Re: Armageddon transformed into a grim fairy tale

http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/36961/1.ashx

ARMAGEDDON IN 1975 - TIMELINE OF QUOTES
GREAT QUOTES WEBSITE at http://Quotes.JehovahsWitnesses.com
*** 
below
At the Baltimore assembly Brother Franz in his closing remarks made some
interesting comments regarding the year 1975
..
*** Public Address by District Overseer, Brother Charles Sunutko, in
Spring 1967 "Serving with Everlasting Life in View" Sheboygan, Wisconsin
***

*** Watchtower October 15th 1966 Issue Pages 628 to 629 Rejoicing over
"God's Sons of Liberty" Spiritual Feast ***
Only a liberated people can preach a release to captives, conventioners
were told in the speech "Preach a Release to the Captives," which
thrilled them with its hopeful outlook. "Jehovah, the God of freedom and
liberty, has freed his people from Babylonish bondage and has given them
a work of liberation to do. That work of liberation and salvation must
go on to the finish! To give aid today in this critical time to
prospective sons of God," announced President Knorr, "a new book in
English, entitled 'Life Everlasting-in Freedom of the Sons of God,' has
been published." At all assembly points where it was released, the book
was received enthusiastically. Crowds gathered around stands and soon
supplies of the book were depleted. Immediately its contents were
examined. 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!
*** Life Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God Book, 1966 Pages
26-30 *** [not available on Watchtower's Official CD-ROM]
The time is fast drawing near for the reality that was foreshadowed by
the Jubilee of liberty to be proclaimed throughout the earth to all
mankind... Most certainly the near future would be the most appropriate
time for it. God's own written Word indicates that it is the appointed
time for it.. 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 timetable resulting from
this independent study gives the date of man's creation as 4026 B.C.E.
So six thousand years of man's existence on earth will soon be up, yes,
within this generation... Since the time of Ussher intensive study of
Bible chronology has been carried on. 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
timetable 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. So six thousand years of man's existence on earth will soon be
up, yes, within this generation. Jehovah God is timeless, as it is
written in Psalm 90:1, 2: "O Jehovah, you yourself have proved to be a
real dwelling for us during generation after generation. Before the
mountains themselves were born, or you proceeded to bring forth as with
labor pains the earth and the productive land, even from time indefinite
to time indefinite you are God." So from the standpoint of Jehovah God
these passing six thousand years of man's existence are but as six days
of twenty-four hours, for this same psalm (verses 3, 4) goes on to say:
"You make mortal man go back to crushed matter, and you say: `Go back,
you sons of men.=B4 For a thousand years are in your eyes but as
yesterday when it is past, and as a watch during the night." So in not
many years within our own generation we are reaching what Jehovah God
could view as the seventh day of man=B4s existence. How appropriate it
would be for Jehovah God to make of this coming seventh period of a
thousand years a sabbath period of rest and release, a great Jubilee
sabbath for the proclaiming of liberty throughout the earth to all its
inhabitants! This would be most timely for mankind. It would also be
most fitting on God=B4s part, for, remember, mankind has yet ahead of it
what the last book of the Holy Bible speaks of as the reign of Jesus
Christ over earth for a thousand years, the millennial reign of Christ.
Prophetically Jesus Christ, when on earth nineteen centuries ago, said
concerning himself: "For Lord of the sabbath is what the Son of man is."
(Matthew 12: 8). It would not be by mere chance or accident but would be
according to the loving purpose of Jehovah God for the reign of Jesus
Christ, the =B4Lord of the Sabbath,=B4 to run parallel with the seventh
millennium of man=B4s existence.
*** Life Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God Book, 1966 Page 35
*** [not available on Watchtower's Official CD-ROM]
1975 - 6000 End of 6th 1,000-year day of man's existence (in early
autumn).
*** Awake! October 8th 1966 Pages 19-20 *** [not available on
Watchtower's Official CD-ROM]
'How Much Longer Will It Be?'
6,000 Years Completed in 1975 .. In what year, then, would the first
6,000 years of man's existence and also the first 6,000 years of God's
rest day come to an end? The year 1975.. Hence, the fact that we are
nearing the end of the first 6,000 years of man's existence is of great
significance. Does God's rest day parallel the time man has been on
earth since his creation? Apparently so. From the most reliable
investigations of Bible chronology, harmonizing with many accepted dates
of secular history, we find that Adam was created in the autumn of the
year 4026 B.C.E. Sometime in that same year Eve could well have been
created, directly after which God's rest day commenced .. There is
another chronological indication that we are rapidly nearing the closing
time for this wicked system of things. It is the fact that shortly,
according to reliable Bible chronology, 6,000 years of human history
will come to an end.. After six thousand years of toil and bondage to
sin, sickness, death and Satan, mankind is due to enjoy a rest and is in
dire need of a rest. (Heb. 4:1-11) Hence, the fact that we are nearing
the end of the first 6,000 years of man's existence is of great
significance.. In what year, then, would the first 6,000 years of man's
existence and also the first 6,000 years of God's rest day come to an
end? The year 1975. This is worthy of notice, particularly in view of
the fact that the 'last days' began in 1914, and that the physical facts
of our day in fulfillment of prophecy mark this as the last generation
of this wicked world. So we can expect the immediate future to be filled
with thrilling events for those who rest their faith in God and his
promises. It means that within relatively few years we will witness the
fulfillment of the remaining prophecies that have to do with the 'time
of the end.'
*** Watchtower October 15th 1966 Issue Page 631 Rejoicing over "God's
Sons of Liberty" Spiritual Feast ***
THE YEAR 1975
At the Baltimore assembly Brother Franz in his closing remarks made some
interesting comments regarding the year 1975. He began casually by
saying, "Just before I got on the platform a young man came to me and
said, 'Say, what does this 1975 mean? Does it mean this, that or any
other thing?'" In part, Brother Franz went on to say: 'You have noticed
the chart [on pages 31-35 in the book Life Everlasting-in Freedom of the
Sons of God]. It shows that 6,000 years of human experience will end in
1975, about nine years from now. What does that mean? Does it mean that
God's rest day began 4026 B.C.E.? It could have. The Life Everlasting
book does not say it did not. The book merely presents the chronology.
You can accept it or reject it. If that is the case, what does that mean
to us? [He went into some length showing the feasibility of the 4026
B.C.E. date as being the beginning of God's rest day.]
'What about the year 1975? What is it going to mean, dear friends?'
asked 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.
'When we were approaching the end of the Gentile Times in 1914, there
was no sign that the Gentile Times were going to end. Conditions on
earth gave us no hint of what was to come, even as late as June of that
year. Then suddenly there was a murder. World War I broke out. You know
the rest. Famines, earthquakes and pestilences followed, as Jesus
foretold would happen.
'But what do we have today as we approach 1975? Conditions have not been
peaceful. We've been having world wars, famines, earthquakes,
pestilences and we have these conditions still as we approach 1975. Do
these things mean something? These things mean that we're in the "time
of the end." And the end has to come sometime. Jesus said: "As these
things start to occur, raise yourselves erect and lift your heads up,
because your deliverance is getting near." (Luke 21:28) So we know that
as we come to 1975 our deliverance is that much nearer.'
"Let us make the most of the time and get in all the good hard work to
Jehovah while the op****tunity affords," he urged.
*** Public Address by District Overseer, Brother Charles Sunutko, in
Spring 1967 "Serving with Everlasting Life in View" Sheboygan, Wisconsin
***
[To hear a Recording of this Talk in RealAudio Format, click here]
... for whether they be in the more affluent countries of the earth,
we'll all still hold on for life, because as long as there is life, we
find that there is hope.
If this is true of most persons, how much more true would it be of
Jehovah's Witnesses. Because not only do we have the present life to
hold onto and to live for, but we hold onto the hope of everlasting
life. Because Jesus promised this in Romans the Sixth chapter, that the
reward God would give would be everlasting life. So we have a strong
desire and instinct to wanna survive and pursue it. And to eventually
realize paradisaic conditions in God's New Order. 
But in this run for life, some of us looking forward to a change in this
old system and its destruction for many years now, there are some of us
who get a little weary. And a little tired. And sometimes we just want
to throw our hands up and say 'I just don't know if I can go on any
further."
But, just like a runner when he's running a course, and he gets near to
the end, just about the time he thinks he can't go on any further, he
realizes 'well there's the goal ahead of [inaudible]' He's come around
the last lap, and there it is! Well all of a sudden he just seems to get
some reserve power from nowhere, and with a sudden surge of energy, on
he goes to break the finish line rope and win the prize.
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.
There's been a lot of talk about the year, in fact even this week some
individuals have been wondering, 'well, what does it mean? Do we dare
talk about it? Is it something we can discuss among ourselves, even
though we may not talk much about it in public? Do we really know what
it means?'
Well, we don't have to guess what the year 1975 means if we read the
Watchtower. Because the Watchtower has been very explicit as to what the
year 1975 means to us. If you wish to write down the page, 262, in the
[May 1] 1967 issue of the Watchtower, we read:
What does the year 1975 mean for humankind? The end of 6000 years of
human existence, and possibly, [voice raising dramatically] the time
when God executes the wicked and starts off a thousand-year reign under
his son Jesus Christ. 
