CROSSPOST from 2007: HOISTED FROM THE ARCHIVES: George W. Bush et le Code Ezéchiel
But it's not "Gog & Magog"; it's "Gog from Magog"! John the Theologian on Patmos had a corrupt copy of Ezekiel in front of his eyes, or had an imperfect memory. What are the chances that this is...
But it's not "Gog & Magog"; it's "Gog from Magog"! John the Theologian on Patmos had a corrupt copy of Ezekiel in front of his eyes, or had an imperfect memory. What are the chances that this is correct—that George W. Bush did tell Jacques Chirac, back in 2003, that Gog and Magog were at work in the Middle East and that the prophecies of the Bible were being fulfilled? I put the odds at 80-20 that it is…
What are the chances that University of Lausanne theology professor Thomas Römer made it all up? Balance off the probabilities that Römer is actively engaging in disinformation and ex-White House aides are telling the truth against the converse, with George W. Bush himself remaining silent and with Jacques Chirac alluding to Bush’s “determination to enter into combat with Iraq, come what may, and to go to the very end of what was almost a historical and quasi-mystical mission that he felt was incumbent upon him…”
I put the odds at 80-20 that it is true: that it did happen as Thomas Römer said it did. He is not an internet s***poster, after all. And the lack of probity of Bush Administration representations is a matter of public record.
Prophecies at the bottom:
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Jocelyn Rochat: George W. Bush et le Code Ezéchiel: ‘When he talks about the political situation in the Middle East, the President of the United States sees Gog and Magog at work. Two creatures that appear in an apocalyptic vision of the Old Testament! The explanations of Thomas Römer, an expert from UNIL who was contacted by the Elysée in 2003, when Jacques Chirac was trying to elucidate the troubling references of George W. Bush.
"The phone rang. It was the head of the Bible Service of the Protestant Federation of France. She asked me if I could write a page on Gog and Magog for the Elysée." Professor of theology at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) and specialist in the Old Testament, Thomas Römer has just delved behind the scenes of international politics. Because this apparently banal theological request has unsuspected ramifications, since it was prompted by George W. Bush.
"Prophecies are being fulfilled"
"I also learned during this phone call that the President of the United States had mentioned Gog and Magog in a conversation with Jacques Chirac. The discussion focused on current events in the Middle East. After explaining that he saw Gog and Magog at work, George W. Bush added that the biblical prophecies were being fulfilled," continues Thomas Römer.
This conversation, which again focused on the axis of evil, took place in early 2003, a few weeks before the American intervention in Iraq. George W. Bush was then trying, once again, to convince Jacques Chirac to follow him in his "Operation Just Cause", which France stubbornly refused.
Since neither Jacques Chirac nor his services understood the American president's reference, Paris got to work. George W. Bush belonged to the evangelical Christian movement, the Elysée turned to the Protestants of France, who forwarded the request to Thomas Römer. "There is nothing unusual about that," continues the UNIL researcher. "We often collaborate on the scientific level with our neighbors."
So here is the Lausanne theologian charged with enlightening the Elysée on Gog and Magog. A work that this specialist of the Old Testament carries out with good grace, and which he speaks about for the first time today, now that Jacques Chirac has retired and this episode belongs to history.
An unsafe and unclear text
"I wrote an A4 page that explained the theological foundations of Gog and Magog, two creatures that appear in Genesis, and especially in two very obscure chapters of the "Book of Ezekiel" in the Old Testament," recalls the UNIL theologian. Before adding that in more ways than one, "Ezekiel" is a confusing book.
"The transcription that has come down to us is not very reliable, the names cited in it are problematic and the text is difficult," adds Thomas Römer. If that were not enough to confuse the 21st century reader, this book "still contains a somewhat hidden message. It is part of a genre of writings that speculate on the future, in a cryptic language, and which are intended for initiates," specifies the UNIL researcher.
However, one does not need to be an expert in esotericism to grasp the broad outlines of this apocalyptic prophecy. The writers of the "Book of Ezekiel" added a vision in chapters 38 and 39 of the book, according to which a great world army will be formed, and that this coalition of peoples will come to deliver a final battle to Israel. "This confrontation is desired by God, who wants to take advantage of this conflict to wipe out the enemies of his people, before a new age begins," continues Thomas Römer.
Gog, ally or prince of Magog?
The author of this text places in his coalition peoples known to archaeologists, such as the Persians and the Nubians, the Assyrians and the Kushites. He adds other names which perplex historians, but which leave no doubt as to the meaning of the prophecy. The army which sets out is large, and brings together peoples who have come from far and wide, but mainly from the north of Israel.
According to this text, Ezekiel also announces that this great coalition will be led by a certain Gog, perhaps supported by Magog. In the different translations of the Bible, we can read "Gog and Magog", "Gog of Magog" or "Gog, in the land of Magog", or even "Gog, prince of Magog".
"These names are difficult to decode," stresses Thomas Römer, "as are the names of Mèshek and Toubal, who are also associated with the coalition and who also remain enigmatic."
