Psalm 83 and the
Battle
of Ezekiel 38
and 39
By Kit
Olsen
Psalm 83 is an
imprecatory prayer,
an imprecatory
psalm, it seems very
obvious to me. After
careful research, I
have found quite an
interesting lecture:
“The Ezekiel
Solution,” [1]
presented by Dr. Ken
(Doc) Beshore in
California
during the summer of
2008. He has a PhD
in hermeneutics, the
study of Bible
interpretation, and
his expertise is
eschatology. He has
five Doctorate
degrees: Doctor of
Divinity, Doctor of
Letters, Doctor of
Philosophy, Doctor
of Sacred
Literature, and
Doctor of Theology.
I would say Doc
Beshore is a very
qualified analyst in
the matters of
eschatology, with an
exceptional ability
to properly decipher
Scripture. He is
also a huge advocate
of Israel. Through
his extensive
evangelistic radio
ministry, he shares
the salvation
message with a large
portion of the
Jewish population
throughout Israel. He is also very involved
with evangelism in
Russia,
and is president and
founder (1968) of
the World Bible
Society.
“But know this first
of all, that no
prophecy of
Scripture is a
matter of one’s
own interpretation”
(2 Peter 1:20).
Some popular
theories regarding
the meaning of Psalm
83 are circulating,
claiming it is an
unfulfilled
prophecy, and
describing a major
separate war that
will take place
before the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39.
Accompanying that
particular
interpretation is a
belief that the
Israeli Defense
Forces (IDF) will
successfully defeat
Arab enemies,
therefore getting
the credit for
defeating the Arab
nations that
surround Israel. It is
true that in Ezekiel
37:10, an
“exceedingly great
army” is mentioned,
but the verse does
not say that that a
great army will be
responsible for the
destruction of
Israel’s
enemies. I would
also say it is much
more likely a war
that we will
see before
the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39
will be the
fulfillment of
Isaiah 17, which
could very possibly
take place shortly
before the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39.
The destruction of
Damascus
could very likely
trigger the
Gog-Magog battle.
“The burden against Damascus, Behold. Damascus will cease from
being a city, and it
will be a ruinous
heap” (Isaiah 17:1).
In "The Ezekiel
Solution" lecture,
Doc Beshore goes
into a definitive
description of Psalm
83, confirming my
own analysis of the
psalm. He teaches
that Psalm 83 is an
imprecatory prayer.
He also agrees that
the Arab states
mentioned in the
psalm are the modern
Arab states that are
members of the Arab
League. Their agenda
is to reduce
Israel
to nothing. Bible
scholar Doc Beshore
is also
very proficient in
the Hebrew language.
In reference to
Psalm 83, verse 5,
he states the word
“confederacy,”
berith
in Hebrew, can be
translated into the
English word
“league.” Also,
according to
The New Strong’s
Exhaustive
Concordance of the
Bible,
the Hebrew word
berith
is translated
“covenant” in the
English Bible. The
concordance also
states the word
berith appears 227
times in the Old
Testament, and
means “confederacy,
league or covenant.”
[2]
Doc
Beshore further
contends that Psalm
83 is a fulfilled
prophecy, a prophecy
that continues to be
fulfilled, and a
prophecy that will
be completely
fulfilled when the
battle of Ezekiel 38
and 39 takes
place. He
definitively states
that the next major
prophetic war in the
Middle East
will be the battle
of Ezekiel 38 and
39.
By
carefully comparing
Psalm 83 with
Ezekiel 38 and 39,
Psalm 83 appears
very much to be an
imprecatory prayer
for Israel, and certainly relates to
current events. Both
Christians and Jews
have been praying
for God’s
intervention--to
stop
Israel’s
enemies from the
continuous barrage
of threats and
assaults from those
who also happen to
be members of the
Arab League. This
fervent appeal can
be witnessed today.
