.
39:10 rather than being plundered the Israelites will plunder

A fitting story to this prophecy is set in the book of Esther.

A great army was set against Israel.
Esther 3:13, all 127 provinces of the Persian Empire received notice to kill all Jews.

Esther 8:9, An empire that produced an army spanning India to Ethiopia was called; an army consistent of people from Persia, Ethiopia, Put (Libya), and people of the North.

Recently scattered and secure for 150 years (Cyrus to Ahasuerus) the Jews were still under an authority, but doing well - presumed by the Persian reputation started by Cyrus the Great.

The Gog/Magog connection takes a little 'connecting the dots.'  While I don't like these kinds of explanations since too many links makes for vulnerable points, the connection goes to Japheth, Methuselah's brother, who sired various children such as Gomer, Magag, Tiras, Meshech, Tubal, and Madai.  King Agag, transliterated at Magog, has connections to the Agagites, ("Haman the Agagite" in Esther). I don't have a strong handle of the connections the link may better explain.

Haman, being an Agagite is of King Agag, who is of Magog. This is the only place in the bible that the Agagites are mentioned which the article points out as a reason why the writer points that out; that the enemy of the jews once again comes from the line of King Agag, of the line of Gog and Magog. 

Of course we have you have the great upset in Esther 9:1-2 & the Jew rather than being the ‘plundees’ are the plunderers in Esther 8:11.

I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry... Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel... My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel (Ezekiel 37:2,11-12).

Friends, what are these dry bones? And what does this vision of Ezekiel represent? I ask this because any gradeschool person should know the answer. The text directly tells us. The dry bones are Israel. And the vision represents God's promise to restore them to the land. In the historical context Ezekiel is preaching to the exiles in Babylon a prophecy of hope, namely, that they will not be forever in exile but that in time God will return them to their own land. 

I am afraid that the original meaning may have gotten lost. The reference to "dry bones" have been applied to America, to depressed or down-and-out Christians, to backslidden believers, and to any number of other things. While I suppose that if the reference is simply to remind believers of God's faithfulness to His promises, there is a cause; however, so often people have no sense of what the original context was and understand it only in its contemporary application. Thus, this reference merely becomes part of the mantra in a song, separated from the reality of the prophetic context with respect to the restoration of Israel to their land. 

I bring this up because we have a song that we sing in church that mention "dry bones." It is called "The Great I Am." The writer probably took this from Ezekiel, but I daresay, many, if not most, at church are not aware of the context in Ezekiel from which this reference is taken when they sing the song. I wonder sometimes if the writer himself was aware of the context or if he just thought it sounded cool to include in the lyrics. So, I looked up the song on the internet. I noticed that there are some variations. I found it fascinating how certain parts of the song are edited. Notice how between these two sites the highlighted portions are changed:

The "loving the world" line always made me a bit uncomfortable, especially because there are so many more verses commanding us not to love the world (1 John 2:15; James 4:4; 2 Timothy 4:10; Romans 12:2). Now, I know John 3:16 reads, "God so loved the world," but God's loving the world is somewhat different from our loving the world. I also recognize that the writer intends the line to mean for us to love people and not so much the world system, but I still find this a poor choice of words. Thus, I like the changed version (see above): "Loving the word, hating the dark." Also, the contrast between God's "Word," which is often described as light, and the "dark" is much better than between "loving the world" and the "hating the dark."

I imagine that, like me, there are others being thoughtful about what they are singing. I encourage you to do the same. If what you are singing is either unbiblical or radically unorthodox, then I encourage you not to sing it or perhaps modify the words. I also encourage praise leaders to study the songs before they present them to the congregation, so that what is presented not only sounds good but is also biblically sound. 

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One final note. The promise of God bringing His people back to their land seems much more than just the return of the exiles. God speaks of a great slaughter of the nations around them as well as the establishment of the Davidic kingship again. Since these things have not been fulfilled to this day, many believe that Ezekiel is giving a prophecy of the Millennium, where Christ, who is the final Davidic king, will reign for a thousand years over a resurrected people of God. As a prelude to this there would be a great slaughter of the kings and armies of the world:

And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, “Come, gather together for the great supper of God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people,free and slave, great and small" (Revelation 19:17-18).

