Dear John and Doves:

There's been a story floating around for 40 years or so - I first saw it in tract form before Al Gore invented the internet - that attempts to explain the burning of the weapons prophesied in Ezekiel 39:9.  To spare us all embarrassment, I present the following information concerning a material called "lignostone."

The urban legend sprung up when many eschatologists, convinced that the U.S.S.R. was "Magog" and that their invasion of Israel was imminent (remember, Hal Lindsey suggested in Late, Great Planet Earth that the party would be over "within 40 years or so" of 1948), were speculating on how the weapons of war, usually made of metal, could be burned as fuel for seven years, replacing wood that would otherwise be taken from the forests.  The answer seemed to be lignostone, which is simply compressed plywood.  According to an open letter allegedly sent to Leonid Brezhnev, then the General Secretary of the Soviet Union, this material was being used as a substitute for steel in armaments.  It was purported to be well-suited for military applications because of its strength, cost, weight, and invisibility to radar.

Not quite.  The product is flexible, making it generally unsuitable for military use.  Its invisibility to radar simply means radar can detect what is behind it: the inner workings of the tank or truck.  It begins to burn only at high temperatures but burns at the same temperature as any other wood product.

What the Soviets were using for weapons in the 1970's and 1980's is now common knowledge, and they were NOT using lignostone.  While it's conceivable that hand-held weapons having wooden components could substitute something like lignostone, it is not likely that metal parts could be replaced with wood.

This is not to say that Ezekiel 39 will not be fulfilled literally.  I believe it will be, but we don't yet know how.  My purpose is to protect those of you who may have heard of lignostone by telling you "the rest of the story" so you don't assert that lignostone weapons will be burned, and then lose all credibility when someone who hears you visits the following link:

http://ameriwiki.org/index.php?title=Lignostone

Very best,

Steve
Anakypto Forum

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