Iron & Clay
Prophecies for the End Time
The Bible describes something as miry clay, mixed with iron. But iron and clay don't mix! The prophecies describe ten-nations which will be unified together, but only for a short time. What is the unifying agent which will bring that about? The current France/German cooperation is without precedent! But, for numerous reasons, many expert observers believe Europe will never become a completely cohesive entity. Those reasons include language barriers, cultural identities, historical disagreements and long-standing animosities. Nevertheless, there are as yet unfulfilled CORROBORATING prophecies which predict a cohesive combine of nations described as TEN KINGS which will play a critical role in a tumultuous culmination of end time events.
by Garner Ted Armstrong [printer-friendly] [pdf format]
Surely
the Lord Eternal will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His
servants the prophets (Amos 3:7). The prophet Daniel said, He [God] revealeth
the deep and secret things: He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light
dwelleth with Him...there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets...
(Daniel 2:22-28).
The secret of which Daniel spoke was the
interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's famous dream, in which he saw a monstrous
image. Read the entire second chapter of Daniel to refresh your memory
concerning this great event. Daniel showed that the head of gold of the great
image Nebuchadnezzar had seen represented Nebuchadnezzar himself and his
Babylonian kingdom. Thus it was revealed in the interpretation of this prophecy
that king and kingdom are synonymous. Quickly following, Daniel revealed
that the four successive world-ruling Gentile empires would consist of Babylon,
Medo-Persia, Greco-Macedonia, and finally, the Roman Empire.
The Roman Empire was described as ...the fourth
kingdom [which would be] strong as iron...and whereas thou sawest the feet and
toes, part of potter's clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but
there shall be in it of the strength of iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron
mixed with miry clay.
And as the toes of the feet were part of iron,
and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken
[margin: weak] (Daniel 2:41-42). Some have imagined that the miry clay of
Daniel's vision (chapter 7) which seems to weld the ten toes of the great image
together, represent a sticky, bituminous substance, which, even though it is
obviously not mixed with iron, is used as a weak bonding agent of some kind,
which at least effects a weak union for a time.
Daniel's vision shows that although the hardness of iron is present in the ten governments represented by the toes; there is also the weakness of clay. The bonding agent which will hold the entire system of the future ten-nation central government in Europe together is religion!
Bible Prophecy - A Warning!
One third of the Bible is prophecy. Jesus Christ
was the greatest Prophet of all time. His famous Olivet prophecy is the
CORNERSTONE of all prophecy for the time of the end the time of the GREAT
TRIBULATION, the Day of the Lord, and the Second Coming of Christ to RULE all
nations!
Armed with the knowledge of the identity of the
modern nations of the United States and Europe, you can come to UNDERSTAND, at
last, the overall picture of future events.
As we shall see, the prophesied GREAT TRIBULATION is to come primarily on JACOB! It is the time of Jacob's trouble, meaning the time of great national trauma for England, Canada, Australia, South Africa, and the United States, as well as others of ten-tribed Israel. Remember, EPHRAIM AND MANASSEH were the recipients of the NAME OF ISRAEL! Dying Jacob (Israel) had said, Let MY NAME be named ON THEM!
Now, let's notice the prophecies of Christ Himself.
The Prophecies of Christ
A partial understanding of Bible prophecy
is possible without the knowledge of the identity of the lost ten tribes.
For example, a careful study of Daniel 2, 4, 7; together with Revelation 13, 17,
18, and Christ's Olivet Prophecy gives an overview of world events in the
immediate future, but only if one is armed with knowledge of the true meaning
of the beast, the image of the beast, and the identity of the false prophet and
the antichrist! Even then, one remains ignorant of how those
prophecies will affect the United States of America if one is missing the most
important KEY to prophecy; the identity of the United States and Britain!
The proofs concerning the identity of the
world-ruling empires depicted by the fabled image of Nebudchadnezzar (Daniel 2)
are too numerous to mention. Most Bible commentaries include ample
references to historical sources correctly identifying the kingdoms of Babylon
(the head of gold), Persia (the chest of silver), Graeco-Macedonia (the belly
and thighs of brass), and Rome (the feet and toes of miry clay and iron). That
Daniel could have successfully predicted the rise and fall of all these
kingdoms, including the successive resurrections of the same system (the Roman
Empire) down through the centuries, is one of the great testimonies to the
inspiration of scriptures; the accuracy of God's Word.
