There are specific warnings in the bible about those that make claims about specific details and then attach God and His holy spirit to those claims. Yet, many individuals have done just that very thing, and in doing so, convinced millions of others to believe these claims are true. But every time a claim has been made, it was proven false for the simple fact that nothing happened.
I am going to focus on the dates picked by the Witnesses, beginning with C.T. Russell. Sure, there were other groups before the jws that attempted the same thing. Setting a date for a specific event to occur. But those earlier ones have faded off into history as failures. The Witnesses however, continue to hold on to their calculations, and continue to preach about them. But before I go into the dates, I want to list a couple of scriptures that warn against making these claims.
Jesus tells his followers in Acts 1:6,7 that it is none of their business when they asked him about when the kingdom would be restored right now.
"They therefore who were come together, asked him, saying: Lord, wilt thou at
this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? But he said to them: It is not for you to know the times or moments, which the
Father hath put in his own power"
Luke 21:8 goes a step further. Notice what Jesus says.
"He replied: "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name,
claiming, 'I am he,' and, 'The time is near.' Do not follow them."
John 16:13 describes how the spirit operates.
"But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He
will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell
you what is yet to come.'
Dueteronomy 18:20-22 shows how God feels about this.
"But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him
to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to
death. You may say to yourselves, "How can we know when a message has not been spoken
by the LORD? If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come
true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken
presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him."
These scriptures set the criteria for us when examining anyone that sets dates and claims these are given to them by God's holy spirit. It is pretty cut and dry. The spirit guides you to the truth, but anyone that is making false claims is not to be followed or feared. God even said to put those ones to death. So we can see it is not something to be taken lightly. Now let's check out those dates.
C.T. Russell's chronology was the following.
1799---when the last days began.
1874---the start of Jesus' invisible presence.
1878---Jesus became king in heaven.
1914---End of the world.
Note the following:
"The chapter in SCRIPTURE STUDIES, Vol. II, showing the parallels between the Jewish and Christian Dispensations, makes prominent four dates, viz., (1) October, 1874; (2) April, 1878; (3) October, 1881, and (4) October, 1914;" Watch Tower 1911 June 15 p.190
"The careful student will have observed that the period designated 'The Time of the End' is very appropriately named, since not only does the Gospel age close in it, but in it, also, all prophesies relating to the close of this age terminate, reaching their fulfillments. The same class of readers will have noticed, too, the special importance of the last 40 of these 115 years (1874-1914), called 'The End' or 'Harvest.'" Studies in the Scriptures Series III - Thy Kingdom Come p.121
Russell thought that the Harvest would not include the whole world, just the Christian church that would be cleaned up. The rest of the world would not recognize what was happening.
Many of the current jws don't even know about 1799. They do not realize that this was the original accepted date for when the last days began.
"THE "Time of the End," a period of one hundred and fifteen (115) years, from A.D. 1799 to A.D. 1914, is particularly marked in the Scriptures. "The Day of His Preparation" is another name given to the same period " Studies in the Scriptures Series 3 Thy Kingdom Come p.23
The 1799 date was still being taught well after Russell's death. I found this in a book titled "The Harp of God" 1921. It states the following.
"The Lord has caused Daniel to record specifically what would happen when the time of the end sould begin. The "time of the end" means a specific time period at the end of gentile dominion. "And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him; and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown." Daniel 11:40,41.
"The fulfillment of this prophecy fixes the beginning of "the time of the end", because the prophecy definitely so states. The campaign of the great warrior Napoleon Bonaparte is clearly a fulfillment of this prophecy, as reference to the historical facts concerning his campaign plainly show. The 'king of the south' mentioned in the prophecy is refers to Egypt; the "king of the north" means Great Britain, which was then an integral part of the Roman Empire. Napoleon was in Egypt fighting the Egyptian armies, which were led by Murat Bey, and which he defeated. His victory not only struck terror to the Egyptians, but far into Africa and Asia, and all of the surrounding tribes submitted to the great conqueror. While he was doing this, the British in the north, under the leadership of Lord Nelson, were making an effective attack on Napoleon's forces at sea. Napoleon began this Egyptian campaign in 1798, finished it and returned to France on October1, 1799. The campaign is breifly, yet graphically, described in the prophecy, verses 40 to 44; and being completed in 1799, marks, according to the prophet's own words, the beginning of the "time of the end."
1874 was a crucial date for Russell.
The second advent of our Lord in the end or harvest of the Gospel age, occurring in the fall of 1874, proves to be at a point of time exactly parallel to the time of his first advent, in the end of the Jewish age. ... the Jubilee Cycles show October 1874 to be the date of our Lord s return. ... While the time-prophecies thus point to and harmonize with 1874 as the date of our Lord s second presence, assuring us of the fact with mathematical precision, we find ourselves overwhelmed with evidence of another character; for certain peculiar signs, foretold by the Lord and the apostles and prophets, which were to precede his coming, are now clearly recognised as actually fulfilled. ... The cleansing of the sanctuary was also accomplished as predicted, and at a time sufficiently in advance of 1874 to make ready "a people prepared for the Lord" a people in devout expectancy of his coming"" The Time of the Harvest (1911 ed.) pp.125,127,129
And again, still being taught well after Russell was gone.
"“The Scriptural proof is that the period of his presence and the day of God's preparation is a period from 1874 A.D. forward. The second coming of the Lord, therefore, began in 1874; and that date and the years 1914 and 1918 are specially marked dates with reference to his coming. “Prophecy can not be understood until it has been fulfilled or is in the course of fulfillment. From 1874 to 1914 the prophecy concerning the Lord's coming was being fulfilled and could be understood, and was understood, by those who were faithful to the Lord and who were watching the development of events, but not by others."” Creation 1927 2,175,000 ed. p.289
The jws are well known for pointing at what is happening in the world as "proof" of something to support their claims. The 1927 creation book does not disappoint. Notice this hilarious list of "proof".
"But mention is made of some of those things that have come to light since 1874, as a further evidence of the Lord's presence since that date, as follows: Adding machines, aeroplanes, aluminium, antiseptic surgery, artificial dyes, automatic couplers, automobiles, barbed wire, bicycles, carborundum, cash registers, celluloid, cream separators, disc plows, electric railways, electric welding, elevators, escalators, fireless cookers, gas engines, harvesting machines, illuminating gas, induction motors, linotypes, monotypes, motion pictures, pasteurization, radium, railway signals, Roentgen rays, skyscrapers, smokeless powder, submarines, subways, talking machines, telephones, television, typewriters, vacuum cleaners, wireless telegraphy and wireless telephony." Creation 1927 2,175,000 ed. p.297
1878 was thought to be when Jesus would become king and grant the anointed ones their heavenly reward by resurection or rapture.
... "the spring of 1878 as the time when he would assume his power as heavenly King. They also thought they would be given their heavenly reward at that time." Jehovah's Witnesses - Proclaimers of God's Kingdom p. 632
"Expecting the Lord Jesus to come in 1878 to catch them up miraculously to be with him in heaven, some who had been Second Adventists (including Barbour) were disappointed when that miracle did not occur. Russell, though, "did not for a moment feel cast down," but "realized that what God had so plainly declared must some time have a fulfillment"; and he "wanted to have it just in God's time and way."
On one occasion while talking with Russell about the events of 1878, I told him that Pittsburgh papers had reported he was on the Sixth Street bridge dressed in a white robe on the night of the Memorial of Christ's death, expecting to be taken to heaven together with many others. I asked him, "Is that correct?"
Russell laughed heartily and said: "I was in bed that night between 10:30 and 11:00 P.M. However, some of the more radical ones might have been there, but I was not. Neither did I expect to be taken to heaven at that time, for I felt there was much work to be done preaching the Kingdom message to the peoples of the earth before the church would be taken away." FAITH ON THE MARCH pp.26-27
1914 is probably the most noteworthy date for the jws. It is interesting to see the metamorphasis of that date from when it was first taught down to now. Originally, it was when Armageddon would come. Here are some quotes from various literature.
"Now, in view of recent labor troubles and threatened anarchy, our readers are writing to know if there may not be a mistake in the 1914 date. They do not see how present conditions can hold out so long under the strain. We see no reason for changing the figures - nor could we change them if we would. They are, we believe, God's dates, not ours. But bear in mind that the end of 1914 is not the date for the beginning, but for the end of the time of trouble." Zions Watch Tower 1894 July 15 p.226
"The seventh trumpet sounds from Aug. 1840, until "the time of trouble," or day of wrath is ended. Hence, it doubtless ends with the times of the Gentiles, and this forty years of conquest; and therefore, sounds until A. D. 1914; at the end of which, Babylon the great, will have fallen, and the "dragon" be bound: that is, the nations will be subdued, and "the prince of this world cast out."" Three Worlds and The Harvest of This World (1877) p.143
" we have seen that God has a set time for every feature of his plan, and that we are even now in this "Day of Vengeance," which is a period of forty years; that it began in October, 1874, and will end in October, 1914 [very shortly]." Studies In the Scriptures Series IV - The Day of Vengeance -pp.546, 547
Pretty clear to see that 1914 was to be the end of this system, when Satan would be cast out.
Unfortunately, nothing happened. All of these predictions failed. so the jws had to change everything in order to survive. That's why you no longer hear about 1799, 1874, 1878, and other dates that were thought to have meaning back then. Those dates have been buried to avoid the embarassment of many false claims that were made. Of course, without some urgent message, the jws would have been classified as just another christian sect. Another end times religion that made false predictions.
What are they saying about 1914 now? Check out these quotes.
"The Watchtower has consistently presented evidence that Jesus' presence in heavenly Kingdom power began in 1914. Events since that year testify to Jesus' presence. Jehovah's Witnesses have consistently shown from the Scriptures that the year 1914 marked the beginning of this world's time of the end and that "the day of judgment and of destruction of the ungodly men" has drawn near." Watchtower 1993 Jan 15 pp.5,9
"How did Jehovah's Witnesses know more than 30 years in advance that 1914 would be an important date for divine rulership? Though the Witnesses at the time did not understand the full implication of events about to take place, the Watch Tower magazine as far back as December of 1879 pointed to 1914 as a marked date in regard to Bible prophecy. And the March 1880 issue of the Watch Tower linked God's Kingdom rule with the ending of what Jesus Christ referred to as "the appointed times of the nations," or "the times of the Gentiles." (Luke 21:24; Authorized Version) That Watch Tower said: "'The Times of the Gentiles' extend to 1914, and the heavenly kingdom will not have full sway till then."" Watchtower 1984 Apr 1 p. 6 1914 a Marked Year-Why?
"Even earlier, however, C. T. Russell wrote an article entitled "Gentile Times: When Do They End?" It was published in the Bible Examiner of October 1876, and therein Russell said: "The seven times will end in A.D. 1914." He had correctly linked the Gentile Times with the "seven times" mentioned in the book of Daniel. (Dan. 4:16, 23, 25, 32) True to such calculations, 1914 did mark the end of those times and the birth of God's kingdom in heaven with Christ Jesus as king. Just think of it! Jehovah granted his people that knowledge nearly four decades before those times expired." Yearbook 1975 p.37
"As for the time of Christ's second presence, Daniel's prophecy is again the one that gives the chronology for it. (Dan. 4:16) It was figured out as pointing to A.D. 1914, and The Watchtower called notice to the significance of 1914 in the year 1879." Watchtower 1952 Nov 1 p.658
"For over thirty years before that date and for half a century since, Jehovah's witnesses have pointed to the year 1914 as the time for the end of "the appointed times of the nations" and the time in which Christ would begin his Kingdom rule. (Luke 21:24)" Watchtower 1966 Feb 15 p.103
Very dishonest and disgusting. Of course, they cannot simply admit that they were wrong. So they lie about what was being taught in the early days. The sad thing is that current members of this religion will never know about this unless they stray outside of the walls that are forbidden for them to do so.
Enter the year 1925. and the slogan "Millions Now Living Will Never Die." Really? Let's check out what was being said back then.
"Seventy jubilees of fifty years each would be a total of 3500 years. That period of time beginning 1575 before A.D. 1 of necessity would end in the fall of the year 1925, at which time the type ends and the great antitype must begin. What, then, should we expect to take place? The chief thing to be restored is the human race to life; and since other Scriptures definitely fix the fact that there will be a resurrection of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and other faithful ones of old, and that these will have the first favour, we may expect 1925 to witness the return of these faithful men of Israel from the condition of death, being resurrected and fully restored to perfect humanity and made the visible, legal representatives of the new order of things on earth." Millions Now Living Will Never Die p.88
"Hence these faithful men may be expected on earth within the next few years." The Harp of God p.340 1921
"The year 1926 would therefore begin about October first, 1925. We should, therefore, expect shortly after 1925 to see the awakening of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Melchisedec, Job, Moses, Samuel, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, John the Baptist, and others mentioned in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews. ... No doubt many boys and girls who read this book will live to see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Daniel, and those other men of old come forth in the glory of their better resurrection, of perfect in mind and body. It will not take long for Christ to appoint them to their post of honor and authority as his earthly representatives. The world and all the present conveniences will seen strange to them at first, but they will soon become accustomed to the new methods. They may have some amusing experiences at first; for they never saw telephones, radios, automobiles, electric lights, aeroplanes, steam engines, and many other things so familiar to us." The Way to Paradise (1924) pp.224,226
Sound familiar? Well, buckle up for the next comments.
"The Bible and "The Bible in Stone" [the Pyramid of Giza] give the date 1914: for the beginning of the great change. History proves that the ouster proceedings began promptly on time. Prophecy indicates that 1925-1926 will see the greater part of the ousting completed. All the world's statesmen are dreading the next few years." p.171
"Seventy times 50 are 3,500. The whole period would therefore have been 3,500 years from the time the Jews entered Canaan until all the types would have been fulfilled. As they entered Canaan 1,575 years before Christ there would be 1,925 years of types after Christ, or 1925 A. D." p.223
"Of course it will take some time to get things in smoothly running order after the great stress between now and 1926. It may be ten years or more before you get your home all fixed up, and the gardens bringing forth the luscious fruits and appetizing vegetables in abundance. Even if it takes a while longer you will be that much better prepared. You will have secured the services of the best decorators you can find. Some of them used to be undertakers; but since there are no more people dying, they have had to seek some new occupation. Their experience as undertakers prepared them to become decorators with very little difficulty." p.228
All of those from the Way to Paradise book written in 1925. Oh, and to make sure you do not have any doubts about what they were writing,
"... this chronology is not of man, but of God.... the addition of more proofs removes it entirely from the realm of chance into that of proven certainty.... the chronology of present truth [is]... not of human origin." Watch Tower 1922 July 1 p.217
So these claims came from God, not from man. They became rather boastful.
"We cannot be blamed for presenting from the Scriptures such evidence as they afford which leads us to believe that a certain event will take place at a given time. Some times the Lord has let His people looking for the right thing at the wrong time, and more frequently they have looked for the wrong things at the right time. But all the enemies of the cause of present truth in the earth are fervently hoping that the Bible students will not be so successful in 1925 in looking for the right thing at the right time as they were in 1914. if they are, however, it will be the other fellow that will have to do the explaining, and not we." Golden Age 1924 Feb 13 p.314
Well, what happened? NOTHING. All of these claims and predictions failed once again. And what was their statement afterwards?
"Question: Have the ancient worthies returned? Answer: "Certainly they have not returned. No one has seen them, and it would be foolish to make such an announcement. It was stated in the 'Millions' book that we might reasonably expect them to return shortly after 1925, but this was merely an expressed opinion; besides it is still shortly after 1925. ... Some anticipated that the work would end in 1925, but the Lord did not state so. The difficulty was that the friends inflated their imaginations beyond reason; and that when their imaginations burst asunder, they were inclined to throw away everything." Watch Tower 1926 pp.196, 232
Inflated their imaginations? Give me a break. You would think though after so many failures that these guys would learn not to set any specific dates.
And then came the year 1975.
I'm just going to let the quotes speak for themselves.
