This week, Jehovah’s Witnesses around the world, will be studying Article 40 in the September 2022

Watchtower. It is titled “Bringing the Many to Righteousness”. Like last week’s study that covered John
5:28, 29 about the two resurrections, this one, to quote the preview, “provides an adjustment in our
understanding with regard to the great educational program described at Daniel 12:2, 3.” (By the way,
Daniel 12:2 and 3 does not describe any great educational program in the New World.)

This new understanding is called an adjustment. This is a common JW euphemism for “We got it all
wrong before, and now we need to fix it.” Allow me to illustrate how this isn’t an adjustment: If you are
listening to an AM station on the radio, and it’s not coming in clearly, you “adjust” the tuning dial to
improve your reception. That is what an adjustment is. If, however, you throw the radio in the garbage
and buy a brand new radio, you would not call that an adjustment. What this study does is not an
adjustment, but a change that is so profound that it wipes out the only meager foundation that the
organization has to justify its doctrine of a 1914 presence of Christ.

Whoa Nelly, you might say. That’s going a bit too far, isn’t it? Not at all. This article is the printed edition
of so-called new light released by Geoffrey Jackson over a year ago at the 2021 Annual Meeting of the
Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society. I covered that extensively in a video titled “Geoffrey Jackson
Invalidates the 1914 Presence of Christ.” Here’s a link if you wish to view it. Because of that, I won’t get
into a lot of detail here covering everything already dealt with in that video. Just a couple of key points:

This article in The Watchtower together with last week’s study will be called “new light” by the rank-
and-file Jehovah’s Witness. The Governing Body lays claim to that term by misappropriating Proverbs
4:18 which reads: “But the path of the righteous is like the bright morning light That grows brighter and
brighter until full daylight.” (Proverbs 4:18 NWT)

That verse isn’t referring to the interpretation of prophecy, but rather to the life course of a person
striving to serve God. Yet, even if it were applicable to the revealing of prophecy, the historical facts
make it impossible to apply that Scripture to the constant historical doctrinal flip-flopping of the
Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses. I would submit that this latest “adjustment” demonstrates
once again that the verse we should be applying to the Scholars of Watchtower, the vaunted Guardians
of Doctrine, as they call themselves, is the next one:

The way of the wicked is like the darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble. (Proverbs 4:19
NWT)

A bit harsh, you say? A tad judgmental, perhaps. I don’t think so. After all, making an “adjustment” that
completely undermines their core doctrine of the 1914 presence of Christ while seemingly being totally
unaware of the consequences of their “new light” clearly qualifies as stumbling around in the dark.

How does this new light undermine 1914? Well, let’s start with the fact that the Governing Body claims
that The Watchtower predicted the return of Christ down to the month and year: October 1914.
However, they had a hurdle to jump to claim the right to make this prediction. You see, when Jesus was
about to ascend to heaven, his disciples asked a crucial question: “Lord, are you restoring the kingdom
to Israel at this time?” (Acts 1:6)

If 1914 is really the date of Jesus’ appointment as king to sit on the throne of David over the house of
Israel as Witnesses believe, then in answer to the disciple’s question, could have replied: “I’ll be
restoring the kingdom of Israel in 1881 years from now. He couldn’t say 1914, because the Gregorian
calendar that we use hadn’t been invented yet. But he didn’t say that, did he? Instead, he answered:

“It does not belong to you to know the times or seasons that the Father has placed in his own
jurisdiction. (Acts 1:7)

So, there was and still is a divine injunction or prohibition against anyone knowing ahead of time the
date of Christ’s return. How does the organization claim to have gotten around this divine embargo?
How could they have known the month and year in advance, since Jesus clearly tells his disciples that
such foreknowledge is not something we may possess?

The answer given through The Watchtower is this:

“The True Knowledge Will Become Abundant”

As regards “the time of the end,” Daniel foretold a very positive development. (Read Daniel 12:3, 4,
9, 10.) “At that time the righteous ones will shine as brightly as the sun,” said Jesus. (Matt. 13:43) How
did the true knowledge become abundant in the time of the end? Consider some historical
developments in the decades prior to 1914, the year when the time of the end began.

(w09 8/15 p. 14 Everlasting Life on Earth—A Hope Rediscovered)

“True knowledge” is not all knowledge, is it? According to The Watchtower it is. And further, they claim
that Daniel 12:3,4 refers to the time of C.T. Russell forward. So, the injunction was lifted by God via this
prophecy in Daniel based on the Organization’s interpretation. Okay, then. Well and good. You’ve got
your excuse for knowing ahead of time what the 12 apostles of Jesus were forbidden from knowing.
Then don’t go changing it! If you move the fulfillment of Daniel 1:2, 3 to the future, you’ve just shot
yourself in the prophetic foot.

