A song. A Psalm by Asaph.
83
1 God, don’t keep silent.
Don’t keep silent,
and don’t be still, God.
2 For, behold, your enemies are stirred up.
Those who hate you have lifted up their heads.
3 They conspire with cunning against your people.
They plot against your cherished ones.
4 “Come,” they say, “let’s destroy them as a nation,
that the name of Israel may be remembered no more.”
5 For they have conspired together with one mind.
They form an alliance against you.
6 The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites;
Moab, and the Hagrites;
7 Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek;
Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;
8 Assyria also is joined with them.
They have helped the children of Lot.
Selah.
9 Do to them as you did to Midian,
as to Sisera, as to Jabin, at the river Kishon;
10 who perished at Endor,
who became as dung for the earth.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb;
yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna;
12 who said, “Let us take possession of God’s pasture lands.”
The coalition nations listed in Psalm 83 and their likely modern identities (based on work by authors Bill Salus and Joel Richardson) are the following:
- Tents of Edom: 'Palestinians' and Southern Jordanians
- Ishmaelites: Saudis (Ishmael is the father of the Arabs)
- Moab: 'Palestinians' and Central Jordanians
- Hagrites: Egyptians or possibly northern Jordanians
- Gebal (Byblos): Hezbollah and Northern Lebanese
- Ammon: Palestinians and Northern Jordanians
- Amalek: Arabs of the Sinai area (ISIS affiliate)
- Philistia: Hamas of the Gaza Strip
- Tyre: Hezbollah and Southern Lebanese
- Assyria: Syrians and Northern Iraqis
The purpose of the plotting of these nations is to wipe out Israel as a nation “so that Israel’s name is remembered no more”. It is likely that the battle foretold in Psalm 83 will occur before the end-time invasion against Jerusalem described in Ezekiel 38. That battle involves the following nations: "Persia [Iran], Cush [the upper Nile region] and Put [Libya, some of Egypt and north Africa] will be with them, all with shields and helmets, also Gomer [Ukraine] with all its troops, and Beth Togarmah [Turkey, Turkomen, Turkestan and Armenia] from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you." (Ezekiel 38:5–6)
HOWEVER we know from scripture that this will not and cannot happen. For YHWH says that he will destroy them all!