Chapter 6
OTHER SHEEP
JEHOVAH builds up Zion, his capital organization, and then makes provision for faithful and obedient men to acquire that which Adam forfeited by reason of his disobedience. Man is the highest element of animal life, but God employs the names of lower animals to illustrate both disobedient and obedient men. Goats are used to symbolize disobedient human creatures; sheep used to symbolize obedient men. It is those obedient men that are called by the Lord "other sheep".
THE THEOCRACY is the government created and built up by the Almighty God as his capital organization and which shall rule the world. Those who are made members of that government are selected and
elected by Jehovah. Their number is definitely fixed before the selection begins, and this is emphasized at Revelation 7:1-8. It is manifestly certain that when THE THEOCRACY is completed there is no further opportunity for creatures to be installed into that government. Jesus uttered a parable concerning the Kingdom and concluded it with the statement: 'When the Bridegroom [which is Christ Jesus] came, they that were ready went in with him, and the door was shut.' (Matthew 25:1-10; Luke 13:24,25) Those received by the Lord and made members of the Kingdom he calls the "little flock" of his sheep, because the number is comparatively small and is definitely fixed. (Luke 12:32) Such are the ones that are associated with Christ Jesus in heaven.
Aside from those who compose the "little flock" there are human creatures that get life everlasting and must live on the earth. God did not make the earth in vain, but he made it to be inhabited by perfect men. (Isaiah 45:12,18) For centuries the Devil has attempted to prevent there being a perfect man on earth, and this effort on the Devil's part has been put forth by him to carry out his wicked challenge to Jehovah that God could not put men on earth that would remain faithful to him. The Devil's challenge shall fall flat.
God's purpose cannot fail, because he is all-powerful. Jehovah says, "I have spoken
it, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed it, I will also do it." (Isaiah 46:11) "So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void; but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." — Isaiah 55:11.
His announced purpose is to make the earth a fit place for righteous human creatures to live. "The earth abideth for ever." (Ecclesiastes 1:4) That means that the earth shall be the everlasting home of righteous, perfect men. Righteous men shall rule the earth under the direction and supervision of the Lord Jesus Christ. What place has the Lord provided for his "other sheep"?
Identification
It appears to be the rule that Jehovah brings about conditions in fulfillment of his prophecy and, after that, permits his faithful servants to see the fulfillment of the prophecy and sometimes to have a part in the fulfillment. Jesus uttered a great prophecy concerning his coming in glory and in power to begin his reign, and this prophecy began to have fulfillment in 1914, and his coming to the temple of God took place in 1918. Before that time no human creature could understand whom the Lord meant by his statement 'the sheep on my right hand'. Note the prophecy, which reads: "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all
the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory." — Matthew 25:31.
That fixes the time for the Lord's appearing at the temple for judgment, and which came to pass in A.D. 1918. Thereafter he conducts his judgment, separating those persons of good-will toward his kingdom from those who are against his kingdom. Those of good-will he calls 'the sheep on my right hand', which manifestly are the "other sheep" mentioned at John 10:16. Such human creatures, pictured by his "other sheep", cannot go to heaven, and therefore must find life on the earth. God's purpose from the beginning was that righteous men under his kingdom should receive the benefit of the Kingdom, which Jesus purchased with his own lifeblood: "And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in." — Matthew 25:33-35.
The apostle John, who wrote down The Revelation at the dictation of the Lord, specifically represented or pictured the faithful servants of the Lord who are on the earth at the time of the coming of Christ
Jesus to the temple. When he wrote, John was in banishment on the isle of Patmos. God's faithful people now on the earth are in banishment so far as other peoples of the earth are concerned. They are hated by all the nations because they are faithful to the Lord, even as Jesus foretold. (Matthew 24: 9) John had made inquiry as to the identity of the "great multitude" which he first beheld, as described at Revelation 7:9 and Revelation 7:13,14. Likewise at the time of his coming to the temple the faithful followers of Christ Jesus did not know the identity of the "great multitude", and so they had to inquire, and in due time the Lord revealed the identity of that multitude. It appears clearly from the Scriptures that no one on the earth could identify the "great multitude" until after the coming of the Lord to the temple. Thereafter it is the will of God that his faithful people on the earth shall understand. (Revelation 1:11; Daniel 12:10) Now they see that the "great multitude" are the same as the Lord's "other sheep".
