|
The Great
Disappointment
A walk down the Watchtower
Society's memory lane.
For those who want to understand
how and from where the Watchtower Society
and the early Seventh day Adventist
Church developed you will find this article very
interesting.
Richard Kelsey
THE
GREAT
DISAPPOINTMENT
In the nineteen-sixties, the hippie
movement swept throughout America, waving the banner of free
love, drugs, and rock and roll. Timothy Leary was high on
LSD, preaching his psychedelic message, "Tune in, turn on,
and drop out," to our youth. Evolution had replaced the need
for a Creator in our classrooms; science was replacing the
need for religion in our minds. A headline in The New York
Times read, "God Is Dead."
As we entered the nineteen-seventies,
many "baby-boomers" began looking for spiritual answers. The
apocalyptic message in a book entitled The Vision by David
Wilkerson was selling in record numbers. Wilkerson had a
vision in 1973 and he was determined to tell the world about
it. His book forecasted a time in which "nature will go
wild" with "drastic weather changes and earthquakes"
unleashing their fury upon earth. By 1978 the Jesus Movement
was in full swing; many were sure the end was imminent. In a
1983 New Year's Eve TV special, the well-known evangelist
Oral Roberts predicted the Rapture of the church before
1990. But 1990 came and went; God's people did not ascend.
Now we have entered the next millennium, and for many, the
return of Jesus Christ is overdue.
Advent
Theology
In this chapter we cover the recent
history of two men whose predictions have had an impact upon
millions. Because of their teaching, religious laypeople to
this day are parroting falsehoods. Studying the theology
these men propagated is essential. It will not only steer us
away from their false teaching, but also steer us from the
thinking that has allowed this type of delusion to become so
widespread.
William Miller (1782-1849), Founder of
a Movement that Branched Into the Seventh Day
Adventists
William Miller was the eldest of
sixteen children. He was a sincere man; he was a dedicated
seeker of light, holding the highest degree of Masonry given
in the region of Massachusetts where he lived. He became a
Baptist preacher. Miller made it into the history books by
predicting the year when Christ would appear and the end of
the world would come. This alleged appearing of Jesus Christ
became known as "the Advent" or "the Second Advent."
An Insubstantial
Beginning
In the 1840s, the Millerite movement
was mostly confined to the northeastern United States. It
did make it to Europe and Great Britain; however, Miller's
teachings didn't have much impact overseas, possibly because
there was a lack of apparatus for spreading Miller's message
back then. The first public telegram wasn't sent until 1844,
and the telephone wasn't invented for another thirty
years.
Miller made it clear that he did not
acquire his knowledge of the year Christ would return
through divine revelation. He claimed he discovered the
"Time" through a study of Dan. 8:14 and certain verses in
Revelation. After exhaustively researching the chronology in
Daniel for seven years, Miller was convinced that the coming
of Christ was likely to occur about the year
1843.185
Miller was deeply moved. He came
to believe it was his obligation to "Go and tell the world
of their danger."186 That is exactly what Miller did. On the
second Sunday of August 1831, he started his public speaking
ministry. The crowd that heard him became ecstatic. A huge
tent was made. Soon Miller and his associates were preaching
hell-and-damnation sermons to large audiences. They used the
fear of Christ's imminent return to stir people up to the
point of conversion. During the twelve years that Miller
proclaimed "the message of the hour," he stated that he
personally had given over four thousand187
lectures.
A Small
Slip-Up
Miller taught publicly that somewhere
between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844, a great trumpet
from heaven would sound, Jesus Christ would catch up the
faithful, and the wicked would be immediately destroyed by
fire. That year came and went without the anticipated
results. On the morning after the last possible day for the
Advent passed, Miller was in despair. Obviously, there had
been a slip-up. The wicked made it though the "Time" without
a hitch. The righteous followers still firmly on the ground
were greatly disappointed.
One of Miller's associates, Samuel
Snow, pored over the prophecy in Daniel once more, looking
for an explanation as to why the Advent had not come to
pass. Snow soon figured that Miller was off by one year in
his calculations. He believed that from the beginning of the
decree spoken of in Daniel to rebuild Jerusalem to 1843,
only 2,299 years would have passed. Evidently Miller had
made a miscalculation, and 1843 would end up being one year
shy of the 2,300 years needed to allegedly fulfill Daniel's
prophecy. Snow was now certain that Christ would return on
October 22, 1844, at midnight. Miller eventually endorsed
this new date.