That’s what the Governing Body did in the 2021 annual meeting talk by Geoffrey Jackson and what they
are again doing in this Watchtower Study. Why? What’s driving them? There is, in my estimation,
something very sinister going on here, though it is cloaked in robes of righteousness as if an angel of
light were speaking. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We’ll come back to that. For now, let’s look at the
evidence.

We’ll skip over the first three paragraphs, because all they contain is human opinion and speculation
without scriptural support. Oh sure, there are many scriptures cited, but if you take the time to look
them up, you’ll see they’re just window dressing and do not support the speculation.

No, we’ll move straight to their attempts to reinterpret Daniel 12:1 to see if they are engaging in solid
exegetical research (letting the Bible reveal itself) or falling back on their tried-and-true method of
eisegesis (imposing their ideas onto Scripture).

Paragraph four tells us to read Daniel 12:1, so we’ll start with that. I’m going to read from the New
World Translation Reference Bible because it is a more faithful rendering of the verse than the more
recent 2013 edition.

“And during that time Miʹcha·el will stand up, the great prince who is standing in behalf of the sons of
your people. And there will certainly occur a time of distress such as has not been made to occur since
there came to be a nation until that time. And during that time your people will escape, every one who
is found written down in the book.” (Daniel 12:1)

The newer 2013 version strips out the words, “the sons of,” and gives: “During that time Miʹcha·el will
stand up, the great prince who is standing in behalf of your people.”

If you look into the interlinear, you’ll see that the original includes “the sons of,” so why remove it in the
later version of the NWT? Well, for one thing, it makes what they are about to do all the easier. To begin
with, if you put yourself in Daniel’s shoes for a moment, what would he understand the angel to mean
by “the sons of your people”? More important, what would Daniel have understood the angel to mean?

Would he have thought, “Well, my people are Jehovah’s Witnesses, so the sons of my people would be
the descendants of Jehovah’s Witnesses”? Come on! His people were the Jews of his day and their sons
would be their future descendants. Let’s be reasonable here. But the Governing Body does not want
you, the humble Watchtower reader, to come to that conclusion. How do they get around that. First,
they remove “the sons of” from the latest translation which every Witness is supposed to use at the
meetings. Then, well, see if you can pick it out as we read paragraph 4:

Read Daniel 12:1. The book of Daniel reveals the sequence of exciting events that will occur during the
time of the end. For example, Daniel 12:1 reveals that Michael, who is Jesus Christ, is “standing in behalf
of [God’s] people.” That part of the prophecy began to be fulfilled in 1914 when Jesus was appointed as
King of God’s heavenly Kingdom. (par. 4)

“Standing in behalf of [God’s] people”? Not “your people,” but God’s people?! Hey, if we’re going to
play “let’s switch out the words”, why stop there, guys? Just spell it out. How about, “Standing in behalf
of [Jehovah’s Witnesses]”? I mean, if we’re going to go beyond what is written, let’s not be coy. In for a
penny, in for a pound, as the saying goes.

Of course, they are totally misapplying the prophecy of Daniel chapter 12 and have been doing so since
before I was born. If you want to determine for yourself how that prophecy is fulfilled, check out this
video on exegesis titled “Learning to Fish”. [insert card for Learning to Fish]

By the way, Michael, the great prince, is not Jesus Christ. For scriptural proof, see this video.

There is more unsubstantiated speculation in paragraph 5:

This “time of distress” is the “great tribulation” mentioned at Matthew 24:21. Jesus stands up, or acts to
defend God’s people, at the end of this time of distress, that is, at Armageddon. (par 5 excerpt)

That is both right and wrong. Right in that the time of distress mentioned in Daniel does refer to the
great tribulation referred to at Matthew 24:21. Wrong in claiming that the great tribulation of Matthew
24:21 refers to Armageddon. The context clearly shows that it refers to the destruction of Jerusalem.
Additionally, there’s nothing in the context of Matthew 24:21 to support an antitypical or secondary
fulfillment. As a matter of fact, Matthew 24:23-27 warns us to beware of any false prophet or false
anointed ones (Christs) claiming an invisible presence. How else are we to understand these words:

“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look! Here is the Christ,’ or, ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false Christs and
false prophets will arise and will perform great signs and wonders so as to mislead, if possible, even the
chosen ones. Look! I have forewarned you. Therefore, if people say to you, ‘Look! He is in the
wilderness,’ do not go out; ‘Look! He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For just as the lightning
comes out of the east and shines over to the west, so the presence of the Son of man will be.”
(Matthew 24:23-27)

When the presence of Jesus comes, you won’t read about it in The Watchtower. You’ll see it with your
own eyes like lightning flashing across the sky. We were so foolish to trust in men.