Unquote. What did it say? The end of 6000 years of human existence and
that's all? NO, it gave us a little more to think about there. Did it
say for certainty the time when God executes the wicked and starts off a
thousand year reign by Jesus Christ? No. But it did give us a glimmer of
light. It says [voice rising] possibly, possibly the time when God
executes the wicked and starts off the thousand year reign of his son
Jesus Christ, [voice returning to normal] 1975 .
Doesn't that give you a little bit of excitement about the future? Even
if there is the possibility, [voice rising] that's it, when God will
bring the battle of Armageddon, and clean this old Earth off? And you'll
be ushered right into a paradise Earth for ever more [voice returning to
normal]. Never again to be afflicted with this old Satanic system of
things. It will be GONE, DOWN. That should excite all of us.
There are the skeptics who say 'well, I'm not going to think about it
and not worry about it. I'm not going to pay attention to it.' Well now
remember brothers, the faithful and discreet slave is used by Jesus to
to what? Jesus says 'to provide meat in due season.' This is meat, and
it's come at the right time. And it's in its due season. And it's not
wrong to think about it, and to look forward to it.
As far as knowing for sure? Well, we know what we know for sure. We just
read it. [voice rising] 'The end of Six Thousand years of human history,
and possibly the execution of the wicked and the beginning of the
Thousand year reign.' And that should be exciting enough, and talk
enough for us.
When you think about it, what a fantastic, short span of time that is.
How many of you here were in New York City in 1958? Would you hold up
your hands. A great majority of you here. Where has the time gone since
then? Just seemed like yesterday that we were there. But [voice rising]
do you realize that more time has passed away since that assembly in
1958 where a quarter-of-a-million Jehovah's Witnesses gathered, [voice
returns to normal] that what is left to 1975? Hard to imagine, isn't it?
Yes, that was nine years ago. It's only eight years to Seventy-Five.
How little time there is left. How much to happen.
We just wait now, with everlasting life in view, and we serve with the
future unveiling in front of us. Very soon now we wait for Babylon the
Great to be turned upon and severely scathed and destroyed and decimated
'til where there's nothing left of her.
And then the cry 'Peace and Safety. We finally got rid of the old
harlot, she's off our back. No more religion to bother us' the nations
say. Uh oh. There they are. Rearing there ugly heads up above the dust.
Jehovah's Witnesses. Now with a message more fierce than has ever been
heard before. Now with a taunt song to the nations. 'You see? We told
you Babylon the Great was going down, was going to be destroyed, you
said it would never happen, but you did it yourself. Now you're next.
Jehovah will destroy you.' You think they're going to like that? That's
when they all combine. All the communistic and democratic powers
together, with one objective in mind: 'wipe out those people. Then truly
we'll be rid of all antagonists and have peace and safety, and we'll
have our unified world.'
But when they begin to attack Jehovah's Witnesses, strange things begin
to happen. It seems to be calamities are brought by Jehovah God in a
fierce and horrifying way, as though they've never seen things of this
nature before. Flesh eating plagues are mentioned by Zechariah that will
seep this Earth, rot the eyes out of the sockets, and the tongues out of
the mouths. [voice raised] They'll run screaming out of their houses
with this striking them [voice returning to normal], and yet they'll see
Jehovah's Witnesses are untouched. 'How will we get in now? Let me be
one of you!' Well, it's too late now.
And then Jehovah God seems to bring the natural forces against this old
system. Terror on air, in land, and in the sea. Fratricidal warfare,
neighbor against neighbor. Every un-human, inhumane thing that could
occur, not only from men, but even from natural forces.
And Armageddon seems to have two phases now. The latest Watchtower
brought out, if you've read it, where it says there is such a thing as a
just war, Phase One: All united efforts among the nations destroyed, all
political organization gone. All that's left are the kings, standing by
themselves, without an ally or friend in the world, all super-suspicious
of each other, all standing there tense. Phase Two: Jehovah strikes
confusion into their hearts, and in a mad fury and flurry then turn on
each other, destroying one another. And what is left? Then Jehovah God
calls his super-natural angels and the cavalry of Jesus Christ to close
in on them, 200 million angels, with all their destructive power, and
what a power that's going to be.
One angel, in one night, when the Syrian forces of [inaudible] came
against Israel, destroyed 185,000. Let's say the the 200 million angels
of Jesus Christ are limited in power and they can only destroy 185,000.
[Voice rising] That would give them the potential to destroy 37 trillion
persons. [voice returns to normal] There aren't near that many on the
Earth. In fact, that's 12, 333 times the number of people even alive.
All that power wrapped up in the cavalry of Jesus Christ. And all of
that, possibly, has to happen and be finished within the year 1975.
Exciting years ahead of us! And then look beyond that: the 1000 year
reign of Jesus Christ. Know what that means? All the dead being brought
back. Just think of the dear ones you've lost, maybe in the last five or
ten years. Don't you look forward to seeing them coming back? Well it
won't be long now. Look at what's ahead.
You think you're going to mind having to work with the crops and the
land when you find out that your loved ones are going to come back and
you have to plant a little extra for them? You think you're going to
mind, when you are notified maybe a little in advance, that you need
some shelter? As you are going to have to build [inaudible] for your
loved ones tem****ary living quarters for when they come back?
Just think what it's going to be like when the family is notified it's
time, and you all gather there, waiting, and you see them rise up out of
the dust. Like Isaiah says, "Awake you in the dust, you residents. Come
alive." Think you're going to mind seeing that?
That's our future. What a wonderful one. The resurrection is something
to stagger the imagination with immensity. When it comes to the number
that will be back, we don't know for sure, but some comments have been
made by the Society, that could give some idea. 
You may want to make note of these references, read them later.
"Things in Which it is Impossible for God to Lie" paragraph 12, page
350: "Billions who died before Jesus, billions who died since will be
back."
The latest publication, "Life Everlasting in Freedom of the Sons of God"
page 393 paragraph 26: "Thousands of millions."
The Watchtower 1964, page 722, paragraph 24, and listen to this: "TENS
of billions will be back".
How many are tens of billions? Well at least 20 billion. 'Cause to have
tens of billions in the billions, you have to have two sets of ten
billion. So at the very minimum figure, lets say even 20 billion coming
back. What a fantastic accomplishment that's going to be for our Lord,
Jesus Christ.
In fact, there was a tract one time, printed by the Society, called
"Millennial Hope Explained" where it mentioned an estimated 20 billion
would be back in the resurrection, could be.
This gives you an idea. Fires the imagination. Do you realize what an
accomplishment and what an undertaking that's going to be? Why if just
20 billion were brought back from the dead, every day for a thousand
years, you'd have to bring back 60,000. Every day, for a thousand years.
Of course, it most likely won't take the whole thousand years, the
Society has indicated. We don't know how long the resurrection will
take, but that will probably squeeze the number up to where possibly,
even more would be coming back. 
What a thrilling time we have to live for, my brothers. How much we have
to gain, by serving God with everlasting life in view.
But you know that sad part of it? There are going to be some of us here
who won't see it, possibly. Wouldn't that be an awful thing, with all
that in the future? Some of us here tonight may not live to see it. 
Will you? You know there's a way to find out? There's a way to decide,
right here and now, whether you'll make it, or whether you will not. Let
us see what that is.
Turning to Luke the 13th chapter, we get some information on it. Luke
13, let's begin to read Jesus' words. Luke 13, starting with the 22nd
verse. Now Jesus is going village to village, and city to city. In verse
23 it says:
Now a certain man said to him: "Lord, are those who are being saved
few?" He said to them: 24 "Exert yourselves vigorously to get in through
the narrow door, because many, I tell YOU, will seek to get in but will
not be able, 25 when once the householder has got up and locked the
door, and YOU start to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying,
'Sir, open to us.' But in answer he will say to YOU, 'I do not know
where YOU are from.' 26 Then YOU will start saying, 'We ate and drank in
front of you, and you taught in our broad ways.' 27 But he will speak
and say to YOU, 'I do not know where YOU are from. Get away from me, all
YOU workers of unrighteousness!' 28 There is where [YOUR] weeping and
the gna****ng of [YOUR] teeth will be...
What's Jesus saying here? What do you think he's saying here? Well first
of all, those of us here tonight, that do not do what he says in verse
24, "exert yourselves vigorously" will not be able to get in. That's
step number one. Exert ourselves vigorously through the narrow door. But
then he describes a certain "class" of Christians, in God's
organization, who would find themselves in this position. It says: "once
the householder has got up and locked the door, [inserted by speaker:
then] YOU start to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, 'Sir,
open to us.' " Well, who would that refer to? Well as far as closing the
door, when does it shut down? The destruction of Babylon the Great, the
door will be shut down. And then it says some of us will come and want
to get into the Lord's organization then, and then we'll say "Lord, open
to us" and Jesus will look out at us and say "I don't even know you."
But then we panic and we say "But we ate and drank in front of you
taught us in our broad ways." What's that a desperation attempt to do?
It's a desperation attempt to say to Jesus, "Its me! You remember me! I
sat in front of you, and you taught us in your broad ways. Remember I
came to the Watchtower study once a week? And remember when the Circuit
Servant was there, I never missed? And every memorial I came?" 
