Secrets Unsealed

ANCHOR School of Theology

Stephen Bohr

1. Principles for the Study of Bible Prophecy- Part 1

2. Principles for the Study of Bible Prophecy- Part 2

3. Principles for the Study of Bible Prophecy- Part 3

4. Notes on Daniel 2

5. The Importance of the Historical Flow Method- Part 1

6. The Importance of the Historical Flow Method- Part 2

7. Christ is the Center of Bible Prophecy Part 1

8. Christ is the Center of Bible Prophecy Part 2

9. A Providential Election

10. The Sabbath and Redemption

11. The Son (God) and the number 666

12. Who’s Hero Is Jesus Christ?

13. What Was Literal & Local is Spiritual & Global

14. The Flood Story As An Illustration of Historical Typology

15. The Year-Day Principle

16. God’s Israel: Understood Globally and Spiritually

17. Israel and the Fig Tree Part 1

18. Israel and the Fig Tree Part 2

19. The Stoning of Steven.. The Last Straw

20. How to Interpret Biblical Symbolism Part 1

21. How to Interpret Biblical Symbolism Part 2

22. The Sanctuary Sequence in the Book of Revelation

23. Daniel’s Little Sealed Book

24. Revelation 10

25. The Importance of Literary Structure in the Study of the Millennium Part 1

26. The Importance of Literary Structure in the Study of the Millennium Part 2

27. Revelation 12-22

28. How All the Books of the Bible Meet and End in Revelation

29. Learn how to use the writings of Ellen G. White- Part 1

30. Learn how to use the writings of Ellen G. White- Part 2

Our Father and our God, we convene once again to open your holy word, which was inspired by the Holy Spirit.

We ask, Lord, that you will give us holy hands as we handle your holy word.

I ask, Lord, that you will bless us in our study, that we might rightly divide the word of truth.

Give us understanding, for as human beings our understanding is so limited.

We thank you Father for the privilege of requesting this favor of wisdom and we know that you will answer because we ask it in Jesus name, Amen.

Okay let's turn in our material to the handout that says Stephen Boar's Notes on Daniel 2 and what I want to do is go to the second page where you find the subtitle The Meaning of the Dream.

Now I don't think that I have to explain the dream to you because Daniel 2 is a dream that is constantly studied every time we have an evangelistic crusade.

But let me just review what we find in Daniel 2 so that we have a reference point for what we're going to discuss this afternoon.

First of all in Daniel 2 we have a head of gold, what does the head of gold represent?

Then we have a breast and arms of silver, what do the breast and arms of silver represent?

Then we have the belly of bronze that represents Greece.

Then we have the legs of iron and the legs of iron represent the Roman Empire, and then you come to the feet and the feet have a mixture of iron and clay, And of course we know that the feet have 10 toes and the 10 toes represent the 10 divisions of what used to be the ancient Roman Empire.

There's 1 point however that rarely is touched upon in Seventh-day Adventist meetings or in Seventh-day Adventist theology, and that is the meaning of the mixture of the iron and the clay.

We know that the 10 toes represent the 10 divisions of Western Europe of what used to be the Roman Empire, but we haven't dedicated much time to take a look at the feet and particularly the mixture of the iron and the clay.

We simply say that the 10 toes represent the 10 divisions of Western Europe.

So let's take a look at what is meant by the feet, and so now I'm at the subtitle that says the feet and we're going to follow our material quite closely.

The iron already existed in the legs correct?

So does Rome continue its existence in the feet?

Yes, because it's not pure iron, it's not a pure civil power, it is a mixture of iron and clay.

So Rome continues in the feet but it's a different kind of Rome, a different type of Rome.

Now the second point is that the clay is added to the feet because the iron already existed before, are you with me?

The iron already existed before so what is added to the iron in the feet is the clay, exactly.

Point number 3, the clay is a particular type of clay, it is potter's clay, it is potter's clay.

Now let me ask you, does iron play a legitimate function?

Yeah, potter's clay is useful to make pottery, yeah it's very useful.

So iron is useful and clay is also useful.

The problem comes in when you mix the 2, Iron as iron is good and clay as clay is good, the problem is when you mix or amalgamate the iron and the clay, that's where you have a problem because both are weakened, The iron is weakened and the clay is weakened even more when you mix or blend the 2.

