Ezekiel 38 at the Crossroads: Russia, Israel, Syria, and the Prophetic Battle Ahead

Speaker Identification

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin, Host. The opening explicitly identifies the host as “Brother Goodwin.” Later, Dr. Charles Philip Hill addresses him as “Dan,” but the transcript does not provide the host’s full name, so “Brother Goodwin” is used consistently.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill, Guest / In-Studio Contributor. Brother Goodwin explicitly introduces Dr. Charles Philip Hill at the beginning and repeatedly addresses him as “Doc.” Dr. Hill provides most of the detailed discussion of Ezekiel 38, the nations he associates with the prophecy, and the accompanying slides.

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Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Hey, welcome, everybody. Brother Goodwin here. Dr. Charles Philip Hill is sitting right here in the studio with me.

We’re going to give you some more thoughts on this Ezekiel 38 war that’s coming soon to a neighborhood near you, maybe.

Remember, Ezekiel 38 and 39 go together, and they’re talking about a prophecy that has not yet been fulfilled. It is the prophecy of the land of the north coming down to the Golan Heights, the mountains of the north, just above Israel there, and going to war with Israel. And he’s not coming alone. There will be some other countries. We’ll discuss that when we get into the show.

I thought I would read a couple of verses to introduce this to you — chapter 38, verses 1 and 2 — and then we’ll bring Doc in:

“And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him.”

Now, Gog is the leader. Magog is the land. This is Russia. If it happened right now, that leader would be Mr. Putin himself.

And this war is coming. We’ve talked about this before. Russia has been pushed up against the wall. They’ve got nowhere to go. Everyone’s turned on them. They’ve been lied about. I’m not saying that I’m a big fan of Russia, of course. [Unclear phrase.] But they’ve been lied about. They’ve been mistreated, and the whole world has turned on them right now.

And so I think this is going to be part of the hook in the nose that the Bible talks about right here in this passage that’s going to draw Russia down from the north against Israel, in the mountains of the north, which is the Golan Heights.

We’re going to share some information on this — some current things that are happening right now that you need to know about. We could be closer than we realize to the beginning of this. Doc and I both kind of think it’s possible that the Rapture happens at the demise of this battle. If that’s true, then we’re close.

All right, we’ll be right back. Stand by.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Hey, welcome, everybody, to the show today. I think it’s going to be an exciting show for you.

Wars and rumors of wars, right? It seems like that’s what’s going on now, but for all of humanity, that’s what it’s been: wars and rumors of wars.

I like that old Prussian quote. I have it in one of my books. Nobody knows who said it. It goes like this: “In case of rain, the war will be held in the auditorium. But we will have our wars.”

That’s about right. It’s funny, but it’s sad at the same time.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Yeah. I mean, throughout the history that we can date, I think I read somewhere in the CIA Factbook that there have only been 17 years in all of history — I know it was something like that — just a few years when there has not been any war.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Yeah.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
And there probably was. They just didn’t know. There was probably something going on somewhere.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
We will have our wars. And it’s big money, big business. Sad, but true.

So I don’t want to take your time, Doc. You’ve got some slides. You’ve got some interesting thoughts about the players that are involved in this, but also the players that are not involved in this. That’s the thing.

I’ve been teaching this for I couldn’t tell you how many years. Anyway, tell them about your DVD, Doc.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Yes, I do have a DVD on Russia and Ezekiel 38. In that, I even explain a little bit about my understanding of the battle over Ukraine, because those five districts on the east side of Ukraine were the end of the Scythian kingdom, or the Magog world, when this prophecy was written.

I really do believe that when God gave a prophecy to a people group in their geography, that prophecy will be fulfilled with that people group in their geography. I think the Ukraine war is reuniting a portion that was annexed and given to Ukraine years ago, and I think they’re going to get it back.

So anyway, the text — you can put up that first slide if you’d like there. He read a moment ago verses 1 and 2. I don’t know if you got verse 2, but you got verse 1. Verse 3 goes on to say, “I am against thee, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.”

Then he goes on to say who’s going to be with him. In verse 5, he’s got Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya with them, all of them with shield and helmet — in other words, all of them with military implements of war.

This prophecy is 2,700 years old, and prophecy was written in terms that everybody throughout all of time would have an understanding of. In other words, we don’t necessarily use sling stones. We don’t necessarily use bows and arrows, swords, and shields, but we still understand that as terminology for warfare.