On the Road
Again
As this new light spread among the
Adventist believers, it seemed there was an irresistible
power attending its proclamation . . . It swept over the
land with the velocity of a tornado and it reached hearts in
different and distant places almost simultaneously, and in a
manner which can be accounted for only on the supposition
that God was in it.188 Miller and Snow claimed: "There is no
possibility of a mistake in this time."189 They warned the
unbelieving, "Those who reject this light will be lost." To
the uninitiated, the signs of Christ's coming were too plain
to be doubted. Magazines were printed, heralding the coming
of Christ. Newspaper reporters attended and covered
Adventists' speaking engagements. Fifteen hundred Millerites
traveled across the United States, going from town to town,
proclaiming "the Advent near."
When October 22 came, the Millerites
watched and prayed. With white ascension robes on, many
stood upon rooftops, anticipating a heavenly ride. As the
midnight hour approached, the faithful were at peace with
God. They spent the last hours in quiet solitude. Softly
praying. Waiting. Resting. Standing on the brink of
eternity. The summer was over; the harvest was in the barns.
It was time for the laborers to reap their rewards. Now was
the time to flee from Egypt and enter Canaan's land. Now was
the time.
Nothing happened on October 22. For
the faithful, heavy depression set in. This day was perhaps
the greatest disappointment to befall the church in the
history of the New Dispensation. Fifty thousand of Miller's
followers had found it impossible to stay in fellowship with
their former congregations. They left those churches when
their peers failed to accept William Miller's delusion.
These fifty thousand now had to face the truth. They hadn't
been taken into glory. The wicked still weren't destroyed by
fire. One by one they retreated from their housetops and
places of worship and went to bed.
Miller penned a letter for the
faithful: "Brethren hold fast; let no man take your crown. I
have fixed my mind on another time, and here I mean to stand
until God gives me more light, and that is today, today, and
today, until he comes."190
William Miller never associated with
any of the Adventist offshoots. He never accepted the new
thoughts espoused by the Adventist leaders who took his
failed prediction about the "Time" of Christ's return and
tried to make sense out of it.
Had There Been Another
Slip-Up?
Could a movement that spanned twelve
years and had over fifty thousand believers be wrong? The
faithful had been living in a revival-like atmosphere for
years. Many had quit their jobs and given all of their
possessions to nonbelievers in the days before October 22 as
a testimony to their faith. In the days following the Great
Disappointment, the unwavering followers were convinced that
this was merely the final test. Surely something significant
happened on October 22, 1844?
Does This Sound
Logical?
Eventually the Adventist leaders
taught that the computation of Miller's prophecy in Daniel
was correct: they claimed that the 2,300-day period
mentioned in Daniel did end in 1844, on October 22, at
midnight, but they now believed Miller had made a few
mistakes. The Adventists soon came to believe that
Christ was not supposed to come to earth in October 1844 as
first thought. They concluded that William Miller had made
an error in the interpretation of Daniel's prophecy, not in
the time,191 but in the representation of the sanctuary, or
temple, the prophecy depicted.
Let's look at that prophecy: "He said
to me, 'It will take 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the
sanctuary will be reconsecrated'" (Dan. 8:14). Miller had
substituted the days in Daniel for years. Miller taught that
Daniel's 2,300-year period started in 457 B.C., with the
decree of Artaxerxes to rebuild Jerusalem; he simply added
2,300 years to 457 B.C. and arrived at A.D. 1844. He taught
that the "sanctuary" in Daniel was the earth, but now the
Adventists believed it was not. Miller had taught that when
the sanctuary, or earth, was cleansed, Christ would return;
now his associates believed he would not. The Adventists
came to believe that when God gave Moses the pattern for the
tabernacle in the Old Testament, it was the
representation192 of a heavenly temple, or sanctuary.
New Light - A New
Understanding of Daniel's Vision
It's recorded in the Old Testament
that Israel's high priest entered the Holy of Holies in the
temple once a year to make intercession for the sins of
Israel. It's also written in the New Covenant that Jesus now
holds the position of high priest. The Old Covenant design
of the high priest making atonement for man's sins was
fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Building upon this model, the
Adventists began to teach that even as the earthly high
priest entered an earthly temple on the Day of Atonement, on
October 22, 1844, the heavenly High Priest - Jesus - stepped
through the heavenly temple's193 veil, moving from the holy
place to the Holy of Holies. Having entered the most holy
place in the heavenly temple, Christ had now, as of October
22, 1844, at midnight, allegedly cleansed the sanctuary in
fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy. This is the position of
the Seventh-Day Adventists today.194
The Millerite Movement
Splits into Factions
Others rejected this concept,
believing that Jesus Christ had returned to earth on October
22, 1844, and that he is invisible. This division believed
the world did come to an end; however, the end happened
differently than they expected. There were many theories as
to when Christ's kingdom would be ushered in. One maintained
it would take an additional three and one-half years after
Christ's invisible return before his kingdom would be
thoroughly established, which led to setting another date in
1848.