Recent hypotheses
This enigmatic Gog has been the subject of speculation for over twenty centuries. George W. Bush is probably looking for him today in Iran, which covets nuclear weapons, after having tracked him down in Iraq. But he is not the only one to wonder. Before him, another American president believed in the imminent realization of Ezekiel's prophecy.
"Since Ronald Reagan knew the Bible well, he felt that the Cold War and the existence of the atomic bomb made Ezekiel's prophecy feasible, so the time had come," continues Thomas Römer.
"Because Gog is an enemy who comes from the north of Israel, and because Meshech can easily be related to Moscow, readers of Ezekiel twenty or twenty-five years ago often associated Gog with communist Russia. They had also noticed that the biblical text says that Gog is called "at the head" of this coalition. However, in Hebrew, the "head" is called rosh. From rosh, we easily move to "Russia", therefore to communist Russia," smiles the theologian of the UNIL.
With the fall of the Berlin Wall having swept away this hypothesis, the imminence of the apocalypse seems to be fading. For rationalist readers like Thomas Römer, the "threat" has even disappeared for more than two thousand years.
Gygos, Alexander and Nero
For not all readers of Ezekiel dissect current events in order to detect signs of the arrival of Gog and his apocalyptic armies. Many historians and theologians instead look for his trace in the past. "Some scholars have identified Gog with a certain Gygos, who was a king of Anatolia in the 7th century B.C. He could be at the origin of this apocalyptic text. I think that it is the same process as in the case of the apocalyptic prophecies of Daniel, which concern the great enemy of the time, Antiochus IV."
If we add to this that many researchers believe that the Emperor Nero is the famous 666 mentioned in the "Apocalypse" of John, that the Great Whore is Rome and that the predicted fall is that of the Roman Empire, we see that the past can explain all these biblical apocalyptic prophecies. A historical analysis favored by Thomas Römer.
Ezekiel's prophecy would therefore be linked, if we are to believe the UNIL researcher, to the journey of Alexander the Great. "The arrival of Hellenism in the Near East was a major cultural shock," explains Thomas Römer. "To the point that the Bible has preserved several traces of the Macedonian king's expedition, including oracles on the capture of Tyre. This episode undoubtedly led people to develop a chronology, to think about successions of reigns, to evoke the advent of forces and to speculate on the end of time and the irruption of a new era."
No apocalypse without rebuilding the Temple
The fact remains that not everyone reads the Old Testament as rationally as Thomas Römer. We must therefore clarify to our most worried readers that it is not enough for a coalition of countries to attack Israel for the end of time to occur. "There is much discussion of the rebuilt Temple, and this reconstruction is, for certain currents of Judaism, the necessary condition for the return of the Messiah."
This reconstruction of the Temple of Jerusalem is detailed at length by Ezekiel, who devotes endless chapters to it. Before specifying that the Temple will have to be rebuilt in its initial location, namely the famous Temple Esplanade in Jerusalem, where one of the holiest places in Islam now stands, the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Suffice to say that it will take a truly apocalyptic combination of circumstances for the conditions mentioned in the prophecy to be met.
Ezekiel Facilitates US Support for Israel
More broadly, this text from Ezekiel explains the very strong links that have been woven between the United States and the State of Israel. "For George W. Bush, this text has political consequences," continues Thomas Römer. "Like many American Christians, he believes that God will be with Israel during the final confrontation, so that the enemies of this country will be in the camp of the Antichrist. He will therefore support Israel without weakening, because he is deeply convinced that, when the end of time comes, it will be necessary to be on Israel's side."
This will surprise more than one European, accustomed to analyses based more on geopolitics, power relations, the map of oil pipelines than on religion, when it comes to US foreign policy.
"This American reading actually escapes Europeans, who have lost this relationship with biblical texts," continues the UNIL theologian. "The Germans understand George W. Bush more easily than the French or the Swiss. For an American, these questions are central. If we forget the religious in the analysis of the United States' support for Israel, we are mistaken."
Were these political reflections on the A4 page that Thomas Römer sent to the Elysée in early 2003? "No. I sent a biblical note. On one page, I located this text, I specified that it was an apocalyptic type prophecy, with a cosmic battle that involves peoples. I spoke about Gygos and I gave the time it was written. And I have not had any further news, neither from Jacques Chirac, nor from his advisors."
Ezekiel 38:
The word of the Lord came to me: “Mortal, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. Prophesy against him and say: ‘Thus says the Lord God: “I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; I will turn you around and put hooks into your jaws, and I will lead you out with all your army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed in full armor, a great company, all of them with shield and buckler, wielding swords. Paras, Cush, and Put are with them, all of them with buckler and helmet; Gomer and all its troops; Beth-togarmah from the remotest parts of the north with all its troops—many peoples are with you.
