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THIS BOOKLET IS NOT TO BE SOLD.

It is a free educational service in the public interest, published by the Philadelphia Church of God. © 2018, 2021 Philadelphia Church of God All Rights Reserved

Printed in the United States of America Scriptures in this publication are quoted from the King James Version, unless otherwise noted.

A dramatic change in how God

is handling this throne shows

how soon Jesus Christ Himself

ONE | 1

The New Stone of Destiny

founded on a rock

The New Throne of David

THREE | 37

The Double Wonder!

the scepter and the lawgiver

Satan Attacks David’s Throne

focus on jerusalem

New Revelation About Jeremiah’s Commission

the creation waits

Ezra and the New Throne

sons of zadok

how god gave this new revelation

Preparing to Crown the King of Kings!

ONE

THE NEW STONE

OF DESTINY

I

I have said before that I have never received a vision from God outside of the Bible, and I still say that. But on January 14, I did have some interesting words come to mind about several scriptures. It has happened before that words come into my mind and lead me to a scripture. But this time, I heard a strong voice. That had never happened to me before. This voice said, “There is a new stone of destiny and a new throne of David.”

The stone of destiny is the stone over which British monarchs are crowned. It is also known as the stone of Scone, or Jacob’s pillar stone (read its origin in Genesis 28:10-22). We have written a lot over the years about the importance of the British monarchy and how it is actually a continuation of the royal dynasty of biblical King David. God promised to preserve his line forever (2 Samuel 7:12-16). The Bible shows that Jesus Christ will take over that governance

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Himself at His Second Coming! The stone has always been connected

with the throne, so it is very important, biblically and historically.

The stone is a symbol of David’s throne. It is also a symbol of our Rock—Jesus Christ—who is about to rule on that throne forever! You can read all about this in my book The Key of David.

God has shifted the symbol of David’s throne and that royal line to a new stone, and there are scriptures to prove it.

REMEMBERING HISTORY

During my time in the Worldwide Church of God (wcg) ministry, I was living in Washington State, serving there and in Oregon for 10 years. Just about 40 miles south of where I lived was Umapine, Oregon.

This is the area where God had worked with Herbert W. Armstrong in the 1930s. Mr. Armstrong went on to found the wcg (first called the Radio Church of God). He was a prolific author,

educator, philanthropist and minister. Mr. Armstrong taught the true causes of the problems facing humanity and their ultimate solutions. He published the Plain Truth magazine, read by 1 out of every 583 people on Earth; broadcast the World Tomorrow program from 382 television stations and 36 radio stations; and founded three campuses of the well-regarded Ambassador College. When Herbert W. Armstrong died on January 16, 1986, he left behind a church with 725 congregations in 57 countries around the globe and a powerful work going out to the world. It had a weekly worldwide attendance of more than 130,000 people, and another 210,000 outside the Church donated money regularly. Serving these many members, prospective members and contributors were more than 1,200 ministers worldwide.

Then there were the many books and booklets—more than 40 million of which had been distributed over the course of Mr. Armstrong’s 50-year ministry. The most requested book was

The United States and Britain in Prophecy—mailed to 6 million

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is at the core of the key of David vision: the throne of David. His final and most important book, Mystery of the Ages, also makes plain the vital understanding relating to King David’s throne.

On December 7, 1989, John Amos and I were fired and disfel-lowshiped from the wcg, and the work of the Philadelphia Church of God essentially began. Understanding and remem-bering this history helps us see what God was doing over a sustained period of time.

Back to Umapine, Oregon. Mr. Armstrong wrote about Umapine in his autobiography. In this town, he and a minister from the Sardis era of God’s Church held evangelistic meetings. The meetings were a failure. But then that minister hastily left to tend to some business elsewhere. Only then, when Mr. Armstrong was left alone, did his efforts begin to produce fruit!

The Autobiography describes the building where the meetings were held, so I traveled to Umapine to see if I could find it. It is quite a small town—you can drive through it in about a minute and a half. I found the only building that could have been used for Mr. Armstrong’s meetings.

It was very inspiring for me to visit that place, which resonated with the fascinating history of God’s end-time apostle. I mentioned this experience to David Todd, a man I had known in the wcg and who became a minister in the Philadelphia Church of God (pcg). “That kind of sparked my interest to investigate,” Mr. Todd later told the Philadelphia News. “I always wanted to see some of the sites Mr. Armstrong spoke of.

I thought it would be inspiring.”

In August 1998, Mr. Todd moved to the eastern part of central Oregon, and he took the opportunity to begin searching for the sites described in the Autobiography. He enlisted the help of some local Church members, and they began looking for every site they possibly could. In every case—sometimes only after intensive investigation—they succeeded.

Their discoveries led to the development of a substantial and fascinating tour through Mr. Armstrong’s history in that area,

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covering the early beginnings of the Philadelphia era of God’s Church. We have members still giving these tours. There is so much that Mr. Armstrong did that is wonderfully inspiring to us today!

THE POWERFUL PRAYER ROCK

In his autobiography, Mr. Armstrong described what he called a “prayer rock” that he used very early in his ministry, during his

time in Oregon.

It was 1933, and Mr. Armstrong was holding a series of Bible lectures at the Firbutte school in Eugene, near the Fisher farm where he was staying. “To the rear of the Fisher farm home was a fair-sized hill. Running over this hilltop for exercise I discovered a rock about 14 inches high,” he wrote. “It was in a secluded spot. It came to mind how Jesus had dismissed the multitudes, and gone up into a mountain ‘apart’ to pray—alone with God. I dropped to my knees before this rock, which seemed just the right height to kneel before, and began praying earnestly for the success of the meetings. It became sort of a daily pilgrimage, during my stay at the Fishers’, to this, which became my ‘prayer rock.’ I’m sure that I drank in much energy, spiritual strength and inspiration at that prayer rock.”

Mr. Armstrong wrote that under the subhead “The START of the Present Work.”

Mr. Todd found the former Fisher farm. He walked over the whole area and examined it closely, and there was only one rock that could have been Mr. Armstrong’s prayer rock. Remarkably, its dimensions were precisely as Mr. Armstrong had described.

In April 2002, Mr. Todd took me on a tour of the sites of Mr. Armstrong’s early days in the Work. When I saw the prayer rock, I said it was “the most inspiring rock I’ve ever seen, second only after the stone of Scone.”

We thought that the rock was something we ought to have. We were going to hold off getting it until we could do a little filming there. But Mr. Todd said that someone else was trying to get it.

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So we hurried along. We offered to purchase the rock, but the man who owned the property gave it to us free of charge, and he was happy to do so. We brought it to our headquarters campus in Edmond, Oklahoma, and put it on display.