What does he say then? "I'm sorry, I don't know you. I don't recognize
you. You didn't love the Lord's people enough to be there all the time.
You didn't love my house enough to be there all the time. Now why try to
come and show you love me? If you loved me you would have been there. So
I don't recognize you as one of my people, get away from me. You had
time to work righteousness, now get away from me you worker of
lawlessness. You had your op****tunity. Stand out there with the weeping
and the gna****ng of the teeth. Beat your chests." And wouldn't we?
Wouldn't we at that time, if we were left outside, beat our chests, and
gnash our teeth, and weep, and say "God, I was so close. What did I fool
around for? Why didn't I do something for The Truth when I had the
op****tunity? Why did I make all those excuses? Why did I try to fool
Jehovah God?" 
Well now, who will be there of us here tonight? Well the Society has
made application of this scripture, pointing out, that those of us among
Jehovah's Witnesses that are not regularly associating with his people,
without good cause such as being flat on our back, will not be in the
New Order. And we're the ones that are going to come around when the
doors close and say "I want in now. Sir, open to us!" And Jesus will
have to say "I'm sorry, I don't even recognize you."
Now wouldn't that be an awful thing? You see now why the Society
implores us year in and year out, the same old thing: "Brothers, get in
the flock. Don't let any excuses get in our way. Nothing of any nature."
There's only one thing that's going to count when that time comes, and
that's that we are inside. And we hope that all of us here tonight are
going to listen to the Society's imploring. 
We're going to listen to their agonizing entreaty "Brothers get in"
because they know what's coming! And it's coming fast. And don't wait
'till 1975. The door is going to be shut before then. 
So? What are we going to do now with our future? Why not be like the
little piglet? Ever see a piglet born? It's quite an amazing thing. They
come out from behind the mother's legs, they're blind, they can't see.
They're still attached to their mother's umbilical cord. And somehow
they've gotta break free of that umbilical cord, come around the
mother's legs, and find the milk. How do they do it? Well watch them
sometime. They tug and they pull and they scratch. They fall and they
get up. And they jerk and they yank. They fall again and they get up
again and they tug and pull some more. And pretty soon they break loose
and those little legs, they go 'round the mother's legs, and they come
up and they find their reward, their milk.
Now we can do the same. We're going to fall once in a while. We're going
to slip. It's going to be hard pulling and hard tugging, but don't give
in. Get up, get on our feet, and run! The goal is there: everlasting
life! Serve with it in view! Do what Jesus Christ says: serve with
everlasting view, as long as Jehovah asks us! Jesus urged "Endurance on
your part" and then he says "by enduring, you will acquire your souls."
As one brother put it, "Stay alive to Seventy-Five"
*** The Watchtower January 1st 1967 Issue, Page 28 *** 
Have You Read Your Copy?
"READ my copy of what?" you ask. Why, your copy of Life Everlasting-in
Freedom of the Sons of God! It has been four to six months since most of
you in the United States, Canada and Great Britain received your copies.
If you have not already read it, do so now.
Why? Well, if you do not, you are missing out on a spiritual treasure.
That Bible-study aid contains a wealth of Scriptural information
designed to aid you as one of Jehovah's witnesses both in facing the
problems of life and in instructing others. True, in due time it will be
a textbook for congregational studies, but do not wait until then to
gain this precious information. Get an overall, bird's-eye view of it,
as it were, right away by reading it from cover to cover.
Of course, this book is not only for Jehovah's witnesses. Are you
studying the Bible with one of Jehovah's witnesses? Then you will want
to read it through on the side, so to speak; it will hasten your
progress in learning God's will. Really, reading this book is strongly
recommended for all before they dedicate themselves and get baptized.
[...]
But, without a doubt, nothing has created more interest in this textbook
than the first chapter with its chart and fine information regarding the
7,000 years of God's rest day. The observation that 1975 may well mark
the beginning of mankind's great Jubilee has intrigued many.
[...]
Time is precious, use it wisely. If you have a copy of Life
Everlasting-in Freedom of the Sons of God you have a marvelous book in
your possession. Time used to give it at least a quick preliminary
reading is time well spent. When you come to something new to you, you
may want to slow down and make it your own, but do not put off your
first reading of the book for lack of time to study it thoroughly. Make
time to read it now!
*** The Watchtower April 15th 1967 Issue, Pages 229-37 *** 
Mankind's Millennium Under God's Kingdom-Why Literally So
[...]
25. Fifteen centuries ago the Roman Catholic "Saint" Augustine spoke of
six thousand years of history and referred to the millennium as a
"Sabbath," the seventh-day rest period. But he did not hold to this. For
centuries now the Bible chronology as worked out by Archbishop James
Ussher has been followed by both Catholics and Protestants. This
chronology reckons that the first man Adam was created in the year 4004
before Christ, and so six thousand years of human existence on earth
will end before this twentieth century ends, or in 1996 C.E. According
to a more recent calculation of the Bible timetable, six thousand years
of man's existence will end in the latter half of the year 1975, which
is well within this century. The Bible millennium is ahead of us, and,
according to the count of time and the events of world history, it is
approaching. It is not ending, as Roman Catholic comments on the Bible
would make us believe.
*** Watchtower May 1st 1967 Issue Page 262 Where Are We According to
God's Timetable? ***
THE END OF 6,000 YEARS
In examining these Scriptural facts, something else also captures our
attention. According to Bible chronology, we are already over fifty-two
years into the wicked system of things' "time of the end." That time
began in the autumn of 1914 C.E., at the termination of the "appointed
times of the nations," and it is already far advanced. Jesus said that
"this generation" that saw the beginning of this time period in 1914
would also see its end. The generation that was old enough to view those
events with understanding in 1914 is no longer young. It no longer has
many years to run. Already many of its members have died. But Jesus
showed that there would still be members of "this generation" alive at
the time of the passing away of this wicked system of things in both
heaven and earth. (Luke 21:32, 33) How much longer will it be, then,
before God takes action to destroy the wicked and usher in the blessings
of his Kingdom rule?
Interestingly, the autumn of the year 1975 marks the end of 6,000 years
of human experience. This is ascertainable from reliable chronology
preserved in the Bible itself. What will that year mean for humankind?
Will it be the time when God executes the wicked and starts off the
thousand-year reign of his Son Jesus Christ? It very well could, but we
will have to wait to see. Yet of this we can be certain: the generation
that Jesus said would witness those events is nearing its close. The
time is close at hand. On God's "timetable" we are in the closing days
of a wicked system of things that will soon be gone forever. A glorious
new order is immediately before us. This is, therefore, good reason for
Christians everywhere to rejoice. Yes, they rejoice because fulfillment
of their prayers for the kingdom of God is now at hand.-Luke 21:28.
Therefore, keep in mind the admonition of the Lord Jesus when speaking
of our day: "Keep awake, then, all the time making supplication that you
may succeed in escaping all these things that are destined to occur, and
in standing before the Son of man." (Luke 21:36) The prophecy is sure;
the time is short.
*** Awake! January 8th 1968 Issue Page 19 *** [not available on Official
Watchtower CD-ROM]
It is just as a former United States Secretary of State noted in the
June 13, 1960, issue of U.S. News & World Re****t. He declared that our
time is 'a period of unequalled instability, unequalled violence,' and
warned: 'I know enough of what is going on to assure you that, in 15
years from today, this world is going to be too dangerous to live in.'
*** The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life Book (1968 Edition), Page 9,
Chapter 1 *** 
[As Published in the Original 1968 Edition]
Grand Blessings from God Near at Hand!
Also, as re****ted back in 1960, a former United States Secretary of
State, Dean Acheson, declared that our time is "a period of unequaled
instability, unequaled violence." And he warned: "I know enough of what
is going on to assure you that, in fifteen years from today, this world
is going to be too dangerous to live in."
The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life Book (1981 Edition), Page 9,
Chapter 1 ***
Grand Blessings from God Near at Hand!
[As Published in 1981 Edition]
Also, as re****ted back in 1960, a former United States Secretary of
State, Dean Acheson, declared that our time is "a period of unequaled
instability, unequaled violence." Based on what he knew was then going
on in the world, it was his conclusion that soon "this world is going to
be too dangerous to live in."
*** The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life Book (1968 Edition), Pages
88-89, Chapter 10 ***
[As Published in the Original 1968 Edition -- to see a Scanned Image of
this Page, click here]
God's Kingdom Comes to Power in the Midst of Its Enemies
11. During and after World War II widespread food shortages added to the
distress. Shortly after the war Look magazine observed:
"A fourth of the world is starving today. Tomorrow will even be worse.
Famine over most of the world now is more terrible than most of us can
imagine. . . . There are now more people hunting desperately for food
than at any other time in history."
More recently, the book entitled "Famine-1975!" [by W. & P. Paddock,
1967, pp. 52, 55, 61.] said concerning today's food shortages:
"Hunger is rampant throughout country after country, continent after
continent around the undeveloped belt of the tropics and subtropics.
Today's crisis can move in only one direction - toward catastrophe.
Today hungry nations; tomorrow starving nations.
By 1975 civil disorder, anarchy, military dictator****ps, runaway
inflation, trans****tation breakdowns and chaotic unrest will be the
order of the day in many of the hungry nations."
