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The WBTS wrote this in 1971 - no true Bible believer can fail to see that they have confirmed the arrogance of the false prophet(s) that they are:
They may be disturbed by the cry of Christendom that Jehovah's Christian witnesses are "false prophets!"
They may not be fully convinced that these are true spokesmen for Jehovah.
To let themselves come to the conclusion that these were authentic spokesmen would oblige them to do the positive things about it. This would mean for them to stop holding on to lustful desire and going wholeheartedly after unjust gain.
None of us should want to be like these indecisive, unresponding ones!
Better it is to know now, rather than too late, that there is an authentic prophetic class of Christians among us and to accept and act upon the Bible message, "not as the word of men, but, just as it truthfully is, as the word of God." (1 Thessalonians 2:13)
Concerning the message faithfully delivered by the Ezekiel class Jehovah positively states that it "must come true."
He asseverates that those who wait undecided until it does "come true" "will also have to know that a prophet himself had proved to be in the midst of them.' (Ezekiel 33:33)
Such belated knowledge, however, will not mean salvation for them, for it will find their hearts and their ways to be unchanged.
What is to be gained by hesitating and doubting to the end that Jehovah can raise up and has raised up a genuine "prophet" within our generation?
Certainly it will gain for no one the divine favor and protection needed during the speedily approaching "great tribulation" upon Christendom and the rest ...'
HOW SHOULD TRUE BIBLE BELIEVERS REACT TO THE RECORD OF THE WBTS?
One cannot be a Jehovah's Witness and publicly disagree with any view of the WBTS leaders. In its publications the WBTS makes numerous predictions concerning the Second Coming of Christ and the END of the world (Armageddon - Revelation 16:14).
Occasionally, probably mainly in response to the high numbers of members leaving after the failed prophecies, the WBTS claims that it "...is no inspired prophet," (Watchtower December 15, 1973, p738) but that it follows the Bible and can be read 'with confidence because it can be checked against the inspired Scriptures'.
The WBTS claim not to be an "inspired prophet" has clearly come about after they have been shown to be a FALSE PROPHET!
The WBTS clearly claimed to be a PROPHET as the following quotes (a small sample out of dozens available) reveal:
"...was there any group on whom Jehovah would be willing to bestow the commission to speak as a 'PROPHET' in His name, as was done toward Ezekiel back there in 613 B.C.E.?" (Watchtower March 15, 1972, p189).
They were quick to answer their own question:
"In ancient times he sent prophets as his special messengers. While these men foretold things to come, they also served the people by telling them of God's will for them at that time, often also WARNING THEM OF DANGERS and calamities. ... So, does Jehovah have a PROPHET to help them, to WARN THEM OF THE DANGERS and to DECLARE THINGS TO COME? These questions can be answered in the affirmative... This 'PROPHET' was not one man, but was a body of men and women. It was the small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ, known at that time as International Bible Students. Today they are known as JEHOVAH'S CHRISTIAN WITNESSES." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p174).
The WBTS also claimed to be the "modern-day EZEKIEL, the 'PROPHET' commissioned by Jehovah to DECLARE THE GOOD NEWS OF GOD'S MESSIANIC KINGDOM and to GIVE WARNING TO CHRISTENDOM." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p199).
Furthermore they stated:
"And since no WORD or work of Jehovah can fail, for he is God Almighty, the nations will see the fulfillment of what these witnesses say as DIRECTED FROM HEAVEN." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p200)
If the WBTS is a PROPHET, can they still claim not to be an "inspired prophet"?
Quotes from the WBTS book, Aid to Bible Understanding, p1347, make clear the answer Jehovah's Witnesses should accept for, under the heading "PROPHET", we read:
"...TRUE PROPHETS were no ordinary announcers but were SPOKESMEN for God, 'men of God' with INSPIRED MESSAGES."
And page 1348 says the true prophet "expressed God's mind on matters."
So, the WBTS maintains it is "commission(ed) to speak as a 'PROPHET.'" (Watchtower March 15, 1972, p189). They quoted the True Prophet, Ezekiel, as the example of what kind of prophet they were claiming to be, and that their words are "directed from heaven." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p200).
They emphasised that God's prophets "FORETOLD things to come" and spent time "WARNING them (the people) of dangers," just as the WBTS today "warn(s) them of dangers" and "declares things to come." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p197).