God wanted us to have this rock. The Bible has many examples of God using stones for special purposes (e.g. Genesis 28:10-22; 31:45-52; Joshua 4:1-9; 8:30-32; 24:26-27). A stone is tangible. Here we have something that I think is supremely precious to God and the Philadelphia Church of God! I believe God gave it to us because we honor Mr. Armstrong and believe in what he did. It is meaningful to us because it is a tangible symbol of

continued on page 11

theprayerrock

While staying on the Fisher farm, Mr. Armstrong came across a rock that “seemed just the right height to kneel before” in prayer to God. Later, his “prayer rock” was moved to the PCG campus in Edmond, Oklahoma.

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FOUNDED ON A ROCK

L

To spread word about the upcoming public meetings, Mr. Armstrong and Mr. Fisher walked and drove to all the homes within five or so miles, passing out flyers. That was just about the only way to draw people to the truth of God in those days. At the first meeting, 27 of 35 chairs were filled. The number dipped to 19 on the second night.

After the second meeting, though, attendance spiked because of what happened during the meeting. A man named Belshaw had made it his custom to heckle new speakers at the theological seminary on the nearby University of Oregon campus. Since he owned the most extensive theological library in the district, he considered himself a Bible scholar. His intent at those meetings hosted by Oregon theology students was to put them on the spot with a trick question. He figured that if he could trip them up, the audience would laugh and then wouldn’t attend any further meetings. He decided to try the same method on Mr. Armstrong at the Firbutte schoolhouse.

But Mr. Armstrong was seeking divine power at the prayer rock before these Bible meetings. His contact with God had prepared him for Mr. Belshaw’s challenge.

AN ATTACK ON THE LAW

“Have you been saved yet?” Mr. Belshaw asked.

“Jesus said, in Matthew 24:13, that he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved,” Mr. Armstrong replied. “And in the very next verse, Jesus also said that His gospel of the Kingdom—which is the rule of God—the keeping of His commandments—shall be preached in all the world as a witness.

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That is what I am doing here tonight. Why do you not obey the commandments, as Jesus said, Mr. Belshaw?” (Autobiography

of Herbert W. Armstrong, Chapter 29: “The Real Beginning

of Present Work”). Mr. Armstrong was blunt and bold. His inspiration came from answered prayer.

Mr. Belshaw said he would keep the Ten Commandments if he could see any love in them.

“Then you must be spiritually blind,” Mr. Armstrong responded. “The Ten Commandments are merely the 10 points of the great law of love. The first four tell you how to love God; the last six how to love thy neighbor. The Bible says love is the fulfilling of the law. The commandments came from God, and God is love. He gave the commandments. Do you think God ever did anything that was not done in love?”

The people at this tiny schoolhouse must have been astonished! These were fireworks like they had never seen before. Mr. Armstrong had come ready to take on anyone who

dared try to make God and the law look bad!

Nearly every critic of Mr. Armstrong presented him with challenging questions about the law. Mr. Belshaw’s behavior was human nature in action. Human nature hates God’s law!

When members begin to drift spiritually and read the wrong meaning into scriptures, it almost always starts as a problem with the law. If we let down and get away from our prayer rock, that is so often where our perspective gets off track. Mr. Armstrong learned that lesson and taught it to us.

How protective of God’s law are you? Do you take a stand for the God of love and His law of love?

What an example Mr. Armstrong set. Here he was, talking to a tiny group of people—as yet, making no impact on the world. What difference did it make whether he went to his prayer rock? At first glance, you might say not much at all; it was only directly impacting those few people. But God used, and will use, Mr. Armstrong to teach the whole world about the law and government of God! Mr. Armstrong

THE NEW THRONE OF DAVID

went on from this small start to make a worldwide impact! Mr. Belshaw couldn’t answer Mr. Armstrong’s rebuke. Word spread of the confrontation, and attendance at the Bible

meetings grew to as many as 64—29 of those people had to stand.

DEFENDING THE SABBATH

At another of these Bible meetings, Mr. Armstrong invited a young visiting minister to give the opening prayer. Like Mr. Belshaw, this minister also fought against God’s law. He knew that Mr. Armstrong planned to speak about the Sabbath, so he used his prayer to try to discredit the entire lecture.

“I thank thee, O Lord, that we have a Christ to worship, and not a day!” the minister prayed. “Help us, O Lord, to preach Christ, and Him crucified—not about days and laws. Help us to be like the Apostle Paul, who said, ‘I am determined to know nothing among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.’”

While this rebellious minister prayed, Mr. Armstrong prayed silently and earnestly for God to provide the answer. God gave him the right words to say.

“I am glad to know that Mr. … (I don’t remember his name) says he is determined to know nothing but Jesus Christ, and Him crucified, for I, too, am of the same determination. I am going to preach Jesus Christ, and Him crucified tonight! But to do that, one must first know why Jesus Christ had to be crucified! “I have just received a letter from my wife in Salem,” I continued. “She wrote me that our elder little son, Richard David, 5 years old, has just preached his first sermon. He, too, preached Christ crucified. He and another little boy were playing by the side of our house. The window was open, and my wife overheard the conversation. The other little boy had been using a lot of slang. Our Dicky was exasperated. He picked up two sticks, crossing the longer with the shorter one.

THE NEW STONE OF DESTINy

“‘Now you look here, Donald,’ said Dicky with flashing indignation. ‘Do you know what this is?’

“‘No,’ answered Donald.

“‘Well, this here is a cross. And they had to put Jesus Christ up on a cross, and drive nails through His hands and His feet, and nail Him to that cross so He would die, just because you have been saying gosh and darn and gee-whiz! Don’t you say those words any more!’

“And I wonder,” I continued, “if people realize that sin is the transgression of God’s law—and that Jesus Christ was crucified because you people have been

transgressing His holy Sabbath! Don’t you profane

what is holy to God any more! And now I propose to preach to you Christ crucified tonight—and why He was crucified!” (ibid).

The young minister stormed out of the schoolhouse, furious and embarrassed, as the audience laughed at him. All he had done was provide Mr. Armstrong with the best possible introduction for his sermon.

MR. BELSHAW’S LAST STAND

Mr. Belshaw wasn’t done with Mr. Armstrong just yet. He made a comeback—his last stand. By this time, the Firbutte schoolhouse meetings had concluded, and Mr. Armstrong was holding meetings three times a week at a schoolhouse four miles to the west.

Mr. Belshaw waited until the end of Mr. Armstrong’s sermon and then loudly questioned him about the Sabbath. Mr. Armstrong was not surprised like he had been before. He smiled confidently, knowing that God would provide the correct answer.