*** The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life Book (1981 Edition), Pages
88-89 Chapter 10 ***
[As Published in the 1981 Edition]
God's Kingdom Comes to Power in the Midst of Its Enemies
11. During and after World War II widespread food shortages added to the
distress. Shortly after the war Look magazine observed:
"A fourth of the world is starving today. Tomorrow will even be worse.
Famine over most of the world now is more terrible than most of us can
imagine. . . . There are now more people hunting desperately for food
than at any other time in history."
More recent re****ts have shown that a constant lack of adequate food,
resulting in chronic malnutrition, has become the "major world hunger
problem today." The London Times re****ted:
"There have always been famines, but the scale and ubiquity [presence
everywhere] of hunger today is on a totally new scale. . . . Today
malnutrition is said to affect more than a thousand million people;
perhaps as many as 400 million live constantly on the brink of
starvation."-June 3, 1980.
*** Our Kingdom Ministry March 1968 Page 4 ***
Making some special effort to do more than the usual helps us live up to
our dedication. In view of the short period of time left, we want to do
this as often as cir***stances permit. Just think, brothers, there are
only about ninety months left before 6,000 years of man's existence on
earth is completed... Do you remember what we learned at the assemblies
last summer? The majority of people living today will probably be alive
when Armageddon breaks out, and there are no resurrection hopes for
those who are destroyed then. So, now more than ever, it is vital not to
ignore that spirit of wanting to do more.
*** Watchtower May 1st 1968 Issue Pages 271 to 273 Making Wise Use of
the Remaining Time ***
THE SEVENTH DAY
4 According to reliable Bible chronology Adam was created in the year
4026 B.C.E., likely in the autumn of the year, at the end of the sixth
day of creation. Then God brought the animals to man to name. Yet, of
Adam, Genesis states these words of Jehovah: "It is not good for the man
to continue by himself." (Gen. 2:18) Adam would realize this lonely
condition very quickly, perhaps in just a few days or a few weeks. He
would realize he needed another earthling with whom he could
communicate, share his experiences, and his life. Nor would his naming
the animals take an unduly long time. The basic animal kinds could have
been relatively quickly named, for when such basic kinds were taken into
the ark in Noah's day, it did not involve millions of beasts, but
perhaps only a few hundred basic kinds. Thus, Adam's naming of the
animals and his realizing that he needed a counterpart would have
occupied only a brief time after his creation. Since it was also
Jehovah's purpose for man to multiply and fill the earth, it is logical
that he would create Eve soon after Adam, perhaps just a few weeks or
months later in the same year, 4026 B.C.E. After her creation, God's
rest day, the seventh period, immediately followed.
5 Therefore, God's seventh day and the time man has been on earth
apparently run parallel. To calculate where man is in the stream of time
relative to God's seventh day of 7,000 years, we need to determine how
long a time has elapsed from the year of Adam and Eve's creation in 4026
B.C.E. From the autumn of that year to the autumn of 1 B.C.E., there
would be 4,025 years. From the autumn of 1 B.C.E. to the autumn of 1
C.E. is one year (there was no zero year). From the autumn of 1 C.E. to
the autumn of 1967 is a total of 1,966 years. Adding 4,025 and 1 and
1,966, we get 5,992 years from the autumn of 4026 B.C.E. to the autumn
of 1967. Thus, eight years remain to account for a full 6,000 years of
the seventh day. 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.
6 After 6,000 years of misery, toil, trouble, sickness and death under
Satan's rule, mankind is indeed in dire need of relief, a rest. The
seventh day of the Jewish week, the sabbath, would well picture the
final 1,000-year reign of God's kingdom under Christ when mankind would
be uplifted from 6,000 years of sin and death. (Rev. 20:6) Hence, when
Christians note from God's timetable the approaching end of 6,000 years
of human history, it fills them with anticipation. Particularly is this
true because the great sign of the "last days" has been in the course of
fulfillment since the beginning of the "time of the end" in 1914. And,
as Jesus said, "this generation will by no means pass away until all
these things occur." (Matt. 24:34) Some of the generation that discerned
the beginning of the time of the end in 1914 will still be alive on
earth to witness the end of this present wicked system of things at the
battle of Armageddon.-Rev. 16:14, 16.
7 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 fulfillment, resulting in the liberation of surviving
mankind into Christ's glorious 1,000-year reign. What difficult days,
but, at the same time, what grand days are just ahead!
8 Does this mean that the year 1975 will bring the battle of Armageddon?
No one can say with certainty what any particular year will bring. Jesus
said: "Concerning that day or the hour nobody knows." (Mark 13:32)
Sufficient is it for God's servants to know for a certainty that, for
this system under Satan, time is running out rapidly. How foolish a
person would be not to be awake and alert to the limited time remaining,
to the earthshaking events soon to take place, and to the need to work
out one's salvation!
*** Watchtower August 15th 1968 Issue Page 488 The Book of Truthful
Historical Dates ***
The Book of Truthful Historical Dates
2 But what about the distant past before our time? What do we know about
dates and events that were no part of our personal experience? For
example, do we know what year Jesus was born or, more im****tant, the
date of his death? After all, he was the greatest man ever to walk this
earth. Do we know what year Jerusalem was destroyed by the Babylonians?
That particular date is highly im****tant if we are to understand why
certain events have occurred in our lifetime. Where are we today on the
stream of time? Do we know that the seventh year from now will conclude
the 6,000th year since Adam was created? And if we live to that year
1975, what should we expect to happen?
Pages 494-501:
Why Are You Looking Forward to 1975?
WHAT about all this talk concerning the year 1975? Lively discussions,
some based on speculation, have burst into flame during recent months
among serious students of the Bible. Their interest has been kindled by
the belief that 1975 will mark the end of 6,000 years of human history
since Adam's creation. The nearness of such an im****tant date indeed
fires the imagination and presents unlimited possibilities for
discussion.
...
29 After much of the mathematics and genealogies, really, of what
benefit is this information to us today? Is it not all dead history, as
uninteresting and profitless as walking through a cemetery copying old
dates off tombstones? After all, why should we be any more interested in
the date of Adam's creation than in the birth of King Tut? Well, for one
thing, if 4,026 is added to 1,968 (allowing for the lack of a zero year
between C.E. and B.C.E.) one gets a total of 5,993 years, come this
autumn, since Adam's creation. That means, in the fall of the year 1975,
a little over seven years from now (and not in 1997 as would be the case
if Ussher's figures were correct), it will be 6,000 years since the
creation of Adam, the father of all mankind!
ADAM CREATED AT CLOSE OF "SIXTH DAY"
30 Are we to assume from this study that the battle of Armageddon will
be all over by the autumn of 1975, and the long-looked-for thousand-year
reign of Christ will begin by then? Possibly, but we wait to see how
closely the seventh thousand-year period of man's existence coincides
with the sabbathlike thousand-year reign of Christ. If these two periods
run parallel with each other as to the calendar year, it will not be by
mere chance or accident but will be according to Jehovah's loving and
timely purposes. Our chronology, however, which is reasonably accurate
(but admittedly not infallible), at the best only points to the autumn
of 1975 as the end of 6,000 years of man's existence on earth. It does
not necessarily mean that 1975 marks the end of the first 6,000 years of
Jehovah's seventh creative "day." Why not? Because after his creation
Adam lived some time during the "sixth day," which unknown amount of
time would need to be subtracted from Adam's 930 years, to determine
when the sixth seven-thousand-year period or "day" ended, and how long
Adam lived into the "seventh day." And yet the end of that sixth
creative "day" could end within the same Gregorian calendar year of
Adam's creation. It may involve only a difference of weeks or months,
not years.
31 In regard to Adam's creation it is good to read carefully what the
Bible says. Moses in compiling the book of Genesis referred to written
records or "histories" that predated the Flood. The first of these
begins with Genesis 1:1 and ends at Genesis 2:4 with the words, "This is
the history of the heavens and the earth . . . " The second historical
do***ent begins with Genesis 2:5 and ends with Genesis verse two of
chapter five. Hence we have two separate accounts of creation from
slightly different points of view. In the second of these accounts, in
Genesis 2:19, the original Hebrew verb translated "was forming" is in
the progressive imperfect form. This does not mean that the animals and
birds were created after Adam was created. Genesis 1:20-28 shows it does
not mean that. So, in order to avoid contradiction between Genesis
chapter one and chapter two, Genesis 2:19, 20 must be only a
parenthetical remark thrown in to explain the need for creating a
"helper" for man. So the progressive Hebrew verb form could also be
rendered as "had been forming."-See Rotherham's translation (Ro), also
Leeser's (Le).
32 These two creation accounts in the book of Genesis, though differing
slightly in the treatment of the material, are in perfect agreement with
each other on all points, including the fact that Eve was created after
Adam. So not until after this event did the sixth creative day come to
an end. Exactly how soon after Adam's creation is not disclosed. "After
that [Adam and Eve's creation] God saw everything he had made and, look!
it was very good. And there came to be evening and there came to be
morning, a sixth day." (Gen. 1:31) After the sixth creative day ends,
the seventh one begins.
33 This time between Adam's creation and the beginning of the seventh
day, the day of rest, let it be noted, need not have been a long time.
