At this point you may be thinking,
"It looks like the Bible teaches that
I need to be born again, but I have
trusted the Watchtower
organization which teaches
something entirely different. Could
its leaders be wrong?"
Do religious leaders make mistakes
in interpreting and teaching the
Scriptures? Jehovah's Witnesses
have often pointed out
unmistakable evidence that many
who are not Jehovah's Witnesses
do make such mistakes. They have
even admitted that they too make
mistakes. What then should a
person who wants to follow God
do? Pastor Russell, founder of the
Jehovah's Witnesses, suggested a
test to determine which prophets
we should not follow:
"Jehovah, the God of the true
prophets, will put all false prophets
to shame either by not fulfilling the
false prediction of such self-
assuming prophets or by having His
own prophecies fulfilled in a way
opposite to that predicted by the
false prophets. False prophets will
try to hide their reason for feeling
shame by denying who they really
are."1
Pastor Russell said more than once
that God would put the false
prophets to shame by not fulfilling
their predictions. Here are almost
the same words from another of
his books:
"Jehovah… will put all false
prophets to shame either by not
fulfilling the false prediction of such
self-assuming prophets or by
having His own prophecies fulfilled
in a way opposite to that predicted
by the false prophets."2
The founder of the Jehovah's
Witnesses said we would be able to
tell who the false prophets were
because their prophecies would not
come true. Do you believe him?
A later Watchtower book also lays
forth several ways of distinguishing
true prophets from false ones:
"The three essentials for
establishing the credentials of a
true prophet, as given through
Moses, were: The true prophet
would speak in Jehovah's name;
the things foretold would come to
pass (Deut. 18:20-22); and his
prophesying must promote true
worship."3
Turning to this passage in
Deuteronomy you will notice that
the Scriptural emphasis is on the
second of these essentials, that of
the things foretold coming to pass.
The passage states that if a
prophecy does not come true, the
person speaking is a false, and not
a true, prophet.
Since Pastor Russell and the other
Watchtower Society leaders made
many prophecies of things that
were to happen on specific dates
which have now passed, we should
do as they said and see if God
fulfilled their prophecies. You have
nothing to fear if you obey these
Watchtower leaders in this Biblical
test that they propose. If they
check out as true prophets, any
doubts you may have had will be
laid to rest. If they don't, the
sooner you find out the better. If
they don't, remember also the last
part of the test in our first quote
from Pastor Russell. "False prophets
will try to hide their reason for
feeling shame by denying who
they really are." Watch for present
day denials that these were
intended as prophecies. Watch for
attempts to switch something that
did happen for the event that was
prophesied so people won't notice
the failure.
The majority of the teachings the
Jehovah's Witnesses still follow
today were developed by men
who were making predictions
complete with dates. These
prophecies were made at the same
time they were developing
Jehovah's Witness doctrine. Since
these dates have already passed,
they provide an unusual
opportunity to find out how
accurate these men were in
interpreting the Scriptures. Were
they always right? Were they ever
right? You can use their tests to
decide for yourself!
The Bible commends the church in
Berea because the people of that
church, "received the word with all
readiness of mind, and searched
the Scriptures daily, whether these
things were so" (Acts 17:11). This
test is slightly different than the
others we have considered. Here
the Bible approves the actions of
people who were, "examining the
Scriptures daily," to see if what the
apostle Paul himself taught them
agreed with the Bible (See also
Psalm 1, 1 John 4:1).
Satan will not want you to make
this Biblical test because, "He is a
liar and the father of the lie." He
may try to make you feel
uncomfortable about examining
the Scriptures to see for yourself if
what you have been taught is true,
but listen to God and not to him.
Following this paragraph are quotes
from books by Pastor Russell, Judge
Rutherford and others who
established the teachings of the
Jehovah's Witnesses. Most of the
predictions of these men were
based on their interpretations of
the Scriptures. They give actual
dates and tell what was to happen
when the dates came. The dates
are now passed, and these
prophecies were either true or
false. You can see whether or not
their interpretations of the
Scriptures can be trusted.
