From Allen’s Pen to Armstrong’s Pulpit: The ‘Revealed Truth’ That Was Just Yesterday’s British Israelism

Herbert W. Armstrong and the Plagiarism of Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright

Herbert W. Armstrong built much of his distinctive prophetic and identity theology around the doctrine of British Israelism (also called Anglo-Israelism). This teaching claims that the “lost ten tribes” of Israel migrated to northwestern Europe and that the modern English-speaking peoples—especially the British Commonwealth (Ephraim) and the United States (Manasseh)—are their literal descendants, inheriting the birthright promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

A central pillar of this teaching in Armstrong’s writings was his booklet The United States and Britain in Prophecy (originally United States in Prophecy, with various editions from the 1940s onward). Critics, former insiders, and even WCG leadership after Armstrong’s death have long pointed out that this work substantially derives from J.H. Allen’s 1902 book Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright.

J.H. Allen (John Harden Allen), an American minister and author, published Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright in 1902 (with later editions, e.g., 1917). The book analyzes Old Testament prophecies, distinguishing between the Sceptre (royal lineage and Messiah promise through Judah) and the Birthright (national promises of multitude, wealth, and power through Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh). Allen argued that these promises found fulfillment in the British Empire and the United States as the modern representatives of Israel.

British Israelism itself was not original to Allen. It had roots in 18th- and 19th-century writings, including works by John Wilson (Our Israelitish Origin, 1840), Edward Hine, and others who traced supposed Israelite migrations through the Scythians, Cimmerians, and Celts to the British Isles. Allen synthesized and popularized these ideas in a more accessible American context.

Evidence of Substantial Borrowing

Side-by-side comparisons reveal extensive overlap in structure, arguments, biblical interpretations, historical claims, and even phrasing. For example:

• Both works emphasize the division of the kingdom after Solomon, with the Birthright going to Joseph’s line (the northern kingdom, “House of Israel”) and the Sceptre to Judah (southern kingdom, “House of Judah”).

• Discussions of the name “Jew” as applying only to Judah, the 2520-year punishment period (a “seven times” prophecy from Leviticus 26), and the sudden rise of Britain and America after ~1800 A.D. show strong parallels.

Critics have published detailed tables showing near-verbatim or closely paraphrased passages. One analysis notes that Armstrong’s 1967 edition of US & BC in Prophecy mirrors Allen’s wording on topics like the distinction between Jews and Israelites.

Joseph Tkach Jr., who succeeded Armstrong and led the WCG’s transformation into Grace Communion International (GCI), openly acknowledged the issue in his book Transformed by Truth and related statements: “From an ethical point of view, it is a well-known fact that Mr. Armstrong did not originate this teaching. In fact, earlier editions of the US & BC plagiarized vast portions of a book entitled Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright.” Tkach noted that it was not possible to claim divine revelation for material clearly copied from an existing source.

A copy of Allen’s book was reportedly found among Armstrong’s possessions after his death, and Armstrong had referenced similar British Israel literature positively in earlier correspondence and studies (e.g., in the late 1920s/1930s while researching in libraries).

Armstrong did add his own elements—such as tying the doctrine more tightly to his broader prophetic schema (e.g., The Plain Truth magazine, radio broadcasts, and warnings of end-time punishment on the “modern descendants of Israel”)—and presented it with his charismatic, authoritative style. However, the core framework, historical identifications, and many proofs were drawn directly from Allen and the broader British Israel tradition without adequate credit in his popular publications.

Defenders sometimes argue it was common practice in that era to draw from public-domain or shared ideas without formal citation, or that Armstrong’s version had unique emphases and was “revealed” through intensive Bible study. Some claim the similarities reflect independent study of the same scriptures. However, the volume and specificity of the borrowing, combined with the lack of attribution in the booklets distributed by the millions, have led most neutral observers to classify it as plagiarism or uncredited adaptation.

Broader Pattern in Armstrong’s Work

This was not an isolated incident. Armstrong frequently synthesized existing ideas (on topics like church history, prophecy, or doctrines) and presented them as fresh revelations or his own discoveries. British Israelism served as a “central plank” for interpreting end-time prophecy, national identity, and the need for WCG membership to understand God’s plan. Dropping it after Armstrong’s death was a major step in the church’s doctrinal overhaul.
Why This Matters Little for Christians Today

For believers grounded in the New Covenant, Herbert W. Armstrong’s plagiarism of J.H. Allen’s work—and the British Israelism doctrine itself—is ultimately of minor importance. Here’s why, reasoned from Scripture:

The New Testament reorients God’s people around faith in Christ, not ethnic or national descent. Paul emphatically teaches that “not all who are descended from Israel are Israel” (Romans 9:6) and that true children of Abraham are those of faith: “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29; see also Romans 4, Galatians 3). Physical identities and old covenant national promises find their fulfillment and transcendence in Jesus, the true Seed.

British Israelism relies on a literal, ongoing distinction between “Israel” and “Judah” that the New Testament largely collapses. In the NT, terms like “Israel,” “Jews,” and the people of God increasingly point to the multi-ethnic church (e.g., Ephesians 2:11–22; 1 Peter 2:9–10). The promises of land, seed, and blessing are realized supremely in Christ and His spiritual kingdom, not in 19th/20th-century empires.

