Why is the Lord God of Israel going to bring Gog and his overwhelming army down to attack Israel at this point in history? The broadest purpose statement for this entire passage is given in verses seven and eight. "My holy name I shall make known in the midst of My people Israel," with the result that "I shall not let My holy name be profaned anymore" (39:7). That God is holy is important to God Himself, even though it is greatly undervalued today, even in Christian circles...
The slaughter by the Lord as He defends Israel against Gog and his hoards will be so great and significant that the biblical text spends ten verses talking about the clean up and burial process following the battle (Ezek. 39:11–20). What was meant to result in the physical death of the nation of Israel by Gog is turned around by God in such a way that it will provide an opportunity for spiritual life for Israel (Ezek. 39:25–39)...
Having completed an examination and overview of Ezekiel 38–39:20, I now turn to the issue of when this event will or has taken place in history. What are the various views relating to the timing of when this campaign takes place? There are at least seven different views concerning the time of the fulfillment of the battle of Gog and Magog...
This passage spends an inordinate amount of verbiage on the clean up aspects following the battle where God wipes out Gog (Ezek. 39:9–20). "The first instructions deal with the disposal of the weapons (verses 9–10), which are to be burned. . . . The next instructions (Ezekiel 39:11–20) deal with the proper disposal of the slain soldiers of the Gog army." ...
The second past fulfillment or preterist view of this passage believes that the prophecy "was fulfilled in the 2nd century B.C. at the defeat of the Assyrian invaders of Palestine by Judas Maccabeus." [1] A preterist said that this is the most widely held view by preterists of the Gog prophecy, yet I searched my library and more importantly the preterist web sites and could hardly find any preterist who has written about what this prophecy means...