"Does God's rest day parallel the time man has been on earth since his creation? Apparently so. In what year, then, would the first 6,000 years of man's existence and also the first 6,000 years of Gods rest day come to an end? The year 1975. It means that within a relatively few years we will witness the fulfilment of the remaining prophecies that have to do with the "time of the end"." Awake! 1966 Oct 8 pp.19-20
"It did not take the brothers very long to find the chart beginning on page 31, showing that 6,000 years of man's existence end in 1975. Discussion of 1975 overshadowed about everything else. "The new book compels us to realize that Armageddon is, in fact, very close indeed," said a conventioner. Surely it was one of the outstanding blessings to be carried home!" .. Brother Franz. 'Does it mean that Armageddon is going to be finished, with Satan bound, by 1975? It could! It could! All things are possible with God. Does it mean that Babylon the Great is going to go down by 1975? It could. Does it mean that the attack of Gog of Magog is going to be made on Jehovah's witnesses to wipe them out, then Gog himself will be put out of action? It could. But we are not saying. All things are possible with God. But we are not saying. And don't any of you be specific in saying anything that is going to happen between now and 1975. But the big point of it all is this, dear friends: Time is short. Time is running out, no question about that." Watchtower 1966 Oct 15 pp.629,631
"Well now, as Jehovah's Witnesses, as runners, even though some of us have become a little weary, it almost seems as though Jehovah has provided meat in due season. Because he's held up before all of us, a new goal. A new year. Something to reach out for and it just seems it has given all of us so much more energy and power in this final burst of speed to the finish line. And that's the year 1975. Well, we don't have to guess what the year 1975 means if we read the Watchtower. And don't wait 'till 1975. The door is going to be shut before then. As one brother put it, "Stay alive to Seventy-Five""
"The immediate future is certain to be filled with climactic events, for this old system is nearing its complete end. Within a few years at most the final parts of Bible prophecy relative to these "last days" will undergo fulfilment." Watchtower 1968 May 1 p.272
One thing is absolutely certain, Bible chronology reinforced with fulfilled Bible prophecy shows that six thousand years of man's existence will soon be up, yes, within this generation! (Matt. 24:34) This is, therefore, no time to be indifferent and complacent. This is not the time to be toying with the words of Jesus that "concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father." (Matt. 24:36) To the contrary, it is a time when one should be keenly aware that the end of this system of things is rapidly coming to its violent end. Make no mistake, it is sufficient that the Father himself knows both the "day and hour"!
"The fact that fifty-four years of the period called the "last days" have already gone by is highly significant. It means that only a few years, at most, remain before the corrupt system of things dominating the earth is destroyed by God." Awake! 1968 Oct 8 p.13
"Many schools now have student counselors who encourage one to pursue higher education after high school, to pursue a career with a future in this system of things. Do not be influenced by them. Do not let them "brainwash" you with the Devil's propaganda to get ahead, to make something of yourself in this world. This world has very little time left! Any "future" this world offers is no future! Wisely, then, let God's Word influence you in selecting a course that will result in your protection and blessing. Make pioneer service, the full-time ministry, with the possibility of Bethel or missionary service your goal. This is a life that offers an everlasting future!" Watchtower 1969 Mar 15 p.171
"If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years. Of the generation that observed the beginning of the "last days" in 1914, Jesus foretold: "This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur."-Matt. 24:34. Therefore, as a young person, you will never fulfill any career that this system offers. If you are in highschool and thinking about a college education, it means at least four, perhaps even six or eight more years to graduate into a specialized career. But where will this system of things be by that time? It will be well on the way toward its finish, if not actually gone!" Awake! 1969 May 22 p.15
"Bible chronology which indicates that Adam was created in the fall of the year 4026 B.C.E. would bring us down to the year 1975 C.E. as the date marking 6,000 years of human history with yet 1,000 years to come for Christ's Kingdom rule. So whatever the date for the end of this system, it is clear that the time left is reduced, with only approximately six years left until the end of 6,000 years of human history." Watchtower 1970 May 1 p.273
"Yes, since the summer of 1973 there have been new peaks in pioneers every month. Now there are 20,394 regular and special pioneers in the United States, an all-time peak. That is 5,190 more than there were in February 1973! A 34-percent increase! Does that not warm our hearts? Reports are heard of brothers selling their homes and property and planning to finish out the rest of their days in this old system in the pioneer service. Certainly this is a fine way to spend the short time remaining before the wicked world's end." Kingdom Ministry May 1974 p.3 How Are You Using Your Life?
"Today there is a great crowd of people who are confident that a destruction of even greater magnitude is now imminent. The evidence is that Jesus' prophecy will shortly have a major fulfilment, upon this entire system of things. This has been a major factor in influencing many couples to decide not to have children at this time." Awake! 1974 Nov 8 p.11
"Since there is such a short time left, study no longer than six months with a prospective convert." WT 5/15/1969 p. 312
Easy to discern what the expectations were. So what happened when 1975 came?
NOTHING!!! Again, a set date of certainty falls by the wayside. And with it came the excuses....again.
"It may be that some who have been serving God have planned their lives according to a mistaken view of just what was to happen on a certain date or in a certain year. They may have, for this reason, put off or neglected things that they otherwise would have cared for. But they have missed the point of the Bible’s warnings concerning the end of this system of things, thinking that Bible chronology reveals the specific date."
"But it is not advisable for us to set our sights on a certain date, neglecting everyday things we would ordinarily care for as Christians, such as things that we and our families really need. We may be forgetting that, when the “day” comes, it will not change the principle that Christians must at all times take care of all their responsibilities. If anyone has been disappointed through not following this line of thought, he should now concentrate on adjusting his viewpoint, seeing that it was not the word of God that failed or deceived him and brought disappointment, but that his own understanding was based on wrong premises."
The Watchtower 1976 Jul 15 pp.440-441
"In modern times such eagerness, commendable in itself, has led to attempts at setting dates for the desired liberation from the suffering and troubles that are the lot of persons throughout the earth. With the appearance of the book Life Everlasting-in Freedom of the Sons of God, and its comments as to how appropriate it would be for the millennial reign of Christ to parallel the seventh millennium of man's existence, considerable expectation was aroused regarding the year 1975. There were statements made then, and thereafter, stressing that this was only a possibility. Unfortunately, however, along with such cautionary information, there were other statements published that implied that such realization of hopes by that year was more of a probability than a mere possibility . It is to be regretted that these latter statements apparently overshadowed the cautionary ones and contributed to a buildup of the expectation already initiated. The Watchtower 1980 March 15 p.17
There is an obvious set pattern at work here. For an end times religion to survive, it needs to generate some type of excitement, fear, hype, and base it on prophecies from the bible, and some calculated formula cooked up in order to stimulate interest. Join us and live forever, ignore us and die. The problem is that the very bible itself condemns these groups that come along and prey on people's emotions. I posted scriptures at the beginning of this section. A criterian was set. Let's review each verse and see how the jws stand up to it.
Acts 1:6,7--"They therefore who were come together, asked him, saying: Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? But he said to them: It is not for you to know the times or moments, which the Father hath put in his own power"
Not for them to know, yet they claim that God is the one behind all of their information, that He is providing it. Clearly they didn't understand what Jesus meant here.
Luke 21:8--"He replied: "Watch out that you are not deceived. For many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and, 'The time is near.' Do not follow them."
Uh-oh. How many times did their set dates fail? Jesus specifically said not to follow them.
John 16:13--"But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.'
If the spirit guides one into truth, there would be no mistakes made. No dates would have failed had the spirit been guiding them along. Easy to see that this was not the case.
Dueteronomy 18:20-22--"But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded him to say, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, must be put to death. You may say to yourselves, "How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD? If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him."
This leaves no wiggle room at all. They taught it. They preached it. They tried to hide/change it. They tried to blame it on others. And they used God to attempt to back their claims.
Examining the history of the Witnesses exposes them for what they really are. Everything is in print for all to see.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Apostasy!
The position taken by the JWs on Apostasy is an interesting one. Especially when considering their past statements over the years. At one time, there was no fear of having their doctrines examined by anyone, in fact they extended an open invitation to all. But then things changed. In this section, I will share quotes made from the JWs from past articles. I will examine the definition of Apostasy and how the wording changes with the JWs definition. And I will examine whether the word Apostasy was used in the bible the way the JWs use it in their nwt.
There was a time when the JWs were confident about their views/doctrines. They supported those that examined things closely. Here are a few quotes from past literature that show this.
"We should prove by the Word of God whether the things found in the Watchtower are from man or from the Lord." wt/5/1/1934, p.131
"The Watchtower invites careful and critical examination of its contents in light of the scriptures." wt 8/15/1950, p.263
"It is not persecution for an informed person to expose a certain religion as being false." wt 11/15/1963, p.688
"The best method of proof is to put a prophecy to the test of time and circumstances." wt 3/1/1965, p.151
"Contrary to what some may think, it is not unkind and unloving to lay bare falsehood and corruption." wt 3/1/1966, p.132
"Examine the evidence. Reasonable persons want to examine both sides of a matter. That is how one arrives at the truth." a 10/22/1973, p.6
Those are only a few of many statements over the years that basically said it was okay to dig deep for the real truth. And if you found something, you should make it known. One thing that was rarely brought up was warnings of Apostasy. But this all changed in the mid to late 1970s.
The failure of the year 1975 caused many members to leave the JWs. And the ones that remained began to raise eyebrows at what was being taught. Over the next few years, an internal witch hunt among the WT Society would see many long time members, loyal servants of the JWs, get excommunicated. Why? Apostasy!!! Ah yes, apparently now, it was considered Apostasy to question the doctrines of the JWs. Some of these individuals would go on to write books that closely examined these doctrines in question. Some knew the inner workings of the WTS (watchtower society), and shared this with the public. One man was asked to prove the 607/1914 date was correct by someone he was studying with. He promised that he would research the topic. Seven years later, he came to the conclusion that the dates were wrong. Since it was encouraged to bring any evidence of a mistake to the table, this person prepared a treatise with all of the information he had found. And for his honesty and wanting to help clarify an obvious mistake made by the WTS, he was disfellowshipped for Apostasy.
So a major change happened during this time. The once proud religion that wanted people to examine their teachings suddenly became aggressive towards anyone that did this, especially if it was one of their own. The word Apostasy began showing up in their literature. Here are a few quotes from various articles.
Have No Dealings With Apostates
7 Now, what will you do if you are confronted with apostate teachings, —subtle reasonings —claiming that what you believe as one of Jehovah's Witnesses is not the truth? For example, what will you do if you receive a letter or some literature, open it, and see right away that it is from an apostate? Will curiosity cause you to read it, just to see what he has to say? You may even reason: 'It won't affect me; I'm too strong in the truth. And, besides, if we have the truth, we have nothing to fear. The truth will stand the test.' In thinking this way, some have fed their minds upon apostate reasoning and have fallen prey to serious questioning and doubt. (Compare James 1:5-8.) So remember the warning at 1 Corinthians 10:12: "Let him that thinks he is standing beware that he does not fall."
8 With loving help from caring brothers, some having doubts sown by apostates have recovered after a period of spiritual turmoil and trauma. But this pain could have been avoided. At Proverbs 11:9 we are told: "By his mouth the one who is an apostate brings his fellowman to ruin, but by knowledge are the righteous rescued." Jude told fellow Christians to "continue showing mercy to some that have doubts; save them by snatching them out of the fire." (Jude 22, 23) Paul advised the overseer Timothy to instruct "with mildness those not favorably disposed; as perhaps God may give them repentance leading to an accurate knowledge of truth, and they may come back to their proper senses out from the snare of the Devil, seeing that they have been caught alive by him for the will of that one."—2 Timothy 2:25, 26. Watchtower 1986 March 15 pp.10-15 'Do Not Be Quickly Shaken From Your Reason'
Watchtower 1982 April 1 p. 27 Survival or Destruction at the "Great Tribulation"Now, the Bible definitely shows that some end up in the symbolic Gehenna before the 1,000-year Judgment Day begins. Jesus told the unrepentant scribes and Pharisees that they and their Gentile proselytes were 'subjects for Gehenna' or, literally, 'sons of Gehenna.' (Matthew 23:15, 33-35; see also John 9:39-41; 15:22-24.) If even a proselyte of the Pharisees became a subject for Gehenna 'twice as much so as themselves,' how much more so Judas Iscariot, who made a heinous deal with them to betray God's Son! Jesus implied this when he called Judas "the son of destruction." (John 17:12) Similarly, unrepentant apostates go, at death, not to Sheol, or Hades, but to Gehenna. (Hebrews 6:4-8; 2 Peter 2:1) The same is true of dedicated Christians who persist in willful sin or those who "shrink back." (Hebrews 10:26-31, 38, 39) These are merely examples to show that some, even in "this system of things," have committed the sin for which there is no forgiveness, not even in the system of things "to come." (Matthew 12:31, 32; compare 1 John 5:16.) They will, therefore, not be resurrected.
Watchtower 1985 July 15 p.31 "Such ones [apostates] willfully abandoning the Christian congregation thereby become part of the 'antichrist.' (1 John 2:18, 19)"
Watchtower 1992 July 15 pp.12-13 Christ Hated Lawlessness-Do You? "The obligation to hate lawlessness also applies to all activity by apostates. Our attitude toward apostates should be that of David, who declared: "Do I not hate those who are intensely hating you."
Watchtower 1994 July 1 p.12 "For one thing, some of the apostate literature presents falsehoods by means of "smooth talk" and "counterfeit words." (Romans 16:17, 18; 2 Peter 2:3) What would you expect from the table of demons? ... Those who have continued to feed at Satan's spiritual table, the table of demons, will be forced to attend a literal meal, no, not as partakers, but as the main course-to their destruction!"
Watchtower 1993 November 1 p.19 "True Christians share Jehovah's feelings toward such apostates; they are not curious about apostate ideas. On the contrary, they "feel a loathing" toward those who have made themselves God's enemies, but they leave it to Jehovah to execute vengeance."
Watchtower 2000 May 1 p.10 "Some apostates are increasingly using various forms of mass communication, including the Internet, to spread false information about Jehovah's Witnesses."
Watchtower 2004 Feb 15 p.28"It would be a mistake to think that you need to listen to apostates or to read their writings to refute their arguments. Their twisted, poisonous reasoning can cause spiritual harm and can contaminate your faith like rapidly spreading gangrene. (2 Timothy 2:16, 17) Rather, imitate God's response to apostates. Job said of Jehovah: "Before him no apostate will come in." - Job 13:16."
Watchtower 2011 Jul 15 p.11 "Apostates “quietly” bring their ideas into the congregation, like criminals who secretly bring things into a country. Apostates use “counterfeit words.” This means that they say things that make their false ideas sound true, like criminals who make false documents look real. They try to get as many people as possible to believe their “deceptive teachings.” Peter also said that they like twisting the Scriptures. They explain Bible verses in the wrong way to make others believe their ideas. (2 Peter 2:1, 3, 13; 3:16) Apostates do not care about us. If we follow them, we will leave the road to everlasting life.
... The Bible says that apostates are mentally diseased and that they use their teachings to make others think like them. (1 Timothy 6:3, 4) Jehovah is like that good doctor. He clearly tells us to stay away from false teachers. We must always be determined to follow his warning.
What must we do to avoid false teachers? We do not speak to them or invite them into our houses. We also do not read their books, watch them on television, read what they write on the Internet, or add our own comments about what they write on the Internet. Why are we so determined to avoid them? First of all, it is because we love “the God of truth.” So we do not want to listen to false teachings that go against the truth in God’s Word."
Examining the Scriptures Daily 2011 Aug 18 p.83 "Satan was the first creature to turn apostate. Modern-day apostates display characteristics similar to those of the Devil. Their mind may be poisoned by a critical attitude toward individuals in the congregations, Christian elders, or the Governing Body. Some apostates oppose the use of the divine name, Jehovah. They are not interested in learning about Jehovah or in serving him. Like their father, Satan, apostates target people of integrity. (John 8:44) No wonder servants of Jehovah avoid all contact with them!"