Plagiarism reveals character flaws—lack of transparency, overclaiming originality, and presenting human ideas as divine revelation—but it does not invalidate every teaching Armstrong promoted, nor does it define the gospel. Many teachers throughout church history have borrowed without credit; the Bereans (Acts 17:11) and faithful Christians today test all things against Scripture (1 Thessalonians 5:21).

What does matter is the gospel of grace: justification by faith, the finished work of Christ, freedom from the old covenant’s ceremonial and civil shadows (including tithing, food laws, and calendar observances as binding), and the indwelling Holy Spirit guiding believers. Obsessing over national identities or failed prophetic timelines distracts from the “better covenant” mediated by Jesus (Hebrews 8:6).

Armstrong’s errors, including this one, highlight the danger of elevating any human teacher or “one true church” claim. New Covenant Christians are called to liberty in Christ (Galatians 5), humility, and discerning truth by the Word and the Spirit—not by tracing 19th-century book borrowings or Anglo-Saxon genealogy theories.

In the end, whether HWA copied Allen extensively changes little for those resting in the New Covenant. It serves as a cautionary tale against personality cults and proof-texting for national exceptionalism, but it does not alter the unchanging truth: “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Focus there, and such historical details fade into proper perspective.

Silent Pilgrim

Sources: 

A Short Critique of Herbert W. Armstrong’s British-Israelism-

The United States and Britain in Fantasy

British-Israelism, Anglo-Israelism Refuted!

Judah's Sceptre and Joseph's Birthright

Wikipedia: British Israelism

Grokpedia: British Israelism

Life at Herbert W. Armstrong College

Did Herbert Armstrong Plagiarize J.H. Allen’s Judah’s Sceptre and Joseph’s Birthright 

in The US&BC in Prophecy?

How the Israel Identity Truth entered the Church of God

GCI: The Central Plank Cracks

"Pure and Undefiled Religion” Now Includes Cozying Up to the Groups You Called Error-Ridden Failures

Bwana Bob's Latest Hypocrisy: 

Coddling Up to "Laodicean" UCG for a Joint Meeting Hall 

While Smearing Them as Inferior for Years

The Crackpot Prophet strikes again. The self-proclaimed mantle-holder, Philadelphian remnant leader, and the only true successor to the original apostolic faith (or so he keeps telling us in his endless lists), has apparently decided that sharing a meeting hall with the United Church of God (UCG) is a grand idea. Practical? Maybe. Consistent with his decades of superiority claims? Not even close. This is pure hypocrisy, served up with a side of "do as I say, not as I do."

For those who've followed Bwana Bob's cogwriter.com output and CCOG sermons, the pattern is familiar. He loves posting "15 Ways CCOG Is Better Than All Those Other Former WCG Groups" (especially the ones with actual members). The provided list is a masterclass in self-promotion, where he positions CCOG as the hyper-biblical, dream-confirmed, fastest-growing, poor-supporting, prophecy-watching, sign-performing elite squad—while everyone else, including UCG, is implicitly Laodicean, error-ridden, and lagging behind in the final phase of the work.

Let's revisit some highlights from Bob's own superiority manifesto and watch the hypocrisy unfold:"We are more biblically-focused... more than any other current COG" – Including reading the entire book of the law every seven years. UCG? Apparently not Philadelphian enough in Bob's book.
Massive multilingual outreach in 1500+ languages – No other group has done it. Take that, UCG.

3-4. Restored teachings on God's plan, creation, etc. – CCOG is the only one getting this right in the 21st century. Others are playing catch-up (or not).

5-6. Accurate prophecy watching without Laodicean errors – Bob explicitly calls out groups for prophetic mistakes that will leave them unprepared for the Great Tribulation. UCG gets named in his critiques of Daniel 11 sequences and other end-time confusion.

8-11. Dreams, signs, mantle, proper governance, Acts 2:17-18 – Only CCOG has the real deal. UCG (and others) lack the confirmed prophet, the proper hands-laying, and the Philadelphia remnant status.No salary for the top leader; highest percentage to the poor and gospel – A not-so-subtle dig at salaried ministry in bigger groups like UCG.

13-15. Fastest growing, focus on Gentiles/Romans 11, preparing for the short work without 501(c)(3) compromise – Fruits prove it. UCG doesn't measure up.

He wraps it up by claiming CCOG best represents the continuation of Acts 2 and the Philadelphia remnant, while others have lost truths. "We call out religious groups who teach errors," he boasts, citing Jesus in Matthew 15.

Yet here we are. The same Bob Thiel who has spent years positioning CCOG as the only group God is truly using for the final work is now cozying up to UCG for a shared facility. Practical fellowship? In Bob's theology, that's dangerous compromise with Laodiceans who don't keep the word as purely, watch prophecy as accurately, or restore things as thoroughly as he does.

This isn't the first time Bwana Bob has talked big about separation and superiority only to bend when convenient. Remember, he left LCG citing integrity and doctrinal issues, then launched CCOG as the true remnant. Now he's open to joint meetings with another "inferior" group? It smells like desperation for growth, relevance, or cost savings—exactly the kind of worldly pragmatism he condemns in others.

Pure and undefiled religion, Bob quotes from James 1:27, is visiting orphans and widows. But apparently, it's also okay to partner with the very groups you say are riddled with errors that could prevent people from fleeing to the place of safety. What happened to "two cannot walk together unless they are agreed" (Amos 3:3)? Or is that only for everyone else?

