In this lesson we will consider the prophecies in Ezekiel concerning the Gentile nations. Although the prophecies in Ezekiel are mainly concerning the house of Israel, this book also contains prophecies concerning God’s judgment upon the Gentile nations surrounding Israel. In chapters 25 through 32 Ezekiel prophesied that Jehovah would judge the seven nations surrounding Israel because they worshipped idols and ill-treated God’s chosen people Israel. These seven nations include Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, and Egypt.
According to Genesis 11, rebellious mankind sought to build the tower and city of Babel in order to concentrate themselves and to make a name for themselves. However, God came down and exercised His judgment over rebellious mankind. Under God’s judgment Babel became a center not for gathering but for scattering, and the human race was scattered from Babel as the center. Concerning this, Deuteronomy 32:8 says, “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, / When He divided the sons of man, / He set the borders of the peoples / According to the number of Israel’s children.” God set the borders of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. This indicates that God made Israel the center in His economy on earth among the human race.
The good land, where God put Israel, is the center of the inhabited earth. This land is situated at the center of the three continents—Europe, Asia, and Africa—where the human race began. Later, the human population spread to America and also to Australia. The central location of the land of Israel has provided a good opportunity for the spread of the gospel. History shows that the preaching of the gospel began in Jerusalem and then spread to Europe, Africa, and Asia. Eventually, the preaching of the gospel spread to America and Australia. This was God’s purpose in putting His people at the center of the human population. Furthermore, according to the prophecy in Isaiah concerning the coming age, the millennium, the people of Israel will be the priests on this earth, teaching all the nations to worship God (61:6; 2:3). This also shows that Israel is the center of God’s economy among the human race on earth.
At the time of Ezekiel the people of Israel were degraded and unsuitable for God’s purpose. Their degraded situation forced God to exercise His judgment upon them and temporarily to give up Israel as His center. God turned to Babel and raised up King Nebuchadnezzar, who built the great empire of Babylon. The Babylonian empire then became God’s center for executing His judgment. Through the empire of Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar, God executed judgment not only upon His people Israel but also over the nations surrounding Israel.
Chapters 25 through 32 of Ezekiel speak of seven nations that surrounded the nation of Israel. Actually, there were more nations around Israel, but this record concerns only seven. This is similar to the references to the seven churches in Asia in Revelation 1 through 3. When the Lord spoke of the churches in Asia, He selected only seven churches (1:11). This does not mean that there were only seven churches in Asia but that the Lord selected seven churches to represent all the churches. The principle is the same in Ezekiel. There were more than seven nations surrounding Israel, but God selected seven nations to represent all the nations when He spoke of the judgment that He was about to execute.
These seven nations are divided into three groups. The first four nations—Ammon, Moab, Edom, and Philistia—form the first group; Tyre and Sidon make up the second group; and Egypt stands alone. These nations are divided into these three groups because Ezekiel saw three separate visions at three different times concerning them. His first vision covers the first four nations; his second vision, Tyre and Sidon; and his third vision, Egypt. In these visions Ammon and Moab are a pair, Edom and Philistia are a pair, and Tyre and Sidon are a pair. Only Egypt stands alone.