Next, they deal with a new understanding on Daniel 12:2.

“And many of those asleep in the dust of the earth will wake up, some to everlasting life and others to
reproach and to everlasting contempt.” (Daniel 12:2)

I have to share this next bit because is shows a ridiculous, childish approach to Bible study.

This prophecy is not referring to a symbolic resurrection, a spiritual revival of God’s servants that occurs
during the last days, as we previously understood. Rather, these words refer to the resurrection of the
dead that takes place in the coming new world. Why can we draw that conclusion? The expression “the
dust” is also used at Job 17:16 as a parallel of the expression “the Grave.” This fact indicates that Daniel
12:2 is referring to the literal resurrection that will occur after the last days have ended and after the
battle of Armageddon. (par. 6)

Really?! The fact that sometimes “the dust” is used to represent “the grave” is all the proof you need to
turn an entire interpretation on its head? Have they never heard of metaphor? Have they no concept of
symbols?

They state in a footnote that, “This “explanation is an adjustment to the understanding found in the
book Pay Attention to Daniel’s Prophesy! chapter 17, and in The Watchtower of July 1, 1987, pp. 21-25.

Notice how they subtly distance themselves from responsibility for this latest bit of “new light” now that
the switch has been turned of the old light and it has gone dark. “An adjustment to the understanding”?
“To THE understanding?” You’ll never read, “An adjustment to the Governing Body’s previous
understanding.” You’ll only find that level of candor among Bible writers.

Anyway, I had a look at the 1987 Watchtower article, and I tell you I could do a whole other video on it.
But why bother, right? There are bigger fish to fry.

I’m skipping over the rest of this article because, for one, it is a tedious read and more painful to review,
and for another, because I’ve already done most of the leg work in last week’s video covering the
previous article in this Watchtower series. [put link to previous video]

However, there are two important subjects left to cover. The first has to do with what is depicted here:

[illustration of daniel in the new world on page 24]

The caption to this illustration reads: “How thrilling it will be to see Daniel, our loved ones, and many
more “stand up” for their lot in the new world! (See paragraph 20)

There is nothing in Scripture that specifically says that men like Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, as well as
Moses, Daniel, and countless faithful per-Christian servants will not be with Jesus in the kingdom of God.
On the other hand, there is much to prove that they will be there. I covered this in the previous video,
but I still got a lot of emails and comments from viewers asking for more explanation. It just shows the
power of JW indoctrination. I was going to include a much fuller analysis here, but then realized it would
make this video too long. So, I’m going to do another video exclusively on this subject and it will post it
no more than a week after this one.

This brings us to the final point. Look at this picture, also from the article.

[illustration of 144,000 guiding education work from page 23]

The caption reads: “The 144,000 will work closely with Jesus Christ to direct the educational work that
will take place during the 1,000 years (See paragraph 11)”

What you see here is Jesus Christ, far off in heaven, performing some jedi mind trick to influence this
clean-cut Jehovah’s Witness to teach some resurrected Israelite about the Bible. [Zoom in on Jesus
extending his hand.] When Jesus was resurrected as a spirit, he guided his apostles for the education
work that would take place in the 1st century: the preaching of the good news. How did he direct them?
In every instance, he took on a human form and walked among them as a man. Why would we think
that Jesus and the anointed kings and priests would not do the same thing in the new world? If God’s
way of doing this was to work remotely from heaven, why did Jesus have to return? In the Bible, we
read that “the tent of God is with Mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his people.
And God himself will be with them.”

That sounds like direct contact on earth. Also, the anointed will dwell in the New Jerusalem and where
will that city be? Jesus tells us:

“The one who conquers—I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will by no means go
out from it anymore, and I will write upon him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God,
the New Jerusalem that descends out of heaven from my God, and my own new name.” (Revelation
3:12)

The seat of the heavenly administration will descend out of heaven to the earth. That is why Revelation
5:10 tells us “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign
upon the earth.” (Berean Standard Bible)

“Upon the earth” or as other Bible versions render it, “on the earth.” So why is the Organization of
Jehovah’s Witnesses pushing this unscriptural fantasy of a worldwide educational work carried out by
faithful Jehovah’s Witnesses, who by the way, are still imperfect, or sinful?

