Millions, perhaps even billions, around the world will soon be tuning into the coronation of King Charles iii. It will probably be the greatest media event since the death of the Queen.

The world will zoom in on a set of rituals that date back thousands of years. The last time these same rituals were on display was 70 years ago.

Origin of the Throne

In 1953, Herbert W. Armstrong’s magazine the Plain Truth sent a correspondent to cover the Queen’s coronation. Here is an excerpt from his article:

A queen has been crowned—a queen of the oldest ruling dynasty in the world! …

Yet the real significance was not the pomp and ceremony, the ritual of the Church of England to which Englishmen cling to provide consolation from their troubles. The real significance—and the most astounding fact—is that on the English throne is seated a descendant of the oldest ruling dynasty in the world—a dynasty which God established and which He has protected and perpetuated through every generation for almost 3,000 years. …

The coronation of Elizabeth ii occurred in Westminster Abbey which Dick Armstrong and I visited last summer. Surrounded by royal dignitaries in the Abbey, the Queen was anointed, given the royal robe, the crown jewels and finally crowned in the famous coronation chair which was specially built for the stone of destiny—a rock that has been in recorded history for 3,700 years!

Do you know the significance of this stone? Of England’s throne? Of this dynasty which God considers so important as to preserve it for almost three millenniums?

While in Westminster Abbey, Dick Armstrong and I saw this intriguing stone of destiny, steel gray in color, mixed with red veins, 22 inches long, 13 inches broad and 11 inches deep. Attached to both ends are two worn iron rings by which the stone may be carried. This rock is not beautiful, yet it is more important than all the crown jewels!

Why?

What is the real reason that Elizabeth ii had to be crowned on this rock? Centuries prior to this, the kings of Scotland—the ancestors of the present British royal family—were crowned upon it. Upon this stone the ancient Irish kings of this same royal family were also crowned, even as far back as 5½ centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ.

Why? What is the true significance of this rock? Where did it come from?

Ancient Irish annals prove the rock—which they called “Lia fail,” meaning stone of destiny—did not originate in Ireland, but came by way of Spain from the East. It was brought by a white-haired old man—a prophet—who also brought a daughter of an Eastern king. Through her marriage to the king of Ireland, she not only continued her father’s throne, but also became the ancestor of a dynasty which has continued to Elizabeth ii, who was crowned Queen on June 2 over the stone of destiny.

If you were to go to Westminster Abbey, you would see that this stone is labeled Jacob’s pillow stone or Jacob’s pillar stone! Believe it or not, this is the very stone upon which the patriarch Jacob rested his head that evening about 3,700 years ago when fleeing from his father’s house!

Sadly, the label connecting that stone to the patriarch Jacob has since been removed, and the stone itself was sent back to Scotland. That stone symbolized the connection of Jacob’s descendants—and ultimately all mankind—with their Creator! At one point, many Englishmen would have fought to the death to keep that stone. But England just relinquished it, with little fanfare, in 1996.

Britain Has Forgotten God

The awesome secret behind the coronation is that King Charles is a direct descendant of King David. But his mother’s disregard for Jacob’s pillar stone and his family’s scorn for their history with God are having catastrophic effects.

In 2016, the bbc produced a beautiful brochure celebrating Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday—“Queen Elizabeth: 90 Glorious Years.” In commenting on the death of her father, King George vi, the bbc editors wrote, “Britain 64 years ago was a country almost unimaginably different in outlook, attitudes, morals and ethos than today, to say nothing of technology. Opinion polls into the early 1960s showed that as many as a third of respondents believed that the Queen had been chosen by God rather than by right of succession from her father.”

The coronation ceremony will be saturated with biblical references and spiritual significance. A choir will perform Handel’s choral anthem “Zadok the Priest,” with text from 1 Kings 1:38-40 about Solomon being anointed king. A documentary on the Queen’s coronation said this about Elizabeth being anointed with oil: “It’s a ceremony so old, history can scarcely go back enough to contain it.”

According to the prepublished order of service, the moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland will present the king with a Bible, calling it “the most valuable thing that this world affords.” “These are the lively oracles of God,” the moderator will say.

In the coronation oath, the archbishop of Canterbury will ask the King: “Will you, to the utmost of your power, maintain the laws of God and the true profession of the gospel? Will you, to the utmost of your power, maintain in the United Kingdom the Protestant Reformed religion established by law? Will you maintain and preserve inviolably the settlement of the Church of England, and the doctrine, worship, discipline and government thereof, as by law established in England? And will you preserve unto the bishops and clergy of England, and to the churches there committed to their charge, all such rights and privileges, as by law do or shall appertain to them or any of them?” And he shall answer, “All this I promise to do.”

Yet to many viewers, all this will seem strange and exotic. Britain no longer has such respect for the Bible or for God! There is an indisputable connection between Britain losing its belief in God and His connection to the monarchy—and the massive changes for the worse in Britain’s “outlook, attitudes, morals and ethos.” Britain has lost its faith in God and King, and it lost its moral moorings at the same time!