1872 - The Beginning of the
Millennium
Pastor Russell declared the
millennium to have come in 1872,
but when time had passed, it
became obvious that the
millennium had not come in 1872,
and later Watchtower publications
predicted that it would come in
1975. Was one of these dates right?
"In this chapter we present the
Bible evidence which indicates that
six thousand years from the
creation of Adam were complete
with A.D. 1872; and hence that,
since 1872 A. D., we are
chronologically entered upon the
seventh thousand or the
Millennium-the forepart of which,
the "Day of the Lord," the "day of
trouble," is to witness the breaking
into pieces of the kingdoms of this
world and the establishment of the
Kingdom of God under the whole
heavens."4
It eventually became obvious that
the millennium had not really come
in 1872, so this date was changed
to 1975.
1975 - Millennium to Begin
"According to this trustworthy Bible
chronology six thousand years
from man's creation will end in
1975, and the seventh period of a
thousand years of human history
will begin in the fall of 1975 C.E."5
Who was right, Pastor Russell who
said the millennium had come in
1872, or the later leaders who
predicted 1975? The seventh
thousand years could not start in
1975 if they had already started in
1872, over 100 years earlier.
1975 passed and with it the hope
of many Jehovah's Witnesses who
had believed the prophecy. What
do you think? Is the battle of
Armageddon over? Has Satan been
bound? Are you in the millennium
now, or were they wrong both
times?
Now that we have compared the
statements about 1872 and 1975,
we will examine the rest of the
dates in chronological order starting
with 1874.
1874 - Christ's Second Coming
According to Pastor Russell
Pastor Russell stated: "The second
coming of the Lord, therefore
began in 1874." This was two years
after the date he had given for the
beginning of the millennium.
"The second coming of the Lord
therefore began in 1874; and that
date and the years 1914 to 1918
are specially marked dates with
reference to his coming."6
This was considered important and
was repeated in several ways in a
number of books.
"The Scriptural proof is that the
second presence of the Lord Jesus
Christ began in 1874 A.D."7
There were no tangible evidences
of Christ having come in 1874, but
Pastor Russell believed it anyway:
"Surely there is not the slightest
room for doubt in the mind of a
truly consecrated child of God that
the Lord Jesus is present and has
been since 1874."8
Christ's Second Coming
According to the Bible
Since God's word clearly describes
Christ's second coming, we can
compare what it says with the
happenings of the year 1874 and
following to find out whether the
Lord actually came then or not.
Here is the Bible's description of the
second coming of Jesus Christ:
"Behold, he cometh with clouds;
and every eye shall see
him" (Rev. 1:7).
"…Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye
gazing up into heaven? this same
Jesus, which is taken up from you
into heaven, shall so come in like
manner as ye have seen him go
into heaven" (Acts 1:11).
"And then shall appear the sign of
the Son of man in heaven: and
then shall all the tribes of the earth
mourn, and they shall see the Son
of man coming in the clouds of
heaven with power and great
glory" (Matt. 24:30). See also Mark
13:26; Luke 21:27; 2 Thess. 1:6-10.
Did any of these things actually
happen in 1872, 1874, 1914, 1918,
or even in 1975? The Scriptures are
clear. There will be no doubt when
Christ comes again! His coming will
be visible to all and will attract
attention.
What Does the Bible Tell Us to
Do When Someone Says Christ
Has Come in a Secret Way That
People Can't See?
"Then if any man shall say unto
you, Lo, here is Christ, or there;
believe it not. For there shall arise
false Christs, and false prophets,
and shall shew great signs and
wonders; insomuch that, if it were
possible, they shall deceive the
very elect. Behold, I have told you
before. Wherefore if they shall say
unto you, Behold, he is in the
desert; go not forth: behold, he is in
the secret chambers; believe it not.
For as the lightning cometh out of
the east, and shineth even unto the
west; so shall also the coming of
the Son of man be" (Matt.
24:23-27, 30). See also Luke
17:23-24.
Pastor Russell's explanation of an
invisible coming that leaves no
evidence is just what the Bible says
not to believe. He has put us in a
difficult position. We find ourselves
commanded by God not to believe
him!
1914 and 1915 - "The End of the
War Which Would Destroy the
Kingdoms of this World, and
Fully Establish the Kingdom of
God"
(When this did not happen in 1914,
the date was changed to 1915.)
As you read the quotes of these
prophecies, note that these were
prophecies of the end of a war
which would replace the
governments of men with the
government of God, and not
predictions of the First World War
which began in 1914, and ended in
1918 without having replaced the
world's governments with God's
government. What actually did
happen in 1914, in spite of its
importance, seems to have been
entirely unforeseen by the
Watchtower prophets. Since
something important did happen in
1914, people today sometimes try
to infer that the prophecy was
fulfilled. At the time, however, the
Watchtower leadership did not
promote that interpretation.
