In Ezekial 32:22-32, God pronounces judgement on Israel's neighbours for their evil and cruelty, using repeatedly, the poetic phrase: "spreading terror in the land of the living". In verses 22-23, it against Assyria, in 24-24, against Elam, in 26-28, against Meshech-Tubal, in verse 30, against the princes of the North and the Sidonians.
Then in verses 31-32, God turns the tables:
"When Pharaoh sees them, he will be comforted for all his multitude, Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, declares the Lord God. For I spread terror in the land of the living; and he shall be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, Pharaoh and all his multitude, declares the Lord God." (Emphasis added)
In this dramatic twist, God says that it will be His turn to spread terror among the nations, the terror that comes from willful defiance and disobedience to Almighty God. God is the ultimate executor of justice: the fear that man's machinations may wreak is nothing compared to the terror that God's righteous wrath will spread in the last days. And to what end is this? The answer is given in chapter 38 where God speaks of the judgment that will befall Gog:
So I will show my greatness and my holiness and make myself known in the eyes of many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
May we live everyday in awareness of this, that He is LORD and not turn our backs on him.