It could have been a rather short one. The naming of the animals by
Adam, and his discovery that there was no complement for himself,
required no great length of time. The animals were in subjection to
Adam; they were peaceful; they came under God's leading; they were not
needing to be chased down and caught. It took Noah only seven days to
get the same kinds of animals, male and female, into the Ark. (Gen.
7:1-4) Eve's creation was quickly accomplished, 'while Adam was
sleeping.' (Gen. 2:21) So the lapse of time between Adam's creation and
the end of the sixth creative day, though unknown, was a comparatively
short period of time. The pronouncement at the end of the sixth day,
"God saw everything he had made and, look! it was very good," proves
that the beginning of the great seventh day of the creative week did not
wait until after Adam and Eve sinned and were expelled from the Garden
of Eden.
1975! ... AND FAR BEYOND!
34 Bible chronology is an interesting study by which historic events are
placed in their order of occurrence along the stream of time. The Watch
Tower Society over the years has endeavored to keep its associates
abreast with the latest scholar****p that proves consistent with historic
and prophetic events recorded in the Scriptures. Major problems in
sacred chronology have been straightened out either due to fulfillment
of Bible prophecies or by reason of archaeological discoveries or
because better Bible translations convey more clearly the records of the
original languages. However, several knotty problems of chronology of a
minor nature are not yet resolved. For example, at the time of the
exodus from Egypt when Jehovah changed the beginning of the year from
autumn time on the secular calendar to spring time on the sacred
calendar, was there, in the Jewish calendar, a loss or a gain of six
months?-Ex. 12:1, 2.
35 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"!
36 Even if one cannot see beyond 1975, is this any reason to be less
active? The apostles could not see even this far; they knew nothing
about 1975. All they could see was a short time ahead in which to finish
the work assigned to them. (1 Pet. 4:7) Hence, there was a ring of alarm
and a cry of urgency in all their writings. (Acts 20:20; 2 Tim. 4:2) And
rightly so. If they had delayed or dillydallied and had been complacent
with the idea the end was some thousands of years off they would never
have finished running the race set before them. No, they ran hard and
they ran fast, and they won! It was a life or death matter with them.-1
Cor. 9:24; 2 Tim. 4:7; Heb. 12:1.
37 So too with Jehovah's faithful witnesses in this latter half of the
twentieth century. They have the true Christian point of view. Their
strenuous evangelistic activity is not something peculiar to this
present decade. They have not dedicated their lives to serve Jehovah
only until 1975. Christians have been running this way ever since Christ
Jesus blazed the trail and commanded his disciples. "Follow me!" So keep
this same mental attitude in you that was in Christ Jesus. Let nothing
slow you down or cause you to tire and give out. Those who will flee
Babylon the Great and this Satanic system of things are now running for
their lives, headed for God's kingdom, and they will not stop at 1975. O
no! They will keep on in this glorious way that leads to everlasting
life, praising and serving Jehovah for ever and ever!
[Study Questions]
...
37. So what will you be doing between now and 1975? And beyond that,
what?
*** Awake! October 8th 1968 Pages 14-15 *** [not available on the
Official Watchtower CD-ROM]
6,000 Years Nearing Completion .. 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.
Today, many years later, we may ask, What does the phrase 'the immediate
future' mean? How many years are 'a few years at most'? .. According to
reliable Bible chronology, Adam and Eve were created in 4026 B.C.E..
There is another way that helps confirm the fact that we are living in
the final few years of this 'time of the end.' (Dan. 12:9) The Bible
shows that we are nearing the end of a full 6,000 years of human
history. What significance does this have? When God gave his laws to
ancient Israel, one of those laws involved keeping the sabbath day holy.
On the seventh day of the week there was to be no labor. The people were
to rest from all their toil. (Ex 20:8-11) The Bible states that 'the Law
has a shadow of the good things to come.' - Heb. 10:1. Revelation
chapter 20, verse 6, shows that God's heavenly kingdom will rule over
the earth for one thousand years after the end of this system of things.
That millennium will bring a sabbath-like rest to the earth and all
those then inhabiting it. Hence, the first six thousand years since
man's creation could be likened to the first six days of the week in
ancient Israel. The seventh one-thousand-year period could be likened to
the seventh day, the sabbath, of that week. - 2 Pet. 3:8. How fitting it
would be for God, following this pattern, to end man's misery after six
thousand years of human rule and follow it with His glorious Kingdom
rule for a thousand years! .. only seven more years from the autumn of
1968 to complete 6,000 full years of human history. That seven-year
period will evidently finish in the autumn of the year 1975...
Concerning political instability, former U.S. Secretary of State Dean
Acheson said in 1960: 'I know enough of what is going on to assure you
that, in 15 years from today (or, by 1975), this world is going to be
too dangerous to live in.' .. [Chart] 1975 C.E. END OF 6,000 YEARS .. In
the book Famine - 1975! food experts W. and P. Paddock state: .. 'I
forecast a specific date, 1975, when the new crisis will be upon us in
all its awesome im****tance.'
Kingdom Ministry, June 1969, Page 3
"In view of the short time left, a decision to pursue a career in this
system of things is not only unwise but extremely dangerous...Many young
brothers and sisters were offered scholar****ps or employment that
promised fine pay. However, they turned them down and put spiritual
interests first."
*** Watchtower October 15th 1969 Page 623 The Approaching Peace of a
Thousand Years ***
[Note: Same information was printed in The Approaching Peace of a
Thousand Years (Book), 1969, which is not available on the Official
Watchtower CD-ROM]
42 In order for the Lord Jesus Christ to be "Lord even of the sabbath
day," his thousand-year reign would have to be the seventh in a series
of thousand-year periods or millenniums. (Matt. 12:8, AV) Thus it would
be a sabbatic reign. Since early in the existence of mankind Satan the
Devil has been on the loose, making the human family to toil in hard
bondage, causing the earth to be filled with violence before the global
flood of Noah's day and inducing the same old earth to be filled with
even greater violence today. Soon now six millenniums of his wicked
exploiting of mankind as his slaves will end, within the lifetime of the
generation that has witnessed world events since the close of the
Gentile Times in 1914 till now, according to the prophetic words of
Jesus in Matthew 24:34. Would not, then, the end of six millenniums of
mankind's laborious enslavement under Satan the Devil be the fitting
time for Jehovah God to usher in a Sabbath millennium for all his human
creatures? Yes, indeed! And his King Jesus Christ will be Lord of that
Sabbath.
*** The Approaching Peace of a Thousand Years (Book), 1969, Page 25 ***
[not available on the Official Watchtower CD-ROM]
More recently earnest researchers of the Holy Bible have made a recheck
of its chronology. According to their calculations the six millenniums
of mankind's life on earth would end in the mid-seventies. Thus the
seventh millennium from man's creation by Jehovah God would begin within
less than ten years.
*** Watchtower May 1st 1970 Issue, Pages 265-277 Keep Close in Mind "The
Conclusion of the System of Things" *** 
21 Time magazine re****ted that in the previous five years before its
issue the world's population had increased twice as fast as its food
production. It has been calculated that it took from the beginning of
human history until the year 1800 for the population of the earth to
reach one billion, 130 years more to reach 2 billion and just 36 years
later the population had jumped to 3.28 billion. In recent years the
United States has been feeding one out of twenty persons in Africa,
Latin America and parts of Asia. It has been re****ted that India
devoured a quarter of the United States' wheat crop in 1966 as compared
to a fifth the year before and an eighth five years earlier. No wonder
the book Famine-1975! re****ts there will be "a famine that will happen
no matter what anyone does." Certainly a new system of things is needed
to overcome the specter of mass starvation as the "black horse"
continues its famine-striking course.
A CRITICAL TIME
5 Everyone would like to know how much longer the present system will
continue and when God's purpose will be accomplished on earth in the
same full way as in heaven. Jesus answered that "this good news of the
kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth . . . and then the
end will come." Here in the Greek Bible text he used the word telos or
"end" to distinguish what he meant from the syntleia or "conclusion" of
the system of things, the harvest period, in which we now live. (Compare
Matthew 24:3, 6, Diaglott.) How close we may exactly be to the end of
the present divisive system of things cannot be predicted, as Jesus
re****ted that even he did not know the day or the hour at the time of
his earthly ministry. (Matt. 24:36) However, 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. (1 Cor. 7:29) This corroborates
the understanding of Jesus' words that the generation alive in 1914 with
the outbreak of World War I would not pass away until the end comes.
Only a short time, then, remains for persons who love righteousness to
show God that they want to be in his "ark" of protection and live to see
the blessings of the new system of things.-Matt. 24:34-42.
*** "The Nations Shall Know That I Am Jehovah - How" Book (1971), Page
216 ***
[Note: not available on 1993/1995/1999 CD-ROM] 
Shortly, within our twentieth century, the "battle in the day of
Jehovah" will begin against the modern antitype of Jerusalem,
Christendom.
*** Aid to Bible Understanding Book, 1971 Edition ***
Page 333, and Page 538:
"Total time period from Adam's creation to the present year, 1969, C.E.:
5,994 years." 
"Adam and Eve were both 130 years old when Seth was born" 
"At the age of 130 another son was born to her. Eve called his name
Seth...."
