A Uniquely Special Throne

How remarkable that the last official duty of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, at her Scottish home of Balmoral Castle, was the appointment of her 15th Prime Minister, Liz Truss, following the resignation of Boris Johnson. The Queen at age 96 had seemed frail, but was still her usual bright, friendly self, and determined to carry on with her duties. Yet two days later, on Thursday afternoon, September 8, the suddenness of her death caused shockwaves across the nation and around the world. Well-laid plans for her funeral and the official transfer of powers to her son and heir, Charles, were immediately put into action. After a lifetime spent preparing for just this moment, Charles was now King, Head of State, head of the Church of England, and head of the Commonwealth.

Eleven days of mourning and detailed preparations culminated with the Queen’s funeral on September 19—a dry, still, and sunny day, with large crowds assembled all along the funeral route to see the procession and to show their silent appreciation and respect for a much-loved monarch. After the funeral service in Westminster Abbey, a procession continued on foot around St. James’ Park, along the Mall, and past Buckingham Palace before proceeding by car to Windsor Castle for her interment with other deceased members of her family. Many millions across the country and Commonwealth—indeed, a worldwide audience—were able to share in the royal funeral proceedings through extensive media coverage.

One need only read a few of the many media outpourings about the Queen to conclude that she was a highly respected and special lady. How did this come about? Elizabeth became the heir apparent in 1936 at age ten, and her parents began a program to prepare her for that role. Her teenage years coincided with the hardships and privation of the war years, during which the steadfast and dutiful example of her father, King George VI, had a powerful and effective influence on her.

Anglican leaders taught the young princess about service, duty, example, and keeping her word. At the height of her coronation service, they explained, she would be appointed before God as Queen, consecrated by her oath to fulfil her responsibilities. All this built into Elizabeth a steely resolve to put her heart into faithfully serving her peoples as their Queen. In her 70 years of public office—the second-longest of any monarch—never did she deviate from the values she believed God had given her to follow, even as society around her inexorably changed.

We would all do well to remember some important statements she made during her reign. They reveal a person deeply and passionately committed to serving all those who looked to her as Queen. In addition to reviewing several reasons why so many viewed her as special, we will recognize something exceedingly special about the very throne that she occupied. The Windsor dynasty in London is the leading royal house in the world today, yet the throne it occupies has surprising biblical roots with enormous prophetic implications for the years ahead. It is a throne destined to take on even greater worldwide significance because of a future occupant who will reign over the entire world!

Selfless Devotion to Duty

The Queen was much-loved because of her selfless devotion to duty; she kept her word and fulfilled her early pledge and lifetime commitment to serve her subjects at home and abroad throughout her life. Clearly, her heart was in all she did. She believed it was what God wanted of her—and had prepared her to do. In a speech on her Coronation Day in 1953, she promised, “I have in sincerity pledged myself to your service, as so many of you are pledged to mine. Throughout all my life, and with all my heart, I will strive to be worthy of your trust.”

During her first televised broadcast of 1957, she said, “I cannot lead you into battle. I do not give you laws or administer justice. But I can do something else. I can give you my heart and my devotion to these old islands and to all the peoples of our brotherhood of nations.” For many alive today, she was the only monarch they had known—loved and appreciated as an essential, seemingly permanent backdrop to their lives. She gave us her heart, and in return, we gave her our love and loyal support. In death, that love is expressed as grief. As she herself said, “Grief is the price we pay for love.” Truly, it could be said of the Queen that “when the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice” (Proverbs 29:2).

Enjoyment on the Job

What was abundantly apparent to those around the Queen was that she thoroughly enjoyed her service as head of state, head of the Church of England, and head of the Commonwealth. She was unfailingly friendly, with a ready smile. She was modest, down-to-earth, and humble, with a refreshing, infectious sense of humour that could be seen in the James Bond skit she performed at the 2012 London Olympic Games—seeming to parachute into the stadium—and her famously sharing afternoon tea at Buckingham Palace with a virtual Paddington Bear in June 2022.

She loved meeting people, and seemed to be ideally suited by temperament, training, strong constitution, and good health for the arduous roles she fulfilled. She grew into her roles and carried them off with aplomb that garnered respect and high praise for all she did for her country and the Commonwealth. She personified the attitudes of tolerance and fairness across all peoples in the United Kingdom. She globalised the British monarchy by her use of broadcast media and personal visits to over 100 countries during her reign. Some would say that, at the peak of her fame, she was the most recognisable woman alive.

Building the Commonwealth

At a time when the old British Empire was crumbling, the Queen began to nurture the Commonwealth from its initial seven countries into the family of 56 nations it has grown into today. The Queen was the essential glue that held the Union and the Commonwealth together for over 70 years—a formidable performance, by any standard.