Members and observers of Armstrongist splinters have seen this movie before: leaders preach exclusivity and condemnation until practical needs (or failing "fruits") force a pivot. UCG has its own issues and history, but at least they don't pretend to be the sole dream-confirmed prophet leading the one true Philadelphia continuation while secretly eyeing their facilities.

Bwana Bob, if you're reading this (and you probably are, given your habit of monitoring critics), perhaps it's time to update that 15-point list with #16: "We are willing to temporarily overlook all those Laodicean errors when we need a cheaper hall." The sheer hypocrisy exposes the man-made nature of these endless COG power plays. True Philadelphia isn't about claiming the mantle while compromising it for convenience—it's about consistency in truth and love of the brethren, not selective fellowship.

The sheer, jaw-dropping, stomach-churning hypocrisy of it all! Here is Bob Thiel—the man who has spent years meticulously crafting 15-point (and counting) superiority lists positioning his little CCOG fiefdom as the sole dream-anointed, sign-confirmed, fastest-growing, no-salary-taking, 1500-languages-and-counting Philadelphian remnant—suddenly batting his eyelashes at the United Church of God for a shared meeting hall. It's like the guy who wrote an entire manifesto declaring everyone else Laodicean, error-riddled, and doomed to miss the place of safety is now whispering sweet nothings about joint real estate. Practical? Sure. Consistent with his endless sermons about separation from compromise? About as consistent as David C. Pack's prophecy calendar.

Let's be brutally honest in the spirit of Bwana Bob's own "speaking the truth in love" (which apparently only applies when he's atop the pyramid). The same prophet who brags about calling out errors like Jesus in Matthew 15 now wants to share hymnals and potlucks with a group he has repeatedly implied lacks the restored truths, proper governance, confirmed signs of Acts 2:17-18, and mantle that only he possesses. Where's the bold watchman warning against Laodicean fellowship now, Bob? Did the Ezekiel Warning take a coffee break while you were negotiating square footage? This isn't Philadelphia love of the brethren—it's pragmatic, worldly coddling that exposes the whole "one true remnant" shtick as the self-serving farce it has always been.

And the timing! With CCOG's much-touted "fruits" and explosive growth supposedly proving divine favor, why the sudden need to cozy up to one of those inferior "top ten" groups Bob loves to subtly (and not-so-subtly) dunk on? Could it be that the fastest-growing remnant still struggles with basic logistics like owning or renting decent space? Or that the multilingual gospel machine needs a few extra warm bodies from the very Laodiceans he warns against? The irony is thicker than one of Bob's 7-year Feast law readings. Pure and undefiled religion indeed—James 1:27 must now include "and partner with those you publicly call out for prophetic errors when the rent's due."

Brethren (and by that I mean anyone still bothering to track this endless COG clown car), this is textbook Armstrongist leadership in action: preach exclusivity, separation, and superiority until real-world pressures demand flexibility. Then rewrite the rules, update the website quietly, and act like it was always God's plan. Bob can keep posting his lists and claiming apostolic succession all he wants, but actions like this scream "man-made organization scrambling for relevance" far louder than any dream from a woman or hands-laying ceremony ever could.

True Philadelphia isn't about claiming you're the only one keeping the word while secretly shopping for hall space with those who don't. It's about integrity—which seems to be in shorter supply in the "final phase of the work" than even Bob's accurate prophecy timeline. 

Keep watching, folks. The wackiness doesn't just continue; it books joint meetings with it.

Bob Thiel and Aaron Dean's Masterclass in Armstrongist Bureaucratic Fraud: When Two Tiny Personality Cults (UCG/CCOG) Team Up to Hoodwink an Entire Country

In a breathtaking display of theological flexibility, Bob Thiel has decided that the best way to get his microscopic Continuing Church of God registered in Burundi is to hold hands with the very group he spent years telling his followers was spiritually compromised. Because nothing screams “end-time remnant” quite like begging your former rivals for help meeting basic government paperwork requirements.

Burundi recently raised the bar for foreign-connected churches: they now need at least 500 members, land, and an actual building. Thiel’s operation apparently falls short on its own, so he’s turned to the United Church of God — the same organization many in his circle have long dismissed as “Laodicean.” UCG already owns land in the country and has some form of temporary approval. The two sides have been discussing pooling money to build a shared church building that both groups could use. Thiel was very careful to stress that this is not a merger. It’s just two completely separate churches conspiring to meet legal minimums together. How refreshingly honest.

This kind of opportunistic “cooperation” is textbook Armstrongism. For decades, groups in this movement have perfected the art of using manipulation and selective truth-telling to get what they want. When it suits the leadership, rival factions suddenly discover they’re “brethren” who should work together. When it doesn’t, they go right back to publicly branding each other as spiritually blind or even demonic. The goal is never genuine unity — it’s always institutional survival and the appearance of legitimacy. Members are kept in the dark or fed spiritual-sounding language while the men at the top quietly make deals that would make a corporate lawyer blush.

The same playbook is on full display here. Thiel and Aaron Dean can posture about “not merging” all they want, but the practical reality is two tiny American-led splinter groups desperately trying to combine their limited resources to trick a foreign government into giving them legal status. It’s the religious equivalent of two broke guys renting one tuxedo and showing up to a wedding pretending to be one respectable person. The only difference is that in Armstrongism, this kind of deception gets wrapped in layers of “God’s work” and “prophetic understanding” so the members feel spiritually obligated to support it.