Today, millions of amateur theologians muse
about the beast, leap to incredible, fantastic conclusions based on whimsical
theories. Some think the beast is the United States. Some claim it is the
Catholic Church. Some think it is a group of Jewish money-lenders involved in a
vast conspiracy. Opinions and theories are rife, as Christ predicted they would
be. Many shall come in my name, saying I am Christ [not necessarily that they
are Christ, but that HE is Christ! Preaching Christ!''] and shall deceive
many!
But the identity of the beast has never changed.
The culmination of the ancient kingdoms was Rome. Its many revivals down through
history are documented. A weak revival of the Holy Roman Empire, embodying the
same races of the heartland of Europe as the days of the Hapsburgs and Otto the
Great, occurred during World War II, under Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini,
who declared the central European alliance the Holy Roman Empire.
The second beast of Revelation 13 is
lamblike, that is, it masquerades as a Christ-like organization, yet
spoke as a dragon, that is, like Satan!
Bullinger's Companion Bible
includes a comparison between Christ's Olivet Prophecy and the seven seals of
Revelation. It can be proved conclusively that the four horsemen of the
Apocalypse represent the progressively worsening human condition predicted by
Christ in Matthew 24. The white horse indicates false christs, false prophets;
the rise of the final false prophet (11 Thess. 2) who will have the power to
perform miracles; sit in the temple of God, shewing that he is god, and cause
millions to worship the beast and his image. In other words, the white horse of
the first seal means the unveiling of the false prophet and antichrist, at the
head of the Image of the Beast (the Babylonish mystery religion) in the time
just prior to the Great Tribulation.
The red horse is synonymous with Christ's
predictions of wars and rumors of wars, of the Olivet prophecy. Bullinger
correctly shows the exact parallels between the two prophecies; that the gray
horse depicts famine, and the black horse death.
Christ looked beyond His time into ours;
foretold the future, the time in which we live; the times just
ahead of us! Even if one did not know the identify of the Lost Ten Tribes
of Israel, one can be sure we are living in the biblically-prophesied time of
the end, like the day of Noah, when all mankind pursues the passions of flesh;
heedless of the catastrophes that lie ahead.
The difference is, those who know the
identity of Israel know how their own people are going to be
involved; they recognize the horrifying national punishments soon to
come, and they are equipped to have a part in the work commissioned to
give powerful WITNESS and WARNING to God's people before it is too late!
Yes, millions know about the prophesied Great
Tribulation! But those same millions do not know the tribulation is prophesied
to fall upon the peoples of the HOUSE OF ISRAEL FIRST!
Let's see the proof!
Christ said, For then shall be GREAT TRIBULATION
[a time of terrible trouble], such as was not since the beginning of the world
to this time, no, nor ever shall be (Matt. 24:21). An unprecedented time,
absolutely unique in the horrors it shall bring, without parallel in all
history! That means the Great Tribulation is a time of human suffering that
happens ONLY ONCE! There are not TWO such times! Only ONE! Notice what that
means!
At the conclusion of the longest prophecy in the
Bible, Daniel 11, the archangel Gabriel said to Daniel, And at that time shall
Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people
[Israel!]: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was
since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy
people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book
(Dan. 12:1, 2).
Obviously, this great time of trouble is the
SAME as the Great Tribulation predicted by Christ. There cannot be TWO such
times, one canceling out the other the description of the greatest time of
trouble IN ALL HISTORY means the UNIQUE time of the Great Tribulation!
Now, notice! Thus speaketh the Eternal God of
Israel, saying, Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book.
For, lo, the days come, saith the Eternal, that
I will bring again the captivity [bring back the captives; return them from
captivity] of my people Israel AND JUDAH...
Notice! TWO DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE! Israel,
meaning ten-tribed Israel; the House of Israel, and Judah, the Jews!
But remember, Israel DISAPPEARED from history!
They were NEVER brought back from the land of their captivity between the Black
and Caspean Seas, but wandered across Europe, became lost to history in the
centuries that passed. Today, the Jewish people have their own nation, Israel.