“If it is binding on us, then it was necessary for Paul to teach them to keep it. Now can you show me any scripture where the Apostle Paul ever taught or commanded the Gentiles to keep the Sabbath?” He felt he had delivered a telling blow—unanswerable,

THE NEW THRONE OF DAVID

that would finally discredit me and what I preached once and for all! He was shocked at my answer.

“Yes sir, Mr. Belshaw!” I answered without any hesitation. “I certainly can! But before I do, I will now ask you a question: If I do show you where the Apostle Paul commanded the Gentile converts to keep the Sabbath, then that is irrefutable proof that you are commanded to keep it today. Now before I show you this command, I demand to know this: If I show where Paul commanded the Gentiles to keep the Sabbath, will you now give up your rebellion, and surrender to keep it also?” (ibid).

Mr. Belshaw would not surrender. He was exposed as a lawless rebel.

How does a person become so inspired and stirred like Mr. Armstrong, ready to take on any doubters? It all started at the prayer rock. He broke through to God. He wanted to represent God the right way, uphold His law, and help people understand that Christ died for our sins and was beaten savagely for our healing.

Mr. Armstrong was confronted with some of the biggest questions in the Bible and answered them beautifully. His history with the prayer rock is one of the most inspiring stories in this end time. Look at how God used that man because he went to the prayer rock for help and strength.

We have Mr. Armstrong’s formula. The work of the pcg is small. We are a little remnant, not a large corporation—but what we are capable of accomplishing is miraculous! Realize, though, that we have the impact we have only because we learned the lesson of the power of prayer from Mr. Armstrong!

God is not impressed by the person who says, “Well, what can I do? I’m just one person.” If you have a strong prayer life and you follow Mr. Armstrong’s formula, you can do amazing things! You can change the world! That is what God wants all of us to learn. We are here to teach all mankind about how to build a relationship with God!

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the infinitesimal beginning of the Work of God in our day—the greatest Work ever on Earth in terms of the impact and the number of people reached! Mr. Armstrong reached millions of people with God’s truth, and it started at this rock (sidebar: “Founded on a Rock,” page 6). For this reason, the prayer rock holds great significance to God’s people. It also seemed so unusual that Mr. Armstrong had accurately recorded such precise details about it, and that we were able to find it. Surely God had something important in mind.

There is a towering lesson here: If we are going to succeed spiritually, we must build on a foundation of prayer!

I now see that God was behind those events, and for a very important reason.

Mr. Armstrong’s prayer rock has replaced the “stone of destiny.” The date on which I came to recognize this is signifi-cant. It was yet another example of God making something momentous happen on or near January 16, the anniversary of Mr. Armstrong’s death in 1986. God is continually reminding us that we are continuing the work of Elijah. We have proved that Mr. Armstrong was the end-time type of the original Elijah. We must follow Mr. Armstrong’s example. The understanding that God has given me about this stone underlines this point emphatically!

ESTABLISHING GOD’S THRONE

This new revelation about the prayer rock will have far-reaching consequences. It is a major step toward establishing the rule of God on Earth!

How?

Jesus Christ is about to return, and when He does, He will take His place on the throne of David (Isaiah 9:7; Luke 1:31-33). On that throne, He will rule and bring salvation to all humanity! We are living in the final phase of David’s throne just before Christ returns. As I have said, the stone of destiny has always been associated

THE NEW THRONE OF DAVID

with the throne. Coronations have always taken place in its presence. Read Chapter 6 of my book The Key of David to learn the history of that stone.

There are a couple of interesting Bible prophecies about that throne during the time immediately ahead of us—before Christ returns.

One was given by the Prophet Hosea: “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim” (Hosea 3:4). I have pointed to this verse for many years as a prophecy of Britain during the Great Tribulation, a short period of suffering that precedes the Second Coming (verse 5 shows that it is an end-time context). For example, I wrote in Chapter 7 of The Key of David about this verse:

This is describing a very tragic period—the Great Tribulation—almost upon us. It is a prophecy about Ephraim [Britain], Manasseh [the United States] and Judah [the Jewish state of Israel], when they no longer

have a king or even a prince. Jeremiah wrote that

David’s throne would never lack a man sitting on it [Jeremiah 33:17]—yet here it says that for a time, Israel will have no king or prince. How can you reconcile this apparent contradiction? We must remember that the very elect of spiritual Israel [the faithful Church of God] is being protected by God at this time.

Consider this as well: The word image in Hosea 3:4 refers to Jacob’s pillar stone—the stone Jacob called “God’s house” that stayed with Israel for generations,

and that to this day resides in Great Britain. God revealed to Hosea that in this end time, Ephraim is going to lose that stone.

Where do you suppose that stone will be?

To answer this question, in the same chapter I tie in the Hosea 3 prophecy with the one given by the Prophet Isaiah: “And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit

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upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness” (Isaiah 16:5).

This prophecy is in the context of God’s people being protected in a place of safety. Verse 1 speaks of a group of people (taught by God) sending a special tribute to the ruler of Sela, which means

rocky fortress, the equivalent word in Greek being Petra. It is a

time of turmoil in the Middle East, when the Jordanian people are trying to get away (verse 2; Moab refers to the modern-day country of Jordan). Verse 3 shows people dwelling in caves, probably in a place like Petra, Jordan. In verse 4, God tells Moab (the Jordanians) to protect His people, who have become “outcasts.” Why are they outcasts? Because people would rather hate God’s truth and the Ten Commandments than repent and save their nations! So they cast out the people who deliver God’s message to them! But God always protects those who do His Work. It is there, in that place of protection, that God says “the throne”—speaking of David’s throne—will “be established”! In

The Key of David, I explain:

That throne of David is in Britain today. For millennia, the kings and queens who have been crowned on that throne have done so over Jacob’s

pillar stone, also called “the stone of destiny.”

How could that throne be established in the context of Isaiah 16? Only the stone of destiny could firmly establish the throne of David!

Is Isaiah 16 telling us that God will somehow give us that stone when God’s people go to the place of safety? After all, we are going to be sharing that throne with Christ in a matter of just a few years! The stone of destiny is really the symbol of David’s throne—not the chair that sits in Westminster Abbey. … God said there would never lack a man to sit on that throne—and here He says the throne will be established in a temporary, Tribulation setting, with God’s loyal people dwelling in a rocky fortress!

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Isaiah’s prophecy says the individual sitting on the throne at that time will be “seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.” I wrote how this implies it will be occupied not by a member of Britain’s royal family, but by a Spirit-led member of God’s Church. I then pointed to the prophecy in Micah 2:13 referring to the leader of God’s Church as “their king.” “It shouldn’t be too upsetting to think of God calling a man in the Church a ‘king,’” I wrote. “After the 3½-year period of the Tribulation, every converted member in God’s Church will be a king and a priest forever!” (ibid). (We will discuss this prophecy in greater detail in the next chapter of this book.)

