Before Elrond drew the tale of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men to a close, he spoke of the men of Gondor who still fight and defy the enemies of the free-folk. It was then that Boromir, son of Denethor, Lord of Minas Tirith, stood and told of the dream that led him to Imladris. Join us as we continue our discussion of The Lord of the Rings, book II, chapter 2, The Council of Elrond.

The Council Of Elrond, Pt. 3

The unraveling of hard words is what brought Boromir to Elrond the Halfeleven, greatest of lore-masters. The men of Gondor still keep the wild folk of the East restrained, but smoke once more rises from Mount Doom. They are outnumbered and a power is fighting against them which they have not felt before. Fear falls on the boldest causing man and horse to flee. In all this a dream came to Boromir:

Seek for the Sword that was broken:
In Imladris it dwells;
There shall be counsels taken
Stronger than Morgul-spells.
There shall be shown a token
That Doom is near at hand,
For Isildur’s Bane shall waken,
And the Halfling forth shall stand.

The Lord of the Rings: One Volume, p. 246

This dream is reminiscent of the prophecies of Joel, who Peter quoted on the day of Pentecost in the very first Gospel sermon:

Acts 2:17 NKJV
And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.

It goes on to say that God will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth beneath.

This is another example of the providence – a timely preparation – of Eru Ilúvatar in the affairs of Middle-earth. The dream of Boromir has led him to the Council of Elrond. It was not the calling of any other than Ilúvatar.

Behold, I Have Come

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Boromir travelled the dangerous, forgotten roads to seek the house of Elrond for insight into this mystery. Just then Aragorn casts his sword upon the table before Elrond. The blade was in two pieces. “Here is the sword that was Broken!” he said. Fulfilled prophecy. The One Ring; Isildur’s Bane. Fulfilled prophecy. Frodo Baggins, the Halfling. Fulfilled prophecy.

Ilúvatar is working! C.S. Lewis would say, “Aslan is on the move!” Aragorn son of Arathorn is the greatest fulfilled prophecy of all. Descended through many fathers from Isildur Elendil’s son. And he is ready.

A new hour comes. Isildur’s Bane is found. Battle is at hand. The Sword shall be reforged. I will come to Minas Tirith.

The Lord of the Rings: One Volume, p. 248

What a picture of Christ Jesus. As Peter Kreeft points out in his lecture, Christianity in Lord of the Rings, Aragorn is the picture of Christ the King of kings. The One who the children of Israel had waited for. King David had written much about Him. The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 40:7 when he says of Jesus:

Hebrews 10:5-7 NKJV
Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:
“Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.
In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.
Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come—
In the volume of the book it is written of Me—
To do Your will, O God.’

Behold, I have come. Battle is at hand. The Sword shall be reforged. I will come to Minas Tirith and there be crowned king.

But, what comes before Minas Tirith? We can’t wait to get to that part of the book. We look forward to continued adventures with you, dear listeners.

Click the image to visit our Patreon page and help support the Fellowship of the Secret Fire Podcast.

Additional Resources:

• The Complete Guide to Middle-earth, by Robert Foster
• Christianity in Lord of the Rings, by Peter Kreeft
• The Fellowship of the Ring Audiobook read by Rob Inglis

What stood out to you in The Council Of Elrond Pt. 3? Let us know in the comments below.

On The Secret Fire Podcast we travel chapter-by-chapter and book-by-book through J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth viewing it through Christian lenses. We invite you to join us each week as we continue the adventure on the Arkenstone server in Lord Of The Rings Online.

Please join our Fellowship on our Facebook and Twitter pages for even more fun from Tolkien’s Legendarium.

Support the Secret Fire Podcast and the GCTNetwork on our Patreon page.

You may listen to the podcast by using the audio player at the top of this post, or use the links below for other convenient ways to subscribe and listen.

ITUNES | GOOGLE PLAY MUSIC | STITCHER RADIO | TUNEIN RADIO | RSS FEED

Theme song: Hobbit’s Dance from the album Memories Of Middle Earth, by Brobdingnagian Bards

Affiliate links are used on this site.

The post The Council Of Elrond Pt. 3, The Lord Of The Rings | SFP023 appeared first on GCTN.