Thiel even suggests people should “pray about this.” One assumes the prayer is that Burundian officials don’t look too closely at the actual numbers or ask awkward questions about why two groups that can barely stand each other suddenly need to share a building. In the grand tradition of Armstrongism, when manipulation and bureaucratic sleight-of-hand fail, there’s always prayer — preferably the kind that keeps the members docile while the leadership handles the real business of staying relevant.

It’s almost impressive how consistently these groups manage to turn even basic government registration into an exercise in creative deception. Two organizations that normally compete for the same small pool of followers are now discussing joint real estate investments in Africa, all while loudly insisting nothing has changed. Classic Armstrongism: the rules only apply until they become inconvenient, at which point “cooperation” magically appears — right up until the paperwork is approved.

Stay tuned. In the thrilling world of Church of God politics, today’s bitter rivals are tomorrow’s business partners, provided there’s a government form that needs filling out.

As mentioned last year, the government of Burundi changed their laws requirements for churches to be legally function and be registered there. Augustin Mpawenimana began the process for us.

Augustin Mpawenimana and Evans Ochieng

The laws now basically state that a church with a foreign connection must have at least 500 persons, land, and a building (and maybe multiple ones), in order to register so it can legally operate. This is something I started to speak with Aaron Dean of UCG about a couple of years ago. And we talked again about this on Monday after Augustin Mpawenimana sent me an updated email on the situation (Aaron Dean and I also discussed church history and some prophetic matters).

Like us, the United Church of God (UCG) has applied for official registration in Burundi, but still has not been approved (we have some type of temporary approval). If UCG gets some approval, then they are looking at how to meet whatever other requirements there may be. Aaron Dean told me that he would inform me when, and if, UCG gets its request for registration approved and I would tell him what is going on with the registration of the Continuing Church of God. He continues to believe that UCG should be able to cooperate with us in Burundi. As it turns out, UCG purchased land in Burundi a while back to assist its registration. He and I discussed the possibility of both groups providing some funding for building materials so the brethren from both COGs can construct a church building which both could use for services, etc.

We are NOT discussing any type of church merger, only how we may be able to cooperate so both churches will be able to legally function in Burundi. You may wish to pray about this.

United Church of God: The Gospel of the Kingdom: Now Featuring Jesus as a Limited-Edition Bonus

Let’s set the scene from the United Church of God’s Council of Elders. They’re designing visitor packets, banners, and branded materials to “communicate who we are and what we do.” The top priority that emerges? Keeping the Sabbath and the Holy Days. That’s the thing they want front and center. Then Vik Kubik, bless his heart, has to gently remind everyone: “Hey, maybe we should also mention Jesus Christ and His importance in the plan of salvation.”

It’s the theological equivalent of planning a wedding and putting “We serve brisket on the correct days” on the invitations before remembering to put the groom’s name anywhere.

This isn’t an accident. This is Armstrongism working exactly as designed.

Herbert W. Armstrong built an entire religious system around the idea that mainstream Christianity had the wrong gospel. According to him, they were only preaching “a gospel about Christ” — His birth, death, and resurrection — while the real gospel was the good news of the Kingdom of God: a literal world government that would enforce God’s law on earth. In that framework, Jesus isn’t primarily the Savior you have a personal relationship with right now. He’s the future King who will return to set up that government and make everyone keep the Sabbath and Holy Days properly.

So when you’re designing outreach materials, what naturally comes out first? Not “Come meet Jesus.” It’s “We keep the Sabbath and Holy Days.” Because that’s the distinctive. That’s the sign. That’s how you know you’ve found the “true Church.” Jesus is important, sure — but He’s important because He’s going to make the whole world keep the law the way we already do.

This is why Armstrongism has always had a slightly allergic reaction to centering Jesus too much. If your entire identity is built on being the people who still obey the Old Testament commandments that everyone else supposedly abandoned, then leading with grace, the cross, or a relationship with the risen Christ feels dangerously close to sounding like those lawless Sunday-keeping Protestants, or worse yet, the Catholics. You can’t have visitors thinking this is just another Jesus church. You have to make sure they know this is the Sabbath-and-Holy-Days church that also happens to believe in Jesus.

That’s why the materials were shaping up to lead with the law. And that’s why Kubik had to play the role of the guy who raises his hand and says, “Should we maybe… put the actual Savior in there somewhere?” It’s the same instinct that makes Armstrongist groups spend far more time explaining why Christmas and Easter are pagan than explaining why the empty tomb changes everything.

In Armstrongism, Jesus mostly functions as:

• The one who died so your past sins could be forgiven (after which you’d better start keeping the law perfectly),

• The coming King who will enforce that law worldwide,

• And occasionally the “Lord of the Sabbath” (which conveniently lets them keep talking about the Sabbath).

He is rarely presented as the central, sufficient, personal object of faith and worship in the way evangelical Christianity does it. The focus stays on “God’s way of life” — which, in practice, means the commandments, the calendar, and the government. Jesus becomes the supporting cast in the story of the law being restored.