This is all spiritual understanding God gave us that we have had for many years. We must possess the throne of David in the place of safety, meaning we must also possess the stone that represents the throne. I encourage you to read Chapters 6 and 7 of The Key of David book to refresh your memory.

Now, this new revelation about the prayer rock brings these prophecies into sharper focus. I was wrong in thinking the way I did about us getting that stone. God had a better stone in mind—one superior to that original stone!

God is making this significant change for a good reason: We are ready to go to the place of safety, and we now have the new stone of destiny! This is much more practical than what we thought would have to happen. This significantly helps our job of preparing the way for the Second Coming of Jesus Christ!

A PURER SYMBOL

Hosea prophesied of a time when Britain would be “without a king, and without a prince … and without an image”—referring to the coronation stone. We are in that time now! Britain doesn’t possess the image—the stone —any longer. We in God’s Church now have an even better symbol of King David’s throne.

This is what God wants. I realize it is radical to say that there is a new stone of destiny. But it is also radical to say that God’s

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people will have the throne of David, and that is straight out of the Bible! And the stone is a symbol of the throne.

God used Mr. Armstrong to prepare the way for Christ’s Second Coming (e.g. Malachi 3:1; 4:5-6). Mr. Armstrong also received the key of David vision (Revelation 3:7) and was a physical descendant of King David. It would be logical for Mr. Armstrong to have a personal connection with the rock that symbolizes the throne of David that Christ will rule from. Mr. Armstrong had a special calling, and you have to be impressed with all that he accomplished. God wants us to learn even more from what he did.

God used him to “restore all things”! (Matthew 17:10-11). What a monumental work! Mr. Armstrong did in God’s true Church what Christ is about to do in this world!

Jacob’s pillar stone ties back to Jacob when he was uncon-verted. God changed his name to Israel upon his conversion (Genesis 32:28). That stone has been witness to generations of coronations of unconverted men and women who have carried on the royal line of David. In the final phase of His Work in this end time, surely God wanted to have a different stone—a

purer spiritual symbol found within God’s Church, where His

people possess the Holy Spirit. This symbol embodies so much more. I believe that is why God made the change. God’s faithful people today are following through on what Mr. Armstrong did as he prepared the way for Christ’s Second Coming. We are raising up the ruins of his work and magnifying him and what God did through him.

God is certainly concerned about purity. As Mr. Armstrong wrote in Mystery of the Ages, when Jesus Christ came to Earth the first time, He “was born of the tribe of Judah, and it was necessary that He be of the original pure racial strain, even as Noah was.” As God prepares for Christ’s universe-shaking Second Coming, He is surely thinking about representing and preserving spiritual purity! God wants more purity there; and He achieves that with the prayer rock and all that it means.

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MY MESSENGER

God gave Mr. Armstrong the key of David to help him build the Philadelphia era of the Church (Revelation 3:7). This key unlocks the focus of God’s entire Bible, Old Testament and New Testament. It reveals to us all about how God is going to use the house of David—physically and spiritually—to establish God’s rule and offer salvation to all mankind! The key of David means everything to us!

It is also something that Satan passionately hates. It reminds him that his reign on Earth is almost over and that he will be cast into outer darkness forever. He has consistently and repeatedly worked to stop the key of David message.

Soon after Mr. Armstrong died, the people who took over the Church rejected the truth unlocked by that key in Mr. Armstrong’s book The United States and Britain in Prophecy. Worldwide Church of God leadership slashed away 70 percent

of that book. Then they lied about shelving the book for a short review process. Joseph Tkach Jr. said that the marvelous understanding in that book boils down to: “So what?”

“So what?” The key of David message is the only

fundamental message that Christ gave to the last two eras of His Church! (Revelation 3:7). That is the message that Herbert W. Armstrong delivered to this world. The Philadelphia Church of God must deliver the same message. The United States

and Britain in Prophecy is an indispensable part of this message!

These liars are in the thrall of the devil, who hates the throne of David and hates the rule of God and the law of God. Christ shed His blood for the sins of all mankind, including theirs, and they are throwing that away!

Satan stirred up antichrists, one man especially, within God’s own Church to destroy that epic vision for 95 percent of God’s people (1 John 2:19). We must understand Satan’s power. He turned our brothers and sisters—God’s Family—away from the marvelous Work of God built through Mr. Armstrong.

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knees before the Father, then getting up and defending God, His law and His government. Mr. Armstrong was a great spiritual defender. His corrupt successors knew nothing compared to him, but they thought they were so intelligent and scholarly. God considers them fools.

“Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap” (Malachi 3:1-2). Christ’s return will be a fiery time for the rebels.

God makes a blanket statement here: “[H]e shall prepare the way before me.” Period! No caveats or qualifications. What an endorsement of this man! God made a covenant with Mr. Armstrong, and He knew that Mr. Armstrong would do the job. Did he ever! What a messenger!

Wouldn’t it be wonderful for God to trust absolutely that we will fulfill our purpose?

Mr. Armstrong’s life is one of the highlights in the history of man. God really was moved by how he delivered His message. He was moved by how he used the prayer rock to keep himself fervent and stirred to do God’s will! So now, Mr. Armstrong is going to be honored forever through the prayer rock!

Isn’t it wonderful that God will bless us so richly for being obedient and loyal to Him?

Mr. Armstrong prepared the way for Christ’s Second Coming. That means a lot. No matter whom he spoke to, at the Firbutte schoolhouse or in front of kings and dignitaries, he spoke about God’s law and way of life. He made mistakes as we all do, but he never stopped serving God.

It would make sense for the new stone of destiny to relate to Mr. Armstrong. This new stone is more appropriate for introducing the perfect Jesus Christ, who was crucified so we can be born as sons into God’s Family.

Christ is pleased with His messenger! How God is honoring Mr. Armstrong with this new stone of destiny!

God is also pleased with the spiritual “sons of Zadok” who, like Zadok the priest to King David anciently, remain loyal to God’s throne from beginning to end. He trusts His people to take care of the prayer rock—the new stone of destiny. This is a noble and worthy cause.

We recognize this reality, though the world does not. But many will come to see this truth while we are in the place of safety.

God has commanded us to raise the ruins. Now, I am a man with vanity and sins just like anyone else. If I ever begin to think that I can do my job without following Mr. Armstrong’s example, I will be falling into a fatal way of thinking! But I have realized that every time I honor Mr. Armstrong, God honors me. Isn’t that wonderful? This is God’s government. It is a wonderful truth that we all must learn deeply.