Under the heading "PROPHECY", the Aid to Bible Understanding book, page 1344 reads:
"An INSPIRED message; a revelation of divine will and purpose or the proclamation thereof... The Source of all TRUE PROPHECY is Jehovah God. HE TRANSMITS IT BY MEANS OF HIS HOLY SPIRIT OR, OCCASIONALLY, BY SPIRIT DIRECTED ANGELIC MESSENGERS."
Does the WBTS Prophet receive its prophecies in this way? It certainly claimed exactly that. In referring to its prophecy about the "Times of the Gentiles" (world rulers) ending in 1914, they said:
"ONLY GOD BY HIS HOLY SPIRIT COULD HAVE REVEALED THIS to those early Bible students so far in advance. (Watchtower July 1, 1973, p402)
"Jehovah's Witnesses today make their declaration of the good news of the Kingdom under ANGELIC DIRECTION and support." (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p200).
So the WBTS tried to claim that it is not an "inspired prophet" when its prophecies failed, yet had clearly claimed to fulfill all the requirements for an INSPIRED TRUE PROPHET in the most blatant and arrogant manner.
Scripture shows that it is vital to test the prophecies of anyone claiming to speak for God - and the WBTS 'prophet' is no exception. Even the WBTS has told us:
"Of course, it is easy to say that this group acts as a 'prophet' of God. It is another thing to prove it. The only way that this can be done is to review the record. What does it show?" (Watchtower April 1, 1972, p197).
In The Watchtower, March 1, 1965, p.151 - the WBTS said:
'The best method of proof is to put a prophecy to the test of time and circumstances. The Bible invites such a test. (1 John 4:1; Isa. 45:11) To conduct such an examination, we must have a standard, a set of requirements. The Bible itself establishes the rules for testing a prophecy, at Deuteronomy 18:20-22 and 13:1-3: (1) It must be spoken in Jehovah's name and at his command; (2) it must come to pass; (3) it must be in harmony with God's commandments and thus promote right worship.'
We have examined the WBTS record and it shows clearly that we are to follow the admonition of Deuteronomy 18:20-22:
'But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die. And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken? When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him'.
We do not kill false prophets today - but also do not fear ('thou shalt not be afraid') or take serious note - so as to be influenced by the WBTS! The Hebrew word (guwr) translated 'afraid' also means 'to turn aside from the road (for a lodging or any other purpose), i.e. sojourn (as a guest); to shrink, fear (as in a strange place); to gather for hostility (as in 'afraid'), abide, assemble, be afraid, dwell, fear, gather (together), inhabitant, remain, sojourn - or stand in awe'. So we are not to have anything to do with such people - never mind fearing them in any way!
Consider the most important 'prophecy' that the WBTS 'prophet' claims to have made - that it successfully predicted that Jesus Christ returned in 1914. They assure us that God's HEAVENLY kingdom was set up in 1914 for, in the WBTS book, Paradise Lost to Paradise Regained, page 170, they stated:
"...the witnesses said that the year 1914 would be of world-wide importance. In the Watch Tower magazine of March, 1880, they said: 'The times of the Gentiles extend to 1914, and the heavenly kingdom will not have full sway till then.' Of all people, only the witnesses pointed to 1914 as the year for God's kingdom to be fully set up in HEAVEN."
Does this sound convincing? Only to those unfamiliar with the 'Emperor's New Clothes' claims of the WBTS. History shows that we should always look very closely at the WBTS claims! When we refer directly to the March, 1880, statement we find that the actual quote reads:
"'The Times of the Gentiles' extend to 1914, and the heavenly kingdom will not have full sway till then, but as a 'Stone' the Kingdom of God is set up 'in the days of these (ten Gentile) kings,' and by consuming them it becomes a universal kingdom - a 'great mountain and fills the whole earth.'"
This is clearly very different from the pretended 'prophesy' claimed by the WBTS! From the total quote it is easy to see that the WBTS did not predict the Kingdom of God to be set up in Heaven in 1914. They also used a ploy that they specialize in - they placed a full-stop (.) where a comma (,) actually was! This March, 1880 article was listed in the Watchtower Reprints Index (published 1919) under the heading KINGDOM and sub-heading EARTHLY. As a final proof that the WBTS prophecied that this kingdom would be in the EARTH in 1914 we quote the Studies in the Scriptures, Series II, page 77:
"Firstly, that at that date (1914) the Kingdom of God, for which our Lord taught us to pray, saying, 'Thy Kingdom come,' will obtain FULL, UNIVERSAL CONTROL, and that it will then be 'set up,' or firmly established, IN THE EARTH, on the ruins of present institutions."