On the contrary, they changed the
date to 1915, showing that they
understood that the things
prophesied for 1914 had not
happened. The Watchtower
publications made clear the fact
that the 1914 prophecies were
wrong. Notice both that what was
to happen did not, and that the
date changes from 1914 to 1915 in
different editions of the same book.
1909 edition:
"True, it is expecting great things to
claim, as we do, that within the
coming twenty-six years all
present governments will be
overthrown and dissolved;"
"…In view of this strong Bible
evidence concerning the Times of
the Gentiles, we consider it an
established truth that the final end
of the kingdoms of this world, and
the full establishment of the
Kingdom of God, will be
accomplished at the end of A.D.
1914. Then the prayer of the
Church, ever since her Lord took his
departure- 'Thy Kingdom, come'-
will be answered; and under that
wise and just administration, the
whole earth will be filled with the
glory of the Lord-with knowledge,
and righteousness, and peace (Psa.
72:19; Isa. 6:3; Hab. 2:14); and the
will of God shall be done 'on earth,
as it is done in heaven.'"9
1914 passed and the Watchtower
association had to deal with the
fact that it had brought neither "the
final end of the kingdoms of this
world," nor "the full establishment
of the kingdom of God." In the
1915 edition, therefore, the date
was changed from 1914 to 1915,
but with no better luck. I quote
here from the 1919 reprint of the
1915 edition which admits in the
introduction, "…we drew a false
conclusion, however, not authorized
by the Word of the Lord."
1915 edition:
"True, it is expecting great things to
claim, as we do, that within the
coming twenty-six years all
present governments will be
overthrown and dissolved;"
"…In view of this strong Bible
evidence concerning the Times of
the Gentiles, we consider it an
established truth that the final end
of the kingdoms of this world, and
the full establishment of the
Kingdom of God, will be
accomplished at the end of A.D.
1915. Then the prayer of the
Church, ever since her Lord took his
departure- 'Thy Kingdom, come'-
will be and under that wise and just
administration, the whole earth will
be filled with the glory of the Lord-
with knowledge, and righteousness,
and peace (Psa. 72:19; Isa. 6:3;
Hab. 2:14); and the will of God shall
be done 'on earth, as it is done in
heaven.'"10
The 1914 Prophecies Were
Declared Wrong:
"The Watch Tower, and its
companion publications of the
Society, for forty years emphasized
the fact that 1914 would witness
the establishment of God's kingdom
and the complete glorification of
the church. During that period of
forty years God's people on earth
were carrying on a witness work,
which work was foreshadowed by
Elijah and John the Baptist. All of
the Lord's people looked forward to
1914 with joyful expectation. When
that time came and passed there
was much disappointment, chagrin
and mourning, and the Lord's
people were greatly in reproach.
They were ridiculed by the clergy
and their allies in particular, and
pointed to with scorn, because they
had said so much about 1914, and
what would come to pass, and their
'prophecies' had not been
fulfilled."11
Sometimes when their prophesies
proved to be false, as in the quote
above, later Watchtower
publications admitted it. Other
times, as in the quote which follows,
they tried to escape the blame,
inferring that the followers rather
than the leaders had made the
mistake.
"Many of such had been looking for
the Lord to come and take them to
heaven, and had particularly fixed
the year 1914 as when this should
be done. The year 1914 was a
marked date; but these had
merely contemplated something to
happen which did not come to
pass."12
Summary of Dates Set While
Watchtower Teachings Were
Being Established
• 1872 Beginning of the
millennium. Wrong! Because the
millennium did not start in 1872,
later Watchtower publications
changed the date to 1975, another
date in which it did not happen.
•1874 Christ's second coming.
Nothing happened. The Bible says
His second coming will be visible to
all.
•1914 All world governments to be
overthrown. God will start to
govern the world and His people
will be glorified. When it did not
happen, the date was changed to
1915.
•1915 The Watchtower society
later admitted that its prophesies
about 1914 and 1915 "had not
been fulfilled."
So What?
The people who made these false
prophecies claimed that they had
based most of them on Scripture.
Their obvious errors in these
prophecies included dates which
can easily be checked. When we
check these dates, it is clear that
the prophecies did not come to
pass because they did not interpret
the Scriptures correctly.
Look out! The interpretations of
these same people are the basis for
almost all of the doctrines of the
Jehovah's Witnesses. Since they
were wrong where they could be
put to the test, why should you
believe what they teach in areas
that you can't check as easily?
