If the locusts in Joel's prophecy are to attack Jehovah's people [Christ's brothers] how is it evident that the locusts in Revelation 9 are Jehovah's people [Christ's brothers]? In what way can it be said that Jesus FELL from heaven? Is it true that earlier publications of Jehovah's witnesses identified the star/angel as Satan?

In the prophecy of Joel, God's nation and people are depicted as being over-run by a plague of devouring insects and caterpillars. Jehovah then comes to the aid of his besieged people and eventually makes compensation to them for the devastation wrought by the infestation. See essay: Day of the Locust Attack.

While Joel portrays God's people as repenting and calling on Jehovah for aid and relief from the locust assault, Revelation relates the exact opposite outcome for those victimized by the locusts with stinging scorpion tails. Revelation 9:4 indicates that the locust sting "only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads," as a prelude of their eventual destruction. That means that the stinging takes place after the final sealing of the anointed occurs; some time after the opening of the 6th seal, which is during the time of tribulation. If the locust only sting those without the seal, it is evident that those doing the stinging are themselves the sealed ones. Too, since the locust themselves are portrayed as wearing crowns of gold and have over them a king, it is evident that those locust-like creatures are the sealed anointed ones, who at that point will have been given their kingdom, in company with Christ their king.

As for the 2nd part of your question: Years ago the Watchtower wrongly interpreted Revelation 9:1 as applying to the so-called fallen angel, Satan the Devil. As to why God would portray Jesus as a fallen angel, please consider what the prophecy of Daniel has to say in that connection. Daniel 8:10-11 says, concerning the future activities of the king of fierce countenance: "And it kept getting greater all the way to the army of the heavens, so that it caused some of the army and some of the stars to fall to the earth, and it went trampling them down. And all the way to the Prince of the army it put on airs, and from him the constant feature was taken away, and the established place of his sanctuary was thrown down."

In Daniel's prophecy, the holy ones are depicted as the "army of the heavens." The symbolic heavens, consisting of 144,000 stars, have over them Jesus, their king--described as the "Prince of the army". Apparently, those holy ones who are on earth when Christ is finally given his kingdom are also subsequently given their kingdom with Christ, as mentioned in the 7th chapter of Daniel. But, Satan's king of fierce countenance brings them to ruin. Thus, it is said that he causes "some of the stars to fall to earth." Since, as Jesus said, whatever is done to his brothers is considered as being done to Christ himself, if his anointed brothers are made to fall, especially after they become kings, then it can be said that Christ himself is made to suffer and fall. So, it seems that after the holy ones are made to fall and brought to ruin, Jehovah intervenes in some miraculous way; and, afterwards, whether in the flesh, or as martyred and resurrected spirits, Christ unleashes his own band of locust-like warriors in retaliation.

Interestingly, in this connection, the 33rd chapter of Isaiah is Jehovah's judicial decision against the treacherous despoilers of God's people and it depicts Jehovah turning the tables, so that the despoilers are themselves despoiled. The 4th verse reads: "And the spoil of you people will actually be gathered like the cockroaches when gathering in, like the onrush of locust swarms that is rushing against one." So, that indicates that God's enemies as well as his own people can be likened to locusts when they despoil their enemies.

what is the purpose of life?

In regards to my previous question of the mediatorship of Jesus, you say he is not the mediator of all of us and I beg to differ. The Bible clearly states he is mediator between god and man, not between God and certain men, or a few men! Otherwise, if he were only mediator of the 144,000, the rest of mankind especially the so-called earthly class would be praying through whom, the watchtower organization?