[MY COMMENT: If this information from the Aid Book is compared to the
chart in the lower right-hand corner of Page 333 of the same Volume, one
will see, "From Adam's creation to the birth of Seth" was "130 years".
Hence, both Adam and Eve were 130 years old when Seth was born, implying
they were both created in the same year.]
*** God's Eternal Purpose Now Triumphing For Man's Good Book, 1974, Page
51 ***
Would there be another creative 'day,' a seventh 'day,' at the close of
the 'morning' of which the whole earth would be populated with a human
family and be a global Paradise? 'Evening' of seventh creative 'day'
begins, 4026 B.C.E.
[4026 B.C.E. + 6000 years to take to start of the seventh day =3D 1975
Pages 131-132, Chapter 11: 
The Messiah of God's "Eternal Purpose"
"MORNING" OF SEVENTH CREATIVE "DAY" BEGINS, 526 B.C.E.
5 The first half or "evening" period of God's seventh creative "day" was
now closing, 3,500 years from creation of Adam and Eve
[so another 2,500 years of the 6,000 would bring us to 1975]
Kingdom Ministry, May 1974, Page 3
"How Are You Using Your Life?" 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? Re****ts 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. 1 John 2:17."
*** Watchtower October 15th 1974 Issue Page 635 Growing in Appreciation
for the "Divine Purpose" ***
The publications of Jehovah's witnesses have shown that, according to
Bible chronology, it appears that 6,000 years of man's existence will be
completed in the mid-1970's. But these publications have never said that
the world's end would come then. Nevertheless, there has been
considerable individual speculation on the matter. So the assembly
presentation "Why We Have Not Been Told 'That Day and Hour'" was very
timely. It emphasized that we do not know the exact time when God will
bring the end. All we know is that the end will come within the
generation that sees fulfilled on it the sign that Jesus Christ said
would then be in evidence. (See Matthew chapters 24, 25.) All
indications are that the fulfillment of this sign began in 1914. So we
can be confident that the end is near; we do not have the slightest
doubt that God will bring it about, the speaker stressed. But we have to
wait and see exactly when, in the meantime keeping busy in God's
service.
*** Awake! November 8th 1974 Issue, Page 11 ***
"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 fulfillment 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. They have
chosen to remain childless so that they would be less en***bered to
carry out the instructions of Jesus Christ to preach the good news of
God's kingdom earth wide before the end of this system comes. Matt.
24:14."
*** Watchtower January 1st 1975 Issue Page 11 Will You Live to See
Christ's "Coming"? ***
In view of all these facts, along with Jesus' prophetic words, millions
of people now living will see the "day" of Christ's coming to mete out
justice upon this system of things, religious, political, commercial and
social.
*** Public Address by Brother Fred W. Franz (Governing Body Member and
President of the Watchtower Society) in early 1975 in Australia ***
[To hear a Recording of this Talk in RealAudio Format, click here]
... what's gonna happen? And is it likely that the destruction of the
whole wicked system of things will take place at the hands of Jehovah
God, the Great Executioner of his judgments against Satan and his wicked
organization?
Well, a lot will have to happen [inaudible] to occur by September the
fifth, the end of the lunar month of year Nineteen Hundred and Seventy
Five, a *LOT* will have to happen. And when you consider how much has to
happen and how if it depended on the normal outworking of things it
seems very improbable, very unlikely, that all that has to take place in
fulfillment of prophecy, will be accomplished by September the fifth, at
sundown. 
Not to say that God can not bring it about by then. He is almighty, he
has his time, and he acts on time. He is a precise timekeeper, and if
it's his will to have everything accomplished by September the fifth,
sundown, of this year, why it certainly can come to pass.
But then when we see how things are moving along, just gradually, and
there is much to be accomplished according to the prophecies, why, we
begin to wonder, well, now will *ALL* these things happen in so short a
period of time that is left?
*** Watchtower May 1st 1975 Issue Page 285 A Contrast-Missionaries with
an Urgent, Lifesaving Work ***
Another speaker, F. W. Franz, the Society's vice-president, forcefully
impressed on the audience the urgency of the Christian preaching work.
He stressed that, according to dependable Bible chronology, 6,000 years
of human history will end this coming September according to the lunar
calendar. This coincides with a time when "the human species [is] about
to starve itself to death," as well as its being faced with poisoning by
pollution and destruction by nuclear weapons. Franz added: "There's no
basis for believing that mankind, faced with what it now faces, can
exist for the seventh thousand-year period" under the present system of
things.
Does this mean that we know exactly when God will destroy this old
system and establish a new one? Franz showed that we do not, for we do
not know how short was the time interval between Adam's creation and the
creation of Eve, at which point God's rest day of seven thousand years
began. (Heb. 4:3, 4) But, he pointed out, "we should not think that this
year of 1975 is of no significance to us," for the Bible proves that
Jehovah is "the greatest chronologist" and "we have the anchor date,
1914, marking the end of the Gentile Times." So, he continued, "we are
filled with anticipation for the near future, for our generation."-Matt.
24:34.
*** Watchtower October 1st 1975 Issue Page 579 The End of 6,000 Years of
Man-Rule Approaches-What Has Been Accomplished? ***
The End of 6,000 Years of Man-Rule Approaches-What Has Been
Accomplished?
SINCE a new Jewish lunar year began in September 1975 a significant
point in human history was reached. What was that? According to the
Bible's count of time, mankind then completed 6,000 years of existence
on earth. Yes, the first man Adam, if he had chosen to remain obedient
under God's ruler****p, would have still been alive and 6,000 years old
in September of this year.
Does this mean, then, that mankind has now reached 6,000 years into the
7,000-year period that God 'blessed and made sacred' as his great "rest
day"? Does it mean that Christ's millennial Kingdom rule, as the final
1,000 years of that "rest day," is to be reckoned from September
1975?-Gen. 1:27, 31; 2:2, 3; Rev. 20:1-6.
No, it does not mean that. Why not? Well, the Bible record shows that
God's creations on the "day" just preceding that 7,000-year "rest day"
did not end with Adam's creation. It shows a time lapse between the
creation of Adam and that of his wife, Eve. During that time, God had
Adam name the animals. Whether that period amounted to weeks or months
or years, we do not know. So we do not know exactly when Jehovah's great
"rest day" began, nor do we know exactly when it will end. The same
applies to the beginning of Christ's millennial reign. The Bible
provides us no way to fix the date, and so it does us no good to
speculate when that date may be.-Gen. 2:18-25; Matt. 24:42, 44.
However, the Bible's time clock does indicate to us that 6,000 years of
human history end in this year 1975.
*** Yearbook 1975 Page 256 United States of America (Part Three) ***
Just think where we are in the stream of time! Its im****tance was deeply
impressed on our minds back in 1966. God's people then received the
absorbing book Life Everlasting-in Freedom of the Sons of God. It did
not take long for most of them to note the chronological chart in it
that identified 1975 as the "end of 6th 1,000-year day of man's
existence (in early autumn)."
This certainly raised questions. Does this mean that Babylon the Great
will go down by 1975? Will Armageddon be over, with Satan bound, by
then? 'It could' acknowledged F. W. Franz, the Watch Tower Society's
vice-president, after posing similar questions at the "God's Sons of
Liberty" District Assembly in Baltimore, Maryland. However, he added, in
essence: '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.' Among other things, Brother Franz urged: "Let us
make the most of the time and get in all the good hard work to Jehovah
while the op****tunity affords."
*** Watchtower July 15th 1976 Issue Pages 435-437 Keeping a Balanced
View of Time ***
16 What, then, has God revealed to us about this? He certainly has not
left us without guidance. By prophecies such as those just considered he
enables us to know where we are in the stream of time. The fulfillment
of his prophetic word convinces us that God is not sleepy nor slow, and
as the apostle Peter said regarding those acting wickedly, "the judgment
from of old is not moving slowly, and the destruction of them is not
slumbering." (2 Pet. 2:3) We have ample information and evidence to
cause us to be confident that we live in the "time of the end" as
regards the present unrighteous system of things. Yet, beyond this,
there are things that God has not revealed to us. One of those things is
the time for the outbreak of the "great tribulation" prefigured by the
tribulation that came upon Jerusalem, a tribulation that will be global
in its fulfillment.
TIME FACTORS THAT GOD HAS NOT REVEALED
17 There are reasons why we cannot know this. For one thing, even though
Bible chronology clearly indicates that we have reached the mark of six
thousand years since the time of the creation of the first human, Adam,
it does not tell us just how long after that event the sixth creative
day came to its close and the seventh creative period or "day," God's
great rest day, began. Genesis chapter two, verse three, says that
Jehovah blessed and made sacred that "day," and it therefore seems
reasonable that it will see within its bounds the removal of the wicked
old order and the establishment of God's righteous new order by means of
the thousand-year reign of God's Son. Thus there is reason for believing
that that thousand-year period will form the closing part of that great
rest day and will restore the earth and its inhabitants to a perfect
state. That would enable God to say of that seventh day and its
results-as he did of other creative days-that "it was good."-Gen. 1:4,
10, 12, 18, 21, 25, 31.