Can you see how the attitude changed from the first quotes I posted to these ones about Apostates? Members were once encouraged to examine everything. Now they are told to avoid anything or anyone that raises questions about their doctrines, or the people that write them. The language has become very strong and bitter. Satan was the first Apostate? Apostates are mentally diseased? Apostates are like criminals? Wow....Really? Because a person finds something questionable about one of the doctrines taught by the JWs, and they want to ask about it, they can look forward to receiving this barrage of insults. By questioning them at all, not only are you just like Satan, you are also mentally diseased and are just like a criminal.
And although it was rarely brought up before the 1970s, there was this chilling quote from the 11-15-52 watchtower.
" Being limited by the laws of the worldly nation in which we live and also by the laws of God through Jesus Christ, we can take action against apostates only to a certain extent, that is, consistent with both sets of laws. The law of the land and God’s law through Christ forbid us to kill apostates, even though they be members of our own flesh-and-blood family relationship. However, God’s law requires us to recognize their being disfellowshiped from his congregation, and this despite the fact that the law of the land in which we live requires us under some natural obligation to live with and have dealings with such apostates under the same roof."
Whoa now. Let's go back to what it means to be an Apostate. Here is the definition from a common dictionary. "One who abandon's one's religious faith, a political party, one's principles, or a cause."
A person can be guilty of Apostasy simply by leaving a religion. But now, notice the JWs definition of an Apostate.
"Persons who deliberately spread (stubbornly hold to and speak about) teachings contrary to Bible truth as taught by Jehovah's Witnesses are apostates." Pay Attention to Yourself and to All the Flock p.94
This isn't just simply leaving their religion. This is stating that if a person speaks out against a bible truth AS TAUGHT BY THE JWS, they are considered an Apostate. So what if they are teaching a false view and you see it? Well, you better not bring it up or you will be guilty of Apostasy under their definition.
This is all about control. They have built up a wall of defense, and are quick to blast anyone that approaches it. There no longer is the attitude to examine everything to find the real truth. They impose fear tactics by describing Apostates as assisting Satan, being unworthy of a resurrection, to be avoided, loathed and hated, referring to former Witnesses that speak out against the Watchtower Society or its doctrine. Oh, and let's not forget that they are mentally diseased.
Interestingly enough, a quote from their own literature shows just how hypocritical they are.
Awake June 22, 2000 'The Manipulation of Information'
"Some people insult those who disagree with them by questioning character or motives instead of focusing on the facts. Name-calling slaps a negative, easy-to-remember label onto a person, a group, or an idea. The name-caller hopes that the label will stick. If people reject the person or the idea on the basis of the negative label instead of weighing the evidence for themselves, the name-caller’s strategy has worked."
By slapping the Apostate label on anyone that even questions their teachings, they hope that their current members will reject anything that person brings forth as factual evidence without even examining what is there.
They have even gone to the trouble of putting the word Apostate in the bible, where it never existed in the first place. These are the verses where the NWT uses the word apostate: Job 8:13, 13:16, 17:8, 20:5, 27:8, 34:30, 36:13, Psalms 35:16, Prov. 11:9, and Isa. 10:6. The Hebrew word used in all of these verses is ×—× ×£ "chanef" which actually means godless, hypocrite, wicked, or evil doer. If you look up those verses in any other Bible translation, none use the word apostate. Let's test this out, shall we???
Job 8:13--Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless. NIV
If we cross reference this with other bibles, most use the word godless or hypocrite. Feel free to examine this yourself. Here are the rest of the ones listed.
Job 13:16--Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance, for no godless man would dare come before him!
Job 17:8--Upright men are appalled at this; the innocent are aroused against the ungodly.
Job 20:5--that the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment.
Job 27:8--For what hope has the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?
Job 34:30--to keep a godless man from ruling, from laying snares for the people.
Job 36:13--"The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help.
Psalms 35:16--Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me.
Proverbs 11:9--With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape.
Isaiah 10:6--I send him against a godless nation, I dispatch him against a people who anger me, to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets.
Godless is not the same as being an Apostate. A godless person does not recognize or worship a god. For them, no god exists, so why worship a non-existing deity?
A Hypocrite is not the same as an Apostate either. Hypocrites pretend to be something that they are not. A hypocrite would not turn against their religion. They would continue on, posing as a member even though they did not share the same beliefs. Ironically, by forcing current members of the JW community to stay silent, many of them fall into this category should they question the doctrines, yet refuse to speak out against them. They do not want to be branded an Apostate an get cut off from associating with their families and loved ones.
The truth should be able to stand on its own merits. So why should a person be threatened from examining all the evidence in order to find the truth? Why do the JWs not allow current members to ask questions about doctrines without asking them if they have been studying Apostate literature? What are they afraid of? If God is backing them, guiding them along with His holy spirit, wouldn't that have an effect on those interested in wanting to learn as much as possible? Those seeking the truth about God?
Simple answer to all of those questions. The JWs have been proven wrong. Their doctrines are false. And the fact that they threaten their current members with Apostasy so a person won't want to examine the evidence shows that they KNOW this. And that is very pathetic.
There was a time when the JWs were confident about their views/doctrines. They supported those that examined things closely. Here are a few quotes from past literature that show this.
"We should prove by the Word of God whether the things found in the Watchtower are from man or from the Lord." wt/5/1/1934, p.131
"The Watchtower invites careful and critical examination of its contents in light of the scriptures." wt 8/15/1950, p.263
"It is not persecution for an informed person to expose a certain religion as being false." wt 11/15/1963, p.688
"The best method of proof is to put a prophecy to the test of time and circumstances." wt 3/1/1965, p.151
"Contrary to what some may think, it is not unkind and unloving to lay bare falsehood and corruption." wt 3/1/1966, p.132
"Examine the evidence. Reasonable persons want to examine both sides of a matter. That is how one arrives at the truth." a 10/22/1973, p.6
Those are only a few of many statements over the years that basically said it was okay to dig deep for the real truth. And if you found something, you should make it known. One thing that was rarely brought up was warnings of Apostasy. But this all changed in the mid to late 1970s.
The failure of the year 1975 caused many members to leave the JWs. And the ones that remained began to raise eyebrows at what was being taught. Over the next few years, an internal witch hunt among the WT Society would see many long time members, loyal servants of the JWs, get excommunicated. Why? Apostasy!!! Ah yes, apparently now, it was considered Apostasy to question the doctrines of the JWs. Some of these individuals would go on to write books that closely examined these doctrines in question. Some knew the inner workings of the WTS (watchtower society), and shared this with the public. One man was asked to prove the 607/1914 date was correct by someone he was studying with. He promised that he would research the topic. Seven years later, he came to the conclusion that the dates were wrong. Since it was encouraged to bring any evidence of a mistake to the table, this person prepared a treatise with all of the information he had found. And for his honesty and wanting to help clarify an obvious mistake made by the WTS, he was disfellowshipped for Apostasy.
So a major change happened during this time. The once proud religion that wanted people to examine their teachings suddenly became aggressive towards anyone that did this, especially if it was one of their own. The word Apostasy began showing up in their literature. Here are a few quotes from various articles.
Have No Dealings With Apostates
7 Now, what will you do if you are confronted with apostate teachings, —subtle reasonings —claiming that what you believe as one of Jehovah's Witnesses is not the truth? For example, what will you do if you receive a letter or some literature, open it, and see right away that it is from an apostate? Will curiosity cause you to read it, just to see what he has to say? You may even reason: 'It won't affect me; I'm too strong in the truth. And, besides, if we have the truth, we have nothing to fear. The truth will stand the test.' In thinking this way, some have fed their minds upon apostate reasoning and have fallen prey to serious questioning and doubt. (Compare James 1:5-8.) So remember the warning at 1 Corinthians 10:12: "Let him that thinks he is standing beware that he does not fall."
8 With loving help from caring brothers, some having doubts sown by apostates have recovered after a period of spiritual turmoil and trauma. But this pain could have been avoided. At Proverbs 11:9 we are told: "By his mouth the one who is an apostate brings his fellowman to ruin, but by knowledge are the righteous rescued." Jude told fellow Christians to "continue showing mercy to some that have doubts; save them by snatching them out of the fire." (Jude 22, 23) Paul advised the overseer Timothy to instruct "with mildness those not favorably disposed; as perhaps God may give them repentance leading to an accurate knowledge of truth, and they may come back to their proper senses out from the snare of the Devil, seeing that they have been caught alive by him for the will of that one."—2 Timothy 2:25, 26. Watchtower 1986 March 15 pp.10-15 'Do Not Be Quickly Shaken From Your Reason'
Watchtower 1982 April 1 p. 27 Survival or Destruction at the "Great Tribulation"Now, the Bible definitely shows that some end up in the symbolic Gehenna before the 1,000-year Judgment Day begins. Jesus told the unrepentant scribes and Pharisees that they and their Gentile proselytes were 'subjects for Gehenna' or, literally, 'sons of Gehenna.' (Matthew 23:15, 33-35; see also John 9:39-41; 15:22-24.) If even a proselyte of the Pharisees became a subject for Gehenna 'twice as much so as themselves,' how much more so Judas Iscariot, who made a heinous deal with them to betray God's Son! Jesus implied this when he called Judas "the son of destruction." (John 17:12) Similarly, unrepentant apostates go, at death, not to Sheol, or Hades, but to Gehenna. (Hebrews 6:4-8; 2 Peter 2:1) The same is true of dedicated Christians who persist in willful sin or those who "shrink back." (Hebrews 10:26-31, 38, 39) These are merely examples to show that some, even in "this system of things," have committed the sin for which there is no forgiveness, not even in the system of things "to come." (Matthew 12:31, 32; compare 1 John 5:16.) They will, therefore, not be resurrected.
Watchtower 1985 July 15 p.31 "Such ones [apostates] willfully abandoning the Christian congregation thereby become part of the 'antichrist.' (1 John 2:18, 19)"
Watchtower 1992 July 15 pp.12-13 Christ Hated Lawlessness-Do You? "The obligation to hate lawlessness also applies to all activity by apostates. Our attitude toward apostates should be that of David, who declared: "Do I not hate those who are intensely hating you."
Watchtower 1994 July 1 p.12 "For one thing, some of the apostate literature presents falsehoods by means of "smooth talk" and "counterfeit words." (Romans 16:17, 18; 2 Peter 2:3) What would you expect from the table of demons? ... Those who have continued to feed at Satan's spiritual table, the table of demons, will be forced to attend a literal meal, no, not as partakers, but as the main course-to their destruction!"
Watchtower 1993 November 1 p.19 "True Christians share Jehovah's feelings toward such apostates; they are not curious about apostate ideas. On the contrary, they "feel a loathing" toward those who have made themselves God's enemies, but they leave it to Jehovah to execute vengeance."
Watchtower 2000 May 1 p.10 "Some apostates are increasingly using various forms of mass communication, including the Internet, to spread false information about Jehovah's Witnesses."
Watchtower 2004 Feb 15 p.28"It would be a mistake to think that you need to listen to apostates or to read their writings to refute their arguments. Their twisted, poisonous reasoning can cause spiritual harm and can contaminate your faith like rapidly spreading gangrene. (2 Timothy 2:16, 17) Rather, imitate God's response to apostates. Job said of Jehovah: "Before him no apostate will come in." - Job 13:16."
Watchtower 2011 Jul 15 p.11 "Apostates “quietly” bring their ideas into the congregation, like criminals who secretly bring things into a country. Apostates use “counterfeit words.” This means that they say things that make their false ideas sound true, like criminals who make false documents look real. They try to get as many people as possible to believe their “deceptive teachings.” Peter also said that they like twisting the Scriptures. They explain Bible verses in the wrong way to make others believe their ideas. (2 Peter 2:1, 3, 13; 3:16) Apostates do not care about us. If we follow them, we will leave the road to everlasting life.
... The Bible says that apostates are mentally diseased and that they use their teachings to make others think like them. (1 Timothy 6:3, 4) Jehovah is like that good doctor. He clearly tells us to stay away from false teachers. We must always be determined to follow his warning.
What must we do to avoid false teachers? We do not speak to them or invite them into our houses. We also do not read their books, watch them on television, read what they write on the Internet, or add our own comments about what they write on the Internet. Why are we so determined to avoid them? First of all, it is because we love “the God of truth.” So we do not want to listen to false teachings that go against the truth in God’s Word."
Examining the Scriptures Daily 2011 Aug 18 p.83 "Satan was the first creature to turn apostate. Modern-day apostates display characteristics similar to those of the Devil. Their mind may be poisoned by a critical attitude toward individuals in the congregations, Christian elders, or the Governing Body. Some apostates oppose the use of the divine name, Jehovah. They are not interested in learning about Jehovah or in serving him. Like their father, Satan, apostates target people of integrity. (John 8:44) No wonder servants of Jehovah avoid all contact with them!"
Can you see how the attitude changed from the first quotes I posted to these ones about Apostates? Members were once encouraged to examine everything. Now they are told to avoid anything or anyone that raises questions about their doctrines, or the people that write them. The language has become very strong and bitter. Satan was the first Apostate? Apostates are mentally diseased? Apostates are like criminals? Wow....Really? Because a person finds something questionable about one of the doctrines taught by the JWs, and they want to ask about it, they can look forward to receiving this barrage of insults. By questioning them at all, not only are you just like Satan, you are also mentally diseased and are just like a criminal.
And although it was rarely brought up before the 1970s, there was this chilling quote from the 11-15-52 watchtower.
" Being limited by the laws of the worldly nation in which we live and also by the laws of God through Jesus Christ, we can take action against apostates only to a certain extent, that is, consistent with both sets of laws. The law of the land and God’s law through Christ forbid us to kill apostates, even though they be members of our own flesh-and-blood family relationship. However, God’s law requires us to recognize their being disfellowshiped from his congregation, and this despite the fact that the law of the land in which we live requires us under some natural obligation to live with and have dealings with such apostates under the same roof."
Whoa now. Let's go back to what it means to be an Apostate. Here is the definition from a common dictionary. "One who abandon's one's religious faith, a political party, one's principles, or a cause."
A person can be guilty of Apostasy simply by leaving a religion. But now, notice the JWs definition of an Apostate.
"Persons who deliberately spread (stubbornly hold to and speak about) teachings contrary to Bible truth as taught by Jehovah's Witnesses are apostates." Pay Attention to Yourself and to All the Flock p.94
This isn't just simply leaving their religion. This is stating that if a person speaks out against a bible truth AS TAUGHT BY THE JWS, they are considered an Apostate. So what if they are teaching a false view and you see it? Well, you better not bring it up or you will be guilty of Apostasy under their definition.
This is all about control. They have built up a wall of defense, and are quick to blast anyone that approaches it. There no longer is the attitude to examine everything to find the real truth. They impose fear tactics by describing Apostates as assisting Satan, being unworthy of a resurrection, to be avoided, loathed and hated, referring to former Witnesses that speak out against the Watchtower Society or its doctrine. Oh, and let's not forget that they are mentally diseased.
Interestingly enough, a quote from their own literature shows just how hypocritical they are.
Awake June 22, 2000 'The Manipulation of Information'
"Some people insult those who disagree with them by questioning character or motives instead of focusing on the facts. Name-calling slaps a negative, easy-to-remember label onto a person, a group, or an idea. The name-caller hopes that the label will stick. If people reject the person or the idea on the basis of the negative label instead of weighing the evidence for themselves, the name-caller’s strategy has worked."
By slapping the Apostate label on anyone that even questions their teachings, they hope that their current members will reject anything that person brings forth as factual evidence without even examining what is there.
They have even gone to the trouble of putting the word Apostate in the bible, where it never existed in the first place. These are the verses where the NWT uses the word apostate: Job 8:13, 13:16, 17:8, 20:5, 27:8, 34:30, 36:13, Psalms 35:16, Prov. 11:9, and Isa. 10:6. The Hebrew word used in all of these verses is ×—× ×£ "chanef" which actually means godless, hypocrite, wicked, or evil doer. If you look up those verses in any other Bible translation, none use the word apostate. Let's test this out, shall we???
Job 8:13--Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless. NIV
If we cross reference this with other bibles, most use the word godless or hypocrite. Feel free to examine this yourself. Here are the rest of the ones listed.
Job 13:16--Indeed, this will turn out for my deliverance, for no godless man would dare come before him!
Job 17:8--Upright men are appalled at this; the innocent are aroused against the ungodly.
Job 20:5--that the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment.
