Page 3: When a first marriage breaks down, the cause is often the immaturity of the mates.
Note: Another major cause will be over Jesus Christ and Christian principles.
Matthew 10:34-37 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to 'set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law'; and 'a man's enemies will be those of his own household.' He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me."
Page 8: THE year was 593 B.C.E., the 14th year of Israel's exile. To the Jews living in Babylon, their beloved homeland must have seemed far away indeed. When most of them had last seen Jerusalem, it was in flames, its mighty wall smashed, its proud buildings in ruins. The temple of Jehovah - once the city's crowning glory, the one center for pure worship in all the earth - had been reduced to rubble.
Note: Daniel was taken captive during the first revolt by Judah.
Daniel, book of the Old Testament ascribed to the prophet Daniel. He is described in the book as a captive of the Babylonians who was carried from Jerusalem to Babylon about 606 BC.
Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Vol. 8, page 26.
Correction: Ezekiel was taken captive during the second revolt.
In 597 BC Nebuchandnezzar II, ruler of Chaldea, faced with defiance in Judah, conquered and sacked Jerusalem. The Judean nobles, warriors, and artisans were taken to Babylon, and Nebuchadnezzar made the Davidic prince Zedekiah king of Judah. Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Vol. 15, page 57.
Correction: Jerusalem and the temple were completely destroyed in 586 B.C.E.
In 588 BC Zedekiah led a revolt against Chaldea, and two years later Nebuchadnezzar's army destroyed Judah and razed Jerusalem. Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Vol. 15, page 57.
Page 8: It must have saddened the faithful prophet Ezekiel to think of God's temple lying in ruins hundreds of miles away, a desolate haunt of wild animals. (Jeremiah 9:11)
Correction: The temple was still standing when Ezekiel began his prophecies.
Ezekiel 8:15-17 Then He said to me, "Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these." So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house; and there, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the LORD and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east. And He said to me, "Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here? For they have filled the land with violence; then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. Indeed they put the branch to their nose.
Page 9: First, Ezekiel is brought to "a very high mountain." On the mountain to the south is a huge temple, like a walled city. An angel, whose "appearance was like the appearance of copper," takes the prophet on a through tour of the premises. (Ezekiel 40:2, 3)
Note: John saw the same vision!
Revelation 21:10-11 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her light was like a most precious stone, like a jasper stone, clear as crystal.
Page 9: Then, Jehovah himself appears in the vision. He enters the temple and assures Ezekiel that He will reside there. But He calls for a cleansing of His house, saying: "Now let them remove their fornication and the carcasses of their kings far from me, and I shall certainly reside in the midst of them to time indefinite." (Ezekiel 43:2-4, 7, 9)
Note: This vision is a depicts Jesus Christ. (John 1:18)
Zechariah 6:12-13 Then speak to him, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, saying: "Behold, the Man whose name is the BRANCH! From His place He shall branch out, And He shall build the temple of the LORD; Yes, He shall build the temple of the LORD. He shall bear the glory, And shall sit and rule on His throne; So He shall be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both."'
Matthew 25:31 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory."
Page 10: Would Jehovah bless their land? The prophecy answers this question with a heartwarming picture. A stream flows from the temple, widening as it goes, becoming a torrent by the time it enters the Dead Sea. There it revives lifeless waters, and a fishing industry flourishes on a stretch of the shoreline. Along the riverbanks are many trees that bear fruit year-round, giving nourishment and healing. - Ezekiel 47:1-12.
Note: John saw this same vision!
Revelation 22:1-2 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Page 10: So the people could expect that Jehovah's life-giving blessings would flow forth like a river from the restored temple. Consequently, a spiritually dead nation would revive.
Correction: Jesus Christ spiritually revives nations and peoples.
John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."
Correction: There will be no more curse after Satan has be cast into Gehenna.
Revelation 22:3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.
Page 10: The restored people would be blessed with outstanding spiritual men - men as righteous and firm as the trees along those visionary riverbanks, men who would take the lead in rebuilding a ruined land. Isaiah too had a written of "big trees of righteousness" who would "rebuild the long-standing devastated places." - Isaiah 61:3, 4.
Correction: Jesus Christ is glorified in Isaiah's prophecy. (61:1, 2; Luke 4:18)
Isaiah 61:3 "To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."
Page 11: Clearly, we must look for the main fulfillment of Ezekiel's vision in Jehovah's great spiritual temple, which the apostle Paul discusses at length in the book of Hebrews.