Near the end of his life, Mr. Armstrong wrote, “That restora-tion of God’s government is the one great purpose uppermost in God’s mind” (Plain Truth, July 1977). God wants to restore His government in our lives right now. And soon He will restore His government to the whole world.

“Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:7).

That is what this is ultimately about. David’s throne will unite the world. God is going to bring all mankind, including those who are so rebellious today, to the point where they will bow down to Him—the Rock—and take a closer look at the love, the way, and the life of God! We must humble ourselves before God, and then take on anyone who challenges our Father, the Head of His Family! We have nothing to fear with God on our side.

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always be someone sitting on the throne of David, and that there would always be a priest or minister doing the Work of God and teaching about that throne.

Look again at 2 Samuel 7:12-16. There God promised to establish David’s throne and said that Solomon would sit on it. He said, “If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him ….” God told David how He would sustain the king sitting on that throne: He would use men to chasten him and keep the throne with the line of David.

But what if that nation becomes so evil that God must destroy it and plant the throne in another nation? Anciently, God sent the Prophet Jeremiah to warn Judah of its destruction. That is a type of what is to happen to Britain, America and Judah in this end time. (Request a free copy of my booklet on Jeremiah for a full explanation.)

After ancient Judah was destroyed, Jeremiah was used by God to overturn the throne of David (and take the stone of

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destiny) to Ireland by taking a direct descendant of David, one of King Zedekiah’s daughters, the princess Tea-Tephi. David’s throne was later moved to Scotland and eventually to England where it has resided for several generations, again with those sitting on the throne being descendants of King David. In the coming Great Tribulation, however, God does not send a prophet to remove David’s throne from Britain. So what happens to that throne?

God has revealed the clear answer to this question.

BRITAIN LOSES ITS KING AND ITS STONE

Think deeply about the prophecy in Hosea 3:4: “For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image [the stone of destiny] ….” By the time this prophecy is fulfilled, Britain will have been conquered by the Holy Roman Empire. The British lose their king, and they lose their stone (a symbol of David’s throne), and there is no Jeremiah type to protect the stone and the king. God doesn’t have somebody there to tear down and destroy and transplant that throne.

What does this mean? God promised to continue that throne forever, yet here we see that suddenly there is no king and no stone, and the prophecy doesn’t even say where they are. During the Tribulation, the king will probably be dead! Jacob’s pillar stone will be lost; we don’t know what will happen to it but it could be destroyed.

If no one sits on David’s throne, God will have broken His promise!

The truth is, by the time this prophecy is fulfilled, the throne in Britain is no longer David’s throne!

Even before Britain loses its king and stone, the British throne

is no longer the throne of David, or God’s promise is broken.

Hosea’s prophecy shows that before the Tribulation, God

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Otherwise He could not allow Hosea 3:4 to happen. How else can you explain what is going to happen in Britain?

God must no longer recognize the throne in Britain as David’s throne.

When does this happen, and where is David’s throne? This is

the endless throne of our eternal Husband we are talking about! We are living in a time of terrible corruption in the nations of Israel. With the royal family in Britain today, God cannot correct the situation by the stripes of men. He cannot set things right within Ephraim, Manasseh and Judah under present conditions. So there has to be another king—someone who is also a descendant of David.

Imagine someone during the Tribulation who had any understanding of God’s promise about the throne of David. If he looked around and saw no king and no stone—perhaps the king is dead, and he doesn’t know where the stone is, or maybe he saw it destroyed—what would he think? He would have to conclude that God’s promise was broken, unless he understood what I am explaining to you here.

But God IS keeping His promise!

HASTING RIGHTEOUSNESS

Look again at the prophecy in Isaiah 16 about the place of safety during the Great Tribulation. It says God’s people are outcasts, protected among the rocky crags and caves of a fortress in the wilderness (verses 1-4).

Verse 5 reads, “And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.” In the place of safety, there is a “he”—a man—sitting on the throne of David—in a tabernacle, which is a temporary dwelling. This is a man who understands and believes the truth of God, who is “judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness,”

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Could this king be someone outside God’s one true Church? That would be impossible. This king is speaking the truth and hasting righteousness, so it must be a converted member in God’s Church. God has to have a king in this Church who is a descendant of David. And we also must have a stone that is a symbol of David’s throne. God has given us a new stone. The stone is always associated with the throne—not only as a symbol of the throne, but also a symbol of our Rock, our Leader, Jesus Christ!

It was right around January 16, 2017, that God revealed the truth about the new stone of destiny.

And it was on this date that God moved the throne of David to this Church!

God is getting us ready to go to the place of safety where David’s throne is prophesied to be. There is a new king and a new stone. There has to be for this prophecy to be fulfilled! And this new king would have to be God’s apostle, at least for this time. The prayer rock, the new symbol of David’s throne, also came to us through a descendant of David, Herbert W. Armstrong. And it all happened around January 16, 2017, the anniversary of his death. God made all these things happen miraculously. This is all prophesied, and God has brought it about in a way that is truly mind-staggering when you think about it.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US?

Even now, the United Kingdom no longer has the throne of David. And Jacob’s pillar stone is no longer relevant. There is a new stone.

Think about this: If Britain no longer has the throne of David, this strongly indicates that Britain is going to go down rapidly! How could it be otherwise? This is a great condemnation by God against that people! And, in a sense, against America as well. Jeremiah was there when Judah was conquered by Babylon. He took Tea-Tephi—a princess of the house of David—and the coronation stone with him to Ireland and preserved David’s

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throne. Now, a modern Babylon is going to conquer Britain, America and Judah and destroy them—all together (Hosea 5:5)—

and David’s throne is no longer in Britain. But God has preserved it another way.

What does all this mean for the Philadelphia Church of God? We must think about this deeply. What does this require of us?

This is some of the most amazing prophecy ever revealed to the pcg!

Here, in this Church, is the hope of the world—the only hope there is! Descendants of David have sat on this throne since it has been in existence. This fulfills God’s scepter promise to Judah (Genesis 49:10). But that promise is also about grace. This throne is the one Christ will sit on to direct everything in the universe under the guidance of God the Father! It will last for eternity and bring salvation to all mankind! And we have that throne right now!

David’s throne is alive and well—and being honored more than it has been in a long time!

There is a difference in how David’s throne will be handled from now on because it is in God’s own Church with His own very elect.