Queen Elizabeth also swore to maintain Britain’s religion. This she did not do. That’s not to say that the Protestant Reformed religion is the one true religion. But to the extent that it followed the Bible, Britain was blessed for maintaining it. Today, however, Britain is a morass of secularism, dangerous multicultural religious confusion, and submission to the religion of Europe that it once strongly opposed. The Queen has made unprecedented moves to reconcile with the Vatican: visiting Pope John Paul ii in Rome, hosting his visit to Britain in 1982—the first pope to do so since the Reformation, allowing him to hold joint services with the archbishop of Canterbury, and appointing a Roman Catholic as her chaplain.

King Charles is even more committed to foreign religions than his mother. Fragments of what are claimed to be the “True Cross” gifted by the pope will lead the whole coronation. In 1999, Charles stated that if he were to succeed to the throne, he would want to assume the official title not as “Defender of the Faith” as generations of monarchs did before him, but “Defender of Faith”—protecting all faiths in Britain. He has not followed through on that. But he added a section to the coronation: a greeting by faith leaders. Representatives from Britain’s Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and Buddhists will greet the King immediately after the coronation and singing of the national anthem. The order of service schedules them to say: “We unite with people of all faiths and beliefs in thanksgiving, and in service with you for the common good.”

This sounds righteous to a lot of people today. Modern society has virtually swallowed whole the lie that “diversity is our strength.” But just look at the disastrous results of such thinking. It has left Britain faithless, materialistic, divided and vulnerable to foreign extremists. The Church of England has lost its moral authority, loosening its standards on all the hot-button issues of the day—women in the clergy, premarital sex, homosexuality. The monarchy, rather than working to prevent the moral slide and uphold godly standards, has just watched it happen and even gone along with it. British society has suffered immeasurably as a result.

Tragic Recent and Future History

At one time, Queen Elizabeth ii was head of state in 32 countries outside of the United Kingdom. Seventeen of these have since claimed independence from her rule: Barbados, Ceylon, Fiji, The Gambia, Guyana, Kenya, Malawi, Malta, Mauritius, Nigeria, Pakistan, Rhodesia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanganyika, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uganda. Even among the 15 remaining countries that remain under the monarchy, many are pushing to reject the crown.

Barbados renounced the monarchy on Nov. 1, 2021. It remains part of the Commonwealth but has made itself a republic and removed the monarch as its head of state. King Charles remains head of state of the small Caribbean countries of Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the small Pacific countries of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. A poll this week suggested that six of these countries would vote to get rid of the monarchy if they held a referendum on it.

In Australia, 42 percent said they wanted to become a republic, with only 35 percent wanting to keep the monarch.

In Canada, removing the monarchy would require constitutional reform and approval from Parliament and all 10 provinces, some of which heavily favor the monarchy. But still, the poll found that 47 percent wanted to cut ties, with only 23 percent wanting to stick with the King. And Canada has a radically liberal government that is pushing hard to make many extremely drastic changes.

Even Scotland, the nation that formed Great Britain by uniting with England in 1707, is pushing to leave! Scots pushed for and received devolved government and their own parliament in 1998. In 2014, 45 percent voted for complete secession. The United Kingdom left the European Union in 2020, an exit which was and is very unpopular in Scotland. The Scottish National Party, which controls 80 percent of the seats in the Scottish Parliament, is pushing for another referendum to break with England so it can rejoin the European Union.

Many people want to remain in the Commonwealth and stay connected to the throne, but there is a strong force that may overrule that desire. That force actively destroyed the source of the British throne’s strength and positive influence on the world: its connection to King David and the Bible, and its obedience to God!

With their decisions and behavior, members of Britain’s royal family—descendants of David—have led Britain in rejecting “the most valuable gift this world affords” and in disobeying and disbelieving the God of King David! The monarchy has always had flaws, but never until the last few decades has it intentionally devalued David’s throne. A few generations ago, Britons would have fought and died to keep the stone of destiny and everything it symbolizes. But in 1996, the Queen and Parliament returned that precious stone to Scotland, exposing degeneration in their faith.

Britain’s government has allowed 17 nations to reject the monarchy, and the Queen even congratulated Barbados for doing so. The British royals, busy trying to reinvent and “modernize” the monarchy, are wracked with problems and scandals in their own lives.

King Charles himself had a terrible, unfaithful marriage, he has not shown leadership, and he advocates for the false narrative of climate change. He has indicated that he will liberalize the monarchy even further. After the Church of England has already liberalized almost every moral teaching, this will leave Britain even more faithless, divided and vulnerable.

Meanwhile Prince William and Prince Harry seem more interested in relationships with celebrities than in the history and source of strength of the throne. Prince Harry married Meghan Markle, a divorced, feminist American actress who spurred him to quit the royal family and move to California. Since then, the two have started a civil war against the royal family, including making accusations of racism.

Such divisive conduct is accelerating the disintegration of this throne, its importance and its history of elevating lives around the world. Why such a sustained attack, and why is it focusing on morality? Because biblical morals and a history with God are the source of strength for the throne of David. For this reason, the devil has a special hatred for Britain’s royal family. He knows the history and prophecy of the throne of David contains the very master plan of God!

Yet he will not prevail. God will keep His promises to Abraham and David! He has already implemented a major, miraculous, inspiring change to that throne in order to keep those promises. Even before these changes were made to the coronation ceremony, He made a significant change to that throne. I encourage you to read about it in my free book The New Throne of David.