Every time
Israel
is threatened,
prayers go before
the throne of God on Israel’s behalf. An imprecatory
prayer is pleading
with God to bring
down judgment upon a
dangerous enemy. To
"imprecate" means to
call God’s judgment
down upon a people.
The following verses
sound like what the
enemies of Israel are saying today, including
those who are
members of the Arab
League:
“They have taken
crafty counsel
against Your people
and consulted
together against
Your sheltered ones.
They have said, Come
and let us cut them
off from being a
nation, that the
name of Israel may be remembered no more.
For they have
consulted together
with one consent,
they form a
confederacy against
You” (Psalm 83:3,5).
Psalm 83 speaks
about a future war,
which sounds very
much like the battle
of Ezekiel 38 and
39. Doc Beshore
believes, as I do,
that Psalm 83 is a
prayer to bring
about the
fulfillment of
battle of Ezekiel 38
and 39. Psalm 83
speaks about a
“confederacy” and
all the nations
listed in that psalm
are part of the Arab
League, whose
members are
frequently calling
for
Israel’s
demise The political
leader of
Iran,
Mahamoud
Ahmadinejad, is well
known for spewing
his hatred for Israel and
calling for its
total destruction.
Psalm
83 is a prayer to
circumvent the
conspiracy against Israel. I would
further say that
Psalm 83 describes
and correlates what
will happen during
the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39,
when the nations of
the world will know
God and God alone
will save
Israel
from the Russian-led
invasion. To imply
that the Israeli
Defense Forces will
liberate
Israel
from Islamic threats
cannot be confirmed
or supported by any
Scripture found in
Psalm 83, or in
Ezekiel 38 and 39.
If the IDF is given
the credit for
winning that war,
then God will not be
known for saving Israel.
Where does it say in
Psalm 83 that
man-made military
forces will save Israel? Where does it say in Ezekiel
38 and 39 that an
army will save Israel? Only God will save Israel during
the war described in
Psalm 83 and Ezekiel
38, 39. There will
be no mistaking His
supernatural
intervention when He
rescues Israel. To paraphrase Doc Beshore:
This event will be a
vanguard moment in
history. The entire
world will see God
in a new light, in a
different way
because of His
undeniable,
supernatural
miraculous
intervention.
On
October 23, 2009, I
had a fascinating
conversation with
Doc Beshore,
primarily on the
topic of Psalm 83.
He unequivocally
stated: “Psalm 83 is
not a war, but an
imprecatory prayer
calling for Ezekiel
38 and 39 to be
fulfilled.” He was
also strong in his
conviction that
without proper
hermeneutics, it is
impossible to
correctly interpret
Scripture. This man
is a brilliant, very
seasoned, highly
respected,
exceptionally
credentialed scholar
amongst scholars.
His words and
analysis should be
given serious
attention. During
our conversation, he
also expressed that
the circumstances of
the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39
would surpass even
the historic
miracles of the
Exodus. He said:
“The Exodus will
pale in comparison
to what will happen
at the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39.”
God’s new historic
identity, “the Lord
who lived who
brought up the
children of
Israel
from the land of the
north” is based on
Jeremiah 16:14:
“Therefore behold
the days are coming,
says the LORD, that
it shall be no more
be said, ‘The LORD
lives who brought up
the children of
Israel from the land
of Egypt, but the
LORD lives who
brought up the
children of Israel
from the land of the
north and from all
the lands where He
had driven them.’
For I will bring
them back into their
land which I gave to
their fathers”
(Jeremiah 16:14,15).
Approximately one
million Jews have
already emigrated to
Israel
from
Russia
(the north country).
Further, Doc Beshore
spoke of how the
Islamic population
will be tremendously
decreased because of
that war, and
remarked: “Russia will be
destroyed.”
“And I will send
fire on Magog [Russia]
and on those who
live in security in
the coastlands. Then
they shall know that
I am the
LORD” (Ezekiel
39:6).