So it gives you these names. Then it talks about Gomer and all his bands. Then verse 6 says, “Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee.”

So it’s obvious that the people who are involved may have names that are a little different today than they were in Bible terms.

You can put that next slide up, and you can get an idea about who these people are. If you’re watching this on YouTube, you can always stop and take a screenshot if you want to get these yourself and utilize them.

But, of course, Gog is, as you mentioned — well, Gog is the military and political leader of the north. He’s the chief prince. That’s Russia. Russia is more or less the finalization of the Scythian kingdom as it morphed into where it is today.

Mongolia was a part of the Scythian kingdom. Everything north of the Chinese border and everything that we call a “-stan” nation today were all a part of the Scythian kingdom. That’s who was there 2,700 years ago. That’s the kingdom of Magog, and I’m convinced that’s the kingdom that’s coming.

All of those now, outside of Russia itself, almost every single one of them are now Islamic nations, and so this is going to pull them together.

Persia, of course, is modern-day Iran. They’re in the Mesopotamian area. There’s a lot of history around that. We’re going to do a session soon on the Antichrist. I’ve been looking at that, talking about the Assyrian. The Chaldeans were not called a people until the Assyrians called them that or made them that. It’s a picture all the way back to Nimrod of an Antichrist. So Persia is an ancient land.

Ethiopia, or Cush, represents south of Egypt and modern-day Sudan. Do you not hear all about the Christians who are martyred? Whether these Christians are maybe the same as you think — maybe they’re more Orthodox than [unclear] — but you’re hearing all the time in Sudan of the martyrs, the Christians who are martyred by Islamic forces.

Then you’ve got Ethiopia, and we’ve got Somalia. You hear a lot about Somalia in our world today. Even just yesterday, Somali pirates got another tanker and confiscated it.

Then you have Libya, which is, I think, on the eastern side over there where Libya is today. And maybe you’re hearing about what is happening right now. You’re hearing about Moroccans going across the Strait of Gibraltar and going into Spain — invading. These are all players that are a part of this.

Then Gomer — that’s the nations that surround the Black Sea. They’re actually a part of the Magog complex.

Then you have the house of Togarmah. That’s Turkey and Armenia.

These are the players. If you could look at the map enlarged, you would realize that, looking at it right now, you can hardly even visualize Israel. You can hardly even see it on the map, Dan.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
No, not this far away.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Yeah, but look at all of those people all the way around it that want to destroy it. And they are, because Islam hates Judaism and Christianity. This is why the Islamic faith is invading our nation, and we’ll get to that in a few moments.

These are the people. These are the nations and the groups that the Bible says are going to federate themselves together. And as you read a while ago, it’s obvious that Russia is going to be the military leader of it.

Now think about it for a minute. Of all these people who are mentioned, who has the ability to conduct such a major military campaign? Turkey has the second-largest military force in NATO. But Russia — I forget whether Russia is number two or three in military power in the world.

So what you’re looking at is Russia being the one that has had the experience. They’ve got the military know-how. They’ve figured out what didn’t work in Afghanistan. And through all these wars they’ve had in the last 35 or 40 years, they are becoming the master of it.

But when you look at these others, how could Libya lead it? How could Somalia or Sudan? How could they lead it?

No, it’s going to require a major military power. At one point, before the last six or eight months, you might have said, “Well, Iran could be a leader in this.” But Iran is decimated now because of our involvement there in the Middle East. Iran couldn’t do it.

But Iran is definitely a major player because of its hostility. I believe this is where it will play into the hooks that are going to be in the jaws to draw the bear from the north into this: “You can have the spoils.”

Iran has an ideology in its religion that the more chaos they can create, the more reason there is for their Twelfth Imam, or their Mahdi, to come and set up the Islamic kingdom.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
I was going to ask you that, Doc. I think you kind of just answered it. What’s in it for these other four or five countries besides Russia? What’s in it for them?

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
What is in it for them is their religious ideology. In their thinking, Jerusalem and the Al-Aqsa Mosque — that’s their second-holiest place.

So they believe, in their thinking, whether they’re Sunnis or the other branch, whether they call it the Twelfth Imam or the Mahdi, they are looking for what we’re going to talk about in the next session. They’re looking for their version of the Antichrist to set up an Islamic kingdom.

