PCG states Putin IS the ‘prince of Rosh,’ but…

Gerald Flurry

The September 2014 issue of The Philadelphia Trumpet of the improperly named Philadelphia Church of God (PCG) has an article from its Gerald Flurry which stated the following:

Vladimir Putin Is the Prophesied Prince of Russia

The Russian president’s provocations are getting bolder, but nobody is standing up to him. He is fulfilling an extremely important role in global events—and it was specifically foretold in the Bible!

No, Vladimir Putin is not and the Bible did not foretell he was.

Here is more from Gerald Flurry in the September article:

Putin knows the West is weak! He doesn’t fear other nations. He is totally undeterred in his quest to destabilize Ukraine. He is single-handedly preventing that former Soviet republic from aligning itself with Europe. This year he redrew the map of Europe by making Crimea—what was a semi-autonomous part of Ukraine—officially part of Russia. He is steadily rebuilding the Soviet Empire.

Under President Putin’s reign, nuclear-armed Russia is transforming its military machine into a modern, technological, 21st-century force. Through heavy-handed tactics, Putin has not only brought Russia back into play as a world power, he has also secured his position at the nation’s helm by getting a choke hold on Russian media and emasculating Russian parliament.

The question that is becoming more relevant every day is this: Who is Vladimir Putin, and why is he having such a deep impact on global affairs?

This world has a lot of authoritarian rulers. But Vladimir Putin is one we need to keep a particularly close eye on. His track record, his nationality and his ideology indicate that he has already fulfilled a linchpin Bible prophecy that was recorded millennia ago…

A prophecy in Ezekiel 38 gives us some of these important details. “And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, set thy face against Gog, the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him” (Ezekiel 38:1-2). These verses begin in the latter days (verses 8, 16) before the Great Tribulation, the Day of the Lord and Christ’s Second Coming…One other Russian people is mentioned in Ezekiel 38:2. There is controversy over how the Hebrew word rosh should be translated in this verse. The King James Version uses the adjective “chief.” But the correct rendering (used by the Moffatt, New King James and others) uses the word not as an adjective, but as a proper noun: Rosh. Thus, that verse should read, “the prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal.”…

The restoring of Russia’s power by Vladimir Putin—the prince of Russia—was prophesied! He has already solidly allied Russia with China. The prophecy about the prince of Russia includes that main alliance.

Other nations are leaning toward an alliance with Russia. Several of them are prophesied to join.

The only question is whether or not Putin personally finishes the entire prophecy.

The ending of that mighty “kings of the east” powerhouse is also prophesied.

The idea that Vladimir Putin is the “prince of Rosh” of Ezekiel 38 is simply not true. While the “latter days” is a prophetic term, Ezekiel 38 is talking about a time well after Jesus has returned. But Gerald Flurry is teaching that many verses in Ezekiel 38 happen before Jesus returns–this is in error. But he is, however, giving himself some ‘wiggle room’ by indicating that another could fulfill later verses.

Gerald Flurry once wrote:

The PCG is the only Church that holds onto ALL of what Christ established through Mr. Armstrong (Flurry, Gerald and Leap, Dennis. Ezra and Nehemiah: Building God’s Temple. Booklet. 1997. p.29).

Here are some positions from the old Radio Church of God (bold italics mine) that Herbert Armstrong humanly led:

Perhaps no prophecy has received more widespread interest and attention than that of Ezekiel 38 and 39. As usual there are various interpretations. Those most popularly believed and expressed are: I) That the prophecy pictures “Armageddon”-with Russia the aggressor in this final “Armageddon” battle…The word “Armageddon,” believe it or not occurs only once in all he Bible. It is in Rev. 16:13-16: “ARMAGGEDON is the place of the “BATTLE” of that Great Day of God Almighty, which is “the Day of the Lord.” This is the coming time of God’s WRATH, climaxing in the seven last plagues and the Second Coming of Christ. The Battle at Armageddon is pictured in Rev. 20:19-20 and Rev.17:14. It is a battle in which European AXIS powers, symbolically represented as “The BEAST” and ten federated European dictatorships wive the Roman Empire, which fight against Christ and His Angels, contesting IS right to rule the world. But Ezekiel 38 speaks of a different power altogether-“GOG’ in the land of ‘MAGOG’, numerous Allies – all descendants of JAPETH, father of the yellow races…