Prior to the coming of the Lord to his temple sincere students of the Bible had understood that the "great multitude" mentioned at Revelation seven is a spiritual company of secondary importance, possessing a less degree of faith than that of those who shall reign with Christ. That view could not be correct, for the following reasons: No
one can please God unless he has and exercises faith and is faithful. "God is no respecter of persons," and he changes not. (Acts 10:34; Malachi 3:6) All of mankind who get life must maintain their integrity toward God, and hence must have and exercise faith and must prove faithful. It is only such that have part in the vindication of Jehovah's name. 'A secondary class of less faith,' therefore, is wholly inconsistent with God's purpose.
John records the fact that 144,000 members are of "the body of Christ", which reign with him. Before he had a vision of such he had no vision of the "great multitude". Then he says: "After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands." (Revelation 7:9) It therefore clearly appears that the spirit class are a fixed number, because these are a part of the Kingdom. Those of the "great multitude" are not a limited number, but rather the Lord opens the way for as many to come as may desire to serve him. He puts no limitation on the number. These come from all nations. They stand "before the throne", which shows that they are not in the throne and not a part of the Kingdom. They do not have to be in heaven in order to be be-
fore the throne of judgment, but, on the contrary, their judgment takes place on earth; and this is shown by the words of Jesus at Matthew 25: 31, 32. They stand before the Lamb, that is, before Christ Jesus, the great .Judge and King. They have a standing and are thus received by the Lord. They are, as symbolically stated, "clothed with white robes." Each one has a robe, showing that the robe is a means of identification of the individual members. Their being white robes symbolizes that they are clean and pure.
How do they get clean and have pure robes? The Scriptures answer that they "have washed their robes ... in the blood of the Lamb" (Revelation 7:14); that is to say, they have exercised faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) They have exercised faith by coming to the Lord and obeying his commandments. They also appear with "palms in their hands". "Palms" symbolize that they are recognizing Christ Jesus as the King, and they welcome him with shouts of joy. This was foreshadowed at the time Jesus rode into Jerusalem and offered himself as King, and at that time "a great multitude . . . took the branches of the palm trees, and went forth to meet him" and hailed him as King. (John 12:12,13, Am. Rev. Ver.; Matthew 21: 8, 9) In symbolic phrase of Revelation 7: 9, that
"great multitude" stood before the Lord's throne of judgment and there received the Lord's approval, and they recognized and accepted Christ Jesus as their Lord, Redeemer and King. Those pictured there as the "great multitude" gave expression to their joy, as is stated: "[They] cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb." (Revelation 7:10) Thus they show that they have learned and believed that to Almighty God belongs salvation, which he is giving to man by and through Christ Jesus, the purchaser and Redeemer. — Psalm 3:8; Acts 4:12; Romans 6: 23.
Revelation 7:11,12 describes the heavenly creatures joining in the praise of Jehovah because the time has come for the gathering of the Lord's "other sheep". Then it was that the question was propounded concerning the multitude: "What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?" (Vs. 13) The answer is given: "These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes... in the blood of the Lamb." (Vs. 14) That means that they have been gathered unto the Lord in troublesome times.