Job 27:8--For what hope has the godless when he is cut off, when God takes away his life?
Job 34:30--to keep a godless man from ruling, from laying snares for the people.
Job 36:13--"The godless in heart harbor resentment; even when he fetters them, they do not cry for help.
Psalms 35:16--Like the ungodly they maliciously mocked; they gnashed their teeth at me.
Proverbs 11:9--With his mouth the godless destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous escape.
Isaiah 10:6--I send him against a godless nation, I dispatch him against a people who anger me, to seize loot and snatch plunder, and to trample them down like mud in the streets.
Godless is not the same as being an Apostate. A godless person does not recognize or worship a god. For them, no god exists, so why worship a non-existing deity?
A Hypocrite is not the same as an Apostate either. Hypocrites pretend to be something that they are not. A hypocrite would not turn against their religion. They would continue on, posing as a member even though they did not share the same beliefs. Ironically, by forcing current members of the JW community to stay silent, many of them fall into this category should they question the doctrines, yet refuse to speak out against them. They do not want to be branded an Apostate an get cut off from associating with their families and loved ones.
The truth should be able to stand on its own merits. So why should a person be threatened from examining all the evidence in order to find the truth? Why do the JWs not allow current members to ask questions about doctrines without asking them if they have been studying Apostate literature? What are they afraid of? If God is backing them, guiding them along with His holy spirit, wouldn't that have an effect on those interested in wanting to learn as much as possible? Those seeking the truth about God?
Simple answer to all of those questions. The JWs have been proven wrong. Their doctrines are false. And the fact that they threaten their current members with Apostasy so a person won't want to examine the evidence shows that they KNOW this. And that is very pathetic.
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Did the 1st Century Christians Follow a Governing Body?
The claim made by the witnesses is the following:
"While all anointed Christians collectively form God's household, there is abundant evidence that Christ chose a small number of men out of the slave class to serve as a visible governing body. The early history of the congregation shows that the 12 apostles, including Matthias, were the foundation of the first-century governing body." Watchtower 1990 Mar 15 p.11
Abundant evidence? Really? If there was an abundant amount of evidence, why does the term "governing body" not appear a single time in the bible? Wouldn't there have been some sort of qualifications that needed to be listed for future generations to keep this governing body intact?
The real facts show that this governing body never existed. Consider the history of the christians. They began in utter disarray, and had to be constantly told what they needed to be doing. Congregations were not firmly established yet. Doctrines were argued and fought over. There was a constant confusion about issues that would seem to us as relatively simple, such as the resurrection of Christ, and what the meaning was behind it. If there were a Governing Body leading the way, why didn't the people look to them for clarification?
There is only one example of any gathering together to clarify an issue. This happened in Acts 15 when the matter of the Jews wanting the Gentiles to be circumcised caused controversy. But notice how the bible says just who attended this meeting.
"Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question."
(appointed by whom? A governing body? Nope, just the local church where the dispute happened)
"When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them."
(Reported to a governing body? Nope. They shared their experiences with the Gentiles in order to win the dispute)
So a couple of missionaries along with some other believers were allowed to meet and discuss the matter with not only the 12 apostles, but elders from Jerusalem. This is nothing like the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses in modern times. As states the following article:
"Naturally, all elders must submit to Christ's "right hand" of control, guidance, and direction, which he exercises by means of the spirit and the spirit-begotten members of the Governing Body." Watchtower 1987 Aug 1 p.19
But how was the matter resolved back in Acts 15? In verse 19, James was the one that made the final decision. No vote was taken, at least there was nothing mentioned of any final discussion among the 12 apostles, who were supposedly members of the governing body. This would have been the chapter to highlight a final decision made by this group of leaders. But that never happened. Letters were sent out clarifying what had happened, and the 4 decrees were listed to keep the peace between the Jews and Gentiles.
Since no governing body was mentioned regarding a dispute that required a gathering of the more prominent ones from the christians, what about the directing of missionaries? Well, the first (and only) person to look at is Paul, who was the most influential christian from the 1st century. Galatians 1:1 says:
"This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead."
No human authority......like say...a governing body?
How about verses 11 and 12 of the same chapter.
"I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ."
If a governing body were present back then, wouldn't this statement warrant an immediate disfellowshipping?
How about one more. Verses 15-20.
"But when God, who set me apart from birtha and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
"While all anointed Christians collectively form God's household, there is abundant evidence that Christ chose a small number of men out of the slave class to serve as a visible governing body. The early history of the congregation shows that the 12 apostles, including Matthias, were the foundation of the first-century governing body." Watchtower 1990 Mar 15 p.11
Abundant evidence? Really? If there was an abundant amount of evidence, why does the term "governing body" not appear a single time in the bible? Wouldn't there have been some sort of qualifications that needed to be listed for future generations to keep this governing body intact?
The real facts show that this governing body never existed. Consider the history of the christians. They began in utter disarray, and had to be constantly told what they needed to be doing. Congregations were not firmly established yet. Doctrines were argued and fought over. There was a constant confusion about issues that would seem to us as relatively simple, such as the resurrection of Christ, and what the meaning was behind it. If there were a Governing Body leading the way, why didn't the people look to them for clarification?
There is only one example of any gathering together to clarify an issue. This happened in Acts 15 when the matter of the Jews wanting the Gentiles to be circumcised caused controversy. But notice how the bible says just who attended this meeting.
"Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question."
(appointed by whom? A governing body? Nope, just the local church where the dispute happened)
"When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them."
(Reported to a governing body? Nope. They shared their experiences with the Gentiles in order to win the dispute)
So a couple of missionaries along with some other believers were allowed to meet and discuss the matter with not only the 12 apostles, but elders from Jerusalem. This is nothing like the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses in modern times. As states the following article:
"Naturally, all elders must submit to Christ's "right hand" of control, guidance, and direction, which he exercises by means of the spirit and the spirit-begotten members of the Governing Body." Watchtower 1987 Aug 1 p.19
But how was the matter resolved back in Acts 15? In verse 19, James was the one that made the final decision. No vote was taken, at least there was nothing mentioned of any final discussion among the 12 apostles, who were supposedly members of the governing body. This would have been the chapter to highlight a final decision made by this group of leaders. But that never happened. Letters were sent out clarifying what had happened, and the 4 decrees were listed to keep the peace between the Jews and Gentiles.
Since no governing body was mentioned regarding a dispute that required a gathering of the more prominent ones from the christians, what about the directing of missionaries? Well, the first (and only) person to look at is Paul, who was the most influential christian from the 1st century. Galatians 1:1 says:
"This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead."
No human authority......like say...a governing body?
How about verses 11 and 12 of the same chapter.
"I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ."
If a governing body were present back then, wouldn't this statement warrant an immediate disfellowshipping?
How about one more. Verses 15-20.
"But when God, who set me apart from birtha and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.
Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem
to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the
Lord’s brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing
you is no lie."
And there you have it. Paul made it very clear that he did not consult with anyone, even those apostles up there in Jerusalem....the supposed governing body. Not until 3 years later, and that was to get aquainted with Peter and James.
So if Paul wasn't being consulted by any governing body, do you think his fellow missionaries were any different?
Why would Jesus say:
Why would Jesus say:
"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.”
if a governing body was needed?
So a person really needs to question this governing body claim. If the modern day standard is that a governing body runs the organization, and--"To receive everlasting life in the earthly Paradise we must identify that organization and serve God as part of it." Watchtower 1983 Feb 15 p.12
why can we not find any facts, or abundant evidence of any governing body in the 1st century? There seems to be a pretty big piece of this puzzle missing.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Guided By Holy Spirt, Yet Uninspired?
It is a strange concept that the JWs are leaning on. But you can find it plastered throughout their literature. They do, in fact, claim to be guided by the holy spirit. Naturally this claim would be made. Really, who would follow a religion that claimed that the holy spirit was not guiding them? We can check out a few quotes pulled from various articles.
"We will also increase our joy if we prayerfully and diligently study God's spirit - inspired Word and Christian publications prepared under the spirit's guidance." Watchtower1992 Mar 15 pp.21-22
"When the time comes to clarify a spiritual matter in our day, holy spirit helps responsible representatives of the faithful and discreet slave at world headquarters to discern deep truths that were not previously understood. (Matt. 24:45; 1 Cor. 2:13) The Governing Body as a whole considers adjusted explanations. (Acts 15:6) What they learn, they publish for the benefit of all." Watchtower 2010 Jul 15 pp.22-23
"Under the guidance of his holy spirit and on the basis of his Word of truth, Jehovah provides what is needed so that all of God's people may be "fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought" and remain "stabilized in the faith." (1 Cor. 1:10; Col. 2:6, 7) Surely we are grateful for Jehovah's spiritual provisions in these last days. Thus, "the faithful and discreet slave" does not endorse any literature, meetings, or Web sites that are not produced or organized under its oversight."
Kingdom Ministry Sep 2007 US Edition
"Third, holy spirit is at work in bringing Bible truths to light." Watchtower 2010 Apr 15 p.10 Holy Spirits Role in the Outworking of Jehovahs Purpose
"Consider, too, the fact that Jehovah's organization alone, in all the earth, is directed by God's holy spirit or active force. Watchtower 1973 Jul 1 p.402
"The Watchtower is not the instrument of any man or set of men, nor is it published according to the whims of men. No man's opinion is expressed in The Watchtower. God feeds his own people, and surely God uses those who love and serve him according to his own will. Those who oppose The Watchtower are not capable of discerning the truth that God is giving to the children of his organization, and this is the very strongest proof that such opposers are not of God's organization." Watchtower 1931 Nov 1 p.327
"It is vital that we appreciate this fact and respond to the directions of the "slave" as we would to the voice of God, because it is His provision." Watchtower 1957 Jun 15 p.370
It is very clear that the JWs believe that God's holy spirit is guiding them in all of their decisions, literature, interpretations, and that any member of the JW community must follow the direction of the slave class representatives since the spirit is guiding them.
But then they claim that they are not infallible, that they are not inspired by God.
"The Governing Body consists of a group of anointed Christian men These preside over the worldwide activities of Jehovah's Witnesses. They are not inspired by God and hence are not infallible, but they rely on God's infallible Word as the highest authority on earth." Jehovah's Witnesses - Unitedly Doing God's Will Worldwide p.26
"The brothers preparing these publications are not infallible. Their writings are not inspired as are those of Paul and the other Bible writers." Awake! 1993 Mar 22 p.4
If you look up the definition of each word, you will see that it is impossible to claim that you can be guided by the holy spirit but remain uninspired by God. Note the following.
Definition of Infallible.
Synonyms-- perfect, right, flawless, correct, exact, faultless, accurate, unerring, unfailing.
Definition of Inspire.
So to claim that God is using His holy spirit to guide them, by definition it is pretty easy to see that this would also mean that God is inspiring them. Why would God use the holy spirit to guide them into false understandings of His written word, the bible, and then allow them to preach these false understandings to the public for several years? Yet it is this reasoning that allowed them to make the following claims.
"Jehovah God has made known to his anointed ones in advance what these scriptures mean." Watchtower 1931 Jun 1 p.160
"Jehovah's people confess no powers of inspiration today" Watchtower 1952 Apr 15 p.253
HUH??? That makes no sense to anyone that looks into this matter without realizing WHY they use this line of reasoning. The reason is very simple. They do this to cover over past errors. They do not want to explain why they made errors in interpretations after claiming that God's holy spirit guides them into proper understanding of the bible. They even try to reinforce the idea that they make no mistakes with comments such as,
"To this day the Governing Body follows similar guidelines. Each article in both The Watchtower and Awake! and every page, including the artwork, is scrutinized by selected members of the Governing Body before it is printed. Therefore, you can read The Watchtower and Awake! with confidence." Watchtower 1987 Mar 1 p.15
"Christ used his authority by actively leading his congregation on earth. He did this by means of the holy spirit, the angels, and the governing body made up of the 12 apostles and the elders of the Jerusalem congregation. Jesus stated that he would be with his disciples right up to the conclusion of the system of things, where we now are. In the following article, we will see how he is still the active Head of the Christian congregation and how he is leading his "sheep" today." Watchtower 1987 Aug 1 p.15
So apparently even though Jesus is actively leading his congregation, and he would be with them right up to the end of this system of things, they remain uninspired. And these uninspired ones can examine their own literature and filter out any mistake found. So you should be confident that what you are reading is correct.....except it might not be because they are not inspired by God.
If you are a current member of the JW religion, how confident are you to follow them when they claim that God is guiding them, giving them a proper understanding, yet in the same breath can claim to be not inspired (or guided) by God? Not only is that a lie, it is a very deceptive manuever to cover over past mistakes that expose them as a false religion.
Consider this quote from the May 1, 1997 watchtower p. 8
JEHOVAH GOD is the Grand Identifier of his true messengers. He identifies them by making the messages he delivers through them come true. Jehovah is also the Great Exposer of false messengers. How does he expose them? He frustrates their signs and predictions. In this way he shows that they are self-appointed prognosticators, whose messages really spring from their own false reasoning—yes, their foolish, fleshly thinking!
By their own words, the jws state that Jehovah frustrates the signs and predictions made by false messengers. Yet there is no mention of human imperfection or being uninspired when they apply this to others. If you can't see the blatant hypocrisy of the jws, you need to take off the blinders that you are wearing and look again. Their own literature has exposed them once again.
"We will also increase our joy if we prayerfully and diligently study God's spirit - inspired Word and Christian publications prepared under the spirit's guidance." Watchtower1992 Mar 15 pp.21-22
"When the time comes to clarify a spiritual matter in our day, holy spirit helps responsible representatives of the faithful and discreet slave at world headquarters to discern deep truths that were not previously understood. (Matt. 24:45; 1 Cor. 2:13) The Governing Body as a whole considers adjusted explanations. (Acts 15:6) What they learn, they publish for the benefit of all." Watchtower 2010 Jul 15 pp.22-23
"Under the guidance of his holy spirit and on the basis of his Word of truth, Jehovah provides what is needed so that all of God's people may be "fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought" and remain "stabilized in the faith." (1 Cor. 1:10; Col. 2:6, 7) Surely we are grateful for Jehovah's spiritual provisions in these last days. Thus, "the faithful and discreet slave" does not endorse any literature, meetings, or Web sites that are not produced or organized under its oversight."
Kingdom Ministry Sep 2007 US Edition
"Third, holy spirit is at work in bringing Bible truths to light." Watchtower 2010 Apr 15 p.10 Holy Spirits Role in the Outworking of Jehovahs Purpose
"Consider, too, the fact that Jehovah's organization alone, in all the earth, is directed by God's holy spirit or active force. Watchtower 1973 Jul 1 p.402
"The Watchtower is not the instrument of any man or set of men, nor is it published according to the whims of men. No man's opinion is expressed in The Watchtower. God feeds his own people, and surely God uses those who love and serve him according to his own will. Those who oppose The Watchtower are not capable of discerning the truth that God is giving to the children of his organization, and this is the very strongest proof that such opposers are not of God's organization." Watchtower 1931 Nov 1 p.327
"It is vital that we appreciate this fact and respond to the directions of the "slave" as we would to the voice of God, because it is His provision." Watchtower 1957 Jun 15 p.370
It is very clear that the JWs believe that God's holy spirit is guiding them in all of their decisions, literature, interpretations, and that any member of the JW community must follow the direction of the slave class representatives since the spirit is guiding them.
But then they claim that they are not infallible, that they are not inspired by God.
"The Governing Body consists of a group of anointed Christian men These preside over the worldwide activities of Jehovah's Witnesses. They are not inspired by God and hence are not infallible, but they rely on God's infallible Word as the highest authority on earth." Jehovah's Witnesses - Unitedly Doing God's Will Worldwide p.26
"The brothers preparing these publications are not infallible. Their writings are not inspired as are those of Paul and the other Bible writers." Awake! 1993 Mar 22 p.4
If you look up the definition of each word, you will see that it is impossible to claim that you can be guided by the holy spirit but remain uninspired by God. Note the following.
Definition of Infallible.
