“THIS GENERATION” Teaching Changes for 6th Time in April 15, 2010 Watchtower
Ever hear of the "overcomers" a word connected with Russell's Bible Student movement? In Russell's religion it was another name or term for the Anointed, Bride of Christ, Elect, Elijah class, Sons of God, Little Flock, etc.
Now according to the latest WT, "this generation" meant "...the lives of the anointed who were on hand when the sign began to become evident in 1914 would overlap with the lives of other anointed ones who would see the start of the great tribulation." WT Apr. 15, 2010
I don't know if others have said this, but, for what it's worth, now we have a name for the generation of the anointed who were alive in 1914 and whose lives touched the generation of lives of anointed who would see the start of the tribulation: The "overlappers."
Well, this change should buy out another 60 years or so before Armageddon may come! Such brilliant leaders of the Watchtower. But what did the Watchtower say about overlapping generations previously?
It is instructive to read what the Society has said in the past about overlapping generations.
In the September 1, 1952 Watchtower, a QFR article posed the question: "Your publications point out that the battle of Armageddon will come in this generation, and that this generation began A.D. 1914. Scripturally, how long is a generation?" The response said in part:
*** w52 9/1 p. 542 Questions From Readers ***
Three or even four generations may be living at the same time, their lives overlapping. (Ps. 78:4; 145:4)
Today, the Society would say that all four generations are really one generation, as they overlap together. In 1974, the Society again assumed that generations that overlap are separate generations:
*** w74 1/15 p. 43 How One Language Will Bring Unity to Mankind ***
There may well have been little change in Moses’ language from the original language spoken by Adam. Why? Because men then enjoyed very long life-spans, their lives often overlapping into five or six generations. Therefore, the language could have been passed down through only five human links between Adam and Moses, namely, Methuselah, Shem, Isaac, Levi, Amram. (Gen. 5:3-32; 11:10-32; 21:5; 25:26; 29:34; Ex. 6:16, 18, 20)
So here again separate generations may overlap with each other and still be considered distinct generations. In 2001, with reference to the growth of Australia as a country, the Society wrote:
*** g01 2/8 p. 22 Bound for Botany Bay ***
The pace of change continued to accelerate from those early days, and within just three overlapping generations, the “fine and flourishing colony” grew into a multicultural nation.
Because the three generations have overlapped, the Society today could just as well say that these are three groups comprising one generation, and that the generation of the Botany Bay colonists has by no means passed away. And similarly, they published in 2004:
*** w04 1/15 p. 5 Promises That You Can Trust ***
The Israelites were well received in Egypt in the days of Jacob’s son Joseph. The Egyptians later subjected them to brutal slave labor, but true to God’s promise, within a period of four overlapping generations from the time they entered Egypt, these descendants of Abraham were liberated from Egyptian bondage.
Again, the Society recognizes that generations may overlap without having the overlap render them as somehow comprising a single generation.
The Society's own literature shows how much the new "understanding" is contrary to normal English usage, not to mention basic logic.
So here is the "new light" that changes the meaning of "the generation" for the 6th time:
From the Watchtower April 15, 2010 page 10 article:
Holy Spirit’s Role in the Outworking of Jehovah’s Purpose
13 Third, holy spirit is at work in bringing Bible truths to light. (Prov. 4:18) This magazine has long been used by “the faithful and discreet slave” as the primary channel for dispensing increased light. (Matt. 24:45) For example, consider our understanding of those who make up “this generation” mentioned by Jesus. (Read Matthew 24:32- 34.) To what generation did Jesus refer? The article “Christ’s Presence—What Does It Mean to You?” explained that Jesus was referring, not to the wicked, but to his disciples, who were soon to be anointed with holy spirit. Jesus’ anointed followers, both in the first century and in our day, would be the ones who would not only see the sign but also discern its meaning—that Jesus “is near at the doors.”
14 What does this explanation mean to us? Although we cannot measure the exact length of “this generation,” we do well to keep in mind several things about the word “generation”: It usually refers to people of varying ages whose lives overlap during a particular time period; it is not excessively long; and it has an end. (Ex. 1:6) How, then, are we to understand Jesus’ words about “this generation”? He evidently meant that the lives of the anointed who were on hand when the sign began to become evident in 1914 would overlap with the lives of other anointed ones who would see the start of the great tribulation. That generation had a beginning, and it surely will have an end. The fulfillment of the various features of the sign clearly indicate that the tribulation must be near. By maintaining your sense of urgency and keeping on the watch, you show that you are keeping up with advancing light and following the leadings of holy spirit.—Mark 13:37.
The once-pivotal 1995 generation doctrine was now neutralized and neatly set aside. Why change it again? Because the 1995 explanation violated simple prepositional logic. A temporal preposition like, 'Until' demands that the conditional it describes be farther along in the stream of time than pivotal event itself. Here's another way to look at it:
"This generation will by no means pass away until all these things have occured."
What do you get when you plug in the 1995 definitions and restate the sentence above?
"Generation" = Those contemporaneous with the sign
"Pass Away" = Die at Armageddon
"All these things" = The entire sign including Armageddon
You get something like this:
"The generation living during the sign of the last days won't be destroyed at Armageddon until the entire sign is fulfilled and Armageddon occurs."
Even Jehovah's Witnesses who couldn't put this into words mentally balked at the idea that "pass away" was not simply a reference to death from old age.