Adventism - Atmosphere of
the Time
William Miller's ministry had produced
fruit in such people as Brother George Storrs, Joshua V.
Himes, Ellen G. White, and Nelson H. Barbour. These men and
women kept the Advent faith alive. The Seventh-Day Adventist
prophetess Ellen White said: "Some are looking too far off
for the coming of the Lord. Time has continued a few years
longer than expected; therefore they think it may continue a
few years more, and in this way their minds are being led
from present truth . . . In a view given June 27, 1850, my
accompanying angel said, Time is almost finished, get ready,
get ready, get ready."195 Advent fever was not going away.
Ellen and her husband fanned the fire for years. The number
of Adventists were growing steadily at the time our next
subject was coming of age.
Charles Taze Russell
(1852 - 1916), Founder of a Movement that Branched Into the
Jehovah's Witnesses
In 1868 young Charles Russell
accidentally stumbled into a dusty hall where Adventist
preacher Jonas Wendell was holding a meeting. Wendell
proclaimed that in 1873, six thousand years would have
passed since the creation of Adam. In the autumn of 1873,
the Advent would occur, and the world would be destroyed by
fire.196 Wendell used a different method than Miller to come
up with this new chronology.
Russell's faith in God and belief in
the Bible, which had lapsed in recent years, were restored
during this meeting. Russell began to fellowship with
Adventist preacher George Storrs. Storrs, one of Wendell's
associates, had played a major role in the Millerite
movement. However, Storrs became disillusioned with Miller
after the Great Disappointment of 1844. He believed that he
had been mesmerized by Millerite emotionalism. George Storrs
took the young Russell under his wing and had a great
influence on him. It was Storrs who taught Russell many of
the doctrines that are penned throughout Watchtower
publications. Among these doctrines are the
following:
1. An earthly second resurrection for
all those who had died without the knowledge of
Christ;
2. A restored Paradise on
earth;
3. The taking of the sacraments only
once a year.
Many of Russell's ideas concerning the
return of Jesus Christ and the coming kingdom came from
concepts that were popular in his time. The two-stage return
of Christ doctrine is a good example. Dr. Joseph Seiss
refined the doctrine, which had originated in 1828 and
spread throughout Great Britain in the 1860s and
1870s.
Russell's First
Publication
In the 1870s Russell began composing
his thoughts on paper. In 1877 he authored and printed
50,000 copies of a 64 page pamphlet entitled The Object and
Manner of Our Lord's Return. Many of the concepts stated in
the pamphlet appear to have come directly from Storrs and
Seiss. Russell also borrowed directly from the commentaries
of Sir Isaac Newton and Adam Clarke.
While Russell gave no date for the
return of Christ in this pamphlet, he did spell out the
manner in which Jesus Christ would return. Here is a small
sample:
"Briefly stated, we believe the
scriptures to teach, that, at His coming and for a time
after He has come, He will remain invisible; afterward
manifesting or showing Himself in judgments and various
forms, so that "every eye shall see Him."
In a footnote on the same page Russell
goes on to explain,
"This scripture (Revelation 1:7) does
not necessarily teach that every eye will see Him at the
same moment" (Object and Manner, p. 39).
In this pamphlet, Russell stated that
Jesus would return to earth invisibly with only his elect
knowing of his presence; during the time of Christ's
presence, the Rapture would occur, and then the world would
be immediately destroyed by fire.
Nelson Barbour Prints
Herald of the Morning
In the 1870s Dr. Nelson H. Barbour, an
Adventist preacher who had been with Miller, was printing a
struggling publication entitled Herald of the Morning out of
Rochester, New York. Barbour was a friend and colleague of
George Storrs and Jonas Wendell. According to Barbour's
publication, Jesus had returned to earth invisibly in 1874,
and the Rapture would occur in 1878.