1. not erring: incapable of making a mistake
2. incapable of failing: certain not to fail
3. unerring in doctrine: incapable of being mistaken in matters of doctrine and dogma
Synonyms-- perfect, right, flawless, correct, exact, faultless, accurate, unerring, unfailing.
Definition of Inspire.
1. stimulate somebody to do something: to encourage somebody to greater effort, enthusiasm, or creativity
2. provoke particular feeling: to arouse a particular feeling in somebody
3. cause creative activity: to stimulate somebody to do something, especially creative or artistic work
4. to affect, guide, or arouse by divine influence
So to claim that God is using His holy spirit to guide them, by definition it is pretty easy to see that this would also mean that God is inspiring them. Why would God use the holy spirit to guide them into false understandings of His written word, the bible, and then allow them to preach these false understandings to the public for several years? Yet it is this reasoning that allowed them to make the following claims.
"Jehovah God has made known to his anointed ones in advance what these scriptures mean." Watchtower 1931 Jun 1 p.160
"Jehovah's people confess no powers of inspiration today" Watchtower 1952 Apr 15 p.253
HUH??? That makes no sense to anyone that looks into this matter without realizing WHY they use this line of reasoning. The reason is very simple. They do this to cover over past errors. They do not want to explain why they made errors in interpretations after claiming that God's holy spirit guides them into proper understanding of the bible. They even try to reinforce the idea that they make no mistakes with comments such as,
"To this day the Governing Body follows similar guidelines. Each article in both The Watchtower and Awake! and every page, including the artwork, is scrutinized by selected members of the Governing Body before it is printed. Therefore, you can read The Watchtower and Awake! with confidence." Watchtower 1987 Mar 1 p.15
"Christ used his authority by actively leading his congregation on earth. He did this by means of the holy spirit, the angels, and the governing body made up of the 12 apostles and the elders of the Jerusalem congregation. Jesus stated that he would be with his disciples right up to the conclusion of the system of things, where we now are. In the following article, we will see how he is still the active Head of the Christian congregation and how he is leading his "sheep" today." Watchtower 1987 Aug 1 p.15
So apparently even though Jesus is actively leading his congregation, and he would be with them right up to the end of this system of things, they remain uninspired. And these uninspired ones can examine their own literature and filter out any mistake found. So you should be confident that what you are reading is correct.....except it might not be because they are not inspired by God.
If you are a current member of the JW religion, how confident are you to follow them when they claim that God is guiding them, giving them a proper understanding, yet in the same breath can claim to be not inspired (or guided) by God? Not only is that a lie, it is a very deceptive manuever to cover over past mistakes that expose them as a false religion.
Consider this quote from the May 1, 1997 watchtower p. 8
JEHOVAH GOD is the Grand Identifier of his true messengers. He identifies them by making the messages he delivers through them come true. Jehovah is also the Great Exposer of false messengers. How does he expose them? He frustrates their signs and predictions. In this way he shows that they are self-appointed prognosticators, whose messages really spring from their own false reasoning—yes, their foolish, fleshly thinking!
By their own words, the jws state that Jehovah frustrates the signs and predictions made by false messengers. Yet there is no mention of human imperfection or being uninspired when they apply this to others. If you can't see the blatant hypocrisy of the jws, you need to take off the blinders that you are wearing and look again. Their own literature has exposed them once again.
Monday, May 14, 2012
Paradise Earth?
The phrase is quite common in the jw realm. It is, after all, the grand prize for those that are considered to be part of the Great Crowd. If you make it past Armageddon, you will be one of the first ones to enter that new world, but even if you should die, you can be resurrected and join the survivors later on. That is their selling pitch for you to convert to their religion. The prospect of living forever in a paradise earth is a very appealing concept to the average person that struggles along in our modern day world.
It is important then, if this is a realistic possibilty, to examine this from some different perspectives. These are the points I will be covering on this topic.
1. The actual scriptures with the word "paradise" in it.
2. The Genesis account.
3. The time beyond the 1,000 years according to Revelation.
There are only 4 verses in the New World Translation bible mentioning paradise.
Song of Solomon 4:13--Your skin is a paradise of pomegranates, with the choicest fruits, henna plants along with spikenard plants;
This one cannot be used to support the claim since it is describing a woman's beauty.
Luke 23: 42, 43--And he went on to say: “Jesus, remember me when you get into your kingdom.” And he said to him: “Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in Paradise.”
How can he "be with Jesus" if he is on earth while Jesus is in heaven? One could argue that Jesus would be with him in spirit, but there are too many verses in opposition to that line of reasoning. (see Matt. 5:11-12, 6:20-21, 7:21, 8:11, 19:21, 1 Cor. 15:42-50, Hebrews 11:13-16, etc.)
2 Corinthians 12:2-4 "I know a man in union with Christ who, fourteen years ago-whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know; God knows-was caught away as such to the third heaven. 3 Yes, I know such a man-whether in the body or apart from the body, I do not know, God knows- 4 that he was caught away into paradise and heard unutterable words which it is not lawful for a man to speak."
Caught away to heaven? Caught away to paradise? You be the judge.
Revelation 2:7 "Let the one who has an ear hear what the spirit says to the congregations: To him that conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."
But the watchtower has already identified this as heaven.
"Eating in "the Paradise of God." Revelation 2:7 mentions a "tree of life" in "the paradise of God" and that eating from it would be the privilege of the one "that conquers." Since other promises given in this section of Revelation to such conquering ones clearly relate to their gaining a heavenly inheritance (Re 2:26-28; 3:12, 21), it seems evident that "the paradise of God" in this case is a heavenly one." Insight on the Scriptures, Volume 2 p.576 Paradise
From those 4 verses, can it really be argued that paradise is referring to life on earth? It seems that paradise points more towards heaven than it does the earth.
In the Genesis account, the instructions were as follows.
Gen 1: 28--Further, God blessed them and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth and subdue it, and have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving upon the earth.”
Filling the earth and subduing it does not mean turning it into a paradise. It would be speculative reasoning to assume to know what God had intended for Adam and Eve had they not sinned. Although they began in a place called Eden, which is synonymous with paradise, there is nothing stated that the entire world was intended to be the same.
The final point to consider is found in Revelation. Chapter 20 indicates that after the 1,000 years are over, Satan is let loose once more. And again, he proceeds to turn the majority of humankind against God's people. God then sends fire from heaven down to consume the bad guys.
First, how can this happen if the world was to be made a paradise forever? Second, how could they be surrounding the beloved city if that city was in heaven? And last, does this sound like everlasting life in a paradise world?
It is important then, if this is a realistic possibilty, to examine this from some different perspectives. These are the points I will be covering on this topic.
1. The actual scriptures with the word "paradise" in it.
2. The Genesis account.
3. The time beyond the 1,000 years according to Revelation.
There are only 4 verses in the New World Translation bible mentioning paradise.
Song of Solomon 4:13--Your skin is a paradise of pomegranates, with the choicest fruits, henna plants along with spikenard plants;
This one cannot be used to support the claim since it is describing a woman's beauty.
Luke 23: 42, 43--And he went on to say: “Jesus, remember me when you get into your kingdom.” And he said to him: “Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in Paradise.”
How can he "be with Jesus" if he is on earth while Jesus is in heaven? One could argue that Jesus would be with him in spirit, but there are too many verses in opposition to that line of reasoning. (see Matt. 5:11-12, 6:20-21, 7:21, 8:11, 19:21, 1 Cor. 15:42-50, Hebrews 11:13-16, etc.)
2 Corinthians 12:2-4 "I know a man in union with Christ who, fourteen years ago-whether in the body I do not know, or out of the body I do not know; God knows-was caught away as such to the third heaven. 3 Yes, I know such a man-whether in the body or apart from the body, I do not know, God knows- 4 that he was caught away into paradise and heard unutterable words which it is not lawful for a man to speak."
Caught away to heaven? Caught away to paradise? You be the judge.
Revelation 2:7 "Let the one who has an ear hear what the spirit says to the congregations: To him that conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."
But the watchtower has already identified this as heaven.
"Eating in "the Paradise of God." Revelation 2:7 mentions a "tree of life" in "the paradise of God" and that eating from it would be the privilege of the one "that conquers." Since other promises given in this section of Revelation to such conquering ones clearly relate to their gaining a heavenly inheritance (Re 2:26-28; 3:12, 21), it seems evident that "the paradise of God" in this case is a heavenly one." Insight on the Scriptures, Volume 2 p.576 Paradise
From those 4 verses, can it really be argued that paradise is referring to life on earth? It seems that paradise points more towards heaven than it does the earth.
In the Genesis account, the instructions were as follows.
Gen 1: 28--Further, God blessed them and God said to them: “Be fruitful and become many and fill the earth and subdue it, and have in subjection the fish of the sea and the flying creatures of the heavens and every living creature that is moving upon the earth.”
Filling the earth and subduing it does not mean turning it into a paradise. It would be speculative reasoning to assume to know what God had intended for Adam and Eve had they not sinned. Although they began in a place called Eden, which is synonymous with paradise, there is nothing stated that the entire world was intended to be the same.
The final point to consider is found in Revelation. Chapter 20 indicates that after the 1,000 years are over, Satan is let loose once more. And again, he proceeds to turn the majority of humankind against God's people. God then sends fire from heaven down to consume the bad guys.
First, how can this happen if the world was to be made a paradise forever? Second, how could they be surrounding the beloved city if that city was in heaven? And last, does this sound like everlasting life in a paradise world?
Saturday, April 14, 2012
70 Weeks!
The jws explanation of the 70 weeks prophecy is fairly similar to other religions. 7 weeks, followed by 62 weeks, followed by 1 week. But as we will see, the differences will expose just how deceitful the Watchtower Society is. It also will raise more issues with the 1914 date. First, let's see how the jws explain this prophecy.
They cite 3 noteworty events that need to be considered with regards to the beginning of the 70 weeks. First, Cyrus the King of Persia issued a decree in 537 bce that freed the Jews, allowing them to return to their homeland and rebuild the temple. Second, during the 7th year of Artaxerxes, the King of Persia, Ezra carried a letter written by the King to Jerusalem allowing the Jews to beautify the temple. And third, during the 20th year of Artaxerxes, word was given to restore Jerusalem.
Thus the beginning of the 70 weeks prophecy. 7 weeks to finish rebuilding Jerusalem, 62 weeks for the Messiah to appear, and 1 week for the Messiah to be cut off. So far, so good. But here is the part where the jws explanation begins to unravel.
They use the solar calendar instead of the lunar calendar. That throws the years off already. But instead of recognizing this error and "adjusting their thinking" or "admitting their mistake" as they claim to do, they attempt to claim that Artaxerxes began his rule 10 years earlier. Of course, for that to be possible, they attempt to say that his predecessor Xerxes was in a coregency with his father Darius. Quoting Herodotus, they state, " There is solid evidence for a coregency of Xerxes with his father Darius. The Greek historian Herodotus (VII, 3) says: "Darius judged his [Xerxes’] plea [for kingship] to be just and declared him king. But to my thinking Xerxes would have been made king even without this advice."This indicates that Xerxes was made king during the reign of his father Darius." Of course, once again, any careful review of a WT Society quote attempt shows that they attempt to distort the true fact from the reader. Herodotus proves this in his next few sentences, "Xerxes, then, was publicly proclaimed as next in succession to the crown, and Darius was free to turn his attention to the war. Death, however, cut him off before his preparations were complete; he died in the year following this incident and the Egyptian rebellion, after a reign of thirtysix years, and so was robbed of his chance to punish either Egypt or the Athenians. After his death the crown passed to his son Xerxes."
If Darius died only one year after naming Xerxes as his successor, that destroys the claim of some 10 year coregency between the two.
And then there is the flight of Themistocles. He was an Athenian general that fell out of favor with the Greeks and was accused of treason. He fled and eventually ended up in Persia. The claim is that he met with Artaxerxes not long after he had become King, and that Themistocles died in 471 bce. However, Plutarch writes that other historians note that it was Xerxes that met Themistocles.
Carl Olof Jonsson writes the following:"The Watch Tower Society, then, conceals that Plutarch goes on to say that a number of ancient historians had written about this event, and that most of them stated that Xerxes, not Artaxerxes, was on the throne when Themistocles came to Persia. Although Plutarch (c 46-120 A.D.) felt that Thucydides was more reliable, he stresses that the chronological data were by no means securely established. One fact that usually seems to be ignored is that Thucydides wrote his story about Themistocles’ flight some time after 406 BC, or about two generations after the event. He contradicts himself several times in this narrative, which shows that his information on the subject cannot be trusted. (On this, see the Cambridge Ancient History, V, 1992, p. 14.)
But even if Themistocles really may have met Artaxerxes, there is nothing to show that this occurred in the 470’s. There is no evidence whatsoever in support of the claim that Themistocles died in 471/70 BC. None of the sources referred to by the Society says so, and some of them, including Plutarch, clearly show that he died much later, in about 459 BC. (Plutarch's Lives, XXXI:2-5) A considerable time passed after the attempt to defame Themistocles in Athens in the archonship of Praxiergus (471/70 BC) until his interview with Artaxerxes (or Xerxes). It took several attempts before the enemies of Themistocles succeeded and forced him to flee, first from Athens and finally from Greece. Cambridge Ancient History (Vol. 5, pp. 62ff.) dates this flight to 569 BC. He first fled to some friends in Asia Minor, where he stayed for some time. The Society quotes Diodorus Siculus in support of the 471/70 date for the beginning of the defamation of Themistocles, but avoids to mention Diodorus’ statement that, on Themistocles’ arrival in Asia Minor, Xerxes was still on the throne in Persia! (Diodorus Siculus, XI:54-59) This, of course, conflicts with Thucydides’ statement that Themistocles’ letter from Asia Minor was sent to Artaxerxes.
After some time, evidently after some years, in Asia Minor, Themistocles finally went to Persia. There he first spent one year studying the language before his meeting with the king. This meeting may have occured toward the end of 465 BC or early in 464 BC. As historian A. T. Olmstead argues, Xerxes may very well have been on the throne when Themistocles arrived in Persia, but may have died shortly afterwards, so that Themistocles, after his year of learning the language, met Artaxerxes. In this way the conflicting statements by the ancient historians may at least partially be harmonized.
After his meeting with the Persian king, Themistocles settled in the city of Magnesia, where he lived on for some years before he died. (Plutarch's Lives, XXXI:2-5) It is completely impossible, therefore, to date his death to 471/70 BC, as done by the Watch Tower Society."
There are also several astronomical diaries that confirm the years of when Xerxes and Artaxerxes reigned as King. I'm not going to list them all, but there are many of them.
This is strong proof that the Watchtower Society will stoop to deception in an attempt to change history. what they do not realize is that by changing the reigns of the Persian Kings, it would also throw off the 607/1914 dates. The Persian dates are essential in attempting to establish the backbone of their religion, so it makes one wonder why they would attempt to mess with that particular history. It is the exact same claims that were made about the reigns of the Babylonian Kings. But those claims have been proven false.
They cite 3 noteworty events that need to be considered with regards to the beginning of the 70 weeks. First, Cyrus the King of Persia issued a decree in 537 bce that freed the Jews, allowing them to return to their homeland and rebuild the temple. Second, during the 7th year of Artaxerxes, the King of Persia, Ezra carried a letter written by the King to Jerusalem allowing the Jews to beautify the temple. And third, during the 20th year of Artaxerxes, word was given to restore Jerusalem.
Thus the beginning of the 70 weeks prophecy. 7 weeks to finish rebuilding Jerusalem, 62 weeks for the Messiah to appear, and 1 week for the Messiah to be cut off. So far, so good. But here is the part where the jws explanation begins to unravel.
They use the solar calendar instead of the lunar calendar. That throws the years off already. But instead of recognizing this error and "adjusting their thinking" or "admitting their mistake" as they claim to do, they attempt to claim that Artaxerxes began his rule 10 years earlier. Of course, for that to be possible, they attempt to say that his predecessor Xerxes was in a coregency with his father Darius. Quoting Herodotus, they state, " There is solid evidence for a coregency of Xerxes with his father Darius. The Greek historian Herodotus (VII, 3) says: "Darius judged his [Xerxes’] plea [for kingship] to be just and declared him king. But to my thinking Xerxes would have been made king even without this advice."This indicates that Xerxes was made king during the reign of his father Darius." Of course, once again, any careful review of a WT Society quote attempt shows that they attempt to distort the true fact from the reader. Herodotus proves this in his next few sentences, "Xerxes, then, was publicly proclaimed as next in succession to the crown, and Darius was free to turn his attention to the war. Death, however, cut him off before his preparations were complete; he died in the year following this incident and the Egyptian rebellion, after a reign of thirtysix years, and so was robbed of his chance to punish either Egypt or the Athenians. After his death the crown passed to his son Xerxes."
