The Bible vs. The Watchtower

The Stone That Crushes All Man-Made Kingdoms!

Jehovah’s Witnesses are taught that God’s Kingdom began ruling invisibly, in heaven and in the year 1914. Scripture, however, contradicts the Watchtower’s position on every point. The intent of this article is to bring biblical clarity by shining God’s Word over this topic. It will demonstrate when God’s Kingdom will begin to rule and from where, by analyzing the meaning of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and how it affects us today.

Scripture foretells that God’s Kingdom will overthrow all man-made governments. It even tells us who will call the shots — the Stone:

(44) “And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. (45) Inasmuch as you saw that a stone was cut out of the mountain without hands and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is true, and its interpretation is trustworthy.” Daniel 2:44, 45

Here God is speaking to Nebuchadnezzar, an idol worshipper, through this image in a dream, and He is telling Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. He was a world ruler and was concerned about where it was all going to end.

The stone which was cut out of the mountain informs us that it crushes all the governments (represented in Daniel as precious metals). The identity of this Stone will be forthcoming, but first, let us identify the metals that Daniel refers to:

• GOLD = Kingdom of Babylon
• SILVER = Kingdom of Media-Persia
• BRASS = Kingdom of Graeco-Macedonia
• IRON = Kingdom of Rome

At Daniel 2:41-43, we find the continued image of the statue in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, that of the feet and toes:

(41) “And in that you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it will be a divided kingdom; but it will have in it the toughness of iron, inasmuch as you saw the iron mixed with common clay. (42) And as the toes of the feet were partly of iron and partly of pottery, so some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle. (43) And in that you saw the iron mixed with common clay, they will combine with one another in the seed of men; but they will not adhere to one another, even as iron does not combine with pottery.”

The Bible communicates a succession of World Powers which began with Babylon as the head of Gold and with Rome as the last world power represented by Iron. While each kingdom was eventually overthrown, Rome was never conquered or defeated by any world power. This begs the question: Who represents the feet and 10 toes of the image?

Scripture continues to describe subsequent but divided kingdoms which appear after the Roman Empire of Iron. These kingdoms will not only be divided, but have the toughness of iron and be partly of pottery. Some of the kingdom will be strong and part of it will be brittle. The iron mixed with common clay will combine in the seed of men but they will not adhere to one another, such as iron does not combine with pottery.

We are living in the period of the latter days, and that is still a question today: What is this world coming to? And who is the “Stone” that is going to overthrow all man-made governments?

The Stone Identified

“Jesus said to them, ‘Did you never read in the Scriptures, (Psalm 118:22) THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED, THIS BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone; THIS CAME ABOUT FROM THE LORD, AND IT IS MARVELOUS IN OUR EYES?” Matthew 21:42

Jesus Christ is that Stone mentioned in Daniel 2:44 … He is the Stone that the chief priests and Pharisees rejected. If we fall on that Stone, that is, rest in Him by faith, come just as you are without one plea but that His blood was shed for you … you are broken, you come as a sinner, with nothing to offer. But He is a wonderful Stone to rest upon.

Matthew 21:44 goes on to tell us what happens if we reject the Stone: “And he who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will scatter him like dust.”

The Stone is one of many figures of speech in Scripture which speak of Christ in His office as both Savior and Judge. He is the Rock of salvation (Deut. 32:15), and He is the Rock of Judgment (Deut. 32:4). These verses in Daniel speak of the time when He is coming to the earth as Judge to put down earth’s rebellion against God. The reference here is to the second coming of Christ to the earth, which is depicted for us in detail in Revelation 19:11-21.

“And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.” Zechariah 14:4

“God’s form of government is going to be one of the most strict forms of government that the world has ever seen. The Lord Jesus Christ is going to be a dictator, and if you are not willing to bow to Him, I don’t think you would even want to be in HIs Kingdom when He establishes it here upon the earth.” Daniel Commentary Series, by J. Vernon McGee, pg. 46.

The Ten Toes

No great world power ever followed Rome. The Roman Empire was the last, and it will be in existence in the latter days. The Roman Empire fell apart from within; it was destroyed by an enemy. Rome is living in the great nations of Europe today — Italy, France, Great Britain, Germany, and Spain are all part of the old Roman Empire.

You see, the Roman Empire fell apart like Humpty-Dumpty. Many men have tried to put it back together again (Hitler, Mussolini, Napoleon), but they did not succeed. So far, the man who will accomplish it has not yet appeared. Yes, it will be the Anitichrist, who comes out of Europe.

“What will be the final end of this last kingdom, the kingdom of iron mixed with clay? The clay, I believe, represents the masses, the different nations of the ten toes. The iron speaks of the fact that Rome lives on in this final form of the old empire.