According to Ezekiel
38:13, Saudi Arabia (ancient Sheba and Dedan) will not
participate in the
Ezekiel 38 and 39
invasion. Even now,
the Saudis are
leading the central
banking group into
pressuring
Israel
into a
land-for-peace deal,
and most probably
will keep pushing
for that deal,
rather than joining
the future
Russian-led Islamic
forces when Israel is
attacked. The Saudis
appear to be leaning
in the direction of
those who form the
Mediterranean Union,
pressuring Israel to make land-for-peace
concessions. The
prospect of a
nuclear-armed
Iran
is of great concern
to the leaders of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has never been very cozy with Iran or Russia,
although the Saudis
did recently
purchase some
weapons from Russia. In my
opinion, the attempt
to subvert
Israel
will continue to be
done in a more
“civilized” way, by
pressuring them to
make land-for-peace
agreements.
Amir
Tsarfati is a
sought-after Israeli
speaker and very
knowledgeable Bible
teacher who lives in
Jerusalem.
During a number of
speaking engagements
at Calvary Chapel
churches, he has
stated that he
believes the battle
of Ezekiel 38 and 39
is coming soon. He
also stated that he
disagrees with the
argument by some
prophecy teachers
regarding Ezekiel
38, teaching that
Israel
has to be living
peacefully (safely)
before that battle
can take place. He
believes all the
physical conditions
for the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39
are already in place
today.
Amir
is a strong Hebrew
Christian, carefully
following prophetic
events. Living in
Israel
gives him an
advantage when
discussing and
discerning the
meaning of the
relevant prophetic
passage, Ezekiel
38:11. “Dwelling
safely’’ does not
mean the Israelis
dwell peacefully,
but that the
conditions that
exist are considered
“safe” to a degree.
A wall to protect
the Israeli
population from
Palestinian missile
attacks does exist.
However, there are
no extensive walls
surrounding all of
Israel.
Each village or
community in
Israel
does not have “bars”
or “gates.” The
common situation for
cities or villages
during the time of
Ezekiel was one
where rock walls and
gates were
prevalent. In my
opinion, these are
the types of walls,
fences, and barriers
Ezekiel was
referring to in
verse 11. These rock
barriers no longer
exist. In general,
the people of modern
Israel
move about freely.
Doc Beshore also
states in his
“Ezekiel Solution”
lecture that in
general, “Israel
has secure borders”
and the current
border circumstances
qualify for the
fulfillment of
Ezekiel 38 and 39.
Another
point to consider is
the fact that Israel as a whole is quite
rebellious against
God and is not
engaged in a genuine
spiritual
relationship with
the Lord. Generally
speaking, Israel is secular to the core, and
government leaders
have a history of
settling for false
peace agreements by
giving away chunks
of land, land that
was given to them by
God Himself.
Therefore, we could
say that
Israel
has no spiritual
walls, fences, or
barriers. Israel at the moment is lacking
spiritual walls or
hedges of protection
from the Lord. In
general, the
Israelis are living
carelessly, without
a genuine
relationship with
the Lord, and this
is a contributing
reason why they are
opening themselves
up to being pounced
on by many enemies.
In
order for the battle
of Ezekiel 38 and 39
to occur, there will
be plenty of enemies
who will eagerly
march against
Israel.
To imply that the
Israelis will ever
be living peacefully
before the Gog-Magog
battle simply cannot
be. Clearly, those
who participate in
the Gog-Magog war
will be great
enemies of
Israel.
I don’t believe for
a minute that Israel will let down its guard until
the son of
perdition, the
Antichrist, deceives
the Israelis into
thinking he is their
savior. This
argument is also in
keeping with the
conditions necessary
for a pretribulation
rapture of the
Church.
“You will say, I
will go up against a
land of unwalled
villages; I will go
to a peaceful
people, who dwell
safely, all of them
dwelling without
walls, and having
neither bars nor
gates (Ezekiel
38:11).
The passage says
the people of
Israel
are a “peaceful
people”--not that
they are living in
“peace.”