If Darius died only one year after naming Xerxes as his successor, that destroys the claim of some 10 year coregency between the two.
And then there is the flight of Themistocles. He was an Athenian general that fell out of favor with the Greeks and was accused of treason. He fled and eventually ended up in Persia. The claim is that he met with Artaxerxes not long after he had become King, and that Themistocles died in 471 bce. However, Plutarch writes that other historians note that it was Xerxes that met Themistocles.
Carl Olof Jonsson writes the following:"The Watch Tower Society, then, conceals that Plutarch goes on to say that a number of ancient historians had written about this event, and that most of them stated that Xerxes, not Artaxerxes, was on the throne when Themistocles came to Persia. Although Plutarch (c 46-120 A.D.) felt that Thucydides was more reliable, he stresses that the chronological data were by no means securely established. One fact that usually seems to be ignored is that Thucydides wrote his story about Themistocles’ flight some time after 406 BC, or about two generations after the event. He contradicts himself several times in this narrative, which shows that his information on the subject cannot be trusted. (On this, see the Cambridge Ancient History, V, 1992, p. 14.)
But even if Themistocles really may have met Artaxerxes, there is nothing to show that this occurred in the 470’s. There is no evidence whatsoever in support of the claim that Themistocles died in 471/70 BC. None of the sources referred to by the Society says so, and some of them, including Plutarch, clearly show that he died much later, in about 459 BC. (Plutarch's Lives, XXXI:2-5) A considerable time passed after the attempt to defame Themistocles in Athens in the archonship of Praxiergus (471/70 BC) until his interview with Artaxerxes (or Xerxes). It took several attempts before the enemies of Themistocles succeeded and forced him to flee, first from Athens and finally from Greece. Cambridge Ancient History (Vol. 5, pp. 62ff.) dates this flight to 569 BC. He first fled to some friends in Asia Minor, where he stayed for some time. The Society quotes Diodorus Siculus in support of the 471/70 date for the beginning of the defamation of Themistocles, but avoids to mention Diodorus’ statement that, on Themistocles’ arrival in Asia Minor, Xerxes was still on the throne in Persia! (Diodorus Siculus, XI:54-59) This, of course, conflicts with Thucydides’ statement that Themistocles’ letter from Asia Minor was sent to Artaxerxes.
After some time, evidently after some years, in Asia Minor, Themistocles finally went to Persia. There he first spent one year studying the language before his meeting with the king. This meeting may have occured toward the end of 465 BC or early in 464 BC. As historian A. T. Olmstead argues, Xerxes may very well have been on the throne when Themistocles arrived in Persia, but may have died shortly afterwards, so that Themistocles, after his year of learning the language, met Artaxerxes. In this way the conflicting statements by the ancient historians may at least partially be harmonized.
After his meeting with the Persian king, Themistocles settled in the city of Magnesia, where he lived on for some years before he died. (Plutarch's Lives, XXXI:2-5) It is completely impossible, therefore, to date his death to 471/70 BC, as done by the Watch Tower Society."
There are also several astronomical diaries that confirm the years of when Xerxes and Artaxerxes reigned as King. I'm not going to list them all, but there are many of them.
This is strong proof that the Watchtower Society will stoop to deception in an attempt to change history. what they do not realize is that by changing the reigns of the Persian Kings, it would also throw off the 607/1914 dates. The Persian dates are essential in attempting to establish the backbone of their religion, so it makes one wonder why they would attempt to mess with that particular history. It is the exact same claims that were made about the reigns of the Babylonian Kings. But those claims have been proven false.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Resurrection, Why Bother?
Acts 24:15 says that there will be a resurrection of the righteous and the wicked. Other verses share this view.
Daniel 12:2--Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.
Matthew 25:46--"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
John 5:28, 29--"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out--those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
So the good folks being raised get rewarded with eternal life. This is understandable since these people would have earned this by their deeds. But what does not make sense to me is the eternal punishment of the bad people.
First of all, the wages of sin is death. (Rom. 6:23) Once a person dies, their sins are payed for. So what would be the point of bringing them back? To judge them again and then kill them? Proverbs 11:19 says--"The truly righteous man attains life, but he who pursues evil goes to his death." I don't subscribe to the hellfire doctrine as it appears that the penalty for wicked deeds is death.
There is another point to consider that makes this scenario even more unrealistic. Read Revelation chapter 20 and as you do, note each point being made. Here is the outline that I jotted down in case you are feeling lazy.
1. Satan is tossed into the Abyss for 1000 years.
2. Chosen ones get to rule with Christ for 1000 years.
3. The rest of the dead do not get resurrected until the 1000 years has ended.
4. Satan is let loose after the 1000 years has ended.
5. Satan deceives the majority of humankind once again.
6. Satan and his horde of evil humans march on God's city.
7. Fire consumes the attacking army.
8. Satan is tossed into a lake of burning sulphur.
9. They will be tormented day and night forever.
10. The dead are judged and the ones not found in the book of life are thrown into the lake of fire.
How many things can you find wrong with this list? For starters, Satan is let loose at the same time that the rest of the dead, otherwise known as the earthly subjects, are brought back to life. So how difficult do you think it will be for Satan to deceive the majority of humankind that he already fooled once? Pretty easy since it says their number will be like the sand on the seashore. Then there is the human horde getting consumed by fire. Since this army is the majority of humankind, and this happens before the actual judging occurs, who of the unrighteous will there be left to judge?
The jws teach that the dead will be brought back during the 1000 years. And it is during the 1000 years that they will be brought back to perfection. They say that if this is not the case, the anointed would be ruling over a desolate globe.
Like every other topic, the jws miss the obvious. Verse 5 blows away their speculative reasoning. Maybe they forgot about the Armageddon survivors. They try to use Eph. 2:1 to back up this claim. But if you read the verse in context with the surrounding verses, it is obviously talking about the ones ruling with Christ in heaven.
The thought of resurrecting someone just to inform them of their evil deeds and then kill them again does not make any sense. Especially since their sin would have been paid for from dying the first time.
Daniel 12:2--Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.
Matthew 25:46--"Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
John 5:28, 29--"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out--those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
So the good folks being raised get rewarded with eternal life. This is understandable since these people would have earned this by their deeds. But what does not make sense to me is the eternal punishment of the bad people.
First of all, the wages of sin is death. (Rom. 6:23) Once a person dies, their sins are payed for. So what would be the point of bringing them back? To judge them again and then kill them? Proverbs 11:19 says--"The truly righteous man attains life, but he who pursues evil goes to his death." I don't subscribe to the hellfire doctrine as it appears that the penalty for wicked deeds is death.
There is another point to consider that makes this scenario even more unrealistic. Read Revelation chapter 20 and as you do, note each point being made. Here is the outline that I jotted down in case you are feeling lazy.
1. Satan is tossed into the Abyss for 1000 years.
2. Chosen ones get to rule with Christ for 1000 years.
3. The rest of the dead do not get resurrected until the 1000 years has ended.
4. Satan is let loose after the 1000 years has ended.
5. Satan deceives the majority of humankind once again.
6. Satan and his horde of evil humans march on God's city.
7. Fire consumes the attacking army.
8. Satan is tossed into a lake of burning sulphur.
9. They will be tormented day and night forever.
10. The dead are judged and the ones not found in the book of life are thrown into the lake of fire.
How many things can you find wrong with this list? For starters, Satan is let loose at the same time that the rest of the dead, otherwise known as the earthly subjects, are brought back to life. So how difficult do you think it will be for Satan to deceive the majority of humankind that he already fooled once? Pretty easy since it says their number will be like the sand on the seashore. Then there is the human horde getting consumed by fire. Since this army is the majority of humankind, and this happens before the actual judging occurs, who of the unrighteous will there be left to judge?
The jws teach that the dead will be brought back during the 1000 years. And it is during the 1000 years that they will be brought back to perfection. They say that if this is not the case, the anointed would be ruling over a desolate globe.
Like every other topic, the jws miss the obvious. Verse 5 blows away their speculative reasoning. Maybe they forgot about the Armageddon survivors. They try to use Eph. 2:1 to back up this claim. But if you read the verse in context with the surrounding verses, it is obviously talking about the ones ruling with Christ in heaven.
The thought of resurrecting someone just to inform them of their evil deeds and then kill them again does not make any sense. Especially since their sin would have been paid for from dying the first time.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
The Tree of Life
The original belief that I learned was that God created perfect humans, humans disobeyed God by eating from the tree of knowledge which was the first sin by humans, God punished them with death which in turn would be passed along to all humans since they were the offspring of the first man and woman, and Jesus' sacrifice payed for that sin as a ransom which gave humans the chance to return to that original perfect state of being.
The story sounded so believable when I was an avid jw. But since I left and those blinders came off, I went back and analyzed the story. And immediately I found some discrepancies.
Along with the tree of knowledge was another tree, the tree of life. (Gen 2:9) When Adam and Eve had eaten from the tree of knowledge, they gained the ability to know good and evil. So apparently they did not have this ability yet. God then stated in Gen 3:22: And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." According to this verse, they did not have the ability to live forever either, and were cut off from the chance to gain that ability. What is so signifigant about this?
Rom. 5:12: Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned--" This says that death came through sin, meaning that humans would not have died until they had sinned. But if this is the case, why would God have created a tree of life? Why would God drive humans away from it and place guards there to protect it? Since humans did not have the ability to live forever unless they had eaten from the tree of life, it seems reasonable to think that they would have died at some point in their lives. So it is pretty obvious that this is a major contradiction.
This also brings into question why Jesus would have been needed in the first place. Without access to the tree of life, it would not have mattered. Since this is the main theme of the entire bible, I find it very curious how such an error was overlooked by anyone professing to be christian.
I'm sure an argument would be raised about whether or not the good people make it to heaven while bad people go to hell. Well, considering that God created both magical trees and humans to reside on the earth, and placed them so close together, it would seem logical that God's intent was for humans to live on earth, not on other planes of existence.
Were the trees symbolic? If that is true, it only creates more problems then if they were literal. No literal trees would mean that sin and death are only symbolic as well, the garden of Eden was not real, and neither were Adam and Eve. And that would be fine except then you need to explain why it was necessary for Jesus to die as a ransom sacrifice. And to suggest that Jesus was only symbolic to a Christian would send them into a frenzy.
It is a discrepancy like this that makes it hard to take the bible as anything other than folklore. If God had created humans as perfect beings, why the need for magical trees to add knowledge of good and bad and the ability to live forever? Not to mention a talking snake and a spinning sword (swords did not exist yet), and humans blamed for failing to recognize the difference between good and bad BEFORE they even had that ability. The need for Jesus to free humans from the penalty of death and yet, humans never had the ability to live forever to begin with.
The story sounded so believable when I was an avid jw. But since I left and those blinders came off, I went back and analyzed the story. And immediately I found some discrepancies.
Along with the tree of knowledge was another tree, the tree of life. (Gen 2:9) When Adam and Eve had eaten from the tree of knowledge, they gained the ability to know good and evil. So apparently they did not have this ability yet. God then stated in Gen 3:22: And the LORD God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever." According to this verse, they did not have the ability to live forever either, and were cut off from the chance to gain that ability. What is so signifigant about this?
Rom. 5:12: Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned--" This says that death came through sin, meaning that humans would not have died until they had sinned. But if this is the case, why would God have created a tree of life? Why would God drive humans away from it and place guards there to protect it? Since humans did not have the ability to live forever unless they had eaten from the tree of life, it seems reasonable to think that they would have died at some point in their lives. So it is pretty obvious that this is a major contradiction.
This also brings into question why Jesus would have been needed in the first place. Without access to the tree of life, it would not have mattered. Since this is the main theme of the entire bible, I find it very curious how such an error was overlooked by anyone professing to be christian.
I'm sure an argument would be raised about whether or not the good people make it to heaven while bad people go to hell. Well, considering that God created both magical trees and humans to reside on the earth, and placed them so close together, it would seem logical that God's intent was for humans to live on earth, not on other planes of existence.
Were the trees symbolic? If that is true, it only creates more problems then if they were literal. No literal trees would mean that sin and death are only symbolic as well, the garden of Eden was not real, and neither were Adam and Eve. And that would be fine except then you need to explain why it was necessary for Jesus to die as a ransom sacrifice. And to suggest that Jesus was only symbolic to a Christian would send them into a frenzy.
It is a discrepancy like this that makes it hard to take the bible as anything other than folklore. If God had created humans as perfect beings, why the need for magical trees to add knowledge of good and bad and the ability to live forever? Not to mention a talking snake and a spinning sword (swords did not exist yet), and humans blamed for failing to recognize the difference between good and bad BEFORE they even had that ability. The need for Jesus to free humans from the penalty of death and yet, humans never had the ability to live forever to begin with.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Preaching.
The Jws believe that the main thing that sets them apart from all other world religions is the preaching work. They claim the following:
1) They are the only ones that preach about God's Kingdom.
2) They are the only ones preaching worldwide.
3) They preach from house to house, claiming that this is a christian requirement.
For them, no other religion is doing those three things. If you mention that other religions preach, they will ask if they are doing this worldwide. Or they will say that others are not as organized, which leaves the chance that many will not be preached to. The following quote encompasses all of this.
"Since the last days began in 1914, Jehovah's Witnesses have preached the good news of God's Kingdom throughout the world in the manner ordered by Jesus, namely, at the homes of the people. (Matthew 10:7, 12; Acts 20:20) Millions of Witnesses call on people in every nation to talk to them about the new world. This has led to your receiving this brochure, as the work of Jehovah's Witnesses includes printing and distributing billions of pieces of literature about God's Kingdom. Do you know of anyone else who preaches about God's Kingdom from house to house throughout the world? And Mark 13:10 shows that this preaching and teaching work must be done "first," before the end comes." Does God Care? p.30
First, let's see if other religions are preaching about God's Kingdom.
The 7th Day Adventists : "Our highest responsibility is to the church and its commission to preach the gospel of the kingdom to all the world ."
Born Again Christians: Here He lays down two conditions for a person to enter the Kingdom of God, without both being fulfilled a person is barred from God's Kingdom. Christ declared that everyone wanting to enter God's Kingdom must be born of water and born of the Spirit. (John 5:3)
Anabaptists: The purpose of the commands of the Lord Jesus is to teach us how to live in love, how to experience the love, joy and peace available in the Kingdom of God. These commands help us to live in Jesus and allow Jesus to live in us. (John 14:20, 17:20-23) We want to be like Paul who said, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” (Gal 2:20)
Catholics: Jesus taught constantly about "the kingdom of God".
This concept was at the center of his teaching and life. It should also form a central place in your own Catholic faith.
The list goes on and on, which proves a simple point. The JWs are not the only religion that preach about God's Kingdom. Although these teachings vary depending on what religion is describing the Kingdom, it is evident that they do in fact teach about the good news of God's Kingdom.
Next, we should see if they are preaching worldwide.
True, they might have a few people spread out in many different countries. But consider these statistics. (jwfacts.com)
•1032 Witnesses out of 145 million people in Pakistan
•A few thousand witnesses out of over 1.3 billion people in China.
•25,000 to 1,000,000,000 Indians.
•18,000 to 219,000,000 Indonesians
Is it reasonable to think that so few could possibly preach to each and every member in those countries? In fact, the overall statistics of JWs vs total population of the world is between 7 to 8 million vs about 7 billion. That is barely over 1 percent of the entire world's population responsible for preaching to everyone.
For the JWs to claim that they are fulfilling Matthew 24:14, that is exactly what they are required to do. Simply having a few members in a country and trying to pass that off as fulfillment is ridiculous. And it goes against the next thing we are going to consider.