Note: Don't forget the book of Revelation!
Revelation 3:12 "He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name."
1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world; our faith.
Page 12: When was God's spiritual temple cleansed? At Malachi 3:1-5, Jehovah foretells a time when he will "come to His temple" accompanied by his "messenger of the covenant," Jesus Christ. The purpose? "He will be like fire of a refiner and like the lye of laundrymen." This refining commenced during the time of the first world war. The result? Jehovah has resided in his house from 1919 onward. (Isaiah 66:8)
Correction: Malachi 3:1-5 is a prophecy about John the Baptist.
Matthew 3:1-3 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!" For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the LORD; Make His paths straight.'"
Luke 1:76-79 "And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, to give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, with which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace."
Page 12: We may conclude, then, that Ezekiel's temple prophecy sees an important fulfillment during the last days.
Correction: Ezekiel's temple prophecy will be fulfilled after the return of Jesus Christ.
Zechariah 14:8-9 And in that day it shall be that living waters shall flow from Jerusalem, Half of them toward the eastern sea and half of them toward the western sea; in both summer and winter it shall occur. And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be; "The LORD is one," and His name one.
Page 12: Ezekiel saw a temple that needed to be cleansed of idolatry and spiritual fornication. (Ezekiel 43:7-9) This surely could not apply to the worship of Jehovah in Paradise. Furthermore, the priests of the vision picture the anointed priestly class while still on earth, not after their heavenly resurrection or during the Millennium. Why? Note that the priests are pictured as serving in the inner courtyard. Articles in previous issues of The Watchtower have shown that this courtyard pictures the unique spiritual standing of Christ's underpriests while they are still on the earth.
Correction: The anointed priestly class will be returning to the earth with Jesus Christ.
Jude 1:14-15 Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."
Revelation 19:14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.
Page 12: Observe also that the vision stresses the imperfection of the priests. They are told to offer sacrifices for their own sins. They are warned of the danger of becoming unclean - spiritually and morally. So they do not picture the resurrected anointed ones, of whom the apostle Paul wrote: "The trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised up incorruptible."
(1 Corinthians 15:52; Ezekiel 44:21, 22, 25, 27) The priests in the vision mingle with and serve the people directly. This will not be so in Paradise, when the priestly class will be in heaven. The vision provides, therefore, a fine picture of the way the anointed work closely with the "great crowd" on earth today. - Revelation 7:9; Ezekiel 42:14.
Correction: Ezekiel's prophecy has a dualistic sense; short-term and long-term like Haggai.
Haggai 1:3-5 Then the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet, saying, "Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?" Now therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: "Consider your ways!"
Haggai 2:6-7 For thus says the LORD of hosts: "Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; 'and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory," says the LORD of hosts.
Haggai 2:11-12 Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Now, ask the priests concerning the law, saying, 'If one carries holy meat in the fold of his garment, and with the edge he touches bread or stew, wine or oil, or any food, will it become holy?'" Then the priests answered and said, "No."
Page 13: Imagine that we are on a tour of this visionary temple. We approach and climb seven steps to one of the huge gates. Inside this entryway, we look up in awe. Its ceiling is over 100 feet above us! We are thus reminded that standards for entering Jehovah's arrangement for worship are lofty.
Note: Do you rejoice in Jesus Christ when worshiping God?
Philippians 3:3 For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh,
Pages: 13-14: Jehovah tells Ezekiel that no foreigner who is "uncircumcised in heart" may enter. (Ezekiel 40:10; 44:9) What does that mean? God accepts as worshipers only those who love his laws and live by them. (Jeremiah 4:4; Romans 2:29)
Correction: The Father loves everyone who puts their faith in Jesus Christ through belief.
Romans 3:21-22 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.
Page 14: Ever since pure worship was restored in 1919, Jehovah's earthly organization has upheld and progressively clarified his moral laws. Those who willfully refuse to obey are no longer welcomed into association with his people.
Correction: The Watchtower does not represent God!
Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus said to him, " 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. "And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."
Galatians 3:24-25 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
Page 14: This reminds us of the apostle John's vision of the "great crowd" worshiping Jehovah "day and night in his temple." Palm trees figure in both visions. In Ezekiel's vision they decorate the entryway walls. In John's vision the worshipers have palm branches in their hands, symbolizing their joy in praising Jehovah and in welcoming Jesus as their King. (Rev. 7:9-15)
Note: The "great crowd" is in heaven!
Revelation 4:2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne.
Revelation 7:15 "Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them."