Perhaps you recall that Peter referred to the apostle Paul's letters, saying: "In them, however, are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unsteady are twisting, as they do the rest of the Scriptures..." So, if we want to avoid falling into the trap of twisting the Scriptures, we must recognize that some things in the Bible are hard to understand. We should therefore soberly appreciate the inadvisability of building an entire doctrine around our preferred interpretation of a single verse or particular word in a verse. The Watchtower has taught the truth in this regard. Please consider the following:

Last week's mailbag's answer referred the reader to numerous passages in Paul's letter to the Hebrews where Jesus was referred to as a mediator. In the several places where the term mediator is used, it is always in reference to Christ being the mediator of a covenant. But does that mean that God makes a covenant with all men? No. Those who are brought into a covenant with Jehovah, through the mediator Christ, are those who are anointed and chosen by God to ultimately rule with Christ in his kingdom. The purpose for the covenant is ultimately for the blessing of all the nations, as God promised when he originally established his covenant with Abraham. (See Genesis 22:18)

If mankind is to receive a blessing as a result of the seed of God's promise, and only the anointed are part of that seed, then it is evident that mankind in general is not in any covenant relationship with God. Hence, Christ is not their mediator. Expressed differently: The people of the nations are recipients of the blessings of the seed of God. But Christ and his anointed ones are the seed of God. (See Galatians 3:29) That's why it is not necessary for all men to have Christ as a mediator, because they are blessed through the kingdom--even though they are not in a covenant for the kingdom.

Consider this: Jehovah God listened to the prayers of men and women long before Christ came to earth. That being the case, having Christ as a mediator is not a prerequisite for having one's prayers heard by God. Take the example of Cornelius: before he was anointed he didn't know who Jesus was, and yet the angel told him that God recognized his prayers and gifts of mercy. So, if God heard prayers before Christ became Jehovah's mediator, why do you suppose that it is now necessary for all men to have a mediator in order to get a hearing? The truth is, praying through Jesus, thus recognizing him as Jehovah's means of salvation, does not automatically make him a mediator to every supplicant.

The question we ought to ask, as well as answer, is: Why do the anointed need a mediator when others do not? It is not just so that their prayers may be heard. It is much deeper than that. The answer has to do with the fact that the anointed have to be brought into a condition whereby they may be declared righteous before God. Being declared righteous essentially means that God judges them as being perfect and faultless. Of course, they are not perfect or faultless by any means. But, in order for God to justify bringing sinful men into his presence in the very heavens, he has to have some valid means of overlooking their obvious sinfulness. They have to be accredited righteousness because it is not something that they possess. That is where Christ's intercession and mediation comes in on their behalf.

In the case of mankind in general, it is not necessary for Jehovah to declare them to be righteous when they are not. Why, Jesus is even going to resurrect the masses of unrighteous people from the dead who had never acknowledged him or Jehovah. That in itself is proof that non-anointed individuals do not need a mediator to gain God's blessing of ever-lasting life. The reason is because Christ's kingdom is going to tutor and gradually uplift mankind out of their sinful condition during the 1,000-year period set aside for that very thing. Even those who survive Armageddon are not declared righteous. They will still be in a sinful condition after the dust settles and they will have to follow the program that leads them to human perfection. So, at the end of the thousand years, Jehovah may judge redeemed mankind to be righteous, because at that point they will actually be righteous. But, in the case of the anointed, there is no such period whereby they are reformed so as to become sinless in God's eyes. They are in fact sinful creatures up until the very moment when they are changed, in the twinkling of an eye, into immortal and indestructible beings and Jehovah brings them into his very presence.

That is a big, big deal! Jehovah doesn't just do things on a whim. He is ethical and lives by his own principles of justice. So, for God to allow himself to do such an extraordinary thing, he had to first establish its legality. Again, that's why they need some special arrangement so that Jehovah may immediately cancel out their sin and declare them to be his righteous sons. That's what the new covenant and Christ's mediation brings about.

As for "praying through the Watchtower organization" as you rhetorically asked, jokingly: Ironically, when Jehovah removes the reproach from his anointed ones and sanctifies his own name, in preparation for the blessing of the other sheep, Isaiah 45:14 indicates that the non-anointed will recognize the exalted position of Christ's brothers. It reads, in part: "And to you they will bow down. To you they will pray, saying, 'Indeed God is in union with you, and there is no one else; and there is no other God."

That others recognize that God is in union with a particular group of people, indicates that Jehovah does have a very special organization that he has made a covenant with, and that at some point we will want to acknowledge that fact.