Is it really a Christian requirement to preach from house to house? There is actually only one time that the phrase "house to house" is used in regards to the preaching work. And Jesus specifically states not to go from house to house.
Luke 10:1-7 "After these things the Lord designated seventy others and sent them forth by twos in advance of him into every city and place to which he himself was going to come. "Wherever YOU enter into a house say first, 'May this house have peace.' And if a friend of peace is there, YOUR peace will rest upon him. But if there is not, it will turn back to YOU. So stay in that house, eating and drinking the things they provide, for the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not be transferring from house to house.
The JWs use two other verses in an attempt to prove the house to house preaching work is a requirement. Acts 5:42, and also in Acts 20:20.
Considering Acts 20:20, it is easy to see what was meant here by reading from verse 17-20.
"However, from Mi·le´tus he sent to Eph´e·sus and called for the older men of the congregation. When they got to him he said to them: "YOU well know how from the first day that I stepped into the [district of] Asia I was with you the whole time, slaving for the Lord with the greatest lowliness of mind and tears and trials that befell me by the plots of the Jews; while I did not hold back from telling YOU any of the things that were profitable nor from teaching YOU publicly and from house to house."
Paul is talking about those that were already Christians.
Acts 5:42- Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.
Remember that in the very beginning, they had no churches to congregate at. So where do you think they met? In someone's house.
Jwfacts.com states: The Greek used at Acts 5:42 and Acts 20:20 is not Ek oikia eis oikia, but rather Kata oikos. For this reason most Bible translations render this "in every house", "at home" or "in their homes". The New World Translation uses the phrase "house to house" at Acts 20:20, though the footnote acknowledges that the Greek word means "in private houses".
Other verses verify this.
Romans 16:5 "and [greet] the congregation that is in their house."
Colossians 4:15 "Give my greetings to the brothers at La·o·di·ce´a and to Nym´pha and to the congregation at her house."
And not everyone was required to evangelize.
Ephesians 4:11-12 "And he gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelizers, some as shepherds and teachers, with a view to the readjustment of the holy ones, for ministerial work, for the building up of the body of the Christ."
Now go back and read those statistics again. If the JWs truly believe that they MUST preach to every house, even by their own standards, they are falling short of their own requirements, since they will never be able to cover that much ground anytime in the near future.
Coming from a religious group that has been teaching false doctrines to the public for decades, only to change them and then continue claiming that God is guiding them by means of the holy spirit, this is just one of many false claims made by the JWs.
1) They are the only ones that preach about God's Kingdom.
2) They are the only ones preaching worldwide.
3) They preach from house to house, claiming that this is a christian requirement.
For them, no other religion is doing those three things. If you mention that other religions preach, they will ask if they are doing this worldwide. Or they will say that others are not as organized, which leaves the chance that many will not be preached to. The following quote encompasses all of this.
"Since the last days began in 1914, Jehovah's Witnesses have preached the good news of God's Kingdom throughout the world in the manner ordered by Jesus, namely, at the homes of the people. (Matthew 10:7, 12; Acts 20:20) Millions of Witnesses call on people in every nation to talk to them about the new world. This has led to your receiving this brochure, as the work of Jehovah's Witnesses includes printing and distributing billions of pieces of literature about God's Kingdom. Do you know of anyone else who preaches about God's Kingdom from house to house throughout the world? And Mark 13:10 shows that this preaching and teaching work must be done "first," before the end comes." Does God Care? p.30
First, let's see if other religions are preaching about God's Kingdom.
The 7th Day Adventists : "Our highest responsibility is to the church and its commission to preach the gospel of the kingdom to all the world ."
Born Again Christians: Here He lays down two conditions for a person to enter the Kingdom of God, without both being fulfilled a person is barred from God's Kingdom. Christ declared that everyone wanting to enter God's Kingdom must be born of water and born of the Spirit. (John 5:3)
Anabaptists: The purpose of the commands of the Lord Jesus is to teach us how to live in love, how to experience the love, joy and peace available in the Kingdom of God. These commands help us to live in Jesus and allow Jesus to live in us. (John 14:20, 17:20-23) We want to be like Paul who said, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” (Gal 2:20)
Catholics: Jesus taught constantly about "the kingdom of God".
This concept was at the center of his teaching and life. It should also form a central place in your own Catholic faith.
The list goes on and on, which proves a simple point. The JWs are not the only religion that preach about God's Kingdom. Although these teachings vary depending on what religion is describing the Kingdom, it is evident that they do in fact teach about the good news of God's Kingdom.
Next, we should see if they are preaching worldwide.
True, they might have a few people spread out in many different countries. But consider these statistics. (jwfacts.com)
•1032 Witnesses out of 145 million people in Pakistan
•A few thousand witnesses out of over 1.3 billion people in China.
•25,000 to 1,000,000,000 Indians.
•18,000 to 219,000,000 Indonesians
Is it reasonable to think that so few could possibly preach to each and every member in those countries? In fact, the overall statistics of JWs vs total population of the world is between 7 to 8 million vs about 7 billion. That is barely over 1 percent of the entire world's population responsible for preaching to everyone.
For the JWs to claim that they are fulfilling Matthew 24:14, that is exactly what they are required to do. Simply having a few members in a country and trying to pass that off as fulfillment is ridiculous. And it goes against the next thing we are going to consider.
Is it really a Christian requirement to preach from house to house? There is actually only one time that the phrase "house to house" is used in regards to the preaching work. And Jesus specifically states not to go from house to house.
Luke 10:1-7 "After these things the Lord designated seventy others and sent them forth by twos in advance of him into every city and place to which he himself was going to come. "Wherever YOU enter into a house say first, 'May this house have peace.' And if a friend of peace is there, YOUR peace will rest upon him. But if there is not, it will turn back to YOU. So stay in that house, eating and drinking the things they provide, for the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not be transferring from house to house.
The JWs use two other verses in an attempt to prove the house to house preaching work is a requirement. Acts 5:42, and also in Acts 20:20.
Considering Acts 20:20, it is easy to see what was meant here by reading from verse 17-20.
"However, from Mi·le´tus he sent to Eph´e·sus and called for the older men of the congregation. When they got to him he said to them: "YOU well know how from the first day that I stepped into the [district of] Asia I was with you the whole time, slaving for the Lord with the greatest lowliness of mind and tears and trials that befell me by the plots of the Jews; while I did not hold back from telling YOU any of the things that were profitable nor from teaching YOU publicly and from house to house."
Paul is talking about those that were already Christians.
Acts 5:42- Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.
Remember that in the very beginning, they had no churches to congregate at. So where do you think they met? In someone's house.
Jwfacts.com states: The Greek used at Acts 5:42 and Acts 20:20 is not Ek oikia eis oikia, but rather Kata oikos. For this reason most Bible translations render this "in every house", "at home" or "in their homes". The New World Translation uses the phrase "house to house" at Acts 20:20, though the footnote acknowledges that the Greek word means "in private houses".
Other verses verify this.
Romans 16:5 "and [greet] the congregation that is in their house."
Colossians 4:15 "Give my greetings to the brothers at La·o·di·ce´a and to Nym´pha and to the congregation at her house."
And not everyone was required to evangelize.
Ephesians 4:11-12 "And he gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelizers, some as shepherds and teachers, with a view to the readjustment of the holy ones, for ministerial work, for the building up of the body of the Christ."
Now go back and read those statistics again. If the JWs truly believe that they MUST preach to every house, even by their own standards, they are falling short of their own requirements, since they will never be able to cover that much ground anytime in the near future.
Coming from a religious group that has been teaching false doctrines to the public for decades, only to change them and then continue claiming that God is guiding them by means of the holy spirit, this is just one of many false claims made by the JWs.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
1914/607 Exposed!
The 1914 date is the central backbone of the JW religion. Without it, they lose the importance of their "End Times" preaching message. Let's examine all of the facts as well as the reasoning for which this date is based on.
The JWs believe that Daniel chapter 4 prophesied the Gentile Times of the Nations (Luke 21:24)in which Jehovah would not have a kingly ruler. This extends from the end of God's rulership through the Jews in 607 B.C., until God re-established his Kingdom in heaven in 1914. The Gentile Times are the 2,520 year period in between. The basis for this comes from Daniel, where the JWs have interpreted the following: 1)The cutting down of the tree represents the destruction of the Kingdom of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar in 607 B.C.
2) The "seven times" constitute 2,520 days, 7 years of only 360 days each.
3) The "principle" of "a day for a year" converts 2,520 days to 2,520 years.
4) The 2,520 years of the Gentile Times ended in 1914, coinciding with the start of Jesus' heavenly rulership.
In order for this to be true, the temple in Jerusalem would have had to of been destroyed in the year 607 B.C. History paints a completely different picture. There is a wealth of information to go over that will prove that this calculation is in error. But before we look at the historical facts, let's look at some bible verses and see how strong their case is.
Daniel chapter 4 is the first place we should look to, since it is this chapter that the entire prophecy is based upon. Instantly we find a problem. Verses 28-37 go on to state that the dream was fulfilled. So if the dream was fulfilled, that would mean that the 7 times already happened, which of course offsets the entire mathematical calculation. There is no second fulfillment of this chapter. I could simply end this here, but let's examine another verse in Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 25:11-12 "And all this land must become a devastated place, an object of astonishment, and these nations will have to serve the king of Babylon seventy years.'And it must occur that when seventy years have been fulfilled I shall call to account against the king of Babylon and against that nation,' is the utterance of Jehovah, 'their error, even against the land of the Chal·de´ans, and I will make it desolate wastes to time indefinite.'"
This shows the 70 years were the entire period the Babylonians were conquering "these nations", and the period of vassalage to the Babylonians. Jeremiah 25 ends the 70 years with the "account against the King of Babylon". The Babylonians dominated for a seventy year period from their defeat of Assyria in 609 B.C.E., to their fall in 539 B.C.E.
Jeremiah 29:10 concurs with this. In a number of translations, this verse links the completion of the 70 years with Babylon.
"This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place." New International Version - see also ESV, NASB, RSV, ASV and DBY.
Not having a proper understanding of who the 70 years were being applied to is yet another mistake to add to their calculation. The next verse to consider is found again in Daniel.
Daniel 9:2 "In the first year of his reigning I myself, Daniel, discerned by the books the number of the years concerning which the word of Jehovah had occurred to Jeremiah the prophet, for fulfilling the devastations of Jerusalem, [namely,] seventy years."
The JWs point to this as proof that the 70 years apply to the desolation of Jerusalem. But that is not the word used here. It is the devastation of the temple. Zechariah 1:12 clarifies this by saying : "Then the angel of the Lord said, “Lord Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?” In other words, when are you going to rebuild the temple? An important point to add here is the time in which this question was asked. Zechariah 1:1--In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo". Darius' second year was 519 B.C.E. So, that verse cannot be used to support 607.
Now let's examine some history.
A: Ancient Historians---Berossus, the Royal Canon(better known as Ptolemy's Canon)
B: The Cuneiform Documents----Chronicles, Kinglists, Royal Inscriptions, Economic-Administrative and Legal Documents, Prosopographical Evidence, Chronological Interlocking Joints
C: Synchronic Links to the Chronology of Egypt----Chronology of the Saite period, Synchronisims to the Chronology of the Saite period
D: Astronomical Diaries---VAT 4956, B.M. 32312, The Saturn Tablet (B.M. 76738 + 76813)
A: Ancient Historians
Berossus was a Babylonian priest that lived in the 3rd century B.C.E. He wrote a history of Babylon, which have been lost, but his work has been quoted and paraphrased by other ancient writers. The most famous being Josephus. The figures he gives for the reigns of the Neo-Babylonian Kings substantially agree with the evidence found in the ancient cunieform documents.
The Royal Canon, better known as Ptolemy's Canon, is a list of kings and their lengths of reign beginning with Nabonassar (747-734 bce) and continuing on through the Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman, and Byzantine rulers. However, Claudius Ptolemy was not where this list originated. A table of this kind was a prerequisite for the research and calculations performed by Babylonian and Greek Astronomers. Without it, they would have had no means for dating the astronomical events their calculations showed as occuring in the distant past. The Royal canon omits the rule of Labashi-Marduk, who only ruled for a few months, since it lists in whole years only.
B: The Cuneiform Documents
Neo-Babylonian Chronicles record specific details about Babylon, and which King was ruling. It also links certain kings together as one king would succeed another one. There are also details about kings from other nations, such as the Persian king Cyrus defeating the Median king Astyages and capturing the capital of Media. An interesting fact here is that the Nabonidus Chronicle which contains the account of the fall of Babylon, has Cyrus defeating the Medians in the 6th year of Nabonidus' reign. Cyrus ruled for 29 years and died in the year 530 bce. If 607 bce was when Jerusalem fell, this would not be possible. Though the Chronicles do not give a complete chronology for the Neo-Babylonian period, the dates that are preserved support those given by Berossus and the Royal Canon.
The Uruk Kinglist was badly preserved and some portions of it are missing. However, it still contains the names of Kings, and the length of reign of eack king during the Neo-Babylonian era. The preserved portion gives the following information.
Kandalanu 21 years
Sin-shum-lishir-and Sin-shar-ishkun 1 year
Nabopolassar 21 years
Nebuchadnezzar 43 years
Awel-Marduk 2 years
Neriglissar 3 years 8 months
Labashi-Marduk 3 months
Nabonidus 17 years.
The argument against this document is that is was recorded more than 300 years after the Neo-Babylonian era, so perhaps it is inaccurate. But the numbers line up with other independent forms of evidence.
Royal Inscriptions from the Assyrian and Babylonian eras have been found in great numbers. There are 3 of these inscriptions that are original documents from the reign of Nabonidus. 1.)Nabon. #18 is a cylinder inscription from an unnamed year of Nabonidus. Fulfilling the desire of Sin, the moon-god, Nabonidus dedicated a daughter of his to this god as a priestess at the Sin temple of Ur. A moon eclipse led to this dedication. Studies show that there was an eclipse that matches the description of this one during his 2nd year of reign, and the inscription also states that his daughter began her dedication took place during his 2nd year on the throne, thus confirming his length of reign. 2.) Nabon. #8 clearly establishes the total length of reigns of Neo-Babylonian kings up to Nabonidus, and enables us to know both the beginning year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, and the crucial year in which he desolated Jerusalem. 3.) Nabon. #24 provides the length of each kings reign, from Nabopolassar down to the 9th year of Nabonidus.
Economic-Administrative, and Legal Documents....there are literally thousands of documents such as promissary notes, contracts (the sales of houses, property, slaves, livestock, etc.), and records of lawsuits. Each document contains the year of the reigning king, the month, the day of the month. Every year of the Neo-Babylonian era is covered by these documents.
Prosopographical Evidence is basically the study of careers, especially of individuals linked by family, economic, social, or political relationships. The collection of tablets found were dated like the documents mentioned previously, and make it easy to determine when each King ruled, and for how long. The Egibi business house can be tracked quite easily from the time of Nebuchadnezzar to the time of Darius.
Chronological Interlocking joints.
a) Nabopolassar to Nebuchadnezzar. Chronicle 5 (neo-babylonian chronicles) says that Nabopolassar ruled for 21 years, that he died on the eighth day of the month of Ab(5th month), and on the first day of the next month (Elul) his son Nebuchadnezzar ascended the royal throne in Babylon.
b) Nebuchadnezzar to Awel-Marduk. Business document B.M. 30254 confirms that Nebuchadnezzar was succeeded by his son, Awel-Marduk in the 43rd year of his reign.
c) Nebuchadnezzar to Awel-Marduk to Neriglissar. A ledger on a tablet known as NBC 4897 tabulates the annual growth of a herd of sheep and goats belonging to the Eanna temple at Uruk for ten consecutive years, from the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar to the 1st year of Neriglissar.
d) Neriglissar to Labashi-Marduk. A tablet YBC 4012 shows that Labashi-Marduk succeeded Neriglissar as king early in the 4th year of his father's reign.
e) Neriglissar to Labashi-Marduk to Nabonidus. Royal inscription Nabon. No. 8. Nabonidus speaks of his own enthronement and names the last four of his predecessors: Nebuchadnezzar and Neriglissar, which he considered legitimate rulers, and their sons Awel-Marduk and Labashi-Marduk, which he regarded as illegitimate usurpers.
f) Nabonidus to Cyrus. Nabonidus Chronicle B.M. 35382. Nabonidus was ruling when Cyrus conquered Babylon.