And now we come to chapter 38!…The TIME of this prophecy is AFTER–not before, but AFTER–the second coming of Christ…The 39th chapter shows in more detail the RESULT of this great battle, in which Christ, with supernatural power, causes five-sixth of these heathen armies to be slain in this battle. (What’s Prophesied About RUSSIA! The Plain Truth. November-December 1943, pp. 5, 7, 12)

(Ez. 38: 12). It is now, after the second coming of Christ, with Israel obeying God in the land of Palestine, that Russia and her oriental hordes come to take a prey from defenseless cities. (Does Ezekiel 38 and 39 Mean An Invasion of Canada and the United States by Russia? Good News, June 1951, p. 11)

Does Ezekiel 38 and 39 Refer to Russia?

Nearly all Bible students believe that Ezekiel’s amazing prophecy refers to Russia. Yet they totally misapply the time of its fulfillment. It is referring to an invasion of Palestine after Christ has restored His people Israel to Palestine. This has been amply proved in articles in The PLAIN TRUTH…Notice that it is Gog and Magog (Ezek. 38:2) which will come against the nation in which Christ’s capital will be located (verse 16). Notice again that Gog and Magog come “out of the north parts” (verse 15 ) where Russia is today. (Does Ezekiel 38 and 39 Refer to Russia? Good News, August 1954, p. 5)

So, PCG disagrees with a least some of this now.

Of course, that does not mean that Vladimir Putin does not have an important role–his repeatedly calls for a Eurasian Union will help lead to the time of the armies of the kings of the east of Revelation 16:12. Gerald Flurry has taken that a step further. In an article in the February 2014 edition of the Philadelphia Trumpet, he proclaimed:

I strongly believe Vladimir Putin is going to lead the 200 million-man army.

While this may be possible, it is not because of the prophecy for the “prince of Rosh” in Ezekiel 38.

One of the reason that I report about PCG is that many on the internet who are interested in prophetic matters and have some COG interest or connection read his articles.

While most of those not part of PCG will never be part of it, they do not seem to realize that since Gerald Flurry is wrong on many points, that they will be misled if they place much reliance on certain of PCG’s prophetic interpretations.

Some items of possibly related interest may include the following:

Teachings Unique to the Philadelphia Church of God Simply calling oneself ‘Philadelphia’ does not make one so (see Revelation 3:7-9), nor does Gerald Flurry calling himself “that prophet” or a variety of other titles make it so. This article provides many quotes from this group which tries to look faithful.
Russia and Ukraine: Their Origins and Prophesied Future Russia in prophecy. Where do the Russians come from? What about those in the Ukraine? What is prophesied for Russia and its allies? What will they do to the Europeans that supported the Beast in the end? There is also a video sermon available: Russia in the Bible and in Prophecy and a video sermonette available: Ukraine in Prophecy?
Is Russia the King of the North? Some claim it is. But what does the Bible teach? Here is a link to a video, also titled Is Russia the King of the North?
Islands and Bible Prophecy What’s ahead for islands? What does the Bible prophesy about them?
Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.
Is the Future King of the South Rising Up? Some no longer believe there needs to be a future King of the South. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? Might this King be called the Mahdi or Caliph? What does the Bible say? A YouTube video of related interest may be: The Future King of the South is Rising.
Who is the Man of Sin of 2 Thessalonians 2? Is this the King of the North, the ten-horned beast of Revelation 13:1-11, or the two-horned Beast of Revelation 13:12-16? Some rely on traditions, but what does the Bible teach? Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Quién es el Hombre de Pecado de 2 Tesalonicenses 2? Here is a version in Mandarin: 主编：谁是’大罪人’？Here is a link to a related YouTube video, in English, titled Who is the Man of Sin?
What is a True Philadelphian? Many claim to be part of the Philadelphia era of the Church, but is claiming enough? This article has biblical and historical evidence about who really are the Philadelphians.
Are the Laodiceans the Modern Sadducees and Pharisees? Discusses similarities of the Sadducees and Pharisees to various COGs in this end-time.
Why Be Concerned About False and Heretical Leaders? There have been many false leaders–here is some of why you should be concerned about them.
How To Determine If Someone is a True Prophet of God There are many false prophets. How can Christians determine who is a true prophet? There is also a sermon-length video titled How to determine if someone is a true prophet of God. Here is a related link in Spanish/español: ¿Cómo determinar si alguien es un verdadero profeta de Dios?