And that’s kind of the way it all is. Everyone is looking at the same event for a different reason.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
That’s right.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Believers are looking for the Messiah to come and take us to the marriage supper. Muslims are looking for that Twelfth Imam.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
He’s supposed to be coming out of that well or something.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
The Catholics are looking for neither. They’re looking for the kingdom. They’re looking for the kingdom age there.

And all of these groups are not going to get what they thought.

So what we see is that just recently, in the last couple of weeks — as a matter of fact, in the last two days — Israel has bombed again in Damascus, in Syria. People say, “Why are they doing that again?”

Well, they used to do it all the time because it was the pipeline through which Iran was bringing all of its military support through Syria into Hezbollah to fight against Israel.

Well, Iran is not able to do that anymore. So what happens? A vacuum will be filled.

Syria got rid of Bashar Assad, and an ex-ISIS leader has taken over. So here’s what we have now: Turkey is working at using Syria.

What is happening is that the players are positioning Syria to be used as the staging ground for Ezekiel 38. Israel is already watching. So they bombed the airport to prevent Turkey from landing its troops. They told them they were going to do it. That’s what they’ve been talking about through the back channels.

So Israel isn’t concerned now about Iran using Syria. They’re concerned about Turkey using Syria.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Now, it’s interesting, Doc. I think we brought this up last week or the week before. A news report came out in which one of the ministers in Turkey made that statement.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
That’s right.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
We talked about that — Israel has become a burden to the whole world.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
That’s right.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
And then you think about that “burdensome stone” in Zechariah.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Exactly right.

These are the stages being set. The people groups — the Islamic groups that we’ve mentioned here — are ready at the drop of a hat to join in this. Absolutely ready.

Iran, as decimated as they are, will never — I’m telling you, our Western thinking does not understand Islamic thinking. You’re not going to change them. Down to the last IRGC guy and the hard-core Islamists, you’re never going to change them.

They really do believe they’re in a holy cause to prepare the world for the return of their Mahdi. They are set. You’re not going to change it.

They’re just like we are, only they’re in the wrong.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
That’s right.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
They believe their religion gives them the purpose of wiping out the infidel.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
That’s exactly right.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
And that’s anybody who’s not Islam. That’s their thinking.

You might say, “Well, where did they get that thinking?” You’ve got to remember who wrote their book and realize when they wrote their book in the 600s. You realize the Bible had been around a long time, and then they get these theological ideas.

But anyway, Israel is working at dealing with it. It’s the staging ground.

What we’re seeing is, I believe, the Board of Peace and the Abraham Accords—

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Now, Doc, pause right there. I just had this thought. Most people in Israel don’t believe the New Testament, but this is Old Testament.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
That’s right. This is Old Testament.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
What do the Israeli people think? Do they understand Ezekiel 38 the way we do?

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
They do. They do, yeah.

Now, you’ve got to understand that the religious leaders who do understand it are not the majority.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Right.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
It’s just like here in America, even in Christianity. True Christianity is not the majority of quote-unquote Christianity.

And so it is there, but many understand this battle, and they know it’s coming.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Well, that gives them an unfair advantage here. [Unclear exchange concerning a religious advantage or disadvantage.] When it says that God is going to deliver them, God is going to deliver them. That could be by several different ways. He could use an army, but I wonder what they think that means.

I don’t know. It would be interesting. I’d like to find a man of the Bible and sit down with him. It’s an interesting thought.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Yes.

So what I’m saying, Dan, is that the Board of Peace and the Abraham Accords are bringing a lot of these Islamic nations together with Western nations into an agreement.

I don’t think Mr. Trump and Western nations realize that what they’re doing is tying their hands behind their backs.

Because you’ve already said it. The statements out of Turkey — that Israel is the burden — are part of all this, and it’s becoming more and more antisemitic. More and more of the world is seeing Israel as the problem.

So the Board of Peace now is trying to force Israel to pull everything out of Hamas territory, out of Gaza, so that Hamas will lay down the rest of its arms.

Israel says, “That’s done. We don’t agree with that.” But the Board of Peace says, “This is what we’re going to do.”

We’re watching the Abraham Accords and the Board of Peace further and further isolate Israel, while people are joining in all this for peace and prosperity. That’s what it’s all about.

So what happens? Look, put up that last slide for us.