As we shall see, as horrifying as it is to contemplate, a future captivity
for the Jews is prophesied in your Bible!
Now, back to our scripture, ...and I will cause
them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess
it.
And these are the words that the Eternal spake
concerning Israel and concerning Judah.
For thus saith the Eternal; we have heard a
voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail
with child? Wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman
in travail, and all faces turned into paleness? Here, Jeremiah sees in
vision people so shocked, so terror-stricken, that they are doubled over in
pain because of the horrors their disbelieving eyes behold!
Alas! for that day is GREAT, So THAT NONE IS
LIKE IT... Note that well! Once again, we read of the SAME TIME; the Great
Tribulation prophesied by Christ; the SAME TIME described by Daniel; a time
of trouble SO GREAT that it is absolutely unparalleled in all the earth's
history! And UPON WHOM IS THAT GREAT TIME OF NATIONAL TRIBULATION TO COME?
It is even the time of JACOB'S TROUBLE... (Jer.
30:1-7).
Ah! The time of JACOB'S trouble!
And who was Jacob? His name was changed to ISRAEL! As he lay dying, he crossed
his hands, as you have read, blessing Ephraim over Manasseh, said, Let MY NAME
BE NAMED ON THEM! Among all the tribes of Israel, only Ephraim (Great Britain)
and Manasseh (the United States) have the right to be called Jacob, or the House
of Israel!
So the Great Tribulation spoken of by Christ;
the horrifying time of Satan's WRATH on the earth, is to come PRIMARILY AGAINST
THE PEOPLE OF BRITAIN AND THE UNITED STATES, and incidentally against the
remainder of the lost ten tribes of Israel! Now, notice the remainder of this
remarkable 30th chapter of Jeremiah:
...but he shall be saved OUT of it [meaning
Jacob; the U.S. and Britain, shall have to go through it, but shall not
be completely destroyed; shall be saved out' of it!]. For it shall come to pass
in that day, saith the Eternal of hosts, that I will break HIS YOKE from off thy
neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of
him... (Jer. 30:7, 8).
And what is the time setting of this
prophecy about impending national captivity for the House of Jacob; of Israel?
But they shall serve the Eternal their God, and David their king, whom I
will raise up unto them! (Jer. 30:8, 9).
Are the U.S. and Britain serving God, today?
Is the nation of Israel, in Palestine, serving God? NO! The time setting of
this prophecy is the SAME as that of Matthew 24, Revelation 6, and Daniel 12.
It is just before the Second Coming of Christ; just before the time
of the resurrection, when God will raise David, together with all His
righteous saints and patriarchs who have died, to be caught up to meet Christ (1 Thess. 4:17) when He returns to this earth (Rev. 1:7; Acts 1:11; Rev. 19) to
stand, in that same day, on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem (Zech. 14:4).
Now, whose yoke will be laid upon our peoples?
The Woman Who Rode the Beast
John saw, in vision, a great harlot astride a
many-headed beast. Christ's prophecies, together with those of Daniel and
Revelation, leave no doubt as to the identity of this church-state system.
Notice, And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and
talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgement
of the GREAT WHORE that sitteth upon many waters:
With whom the kings of the earth have committed
fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine
of her fornication.
So he carried me away in the spirit into the
wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names
of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet
colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup
in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
And upon her forehead was a name written,
MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH
(Rev. 17:1-5).
The woman is a great, universal, false church!
She sits on a beast, meaning she holds sway and influence over the ten-nation
union in central Europe. She CONTROLS the beast!
Clearly, the ten nations exist at the very last
days of man's governments on this earth, just PRIOR to the Second Coming of
Christ! Notice, And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have
received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings [absolute autocratic
power] one hour [a very short time in prophecy] with the beast.
These have one mind [one policy; one purpose on
which they are in complete agreement], and shall give their power and strength
unto the beast [they will pool their national economies, raw materials,
industry, and their military into one].
These shall make war with the Lamb [they
will assay to FIGHT CHRIST at His second coming the time setting of this
prophecy is impossible to ignore], and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is
Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and
chosen, and faithful (Revelation 17:12-14).
It is necessary at this point to remind you of a
critically important geopolitical FACT. Suppose, for a moment, that all that you
have read about the origins of the United States and Britain is mere fantasy.
