וַיְהִי דְבַר־ה' אֵלַי לֵאמֹר

The word of the Lord was with me, saying:

בֶּן־אָדָם שִׂים פָּנֶיךָ אֶל־גּוֹג אֶרֶץ הַמָּגוֹג נְשִׂיא רֹאשׁ מֶשֶׁךְ וְתֻבָל וְהִנָּבֵא עָלָיו

Son of man, direct your attention to Gog of the land of Magog, the prince, head of, the supreme ruler of the peoples of, Meshekh and Tuval, and prophesy in his regard.

וְאָמַרְתָּ כֹּה אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים הִנְנִי אֵלֶיךָ גּוֹג נְשִׂיא רֹאשׁ מֶשֶׁךְ וְתֻבָל

Say: So said the Lord God: Behold, I am turning against you, Gog, the prince, head of Meshekh and Tuval.

וְשׁוֹבַבְתִּיךָ וְנָתַתִּי חַחִים בִּלְחָיֶיךָ וְהוֹצֵאתִי אוֹתְךָ וְאֶת־כָּל־חֵילֶךָ סוּסִים וּפָרָשִׁים לְבֻשֵׁי מִכְלוֹל כֻּלָּם קָהָל רָב צִנָּה וּמָגֵן תֹּפְשֵׂי חֲרָבוֹת כֻּלָּם

I will lead you astray, instilling in you a spirit of mischief, or inciting you, and I will insert hooks into your cheeks, as one does to pull animals, and I will take you out with all your army, horses, and horsemen, all of them clothed in grandeur, a great assembly equipped with wide shields that encircle the fighter and bucklers, and all of them wielding swords.

פָּרַס כּוּשׁ וּפוּט אִתָּם כֻּלָּם מָגֵן וְכוֹבָע

Persia, Kush, and Put will be with them, with the riders and the sword-wielding foot soldiers, all of them with shields and wearing warriors’ helmets. Not all nations would wear helmets in war. In general, the donning of headgear was emblematic of certain kingdoms.

גֹּמֶר וְכָל־אֲגַפֶּיהָ בֵּית תּוֹגַרְמָה יַרְכְּתֵי צָפוֹן וְאֶת כָּל־אֲגַפָּיו עַמִּים רַבִּים אִתָּךְ

The kingdom of Gomer and all its troops, the house of Togarma, located at the ends of the North and all its troops, many peoples with you, Gog, for war.

הִכֹּן וְהָכֵן לְךָ אַתָּה וְכָל־קְהָלֶיךָ הַנִּקְהָלִים עָלֶיךָ וְהָיִיתָ לָהֶם לְמִשְׁמָר

Prepare and ready for yourself all that you require for war, you and all your assembly who are assembling with you, and you will be a guardian for them, as you are the commander who oversees all your armies.

מִיָּמִים רַבִּים תִּפָּקֵד בְּאַחֲרִית הַשָּׁנִים תָּבוֹא אֶל־אֶרֶץ מְשׁוֹבֶבֶת מֵחֶרֶב מְקֻבֶּצֶת מֵעַמִּים רַבִּים עַל הָרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר־הָיוּ לְחָרְבָּה תָּמִיד וְהִיא מֵעַמִּים הוּצָאָה וְיָשְׁבוּ לָבֶטַח כֻּלָּם

After many days, at an unspecified point in time, you will be summoned; at the end of years, it could be an era in the distant future or in the near future, you will come to a land restored from destruction, healed from devastation, a land whose population is gathered from among the many peoples, among whom they were exiled, upon the mountains of Israel, which were rendered a perpetual ruin, and it, the people of the land, was taken out from peoples, was comprised of refugees from various exiles, and they dwelled in security in the land, all of them.

וְעָלִיתָ כַּשּׁוֹאָה תָבוֹא כֶּעָנָן לְכַסּוֹת הָאָרֶץ תִּהְיֶה אַתָּה וְכָל־אֲגַפֶּיךָ וְעַמִּים רַבִּים אוֹתָךְ

When you will go up, you will come like a storm, like a wide-ranging disaster upon the world; you will be like a dark cloud that descends to cover the land, you and all your troops and the many peoples that are with you.

כֹּה אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים וְהָיָה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא יַעֲלוּ דְבָרִים עַל־לְבָבֶךָ וְחָשַׁבְתָּ מַחֲשֶׁבֶת רָעָה

So said the Lord God in your regard: It will be on that day, when I direct you and lure you to come, matters will arise in your heart, and you will conceive an evil thought.

וְאָמַרְתָּ אֶעֱלֶה עַל־אֶרֶץ פְּרָזוֹת אָבוֹא הַשֹּׁקְטִים יֹשְׁבֵי לָבֶטַח כֻּלָּם יֹשְׁבִים בְּאֵין חוֹמָה וּבְרִיחַ וּדְלָתַיִם אֵין לָהֶם

You will say: I will go up against a land of unwalled cities; I will come to the tranquil who live in security, all of them dwelling without a wall, and bars and gates they do not have.

לִשְׁלֹל שָׁלָל וְלָבֹז בַּז לְהָשִׁיב יָדְךָ עַל־חֳרָבוֹת נוֹשָׁבוֹת וְאֶל־עַם מְאֻסָּף מִגּוֹיִם עֹשֶׂה מִקְנֶה וְקִנְיָן יֹשְׁבֵי עַל־טַבּוּר הָאָרֶץ

You will do so in order to take spoils and to plunder loot, to turn your hand against resettled ruins, and against a people gathered from the nations who amassed livestock and property, inhabitants on the middle of the earth. It appears that the conquest of the Land of Israel as a strategic and economic asset is one aspect of Gog’s campaigns of conquest.

