Romans 12:10: “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honour.”...
The: "IRON THRONE" Roman Papacy argument
THE IRON "ROD"
1. Scripture prophesied that Jesus would rule with a "rod of iron"—that is the rod of His "mouth."
Revelation 2:18: “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze.
Revelation 2:24-29: "But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on you any other burden. Only hold fast what you have until I come.
The one who conquers and who keeps my works until the end; to him I will give authority over the nations.
And he will rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces. Even as I myself have received authority from my Father- And I will give him the morning star. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.’"
(Here we see; the author of Revelation DOES NOT see a distinction between: the Church ruling with the rod of iron.... and Christ ruling with the rod of Iron... This is through a received/delegated authority on par with the authority Christ is delegated from the Father!)
Revelation 12:5: "She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron but her child was caught up to God and to His throne,"
Revelation 19:15: "From His mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron."
Revelation 3:7: “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens."
Revelation 22:16: “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the Churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
(Thus it seems in 3:7 when referencing the keys that "open and shut" it is a false dichotomy to assert that Jesus OR the Church has the keys. Rather like the "Iron rod" it may be relegated THROUGH the Church.)
Isaiah 11:4: "But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked."
Jeremiah 1:18: "And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land."
Job 19:23-25: "Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book!
Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever!
Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever!
For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will stand upon the earth."
(additionally psalm 149)
2. Iron is used in Daniel to refer to the Roman Empire (particularly the western; as it comes before the "mingled clay").
(We will also see the importance of "Bronze" -in Daniel 2 this refers to the Greek empire. This is the other great seat of ancient Christianity; in the "Eastern" Church.)
Daniel 2:33-35: The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.
Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
2:40: "And there shall be a fourth kingdom strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these."
(The mountain grows out from where the Iron was. It can be inferred that this refers to the pagan empire; being that the rest of the statue was also pagan empires. The only way to harmonize this fully is to see the idol of Daniel 2 as specifically pagan Rome; in light of Revelation and Daniel 7)
Daniel 7:7: "After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, terrifying and dreadful and exceedingly strong. It had great iron teeth; it devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet."
7:11-13: “I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.
“I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
7:17-22: "These four great beasts are four kings who shall arise out of the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, forever and ever."
“Then I desired to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the rest, exceedingly terrifying, with its teeth of iron and claws of bronze, and which devoured and broke in pieces and stamped what was left with its feet, and about the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn that came up and before which three of them fell, the horn that had eyes and a mouth that spoke great things, and that seemed greater than its companions. As I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom.
7:26-27: (concerning the 4th "iron" beast)
But the court shall sit in judgment and his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and destroyed to the end.
And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;
his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’
And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High;
his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’
Deuteronomy28:48-53: "therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you.
The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle,
a nation whose language you do not understand, a hard-faced nation who shall not respect the old or show mercy to the young. It shall eat the offspring of your cattle and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed; it also shall not leave you grain, wine, or oil, the increase of your herds or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.
“They shall besiege you in all your towns, until your high and fortified walls, in which you trusted, come down throughout all your land. And they shall besiege you in all your towns throughout all your land, which the Lord your God has given you. And you shall eat the fruit of your womb, the flesh of your sons and daughters, whom the Lord your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies shall distress you."
(NOTE: This is EXCEPTIONALLY striking as it is an extremely early text and also mentions "eagles wings". A symbol of the Roman empire; also calling to mind the wings of the woman of Rev 12.)
Ezekiel 4:1-3: “And you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. And put siegeworks against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, and plant battering rams against it all around. And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel."
(context: destruction of Jerusalem) Jeremiah 6:26-30: O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth, and roll in ashes;
make mourning as for an only son, most bitter lamentation,
for suddenly the destroyer will come upon us.
27 “I have made you a tester of metals among my people, that you may know and test their ways. 28 They are all stubbornly rebellious, going about with slanders; they are bronze and iron; all of them act corruptly.
29 The bellows blow fiercely; the lead is consumed by the fire;
in vain the refining goes on, for the wicked are not removed.