What a tremendous gift God has given His remnant Church! We are going to be kings and priests shortly, and already are kings and priests in embryo. This certainly ought to make our calling— the fact that we are going to be ruling on this throne with Christ forever—far more real to us! You really are kings and priests! (Revelation 1:6). You cannot sit on a throne if you’re not a king and a priest. God’s spiritual nation is going to be born overnight! (Isaiah 66:8). This will astound the world: People will suddenly see a whole family of kings and priests on David’s throne!

It is mind-boggling to even think about what God is doing. But this is real. This is what these revelations from God are all about. We have the throne in our possession now! God’s very elect now plays the key role with David’s throne. It is no longer in Britain—it is here in the pcg, which means we are now ready to go to a place of safety.

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But before we go, we will be exposing some important facts and proclaiming a more powerful message than we have ever had before! How could it be otherwise? This honor is certain to come with additional responsibility. It dazzles your mind when you ponder it!

THE NOBILITY OF ISRAEL IN ADULLAM

The book of Micah has some key scriptures we can better understand in light of this new revelation.

This book covers a span of time from just before the Great Tribulation to a time far into the Millennium. It prophesies what will happen to God’s people during the Tribulation.

Micah 1:9 says, “For her wound is incurable ….” This is a time when the nations of Israel are sick with an incurable wound—a life-threatening condition that cannot be healed! Their only hope is to go through the holocaust of the Tribulation.

“Make thee bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children; enlarge thy baldness as the eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee” (verse 16). Here is a descriptive warning of what is about to come upon national Israel. Think of the symbol of the United States, the bald eagle. God says the baldness of Israel is going to be enlarged as its people go into captivity! During the Great Tribulation, they will suffer as never before!

Now—what will happen to God’s people during that time? Verse 15 says, “Yet will I bring an heir unto thee, O inhabitant of Mareshah: he shall come unto Adullam the glory of Israel.” This translation is a little awkward. The word Mareshah means summit, or chief place. And the New King James Version reads: “… The glory of Israel shall come to Adullam.”

Where is Adullam? This was the cave to which David escaped when he was on the run from King Saul (1 Samuel 22:1). Remember, Micah is an end-time book. Here is a prophecy of a time when “the glory of Israel” will come to a cave, or rocky fortress. The Cambridge Bible Commentary says it is “the worthy

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part of Israel” that goes to Adullam (emphasis mine throughout).

The Soncino commentary says, “[T]he phrase means that Israel’s

nobility will take refuge in a cave.” Who are the nobility of

Israel? They are the people who have the throne of David! They are spiritual Israel, or God’s true Church.

God considers these people worthy to take responsibility for David’s throne. That is a lot of responsibility! But these people are God’s nobility! What greater nobility is there than having

David’s throne?

David escaped to the cave of Adullam along with several hundred people. Prophecy shows that, in the end time, God’s people will have to escape to a cave as well. They will go to a rocky fortress to escape the Holy Roman Empire, which has been chasing them for centuries! The Church had to flee into the wilderness for 1,260 years (Revelation 12:6—described prophetically as “days”). Now, we will have to flee for 1,260 days (verse 14). When we do, we will take with us the throne of David.

We must be prepared to go to the cave of Adullam, the place of safety. Make this a part of your thinking, because we live in the most urgent time ever! We must be willing to go anyplace and do anything God wants. We must get our minds conditioned to do that! He often offers opportunities or directs us to do things we don’t want to do, humanly. We all have to do things we would rather not do; that is good for us! We must have the mindset that whatever God says, we will do. That will bring the most wonderful reward you could possibly receive!

You can review the history: David and God’s people came to power shortly after he left that cave. God says that immediately after we leave this rocky fortress, the place of safety, we are going to come to power! We will rule the world with Jesus Christ on David’s throne!

Think of the honor God is giving us! What a wonderful blessing it is to have the great God give us the throne of David—which is really the throne of God—now! What a

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calling we have been given, and what a blessing to understand this and to know what it all means!

Micah 2:6 foretells of God’s lukewarm people trying to stop us from prophesying these things. They are not the nobility of Israel. They want to blend into the world and prophesy smooth things.

That is not the life God has called us to! Those who sit on David’s throne must obey the great God with all their being as David did, a man after God’s own heart! That is what God wants all of us to strive to be: men and women after God’s own heart!

God abundantly rewards such obedience. He promises that even in the very worst circumstances, He will protect us. As people attack us, they will fall, and we will be the only ones left standing.

‘THEIR KING’

Isaiah 16:5 prophesies, “And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth ….” This is not just another throne—it is “the throne.” This is the only throne of God on Earth! The title king is not used in this context. But the Prophet Micah does use the word king—and it is the only place in the Bible that uses this term specifically in connection with the pcg.

“I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as the flock in the midst of their fold: they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men. The breaker is come up before them: they have broken up, and have passed through the gate, and are gone out by it: and their king shall pass before them, and the Lord on the head of them” (Micah 2:12-13). Verse 13 specifically links the “breaker” with the “king” who is leading God’s people in the place of safety. The king

and the breaker are the same person.

Lange’s Commentary explains: “They break through, pass into

the gate, and go out through it. And their king passes on before them, for no other than the king, out of the house of David, can be that ‘breaker’ ….” This is talking about the house of David and

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the throne of David. How could anyone in God’s Church become a king? There has to be something new to even make that happen. This man breaks the way to the place of safety through a gate. There is a “gate” to the place of safety. God provides a strait and narrow gate that we must go through to get to the place of protection. The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament says this about the word gate: “The root idea is ‘to split open’”—like parting the waters. It says, “Two other words are sometimes translated ‘gate,’” and one of them “means ‘entrance,’ from the verb meaning ‘to open.’”

Somehow, God uses this king to be a breaker and to open the way—to protect the kings and priests of God’s very elect. There is structure and government here. We cannot do anything haphazardly. God lays it all out about how we will do it: He says a breaker will open the gate and lead His people to the place of safety. We must follow God’s structure if we are to go to a place of safety. Follow the system where Jesus Christ is the Head! If people don’t like God’s government, then they will not be there. There is a way it must be done. After all, God is leading us! Christ—our Stone, our Rock—is “on the head of them”! It is not some man! What man could possibly do something like this? God Himself is at the head, leading the whole procession! God

Himself brings about this new stone and new throne of David.

This prophecy is dated: It is specifically about going to the place of safety with the new throne of David. We had to break

away from the lukewarm Worldwide Church of God. God is

focusing our minds on the place of safety, and also on conducting ourselves like King David did.

This prophecy shows not just a leader going to that place, but

all of God’s faithful people going there together. Daniel 12:8-11 paint

a similar picture. We are all in this together; we leave together and are taken to a place of safety together. Verse 11 says, “And from the time that the daily [the Work of God] shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” Subtracting the 1,260

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days we are in the place of safety from this 1,290 days indicates we have 30 days to get to a place of safety, and all of us go together. And notice verse 10: “Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried ….” God wants us to be purified. I think that has a lot to do with us having the new throne of David. God wants a purified throne and a pure people when He arrives!

