Rosh is not a Biblical reference to Russia!
"According to certain interpretations focusing on Ezekiel 38:2, current
political developments involving the Russians and Iranians have been
predicted in the Bible. In the King James Version this verse reads:
"Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief
prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him" (italics
supplied). The Hebrew word for "chief" (ro'sh) was transliterated by
the Septuagint as a proper name, Ros.
"According to The Late Great Planet Earth, the phenomenally popular
book by Hal Lindsey and C.C. Carlson, Gog and Magog denote the
Scythians (=Russia), Rosh is Russian, Meshech is Moscow, and Tubal
is Tobolsk. (1) ... To support these identifications Lindsey appeals to
the venerable commentary of C.F. Keil and F. Delitzcsch on Ezekiel, (2)
and to the entries of the great Hebrew scholar, Wilhelm Gesenius. (3)
"These identifications were also promulgated by the old Scofield
Reference Bible: "The reference to Meshech and Tubal (Moscow and
Tobolsk) is a clear mark of identification (i.e., with Russia)". (4) The
New Scofield Reference Bible is not as explicit: "The reference is to
the powers in the north of Europe, headed by Russia." (5).
"In a more recent work Lindsey interprets Ezekiel 38:5 as a prediction
that Russia will soon Persia (Iran)." (6)..."
"For one thing, even if one were to transliterate the Hebrew ro'sh as a
proper name (as do the Jerusalem Bible, the New English Bible, and the
New American Standard Bible) rather than translate it as "chief" (as do
the King James, Revised Standard, New American Bible, and New
International Version), it can have nothing to do with modern "Russia."
This would be a gross anachronism, for the modern name is based
upon the name Rus, which was brought into the region of Kiev, north
of the Black Sea, by the Vikings only in the Middle Ages. ...".
[pp. 19-20.].
[Foes from the Northern Frontier: Invading Hordes from the Russian
Steppes. Edwin Yamauchi. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI:
1982.].
Notes.
1. The Late Great Planet Earth, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1970),
pp. 63-65.
2. Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel (Edinburgh,
Scotland: T. and T. Clark, 1891), vol. 2, p. 157. Lindsey gives neither
the date nor the page reference. I am indebted to Roger Chambers,
who provided them for me in a graduate paper.
3. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, 20th ed.
(Boston: Crocker and Brewster, 1872), pp. 534, 626, 955, 1121.
4. The Scofield Reference Bible, ed. C.I. Scofield (New York: Oxford
University Pres, 1917), p. 883.
5. New Scofield Reference Bible, ed. E.S. English (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1967), p. 881.
6. Hal Lindsey, The 1980's: Countdown to Armageddon (New York:
Bantam, 1980), pp. 67-68. For critiques of Lindsey's interpretations,
see D.M. Beegle, Prophecy and Prediction (Ann Arbor: Pryor Pettingill,
1978); ch. 16, especially pp. 218-219; T. Boersma, Is the Bible a
Jigsaw Puzzle? (St. Catharines: Paideia, 1978), ch. 8; C. Vanderwaal,
Hal Lindsey and Biblical Prophecy (St. Catharines: Paideia, 1978); pp.
78-80.
"According to certain interpretations focusing on Ezekiel 38:2, current
political developments involving the Russians and Iranians have been
predicted in the Bible. In the King James Version this verse reads:
"Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief
prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him" (italics
supplied). The Hebrew word for "chief" (ro'sh) was transliterated by
the Septuagint as a proper name, Ros.
"According to The Late Great Planet Earth, the phenomenally popular
book by Hal Lindsey and C.C. Carlson, Gog and Magog denote the
Scythians (=Russia), Rosh is Russian, Meshech is Moscow, and Tubal
is Tobolsk. (1) ... To support these identifications Lindsey appeals to
the venerable commentary of C.F. Keil and F. Delitzcsch on Ezekiel, (2)
and to the entries of the great Hebrew scholar, Wilhelm Gesenius. (3)
"These identifications were also promulgated by the old Scofield
Reference Bible: "The reference to Meshech and Tubal (Moscow and
Tobolsk) is a clear mark of identification (i.e., with Russia)". (4) The
New Scofield Reference Bible is not as explicit: "The reference is to
the powers in the north of Europe, headed by Russia." (5).
"In a more recent work Lindsey interprets Ezekiel 38:5 as a prediction
that Russia will soon Persia (Iran)." (6)..."
"For one thing, even if one were to transliterate the Hebrew ro'sh as a
proper name (as do the Jerusalem Bible, the New English Bible, and the
New American Standard Bible) rather than translate it as "chief" (as do
the King James, Revised Standard, New American Bible, and New
International Version), it can have nothing to do with modern "Russia."
This would be a gross anachronism, for the modern name is based
upon the name Rus, which was brought into the region of Kiev, north
of the Black Sea, by the Vikings only in the Middle Ages. ...".
[pp. 19-20.].
[Foes from the Northern Frontier: Invading Hordes from the Russian
Steppes. Edwin Yamauchi. Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, MI:
1982.].
Notes.
1. The Late Great Planet Earth, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1970),
pp. 63-65.
2. Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel (Edinburgh,
Scotland: T. and T. Clark, 1891), vol. 2, p. 157. Lindsey gives neither
the date nor the page reference. I am indebted to Roger Chambers,
who provided them for me in a graduate paper.
3. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, 20th ed.
(Boston: Crocker and Brewster, 1872), pp. 534, 626, 955, 1121.
4. The Scofield Reference Bible, ed. C.I. Scofield (New York: Oxford
University Pres, 1917), p. 883.
5. New Scofield Reference Bible, ed. E.S. English (New York: Oxford
University Press, 1967), p. 881.
6. Hal Lindsey, The 1980's: Countdown to Armageddon (New York:
Bantam, 1980), pp. 67-68. For critiques of Lindsey's interpretations,
see D.M. Beegle, Prophecy and Prediction (Ann Arbor: Pryor Pettingill,
1978); ch. 16, especially pp. 218-219; T. Boersma, Is the Bible a
Jigsaw Puzzle? (St. Catharines: Paideia, 1978), ch. 8; C. Vanderwaal,
Hal Lindsey and Biblical Prophecy (St. Catharines: Paideia, 1978); pp.
78-80.
