Ezekiel - 38:22



22 With pestilence and with blood will I enter into judgment with him; and I will rain on him, and on his hordes, and on the many peoples who are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and sulfur.

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of Ezekiel 38:22.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
And with pestilence and with blood will I enter into judgment with him; and I will rain upon him, and upon his hordes, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
And I will judge him with pestilence, and with blood, and with violent rain, and vast hailstones: I will rain fire and brimstone upon him, and upon his army, and upon the many nations that are with him.
And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood: and I will rain upon him, and upon his hordes, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
And I have been judged with him, With pestilence and with blood, And an overflowing rain and hailstones, Fire and brimstone I rain on him, and on his bands, And on many peoples who are with him.
And I will take up my cause against him with disease and with blood; and I will send down on him and on his forces and on the peoples who are with him, an overflowing shower and great ice-drops, fire, and burning.
And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will cause to rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
And I will judge him by pestilence, and blood, and violent rainstorms, and immense hailstones. I will rain fire and brimstone upon him, and upon his army, and upon the many peoples who are with him.

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

Great hailstones, fire, and brimstone - These are probably figurative expressions, to signify that the whole tide of the war should be against him, and that his defeat and slaughter should be great. Abp. Newcome supposes all the above prophecy remains yet to be fulfilled. Where such eminent scribes are divided, who shall decide!

And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood,.... Not only the sword of the Jews and the sword of Christian princes shall be drawn against him, and the sword of Gog's soldiers against one another; but the Lord himself would plead with him by his judgments, or take vengeance on him, as the Targum; and send a pestilence in his army, which should destroy vast numbers of it; as the army of Sennacherib was destroyed by one when before Jerusalem; and make a great slaughter among them by that and other judgments:
and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain; a horrible tempest of divine wrath, Psalm 11:6 as he came into the land of Israel like a storm, so he shall be destroyed by one much more terrible:
and great hailstones; such as were cast upon the Canaanites, Joshua 10:11 and as there will be on men, the enemies of the church of God, at the pouring out of the seventh vial, Revelation 16:21,
fire and brimstone; as God rained upon Sodom and Gomorrah, Genesis 19:24, signifying that in like manner will God deal with those enemies of his people; so at the battle of Armageddon, which seems to be the same with this here, the beast and the false prophet will be taken alive, and cast into a lake of fire burning with brimstone, Revelation 19:20, and to this rain or tempest of fire and brimstone upon Gog there is an allusion in Revelation 20:9.

plead--a forensic term; because God in His inflictions acts on the principles of His own immutable justice, not by arbitrary impulse (Isaiah 66:16; Jeremiah 25:31).
blood . . . hailstones, fire-- (Revelation 8:7; Revelation 16:21). The imagery is taken from the destruction of Sodom and the plagues of Egypt (compare Psalm 11:6). Antiochus died by "pestilence" (2 Maccabees 9:5).

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