שְׁבָא וּדְדָן וְסֹחֲרֵי תַרְשִׁישׁ וְכָל־כְּפִרֶיהָ יֹאמְרוּ לְךָ הֲלִשְׁלֹל שָׁלָל אַתָּה בָא הֲלָבֹז בַּז הִקְהַלְתָּ קְהָלֶךָ לָשֵׂאת כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב לָקַחַת מִקְנֶה וְקִנְיָן לִשְׁלֹל שָׁלָל גָּדוֹל

Sheva (27:22), and Dedan (27:15), nations of traders that accumulated wealth, and the merchants of Tarshish (27:12) and all its energetic and clever magnates, who will rejoice over the plunder like beasts of prey over their victims, will say to you, in their greed: Have you come to take spoils? Have you assembled your assembly to plunder loot, to carry silver and gold, to take livestock and property, to take great spoils? Although these men are not soldiers, they will be interested in sharing with Gog’s assured spoils, a phenomenon that is not uncommon in wars.

לָכֵן הִנָּבֵא בֶן־אָדָם וְאָמַרְתָּ לְגוֹג כֹּה אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים הֲלוֹא בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא בְּשֶׁבֶת עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל לָבֶטַח תֵּדָע

Therefore, prophesy, Son of man, and say to Gog: So said the Lord God: On that day, when My people Israel live in security, you will know My ways.

וּבָאתָ מִמְּקוֹמְךָ מִיַּרְכְּתֵי צָפוֹן אַתָּה וְעַמִּים רַבִּים אִתָּךְ רֹכְבֵי סוּסִים כֻּלָּם קָהָל גָּדוֹל וְחַיִל רָב

You will come from your place, from the ends of the North, you and many peoples with you, all of them riders of horses, a great assembly and a mighty army.

וְעָלִיתָ עַל־עַמִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל כֶּעָנָן לְכַסּוֹת הָאָרֶץ בְּאַחֲרִית הַיָּמִים תִּהְיֶה וַהֲבִאוֹתִיךָ עַל־אַרְצִי לְמַעַן דַּעַת הַגּוֹיִם אֹתִי בְּהִקָּדְשִׁי בְךָ לְעֵינֵיהֶם גּוֹג

You will go up with all your multitude of armies against My people Israel like a cloud rising to cover the land; it, this prophecy, will be at the End of Days, the end of history; I will bring you to My land so that the nations will know Me when I am sanctified through you before their eyes, Gog. When Gog falls, the greatness and strength of God will be known in the world.

כֹּה־אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים הַאַתָּה־הוּא אֲשֶׁר־דִּבַּרְתִּי בְּיָמִים קַדְמוֹנִים בְּיַד עֲבָדַי נְבִיאֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הַנִּבְּאִים בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם שָׁנִים לְהָבִיא אוֹתְךָ עֲלֵיהֶם

So said the Lord God: Are you he of whom I spoke in past days through My servants, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied in those days for years to bring you against them? Are you the person about whom the prophets always spoke, the man who will engender the last war? Just as in many generations there have been people presuming to be the Messiah, so too there could be a figure presuming to be Gog, the man who will engender the ultimate world war.

וְהָיָה בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא בְּיוֹם בּוֹא גוֹג עַל־אַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים תַּעֲלֶה חֲמָתִי בְּאַפִּי

It will be on that day, on the day of Gog’s arrival upon the soil of Israel – the utterance of the Lord God – My fury will flare in My wrath.

וּבְקִנְאָתִי בְאֵשׁ־עֶבְרָתִי דִּבַּרְתִּי אִם־לֹא בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא יִהְיֶה רַעַשׁ גָּדוֹל עַל אַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל

In My zealotry and in the fire of My anger I have spoken: On that day there will surely, an expression of an oath, be a great earthquake upon the soil of Israel. The ground will tremor mightily.

וְרָעֲשׁוּ מִפָּנַי דְּגֵי הַיָּם וְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וְחַיַּת הַשָּׂדֶה וְכָל־הָרֶמֶשׂ הָרֹמֵשׂ עַל־הָאֲדָמָה וְכֹל הָאָדָם אֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה וְנֶהֶרְסוּ הֶהָרִים וְנָפְלוּ הַמַּדְרֵגוֹת וְכָל־חוֹמָה לָאָרֶץ תִּפּוֹל

As a result, the fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field and every crawling creature that crawls upon the earth, and every person who is on the face of the earth will quake before Me, and the mountains will be destroyed, and the terraces on mountain slopes for planting will fall, and every wall will fall to the ground.

וְקָרָאתִי עָלָיו לְכָל הָרַי חֶרֶב נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים חֶרֶב אִישׁ בְּאָחִיו תִּהְיֶה

I will call the sword against him, Gog, to all my mountains – the utterance of the Lord God – each man’s sword will be against his brother. Gog’s warriors will kill each other.

וְנִשְׁפַּטְתִּי אִתּוֹ בְּדֶבֶר וּבְדָם וְגֶשֶׁם שׁוֹטֵף וְאַבְנֵי אֶלְגָּבִישׁ אֵשׁ וְגָפְרִית אַמְטִיר עָלָיו וְעַל־אֲגַפָּיו וְעַל־עַמִּים רַבִּים אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ

I will punish him with pestilence and with blood, and I will shower upon him, upon his troops, and upon the many peoples who are with him torrential rain and great hailstones, fire and brimstone.

וְהִתְגַּדִּלְתִּי וְהִתְקַדִּשְׁתִּי וְנוֹדַעְתִּי לְעֵינֵי גּוֹיִם רַבִּים וְיָדְעוּ כִּי־אֲנִי ה'

I will be glorified, and I will be sanctified, and I will become known before the eyes of many nations, and they will know that I am the Lord. At the conclusion of this war, and its accompanying shock waves, God’s name will be glorified and sanctified.