I once helped a blind man get an
operation that gave him sight.
When we heard of a doctor who
performed a new operation that
might help his kind of blindness, his
first move was to go to a meeting
of blind people and ask them about
this doctor's record as a surgeon.
Everyone he found that this man
had operated on was still blind! He
then asked if there were other
doctors who also performed this
new operation and found that
there was one who was an expert.
This surgeon had been successful in
every case in which he could be
checked. My friend came back to
me with this information. If you
were I, which doctor would you
have taken him to?
Will you follow doctors of religion
who were wrong wherever you
could put them to the test?
Did the ability of the Watchtower
prophets to predict dates improve
from here on? No, but our purpose
in this investigation was to see if
the people who established the
Watchtower doctrines were reliable
in their interpretation of Scripture.
After 1915, most of the
Watchtower doctrines had already
been established, so to save space
we will treat the rest of the
prophetic dates more briefly.
More Recent Dates
1918 - End of Gentile Times,
Churches Destroyed
Churches and church members
were to be destroyed in 1918 and
Jehovah's Witnesses glorified.13
The 1918 Prophecies Were
Declared Wrong:
"However, suddenly, there came
an end to World War I. It did not
lead on, as Bible students expected,
into world revolution and anarchy
or the battle of Armageddon. And
the sincere worshippers of Jehovah,
who were in the new covenant
with him through his Mediator Jesus
Christ, found themselves still in the
flesh on the earth."14
"And the mountains were not
found. Even the republics will
disappear in the fall of 1920. And
the mountains were not found.
Every kingdom of earth will pass
away, be swallowed up in
anarchy."15
1925 - Kingdom Established in
Palestine, Faithful Men of the Old
Testament Return
"Therefore we may confidently
expect that 1925 will mark the
return of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob
and the faithful prophets of
old…"16
"…there is evidence that the
establishment of the Kingdom in
Palestine will probably be in 1925,
ten years later than we once
calculated." 17
"There will be no slip-up… Abraham
should enter upon the actual
possession of his promised
inheritance in the year 1925. 18
The 1925 Prophecies Were
Wrong
(Also 1914 and 1918)
"God's faithful people on the earth
emphasized the importance of the
dates 1914 and 1918 and 1925.
They had much to say about these
dates and what would come to
pass, but all they predicted did not
come to pass."19
1929 - A House Was Built for the
Return of the Old Testament
Faithful
"At San Diego, California,
there is a small piece of
land, on which, in the year
1929, there was built a
house, which is called and
known as Beth-Sarim. The
Hebrew words Beth Sarim
mean "House of the
Princes"; and the purpose of
acquiring that property and building
the house was that there might be
some tangible proof that there are
those on earth today who fully
believe God and Christ Jesus and in
His kingdom, and who believe that
the faithful men of old will soon be
resurrected by the Lord, be back on
earth, and take charge of the
visible affairs of earth. The
occupation of the house by the
princes was to "be a confirmation
of the faith and hope that induced
the building of Beth-Sarim."20
When it became obvious that the
prediction would not be fulfilled, the
house became an embarrassing
monument to a false prophecy. It
was sold in 1948!
1932 - The Overthrow of
Christendom
The Prophecy of the Overthrow
of Christendom Was Wrong. The
Watchtower said:
"They had preached that in an
early time God would overthrow
'Christendom'. Many had
emphasized the year 1925 as the
date, and then when that date did
not materialize the date was
moved up to 1932. Again, 1932
came and 'Christendom' was not
destroyed…"21
1975 - Beginning of the
Millennium
Predicting the beginning of the
millennium for 1975 made it
obvious that the Watchtower
leadership no longer considered
valid the statement that the
millennium had come in 1872. The
new date disproved the old.
Because of this, I have placed the
quotes of the 1975 prophecies right
after those for 1872 to make it
easier to compare the two. You
may turn back to 1872 and read
them there (p. 24-25).
Conclusion:
False Prophecies Show Inability
to Interpret Scripture. Having
seen the false prophecies of the
Watchtower publications for
yourself, you realize that the
people who formed Jehovah's
Witness doctrine have made
serious mistakes in their
interpretations of Scripture. You
know that Pastor Russell, who
founded the Jehovah's Witnesses
and established many of the
doctrines, published prophecies
complete with dates. You have
seen quotes from his books, and
know that the prophecies were
wrong. Since they were usually
based on his interpretations of
Scripture, you know that his
interpretations were not reliable. He
even admitted making doctrinal
mistakes.