While Christians are commanded to preach and make disciples, there is no direct command recorded in the scriptures to go from door to door. Why is this a requirement for Witnesses when the scriptures say not to go beyond what is written?

Paul also used the phrase "these last days" in Hebrews 1 but the NWT translation committee chose to translate these words as "at the end of these days." [See Kingdom Interlinear and also refer to other translations often quoted by the society]

The first century Christian congregation did become infiltrated with satanic agents and eventually adopted many false doctrines like the trinity, yet you suggest that the true Christians would still have continued to associate with the congregation because the "wheat and the weeds" were to grow together. So just when did that Christian congregation cease to be the true Christian congregation, when did the true Christians see the need to follow the scriptural advice to "get out from among them" and where did they go to for spiritual association?

Thank you for your reasoned arguments. I have long held many of the things you have said, for example, the love of the greater number cooling off; this to me has always been within the congregations. Also Jesus condemnation of the Pharisees has to me long denoted the organization today and Jesus view of it. Also, I mentioned (probably unwisely) to an elder that I did not see the relevance of the 'Trumpet Blasts' of the 1920's today as no-one alive knew anything about them. I cannot understand how the collective Governing Body who are supposed to be Jehovah's channel have made such fundamental errors and why have they not reasoned out the arguments such as presented on this site. What is the reason for this? If you have seen it surely they should have?

We must appreciate that most of the Watchtower's error has to do with wrongly interpreting prophecy. And, the prophecies themselves have determined that such will be the case. The 28th and 29th chapters of Isaiah, and other prophecies as well, have foretold that God would cover the heads of his prophets and visionaries so that they would be unable to intelligently decipher the prophet's message. (See essay entitled "Who is Blind as the Servant of Jehovah?") If you recall, Jehovah similarly concealed the reality of Christ's death from the apostles. So, since hidden in Christ are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, if Christ does not allow his servants to understand a particular thing, then we will be blind to it without our even being aware that we are blind.

If Jehovah's stated purpose calls for blinding his own people in order to accomplish his purpose in connection with them, then we shouldn't be surprised when we see evidence of such blindness. Consider what the apostle Paul wrote concerning fleshly Israel at Romans 11:25. "For I do not want you, brothers, to be ignorant of this sacred secret, in order for you not to be discreet in your own eyes: that a dulling of sensibilities has happened in part to Israel until the full number of the people of the nations has come in, and in this manner all Israel will be saved."

If the "dulling of sensibilities" is to be in force until the full number (144,000) comes in, at which point "all Israel will be saved," in reality that means that the "Israel" that God has blinded and which will eventually be saved, is not fleshly Israel at all. That means that God allows a dulling of the spiritual perception of those who are themselves spiritual Jews, until Jehovah has finished the work of calling and choosing all the members of his nation. So, whereas, the Watchtower establishment, around which is grouped what we might call the old-guard anointed, is unable to appreciate that God's calling and choosing did not end in 1935, but continues to the present 11th hour, the dulling of their sensibilities is itself evidence of God's work and the very lateness of the hour.

who founded the watchtower and when did it begin?

I must ask, would not my views, like yours on certain subjects, be considered apostasy? And if I were to be disfellowshipped for having these views, how would my family and myself be able to serve Jehovah from outside his protected organization? Would we not be in more danger from Satan's attacks while outside the congregation? Your answers to these pertinent questions are urgently required, replies like "just keep quiet about it" my conscience could not allow, as I feel I've found the truth again, and I cant keep quiet about it.

Solomon wrote that there is an appointed time to speak and a time to be quiet. Jesus also advised his followers to be wise as serpents yet innocent as doves. Whatever "truth" you have found, if it causes you to be disfellowshipped from the congregation for "preaching" to others, perhaps it is wise to remain silent. Of course, we all lack wisdom at times. That's why James reassures us that if we supplicate God for his wisdom, that he will give it to us without reproaching us for our lack of wisdom.

