Charles Ellicott Commentary Ezekiel 38:5

"Persia, Cush, and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet;" — Ezekiel 38:5 (ASV)

Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya.— Having summoned the nations from the extreme north, the prophet now turns first to the east, and then to the south and west. No neighboring nations are mentioned at all, but only those living on the confines of the known world are summoned to this symbolic contest. The supposition of a literal alliance of nations so situated is out of the question.