C: Synchronic Links to the Chronology of Egypt.
2 Kings 23:29, Jeremiah 46:2, Jeremiah 44:30, and B.M.33041. Each of these names different rulers from either Egypt, Babylon, or Judah ruling at the same time. So now the boundaries are set. Chronology of the Saite period which is the 26th dynasty is established through death stelaes and stelaes of Holy Apis bulls. Basically this does for Egypt what the above evidence has done for Babylon. it allows us to know which Egyptian king reigned during which years, and for how long. Now examing the verses from the bible, 2 Kings 23:29 establishes that Josiah was killed by Necho during the time that each were ruling. Necho began his reign in the year 610 bce. Jeremiah 46:2 establishes that Nebuchadnezzar fought Necho during the 4th year of the King of Judah, Josiah's son. It was also Nebuchadnezzar's first year/ascension year on the throne which was in 605 bce. Jeremiah 44:30 establishes that Zedekiah had already lost and Jerusalem was destroyed during the reign of King Hophra/Apries, who ruled from 589-570 bce. The 4th document establishes that Nebuchadnezzar marched against Egypt during the reign of Amasis during Nebuchadnezzar's 37th year on the throne. The math fits perfectly. All of this makes the 607 claim impossible.
What needs to be established is the chronology of Egypt, which is done by way of a series of death stelae and stelae of holy Apis bulls. The length of reigns of the first four kings of the 26th dynasty can be established.
Psammetichus I--54 years, Necho II--15 years, Psammetichus II--6 years, and Apries (Hophra)--19 years. Amasis--44 years and Psammetichus III--6 months, are established by historians Herodotus and Manetho, as well as other lines of evidence such as the papyrus Rylands IX, which dates the time of Darius I (521-486 B.C.E.)and lists the 44th year of Amasis as his last year.
D: Astronomical Diaries
Vat 4956 is a diary dated from Nisanu 1 of Nebuchadnezzar's 37th year to Nisanu 1 of his 38th year. The positions were so exactly described that modern day astronomers can easily fix precise dates when they were seen. By doing so they have been able to show that all of these observations must have been made during the year 568/67 bce. This lines up with all of the evidence listed already, since it would place Nebuchadnezzar on the throne on 605/604 bce.
B.M. 32312 This diary gives details on the position of Mercury, Saturn, and Mars, which date it to the year 652/51 bce. An historical notice also repeated in the Akitu Chronicle and there dated to the 16th year of Shamashshumukin, fixes that year to 652/51 bce, which prevents any extension of the Neo-Babylonian era backwards in time.
The Saturn Tablet establishes the reign of Kandalanu, predecessor of Nabopolassar. The pattern of positions described in the text and fixed to specific dates in the Babylonian Lunar calendar is not repeated again for more than 17 years. The first 14 years of his reign are mentioned in the text. This also gives us the exact year in which Nabopolassar's reign began, which is 625 bce.
I think it is clear to see that history proves the attempted calculation of the JWs is incorrect. For them to not only ignore this evidence, but then attempt to teach this incorrect view to the public is something that Jesus warned against.
Matt. 24:23--At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
Saying that they know exactly when Jesus began ruling is an exact fulfillment of this warning. Jesus also stated : No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
So how can anyone assume to know exactly when Christ began his rule? That is an assumption based on a poor calculation.
Also, Jesus made it perfectly clear as to the attempt at calculating dates of importance. Acts 1: 6, 7 reads--So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
If Jesus told his disciples that it was not for them to know the times or dates the Father has set, would it be wise to assume that this view has changed during modern times? Is this human calculation enough proof to assume that God has allowed anyone to know when Jesus began to rule as King?
The JWs believe that Daniel chapter 4 prophesied the Gentile Times of the Nations (Luke 21:24)in which Jehovah would not have a kingly ruler. This extends from the end of God's rulership through the Jews in 607 B.C., until God re-established his Kingdom in heaven in 1914. The Gentile Times are the 2,520 year period in between. The basis for this comes from Daniel, where the JWs have interpreted the following: 1)The cutting down of the tree represents the destruction of the Kingdom of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar in 607 B.C.
2) The "seven times" constitute 2,520 days, 7 years of only 360 days each.
3) The "principle" of "a day for a year" converts 2,520 days to 2,520 years.
4) The 2,520 years of the Gentile Times ended in 1914, coinciding with the start of Jesus' heavenly rulership.
In order for this to be true, the temple in Jerusalem would have had to of been destroyed in the year 607 B.C. History paints a completely different picture. There is a wealth of information to go over that will prove that this calculation is in error. But before we look at the historical facts, let's look at some bible verses and see how strong their case is.
Daniel chapter 4 is the first place we should look to, since it is this chapter that the entire prophecy is based upon. Instantly we find a problem. Verses 28-37 go on to state that the dream was fulfilled. So if the dream was fulfilled, that would mean that the 7 times already happened, which of course offsets the entire mathematical calculation. There is no second fulfillment of this chapter. I could simply end this here, but let's examine another verse in Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 25:11-12 "And all this land must become a devastated place, an object of astonishment, and these nations will have to serve the king of Babylon seventy years.'And it must occur that when seventy years have been fulfilled I shall call to account against the king of Babylon and against that nation,' is the utterance of Jehovah, 'their error, even against the land of the Chal·de´ans, and I will make it desolate wastes to time indefinite.'"
This shows the 70 years were the entire period the Babylonians were conquering "these nations", and the period of vassalage to the Babylonians. Jeremiah 25 ends the 70 years with the "account against the King of Babylon". The Babylonians dominated for a seventy year period from their defeat of Assyria in 609 B.C.E., to their fall in 539 B.C.E.
Jeremiah 29:10 concurs with this. In a number of translations, this verse links the completion of the 70 years with Babylon.
"This is what the LORD says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place." New International Version - see also ESV, NASB, RSV, ASV and DBY.
Not having a proper understanding of who the 70 years were being applied to is yet another mistake to add to their calculation. The next verse to consider is found again in Daniel.
Daniel 9:2 "In the first year of his reigning I myself, Daniel, discerned by the books the number of the years concerning which the word of Jehovah had occurred to Jeremiah the prophet, for fulfilling the devastations of Jerusalem, [namely,] seventy years."
The JWs point to this as proof that the 70 years apply to the desolation of Jerusalem. But that is not the word used here. It is the devastation of the temple. Zechariah 1:12 clarifies this by saying : "Then the angel of the Lord said, “Lord Almighty, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and from the towns of Judah, which you have been angry with these seventy years?” In other words, when are you going to rebuild the temple? An important point to add here is the time in which this question was asked. Zechariah 1:1--In the eighth month of the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo". Darius' second year was 519 B.C.E. So, that verse cannot be used to support 607.
Now let's examine some history.
A: Ancient Historians---Berossus, the Royal Canon(better known as Ptolemy's Canon)
B: The Cuneiform Documents----Chronicles, Kinglists, Royal Inscriptions, Economic-Administrative and Legal Documents, Prosopographical Evidence, Chronological Interlocking Joints
C: Synchronic Links to the Chronology of Egypt----Chronology of the Saite period, Synchronisims to the Chronology of the Saite period
D: Astronomical Diaries---VAT 4956, B.M. 32312, The Saturn Tablet (B.M. 76738 + 76813)
A: Ancient Historians
Berossus was a Babylonian priest that lived in the 3rd century B.C.E. He wrote a history of Babylon, which have been lost, but his work has been quoted and paraphrased by other ancient writers. The most famous being Josephus. The figures he gives for the reigns of the Neo-Babylonian Kings substantially agree with the evidence found in the ancient cunieform documents.
The Royal Canon, better known as Ptolemy's Canon, is a list of kings and their lengths of reign beginning with Nabonassar (747-734 bce) and continuing on through the Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman, and Byzantine rulers. However, Claudius Ptolemy was not where this list originated. A table of this kind was a prerequisite for the research and calculations performed by Babylonian and Greek Astronomers. Without it, they would have had no means for dating the astronomical events their calculations showed as occuring in the distant past. The Royal canon omits the rule of Labashi-Marduk, who only ruled for a few months, since it lists in whole years only.
B: The Cuneiform Documents
Neo-Babylonian Chronicles record specific details about Babylon, and which King was ruling. It also links certain kings together as one king would succeed another one. There are also details about kings from other nations, such as the Persian king Cyrus defeating the Median king Astyages and capturing the capital of Media. An interesting fact here is that the Nabonidus Chronicle which contains the account of the fall of Babylon, has Cyrus defeating the Medians in the 6th year of Nabonidus' reign. Cyrus ruled for 29 years and died in the year 530 bce. If 607 bce was when Jerusalem fell, this would not be possible. Though the Chronicles do not give a complete chronology for the Neo-Babylonian period, the dates that are preserved support those given by Berossus and the Royal Canon.
The Uruk Kinglist was badly preserved and some portions of it are missing. However, it still contains the names of Kings, and the length of reign of eack king during the Neo-Babylonian era. The preserved portion gives the following information.
Kandalanu 21 years
Sin-shum-lishir-and Sin-shar-ishkun 1 year
Nabopolassar 21 years
Nebuchadnezzar 43 years
Awel-Marduk 2 years
Neriglissar 3 years 8 months
Labashi-Marduk 3 months
Nabonidus 17 years.
The argument against this document is that is was recorded more than 300 years after the Neo-Babylonian era, so perhaps it is inaccurate. But the numbers line up with other independent forms of evidence.
Royal Inscriptions from the Assyrian and Babylonian eras have been found in great numbers. There are 3 of these inscriptions that are original documents from the reign of Nabonidus. 1.)Nabon. #18 is a cylinder inscription from an unnamed year of Nabonidus. Fulfilling the desire of Sin, the moon-god, Nabonidus dedicated a daughter of his to this god as a priestess at the Sin temple of Ur. A moon eclipse led to this dedication. Studies show that there was an eclipse that matches the description of this one during his 2nd year of reign, and the inscription also states that his daughter began her dedication took place during his 2nd year on the throne, thus confirming his length of reign. 2.) Nabon. #8 clearly establishes the total length of reigns of Neo-Babylonian kings up to Nabonidus, and enables us to know both the beginning year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, and the crucial year in which he desolated Jerusalem. 3.) Nabon. #24 provides the length of each kings reign, from Nabopolassar down to the 9th year of Nabonidus.
Economic-Administrative, and Legal Documents....there are literally thousands of documents such as promissary notes, contracts (the sales of houses, property, slaves, livestock, etc.), and records of lawsuits. Each document contains the year of the reigning king, the month, the day of the month. Every year of the Neo-Babylonian era is covered by these documents.
Prosopographical Evidence is basically the study of careers, especially of individuals linked by family, economic, social, or political relationships. The collection of tablets found were dated like the documents mentioned previously, and make it easy to determine when each King ruled, and for how long. The Egibi business house can be tracked quite easily from the time of Nebuchadnezzar to the time of Darius.
Chronological Interlocking joints.
a) Nabopolassar to Nebuchadnezzar. Chronicle 5 (neo-babylonian chronicles) says that Nabopolassar ruled for 21 years, that he died on the eighth day of the month of Ab(5th month), and on the first day of the next month (Elul) his son Nebuchadnezzar ascended the royal throne in Babylon.
b) Nebuchadnezzar to Awel-Marduk. Business document B.M. 30254 confirms that Nebuchadnezzar was succeeded by his son, Awel-Marduk in the 43rd year of his reign.
c) Nebuchadnezzar to Awel-Marduk to Neriglissar. A ledger on a tablet known as NBC 4897 tabulates the annual growth of a herd of sheep and goats belonging to the Eanna temple at Uruk for ten consecutive years, from the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar to the 1st year of Neriglissar.
d) Neriglissar to Labashi-Marduk. A tablet YBC 4012 shows that Labashi-Marduk succeeded Neriglissar as king early in the 4th year of his father's reign.
e) Neriglissar to Labashi-Marduk to Nabonidus. Royal inscription Nabon. No. 8. Nabonidus speaks of his own enthronement and names the last four of his predecessors: Nebuchadnezzar and Neriglissar, which he considered legitimate rulers, and their sons Awel-Marduk and Labashi-Marduk, which he regarded as illegitimate usurpers.
f) Nabonidus to Cyrus. Nabonidus Chronicle B.M. 35382. Nabonidus was ruling when Cyrus conquered Babylon.
C: Synchronic Links to the Chronology of Egypt.
2 Kings 23:29, Jeremiah 46:2, Jeremiah 44:30, and B.M.33041. Each of these names different rulers from either Egypt, Babylon, or Judah ruling at the same time. So now the boundaries are set. Chronology of the Saite period which is the 26th dynasty is established through death stelaes and stelaes of Holy Apis bulls. Basically this does for Egypt what the above evidence has done for Babylon. it allows us to know which Egyptian king reigned during which years, and for how long. Now examing the verses from the bible, 2 Kings 23:29 establishes that Josiah was killed by Necho during the time that each were ruling. Necho began his reign in the year 610 bce. Jeremiah 46:2 establishes that Nebuchadnezzar fought Necho during the 4th year of the King of Judah, Josiah's son. It was also Nebuchadnezzar's first year/ascension year on the throne which was in 605 bce. Jeremiah 44:30 establishes that Zedekiah had already lost and Jerusalem was destroyed during the reign of King Hophra/Apries, who ruled from 589-570 bce. The 4th document establishes that Nebuchadnezzar marched against Egypt during the reign of Amasis during Nebuchadnezzar's 37th year on the throne. The math fits perfectly. All of this makes the 607 claim impossible.
What needs to be established is the chronology of Egypt, which is done by way of a series of death stelae and stelae of holy Apis bulls. The length of reigns of the first four kings of the 26th dynasty can be established.
Psammetichus I--54 years, Necho II--15 years, Psammetichus II--6 years, and Apries (Hophra)--19 years. Amasis--44 years and Psammetichus III--6 months, are established by historians Herodotus and Manetho, as well as other lines of evidence such as the papyrus Rylands IX, which dates the time of Darius I (521-486 B.C.E.)and lists the 44th year of Amasis as his last year.
D: Astronomical Diaries
Vat 4956 is a diary dated from Nisanu 1 of Nebuchadnezzar's 37th year to Nisanu 1 of his 38th year. The positions were so exactly described that modern day astronomers can easily fix precise dates when they were seen. By doing so they have been able to show that all of these observations must have been made during the year 568/67 bce. This lines up with all of the evidence listed already, since it would place Nebuchadnezzar on the throne on 605/604 bce.
B.M. 32312 This diary gives details on the position of Mercury, Saturn, and Mars, which date it to the year 652/51 bce. An historical notice also repeated in the Akitu Chronicle and there dated to the 16th year of Shamashshumukin, fixes that year to 652/51 bce, which prevents any extension of the Neo-Babylonian era backwards in time.
The Saturn Tablet establishes the reign of Kandalanu, predecessor of Nabopolassar. The pattern of positions described in the text and fixed to specific dates in the Babylonian Lunar calendar is not repeated again for more than 17 years. The first 14 years of his reign are mentioned in the text. This also gives us the exact year in which Nabopolassar's reign began, which is 625 bce.
I think it is clear to see that history proves the attempted calculation of the JWs is incorrect. For them to not only ignore this evidence, but then attempt to teach this incorrect view to the public is something that Jesus warned against.
Matt. 24:23--At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
Saying that they know exactly when Jesus began ruling is an exact fulfillment of this warning. Jesus also stated : No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
So how can anyone assume to know exactly when Christ began his rule? That is an assumption based on a poor calculation.
Also, Jesus made it perfectly clear as to the attempt at calculating dates of importance. Acts 1: 6, 7 reads--So when they met together, they asked him, "Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?" He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.
If Jesus told his disciples that it was not for them to know the times or dates the Father has set, would it be wise to assume that this view has changed during modern times? Is this human calculation enough proof to assume that God has allowed anyone to know when Jesus began to rule as King?
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