Her understanding of leadership was simple, yet profound: “Over the years, I have observed that some attributes of leadership are universal, and are often about finding ways of encouraging people to combine their efforts, their talents, their insights, their enthusiasm, and their inspiration, to work together” (“A speech by The Queen at the United Nations General Assembly, 2010,” Royal.uk, July 6, 2010). She embodied this same thinking and had a knack for bringing peoples together and unifying them.

Courage and Resilience Through Trials

She faced trials and hardships with courage, resilience, and an indomitable spirit. Being Queen for so long was never going to be smooth sailing—but her trials and challenges were oftentimes very public, for the entire country to observe and take note of how she managed.

All families go through periods of crisis—and royalty is no exception. The Queen and her husband dealt with royal weddings, royal divorces, and royal deaths, perhaps most notably the untimely death of Princess Diana and the assassination of Lord Mountbatten. Windsor Castle, a family home, partially burned down in 1992, a year difficult enough to be dubbed her annus horribilis (Latin for “horrible year”).

Because of the public offices she held, national and even international trials became her trials to comment on, and opportunities for her to provide hope and encouragement for a better tomorrow, as she did so memorably during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. She said, “We should take comfort that, while we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again” (“The Queen’s broadcast to the UK and Commonwealth,” Royal.uk, April 5, 2020).

As she broadcast in 2008, “when life seems hard, the courageous do not lie down and accept defeat; instead, they are all the more determined to struggle for a better future.” Where did her inner strength and resilience come from? The answer in part came in her comments on the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings in 2019: “The wartime generation—my generation—is resilient.”

But, more than that, what gave the Queen strength as she grew older was her family upbringing, her husband Philip, and her relationship with God, as she understood Him. Here is the way the Queen expressed it: “None of us can slow the passage of time and, while we often focus on all that has changed in the intervening years, much remains unchanged, including the gospel of Christ and his teachings” (“Queen says ‘none of us can slow the passage of time’ as Edward delivers her poignant message,” ITV.com, November 16, 2021).

Ultimately, in life, the only enduring thing left for all of us is our relationship with God. Just as our Queen believed, the teachings of the Bible have not changed. All we have to do—the hard part—is apply them to our lives. Part of that gospel is this, as stated by the Apostle Peter: “Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king” (1 Peter 2:17). The way out of all our national and personal problems is contained in the Gospel of Christ and His teachings. God will give us His strength if we ask for it and if we will live the way of life He wants us to follow.

The Biblical Throne of David

Finally, what is the surprising biblical aspect to the Queen’s throne? Those who study history carefully in the light of Bible prophecy will recognize that the throne of the British monarch can be traced back to the throne of the biblical King David of Israel. Because David was a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), God established His covenant promise with David that his throne would be “established forever” (2 Samuel 7:16; Psalm 89:3–4, 28–37), meaning that his lineage would never cease to be. In context, Psalm 89 is clearly describing both his lineage and its establishment in every generation. God compares the likelihood of this covenant failing with the cessation of the natural order of days and nights that He appointed—something that has never, ever happened (Jeremiah 33:17–22). The Scriptures show that, ultimately, “forever” can only indicate Jesus Christ. The returning Christ is prophesied to occupy the throne of David and reign over the entire earth (Isaiah 9:6–7; Luke 1:32–33; Acts 2:29–30).

What this means is that in every generation, from King David’s to this day, there have been descendants of David’s bloodline available to reign on the Davidic throne. That lineage would never cease, die out, or be cut off. Importantly, this shows that Jesus the Messiah could only inherit David’s throne if He was literally born of David’s lineage. The two biblical genealogies of Christ clearly show this to be the case: His “legal” descent goes back to David via Solomon (Matthew 1:6), while His blood lineage via his mother goes back to David through Nathan, another of David’s sons (Luke 3:31).

So, what do we know about King David’s lineage? Do we see any evidence that it exists today? Look no further than the throne currently established in London! It reliably dates back to Edward I in 1296 AD, dates before that to the Scottish lineage of kings, and then stretches back into the mists of time to the kings of Ireland. Importantly, all these monarchs were said to be crowned over a stone that today is called the Stone of Destiny or Stone of Scone, also referred to as Jacob’s pillar stone.

All this should cause us to even more strongly value and respect this ancient and exceedingly special throne, which has survived and prospered under our special Queen’s 70-year tenure. It may yet seem to fail in its British manifestation—it has seemed to fail several times already throughout its long and eventful history. But God will always honour His covenant promise and the Davidic dynasty will always prevail in some form. And when the glorified Jesus Christ comes to the earth to establish God’s Kingdom over all of it, He will occupy that glorious throne forevermore—a throne that God promised to preserve in every generation throughout history.

If you would like to know more—and there is so much more to relate—request our free booklet The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy or read it online at TomorrowsWorld.org. It may just cause you to radically alter your perspective on life and what is prophesied to happen in the years ahead.