This reads very much like the description in Ezekiel 39:17-18,

“Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Call out to every kind of bird and all the wild animals: 'Assemble and come together from all around to the sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood. You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls—all of them fattened animals from Bashan.'

Friends, praise God that we are on the side of the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, Jesus Christ. He will defeat the kings and armies of the world with the sword of His mouth (Revelation 19:15). The Lamb of God will come as the Lion of Judah. The suffering Servant will appear as the Lord of hosts. Having this hope in mind, though we are perpetually a remnant in the world, a chosen few, let us join hands with the common testimony of our hope of salvation in Christ. Our differences in perspectives and interpretations will serve as reminders of our imperfection, and they will drive us in humble adoration and trust to the One who is able to completely sanctify us in spite of our shortcomings. But even where disagreements exist, we must not fight and devour each other or else we may destroy the very work of God in us:

If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other (Galatians 5:15).

Rather, as we look forward to that Day, let us always be "speaking the truth in love" so that "we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ" (Ephesians 4:15).

Friends,

Ezekiel 37-39 speaks of a future time when Israel will be restored to their former greatness as they respond to the preaching of God's Word. Consequently, this future restoration is more wonderful because it is a resurrection from death to life and one that will endure forever. God will subdue and destroy Israel's enemies, and the birds and beasts wil feast on their blood (compare Revelation 20:17-21). This prophecy corresponds well to the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom, where redeemed Israel will join Gentile believers to reign with Christ 1000 years (Revelation 20:4-6).

Now, that said, a compelling case can be made that these chapters in Ezekiel has a primary reference to an event contemporary to Ezekiel, namely, the Jewish conquest over her enemies in the time of Esther.  Now, this does not negate a future and more ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy, especially as it concerns the reestablishment of the throne of David. This is probably true, as it is of many Old Testament prophecies, which convey both a near and far future fulfillment. 

This seems to be the best understanding of our present text; however, some have taken the prophecy about the valley of dry bones to preach spiritual renewal and the need for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. This is one of many passages that is often taken out of its context and forced into applications invented by preachers and teachers, who are more interested in stirring up excitement than in conveying God's truth. I would warn you, dear friends, to be watchful and discerning.

Mind-boggling prophecies are recorded in today's chapters. I don't know if these prophecies have been fulfilled in the past or still to be carried out. When I was growing up at church in my hometown, we were taught that "Gog" is supposed to be Russia because she is the only country which is capable of doing something written in the book of Ezekiel. Who knows? Bottom line is that it will surely come to pass if it hasn't happened in the past.

 I was like the dry bones in the Valley. No one, including even myself, could possibly bring me back to life. God is the one who predestined, called, and justified me. His grace is amazing not because He simply offered an invitation for salvation, but because He planned our salvation even before the foundation of heaven and earth and overcame our sinful inclination for us to be able to accept Him. Many christians believe that nothing on earth happens by chance nor is the product of random choices and incidents because Matt 10:29 says, "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father." When it comes to our salvation, however, it is vehemently against God's sovereign choice as if it were heresy. Did salvation come to us because we were lucky enough to be there when someone was preaching the Gospel or because our parents were believers or because we were better than others to choose God? It is His choice, not ours! Dry dead bones have no power to respond to any external influence but to remain dead unless God's breath of life is breathed into them. Brothers and sisters! We are God's elect for His glory. We are not ours anymore but His. Therefore, let us work out our salvation everyday with a contrite heart.

In chapter 37, Ezekiel revealed how Israel would be restored to their land from many parts of the world.  Once Israel became strong a confederacy of nations from the north would attack led by Gog to destroy God's people.  I have heard Gog is a person or a symbol of all evil in the world.  Some believe this battle is at the end of human history.  Anyone got any comments on this?