Revelation 19:1 After these things I heard a loud voice of a great crowd in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!
Page 14: In the context of Ezekiel's vision, the 12 tribes of Israel picture the "other sheep."
Correction: The "other sheep" are Gentiles while the 12 tribes picture Jews.
Romans 3:29-30 Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also, since there is one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.
Page 14: The inner gates remind us that the anointed must measure up to divine standards and laws, but the same standards and laws guide all true Christians.
Correction: All true Christians will be justified by faith in Jesus Christ.
Romans 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Page 15: Do you appreciate the hard work and humble service that the anointed as a body, "a royal priesthood," has done in behalf of pure worship? (1 Peter 2:9)
Correction: Do you appreciate Jesus Christ more than the Watchtower?
1 Peter 2:4-5 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Page 15: Like the Levitical priesthood of old, they have taken the lead in giving spiritual instruction, helping people to understand what is clean and acceptable in God's eyes and what is not. (Matthew 24:45) Such instruction, coming through Bible-based publications and Christian meetings and conventions, has helped millions to become reconciled to God.-2 Corinthians 5:20.
Correction: Only through Jesus Christ can one become reconciled to God.
2 Corinthians 5:18-19 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Page 15: Thus, Ezekiel foresaw a refining process for the priesthood of Israel. (Ezekiel 44:10-16) Similarly, history shows that in 1918, Jehovah sat "as a refiner" in his spiritual temple, examining the anointed priestly class. (Malachi 3:1-5)
Correction: Jesus Christ has been the Judge long before 1918.
Acts 17:30-31 "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."
Page 15: Still, like everyone else, individual anointed ones can become unclean - spiritually and morally. (Ezekiel 44:22, 25-27) They have had to work hard to remain "without spot from the world." - James 1:27; compare Mark 7:20-23.
Correction: True Christians are saved by the grace of God!
Ephesians 2:8-10 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Page 15: Of the priests in Ezekiel's vision, Jehovah said: "No possession (of land) should you people give them in Israel: I am their possession." (Ezekiel 44:28) Similarly, the anointed have no everlasting place on earth. They have a heavenly inheritance, and those of the great crowd view it as a privilege to support and encourage them while they are still here on earth.
Correction: The priests were in the land and similarly the anointed will be on the earth.
Ezekiel 45:4 "It shall be a holy section of the land, belonging to the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, who come near to minister to the LORD; it shall be a place for their houses and a holy place for the sanctuary."
Page 16: Now an intriguing question arises. Whom, then, does the chieftain represent? Since he is spoken of both as an individual and as a group, we may assume that he represents a class of men. (Ezekiel 44:3; 45:8, 9)
Correction: The prince should not be confused with the other princes.
Daniel 8:25 "Through his cunning He shall cause deceit to prosper under his rule; And he shall exalt himself in his heart. He shall destroy many in their prosperity. He shall even rise against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without human means."
Page 16: But who? Surely not the anointed. In the vision, he works closely with the priesthood, but he is not one of them.
Note: Zerubbabel worked closely with Joshua the high priest!
Haggai 1:1-2 In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying, "Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, saying: 'This people says, "The time has not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built."'"
Page 16: He does not enter the inner courtyard but worships in the outer courtyard, entering and exiting the temple with the people. These factors decidedly place the chieftain among the great crowd of the other sheep.
Correction: Zerubbabel was a Jew not a Gentile "other sheep."
Luke 3:27 ... the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel,...
Page 16: Clearly, the chieftain has some responsibility among God's people. In the outer courtyard, he sits in the porch of the East Gate. (Ezekiel 44:2, 3)
Note: Zerubbabel received the prophecies of Haggai!
Haggai 2:2-3 "Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, saying: 'Who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing?'"
Page 16: So the chieftain class is now being groomed with the prospect of later serving in an administrative capacity in the new world.
Correction: The numerous singular pronouns indicates that the prince is one person.
Ezekiel 46:10 "The prince shall then be in their midst. When they go in, he shall go in; and when they go out, he shall go out."
Page 16: Clearly, the chieftain was to submit to the spiritual services and leadership of the priests. It is fitting, then, that in modern times the anointed have taken the lead in pure worship. For example, the members of the Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses have been chosen from among them.
Correction: The priests are in a supportive role to the prince!
Ezekiel 46:2 "The prince shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway from the outside, and stand by the gatepost. The priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings. He shall worship at the threshold of the gate. Then he shall go out, but the gate shall not be shut until evening."