So when the Council of Elders sits down to create visitor packets and the first thing that comes out is “Sabbath and Holy Days,” they’re not being sloppy. They’re being consistent. The brand is the law. Jesus is the fine print you add when someone points out that maybe the fine print should be mentioned.

It’s almost charming in its predictability. Even when they’re trying to reach new people, the old Armstrongist reflexes kick in: lead with the distinctive commandment-keeping, and if someone notices the Son of God is missing from the brochure, just pencil Him in later.

Classic.

Puppet Strings and Proof-Texting: Why HWA's "Don't Believe Me, Believe Your Bible" Is Still Trapping New Covenant Believers

Don't Believe Me, Believe Your Bible!

The Armstrongist Magic Incantation That Wasn't So Magical After All

Herbert W. Armstrong loved this line. He trotted it out on radio, in The Plain Truth, in booklets, and from the pulpit like a holy incantation: "Don't believe me — believe your Bible!" Paired with the folksy "Blow the dust off your Bible" and the scriptural-sounding "Prove all things" (1 Thessalonians 5:21), it sounded so reasonable, so humble, so biblical. Who could argue with that? After all, the man was just a humble servant pointing people back to the Word, right?

Wrong. In the hands of Armstrongism, this wasn't an invitation to genuine, Spirit-led Bible study. It was the opening move in a sophisticated con — the theological equivalent of a used-car salesman saying, "Don't trust me, kick the tires yourself!" while the odometer has been rolled back and the engine is held together with prayer and duct tape.

The Setup: Sounding Humble While Seizing Control

The phrase worked because it disarmed skeptics. Mainstream Christianity was painted as paganized, deceived, and tradition-bound. Armstrong positioned himself as the no-nonsense voice crying in the wilderness: "The churches of this world won't tell you the truth — but your Bible will!" People who had grown up with vague sermons and feel-good religion suddenly felt empowered. They were being challenged to think, to study, to prove.

What they weren't told was that the "proving" came with an invisible owner’s manual: Armstrong’s booklets, his Plain Truth articles, his Bible Correspondence Course, and later the filtered interpretations of his ministers. The Bible was "plain," but apparently not plain enough without the special Armstrong decoder ring. British Israelism? Prove it from the Bible (using our genealogical charts and selective history). Tithing as a binding "financial law" for New Covenant Christians? Prove it (ignore Hebrews and the early church practice). The weekly Sabbath and annual Holy Days as required for salvation or identity? Prove it (while we quietly downplay or spiritualize other Old Covenant shadows we don't like).

The Bereans in Acts 17:11 were commended for searching the Scriptures daily to see if what Paul said was true. They examined with open minds. In Armstrongism, you examined — but only within the approved framework, often under the watchful eye of a local elder who could smell "Laodicean" or "rebellious" thinking from across the room. Independent cross-referencing with mainstream commentaries, church history, or Greek/Hebrew study aids? That was often viewed with suspicion. Why would you need those when "God's apostle" had already done the heavy lifting?

The Double Bind and the Selective Memory

Armstrong and his successors changed teachings over the decades — on divorce and remarriage, on makeup, on the nature of God, on healing, on a host of prophetic details. Yet the phrase "Don't believe me, believe your Bible" was still trotted out as if the system were static and infallible. When the changes came (especially the traumatic ones after Armstrong's death), suddenly "prove all things" became "stay loyal to the church" or "don't cause division." The same mouths that once shouted about blowing dust off Bibles now warned against "intellectual vanity" or "questioning God's government."

Exit stories from former members are littered with this pattern. People who actually took the challenge seriously — who kept studying after baptism and found the Bible didn't say what the booklet claimed — often ended up disfellowshipped or marked. The phrase that sounded like freedom became the trapdoor. You were free to "prove" it... as long as you arrived at the pre-approved conclusion. Disagree? Then you weren't really believing your Bible — you were being deceived by Satan, your own carnal mind, or "the world."

And the prophecies? Oh, the prophecies. Armstrong set dates, hinted at dates, and built an entire end-time scenario around his work and the "Philadelphia era." When they failed (repeatedly), the response wasn't "Maybe I was wrong — let's go back to the Bible together without my filter." It was often "The Bible is still true, the work continues, hold fast." The very Book he told people to believe apparently needed his ongoing reinterpretation to stay relevant.

The Deeper Deception: Bible as Weapon, Not Guide

At its core, the tactic inverts biblical authority. The Bible becomes a tool to confirm what the leader has already decided, rather than the supreme standard that can correct or rebuke the leader. This is classic high-control religion dressed in scriptural clothing. It flatters the convert's intelligence ("You're not like those blind followers in other churches — you checked!") while slowly transferring authority from the text (and the Holy Spirit) to the organization and its hierarchy.

It also creates a closed epistemological loop: The Bible is true. Armstrong (or his spiritual descendants) correctly interprets the Bible. Therefore, questioning Armstrong is questioning the Bible. Try escaping that without being accused of rejecting God Himself.

The Real Danger for New Covenant Christians

This is where it gets especially toxic for those who have come to understand the freedom and sufficiency of the New Covenant in Christ.

The saying sounds pious, but in Armstrongist practice it often functions as a gateway drug back into Old Covenant bondage. It keeps sincere believers fixated on shadows — Sabbaths, Holy Days, tithing systems, clean meats, and "government" structures — as if these were the heart of Christian identity and obedience. Meanwhile, the blazing center of the New Covenant — the finished work of Christ, justification by faith apart from works of the law, the indwelling Spirit, and the liberty purchased at the cross — gets treated as secondary or even dangerous if it leads someone to question the "restored truths."