18 But that great rest day did not begin immediately after Adam's
creation. Other events took place after Adam's creation but before the
close of the sixth creative day. One of these is of great im****tance to
all of us. That is the creation of the first woman, Eve. Without that
none of us would be alive today, for, as the apostle Paul states at 1
Corinthians 11:12, "just as the woman is out of the man, so also the man
is through the woman," all of us needing a human mother to be born.
19 How much time elapsed between the creation of the man and that of the
woman? The Bible does not reveal this. It could have been a relatively
short time. Adam was created-not as a child or an adolescent-but as a
full-grown, fully mature man, both physically and mentally. He did not
have to crawl first to learn to walk, nor babble sounds until able to
speak. He was created with these abilities and could communicate with
his heavenly Creator and could be set to work to cultivate and care for
his garden home. He could comprehend divine instructions and also the
prohibition concerning the proscribed tree of the knowledge of good and
bad. (Gen. 2:15-17) In those respects, then, he would have been in
position to receive a wife at any time.
20 True, and yet Adam was in certain respects like a newborn infant upon
being created. Why? Because, fully adult though he was, the day of his
being created was still the first day he had lived. Everything he
saw-every tree, flower, plant, every stream, lake, river, every creature
of all the bird, animal and fish creation-he was seeing for the very
first time. This was true of everything he did. When he walked he took
his very first step; and so too with the experience of running,
climbing, touching, smelling, tasting, eating-all were brand-new
experiences for him. What enormous curiosity he must have felt as he
examined the fascinating handiwork of Jehovah God and became acquainted
with his garden home! How long would he be allowed time to satisfy that
curiosity before taking on added responsibility as a family head?
21 That Edenic home does not seem to have been some tiny plot of ground.
It contained all the varieties of trees within its boundaries, according
to Genesis the second chapter. And there was a "river issuing out of
Eden to water the garden," one large enough to separate and form the
headwaters of four major rivers, some of which still flow today. (Gen.
2:8-10) It would take time for Adam to go exploring all of this in order
to become familiar with the area he was assigned to care for and
cultivate.
22 "But," one might ask, "would it not be pleasant if he were to share
all these new experiences right away with a human companion, a wife, and
thus learn together with her?" That might be, and yet might it not be
more appropriate if he first gained considerable knowledge and
experience beforehand? Then, when joined by his mate, he would be in
position to answer her questions and explain things to her, thereby
enhancing her respect for him as her informed head. (Eph. 5:22, 23)
God's direct warning to Adam regarding the consequences of disobediently
eating from the prohibited tree placed Adam in the position of God's
prophet to the companion He would later create for the man.-Gen. 2:16,
17.
23 The only information the Bible actually supplies us is that, before
creating Eve, God began bringing to the man all the creatures He had
formed and "the man was calling the names of all the domestic animals
and of the flying creatures of the heavens and of every wild beast of
the field, but for man there was found no helper as a complement of
him." (Gen. 2:18-20) It takes but a few words to describe this; but how
long did it take in actuality?
24 The brevity of the Genesis account surely does not require our
thinking that God simply gathered all the animals and birds into a big
group and then had them file past Adam while he quickly called off names
for them, one by one. True, he may have had to deal only with basic
family kinds rather than all the varieties of creatures that have
developed out of those family kinds. But even so, we cannot rule out the
possibility that God's "bringing" these creatures to Adam may have
involved their moving in sufficiently close to allow Adam to study them
for a time, observing their distinctive habits and makeup, and then
select a name that would be especially fitting for each. This could mean
the passing of a considerable amount of time. And we may note that, when
Adam did finally see his newly created wife, his first words were: "This
is at last bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh." (Gen. 2:23) This too
could indicate that he had waited for some time to receive his
delightful human counterpart.
25 What, then, does this mean? Simply this: That these factors, and the
possibilities for which they allow, prevent us from saying with any
positiveness how much time elapsed between Adam's creation and that of
the first woman. We do not know whether it was a brief time such as a
month or a few months, a year or even more. But whatever time elapsed
would have to be added to the time that has passed since Adam's creation
in order for us to know how far along we are within God's seventh "day,"
his grand day of rest. So our having advanced six thousand years from
the start of human existence is one thing. Advancing six thousand years
into God's seventh creative "day" is quite another. And we do not know
just how far along in the stream of time we are in this regard.
*** Watchtower July 15th 1976 Issue Page 441 A Solid Basis for
Confidence ***
15 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.
*** 1980 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses Pages 30-31***
The brothers also appreciated the candor of this same talk, which
acknowledged the Society's responsibility for some of the disappointment
a number felt regarding 1975.
*** Watchtower March 15th 1980 Issue Pages 17-18 Choosing the Best Way
of Life ***
5 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.
6 In its issue of July 15, 1976, The Watchtower, commenting on the
inadvisability of setting our sights on a certain date, stated: "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." In saying "anyone," The Watchtower included all disappointed
ones of Jehovah's Witnesses, hence including persons having to do with
the publication of the information that contributed to the buildup of
hopes centered on that date.
*** 1988 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses, Page 190 Korea *** 
However, the first few months of the 1976 service year began with a
marked decrease in publishers and home Bible studies. This downward
trend was to continue for over three years, bottoming out in a
26-percent decrease in publishers, from 32,693 in August 1975 to 24,285
in November 1978. Memorial attendance dropped too, from over 68,000 in
1975 to 49,545 in 1978. The brothers at the branch were perplexed. Would
the trend be reversed?
Of course, neither they nor the Society were just letting it slide by.
The Society's letter of April 4, 1977, stated:
"We hope the brothers are careful in their teaching. Evidently some were
very strong on the 1975 date, and so a good foundation was not laid. The
foundation, of course, should be faith in Christ Jesus and the ransom
sacrifice, and the dedication should be with understanding."
A very candid observation indeed! Too much emphasis was placed on a date
by some Bible teachers. Many newly baptized ones took up the truth on a
wave of emotion. Even some elders had their hopes pinned to 1975. In
addition, materialism seeped into the land as a result of the rapid
economic growth in Korea, and nationalism was on the rise. The effect:
apathy among the brothers.
*** Jehovah's Witnesses, Proclaimers of God's Kingdom Book, 1993 ***
Page 104, Chapter 8: Declaring the Good News Without Letup (1942-1975) 
"Say, What Does This 1975 Mean?" 
The Witnesses had long shared the belief that the Thousand Year Reign of
Christ would follow after 6,000 years of human history. But when would
6,000 years of human existence end? The book Life Everlasting-In Freedom
of the Sons of God, released at a series of district conventions held in
1966, pointed to 1975. Right at the convention, as the brothers examined
the contents, the new book triggered much discussion about 1975.
At the convention held in Baltimore, Maryland, F. W. Franz gave the
concluding talk. He began by saying: "Just before I got on the platform
a young man came to me and said, 'Say, what does this 1975 mean?'"
Brother Franz then referred to the many questions that had arisen as to
whether the material in the new book meant that by 1975 Armageddon would
be finished, and Satan would be bound. He stated, in essence: '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.'
In the years following 1966, many of Jehovah's Witnesses acted in
harmony with the spirit of that counsel. However, other statements were
published on this subject, and some were likely more definite than
advisable. This was acknowledged in The Watchtower of March 15, 1980
(page 17). But Jehovah's Witnesses were also cautioned to concentrate
mainly on doing Jehovah's will and not to be swept up by dates and
expectations of an early salvation.
Page 723:
Noteworthy Events in the Modern-day History of Jehovah's Witnesses
1975: Governing Body is reorganized; on December 4, responsibility for
much of the work is assigned to six committees, which begin to function
on January 1, 1976
*** Awake! March 22nd 1993 Issue Pages 3-4 Why So Many False Alarms? ***
Why So Many False Alarms?
The World's End-How Near?
THE story is told of a boy who watched the sheep of the villagers. To
stir up a bit of excitement, one day he cried out, "Wolf! Wolf!" when
there was no wolf. The villagers rushed out with clubs to drive off the
wolf, only to find that there was none. It was such great fun that later
on the boy repeated his cry. Again the villagers rushed out with their
clubs, only to discover that it was another false alarm. After that a
wolf did come, and the boy sounded the warning, "Wolf! Wolf!" but the
villagers dismissed his cry as another false alarm. They had been fooled
too often.
So it has become with those who proclaim the end of the world. Down
through the centuries since Jesus' day, so many unfulfilled predictions
have been made that many no longer take them seriously.
Gregory I, pope from 590 to 604 C.E., in a letter to a European monarch,
said: "We also wish Your Majesty to know, as we have learned from the
words of Almighty God in Holy Scriptures, that the end of the present
world is already near and that the unending Kingdom of the Saints is
approaching."
In the 16th century, Martin Luther, progenitor of the Lutheran Church,
predicted that the end was imminent. According to one authority, he
stated: "For my part, I am sure that the day of judgment is just around
the corner."
Concerning one of the first Baptist groups, it is re****ted: "The
Anabaptists of the early Sixteenth Century believed that the Millennium
would occur in 1533."
"Edwin Sandys (1519-1588), Archbishop of York and Primate of England...
says, ... 'Let us be assured that this coming of the Lord is near.'"