Physical Facts
When the physical facts that have come to pass fit the prophecy, then we may be sure that we have a proper understanding
of the prophecy. The seventh chapter of Revelation is prophecy. Note the facts that have been brought to pass and made clear in recent times. In the religious denominations, called "churches", there have been and still are many persons who are made sad by reason of the practices that are carried on in those organizations in the name of the Lord. These sad persons have a desire to know about God and Christ that their hearts may be filled with joy. These are the ones that hunger and thirst for righteousness. Jehovah's faithful witnesses, acting under the command of Christ Jesus, give to such sincere persons information of and concerning God's kingdom, and this they do by taking to them the knowledge of the truth and thus "set a mark upon the foreheads [seat of intelligence] of the men that sigh, and that cry, for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof [that is, in the midst of the religious congregations]". (Ezekiel 9:4) For several years Jehovah's witnesses have been carrying the Kingdom message to those other persons who have hungered and thirsted for righteousness, and in recent months many have fled from the religious institutions and have taken their stand firmly on the side of Jehovah and his THEOCRATIC GOVERNMENT under Christ Jesus. Such are the ones to whom Jesus referred when he said: "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after
righteousness: for they shall be filled." — Matthew 5: 6.
Jehovah's witnesses have been going from house to house with the message of the Kingdom, and multitudes of people have come and are coming to the Lord, and are learning of his purpose and taking their stand firmly on the side of God and his kingdom. By exercising faith in the shed blood of Christ Jesus and his kingdom they have identified themselves as being blessed of God and his King, and they are receiving his blessing. They have every reason to rejoice, and do rejoice and attribute salvation and all blessings to the Almighty God and to his King.
How do they serve the Lord and his kingdom? They "serve him day and night", meaning, all the time, continuously. (Rev. 7:15) They have received the truth of and concerning God's kingdom and have learned that Jesus has bought all the Kingdom interests and all the rights of obedient men, and with joy they go about telling others who have a hearing ear, and thus sing the praises of Jehovah God, his Kingdom, and his King. These facts, now well known and understood, exactly fit the prophecy and thus are proving that the present is the time when the Lord is gathering unto himself his "other sheep", that shall compose the "great multitude".
Tribulation
"These are they that come out of the great tribulation." (Vs. 14, Am. Rev. Ver.) Christ Jesus was enthroned as King in 1914 and came to his temple in 1918, and from that time onward tribulation upon the earth has continuously increased, and in that time the Devil has done all within his power to turn the people away from God and his kingdom. (Revelation 12:12) During this time of tribulation upon the earth the Lord gathers to himself those of good-will, and these, taking their stand on the side of God and his kingdom, find peace of mind and joy of heart, and these go to make up the "great multitude". No more do they need to hunger for the truth, because the Lord feeds them from his own storehouse of truth. (Revelation 7:16,17) Multitudes of people in the earth have hungered and others do hunger for the truth. They want something different from the husks which they have been receiving from religious institutions. Learning the truth, therefore, from God's Word, they flee to the Lord. It has been the privilege and it is the privilege of Jehovah's witnesses to carry this spiritual food to the hungry ones, and when such hungry ones are fed upon the truth concerning the Kingdom their joy is great and they quickly join themselves with "the remnant" to carry that message of good news to others, and thus
the number of the Lord's "other sheep" continuously increases.
Peace
Woe, sorrow, distress and great suffering now afflict the peoples of all nations of the earth. The Devil and his host of demons have taken all peace from the earth, but there is a company of persons who amidst all the strife and turmoil have peace and contentment. And who are they? These are the ones who are of good-will toward God and who exercise faith in him and his King. When the man-child Jesus was born, the angels of God, at his command, sung this anthem: "Glory in the highest unto God! and on earth peace, among men of goodwill." — Luke 2:14, Rotherham.
Only those who are now of good-will toward God and his King can have and enjoy peace of mind that passes understanding of all others. (Philippians 4: 7) Those who put their trust in God and his kingdom well know that God is their salvation and that he will make things work together for the good of those who love and serve him. They clearly see from the Scriptures that Satan the Devil has brought all the woe upon the nations and peoples of the earth and that this he is doing in his effort to carry out his challenge to turn all men away from God. The faithful servants of Jehovah hear the message, and believe and rely upon it, to
wit, "The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly." (Romans 16: 20) The "great multitude" share in this knowledge and rejoice.