New Covenant believers are repeatedly warned in Scripture not to let anyone judge them in regard to Sabbaths, festivals, or food (Colossians 2:16-17), not to be entangled again with a yoke of bondage (Galatians 5:1), and that the law was a tutor to bring us to Christ, not a perpetual straitjacket (Galatians 3:24-25). Yet the Armstrongist use of "Don't believe me, believe your Bible" has a remarkable ability to make people feel spiritually superior for re-imposing those very shadows — and spiritually terrified of letting them go.

Worse, it trains people to outsource their discernment. Instead of growing into mature believers who can handle the Word rightly divided (2 Timothy 2:15), many remain perpetual students of the latest booklet or sermon from the current "leader." The next self-appointed "Zerubbabel," "Elijah," or "apostle" can step in with fresh "new truth" or recycled old errors, wave the same magic phrase, and the cycle repeats. The Bible becomes a ventriloquist dummy for whatever authoritarian personality currently holds the microphone.

Perhaps the greatest tragedy is what it does to the heart. New Covenant Christianity is meant to produce sons and daughters who walk in freedom, love, and the Spirit — not anxious rule-keepers scanning for the next doctrinal tweak or fearful of losing their salvation over a missed Holy Day or an unauthorized Bible study. The phrase, twisted this way, keeps people in a subtle form of spiritual slavery: outwardly zealous for "the truth," inwardly dependent on human mediators who claim to have unlocked what the Bible "really" says.

True biblical Christianity invites examination — but it doesn't fear it. It doesn't need to control the outcome or punish those who land in different places after honest study. It points people to Christ as the ultimate fulfillment of the Scriptures, not to any man or organization as the necessary filter.

So yes, blow the dust off your Bible. Read it. Study it. But do it without the Armstrongist training wheels, without the fear that independent conclusions will get you marked, and without the assumption that one man's (or one group's) "restored" system is the only possible faithful reading. The New Covenant is bigger, freer, and far more Christ-centered than any humanly constructed theological empire built on selective proof-texting and loyalty tests.

The man who kept telling people not to believe him built an awful lot of his authority on making sure they ultimately did. That's not humility. That's the oldest trick in the authoritarian playbook — and far too many sincere people are still falling for it.

Precept Upon Precept, Clown Upon Clown: How Armstrongism Turned God’s Mockery Into Their Holy Study Method

 

But the word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken. Isaiah 28:13

Ah, yes. The classic Armstrongist party trick. Whenever some wide-eyed prospective member or lingering splinter drone starts asking too many pesky questions about why the "one true church" cherry-picks doctrines like a starving raccoon in a dumpster, out comes the triumphant bellow: "Precept upon precept! Line upon line! Here a little, there a little!" It's their sacred get-out-of-context-free card, the magical incantation that justifies ripping verses from here, there, and everywhere to "prove" British Israelism, mandatory tithing to headquarters, triple tithes and offerings during "God's" feast days, the sacred calendar, clean/unclean meats, and whatever other Old Covenant legalism HWA and his prophetic successors decided was essential for salvation that week.

Let's actually open the Bible and see what Isaiah 28:9-13 says, shall we? (You know, the whole context thing that the "Philadelphia era" remnant claims to love so much.)

King James Version (because that's the one they prefer when it suits them):

9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. 10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little: 11 For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. 12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear. 13 But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

Notice something? The phrases "precept upon precept" etc. are not a divine study method handed down from on high. They are the mocking taunt of drunken, scoffing priests and prophets in Ephraim (and by extension, Judah) who are ridiculing Isaiah's message. They're saying, in effect: "Who does this guy think he's teaching? Babies just weaned from the breast? Blah blah blah, rule on rule, line on line, a little here, a little there—yada yada yada." It's baby talk to their sophisticated, wine-soaked ears.

God is not patting them on the back for their systematic theology homework. He's pronouncing judgment. They rejected the true rest and refreshing found in Him (verse 12 — hello, New Covenant shadow), preferring their own religious game of collecting scattered proof-texts while ignoring the heart of the matter. As a result, the very words they mocked become a trap that causes them to stumble, fall backward, be broken, snared, and taken captive.

How Armstrongism Distorted It Masterfully

Herbert W. Armstrong and his theological descendants (Thiel, Pack, Flurry, Kitchen, Brisby, and the rest of the clown car) turned this passage of divine mockery and judgment into their primary hermeneutical operating system. "The Bible is a jigsaw puzzle! You have to put it together precept upon precept, here a little there a little!" they'd thunder from the pulpit, while conveniently ignoring that the passage is God describing how the unrepentant stumble over His word precisely because of that fragmented, rules-focused approach without the Spirit.

This "method" gave them unlimited license to:

• Proof-text their way to British Israelism by yanking obscure verses about ancient tribes and slapping them onto modern Anglo-Saxon nations. Never mind the mountains of genetic, historical, and archaeological evidence against it.

• Reimpose the Old Covenant (or their mutated version of it) on New Covenant believers. Tithing? Check. Holy Days? Check. Dietary laws? Check. Sabbath policing? Double check. All while Jesus and the Apostles made it clear the shadows have been fulfilled in Christ.