30 Rejected silver they are called, for the Lord has rejected them.”
(with the two fold parallelism of Jeremiah 6 that continues throughout the chapter; Bronze and Iron may logically apply to the "tester" that is sent to destroy Jerusalem. A skeptic may argue that the bronze and iron refers to Jerusalem in this context (or both); but either way this prophecy supports that Jesus is said to rule with either: Rome the "tester" and/or a Sanhedrin like structure.)
Jeremiah 15:11-13: The Lord said, “Have I not set you free for their good? Have I not pleaded for you before the enemy in the time of trouble and in the time of distress? Can one break iron, iron from the north, and bronze? “Your wealth and your treasures I will give as spoil, without price, for all your sins, throughout all your territory. I will make you serve your enemies in a land that you do not know, for in my anger a fire is kindled that shall burn forever.”
Here again we see the destruction of Jerusalem referenced as the breaking of clay vessels (note Rev 2:27):
Jeremiah 18:1-10: "The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will let you hear my words.” 3 So I went down to the potter's house, and there he was working at his wheel. 4 And the vessel he was making of clay was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he reworked it into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to do.
5 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the Lord. Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7 If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, 8 and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. 9 And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, 10 and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it"
(even simply identifying as"Catholic" is not enough to be saved- there will be punishment if obedience is not kept v9-10, Where before God's covenant was conditional; the new and everlasting covenant is conditional only on an individual level.)
Jeremiah 19:1-2: Thus says the Lord, “Go, buy a potter's earthenware flask, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests, 2 and go out to the Valley of the Son of Hinnom at the entry of the Potsherd Gate, and proclaim there the words that I tell you.
Jeremiah 19:10-11: "Then you are to break the jar in the sight of the men who go with you, And shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts: Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaks a potter's vessel, so that it can never be mended.’"
Psalm 2:9: "You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."
Lamentations 4:2: “The precious sons of Zion, worth their weight in fine gold—how they are regarded as earthen pots, the work of a potter's hands!”
CONCLUSION
Therefore Jesus was prophesied to rule (through the Church) with the entity that destroyed Jerusalem (Latin Rome). And this is the "rod of His mouth." referred to as "Iron" in prophecy.
Not only that; but we read that the Church given the Iron rod will receive it as a result of keeping good works and of holding fast to the teachings. This will be a delegated authority which Christ compares to His own authority from the Father (Rev 2:25-27)
It may be leveled that these passages are unrelated; that "iron" is simply a symbolic coincidence. Yet revelation is a single book with recurring motifs that appear to not be accidental.
When it comes to the minor and major prophets; Revelation is absolutely densely packed with exact patterns and quotes from these books. This implies the author wants them to be used for context.
The IRON "GATE"
Acts 12:8-11: "And Peter said to him, 'Dress yourself and put on your sandals.' And he did so. And he said to him, 'Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.' And he went out and followed him; he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street.
and immediately the angel left him; When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting."
The Prophecy of Peter's Martyrdom links these events typologically (with the dressing and leading)
John 21:18-19: "Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify God.)"
Acts 12 is clearly not the final fulfillment of this prophecy; but it typologically parallels it thematically foreshadowing St Peter's Martyrdom at Rome.
The Iron "gate" brings to mind Matthew 16:18: "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
following this in Acts 12; And we see a contrast with a false authority:
Acts 12:20-24: "Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. And they came to him with one accord, and having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king's country for food. On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered a speech to them. And the people were shouting, 'The voice of a god, and not of a man!' Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last. But the word of God increased and multiplied."
Several things are interesting about this:
1) Not coincidence
St Luke spends enough ink to even recount St Peter's dream twice. And there are many other times "iron" presumably could have been used as a descriptor such as to describe the manacles, chains or stocks.
e.g Acts 28:20, Acts 16:24, Acts 12:6-7
2) Triples
-the iron gate is the comes after the "first and second guard". Traditionally Rome is considered the THIRD Petrine See.
+Alexandria (through St Mark) being 1st
(Mark is involved in Acts 12)
+Antioch being 2nd
(Antioch is referenced in Acts 11 and 13 on either side of this event)
+Rome being 3rd
See: Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History
This is the THIRD time St Peter was arrested in the book of acts
Acts 4:3: "And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening."
Acts 5:18: "They arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison."