Verses 12-13 talk about the wonderful ending of all this: It is leading right into the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, when He receives the throne of David!

Amos 7 tells us when we go to the place of safety. There you see a priest, Amaziah, telling the king, Jeroboam, about God’s prophet. There is a confrontation, and the priest does the dirty work. He tells God’s prophet, “O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there” (verse 12). This is spiritual Antiochus—Satan incarnate!

All indications are that this is how the nobility of Israel will go: We will be outcasts, sent to a cave! But we have the very throne of David! We don’t look to things or to people—we look to God! It doesn’t matter where we go as long as God is directing us!

In its account of the history of Jeremiah rescuing Zedekiah’s daughter to transplant the throne, the Bible never mentions him taking a stone. We know he did because it is a symbol of David’s throne. Jeremiah had to have the coronation stone—after all, he was taking the throne of David to Ireland! Mr. Armstrong proved from Irish history that when Jeremiah came to Ireland with Tea-Tephi, he had an ark, David’s harp and a stone called lia-fail. But these last three items were not mentioned in the book of Jeremiah when it discusses the king’s daughters. The same is true in Micah: It mentions a king but doesn’t say anything about the stone. As with Jeremiah, that is covered elsewhere. But we need the symbol of David’s throne, and we need somebody to rule from it!

We must spiritually nurture the throne of God that is in our presence in every way we possibly can! God has given it to us to care for it and to be responsible for it.

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Realize that God has made a major change! We are not an insignificant remnant. Soon we will be sitting on David’s throne with Christ! That is our future!

God has just said, I am going to lift you to a higher level. I want

you to recognize that and take on this responsibility. He wouldn’t

give it to us if He didn’t think we could do it! This should tell you a lot about who you are!

We cannot overemphasize how great this is—and how wonderful that God would honor us with this opportunity! Surely as a result, God will empower us more and more in a very short span of time.

‘IS THERE NO KING IN YOU?’

Later in Micah there is another proof about the king: “And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem. Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? …” (Micah 4:8-9). This is speaking to God’s lukewarm people. There is no king among them! But realize: The Laodiceans do have access to the pcg—the door is open if they would just take the strait and narrow path, and enter the gate here. In the pcg, there is a king who is led and directed by God! That is what makes it all happen: The king is nothing apart from God. Not one of us is! But God is telling the Laodiceans that they have access to a king—if only they would accept it!

Sadly, 95 percent of God’s people want nothing to do with that. What is going to happen to those people? “[P]angs have taken thee as a woman in travail. Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion … and thou shalt go even to Babylon …” (verses 9-10). They are going to experience a cauldron of nuclear fire! Why? Because they won’t follow God and the king.

It is not easy to follow God. But look at the calamity that will befall those who don’t want God to guide and direct them! God

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is telling them, If you won’t follow my government, you will not

be going to Adullam, and you won’t be protected!

Again, in Micah 2:13, there is “their king … and the Lord on the head of them.” The Head of all this is Jesus Christ, not some man. But you don’t see Jesus Christ. You do see a king, or a human leader whom God is using, and you follow him as he follows Christ. The Laodiceans are not willing to follow, and they will suffer horrendously as a result.

When Mr. Armstrong was alive, many people in God’s Church looked to him—not God. Then, when he died, they didn’t know what to do. You had better be sure that doesn’t happen to you. You must not look to a man.

Remember, God’s ministers are “compassed with infirmity” (Hebrews 5:2)—and that includes evangelists and apostles. We struggle just like you. We are surrounded by problems and difficulties. We fight the same battles that you do. In that way, we are all in this together! You had better not look to one of us because we are not going to get you anyplace—unless we are following Christ, and then we’ll be a great help to you! But it is your responsibility to know if we get off track. If you look to a man, something could happen to him, and you could be misled. But if you look to Christ, and something happens to the man He is using, you just carry on following Christ! We all must learn this lesson deeply!

THREE OVERTURNS,

THEN ‘IT SHALL BE NO MORE’

Another scripture we have used a lot in the past becomes far more clear in light of this new revelation about the throne.

Ezekiel 21:26-27 read, “Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.”

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This passage is about David’s throne and the stone. As Mr. Armstrong wrote in The United States and Britain in

Prophecy, “Remove the diadem, and take off the crown” refers

to King Zedekiah’s death in Babylon. “This shall not be the same” means a change was to take place. God abased the house of Judah and exalted the house of Israel by moving the throne to Israel. The first of the three overturns (“overturn, overturn, overturn”) occurred when Jeremiah brought the stone and throne to Ireland. Later it was moved to Scotland, then to England.

Then, God prophesies, it shall be no more, until Christ comes. What does this mean?

Notice: There is no fourth overturn. This is because, after the three overturns, there is something new! A new throne and a new stone! That is what happened on January 16, 2017. God nowhere says anything about a fourth overturn—because there isn’t one! He said, “It shall be no more.” The throne as it was will come to an end; that is what this means.

Regarding these three overturns, Barnes’ Commentary says, “‘It shall be no more,’ or ‘this also shall not be’; the present state

of things shall not continue ….” That is exactly right! What else could it be? There will be three overturns, and it shall be no more. That throne is now irrelevant.

God expresses it this way because this is exactly how it will appear to anyone in the world. People see the three overturns— and then, when Christ returns, He has a throne! “I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him” (verse 27). That is exactly what the people in this world will see because they don’t understand what God has done. They won’t see it because they are in a state of rebellion! How much do people even care about David’s throne anyway? Who pays attention to David’s throne?

But the very elect of God are honored by God to be given the throne of David and of God! God doesn’t call it a fourth over-turn because it’s not a fourth overover-turn; it is a new throne.

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this throne. We in God’s Church, who are kings and priests in embryo, have now been given the throne that Christ and His Bride will sit on for eternity! We are to be the stewards of this great possession—to watch over it and protect it and proclaim the meaning and the hope that it symbolizes! That hope resides with us in a special way. What a blessing!

GOD’S JUDGMENT ON BRITAIN

God is not happy with those who have been sitting on David’s throne. In 1996, England returned the stone of Scone—then the symbol of the throne of David and Jesus Christ, our Rock—to Scotland. England was willing to give it up! In the Trumpet at that time, I wrote, “I believe this stone is the most precious physical thing on this Earth. I also believe that Queen Elizabeth just made the worst decision of her life! And the British government has made the biggest mistake in its history! [England’s] actions have scorned the omnipotent, living God. And there is going to be a terrifying penalty unless they repent” (August 1996).