The 2008 explanation fixed that particular problem, but after laboriously building a case in 1995 that the term, "Generation" always refers to the "Wicked", (e.g. A wicked and adulterous generation" etc.) turning around and proclaiming that the "Generation" of Matthew 24:34 was actually the righteous anointed down throughout history further confused those paying attention in the Kingdom Hall.
Worse, prior to Pentecost, the "Anointed" as Jehovah's Witnesses understand the term didn't even exist and interpreting Jesus' use of the near demonstrative pronoun (houtos) as a reference to them is a grammatical problem on par with the 1995 explanation.
The newest 2010 explanation is ingenious in a way, because it does not overtly violate rules of grammar; it follows the 'typical' fulfillment a little more closely and more importantly, once again, it buys the Governing Body more time.
Below is a chart of the various changes over the years courtesy of Archive.org
2-15-27 WT
“The irresistible conclusion therefore is that Jesus referred to the new creation [the anointed] when he said: “This generation shall not pass until all these things be fulfilled.” This then would be a strong indication that some members of the new creation will be on the earth at the time of Armageddon.”
7-1-51 WT
So it was on “this generation” that the accumulated judgments were to fall. (Matt. 23:36) This therefore means that from 1914 a generation shall not pass till all is fulfilled, and amidst a great time of trouble."
5-1-68 WT
"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."
5-22-69 AW
"If you are a young person, you also need to face the fact that you will never grow old in this present system of things. Why not? Because all the evidence in fulfillment of Bible prophecy indicates that this corrupt system is due to end in a few years. Of the generation that observed the beginning of the "last days" in 1914, Jesus foretold: "This generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur."
"Let Your Kingdom Come" 1981
"In Jesus' day, some of the disciples who heard his words, and others of his contemporaries, survived to live through the final "tribulation" on the Jewish system of things. They were the "generation" of Jesus' time. At this writing, in the United States alone there are more than 10,000,000 persons still living who were old enough to observe "a beginning of pangs of distress" in 1914-1918. Some of these may still survive quite a number of years. Yet Jesus assures us that, before "this generation" passes away, he will come as "Son of man" to execute judgment on Satan's system of things. (Matthew 24:8, 21, 37-39)"
11-1-95 WT
"Eager to see the end of this evil system, Jehovah's people have at times speculated about the time when the "great tribulation" would break out, even tying this to calculations of what is the lifetime of a generation since 1914. However, we "bring a heart of wisdom in," not by speculating about how many years or days make up a generation, but by thinking about how we "count our days" in bringing joyful praise to Jehovah. (Psalm 90:12) Rather than provide a rule for measuring time, the term "generation" as used by Jesus refers principally to contemporary people of a certain historical period, with their identifying characteristics. In line with the above, professor of history Robert Wohl wrote in his book The Generation of 1914: "A historical generation is not defined by its chronological limits . . . It is not a zone of dates.” … Therefore, in the final fulfillment of Jesus' prophecy today, "this generation" apparently refers to the peoples of earth who see the sign of Christ's presence but fail to mend their ways…Is anything to be gained, then, by looking for dates or by speculating about the literal lifetime of a "generation"? Does our more precise viewpoint on "this generation" mean that Armageddon is further away than we had thought? Not at all!
6 -1-97 WT
So the recent information in The Watchtower about "this generation" did not change our understanding of what occurred in 1914. But it did give us a clearer grasp of Jesus' use of the term "generation," helping us to see that his usage was no basis for calculating-counting from 1914-how close to the end we are."
2-15-08 WT
On the other hand, Christ's faithful anointed brothers, the modern-day John class, have recognized this sign as if it were a flash of lightning and have understood its true meaning. As a class, these anointed ones make up the modern-day "generation" of contemporaries that will not pass away "until all these things occur." This suggests that some who are Christ's anointed brothers will still be alive on earth when the foretold great tribulation begins."
4-15-10 WT
13 Third, Holy Spirit is at work in bringing Bible truths to light. (Prov. 4:18) This magazine has long been used by “the faithful and discreet slave” as the primary channel for dispensing increased light. (Matt. 24:45) For example, consider our understanding of those who make up “this generation” mentioned by Jesus. (Read Matthew 24:32- 34.) To what generation did Jesus refer? The article “Christ’s Presence—What Does It Mean to You?” explained that Jesus was referring, not to the wicked, but to his disciples, who were soon to be anointed with Holy Spirit. Jesus’ anointed followers, both in the first century and in our day, would be the ones who would not only see the sign but also discern its meaning—that Jesus “is near at the doors.”
14 What does this explanation mean to us? Although we cannot measure the exact length of “this generation,” we do well to keep in mind several things about the word “generation”: It usually refers to people of varying ages whose lives overlap during a particular time period; it is not excessively long; and it has an end. (Ex. 1:6) How, then, are we to understand Jesus’ words about “this generation”? He evidently meant that the lives of the anointed who were on hand when the sign began to become evident in 1914 would overlap with the lives of other anointed ones who would see the start of the great tribulation. That generation had a beginning, and it surely will have an end. The fulfillment of the various features of the sign clearly indicate that the tribulation must be near. By maintaining your sense of urgency and keeping on the watch, you show that you are keeping up with advancing light and following the leadings of Holy Spirit. —Mark 13:37."
All
the literature before November 1995 spoke of the generation that was 10-15
years old or born during 1914 would not pass away before Armageddon.
|
Back
Publication Abbreviations For The Watchtower Bible & Tract Society - WTBTS - Jehovah's Witnesses