In chapter 38, it goes on to say in verse 13:

“Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? Hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? To carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?”

So out of all this battle, there is a group here that is not involved. There is a group that is going to stand back and not help Israel.

Sheba and Dedan are the modern nations of Arabia, the Arabian Peninsula — what we call Saudi Arabia.

Oh, Abraham Accords, Board of Peace.

The merchants of Tarshish — it’s Western maritime powers. Primarily, it would have been linked to Great Britain, Tarshish. And out of that came the young lions: America, the colonies out of that, Australia.

If you haven’t seen Australia lately, you realize Australia is — they’re gone.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Oh, yeah. It’s gone.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
They couldn’t help anything.

Canada — what in the world would Canada do against these foes?

And the United States: you’re watching this DSA, or whatever it is — Democratic Socialists of America.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Yeah.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
You realize that six commissioners — I believe it’s Detroit or somewhere in Michigan — six city councilmen, not one of the six city councilmen is a natural-born citizen. All of them were Islamic.

You’re watching this happening.

Now, folks, I don’t know how long it’s going to be, but I’m watching some things happen in America that are scary.

Everybody is saying, “Oh, this is going to be good because the Republicans are going to sweep it all.” You’d better not stay home and not vote, because I’m here to tell you, this is getting to be serious.

I think we ought to do as Jude says. We ought to stay in the battle. We ought to contend for the faith. [Unclear phrase about remaining in the battle to the end], like a Roman gladiator to the death.

But we need to understand: you’re not circumventing prophecy. There’s going to be a time, and I’m watching it.

I don’t like what I’m hearing out of Washington concerning how we approach Israel. We’re seeing it, and you’re hearing more and more, and you’re going to see more and more of this.

So what’s going to happen when this happens? I don’t know when, but I’m telling you, the stage could be set within months, easily, or years.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Now, that thing about Gaza and Israel — [unclear phrase] — now it’s sounding more like the “unwalled villages.”

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Exactly right. It’s going to lead right into that. It’s all leading into it.

I’m telling you, folks, the stage is already set in most of these Islamic countries. They’re ready in a heartbeat. Before the feather hits the ground, they’d be right there, ready to go to war.

All they’re waiting for is a final solution to the Ukraine war. And Israel is on their doorstep in Syria. These people can be there in almost no time in our modern world today.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
And I think we mentioned on the radio show why Syria is so important.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
That’s right.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Explain that real quick.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Well, Syria is at the doorstep. It’s the connection right there between—

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
It’s the geography. I mean, they’re right there on the border.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
The geography of it. And it’s on the other side of the mountains of the north, on the other side of the Golan Heights.

So over in Syrian territory, all of these armies can gather together, and Israel can’t do anything about it. I think that’s what we need to be looking at.

It’s probably already happening. We just don’t know. There are probably troops going in there right now.

Well, there have been, and Russia has a deep-sea port there and whatnot. All of these players are ready to get into it.

The thing our folks need to understand is: Who wins this thing? The Bible says God wins it.

It’s obvious. He says there’s going to be only a sixth of their armies left alive.

Now, I did the math on this, and there are 500 million people just in the lands that are mentioned here. If only 1% — if only 1% — and the average is about 0.7% of the population being in the military, if 1% were in the military for all of those armies, you’ve got a five-million-man army against Israel’s 700,000.

No wonder, when they go to bed at night, they think it’s over, only to be shaken out of bed with an earthquake as God ends it on the mountains of the north.

I’m telling you, I can see where Sheba and Dedan and all of those mentioned are already, right now, preparing themselves to stand back, not get involved, and let it happen to Israel.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Well, good job, Doc. Good stuff, folks.

What does this mean to you and me?

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Yes.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Well, if you’re saved, you don’t have to worry about this stuff. But God did spend a lot of time in a couple of good chapters, and other places in the Bible, explaining this. It is important—

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Amen.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
—for the believer to know what’s coming. And that’s coming.

You’d better be ready to meet Jesus.

Speaker 2 – Dr. Charles Philip Hill:
Amen.

Speaker 1 – Brother Goodwin:
Because He’s coming, and if you’re not ready to meet Him, it’ll be far worse than not being ready to meet an army.

And I hope you know Jesus as your Savior. If you need any help with that, contact us.

Remember, we’re viewer-supported here. We’d love to hear from you.

And until next time, keep your eyes on the sky.