Refuge
Any ceremony or practice indulged in, and which is contrary to the will of Almighty God, is religion, because such is always prompted by the chief of demons, Satan. Nazism, Communism, Fascism, and suchlike, are against God, and their practices are religious. The religious institutions called "church denominations" teach doctrines that defame God's name and oppose his kingdom; for instance, such doctrines as the immortality of all souls; conscious suffering of the dead in "purgatory" or "hell torment"; the doctrine concerning Peter as the foundation of the church, and that he has successors on earth; the doctrine of worshiping images, and suchlike. These doctrines have been a means to ensnare many good, honest and sincere people. God has repeatedly warned against such snares. (Deuteronomy 7:16) The Scriptures clearly point out that every people on earth that has followed religion has sooner or later met disaster.
Foreknowing the many pitfalls and difficulties in the way of men which are provided by the Devil to deceive men, God has made provision to relieve men from these
difficulties when they sincerely seek to know the right way. When the chosen people of God, the Israelites, were on their way to the Promised Land God commanded Moses to provide certain cities known as "cities of refuge". (Deuteronomy 4:41-44; Joshua 20:1-7; Numbers 35) The cities of refuge were provided for the benefit of the children of Israel and 'for the strangers or sojourners amongst them'. (Numbers 35:15) God's "everlasting covenant" concerning the sanctity of human life forbids the taking of human life except it be done officially by one authorized by the Lord to do so. (Genesis 9:6) The law concerning the cities of refuge, briefly, was this: If a man killed another willfully, intentionally and with malice, he must be put to death as a murderer, and the one executing him is called the "avenger of blood", that is, the official executioner. If one killed a man accidentally or unawares and without malice, his means of protection was to flee to the city of refuge and remain within the bounds of that city, obedient to the laws thereof, until the death of the high priest; and while he remained within the bounds of the city and obeyed the laws thereof he was safe from being punished. (For a detailed discussion see Salvation, page 211, and Riches, page 106.)
The entire matter relating to cities of refuge was typical, and foreshadowed greater
things to come to pass at the end of the world, where we now are. (Hebrews 10:1; 12:12-29; 1 Corinthians 10:11; Romans 15:4) The cities of refuge represented the Lord's organization, to which persons of good-will may now flee. All nations have some kind of religion, which is a reproach upon the name of God. The controlling or ruling elements of the nations are, to wit, religious, political, and commercial. Such ruling powers have willfully violated or broken God's "everlasting covenant" concerning the sanctity of life, and God declares his purpose to punish them for the same. (Isaiah 24:5) But in all those nations there are many persons of good-will who have been induced by the ruling powers to participate in breaking the everlasting covenant, and which persons of goodwill have thus done ignorantly or unawares. All nations hate and persecute the servants of God, and do so willfully; but in those nations there are many persons who are kind to the servants of God and show kindness to them because they are serving God, and there are others who indulge in the persecution of God's people ignorantly but learn later of their wrongdoing and repent. The one who continues in willful wrongdoing receives due punishment at the hands of the Lord, whereas those who have committed a wrong unwittingly, that is, ignorantly, and afterwards repent and seek to rectify their
wrongdoing, may find refuge if they flee to the Lord Jesus Christ. The "avenger of blood" is the Lord, Christ Jesus, the official Executioner of Jehovah, who at Armageddon will execute all willful wrongdoers.
The antitypical city of refuge, therefore, is God's organization under Christ the King. After the coming of Christ Jesus to the temple, the antitypical city of refuge is open to receive for protection those who flee from Satan's organization to the organization of the Lord. They flee by having and exercising faith in the shed blood of Christ Jesus as their Redeemer and by consecrating themselves to God and his King, agreeing to do and then doing the will of the Lord. Those who thus flee to the antitypical city of refuge must remain there until the battle of the great day of God Almighty, that is to say, until the antitypical high-priestly class is fully completed. It is at the battle of Armageddon that the official execution by Christ Jesus takes place upon the wicked, but those who have found refuge under the Lord's organization are promised protection. All such are included in those called the Lord's "other sheep", which he is now gathering. The fact that the provision of the cities of refuge in the type would receive strangers and sojourners shows that in the antitype the protection is for those who are not of the elect Kingdom class, but those who are the "other sheep" of the Lord
and who shall constitute the "great multitude".