The Antichrist, or the Man of Sin (he has about thirty-five aliases in Scripture), is the one who will bring back the Roman Empire. He will be a world dictator – he will rule the world just as Nebuchadnezzar did at the beginning {see Revelation 13}.” Daniel Commentary Series, by J. Vernon McGee, pgs. 47, 48.

At the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (after the seven year Great Tribulation period – Daniel 9:27),  Our King,  arrives (Daniel 2:44).  He will put down all rebellion against Him. “Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron, Thou shalt shatter them like earthenware.” Psalm 2:9

“This passage presents the Messiah in a different manner from that of Isa. 42.3. Here Christ has an attitude of strength toward the proud and rebellious, but He has a gentle attitude toward the penitent and the humble.” The Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible New American Standard, by Scholar Dr. Spiros Zodhiates, pg. 716.

“And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.” Zechariah 14:4

Why God’s Kingdom Is a Literal Government

“The basis for the belief in the Messianic Age is based on two things.  The first is the numerous prophecies of the Old Testament which speak of the coming of the Messiah who will reign on David’s throne and rule over a peaceful kingdom.  There is a great amount of material in the Old Testament on the Messianic Kingdom and the belief in a Messianic Kingdom rests on the basis of a literal interpretation of this massive material.  The only real contribution that Revelation makes to the knowledge of the kingdom is to disclose just how long the Messianic Kingdom will last, namely one thousand years, for which the term ‘Millennium’ is used.  This is the one key truth concerning the kingdom that was not revealed in the Old Testament.

The second basis for the belief in a coming kingdom rests on the four unconditional, unfulfilled covenants God made with Israel.  These covenants are unconditional and so rely solely on God for their fulfillment and not on Israel.  They are also unfulfilled and, since God is One who keeps His promises, they must be fulfilled in the future.  They can only be fulfilled within the framework of a Messianic Age or a Millennial Kingdom … The first of these is the Abrahamic Covenant which promised an eternal seed developing into a nation that will possess the Promised Land with some definite borders.  While that nation, the Jews, continues to exist, never in Jewish history have they possessed all of the Promised Land.  For this promise to be fulfilled, there must be a future kingdom.  Furthermore, the possession of the land was not merely a promise to Abraham’s seed, but to Abraham personally when God said, ‘To thee will I give it and to thy seed forever.’ For God to fulfill His promise to Abraham (as well as to Isaac and Jacob), there must be a future kingdom.  The second covenant is the Palestinian Covenant which spoke of a worldwide regathering of the Jews and repossession of the land following their dispersion.  While the dispersion has already occurred and is in effect today, the regathering and repossession of the land still awaits fulfillment in the future. This too requires a future kingdom.  The Davidic Covenant is the third covenant which promised four eternal things: an eternal house (dynasty), an eternal throne, an eternal kingdom, and an eternal person.  The dynasty became eternal because it culminated in a Person who is Himself eternal: Jesus the Messiah.  For that reason, the throne and kingdom will be eternal as well.  Jesus has never yet sat upon the Throne of David ruling over a kingdom of Israel.  The re-establishment of the Davidic throne and Christ’s rule over the kingdom still awaits a future fulfillment.  It requires a future kingdom.  The last of these covenants is the New Covenant which spoke of the national regeneration and salvation of Israel encompassing each individual Jewish member of that nation.  This, too, awaits its final fulfillment and requires a future kingdom.” Israelology The Missing Link In Systematic Theology, by Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum Th.M., Ph.D.pgs. 792-793

In Revelation chapter 20:1-15, Dr. Spiros Zodhiates makes this observation: “In this chapter, we find Jesus Christ coming back to rule and reign on earth for a thousand years.  The length of time is specific and definite and cannot be mistaken otherwise.  There are a number of O.T references which describe this particular time of the millennium (II Sam. 7:14-17; Ps. 24:1-10; 72:1-20; Isa. 2:1-4; 11:5-10; 35:1-10; Dan. 2:44).  Here we have the judgment for the dead who are now in the afterlife (v. 12).  The believers have already been raised, and now the unbelievers are raised so that each group may receive its punishment.” The Hebrew-Greek Key Study Bible, New American Standard Bible, Greek Scholar Spiros Zodhiates pg. 1695

In Conclusion: 

As we have discussed, God’s Word has clearly contradicted the Watchtower’s fantasy view of the location of God’s Kingdom and the year of establishment.  It has also brought the geographical area of His return into focus.

After the seven year Great Tribulation period, Jesus Christ the King of God’s Kingdom becomes visible and appears; to destroy the Antichrist, all man-made governments, and all people who oppose Him.

After the seven year Great Tribulation period, Jesus Christ visibly reigns on earth for 1,000 years.

After the seven year Great Tribulation period, the covenant promises God made to Israel will be fulfilled.