William Miller, generally credited with founding the Adventist Church,
is quoted as saying: "I am fully convinced that sometime between March
21, 1843, and March 21, 1844, according to the Jewish mode of
computation of time, Christ will come."
Does the failure of such predictions to come true convict as false
prophets those who made them, within the meaning of Deuteronomy
18:20-22? That text reads: "The prophet who presumes to speak in my name
a word that I have not commanded him to speak or who speaks in the name
of other gods, that prophet must die. And in case you should say in your
heart: 'How shall we know the word that Jehovah has not spoken?' when
the prophet speaks in the name of Jehovah and the word does not occur or
come true, that is the word that Jehovah did not speak."
There are some who make spectacular predictions of the world's end to
grab attention and a following, but others are sincerely convinced that
their proclamations are true. They are voicing expectations based on
their own interpretation of some scripture text or physical event. They
do not claim that their predictions are direct revelations from Jehovah
and that in this sense they are prophesying in Jehovah's name. Hence, in
such cases, when their words do not come true, they should not be viewed
as false prophets such as those warned against at Deuteronomy 18:20-22.
In their human fallibility, they misinterpreted matters.
Undeterred by previous failures, some seem to have been spurred on by
the approach of the year 2000 and have made further predictions of the
end of the world. The Wall Street Journal of December 5, 1989, published
an article entitled "Millennium Fever: Prophets Proliferate, the End Is
Near." With the year 2000 approaching, various evangelicals are
predicting that Jesus is coming and that the 1990's will be "a time of
troubles that has not been seen before." At the time of this writing,
the latest occurrence was in the Republic of Korea, where the Mission
for the Coming Days predicted that on October 28, 1992, at midnight,
Christ would come and take believers to heaven. Several other doomsday
groups made similar predictions.
The flood of false alarms is unfortunate. They are like the wolf-wolf
cries of the shepherd boy-people soon dismiss them, and when the true
warning comes, it too is ignored.
But why has there been such a tendency through the centuries and down to
our day for false alarms to be sounded, as Jesus said they would be?
(Matthew 24:23-26) Jesus, after telling his followers about different
events that would mark his return, said to them, as we read at Matthew
24:36-42: "Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels
of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father. For just as the days of
Noah were, so the presence of the Son of man will be. . . . Keep on the
watch, therefore, because you do not know on what day your Lord is
coming."
They were told not only to be on the watch and to be prepared but also
to watch with eagerness. Romans 8:19 says: "For the eager expectation of
the creation is waiting for the revealing of the sons of God." Human
nature is such that when we fervently hope and yearn for something and
wait in eager expectation of it, a powerful temptation arises within us
to see it at the door even when the evidence is insufficient. In our
eagerness false alarms may be sounded.
What, then, will distinguish the true warning from the false ones? For
the answer, please see the following article.
[Footnotes]: Jehovah's Witnesses, in their eagerness for Jesus' second
coming, have suggested dates that turned out to be incorrect. Because of
this, some have called them false prophets. Never in these instances,
however, did they presume to originate predictions 'in the name of
Jehovah.' Never did they say, 'These are the words of Jehovah.' The
Watchtower, the official journal of Jehovah's Witnesses, has said: "We
have not the gift of prophecy." (January 1883, page 425) "Nor would we
have our writings reverenced or regarded as infallible." (December 15,
1896, page 306) The Watchtower has also said that the fact that some
have Jehovah's spirit "does not mean those now serving as Jehovah's
witnesses are inspired. It does not mean that the writings in this
magazine The Watchtower are inspired and infallible and without
mistakes." (May 15, 1947, page 157) "The Watchtower does not claim to be
inspired in its utterances, nor is it dogmatic." (August 15, 1950, page
263) "The brothers preparing these publications are not infallible.
Their writings are not inspired as are those of Paul and the other Bible
writers. (2 Tim. 3:16) And so, at times, it has been necessary, as
understanding became clearer, to correct views. (Prov. 4:18)"-February
15, 1981, page 19.
*** 1995 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses, Page 227 Mexico *** 
There Came a Time of Sifting
There were strong expectations concerning the year 1975 and what it
might mean in the fulfillment of Jehovah's purpose. Some set their
hearts on that date as the time when the old system would be destroyed
and God's new world would be established. When those expectations were
not realized, there were some who ceased serving God. A number became
apostates. But the vast majority of Jehovah's Witnesses were motivated
by love for Jehovah. They knew that God's Word would never fail.
*** Awake! June 22nd 1995 Issue Page 9 Can You Trust God's Promises? ***
Bible Students, known since 1931 as Jehovah's Witnesses, also expected
that the year 1925 would see the fulfillment of marvelous Bible
prophecies. They surmised that at that time the earthly resurrection
would begin, bringing back faithful men of old, such as Abraham, David,
and Daniel. More recently, many Witnesses conjectured that events
associated with the beginning of Christ's Millennial Reign might start
to take place in 1975. Their anticipation was based on the understanding
that the seventh millennium of human history would begin then.
These erroneous views did not mean that God's promises were wrong, that
he had made a mistake. By no means! The mistakes or misconceptions, as
in the case of first-century Christians, were due to a failure to heed
Jesus' caution, 'You do not know the time.' The wrong conclusions were
due, not to malice or to unfaithfulness to Christ, but to a fervent
desire to realize the fulfillment of God's promises in their own time.
*** 2000 Yearbook of Jehovah's Witnesses, Pages 196-197 Czech Republic
*** 
"Six Thousand Years of Human Existence"
In 1969 the Watchtower magazine in Czech began publi****ng a series of
articles based on the book Life Everlasting-In Freedom of the Sons of
God. Chapter 1, under the subheading "Six Thousand Years of Human
Existence Closing," contained an explanation of the Jubilee and of Bible
chronology. This material influenced some in a positive way; it also led
to many questions and much speculation.
The office in Czechoslovakia sent a letter dated February 22, 1972, to
all congregations. It set out a lengthy explanation of reasons why we
should not make any definite assertions about the date when Armageddon
will strike. It pointed out that no publication of the Society had said
that Armageddon will come in a certain year. The letter concluded:
"Jehovah's Witnesses around the world are familiar with these facts, and
no one should add any personal claims as to what will happen before or
during the year 1975. There are no Scriptural grounds for any claims,
and they could have a detrimental effect on the preaching work. Strive,
therefore, that you 'all speak in agreement and that there be no
divisions among you but that you may be fitly united in the same mind
and in the same line of thought.' (1 Cor. 1:10) For concerning that day
and hour nobody knows."-Matt. 24:36.
IP: 3iiER4HdjP0YS5/y

Re: ARMAGEDDON IN 1975 - TIMELINE OF QUOTES 19-Sep-02 23:15
Amidst the sadness, I will just refer to the voice of soundness, the
quote you gave as this one:
*** All Scripture is Inspired of God and Beneficial Book (1963, 1983,
and 1990 Editions), Pages 286-287 Study Number 3 - Measuring Events in
the Stream of Time *** 
13. Of what significance is this today? The first edition of this book,
published in 1963, stated: "Does this mean, then, that by 1963 we had
progressed 5,988 years into the 'day' on which Jehovah 'has been resting
from all his work'? (Gen. 2:3) No, for the creation of Adam does not
correspond with the beginning of Jehovah's rest day. Following Adam's
creation, and still within the sixth creative day, Jehovah appears to
have been forming further animal and bird creations. Also, he had Adam
name the animals, which would take some time, and he proceeded to create
Eve. (Gen. 2:18-22; see also NW, 1953 Ed., footnote on Ge 2 vs. 19)
Whatever time elapsed between Adam's creation and the end of the 'sixth
day' must be subtracted from the 5,988 years in order to give the actual
length of time from the beginning of the 'seventh day' until [1963]. It
does no good to use Bible chronology for speculating on dates that are
still future in the stream of time.-Matt. 24:36."
If only this voice had been listened to, but I guess it was too quiet,
and then the book was not translated to all languages, either, and not
read too much, either ................ 
IP: wrk6F1ZmAritTg8O

Re: ARMAGEDDON IN 1975 - TIMELINE OF QUOTES 20-Sep-02 02:35
I especially like this one: 
*** Awake! March 22nd 1993 Issue Pages 3-4 Why So Many False Alarms? ***
Gregory I, pope from 590 to 604 C.E., in a letter to a European monarch,
said: "We also wish Your Majesty to know, as we have learned from the
words of Almighty God in Holy Scriptures, that the end of the present
world is already near and that the unending Kingdom of the Saints is
approaching." 
In the 16th century, Martin Luther, progenitor of the Lutheran Church,
predicted that the end was imminent. According to one authority, he
stated: "For my part, I am sure that the day of judgment is just around
the corner." 
"Edwin Sandys (1519-1588), Archbishop of York and Primate of England...
says, ... 'Let us be assured that this coming of the Lord is near.'" 
William Miller, generally credited with founding the Adventist Church,
is quoted as saying: "I am fully convinced that sometime between March
21, 1843, and March 21, 1844, according to the Jewish mode of
computation of time, Christ will come." 
this shows simular language like the society used. however the excuse
that they were not claiming to be a profet is false. talking about
crying wolf! wolf! 
this surely is one of their most self damning articles.
=A0
IP: 9y1Y+bLfeuUtIJeD