So why does the WBTS have the gall to claim that they prophesied a HEAVENLY kingdom by 1914? Because they are a FALSE PROPHET who do exactly what they accuse others of doing - as we can see from simply reading a large proportion of their past works!
WHAT HAPPENED IN 1874?
The year 1874 is unimportant to Jehovah's Witnesses today. However, it was of utmost importance to Watchtower "Bible students" until 1927. Why? Well, instead of teaching that Christ had returned in 1914, the WBTS said that 1874 was the date of the Second Coming! They were quite proud of this 1874 'prophecy' and their publication, The Harp of God (p238, 1921 ed.), lauded the Watchtower magazine in these words:
"This is the first and only publication that for more than forty years has announced the second presence of the Lord."
The WBTS was ready to support this prophetic date with numerous proofs - as shown in The Harp of God book, (p234-235):
"It was in the year 1874, the date of our Lord's second presence, that the first labor organization was created in the world... as further evidence of the Lord's presence since that date, as follows: Adding machines, aeroplanes, aluminum, antiseptic surgery..."
How they thought this showed the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ is another mystery they fail to explain!
Such 'evidence' was frequently produced in WBTS literature that they had been in "the time of the end" long before 1914. One of the many supposedly "Biblical" dates chosen by the WBTS 'prophet' was 1799 and The Harp of God book (p234) stated:
"These physical facts cannot be disputed and are sufficient to convince any reasonable mind that we have been in 'the time of the end' since 1799."
Is 1799 really a 'prophetic' date? The WBTS claimed that 1799 was 'The Start of the Time of the End'. But how did the WBTS come up with this date? The Watchtower uses the 1,260 prophetic years, mentioned in Daniel 12:7 "a time, times and a half", and adds it to the year when the Ostrogothic monarchy (the Ostrogothic Kingdom was established by the Ostrogoths in Italy and neighbouring areas from 493 to 553) was overthrown in A.D. 539.
The Watchtower believed that the important date of 1799 was marked by Napoleon's invasion of Egypt. The Watchtower believed and taught this up until 1927 .
The Watchtower claimed that these 1,260 prophetic days referred to the time period that the Watchtower's president, J.F. Rutherford, spent in prison from June 21st 1918 until May 5th 1920 on charges of espionage. The fact that this period of time only equals 684 days is obviously a severe problem, but consistent with many bizarre and laughable claims made by the WBTS in their attempts to insert themselves into 'God's End-Time' plan.
It is noticeable that the date of 1799 no longer forms part of the WBTS teachings!
Of course, faithful 'meek and teachable' Jehovah's Witnesses would never dare question what the WBTS calls undisputable 'physical facts' or dare to display anything but a 'reasonable mind' by investigating the real facts! The testimony of Jehovah's Witnesses who dared begin to research the WBTS record and finished up being dis-fellowshipped and ostracised by their whole WBTS family because they dared to discuss this openly with other Jehovah's Witnesses is a huge record that only the wilfully blind will ignore (see the testimonies at the end of these pages).
The first Jehovah's Witness, Norman Osmond, we spoke to in the Gabalfa area, Cardiff (in 1981), told us:
'I don't care about the failed prophecies - at least we make prophecies!'
Norman had been in the WBTS for many years and - despite being shown that the Society was wrong about all of their major bizarre beliefs - stopped visiting us, even though he was welcomed to return, and would pointedly cross the road when he saw us out in public and 'shake the (imaginary!) dust from his shoes'.
(Matthew 10:14): 'And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet' (cf. Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5; 10:11; Acts 13:51).
We were happy to receive Norman into our house to discuss the truth any day of the week, so for him to misuse these Scriptures in this way was a little more than ironic!
Other Jehovah's Witnesses have replied: "We don't care about the 'prophecies' - the WBTS are the only organisation to use the 'True Name' of God ('Jehovah'!) and teach the truth about 'Paradise on Earth' and many other things - so, even if they are wrong about some things, they are right about the important things'.
Unfortunately for all Jehovah's Witnesses, it is a fact that EVERY major bizarre belief of the WBTS is easily proven to be wrong - including the supposed use of 'Jehovah'. We will prove this later.
Claiming that WBTS statements from the past are not to be considered important if they do not agree with present day teaching, or that the WBTS writers are 'imperfect men' capable of error, does not wash either.
As we also show on the next page, Charles Taze Russell did not just claim to be the 'the faithful and wise servant' chosen to bring this 'light' to the world (and that his writings were superior to the Bible!), but the WBTS of his day began to indulge in 'creature worship' and claimed (literally!) that his enemies would come and 'worship at thy feet':
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