• Dodge the plain teaching of Scripture on grace, faith, and rest in Christ. Why deal with the finished work of the Cross when you can hopscotch through 66 books looking for supporting snippets?

• Maintain control. If everything is "here a little, there a little," only the enlightened Apostle or his chosen successor can properly assemble the puzzle. Question the assembly? You're a Laodicean, rebellious, or worse.

It's peak irony. The passage warns against treating God's word like a bunch of disconnected rules from a drunken religious elite who rejected rest in Him — and Armstrongism built an entire empire on doing exactly that.

The Real Point They Missed (Because It Would Bankrupt Their Empire)

Verse 12 is the heart: 

This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.

Sound familiar? Jesus said, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). The New Covenant isn't about mastering scattered precepts through human effort and headquarters-approved Bible studies. It's about faith in the finished work of Christ, the true Cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16, right in the same chapter they love to twist).

The Armstrongist approach — endless rule-stacking, fear of "falling away" if you miss a Holy Day, financial extraction disguised as "God's government," and spiritual exhaustion — is the exact opposite of rest. It's the path that leads to being "broken, and snared, and taken." Just look at the devastated lives, failed prophecies, scandals, and shrinking congregations across the splinters. The trap worked exactly as Isaiah described.

Congratulations, COG leaders! You've taken a passage where God mocks religious know-it-alls who treat His word like a rulebook for toddlers and turned it into your infallible method for reinventing Judaism with a thin coat of "Church of God" paint. Precept upon precept indeed — mostly the precepts of men that make the word of God of none effect (Mark 7:13, another verse they probably "here a little" away from).

If you're in one of these groups and feeling weary, exhausted, and spiritually snared... maybe stop treating the Bible like a drunken scoffer’s puzzle and listen to what God actually said about rest. The refreshing is available in Christ, not in another "special" Bible study booklet from Wadsworth, Grover Beach, Edmond, or wherever the latest self-appointed Elijah is holed up.

The word of the Lord was unto them precept upon precept... that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken.

New Covenant Christians must grasp this passage not as a clever study tip, but as a stark warning against the very snare that trapped generations in Armstrongism. The "precept upon precept" approach, when stripped of its sarcastic biblical context, becomes a self-perpetuating system of spiritual bondage—piecing together isolated rules while missing the grand tapestry of grace fulfilled in Jesus. It keeps believers perpetually weaned from the true milk of the Word, treating Scripture as a divine puzzle only "God's government" can solve, rather than a living revelation pointing to rest in Christ.

In light of Armstrong's distortions, believers today are called to reject this fragmented legalism entirely. The New Covenant, sealed by the blood of the Lamb, frees us from the exhaustive labor of reassembling Old Covenant shadows. No more hunting "here a little, there a little" for justification through diet, days, or dollars. Instead, we stand on the solid Cornerstone, where the weary find genuine refreshing—not in headquarters-approved booklets or self-appointed apostles, but in the finished work of the Cross. This understanding dismantles the fear tactics and control mechanisms that thrive on confusion, replacing them with the simplicity of faith, love, and liberty in the Spirit. No one needs Bob Thiel, Dave Pack, Gerald Weston, Gerald Flurry telling them jus how things are supposed to be. 

Ultimately, Isaiah 28 exposes how religious elites stumble when they mock God's offer of rest. For those emerging from Armstrongist shadows, this means embracing the full implications of the New Covenant: no more hybrid law-grace systems, no more "one true church" elitism, and no more exhaustion masquerading as obedience. True doctrine flows not from puzzle-solving prowess, but from relationship with the One who is our Sabbath rest. As you study Scripture, do so with eyes fixed on Christ—the refreshing that the scoffers rejected. In doing so, you avoid the trap, walk in freedom, and become a voice of clarity for others still entangled in the wreckage of failed prophecies and man-made empires. The rest is not only better; it is the very gospel itself.

"Except the Lord Build the House…” — Unless Herbert’s the One Holding the Hammer

Herbert Armstrong’s Dream of Dominion: Why His “Church of God” Article Is Theologically Rotten 

In September 1980, Herbert W. Armstrong published a piece in Good News magazine titled “Shall We All Leave THE CHURCH OF GOD and join ‘THE CHURCH OF PEOPLE’?” It opens with a dream. Yes, a literal dream. Armstrong wakes up one morning convinced that God has personally revealed to him why dissenters are bad: they want democracy. They want a say. They want to vote on leaders and doctrine. How dare they?

If that sounds like a man clutching his throne a little too tightly, that’s because it is. The entire article is a masterclass in theological sleight-of-hand, Old Testament cosplay, and self-justifying authoritarianism. It’s not just bad theology—it’s the kind of bad theology that turns a spiritual body into a personality cult and calls it “God’s government.” 

The Apostle Who Appointed Himself (And Jesus Was Apparently Cool With It)

Armstrong’s central claim is as bold as it is unbiblical: this is God’s Church, run exclusively through “His chosen apostle”—that is, Herbert W. Armstrong himself. Christ is the Head, sure, but only in theory. In practice, Jesus works through one specially prepared, divinely guided man at the top. Anyone who suggests that the people should have input is accused of trying to evict God from His own house and turn it into a “church of the people.”