Look at the prophecy in Jeremiah 22: “Thus saith the Lord; Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word, And say, Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates” (verses 1-2).

Herbert W. Armstrong proclaimed his message through the reigns of three kings on David’s throne, before Queen Elizabeth ii was crowned in 1953. The greatest warning ever was delivered in his book The United States and Britain in Prophecy. This warning is directed to any king or queen who sits on David’s throne. But since January 16, 2017, David’s throne is no longer in Britain. “Thus saith the Lord; Execute ye judgment and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place. For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this

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house [of David] kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people. But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself, saith the Lord, that this house [of David] shall become a desolation” (verses 3-5). This specific prophecy is coming upon Britain! God is telling them why He has taken the throne from them!

Notice what God says in verse 6: “For thus saith the Lord unto the king’s house of Judah; Thou art Gilead unto me, and the head of Lebanon: yet surely I will make thee a wilderness, and cities

which are not inhabited.” This is a terrifying prophecy! The great

cities of Ephraim will be emptied of their inhabitants!

“And I will prepare destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons: and they shall cut down thy choice cedars, and cast them into the fire. And many nations shall pass by this city [London], and they shall say every man to his neighbour, Wherefore hath the Lord done thus unto this great city? Then they shall answer, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them” (verses 7-9). This is a physical nation; its people don’t have the New Covenant. This is talking about the covenant God made with David! The throne was located in London.

Britain has been cozying up to the Roman Catholic Church in recent years. The archbishop of Canterbury visited the Vatican and kissed the pope’s ring! He was putting the pope’s throne ahead of God’s throne! This had to intensify God’s wrath against Britain. This in spite of the fact that the Catholic Church has been fighting against the throne of David for generations! The Holy Roman Empire knows about the throne, and it has tried to destroy it throughout history!

Britain has forsaken God’s covenant with David! And God warns that its punishment for doing so will be unparalleled in the history of man!

In verses 18 and 19, God says of the British king, “He shall be buried with the burial of an ass.” The Holy Roman Empire won’t give this man any royal treatment!

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Consider all the blessings God has given to Israel and Judah: the birthright blessings and the scepter blessing! Yet now, everything is falling apart. God is full of wrath because of their sins—to the point where He has now removed the throne of David and given it to His very elect.

TRANSITION PERIOD

The prophecy surrounding David’s throne has tremendous depth. It is about our birth into God’s Family. It all begins for us when we are born again into the Kingdom of God, ruling with Jesus Christ forever.

We are part of a transition movement into the very throne of God and Christ ruling the world. This is the first step into Christ’s headquarters’ rule. Having this throne ought to make the rule of Christ on David’s throne far more meaningful and real to us! We will be used to solve this world’s problems. We must think like God’s kings and priests! We have the throne that Christ is going to rule from—and we are in that transition period right now!

Look at the transition period in a physical birth. That process happens in three stages. According to BabyCenter, “The first stage begins when you start having contractions that cause progressive changes in your cervix and ends when your cervix is fully dilated. This stage is divided into two phases: First, early labor: Your cervix gradually effaces (thins out) and dilates (or opens). Active labor: Your cervix begins to dilate more rapidly and contractions are longer, stronger and closer together. People often refer to the last part of active labor as ‘transition.’”

It is called transition because it is right after this that the mother begins pushing, which is the second stage. It is the transition to the actual birth. The third stage, after the baby is born, is the delivery of the placenta.

We should think seriously about this because Mr. Armstrong said that physical birth is a direct type of our birth into the

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Kingdom of God! It happens the same way, but on a spiritual level (John 3:3-6).

The transition phase of the labor is the shortest, but the most intense part of labor (ibid). It is intense because of the major changes the body is undergoing within a short period in order to start the baby’s descent out of the womb. “Transition, unlike active labor, is the storm before the calm that is the pushing stage. It is by far the hardest part of birthing, but also the shortest” (givingbirthnaturally.com). I think that is a good description of how God is going to bring forth the birth of His firstfruits and the Philadelphians of this era.

“It is here that a mother’s focus might falter,” the report continues. “This is the stage where women may doubt their ability to birth the baby and request medications. They may worry about how long labor will last, and how much more intense it will become. Mothers become suggestible at this time and are the most vulnerable to accepting interventions they previously did not want.”

This transition isn’t precisely the same as what we are going through right now, but it certainly gives you a dramatic and mesmerizing picture. Remember what Mr. Armstrong said about that physical birth typing the spiritual.

Did our receiving David’s new throne start our descent into being born again?! Are we now in the pushing stage into our birth in God’s Kingdom?

Surely God would give us a dramatic sign of when this pushing stage begins! Keep this understanding in mind when you look at the terrible evil in this world and the trials coming upon God’s new royal Family.

We must see spiritually and realize we are in a transition stage! This is different from what it has ever been before. We have the very throne that Jesus Christ will sit on and rule this world from forever! We are transitioning right into becoming the Bride of Christ. At that time, we won’t have these physical problems anymore; we will be God beings!

What a wonderful, imaginative picture of our birth into the Family of God! We are here to be born into the Family of God and sit on David’s throne. From that throne, we are going to help Christ save humanity. What could be more wonderful? This vision will get us to the birth into eternal glory!

GOD EXPECTS MORE

The throne of David is all about saving all of humanity! We have to keep this great hope in our minds! This is what we are here to do!

Do we realize who we are? Do we realize what God is using us to do? We have a wonderful message of hope, and God has now put the throne right in our midst! This is phenomenal and mind-staggering! God has upped the ante considerably. He expects more of us. He believes we can do more. He believes with everybody pitching in, we are going to excel in every way—but we are going to do it on our knees, as Mr. Armstrong did before the prayer rock. That is the only way!

Think about how honored we are to have this throne. God has truly honored us with what He has done! Surely that must mean a much more powerful message and more impact on this world than ever before.

We need to be thanking God and asking Him to help us rise to the level He wants, to publicize this message and usher in the throne of God to this world!

THREE

THE DOUBLE

WONDER!

H

The “stone” is crying out! And there is an answer to that cry; the “beam” provides the answer.

This is a prophecy for the end time, our day today. God says, “For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall

speak …” (verse 3). When God says “at the end it shall speak,” you had better take note! God is speaking specifically to the pcg in these verses. This is revelation even Mr. Armstrong did not understand. Why? Because it is reserved for the Laodicean era.

The Laodicean era is the last of the seven successive eras of the New Testament Church described prophetically in Revelation 1 through 3. The first of these Church eras was the first-century Ephesian era started by Jesus Christ when He was on Earth.