One winter's day in January 1876,
Charles Russell read a copy of Herald of the Morning. Can
you imagine Russell's emotions as he contemplated that the
invisible return of Christ had already commenced. Russell
had read Herald of the Morning shortly before his own
pamphlet was published. Some sources claim that Russell
first learned of the idea of a "presence" of Christ only
after reading Barbour's publication. One thing is clear;
Nelson Barbour's teaching on the return of Christ had a
major impact on Russell's faith.
Evidently, Jesus Christ was invisibly
present and had been since the autumn of 1874. The direct
implication was that the faithful had only two years to warn
the world of the impending Rapture. Russell was deeply
moved.
Russell Backs the
Publication Herald of the Morning
Russell sent train fare to Barbour and
asked him to come to Philadelphia and fully show the
scriptural proof that Jesus was present. This is exactly
what Nelson Barbour did. Russell was satisfied with the
reasoning. He moved to New York, backed the publication
financially, and went to work as Barbour's assistant in
publishing Herald of the Morning.
The Disappointment of
1878
Envision Russell's frustration as 1878
was coming to an end. He had fully expected to be taken to
heaven. Again, Charles was looking for answers. Charles
Russell and Nelson Barbour had a falling out when the
Rapture did not occur in 1878, because Barbour set out to
change the date. Russell maintained that 1878 was the right
year, but his expectations as to what would occur must have
been wrong. Perhaps the resurrection was invisible. Russell
surmised that the faithful who died after the autumn of 1878
would be immediately resurrected and not sleep in death.
Russell believed that the dead were resurrected in 1878 and
that the living would be caught up in 1881. Because of this
and other disputes, Barbour and Russell split. Charles was
now free to publish his own concepts: he started printing a
publication entitled Zion's Watch Tower and Herald of
Christ's Presence.
Russell penned these words:
Looking back to 1871, we see that many
of our company were what are known as Second Adventists, and
the light they held, briefly stated, was that there would be
a second advent of Jesusthat he would come to bless and
immortalize the saints, to judge the world and to burn up
the world and all the wicked. This, they claimed, would
occur in 1873 because the 6,000 years from the creation of
Adam were complete then.
Well, 1873 came, the end of 6,000
years, and yet no burning of the world; but prophecies were
found which pointed positively to 1874 as the time when
Jesus was due to be present . . . The autumn of 1874
anxiously expected finally came, but the earth rolled on as
ever; "all things continued as they were from the beginning
of creation." All their hearts were sad; they said, surely
we have been in error - but where? Surely it is clearly
taught that Jesus will come again; perhaps our calculation
of time is at fault. Carefully they examined the chronology
but it seemed faultless and positively declared that the
6,000 years ended in 1873. Then the prophetic arguments were
carefully re-examined: Was an error found? No, they stood
the test of all investigation. ("Cast Not Away Therefore
Your Confidence," Zion's Watch Tower, Feb. 1881)
Russell was convinced that the period
that he and his colleagues set for Christ's presence to
begin on earth was correct. However, as the year 1881 was
coming to an end, he found it necessary to make some changes
in his timetable. Russell abandoned the earlier time frames
of a three-and-a-half- or seven year period after Christ's
invisible return before the world would experience
Armageddon and started teaching there would be a forty-year
waiting period197 instead.
In due time the Watchtower Society
maintained that Armageddon would occur in the autumn of
1914. 1914 came and went. Russell then penned these words:
"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 near the end of
A.D. 1915."198 Russell also taught that the burning of the
world by fire at Armageddon was no longer expected to be
"literal in nature but was really symbolic and signified a
great time of trouble which would be the close of the Gospel
age and dawn of the Millennial age in which all evil
principles of governments and society would be manifested
and destroyed."199 When Charles Russell died in 1916, he was
convinced that World War I200 would soon culminate in
Armageddon.
After Russell's death, the Watchtower
organization, under Russell's successor, Judge Rutherford,
announced, "The establishment of the Kingdom in Palestine
will probably be in 1925, ten years later than we once
calculated."201 Nineteen twenty-five came and went.