Other Prophetic Pictures
There are many prophetic pictures set forth in the Bible foretelling the "great multitude". Jehu was anointed by the command of God to be king over Israel. He was commissioned by the Lord to destroy demonism or religion amongst the Israelites. (1 Kings 19:16; 2 Kings 9:2-8) Jehu, whose name means "Jehovah is He", was a type of Christ Jesus, God's official Executioner. Jehu proceeded to destroy the Baal-worshipers, or demon-religionists, amongst the Israelites. While in performance of that duty Jehu came upon a man named Jehonadab, or Jonadab. Those in the antitype who form the "great multitude" were pictured by Jonadab. The antitypical Jonadabs are people of good-will toward God. In the type the Jonadabs were not Israelites, but they shunned religion and refused to have anything to do with it. They were particularly known for their faithfulness in the performance of their word and obedience to that which was right. — Jeremiah 35:18,19.
When Jonadab heard that Jehu was engaged in destroying demonism or religion, he went out to meet Jehu; and seeing him coming, Jehu stopped his chariot and spoke to Jonadab. (2 Kings 10:15,16) In reply to a question propounded to him Jonadab
there declared that he was on the side of Jehu, hence of good-will toward Jehu and God, whom Jehu served. Jehu immediately invited Jonadab to join him in his chariot (which he did) and to accompany Jehu when he went to slaughter the Baal-worshipers. In this prophetic drama Jonadab pictured those persons of good-will toward the Lord who put themselves under the organization pictured by the chariot of God, and who continue on the Lord's side, become companions of the faithful remnant, and thus work with the remnant until Armageddon. They join with the remnant in testifying to the Kingdom message. (For a detailed discussion see book Riches, chapters two and three; also Salvation, chapter three.)
Live on Earth
Those who will compose the "great multitude" are gathered to the Lord Jesus Christ before the day of God's wrath is expressed at Armageddon. Their selection takes place while Christ Jesus, the great Judge, has before him all nations of the earth for judgment, and that judgment day is the present time. Selection of the "great multitude" differs in some things from the selection of the "little flock" of sheep, in this, that those who compose the "little flock" are called, begotten and proved, and their number is fixed at 144,000. Those who compose the "great multitude" are not limited in number; they flee to the Lord and find refuge under his organization, and, abiding there faithfully until after Armageddon, receive the full benefit of the ransom sacrifice.
As the little flock must first exercise faith in God and in Christ Jesus before being called, even so the "great multitude" must have faith in God and in Christ Jesus before they can take their stand on the side of The THEOCRATIC GOVERNMENT. Men having the desire to be on the side of God and his kingdom begin to seek the way of righteousness, which is God's appointed way for all those who shall ever receive life everlasting. Learning that Jehovah is the Almighty God and Christ Jesus is the Redeemer of all who obey him, such persons
of good-will begin to exercise faith by trusting in Christ Jesus as the Redeemer, and by agreeing to do the will of God and of Christ. The ransom sacrifice is now available for all such, who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, that his precious blood is the purchase price of mankind who obey him. Note that the Scriptures say that Christ Jesus is the "author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him". (Hebrews 5:9) All who obey the Lord must first take their stand firmly on the side of Christ Jesus the King and then continue to be obedient to God's law as announced by the King.