Now is everything in Daniel chapter 2 symbolic?

Would we expect the clay also to represent something?

Would we expect the clay to be symbolic as well?

So the question is, what does the clay represent in the feet?

We know that Rome continues, we know that Rome is divided into 10, those are the 10 toes, but what does the clay specifically represent?

Well I want to read a statement that we find from the Spirit of Prophecy which is actually on 2 pages farther along in your material and then we'll come back to where we are now where it says Ellen White, you see that there?

A couple of pages farther ahead Ellen White.

For quite a long time I kind of struggled with this statement, and not because I don't believe in the spirit of prophecy but because I was wondering where Ellen White was coming from.

I believe that what Ellen White says is found in Scripture, and it's always my practice to try and find in Scripture what is mentioned in the spirit of prophecy, and I found this interesting statement from Ellen White and I asked myself where in the Bible do you find this concept?

So let me read the statement from Ellen White and then we'll go back to what the Bible has to say.

This is found in volume 4 of the Bible commentary page 1168.

We have come to a time when God's sacred work is represented by the feet of the image in which the iron was mixed with the miry clay.

God has a people, a chosen people, whose discernment must be sanctified, who must not become unholy by laying upon the foundation wood, hay, and stubble.

Every soul who is loyal to the commandments of God will see that the distinguishing feature of our faith is the seventh-day Sabbath.

If the government would honor the Sabbath as God has commanded, now when it says if the government would honor the Sabbath it's not saying that the government should legislate the Sabbath, it's that the government should allow people to observe the Sabbath freely, it should guarantee people's right to worship.

If the government would honor the Sabbath as God has commanded, it would stand in the strength of God and in defense of the faith once delivered to the saints.

But statesmen will uphold this spurious Sabbath, that's where the problem comes in when the civil power becomes involved, and will mingle their religious faith with the observance of this child of the papacy, placing it above the Sabbath which the Lord has sanctified and blessed, setting it apart for man to keep holy as a sign between him and his people to a thousand generations.

The mingling of church craft and state craft is represented by the iron and the clay.

So what does the iron and clay represent?

The union of church and state, that's right.

So you continue saying this union is weakening all the power of the churches, this investing the church with the power of the state will bring evil results.

Men have almost passed the point of God's forbearance, They have invested their strength in politics and have united with the papacy, but the time will come when God will punish those who have made void his law, and their evil work will recoil upon themselves.

So according to Ellen White what is represented by the clay?

The clay is representing the church because we know that the iron represents the political Roman Empire so the clay represents the church.

Now you say where in the world did Ellen White get this from?

Is this some unique revelation that Ellen White has that is not found in scripture?

So it sent me on a journey and where do you suppose I looked to try and discover the meaning of potter's clay?

I said let's check and see if there are any other places in the Bible that use potter's clay symbolically, and I went to Jeremiah 18 go with me to Jeremiah.

Are you understanding how to use sola scriptura?

Now we need to connect apples with apples and not apples with oranges, we are connecting, the connection is potter's clay, we're trying to discover what is symbolized by the potter's clay.

Jeremiah 18 verses 1 to 6 this is speaking about Israel, God's Old Testament church, God's Old Testament people.

The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, Go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear my words.

Then I went down to the potter's house, and there he was making something at the wheel, and the vessel that he made of clay, and the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter.

So he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.

Now let me give you a little historical background.

Jeremiah is writing right before the Babylonian captivity and he knows that Israel is going to go captive for 70 years, in fact he prophesied that in Jeremiah 25 11 and 12 that Israel would go into captivity, but he also stated that after that captivity Israel would come back to their land they would be reestablished, they would be rebuilt so to speak.

So basically what he's saying is the vessel represents Israel, in a moment we're going to read it.

The vessel of Potter's clay represents Israel, the shattering of the vessel represents the Babylonian captivity, and the restoring of the vessel, of making the vessel again represents the reestablishment of Israel after the captivity.

Now notice clearly verse 6 has this meaning.

O house of Israel, Can I not do with you as this potter, says the Lord?

Look, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel.

So what does the potter's clay represent in Jeremiah 18?

It is a symbol of Israel, God's Old Testament church or God's Old Testament people.

Now let's pursue it from another angle there's 3 angles that we need to pursue on this point.

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ANCHOR School of Theology

4. Notes on Daniel 2

Transcript

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