Armageddon didn't happen. God's kingdom was seemingly
nowhere in sight. The wicked were still among us. There had
been one slip-up after another in the organization's
date-setting practices. Yet, concerning the 1925 date, Judge
Rutherford had once promised the faithful, "There will be no
slip-up!" (Watchtower, Oct. 15, 1917, p. 6157)
Claims Made by the
Watchtower
In the 1920s, The Watchtower Society
penned the following statements: "The indisputable facts,
therefore, show that the 'time of the end' began in 1799;
that the Lord's second presence began in 1874."202 "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."203 Look at the word usage
in these passages: "indisputable facts," "not the slightest
room for doubt." These strong statements allegedly nailed
down the Watchtower's foundational teaching that in 1874,
Christ's earthly presence began. Earlier - in Russell's day
- the terms "unchallenged and incontrovertible"204 were used
to defend this teaching.
However, as year after year went by,
failing to bring Armageddon, followers were beginning to
lose faith in the Watchtower organization. The faithful were
leaving by the droves. Something had to be done. In 1932 a
group of men at the Watchtower headquarters in New York
restructured their timetable. They abandoned the 1874 date
for Christ's invisible return altogether. Once again the
year 1914 was in vogue, not for Armageddon, as was
previously taught - 1914 became the new year for Christ's
invisible return. 205 The story as told in the bi-monthly
Watch Tower magazine was that "invisible angels
channeled"206 this information to those overseeing the
Watchtower organization. A Watchtower book entitled, God's
Kingdom (1973) claimed this change was made official in
1943. This change in the time of Christ's return pushed
Armageddon off for one more generation.
The Great Disappointment
of 1975
The Jehovah's Witnesses expected that
as God's Seventh Day commenced, the millennial kingdom would
be established on earth. In 1966, the year 1975 207 was
officially embraced as the last year marking the end of the
six-thousand-year period since the creation of Adam, not
1872 208 or 1873 209 or 1972 210 as was once taught. Many
Jehovah's Witnesses, upon hearing that 1975 211 was the end
of the great six days of human existence, sold their houses,
quit their jobs, and went into the ministry full time. Older
Witnesses withdrew their pensions and followed suit. The
church encouraged this behavior: "Yes, the end of this
system is so very near! Is that not reason to increase our
activity?... 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."212
These dedicated Witnesses expected
that in 1975 or shortly thereafter, Armageddon would destroy
all of mankind except for Jehovah's Witnesses. Therefore,
Jehovah's Witnesses, out of a genuine concern, warned the
world of their danger. From 1968 to 1975, the Watchtower
Society grew in numbers by over two and one-half
million.
However, when October 1975 came and
went, it brought great disappointment to many who had
trusted in the Watchtower organization and had sacrificed
everything in order to win souls. Jehovah's Witnesses
repeated the Millerite movement of 1844 in 1975.
Can we learn from the history of
Miller, Wendell, Barbour, Russell, and the Watchtower
organization? All of the years 213 these people established
for the Rapture of the church, the Battle of Armageddon, and
the Second Coming of Jesus Christ were erroneous, even
though they were presumed to be infallible
History is bound to repeat itself.
Therefore, it's inevitable that as the days pass before the
actual Second Advent, certain men and women will draw
multitudes to themselves by crying out, "I know the
Time."
(End notes -- scroll down
below)
End
Notes
The Great
Disappointment
185 "With intense interest
[William Miller] studied the books of Daniel and the
Revelation, employing the same principles of interpretation
as in the other scriptures, and found, to his great joy,
that the prophetic symbols could be understood. Angels of
Heaven were guiding his mind, and opening to his
understanding prophecies which had ever been dark to God's
people. Link after link of the chain of truth rewarded his
efforts; step by step he traced down the great lines of
prophecy, until he reached the solemn conclusion that in a
few years the Son of God would come the second time, in
power and glory, and that the events connected with that
coming and the close of human probation would take place
about the year 1843" (Cosmic Conflict, Ellen White, ch.
13).
186 (William Miller and the Advent
Crisis, pp. 8-9)
187 (Jane Marsh Parker, "A Wonder Book
of my Children," Outlook, May 1908, p. 117).
188 (Advent Herald in Portsmouth
Journal, November 9, 1844)
189 (History of Advent Message, p.
596)
190 (Bliss, Memoirs, p.
278)
191 "The scripture which above all
others had been both the foundation and central pillar of
the advent faith was the declaration, 'Unto two thousand and
three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.'
Daniel 8:14.
These had been familiar words to all
believers in the Lord's soon coming.
By the lips of thousands was this
prophecy joyfully repeated as the watchword of their faith.
All felt that upon the events therein brought to view
depended their brightest expectations and most cherished
hopes. These prophetic days had been shown to terminate in
the autumn of 1844. In common with the rest of the Christian
world, Adventists then held that the earth, or some portion
of it, was the sanctuary, and that the cleansing of the
sanctuary was the purification of the earth by the fires of
the last great day.
