The peoples who live to the East of the Holy Land are not the good folks. They represent the Arabic peoples who later became the Muslims who are now tormenting the Jews. And, I believe the Muslims are mentioned in the Bible, not as a particular faith but as the peoples of the East who hate Israel.
Genesis 16:12 tells us that Ishmael would be a wild man and "he will live to the east of all his brothers." Following the death of Sarah, Abraham married Keturah. She bore him six sons (25:2) who then had other children who formed the tribal peoples to the east. Abraham realized that there would be trouble with these sons and the son, Isaac, who was the one who would inherit the covenant blessings. Thus, Abraham gave to these sons of Keturah gifts and sent them "away from his son Isaac eastward to the land of the east" (v. 6).
Esau also packed up and moved eastward to the region of Petra and Moab. More than likely, his grandchildren continued moving to the east as well, almost all the way to the start of the Saudi Arabian peninsula. There had to be a comrade-ship between these descendants of Abraham and the Arabic peoples of Babylon and the region of Ur. Esau apparently wanted to get out, for he "went to another land away from his brother Jacob" (36:6b).
When the kingdom begins the Jews will be at peace with one another. They will "plunder the sons of the east; they will possess Edom and Moab (just across the Jordan River) and the sons of Ammon will be subject to them. And the Lord will utterly destroy the tongue of the Sea of Egypt (the Red Sea) with His scorching wind; and He will strike it into seven streams, and make men walk over dry-shod" (11:14-15), and, "there will be a highway from Assyria for the remnant of His people who will be left" (v. 16).
The sons of the east would be today the Arabic peoples, those dwelling in the Middle East, from old Babylon and Saudi Arabia. The Islamic religion is dominant over the Arabic peoples with the Ka'ba Stone in Mecca as the central worship site for all of the Arabic world.
Be prepared! We're getting closer to the events prophesied! —Dr. Mal Couch (8/11)
