The first question which confronts us in giving an exposition of these verses is, When does this enemy fall into Israel's land? At what time does this invasion take place? We find the answer in the text. The statement is made in verse eight that Gog and Magog and the other nations with them invade the land "that is brought back from the sword, and is gathered out of many people;" they come "against the mountains of Israel, which have always been waste; but it is brought forth out of the nations, and they shall dwell safely, all of them." In verse eleven the evil purpose of the invader is made known. He says, "I will go up to the land of unwalled villages, I will go to them that are at rest, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls and having neither bars nor gates." He comes "upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land" (verse 12). From all this we learn that the invasion takes place at the time when the Lord has brought back His people and resumed His relationship with the remnant of Israel. The invasion will happen some time after the beastly empire with its beasthead (the revived Roman empire), in its final ten kingdom form and the clay, with the little horn as leader (Dan. vii; Rev. xiii:1-10) and the false prophet, the personal Antichrist (Rev. xiii:11, etc.) have been dealt with in judgment (Rev. xix:19-20). The stone out of heaven has then fallen upon the feet of the great dream image of Nebuchadnezzar, and as far as the Western confederated world power is concerned it is now ended. But other nations gather now for an assault. It is a Northern confederacy which sweeps southward to invade the land as Antiochus Epiphanes did in the past, as well as the Assyrian in the days of Isaiah. These final invading hosts, under the leadership of a powerful king, come like a storm, and like a cloud to cover the land. In verse 17 we read "Thus saith the Lord God: Art thou he of whom I have spoken in old times by my servants the prophets of Israel, which prophesied in those days for many years that I would bring thee against them?" By the way, in these words we have a very clear statement concerning the prophets of God. They all were the mouthpiece of Jehovah; He has spoken through them. According to this verse other prophets prophesied of the same enemy. Some expositors have stated their inability to find a single prophecy elsewhere which would confirm Ezekiel's vision and prophecy.