Paul also gave some counsel that might help you see the course of wisdom in this regard. He wrote Timothy, saying: "I desire that in every place the men carry on prayer, lifting up loyal hands, apart from wrath and debates." Now, ask yourself, if I preach my views to the congregation, even if I am totally convinced of the rightness of my position, what will be the likely outcome? Will it result in the congregation being built up and encouraged, or will it result in dissension, resentment, needless struggle and debate? If you will honestly supply yourself the answer to that question you should be empowered to know the right course to take.

Dear Watchman, If you have time, would you please help me understand: If Jesus did not come invisibly in 1914, and then he didn't appoint the "faithful and discreet slave over all his belongings and to dispense food at the proper time, etc., then: (1) By what authority do Jehovah's Witnesses claim to be Jehovah's organization? (2) What then distinguishes them from Christendom? (3) If it is Jehovah's organization, is it the "only" channel through which Jehovah and Jesus communicate to us? (4) Are all the anointed on earth today baptized Jehovah's Witnesses?

Part 1: Our claim to being Jehovah's organization is by virtue of the fact that there are anointed Christians among us. They make up what is called in Scripture---God's house. According to Luke 12:42, the so-called "faithful slave" is given an appointment over Christ's body of attendants in the master's household. Notice, please, that in both Matthew and Luke's account, the faithful slave is given two different appointments on two separate occasions. The 1st appointment, as mentioned above, is over the master's body of attendants only. The 2nd appointment occurs when the master finally arrives for judgment, as a thief in the night. The stewards that are judged to have been faithful in their first appointed assignment are then appointed over all of the master's belongings.

Unfortunately, the Watchtower has erroneously concluded that the master has already arrived and that he has appointed the faithful slave over all his "belongings" back in 1919. However, even if that is not true, we should not hastily jump to the conclusion that the faithful slave has not been appointed over God's household. Evidently, the future appointment of the faithful slave over all the master's belongings has to do with their finally receiving their kingdom in company with Christ. Incidentally, the 32nd chapter of Isaiah contains a prophecy of what will take place when Jesus actually becomes king. Verses 3-4 say: "And the eyes of those seeing will not be pasted together, and the very ears of those hearing will pay attention. And the heart of those who are overhasty will consider knowledge..."

It would appear from that verse that those whom Jehovah will yet enlighten are his own anointed servants and their friends. There is no question but that we have been overhasty in rushing to stamp so many prophecies as having been fulfilled back in 1914-1919. Jehovah, of course, has the power to cause us to see things in a different light, similar to when Paul had a close encounter with the glorified Christ that literally blinded him, only to have what looked like scales fall from his eyes a few days later. Paul said that his encounter with Christ was unique in that he was as one born premature. That means that while all the other witnesses of Jesus' resurrection saw Jesus in a familiar human form, Paul saw Jesus as all the bride of Christ will see him in his full glory. So, the fact that scales fell from Paul's eyes as a result of seeing Christ in his glory, likely, stands as a portent for the eye-opening experience Jehovah's Witnesses will undergo at the revelation of Christ's glory.

Part 2: Jehovah's Witnesses are distinguished from Christendom in many respects. First, we witness about Jehovah God. We have put before the world the relevant issues of Jehovah's universal sovereignty and the issue of man's integrity to God. We have shaken free from the teachings of babylonish religion. We endeavor to be no part of the Devil's world. Jehovah's Witnesses make known the good news concerning God's kingdom---that it is an actual government that will rule a new world of peace and righteousness. Our ministry actually gives people a basis for having genuine hope of living forever in paradise. Ultimately, our organization has provided Jehovah a rationale for intervening in human society in order to first: correct his wayward witnesses; and then, to avenge himself upon the world that will have by then sought to annihilate his sons.

Part 3: The primary way that God communicates with us is by means of his holy spirit and his word. Since there is but one God, one Lord, and one faith, and the master has but one household, it is reasonable that there is only one avenue through which God accomplishes his purposes.

Part 4: Yes. Again, according to the illustration of the faithful slave, at the time that the master arrives for judgment, all of the master's attendants are under one roof, so-to-speak.