Acts 12:4...
Likewise regarding the dream:
Acts 11:10-11: "This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into heaven. And behold, at that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we were, sent to me from Caesarea."
Acts 10:19-20: "And while Peter was pondering the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you. Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them.”
Since six men leave with Peter; again there must have been another three men. (Acts 12:12)
3)-Herod's actions are typologically antithetically linked with Peter:
(this is not the same place as Matthew 16) but still linked by the naming, as . This is admittedly a common name yet still should not be dismissed when viewed with other parallels.
+Herod's declaration is concerning food (12:20)
following Peter's declaration about food (11:4-9)
+The reception of these is also contrasted:
11:18: "When they heard these things (Peters speech) they fell SILENT. And they GLORIFIED GOD, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
12:17: "But motioning to them with his hand to be SILENT"
contrasted with:
12:22-23: And the people were SHOUTING “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he DID NOT GIVE GOD GLORY
+Herod's steward Blastus facilitates the audience.
The crowd goes in to see the Herod.
Mary's steward Rhoda in excitement does not open the gate at first.
However then the gathering is brought out to meet Peter.
"Blastus" means "bud" or "shoot"
"Rhoda" means "rose" or "rose bush"
+The dressings:
12:8: And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. and he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”
12:21:On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne; and delivered an oration to them.
+ the laying on of hands contrasted
Acts 12:1: "About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church."
is contrasted with the christian laying on of hands:
Most importantly though:Acts 6:6, Acts 8:17, Acts 9:12, Acts 9:17, Acts 13:3, Acts 19:6
+When Herod speaks (as a "god") he is slain for it
+When Peter speaks on behalf of God it is received by the Church
Earlier in Acts 5; we see another contrast between Petrine authority and king Herod:
But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, 2 and with his wife's knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet.
3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” 5 When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. 6 The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.
7 After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” 9 But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” 10 Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.
We can see parallels such as:
+this too happens in close proximity with an imprisonment and miraculous release (5:17-26), in fact it is situated between the both other imprisonments of Peter (4:1-23)
+ the language of "breathed his last" is paralleled. a specific way of speaking of death.
+ St Peter: "You have not lied to man but to God.” vs Herod: 'The voice of a god, and not of a man!'
We are not told that any particular vision or dream caused St Peter to know this (unlike in the case of sanctified foods). When Peter says that they lie to God (v4) and the Holy Spirit (v9) it is PETER who they are talking to DIRECTLY. Thus we see Peter acting as a steward. The husband and wife already talked about this together in collusion (v2); and the Holy Spirit being omnipresent heard this; yet it is when the lie is actualized to St Peter that the judgment of death (and likely immediate damnation) occurs..
Now does this mean that the legitimacy of the Bishop of Rome can be determined by lying to him and seeing if the person dies immediately?
No of course not. Firstly the Bishop of Rome sits on a temporal seat; whereas St Peter was predestined to sit on one of the 12 thrones to judge with Christ.
Secondly; just as in 1 Corinthians 11:30 we read: "That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died"- concerning receiving communion in an unworthy manner; these visible signs were given in scripture and through visible sign to teach us spiritual truths.
unless you are willing to admit your "Lords supper" is invalid if a person recieves it despite being in grave unreprentant sin- and does not get sick or die- then we must seek the spiritual truth of these literal, historical events.
namely- the importance of proper reception of the Eucharist; and in this case the authority of the Petrine office contrasted with undelegated human authority.
CONCLUSION
This iron gate is opened to gate after he is sleeping; which is used to imply death in some cases (1 Thessalonians 4:13)
Peter is woken by being "struck on his side"; bringing to mind Jesus pierced in His side whilst "sleeping".
Acts 12-13 is the "chiastic center" of Acts. We see again the motif of "Iron" in reference to a gate; With St Peter being received their; and this being the final destination of St Paul.
After this sequence with St Peter; in chapter 13 we read of St Paul's sending; with all references before calling him "Saul" and all after calling him "Paul". (Acts 13:9).
The spiritual significance adds to the "Iron rod" typology; showing that there is a specific city; not merely empire- that Jesus will use to reign.
Isaiah 9:7:
Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
