10:1
¶ Now these are the generations of the
sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the
flood. 2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and
Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. 3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath,
and Togarmah. 4 And the sons of Javan;
Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 5
By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided in their lands; every
one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.
And he died closed the last chapter and Noah’s
life as it did the pre-Flood fathers. See chapter 5 of Genesis for a number of
times this phrase is used. So shall we all if the Lord tarries.
Nineteenth
century thought held that Gomer was
the ancestor of the Celtic tribes of Europe while some did say he became the
Germanic tribes but they will move to Europe after Babel. An Icelandic writer
claimed that the gods of the Norse came to them from Asia Minor. Ezekiel’s
prophecy in chapter 38 shows why God raised up the European, why he is
enlarged, to one day turn against Israel and be destroyed in God’s judgment.
All of their civilization, learning, arts, organization, and ability to unite
and conquer in history leads to it. What has saved America as a nation is not
its existence as a Christnation or a Redeemer-nation for the world, ridiculous
ideas of our forebears, but that it has treated the Jews well and honored God,
at least on the surface with our lips. As that changes so will judgment come on
this country and is coming now. If there even is a United States of America at
the end it will not be a significant player except, perhaps, as one of the
nations being judged by God. It is not the Promised Land as our forebears often
said and it is not God’s special envoy to bring Christ to the world. Even our
conservative Christians hardly know Christ except as an idea. They certainly
don’t believe Him or believe they even have His words. America is a wicked
nation, a Babylon, so much the more so because we claim to be something else.
The right wing worships the Constitution as originally written and a Christ
they invented that is not of the Bible as an excuse for selfishness and greed
while the left worships its own intellect and desires and revels in its moral
bankruptcy; its murders and extortions.
Ezekiel
38:6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house
of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with
thee.
Read
Matthew 25, starting in 31. Understand that nations
in the Bible are ethnic groups, peoples, not nation-states as in the last
few hundred years where many ethnic groups are bound together by force or even
voluntary agreement behind imaginary lines drawn on a map.
See
in the following that Abraham’s physical descendants through Isaac, referring
specifically to the Jews who dwell in many countries or nation-states or
kingdoms, are to be a great nation or
people.
Genesis
12:2 And I will make of thee a great
nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a
blessing:
Exodus
19:6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom
of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto
the children of Israel.
See
that Abraham’s descendants through Ishmael who live in many countries or
kingdoms will also be a great nation or people.
Genesis
17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard
thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply
him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great
nation.
Spiritually,
when Peter was speaking to the predominantly Jewish early church he brought
this idea up again of the Jews, now those who believed on Christ, being a
separated unto God, an holy nation.
1Peter
2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth
the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous
light:
The
places and people’s whose modern names we give to Gomer and his children are
often matters of pure speculation but they are European tribes, although in the
beginning, like Ham and Shem’s children, most likely dark skinned, dark haired,
and brown eyed.
Commentators
have said that Magog would become the
horsemen of the steppes with the Latin church “father”, Jerome, reportedly
calling them Scythians, whom others
report are the ancestors of the Russians.
Colossians
3:11 Where there is neither Greek nor
Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but
Christ is all, and in all.
Magog will play a part in the rebellion
of the kings of the earth under Satan’s influence at the end of the millennial
reign of Christ, only to be destroyed and cast into the lake of fire.
Revelation
20:8 And shall go out to deceive the
nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather
them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Madai is the name
the Medes of the Medes and the Persians
are known by from
Assyrian sources.
Javan was used as a generic name for the
Greeks of mainland Greece and the colonists and mercenaries of the ancient
world, the entire Greek race. See Daniel 8:21 for Javan used for Grecia.
Tubal, which will become residents of the
Caucasus Mountains from which we get Caucasian, will be confederates of Magog,
according to Ezekiel, and destroyed at the end.
Some
commentators report the Meshech
became to be called Muscov and mixed with the Scythians to become the Russians.
We can go on and on with speculation, conflicting historical records, and the
surmisings of Bible scholars but these descendants of Japheth are the ancestors
of the ethnic groups “native” to Russia and westward through Europe. Their
descendants, those who are not saved, will rise against God for their final
destruction. Their warlike organization, wealth of killing technology, and
desire to rule over the world, which helped them conquer the world, will do
them no good against God.
Tongue
here means language, as it does elsewhere in the Bible, and that a discernible
language of families and nations.
Acts
2:5 ¶ And there were dwelling at
Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. 6 Now when this was noised abroad, the
multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them
speak in his own language. 7 And they were all amazed and marvelled,
saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? 8 And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were
born? 9 Parthians, and Medes, and
Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in
Pontus, and Asia, 10 Phrygia, and
Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of
Rome, Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretes and
Arabians, we do hear them speak in our
tongues the wonderful works of God. 12
And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What
meaneth this? 13 Others mocking said,
These men are full of new wine.
The division of verse 5 will come at
Babel.
Acts
17:26 And hath made of one blood all
nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined
the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;
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