“‘“Be ready and keep ready, you and all the companies that are assembled around you, and take command of them. After many days you shall be mustered; in the latter years you shall go against a land restored from war, a land where people were gathered from many nations on the mountains of Israel, which had long lain waste; its people were brought out from the nations and now are living in safety, all of them. You shall advance, coming on like a storm; you shall be like a cloud covering the land, you and all your troops and many peoples with you.”’”
Thus says the Lord God: “On that day thoughts will come into your mind, and you will devise an evil scheme. You will say, ‘I will go up against the land of unwalled villages; I will fall upon the quiet people who live in safety, all of them living without walls and having no bars or gates, to seize spoil and carry off plunder, to assail the waste places that are now inhabited and the people who were gathered from the nations, who are acquiring cattle and goods, who live at the center of the earth.’ Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all its young warriors will say to you, ‘Have you come to seize spoil? Have you assembled your horde to carry off plunder, to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to seize a great amount of spoil?’”
Therefore, mortal, prophesy and say to Gog: “Thus says the Lord God: ‘On that day when my people Israel are living securely, you will rouse yourself and come from your place out of the remotest parts of the north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army; you will come up against my people Israel like a cloud covering the earth. In the latter days I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me, when through you, O Gog, I display my holiness before their eyes.”
Thus says the Lord God: “Are you he of whom I spoke in former days by my servants the prophets of Israel, who in those days prophesied for years that I would bring you against them?” “On that day, when Gog comes against the land of Israel”, says the Lord God,”my wrath shall be aroused. For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare: On that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and the animals of the field and all creeping things that creep on the ground and all humans who are on the face of the earth shall quake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground.” “I will summon the sword against Gog in all my mountains”, says the Lord God; “the swords of all will be against their comrades. With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will pour down torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur upon him and his troops and the many peoples who are with him. So I will display my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.”
Ezekiel 39: 1-16:
And you, mortal, prophesy against Gog and say: “Thus says the Lord God: ‘I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal! I will turn you around and drive you forward and bring you up from the remotest parts of the north and lead you against the mountains of Israel. I will strike your bow from your left hand and will make your arrows drop out of your right hand. You shall fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you to birds of prey of every kind and to the wild animals to be devoured.’ “ “You shall fall in the open field, for I have spoken”, says the Lord God. “I will send fire on Magog and on those who live securely in the coastlands, and they shall know that I am the Lord.
“My holy name I will make known among my people Israel, and I will not let my holy name be profaned any more, and the nations shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel. It has come! It has happened”, says the Lord God. “This is the day of which I have spoken.
”Then those who live in the towns of Israel will go out and make fires of the weapons and burn them—bucklers and shields, bows and arrows, clubs and spears—and they will make fires of them for seven years. They will not need to take wood out of the field or cut down any trees in the forests, for they will make their fires of the weapons; they will despoil those who despoiled them and plunder those who plundered them”, says the Lord God.
“On that day I will give to Gog a place for burial in Israel, the Valley of the Travelers east of the sea; it shall block the path of the travelers, for there Gog and all his horde will be buried; it shall be called the Valley of Hamon-gog. Seven months the house of Israel shall spend burying them, in order to cleanse the land. All the people of the land shall bury them, and it will bring them honor on the day that I show my glory”, says the Lord God. “They will set apart men to pass through the land regularly and bury any invaders who remain on the face of the land, so as to cleanse it; for seven months they shall make their search. As the searchers pass through the land, anyone who sees a human bone shall set up a sign by it until the buriers have buried it in the Valley of Hamon-gog. (A city Hamonah is there also.) Thus they shall cleanse the land.”
Revelation 20: 7-10:
When the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, in order to gather them for battle; they are as numerous as the sands of the sea. They marched up over the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from heaven and consumed them. And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.
References:
Chirac, Jacques. 2012. My Life in Politics. Trans. Catherine Spencer. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. <https://archive.org/details/mylifeinpolitics0000chir_b4y7>.
Rochat, Jocelyn. 2007. "George W. Bush et le Code Ezéchiel." Allez Savoir!, no. 39 (September 10). University of Lausanne. <https://wp.unil.ch/allezsavoir/george-bush-et-le-code-ezechiel/>
According to the World Value Survey, the US, which long stood out among advanced economies for the extent of religious belief, has exhibited one of the sharpest declines in belief over the past two decades. Gog and Magog (or Gog of Magog) are becoming increasingly cryptic on both sides of the Atlantic, including among Republican Presidents.
The religious right does not use the Bible as an instruction manual. Instead, it uses the Bible as a toolbox, with texts to be used when needed and ignored when necessary. (If you doubt the latter, read Exodus 21:22, preferably King James Version. Simone Biles isn't athletic enough to give it a "pro-life" meaning.). If you want to know why particular Biblical tools are used or ignored, ignore the "religious" part of "religious right", and focus on the "right."
Ezekiel, Gog, and Magog are irrelevant. The popular American right consists of racism, masculinism, and ressentiment. Here, the proper lens is race. The Israelis are white people who unapologetically bash their local wogs. The Israelis are therefore to be admired--although much of their whiteness derives from their unapologetic bashing.