Ezekiel 46:4 "The burnt offering that the prince offers to the LORD on the Sabbath day..."
Page 16: The prophecy found at Isaiah 32:1, 2 says: "Look! A king will reign in righteousness itself; and as respects princes, they will rule as princes for justice itself. And each one must prove to be like a hiding place from the wind and a place of concealment from the rainstorm, like streams of water in a waterless country, like the shadow of a heavy crag in an exhausted land." This prophecy is being fulfilled today as Christian elders - anointed and other sheep - work to protect the flock from such 'rainstorms' as persecution and discouragement.
Correction: This prophecy will be fulfilled when Jesus Christ the King returns to the earth.
Psalm 2:6 "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion."
Psalm 5:2 Give heed to the voice of my cry, My King and my God, For to You I will pray.
Psalm 10:16 The LORD is King forever and ever; The nations have perished out of His land.
Psalm 24:7-10 Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, The LORD mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O you gates! Lift up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah
Zechariah 14:16 And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.
Revelation 19:16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
Pages 16-17: The words "prince" and "chieftain," which have similar meanings in Hebrew, are not used as titles designed to exalt men. Rather, they describe the responsibility these men bear in caring for God's sheep.
Correction: The phrase "the prince" refers to one man in Ezekiel namely Zerubbabel.
Ezekiel 44:3 "As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way."
Haggai 2:21-23 "Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying: 'I will shake heaven and earth. I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms; I will destroy the strength of the Gentile kingdoms. I will overthrow the chariots and those who ride in them; The horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. 'In that day,' says the LORD of hosts, 'I will take you, Zerubbabel My servant, the son of Shealtiel,' says the LORD, 'and will make you like a signet ring; for I have chosen you,' says the LORD of hosts."
Zechariah 4:7 "'Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of "Grace, grace to it!'"
Page 17: Today, we enjoy a restored "land," and it too is, in a sense, Edenic. In a similar vein, we often speak of our spiritual paradise. The Watchtower has defined our "land" as "the realm of activity" of God's chosen people.
Correction: The spiritual kingdom of God can only be found in the Holy Spirit not your works.
Romans 14:17 ...for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Page 17: Similarly, "all the people of the land" were to contribute a portion of land for the chieftain. What does this mean today? Not, of course, that God's people should be burdened with a salaried clergy class. (2 Thessalonians 3:8)
Correction: It is Biblical to support worth members of the clergy.
1 Corinthians 9:9-11 For it is written in the law of Moses, "You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain." Is it oxen God is concerned about? Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope. If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?
Page 17: Yet, as in Ezekiel's day, this contribution is made "to Jehovah," not to any man.
Correction: It is Biblical to support worthy members of the clergy.
1 Timothy 5:17-18 Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. For the Scripture says, "You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain," and, "The laborer is worthy of his wages."
Page 18: Yes. Hence, the city appears to picture the earthly administration that benefits all who will make up the righteous earthly society. It will operate in its fullness in the coming "new earth." (2 Peter 3:13)
Correction: Jesus Christ will be ruling from Jerusalem when He returns to the earth.
Isaiah 27:13 So it shall be in that day: The great trumpet will be blown; They will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, and they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.
Page 19: The Watchtower has long held that Joel's prophecy is being fulfilled in our time. Surely, then, the same holds true for Ezekiel's similar vision.
Correction: These prophecies will be fulfilled after Armageddon!
Joel 3:15-18 The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will diminish their brightness. The LORD also will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem; the heavens and earth will shake; but the LORD will be a shelter for His people, and the strength of the children of Israel. "So you shall know that I am the LORD your God, dwelling in Zion My holy mountain. Then Jerusalem shall be holy, and no aliens shall ever pass through her again." And it will come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drip with new wine, the hills shall flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; a fountain shall flow from the house of the LORD and water the Valley of Acacias.
Page 20: What could the priests in Ezekiel's visionary temple use for cleansing? Why, that miraculous stream flowing through the inner courtyard! Yes, Jehovah would bless them with the means to enjoy a clean, or holy, standing.
Correction: The temple sacrifices by priests pictures the sacrifice of Jesus for your sins.
1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Pages 20-21: When Ezekiel learns of the trees that would grow alongside the river, he is told: "Their leafage will not wither, nor will their fruitage be consumed .... And their fruitage must prove to be for food and their leafage for healing." Why do these trees produce in this amazing manner? "Because the water for them - it is coming forth from the very sanctuary."