How can one take his stand on the side of Jehovah and his kingdom under Christ Jesus and make this fact known? By consecrating himself to God and Christ, that is, by solemnly agreeing to do the will of God; then by performing water immersion, which is symbolic and constitutes an outward testimony that one is of good-will toward the Lord and has taken his stand on the side of God and his kingdom. Then he must faithfully carry out his agreement to do God's will by learning from the Scriptures the will of God and faithfully obeying what he there learns. The faithful men of old manifestly consecrated themselves unto God by agreeing to do his will and then faithfully carried out that agreement by obeying his will. Those of the "little flock" who become members of the Kingdom must
first exercise faith, fully consecrate themselves to God and Christ, and then be diligent to carry out their agreement. Those of the ''great multitude" must do likewise, because there is no such thing as "degrees of faith". The ransom sacrifice is for those who believe and who publicly show their faith in God and in Christ. Faith and obedience are absolutely essential to all who find life everlasting, whether in the spirit or on the earth.
Christ Jesus being now at the temple of God conducting judgment of the nations, the way is now open for the people of goodwill to take the necessary steps to be of the "great multitude". For some time the faithful servants of the Lord have carried the message of the Kingdom to the people, and those of good-will toward God and his King have heard and now give heed to that message, and many others are still doing so. Now is the time when the following scripture applies, to wit: "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:13) This clearly proves that those who fail or refuse to call upon the name of the Lord cannot have the benefit of the ransom sacrifice. And how do they call upon the name of the Lord? The Scripture answer is: "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto right-
eousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed." — Romans 10:9-11.
When one duly takes his stand on the side of The THEOCRATIC GOVERNMENT he is not ashamed, but desires it to be known that he is for God and his kingdom, and he desires to carry that message to others. What hope is set before those who do now fully consecrate themselves unto God and Christ his King? Life everlasting on the earth, which God has provided for obedient men under the reign of Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is clothed with full power to resurrect and to give life to the obedient ones. As he stated: "I am the resurrection, and the life, . . . and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (John 11: 25,26) Such are the ones who shall receive life at the hand of Christ Jesus the King. It is to such of the Lord's "other sheep" that these words are addressed: "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." (Matthew 25: 34) These go away into everlasting life (Matthew 25:46): "And these [the wicked] shall go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal."
"Flee to the Mountains"
Jehovah God is symbolized by a mighty Rock or Mountain. Christ Jesus is also known under the symbol of Rock or Mountain. The kingdom of God, of which Christ Jesus is the great King, is in symbolic language described as "a stone ... cut out without hands", hence by Jehovah, and which Stone "became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth", and which "mountain" destroys Satan's organization. — Daniel 2: 34-45.
The kingdom of God is called "Mount Zion", that great mountain that God prepares for his own habitation and as his capital organization. "Jerusalem" is a symbol of Jehovah God's universal organization. Now is the day when all persons of goodwill who desire salvation must flee from Satan's organization that controls the present wicked world and flee to God's organization under Christ and which is called "the mountain".
In his great prophecy recorded at Matthew 24 Jesus tells of the conditions that shall exist at the end of the world, when he comes in power and glory to judge the nations, which he is doing at the present time. At the same time he commands that this good news of the Kingdom shall be publicly declared throughout the nations as a witness and that this must be done before
the final end at Armageddon. In this connection he addresses all persons of goodwill toward God in these words: "When ye, therefore, shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains." — Matthew 24:15,16.
The "abomination of desolation" is that religious, political organization which claims the right to rule the world in the place of and instead of the Lord; and from this the people of good-will must flee, and flee to the Lord's organization, pictured by the mountains.
Safety can be found only under Jehovah's THEOCRATIC ORGANIZATION. Religious organizations furnish no protection whatsoever to the people. Religion is entirely contrary to the will of God and is a snare, as he has declared. Today religion is fully united with dictators or arbitrary rulers of the earth, and these jointly claim their right to rule the earth. They therefore stand where they "ought not" to stand. Instead of supporting THE THEOCRACY, they defy it. The facts, therefore, show that this is the time that all persons of good-will must flee to the organization of Jehovah under Christ Jesus, that is, "to the mountains." All opposers to THE THEOCRACY the Lord will destroy at Armageddon, because such con-
stitute an abomination in his sight. (Mark 13:14-20) Safety is to be found and deliverance had only in the organization of Jehovah under Christ Jesus.