Suppose that all history is askew, and that none of the facts concerning Dan, or
Judah, or Ephraim and Manassah, really apply.
Then, REMEMBER! Jesus Christ's Olivet prophecy
concerned JERUSALEM primarily! It was uttered in full view of the world's most
famous skyline of the time, from the Mount of Olives, in full view of the Temple
of Christ's day. His prophecy was only typically fulfilled, as a preliminary
forerunner, in 70 AD when Titus' armies destroyed Jerusalem.
But the literal, end-time fulfillment is YET
AHEAD!
Now, think! Do you believe for one moment that
if Israel is attacked by combined Arab armies; if SCUDS and SILKWORM missiles
come raining down on Tel Aviv, Haifa, Lod, and other Jewish cities; if chemical
and biological weapons are killing HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of Israeli citizens,
that the U.S. and Britain will be UNINVOLVED?
It would be the height of stupidity to assume
such!
You KNOW we would be immediately involved if the
specter of the wholesale slaughter of Jews in modern Israel were to occur!
Daniel's 11th chapter shows that the BEAST
power, not the U.S. and Britain, will immediately descend into the Middle East
like a whirlwind and OCCUPY all the nations from Lebanon to Saudi Arabia,
including Israel and Egypt! Likely, this will be a move to PROTECT surviving
Jews as much as it will be to STOP A MAJOR WAR FROM ENGULFING THE WHOLE WORLD!
But it will be in vain! Notice that tidings out
of the north and the east bring news of a coming massive intervention by RUSSIA
and CHINA! (Daniel 11:40-44). It is this final great battle called the Battle of
Armageddon, which will bring about the heavenly signs and the Day of the Lord!
Remember, at the return of Christ, the Beast
power, which will then be ensconced in Jerusalem, together with the great false
prophet who is the ANTICHRIST, will attempt to FIGHT CHRIST!
This is an exact parallel of Daniel 2:44, and
preceding verses, where God says the symbolic STONE (Christ) that is seen coming
down from heaven like a meteor, smashes the ten toes of the great image. The
image represents all the Gentile world-ruling kingdoms from the time of ancient
Babylon down to the time of our modern age, the ten toes representing the ten
kings (nations) of Revelation 17.
That great false church which has concourse with
national governments is identified again in Isaiah 47. Notice it, Sit thou
silent, and get thee into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt
no more be called, the lady of kingdoms.
I was wroth with my people, I have polluted mine
inheritance, and given them into thine hand: thou didst shew them no mercy; UPON
THE ANCIENT HAST THOU VERY HEAVILY LAID THY YOKE.
And thou saidst, I shall be a lady for ever: so
that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart, neither didst remember the
latter end of it.
Therefore hear now this, thou that art given to
pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and none
else beside me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of
children:
But these two things shall come to thee in a
moment in one day, the loss of children, and widowhood: they shall come upon
thee in their perfection for the multitude of thy sorceries, and for the great
abundance of thine enchantments.
For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou
hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee;
and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me.
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt
not know from whence it riseth: and mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt
not be able to put it off: and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which
thou shalt not know (Isaiah 47:5-11).
Notice that it is the great false church, under
the FALSE PROPHET, who is the antichrist, that CONTROLS the ten-nation combine
that is to PUNISH our peoples!
And the principal nation that will be one of the
ten? Read Isaiah l0! Notice what it says about the nature of the modern-day
Assyrians! And it shall come to pass in that day, that the REMNANT [there will
be only about TEN PERCENT LEFT ALIVE (Isaiah 6:13)] of Israel, and such as are
escaped of the House of Jacob [Ephraim and Manasseh], shall no more again
stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the Eternal, the Holy One of
Israel, in truth! (Isaiah 10:20). This is describing their deliverance at the
time of the Second Coming of Christ!
Notice further, And it shall come to pass in
that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and HIS
YOKE FROM OFF THY NECK, and the YOKE shall be destroyed because of the
anointing! (Isaiah 10:27).
Notice, then, that the YOKE, symbolizing
SLAVERY, captivity, is laid upon our peoples by both the universal church AND
ASSYRIA, and that YOKE is in place until the Second Coming of Christ; until our
peoples begin to stay upon the Eternal, and until the anointing!