Correction: The fruit will be food for the nations while the leafs will heal the nations.
Revelation 22:2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
Page 21: After the 144,000 have all received their heavenly reward, the benefits stemming from their priestly service as corulers with Christ will extend into the future, ultimately leading to the complete conquest of Adamic death. - Revelation 5:9, 10; 21:2-4.
Correction: By blood of Jesus Christ and faith in Him we are reconciled back to God.
Revelation 5:9-10 And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; for You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; and we shall reign on the earth."
Correction: The 144,000 will be on the earth.
Page 21: Similarly, in the last days, people have been coming to life spiritually wherever the water of life has penetrated. The first ones so revitalized were the anointed remnant in 1919. They sprang back to life spiritually from a deathlike, inactive state.
Correction: The water of life springs from Jesus Christ!
John 7:37-38 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."
Page 21: Those vital waters have since reached other spiritually dead ones, and these have come to life and formed an ever-increasing great crowd of other sheep, who love and serve Jehovah.
Note: True Christians love Jesus Christ!
Ephesians 6:24 Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.
Note: True Christians serve Jesus Christ!
Colossians 3:23-24 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to Jehovah (kurios) and not to men, knowing that from Jehovah (kurios) you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve Jehovah (kurios) Christ.
Page 21: As to the people of our day, not all who are offered Jehovah's life-giving water accept it. (Isaiah 6:10) At Armageddon, all of those who have chosen to remain in a spiritually lifeless and sick condition will be given to salt, that is, destroyed forever. (Revelation 19:11-21)
Note: Receive Jesus Christ into your life and become spiritually well!
John 5:40 "But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life."
Page 21: Like other restoration prophecies, Ezekiel's temple vision sees its final fulfillment during the Millennium. Then the priestly class will no longer be here on the earth. "They will be priests of God and of the Christ, and will rule as kings with him (in heaven) for the thousand years." (Revelation 20:6)
Correction: They will rule with Jesus Christ upon the earth.
Matthew 19:28 So Jesus said to them, "Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
Page 22: Revelation 20:12 foretells that "scrolls" will be opened in those days, providing additional light of understanding from which the resurrected ones will benefit. Sadly, some will refuse to be healed, even in Paradise. These rebels are the ones 'given to the salt' of everlasting destruction. - Revelation 20:15.
Correction: You are written either in the book of life or of death.
Revelation 13:7-8 It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Revelation 21:27 But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
Page 22: Ezekiel saw the land properly allotted; likewise, each faithful Christian can be sure that he will have a place, an inheritance, in Paradise. Likely, the desire to have one's own house to live in and care for will be fulfilled in an orderly way. (Isaiah 65:21; 1 Corinthians 14:33)
Note: True Christians have a home prepared for them by Jesus Christ.
John 14:1-3 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."
Page 22: While the 144,000 rule with Christ in heaven, the King is not without representatives on earth. His human subjects will benefit greatly from the loving guidance and direction of the chieftain class. However the real seat of government will be, not on earth, but in heaven. Everyone on earth, including the chieftain class, will be in subjection to the Messianic Kingdom. - Daniel 2:44; 7:14, 18, 22.
Correction: The seat of government will be on the earth.
Joel 3:2 I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there on account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land.
Matthew 25:31-32 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats."
Page 23: Note the final words of Ezekiel's prophecy: "The name of the city from that day on will be Jehovah Himself Is There." (Ezekiel 48:35)
Note: Jesus Christ will be ruling there!
Revelation 21:23 The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.
Page 30: JESUS knew that his final hours with his apostles would be precious. Before long, he would be arrested, and his faith would be tested as never before.
Correction: The human character of Jesus Christ would be tested.
Matthew 26:38 Then He said to them, "My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me."
Page 30: Yet, neither anxiety over his impending death nor eagerness for his promised reward distracted Jesus from the needs of his apostles. He "loved them to the end," John later recorded in his Gospel. (John 13:1) And in these crucial last hours of his life as a perfect human, Jesus taught his apostles a vital lesson.
Correction: Jesus Christ was the perfect God-man.
Mark 2:5-11 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you." And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, "Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?" But immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, He said to them, "Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? "Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise, take up your bed and walk'? "But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"; He said to the paralytic, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house."
Back cover: "The name of God was removed," says Brasil, "either because of superstition ...., ulterior motives, or a desire to exalt the names of Jesus and his mother, Mary."
Correction: True Christians exalt the name of Jesus.
Colossians 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
Acts 4:12 ..there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.