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Dave's Mythical Creatures and Places |
Gog and Magog
Depiction of Gog and Magog from a Psalter world map, circa 1260. For a picture of the whole map, see the end of the page.
There is much confusion about the names of Gog and Magog. Sometimes it is the name of a person, and sometimes it is the name of a nation. Sometimes Gog or Magog are described as brothers, and sometimes Gog is the king of the Magog.
Revelations tells of the end of the world, when Gog and Magog are let loose. Saint Augustine describes it in his book City of God as: "And when the thousand years are finished, Satan shall be loosed from his prison, and shall go out to seduce the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, and shall draw them to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea." This, then, is his purpose in seducing them, to draw them to this battle. For even before this he was wont to use as many and various seductions as he could continue. And the words "he shall go out" mean, he shall burst forth from lurking hatred into open persecution. For this persecution, occurring while the final judgment is imminent, shall be the last which shall be endured by the holy Church throughout the world, the whole city of Christ being assailed by the whole city of the devil, as each exists on earth. For these nations which he names Gog and Magog are not to be understood of some barbarous nations in some part of the world, whether the Getae and Massagetae, as some conclude from the initial letters, or some other foreign nations not under the Roman government. For John marks that they are spread over the whole earth, when he says, "The nations which are in the four corners of the earth," and he added that these are Gog and Magog. The meaning of these names we find to be, Gog, (a roof), Magog, (from a roof )- a house, as it were, and he who comes out of the house. They are therefore the nations in which we found that the devil was shut up as in an abyss, and the devil himself coming out from them and going forth, so that they are the roof, he from the roof. "
In the Bible, it is unclear where this kingdom is located- the Jewish historian Josephus associates it with "Scythia" but this was often used as a generic term for many of the northern tribes. It may also refer to Tartars, Mongols, or Turks. Other versions stated that Gog and Magog were the descendants of the ten tribes of Israel, who had worshipped the golden calf, and ignored Moses.
Another legend gives Alexander the Great the credit for walling off the Gog and Magog. During his conquests and travels he came to a region in the Caucases, the mountain range between Europe and Asia. There he found the Gog and Magog terrorizing the area. Alexander built a wall and gates in a narrow pass between two mountains to seal them out. There are different versions of what the wall was made of- brambles, iron, brass, or asiceton (a magic metal.) There are different versions of what else Alexander left there- statues of bronze trumpeters whose horns fool the Gog and Magog into thinking a huge army is on the other side, or a stone eagle that screams if they tried to escape. But some day the gates will open and the Gog and Magog will come out and destroy the world.
The Koran and Islamic literature have a story that is very similar to the Alexander legend. It tells of a great king called Dhoo'l-Qarnayn (or Dhucarnain) who ruled much territory. In the eastern part, there was a valley between two mountains where Gog and Magog (also called Ya'jooj and Ma'jooj) came through. They were spreading corruption and terror. Dhoo'l-Qarnayn built a huge wall in the valley out of iron and copper that Gog and Magog could not climb over. But they began to dig underneath and have been doing so for hundreds of years, and when they finally get through, they will burst out, eating, drinking, and killing. This will be the end of the world.
Pliny does not mention the Gog and Magog by name, but he tells of the Gates of the Caucuses (erroneously called the Caspian Gates.) Here, the mountains have been torn apart, and "gates have been placed, with iron covered beams, under the center of which flows a river emitting a horrible odor; and on this side of it on a rock stands the fortress called Cumania, erected for the purpose of barring the passage of the innumerable tribes." (Rackham, 1942
Marco Polo thought that Gog and Magog were the Mongols. According to him, the native names were "Ung and Mungul"- the Gog lived in Ung, and the Tartars lived in Mungul.
The location of Gog and Magog has moved throughout history. Some may have confused it with early reports of the Great Wall of China. Usually though, it represents an area with heathen barbarians in it that pose a threat to the good religious people on the other side.
Note that this is a T-O type map, so that East is on top, and North is on the left. Gog and Magog is placed in the region of Russia or Mongolia, on the 10 o'clock position on this map.