"Permit me, Eunice, at this time, to read from The Watchtower of September 1,1939, beginning at paragraph 36, on page 265:
"'Since 1925 particularly Jehovah's witnesses have carried the kingdom message and placed it within the hearing of the people, which message tells of the day of vengeance of our God, and that it is very near. Such is their part in God's "strange work", and such work appears to the religionists as a very strange thing. This witness work must be done before Jehovah shows to the enemy his great power, which he will do at Armageddon. Causing his name and his kingdom to be proclaimed throughout the earth, Jehovah thus gives warning to the enemy and at the same time extends his mercy toward those practitioners of religion who have been and are deceived and held as prisoners in the religious organizations, and who unwittingly have walked with religionists. Now in this day Jehovah makes it clearly to appear that religion is doomed, and the sounding of such warning of doom provides the opportunity to all persons of good-will to flee to the kingdom for protection before the wrath of God is expressed against Satan's organization.
"'WHO MAY ESCAPE
"'To now be permitted to declare the name and kingdom of Jehovah and the approaching hour of his wrath upon all wickedness, is an unspeakable privilege granted to those upon whom he has put his spirit. The message boldly announces the supremacy of Jehovah, and this done in the midst of religious opposition makes it possible for those who hear and who obey to find protection and salvation; and this God foretold through the prophecy of Joel 2:32: "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call."
"'Necessarily it follows that whosoever shall not call upon the name of the Lord shall not be delivered. That makes it imperative for Jehovah's witnesses to carry out their commission to proclaim [to the people] his name, his kingdom and his vengeance at the present time.
"'When must one call upon the name of Jehovah, THAT DELIVERANCE MAY BE HAD? NOT AFTER THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON BEGINS, at which time all may discern by the natural sight of the eyes the expression of God's vengeance against wickedness. Faith must be exercised by those who find pro-
tection. One must first believe that the Almighty God is Jehovah and that protection and salvation belong to him. (Hebrews 11: 6; Psalm 3:8) He must believe that Jesus Christ is the Redeemer and Deliverer, and then take action in harmony with that belief. Otherwise the inherited condemnation abides on such one to destruction. (John 3: 36) He must call upon the name of Jehovah before the battle of Armageddon begins; and this he must do by hearing, believing and acting upon the information of truth brought to him by those who are witnesses for Jehovah, and particularly upon whom God has placed his spirit. For this reason Jehovah sends forth his anointed witnesses to declare his name and his purposes: "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher [one who bears testimony to the truth or proclaims the truth]? And how shall they preach, except they be sent [who are sent by receiving the anointing of the spirit and commission from Jehovah to go and preach this gospel of the kingdom]? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!" (Romans 10:14,15) It is concerning these faithful witnesses that the prophecy is written: "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him [Christ]
that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth! " — Isaiah 52: 7.....
"'Organized religion began with Babylon, and ever since then the religionists and their organizations have been designated in the Scriptures under and by the name of ''Babylon". As God sent Jeremiah to warn those of Israel who were of good-will that they might flee out of the Devil's organization, so now he sends his anointed ones, accompanied by their companions, the Jonadabs, to give warning to all others who desire protection and salvation, and to those [who desire protection and salvation, and to those] warned Jehovah now says: "Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul; be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the Lord's vengeance; he will render unto her a recompence." "My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the Lord." — Jeremiah 51:6,45.
"'This message must be carried to the people now, and upon every one who has received the anointing of the holy spirit God has placed the responsibility to participate in delivering that message. A failure or refusal to perform the commission thus given is certain to be disastrous to the ones thus failing or refusing.
