For as long as I can remember, Eze 38 was, and still is, an end-times prophecy about how Satan would come up against JWs because JWs would be "dwelling in security" (Ez. 38:14) after all the other religions are destroyed. This is pretty much the most terrifying chapter in the Bible for me, understanding it as JWs do. The JW reasoning is that since there is no historical person who matches the description of "Gog of Magog", then it must be Satan (as the Insight book on page 981 puts it: "the name Gog is evidently cryptic of symbolic, not being that of any know human king or leader.")
But is this so? What happens to Satan at the end? Rev 20:2,3 says "And he siezed the dragon, the original serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. And he hurled him into the abyss and shut [it] and sealed [it] over him." Now, look at Ez 39:11: "And it must occur in that day that I shall give to Gog (Satan, according to JWs) a place there, a burial place in Israel, the valley of those passing through on the east of the sea, and it will be stopping up those passing through. And they will have to bury Gog and all his crowd." The Insight book says: "This burial in a deep place by the Dead Sea likewise finds some parallel in Revelation's description of the disposal of the opposers of God's Kingdom by their being case into the symbolic lake of fire, and by the abyssing of Satan."
So, is Gog of Magog Satan? First, Ezekiel talks about people burying Gog. Revelation says it's an angel who bounds Satan and throws him bound in chains into the abyss. Ezekiel goes on to say in 39:12 that the burying of Gog and his crowd would happen for seven months and 39:13 says "all the people of the land will have to do the burying". Again, Revelation says it's an angel who does it.
Thoughts?