Because nothing screams “humble servant leadership” like declaring yourself the modern Moses while everyone else is just a sheep who needs to stop bleating.

The New Testament begs to differ—loudly. Christ alone is the Head of the church (Ephesians 1:22; Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 5:23). The foundational apostles completed their unique, eyewitness role two thousand years ago; the church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20; see also Acts 1:21-22; 1 Corinthians 9:1). There is no biblical category for a 20th-century “apostle” who gets to dictate doctrine worldwide while comparing himself to David and Moses in the same breath. New Testament churches were led by plural elders—local, accountable teams—not a single global potentate (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 1 Peter 5:1-5). Peter called himself a “fellow elder,” not the CEO of Christ Inc. (1 Peter 5:1). Armstrong’s model isn’t apostolic; it’s imperial.

Old Testament Cosplay Meets New Covenant Reality

To prop up his pyramid scheme, Armstrong drags out the greatest hits of Old Testament hierarchy: God choosing David over Jesse’s strapping older sons (1 Samuel 16:6-13), Moses leading Israel through the Red Sea, and—his favorite—Korah’s rebellion (Numbers 16:1-3). Those 1974 ministers who wanted more accountability? Straight-up Korahs, apparently. 

Covetous. Power-hungry. Doomed.

Here’s the problem: the church is not ancient Israel. The New Testament isn’t a reboot of the theocracy. We’re not under a national covenant with a human mediator standing between God and us. Every believer is a priest with direct access to the Father (1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6; 5:10). The Holy Spirit indwells the whole body, not just the guy at headquarters (1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Romans 8:9; John 14:16-17). Even the Jerusalem council in Acts 15 involved “the whole church” weighing in alongside the apostles and elders (Acts 15:22). There’s accountability. There’s plurality. There’s—gasp—discussion. The church is to practice mutual submission (Ephesians 5:21) and test everything against Scripture (1 John 4:1; Isaiah 8:20).

Armstrong treats any hint of congregational input as rebellion against God Himself. That’s not theology; that’s a rhetorical kill switch. Disagree with the apostle? You’re not having a reasonable disagreement—you’re “leaving God out of the picture.” Classic move. Works great if your goal is control. Works terribly if your goal is actually following Scripture.

When a Dream Becomes Doctrine

The whole piece kicks off with Armstrong’s vivid dream about young men lobbying against him. He wakes up “considerably impressed,” convinced God is showing him that too many members secretly want to run things their way. From there, it’s off to the races: proof-texts, historical revisionism, and dire warnings about “liberalism.”

Look, dreams can be memorable. They can even be meaningful. But when a leader’s nocturnal brain activity becomes the launchpad for an article on church government, you’ve officially left “sola scriptura” in the dust. The Bible is supposed to be sufficient for doctrine, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16-17; see also 1 Corinthians 4:6—“Do not go beyond what is written”). Not “Scripture plus whatever Herbert dreamed last Tuesday.” This is how cults get their operating manual—personal revelation dressed up as divine insight that just so happens to affirm the leader’s power.

The Great Purge and the Peace That Followed (According to Him)

Armstrong gleefully recounts how the 1974 “men of renown” who tried to take over were booted out. The offshoots they started? All doomed to fail because “except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain” (Psalm 127:1). The troublemakers left? Peace at last! The remaining members? Finally free of those pesky dissenters.

Translation: If you question the apostle, you’re bitter, revenge-seeking, and probably going to hell in a handbasket. If you stay loyal, you get peace, growth, and God’s blessing. It’s spiritual gaslighting wrapped in a Psalm 127 bow—while conveniently ignoring Jesus’ actual instructions for church discipline: private confrontation, then witnesses, then the whole church (Matthew 18:15-17), not mass excommunication for questioning authority.

History, of course, had other plans. The Worldwide Church of God eventually repudiated much of Armstrong’s theology after his death. The “liberals” weren’t the problem; the rigid, extra-biblical system was. But in 1980, none of that mattered. Loyalty to the man trumped loyalty to the text.

The Real Theological Crime

At its core, Armstrong’s article defends a closed system: one true church, one true apostle, one true set of doctrines (many of which were novel inventions). Any move toward grace, accountability, or biblical nuance was labeled “watering down God’s truth.” The result? A church that looked less like the vibrant, Spirit-led body in Acts and more like a tightly controlled corporation with a prophet at the top.

Jesus warned against this exact spirit: “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them… It shall not be so among you” (Matthew 20:25-28; see also Mark 10:42-45; Luke 22:25-26). Elders are to shepherd willingly, not as overlords (1 Peter 5:2-3). Armstrong’s article doesn’t just miss that verse. It drives a truck over it while shouting, “But I’m the apostle!”

So yes, the piece is theologically bad. Not mildly misguided—catastrophically so. It replaces Christ’s headship with a man’s (Colossians 2:19), Scripture’s authority with a dream’s, and servant leadership with top-down dominion. It’s the kind of writing that makes you wonder if the real question isn’t “Shall we all leave the Church of God?” but rather, “When did the Church of God start looking so much like the Church of Herbert?”

Thankfully, the real church of God—the one Jesus actually built—has always been bigger than any one man’s dream. It survives bad articles, bad governance, and even worse theology. Because at the end of the day, the vine is Christ (John 15:5). The branches are us. And no self-appointed apostle gets to prune that.

Silent Pilgrim