Notice the following proofs concerning the
CONDITION OF OUR PEOPLE at the time of Christ's coming: And it shall come to
pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to
recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from
Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from
Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
And he shall set up an ensign for the nations,
and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of
Judah from the four corners of the earth.
The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the
adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and
Judah shall not vex Ephraim (Isaiah 11:11-13).
And the Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of
the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the
river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dryshod.
And there shall be an highway for the remnant of
his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the
day that he came up out of the land of Egypt (Isaiah 11:15, 16).
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I
will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper,
and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel
shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE
LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the
Lord, that they shall no more say, The Lord liveth, which brought up the
children of Israel out of the land of Egypt;
But, the Lord liveth, which brought up and which
led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all
countries whither I had driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land
(Jeremiah 23:5-8).
Notice that the coming exodus from the NORTH
countries will pale into insignificance the ancient exodus under Moses! Now, see
the time setting of Jeremiah 3:17, and succeeding verses: At that time they
shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Eternal; and all the nations shall
be gathered unto it [compare with Zech. 14:16-21], to the name of the Eternal,
to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their
evil heart.
In those days the House of Judah shall walk with
the House of Israel [NOTICE! TWO SEPARATE HOUSES'; TWO DIFFERENT PEOPLES!], and
they shall come together out of the land of the north [this never happened in
history! Ten-tribed Israel had disappeared, in the main, long before the
Babylonian Empire sacked Judah!] to the land that I have given for an
inheritance unto your fathers.
Finally, notice this prophecy: ...And it shall
come to pass in that day, that the great trumpet shall be blown [see 1 Cor.
l5:50-52], and they shall come which were ready to perish in the LAND OF ASSYRIA
and the outcasts in the land of Egypt, AND SHALL WORSHIP THE ETERNAL IN THE HOLY
MOUNT AT JERUSALEM (Isaiah 27:13).
Every time
you encounter prophecies concerning ISRAEL and
the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST, Israel is found to be in a state of CAPTIVITY,
horrible slavery, privation, suffering, starvation! The time setting is
OBVIOUS, impossible to ignore!
Not only is the modern nation of Israel in the
land of Palestine to suffer YET ANOTHER TERRIBLE HOLOCAUSTS SHALL THE UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA AND BRITAIN UNLESS WE REPENT, AND TURN TO OUR GOD!
God commands, Seek ye the Lord while he may be
found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and
the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will
have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither
are your ways my ways, saith the Lord (Isaiah 55:6-8).
Jesus Christ commanded, REPENT, and believe the
Gospel! On the day of Pentecost, Peter cried out, REPENT, and be baptized, and
you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit!
To those who heed God's commands; who accept the
invitation of Jesus Christ, God says, Because thou hast kept the word of my
patience, I will also keep thee from the HOUR OF TRIAL [GREAT TRIBULATION],
which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth
(Revelation 3:10).
David cried out, He that dwelleth in the secret
place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say
of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I
trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the
noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under His wings
shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be
afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor
for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that
wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy
right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou
behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the Lord, which
is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall
thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give his
angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways (Psalm 91:1-11).
What about you? Have you settled the
BIGGEST question of your life what will happen to you in the future? Are you
safe and secure in the arms of God; under His Divine PROTECTION? Make no
mistake! What you have read in this brochure is truth! Study the voluminous
amount of literature available which PROVES beyond the shadow of a doubt, our
national identities! But remember, whether you believe the truth about our
identity or NOT, the Great Tribulation is SURELY COMING!
The next world war will mean the use of NUCLEAR
weapons; biochemical weapons like botulinis toxin, nerve gas, horrifying,
unimaginable weapons! TENS OF MILLIONS will die! It is not a matter of WHETHER a
terrible war will rock the world threaten human annihilation it is a matter of
WHEN!
Thanks be to God for His TRUTH; for an understanding of prophecy: for His calling to be a PART OF THE WORK OF HIS WATCHMEN, preaching witness and WARNING to a sin-sick, dying world! May God give you the personal conviction to act on what you know.
The Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association
P.O. Box 747
Flint, TX 75762
Phone: (903) 561-7070 • Fax: (903) 561-4141