"'In the typical days Jerusalem and Zion were located on adjoining mountains, and pictured the universal and the capital organization of Jehovah. Zion was a type of Jehovah's capital organization, made up of Jesus Christ and the 144,000 members of his body, anointed by the holy spirit, and upon which mountain, antitypically, now Jesus Christ and his body members stand, and there they are strongly fortified against the enemy. (Revelation 14:1,3) Those who will compose the "great multitude" are not pictured as standing upon Mount Zion. All persons of good-will who flee to the mountains as commanded, and faithfully abide there under the protection of Christ until the end of Armageddon, will be delivered and will form the "great multitude". "For in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance," says the prophecy. Here the word "deliverance" means "an escaping", and may be properly applied to the act of escaping and to those who do escape. (Isaiah 4: 2,3) Jehovah's provision for those of good-will is by and through Christ Jesus, the Head of his organization Zion. "But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions." (Obadiah 17) Mount Zion is THE THEOCRACY, or Kingdom, and deliverance shall be there because Jehovah God will fight for his organization, as it is written: "For thus hath
the Lord spoken unto me, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude of shepherds is called forth against him, he will not be afraid of their voice, nor abase himself for the noise of them: so shall the Lord of hosts come down to fight for mount Zion, and for the hill thereof. As birds flying, so will the Lord of hosts defend Jerusalem; defending also he will deliver it; and passing over [covering it with complete protection] he will preserve it." (Isaiah 31:4,5) Thus the Lord shows that protection and salvation come only from him by and through his royal organization. This he makes known for the benefit of the Jonadabs, or persons of goodwill.
"'Escape and deliverance shall be found in no other place than in the Lord God's organization, "as the Lord hath said." Repeatedly God has thus said by his prophets, the "holy men of old". He has said it through Christ Jesus and his apostles, and now he uses the remnant, or the anointed ones, to bring this message to the attention of the people of good-will. All of these, from the faithful men of old, and including the remnant, have been and are witnesses to the name of Jehovah and his purpose. The remnant now bear this message which the Lord has said, and they must continue to carry that message to the people, because that is the purpose of their anointing.'"
"John, dear, don't you think we should have The Watchtower and study it regularly, that we might be informed of the unfolding of Jehovah's prophecies?"
"It is published twice each month. We shall have it, Eunice."
Multitude Gathering
Tribulation came upon the nations of the earth in 1914 and has continued to increase each year since that day. Now all the nations of earth are in distress. It is during this time of tribulation that the people of good-will hearing the message of the Kingdom are seeking refuge under the Lord's organization. Both the "little flock" and the Lord's "other sheep" are the ones that the world has no use for. Hence they do not desire them. To these obedient ones the Lord addresses these words: "Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation [God's 'holy nation' and companions] not desired; before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you, before the day of the Lord's anger come upon you. Seek ye the Lord, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness; it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger." — Zephaniah 2:1-3.
The way of the Lord is the way of righteousness. To "seek meekness" means to be
diligent to learn what is God's will. God has promised to lead those who are thus meek and endeavor to learn. "The meek will he guide in judgment, and the meek will he teach his way. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies." — Psalm 25:9,10.
The brief silence was broken by Eunice speaking. "John, the Lord has been very gracious to us. Each one of these studies becomes more profitable and the truth learned more precious to us. From our childhood we have desired to serve God. Would it not be well for us to now make a consecration unto God and unto Christ Jesus and then to seek the first opportunity to emphasize that consecration in baptism, publicly declaring our covenant with God?"
"To that I fully agree, Eunice. We don't need to make such consecration to any man. Our agreement is with the Lord, to whom we can go directly. Note this text addressed to those who seek him and who agree to do his will: 'And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.' — John 6:35,37.
"Faith and obedience are the necessary things. We have faith and now we are striving to obey, and we should obey by symbolizing our consecration in water baptism. There must be much work for those to do who are faithful to the Lord, and we must do our part. You remember that water hole in the creek near the big sycamore tree, where we used to go swimming as children? It will be a delight for us to go there and symbolize our consecration by water immersion. We have learned from the Scriptures that we don't have to be immersed by some religious person, but anyone who loves God can immerse us. Both your father and my father love the Lord, and let us invite one of them to do the immersing, and all the family to go with us to that water hole, and then we will be immersed next Sunday."
It is agreed.
"John, the Lord will surely reveal to us what we must do after we have taken this step of obedience, and then we must do it."