Well, let me ask you this? What is the Devil’s greatest fear? Let’s read:

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring. He
will crush your head, and you will strike him in the heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

Imagine being told by God that you are going to die, that your fate is unalterable and sealed. All you
have left is the time until that prophecy comes true. You’ll want to extend that time, of course. Step one
is to corrupt the principle seed of the woman which is Jesus Christ. Well, Satan tried that and failed. So,
the Bible tells us that “the dragon grew wrathful at the woman, and went off to wage war with the
remaining ones of her seed, who observe the commandments of God and have the work of bearing
witness to Jesus.” (Revelation 12:17)
Satan isn’t just doing this out of spite and hatred. No. He wants to keep the full number of that seed
from coming to fruition, to buy himself more time. In the 19 th century, a number of Bible Student groups
freed themselves from false religion, abandoning such false teachings as the trinity, hellfire, and the
immortal soul. More than anything, they freed themselves from servitude to men, to self-exalted
human leaders.

Imagine the coup it was for the devil to corrupt many of these new Christian groups. In the case of the
followers of C.T. Russell, he had his successor, J.F. Rutherford, convince the newly named Jehovah’s
Witnesses to abandon the hope of serving with Jesus in the kingdom of God and to reject the anointing
of the holy spirit, something Witnesses do in their yearly ceremonial rite called “the Memorial.” Of
course, he does all this in disguise.

“But what I am doing I will continue to do, in order to eliminate the pretext of those who are wanting a
basis for being found equal to us in the things about which they boast. 13 For such men are false
apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan
himself keeps disguising himself as an angel of light. 15 It is therefore nothing extraordinary if his
ministers also keep disguising themselves as ministers of righteousness. But their end will be according
to their works.” (2 Corinthians 11:12-15)

As an angel of light, he brings glad tidings and false hope to the congregation of Jehovah’s Witnesses
through his ministers disguising themselves as ministers of righteousness who encourage the flock to
yearn for an exalted position in the New World as important instructors of Mankind, teaching even the
likes of Daniel whose faith stayed the mouths of lions, and Moses, whose faith split the Red Sea. Yes,
these humble Christian Witnesses will be called upon to instruct such men and help them to a
knowledge of God and Christ. Poppycock! It is smoke and mirrors designed to keep the rank and file
from dwelling on the real hope which Jesus is offering to all.

But why now? Why this change in understanding now? Could it be that the reports coming in from the
field tell a worrying tale? In congregation after congregation, we are hearing that anywhere from 30 to
60% of publishers are quietly defying the order to return to in-person attendance. They prefer to attend
remotely via zoom.

I can only imagine what tactics the Governing Body will employ next to shore up their flagging power
over the flock. Already, the calls for donations are becoming constant. In the past, there was no such
emphasis. It would have been unseemly, and it wasn’t needed. They had more money than they knew
what to do with. Now, they have to sell kingdom halls to keep the funds flowing, but that is a finite
resource. They are like a starving farmer who eats his planting seed to stay alive. When it’s all gone,
there will be nothing left.

I take no joy in this. We should not rejoice. We should instead be like our Lord.

“And when he got nearby, he viewed the city and wept over it, saying: “If you, even you, had discerned
in this day the things having to do with peace—but now they have been hid from your eyes. Because the
days will come upon you when your enemies will build around you a fortification with pointed stakes
and will encircle you and distress you from every side, and they will dash you and your children within
you to the ground, and they will not leave a stone upon a stone in you, because you did not discern the
time of your being inspected.” (Luke 19:41-44)
What saddens me most is that for so many, the inevitable demise of the Organization will result in a
total loss of faith, because they never learned to put faith in God, but instead trusted in men and
equated Jehovah God with an earthly, manmade organization. For them, when the Organization goes, it
will be as if God himself has died.

Let us not be like that. Let us get out now but keep our faith! God didn’t fail us. We failed him by not
heeding the counsel written for us to follow. Well, it’s not too late. Sure, it will be tough, but that is also
a cause for joy. Didn’t Jesus say:

“Happy are you when people reproach you and persecute you and lyingly say every sort of wicked thing
against you for my sake. Rejoice and be overjoyed, since your reward is great in the heavens, for in that
way they persecuted the prophets prior to you. (Matthew 5:11, 12)

I’m so grateful for the many letters and comments of support that I get, and I share many of these with
the brothers and sisters who collaborate in producing these videos, articles, and books. May the grace of
our Father and of our Lord be with you all.

I remain your brother in Christ