This they understood would take
place at the second coming of Christ. Hence the conclusion
that Christ would return to the earth in 1844.
But the appointed time came, and the
Lord did not appear. The believers knew that God's word
could not fail; their interpretation of the prophecy must be
at fault; but where was the mistake? Many rashly cut the
knot of difficulty by denying that the 2300 days ended in
1844. No reason could be given for this position, except
that Christ had not come at the time of expectation. They
argued that if the prophetic days had ended in 1844, Christ
would then have come to cleanse the sanctuary by the
purification of the earth by fire; and that since He had not
come, the days could not have ended.
To accept this conclusion was to
renounce the former reckoning of the prophetic periods, and
involve the whole question in confusion. It was a deliberate
surrender of positions which had been reached through
earnest, prayerful study of the Scriptures, by minds
enlightened by the Spirit of
God, and hearts burning with its
living power; positions which had withstood the most
searching criticism and the most bitter opposition of
popular religionists and worldly-wise men, and which had
stood firm against the combined forces of learning and
eloquence, and the taunts and revilings alike of the
honorable and the base. And all this sacrifice was made in
order to maintain the theory that the earth is the
sanctuary.
God had led His people in the great
Advent movement, His power and glory had attended the work,
and He would not permit it to end in darkness and
disappointment, to be reproached as a false and fanatical
excitement. He would not leave His word involved in doubt
and uncertainty. Though the majority of Adventists abandoned
their former reckoning of the prophetic periods, and
consequently denied the correctness of the movement based
thereon, a few were unwilling to renounce points of faith
and experience that were sustained by the Scriptures and by
the special witness of the Spirit of God.
They believed that they had adopted
sound principles of interpretation in their study of the
Scriptures, and that it was their duty to hold fast the
truths already gained, and to still pursue the same course
of Biblical research.
With earnest prayer they reviewed
their position, and studied the Scriptures to discover their
mistake. As they could see no error in their explanation of
the prophetic periods, they were led to examine more closely
the subject of the sanctuary" (Cosmic Conflict, Ellen G.
White, ch. 18).
192 "They serve at a sanctuary that is
a copy and shadow of what is in heaven" (Heb. 8:5
NIV).
193 "After this I looked and in heaven
the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was
opened. Out of the temple came the seven angels with the
seven plagues" (Rev. 15:5-6 NIV).
194 (William Miller and the Advent
Crisis, p. 159).
195 (Early Writings, pp. 58 and 64,
respectively).
196 (Apocalypse Delayed, 1997, M.
James Penton, University of Toronto Press, p.
18).
197 "Moses was forty years in coming
to the point where he offered himself to Israel . . . until
the period which the Scriptures show us marked his second
coming (October, 1874)" (Watchtower, Dec. 1,
1901).
198 "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 near the end of A.D. 1915" (The
Time Is at Hand, 1915 edition p. 99).
199 (Watchtower, 1881)
200 "The Battle of Armageddon, to
which this war is leading, will be a great contest between
right and wrong, and will signify the complete and
everlasting overthrow of the wrong, and the permanent
establishment of Messiah's righteous kingdom" (Watchtower
Reprints, VI, April 1, 1915, p. 5659).
201 Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 7,
"The Finished Mystery," p. 128
202 The Watchtower, Mar. 1,
1922
203 The Watchtower, Jan. 1,
1924
204 The Time Is at Hand; 1889, 1915
ed., p. 236
205 "Christ returned and began ruling
in the midst of his enemies in the year
1914" ("You Can Live Forever in
Paradise on Earth," Watch Tower Bible
and Tract Society 1982).
206 Watchtower, Nov. 15, 1935, p.
331.
207 "Eight years from the Autumn of
1967 would bring us to the Autumn of 1975, fully 6,000 years
into God's seventh day, his rest day"
(Watchtower,
May 1, 1968, p. 271).
208 "We are already living in the
seventh millennium-since October 1872," (The Time Is at
Hand; 1889, p. 363, 1915 ed.).
209 "The Bible chronology herein
presented shows that the six great 1000 year days beginning
with Adam are ended, and that the great 7th Day, the 1000
years of Christ's Reign, began in 1873," (The Time Is at
Hand; 1889; Foreword, p. 2, 1916 ed.).