The verses from
Psalm 83:17 and 18
correlate with what
will transpire when
the Lord
supernaturally
intervenes during
the battle of
Ezekiel 38 and 39.
As a student of
Bible prophecy, it
is my opinion that a
portion of Psalm 83
is speaking of a
partially fulfilled
prophecy--the Arab
League, and its
despotic verbal
rumblings.
I have already
addressed the prayer
aspect of the psalm.
Next, it also speaks
of events that will
take place as
described in Ezekiel
38 and 39, when the
Lord confounds the
enemies of Israel and shows His indignation, halting the
onslaught against
His nation
Israel.
If you carefully
read through Ezekiel
38 and 39, and Psalm
83, their
interdependence and
similarities cannot
be denied.
“O my God, make
them like a whirling
dust like the chaff
before the wind! As
the fire burns the
woods and as the
flame sets the
mountains on fire,
so pursue them with
Your tempest, and
frighten them with
Your storm. Fill
their faces with
shame, that they may
seek Your name O
LORD. Let them be
confounded and
dismayed forever;
yes, let them be put
to shame and perish.
That they may know
that You, whose name
alone is the LORD,
And the most high
over all the earth”
(Psalm 83:17,18).
The previous verses
are very similar to
the verses of
Ezekiel 39:2 and 3
and verse 7. They
appear to be
speaking about the
same event, as you
can see here:
“And I will turn you
around and lead you
on, bringing you up
from the mountains
far north, and bring
you against the
mountains of Israel. Then I
will knock the bow
out of your left
hand and cause the
arrows to fall out
of your right hand.
So I will make My
holy name known in
the midst of My
people Israel, and I
will not let them
profane my holy name
anymore. Then the
nations shall know I
am the LORD, the
Holy One of Israel”
(Ezekiel 39:2,3,7).
In both Psalm 83 and
Ezekiel 39, the Lord
is describing what
will happen when the
Russian-led,
predominately Muslim
army marches down
from the north to
decimate
Israel.
It is the Lord
Himself who will
give the Russians
the idea to invade Israel (Ezekiel
38:4,11) so He can
be glorified and
reveal Himself to
the nations. He will
not be defending
Israel
for Israel’s sake,
but for His name’s
sake, so the nations
of the world will
see He is in
control, Almighty
God that He is.
No dangling carrot
is necessary for
this invasion to
take place. Israel does not have to be bigger or
richer for this
battle to ensue. It
is God’s battle to
fight, and He
intends to make
Himself known. God
Almighty has a plan
to personally foil
the wicked plans of
the enemy. He will
use the enemy’s
extreme hatred for Israel to bring
His redemptive plans
for His chosen
nation and the world
to fruition. Both
Psalm 83 and Ezekiel
39 make it perfectly
clear that it is the
Lord Himself who
will intervene in
such a mighty way
that no one will be
able to deny His
awesome power. The
nations will realize
God defended Israel and destroyed the enemy. The
Israeli Defense
Forces, as great as
they are, will not
be responsible for Israel’s
victory. To say they
will save
Israel
from the enemy is an
assault upon the
promises of God and
His Holy Word. Psalm
83 and Ezekiel 83
both state God and
God alone will be
the One to deliver Israel during
this prophesied
battle. Psalm 83 and
Ezekiel 38 each
reveal that God’s
awesome presence
will be undeniable.
“These were more
fair-minded than
those in
Thessalonica, in
that they received
the word with all
readiness and
searched the
Scriptures daily to
find out
whether these things
were so” (Acts
17:11).
Kit Olsen
Friends of Yeshua
[1] The Ezekiel
Solution DVD -
The World Bible
Society -
http://www.worldbiblesociety.org/subjects/products/dvds.htm
[2] The New
Strong’s Exhaustive
Concordance of the
Bible, James
Strong Editor,
Thomas Nelson
Publishers,
Nashville,
Tennessee, 1996,
Hebrew Appendix
p.23.
