Putin’s regime may be closer to a Soviet collapse than we think

Ukraine is slowly losing the three-year conflict on the battlefield. Russia is slowly losing the economic conflict at a roughly equal pace. The Kremlin’s oil export revenues are too low to sustain a high-intensity war and nobody will lend Vladimir Putin a kopeck.

Russia’s overheated, military-Keynesian war economy looks much like the dysfunctional German war economy of late 1917, which had run out of skilled manpower and was holed below the waterline after three years of Allied blockade – as the logistical failures of the Ludendorff offensive would later reveal.

Putin’s strategic victory in Ukraine was far from inevitable a fortnight ago and it is less inevitable now after the Assad regime collapsed like a house of cards, shattering Putin’s credibility in the Middle East and the Sahel. He could do nothing to save his sole state ally in the Arab world.

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Putin’s regime may be closer to a Soviet collapse than we think

Ukraine is slowly losing the three-year conflict on the battlefield. Russia is slowly losing the economic conflict at a roughly equal pace. The Kremlin’s oil export revenues are too low to sustain a high-intensity war and nobody will lend Vladimir Putin a kopeck.

www.yahoo.com

 

[Tall Timbers]

If Putin's regime collapses over the war with Ukraine, as we are observing multiple governments collapsing worldwide, and if it happens soon, there's a possibility that Putin may be ousted from his position as leader of Russia.
If this happens, then no doubt we will see a different Russian leader and this means that Putin is definitely not Gog of Ezekiel 38 and it would be someone else who leads a coalition in the invasion of Israel at the Gog and Magog war.
Just a thought

I think Gog is a specific fallen angel who will use whoever is the leader of Russia when the time comes. That's how Gog is mentioned in at least two separate events in the Bible.

If a Chechen were to become the leader of Russia...

 

[Andy C]

I think Gog is a specific fallen angel who will use whoever is the leader of Russia when the time comes. That's how Gog is mentioned in at least two separate events in the Bible.

If a Chechen were to become the leader of Russia...

Jack Kelley agrees with you because he said:

“Gog is a supernatural personage, likely Satan’s counterpart to the Archangel Michael. In the Septuagint (Greek) translation of the Old Testament, Gog is mentioned in Amos 7:1 as the King of the locusts, in addition to the two references you cite. Since Amos wrote 200 years before Ezekiel, this would give Gog close to a 3000 year lifespan. He’s not listed in Genesis 10 as the father of a people so there’s no justification for thinking that these references speak of his descendants, as with Magog. Some believe that his name is really a title, but I’m of the opinion that he’s one of Satan’s chief lieutenants”.

 

[Tall Timbers]

To be fair I think it's a matter of interpretation and differing opinions, but most Bible scholars identify Gog as an actual ruler.

With all due respect to all the Bible teachers out there... When the Berean understands that Gog is involved in more than one event at different times in history (see Andy C's post), I think the Berean can only correctly conclude that Gog is a fallen angel and not a man, who uses men to his end. For me it is an obvious conclusion regardless of how many Bible teachers think otherwise.

 

[TCC]

Interesting observation. I never got that impression. Although Gog is one of those topics that I have not really seen any great scholarship on. So I'm not sure what to think in some ways. Perhaps there are really good studies on that. But I just never came accross it. So yeah, I am open to consider it be beyond a title and perhaps a ruling entity as maybe even over territory like Prince of Persia in Daniel?

My dispositon in general though has me lean in a different direction. Perhaps this is not a fair thing to bring into this context, but I used to be a supporter of the fallen angel Gen 5 (Michael Heiser) belief. But since seeing the differences in the Septuagint, and a stance of how specific God was about creating things after their kind, I do not believe the Enochian Gen 5 take is credible. But I held it for 2 decades myself. Even so, you may not hold that view. But just saying.

When I look at Ez 38, it looks like the word links Gog to actually also the one he is prophesying to. Saying that Gog will have a hook to turn-him-around. If it were a fallen angel, what is a fallen angel though turned around from? The other thing is I agree with the table of nations not being of help, but I find 1 Chronicals lacking and helpful development whatsoever. Which is curious to say the least...lol. Like no one cares about this association? Puzzled.

"The sons of Joel; Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son..."

Blessings.

PS -- Plus Gog is given as food to the birds in Ezek 39. I am a personal sUpEr fan of metaphor. But the couch of phrasology in Ez 39 does not suggest grand metaphor though...might it?

 

[mattfivefour]

Perhaps we should take into account here the fact that the Bible seems to indicate that some nations (at least) have an angel over them. And some of these angels appear to be evil. Perhaps Gog is both a fallen angel and a nation or leader of a nation?

 

[TCC]

Perhaps we should take into account here the fact that the Bible seems to indicate that some nations (at least) have an angel over them. And some of these angels appear to be evil. Perhaps Gog is both a fallen angel and a nation or leader of a nation?

I get the impression the prince of Persia in Daniel is like that. Although I have not done much research there, it does come across this way, amen Pastor. The reason I would have interest though in discussions like this in making a distinction is more in line with how hermeneutics work more so than whether Gog is human or spirit or both.

The other thing for me personally is insights surrounding Gog kind of thing to see some nuances that can be in general helpful. Because the potential of an Ez 38 forming seems to be pretty good odds these days. So I would just reckon that like the more we can get a sense (on some levels perhaps) of how knowing this or that about Gog might lend some potential overall perspective in something akin to our day and age potentially is rather exciting to consider.

I just like conversations thar help calibrate variances and features of how best to perhaps position our way of looking at this or that potentially most optimially. So like my approach, in some ways to hermenuetics although at times may seem in nature contrastive in places, my generic interest level and aim is typically a pinball bouncing off bumper ideas so that we can score high and win a free game. And hopefullyy whatever that free game produces showers something down on all of us. I guess like shaking a bunch of different trees in a grove and then see how many oranges or whatever are on the ground to take home Blessings.