210 The Truth Shall Make You Free,
1943 edition.
211 "In this twentieth century an
independent study has been carried on that does not blindly
follow some traditional chronological calculations of
Christendom, and the published time table resulting from
this independent study gives the date of man's creation as
4026 B.C.E. 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." (Life Everlasting in Freedom
of the Sons of God, President Frederick Franz, Watchtower
publication, 1966). 212 Kingdom Ministry, May 1974, p. 3.
213 Watchtower Dates:
• 1844
• Miller's "end of the world." To
Russell, start of thirty-year "tarrying time," corresponding
to thirty years from Jesus' birth to his baptism.
Abandoned in 1930.
• 1846
End of the 2,300 days, George Storrs
and others abandoned false doctrines, "sanctuary cleansed."
Abandoned in 1930.
• 1873
Six thousand years of human existence
end, start of seventh millennium: The millennium of
Revelation; the Day of the Lord. (New chronology making 1975
the end of six thousand years was adopted in 1943, but 1975
was not made an official prophetic date until 1966, with
Life Everlasting.)
Abandoned in 1930.
• 1874
The start of Christ's invisible
presence. Russell's most important date. Three Worlds, p.
175, Our Lord's Return, p. 27. Russell taught that this year
marked the start of the Battle of Armageddon.
Officially abandoned in 1943.
• 1875
End of "Great Jubilee Cycle." End of
1,335 days in Dan. 12:12. The invisible resurrection of the
saints began. (Please note that Russel taught that the
"Biblical year" 1875 actually started in Oct 1874.) Three
Worlds, p. 108.
• 1878
End of gospel age, the rapture of the
saints. Three Worlds, p. 68; Proclaimers, p. 632; Divine
Purpose, p. 19.
Abandoned after 1878.
• 1878
Heavenly resurrection of dead saints.
God's favor returning to the Jews. Kingdom of God started to
exercise power. WT, Oct. 1879 [repr., p. 39].
Millions (1920), p. 27-8.
Abandoned in 1930.
• 1881
Rapture of the saints, including
Russell and other Bible Students. WT, Jan. 1881 [repr.,
p. 180], Dec. 1880 [repr., p. 172], compare May
1881 [repr., p. 224].
Abandoned after 1881
• 1910
Expected rapture of the Saints.
Abandoned after 1910.
• 1914
The end of this world, Christ's
literal return, the end of Armageddon, and latest possible
date for rapture. • Abandoned after 1914.
• 1914
Christ's invisible return, start of
reign as King, end of last days (earlier held to be 1874).
• 1915
The end of the world. 1915 replaced
1914 in Russell's writings.
• 1918
Fall of Babylon"all false religion."
See Revelation Climax, p. 260, which says, "So by 1919
Babylon the Great had fallen."
• 1919
The Bible Student/Watchtower movement
chosen by Christ to be only "channel" of communication from
God to men. Current Watchtower doctrine.
• 1920
Worldwide anarchy, collapse and fall
of all earthly governments. Abandoned after 1920.
• 1925
The end of the world immediately
following the resurrection of "men of old" (Biblical heroes
listed in Hebrews chapter 11). Establishment of Kingdom in
Palestine. Millions, p. 88, 97. Very definite statements in
WT, 6/15, 1922; 4/1, 1923, elsewhere. Abandoned after 1925.
• 1941
WWII was expected to end in
Armageddon, God's War. WT, 9/15, 1941, p. 288, talked about
the "remaining months before Armageddon." Abandoned in 1943,
after death of Rutherford.
• 1951
This was thirty-seven years after
1914, like Jerusalem was destroyed in A.D. 70, which was
thirty-seven years after Christ's death (WT'S
chronology).
Some WT articles in 1950 hinted
strongly to this parallel. WT, 11/1, 1950, p. 407; 9/1,
1950, p. 277; compare WT, 3/15, 1951, p. 179 and 4/1, 1951,
p. 214, both pointing out that "we are 37 years into the
'time of the end' of this world."
Idea was abandoned in WT, 9/1, 1952,
p. 542.
• 1975
End of six thousand year of human
history after WTS chronology. Strongly hinted to be end of
the world; could only be a matter of "days
and months, not years" before
Armageddon. Life Everlasting, pp. 26-30; WT, 7/15, 1967, pp.
4467; 8/15, 1968, p. 499; 5/1, 1975, p. 285.
See also YB, 1980, pp.
3031.
Abandoned after 1975.
|