Judge Rutherford who followed
Pastor Russell in establishing the
doctrines of the Jehovah's
Witnesses, also wrote predictions
complete with dates based on his
interpretations of Scripture. These
also check out wrong. Speaking of
this after the fact, the Watchtower
said,
"Things published were not perfect
in the days of Charles Taze Russell,
first president of the Watchtower
Bible and Tract Society; nor were
they perfect in the days of J. F.
Rutherford, the succeeding
president. The increasing light on
God's Word as well as the facts of
history have repeatedly required
that adjustments of one kind or
another be made down to the very
present time."22
Therefore, when one of these
men's followers suggests that you
should not read the Bible by itself,
apart from their interpretations, or
that you should not read
explanations other than those of
the Watchtower Society, don't give
in to such bad advice. The person
who made the suggestion will not
take your punishment on himself if
your life is ruined by false doctrine.
You are responsible for your own
decisions and your own actions. The
Bible teaches you to check out
what others tell you (Acts 17:11).
Why would you want to blindly
entrust the salvation of your soul
to men who were so clearly wrong
in the points in which they could be
easily checked? You have God's
word in your hand and are
responsible to see for yourself what
He is teaching!
Now that you understand the
necessity of independent Bible
study, you may want to look up
the Scriptures listed in chapter one
about how to enter God's kingdom.
Find them in your Bible and read
them all by themselves, apart from
my interpretation or that of
anyone else. It is particularly
important to understand what the
Bible teaches about your salvation.
Brief Summary of Watchtower
dates:
•1872 Beginning of the millennium.
Wrong! Watchtower publications
later changed the date to 1975,
another date in which it did not
happen.
•1874 Christ's second coming.
Nothing happened. The Bible says
His second coming will be seen by
all.
•1914 All world governments to be
overthrown. God will glorify His
people and govern the world.
•1915 When man's governments
were not replaced by God's in 1914,
the date was changed to 1915. The
Watchtower Society later admitted
these prophecies "had not been
fulfilled."
•1918 End of Gentile times, the
churches to be destroyed.
•1920 The mountains, republics,
and kingdoms were to disappear.
•1925 The kingdom was to be
established in Palestine. Faithful
men of the Old Testament were to
return. It was later admitted that
this and the 1918 prediction were
wrong.
•1929 A house was built for the
return of the Old Testament
faithful. It was sold in 1948 because
they did not return.
•1932 The Watchtower stated that
the date for the overthrow of
Christendom had been moved up
from 1925 (previously 1918) to
1932 and that the overthrow did
not happen in 1932 either.
•1975 Since the Millennium had not
begun in 1872, the date was
changed to 1975. Again nothing
happened.
What Comes Next?
Chapter three will let you see from
the Bible alone where the saved go
after death. If you have been
following the views of men who
say there is no way you can get
into heaven, you will find the
Bible's teaching a very pleasant
surprise.

SEE MORAL NAAH!

AS WE WOULD SAY IN PORT HARCOURT WHERE I AM FROM.

Matthew15:14
Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.

Hmmmmm i wont believe those trash you are spewing up there poster. Let me correct on some of your wrong believes of Jehovah's Witnesses,

jehovah's witnesses dont and never, ever follow the teachings of Russell, i will like to ask you have any witness told you that he his quoting the bible from Russell translations?
2. Please poster i will like to advice you to go listen to someone intelligent and usefull than an apostate who is angry with Jehovah's witness for one reason or the other, because you have not proved anything or talk sense from your above post.

Now to you ^^^above me, let me tell you before you talk be constructive and more critisive on your arguements, Am not a witness, neither am i part of the christendom or a muslim but from all experience and without doubt there is no religious organisation that will found out some of her words it said are wrong and will come to the public to admit her mistake, only Jehovah's witnesses do. Let me tell you when you talk about the blind leading the blind, consider yourself and your christendom, who teach false doctrines like Jesus been God, hell is a place of eternal torment and stealing money from people on a per second billing. All in the name of tithes and offering. Also exhibiting your fake miracles to people. Idiot you talk of the blind without knowing you are among that blind. Let me tell you table down your problems you have with Jehovah's witnesses and i will correct that illicit and stupid thinking of yours.

, and let the the church saaayyyy,