The eschatology of Jehovah's Witnesses is central to their religious beliefs. They believe that Jesus Christ has been ruling in heaven as king since 1914, a date they believe was prophesied in Scripture, and that after that time a period of cleansing occurred, resulting in God's selection of the Bible Students associated with Charles Taze Russell to be his people in 1919. They believe the destruction of those who reject their message and thus willfully refuse to obey God will shortly take place at Armageddon, ensuring that the beginning of the new earthly society will be composed of willing subjects of that kingdom.
The group's doctrines surrounding 1914 are the legacy of claims regarding various years proposed in the Watch Tower Society's publications between 1879 and 1924. Many of the claims were successively abandoned. The Watch Tower Society has stated that its early leaders promoted "incomplete, even inaccurate concepts". The Governing Body of Jehovah's Witnesses says that, unlike Old Testament prophets, its interpretations of the Bible are not inspired or infallible. Witness publications say that Bible prophecies can be fully understood only after their fulfillment, citing examples of biblical figures who did not understand the meaning of prophecies they received. Watch Tower publications often cite Proverbs 4:18, "The path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established" (NWT) to support their view that there would be an increase in knowledge during "the time of the end", as mentioned in Daniel 12:4. Jehovah's Witnesses state that this increase in knowledge needs adjustments. Watch Tower publications also say that unfulfilled expectations are partly due to eagerness for God's Kingdom and that they do not call their core beliefs into question.
Current beliefs Jehovah's Witnesses teach the imminent end of the current world society, or "system of things" by God's judgment, leading to deliverance for the saved. This judgment will begin with false religion, which they identify as the "harlot", Babylon the Great, referred to in the Book of Revelation. They apply this designation to all other religions. They do not currently place their expectations on any specific date, but believe that various events will lead up to the end of this "system of things", culminating in Armageddon. Armageddon is understood to include the destruction of all earthly governments by God. After Armageddon, God will extend his heavenly kingdom to include earth.
They believe that after Armageddon, based on scriptures such as John 5:28, 29, the dead will gradually be resurrected to a "day of judgment" lasting for a thousand years. This judgment will be based on their actions after resurrection, not on past deeds. At the end of the thousand years a final test will take place when Satan is brought back to mislead perfect mankind. The result will be a fully tested, glorified human race.
Presence of Jesus Christ Watch Tower Society publications teach that Jesus Christ returned invisibly and began to rule in heaven as king in October 1914. They state that the beginning of Christ's heavenly rule would seem worse initially for mankind because it starts with the casting out of Satan from heaven to the earth, which according to Revelation 12, would bring a brief period of "woe" to mankind. This woe will be reversed when Christ comes to destroy Satan's earthly organization, throwing Satan into the abyss and extending God's kingdom rule over the earth, over which Jesus reigns as God's appointed king. They believe the Greek word parousia, usually translated as "coming", is more accurately understood as an extended invisible "presence", perceived only by a series of "signs".
Witnesses base their beliefs about the significance of 1914 on the Watch Tower Society's interpretation of biblical chronology, which is hinged on their assertion that the Babylonian captivity and destruction of Jerusalem occurred in 607 BC. From this, they conclude that Daniel chapter 4 prophesied a period of 2,520 years, from 607 BC until 1914. They equate this period with the "Gentile Times" or "the appointed times of the nations," a phrase taken from Luke 21:24.
They believe that when the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem, the line of kings descended from David was interrupted, and that God's throne was "trampled on" from then until Jesus began ruling in October 1914. Secular historians date the event of Jerusalem's destruction to within a year of 587 BC. The Witnesses' alternative chronology produces a 20-year gap between the reigns of Neo-Babylonian Kings Amel-Marduk (rule ended 560 BC) and Nabonidus (rule began 555 BC) in addition to the intervening reigns of Neriglissar and Labashi-Marduk, despite the availability of contiguous cuneiform records.
They teach that after the war of Armageddon, Jesus will rule over earth as king for 1,000 years, after which he will hand all authority back to Jehovah.
Sign of "last days" Jehovah's Witnesses teach that since October 1914, humanity has been living in a period of intense increased trouble known as "the last days", marked by war, disease, famine, earthquakes, and a progressive degeneration of morality. They believe their preaching is part of the sign, often alluding to the text of Matthew 24:14, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be proclaimed in all the world as a witness to all nations. And then the end shall come." (MKJV)
They claim that various calamities in the modern world constitute proof of these beliefs, such as the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, the Spanish flu epidemic in May 1918, the onset of World War II in 1939, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and, more recently, the COVID-19 pandemic.
Judgment of religion Jehovah's Witnesses believe that in 1918, Christ judged all world religions claiming to be Christian, and that after a period of eighteen months, among all groups and religions claiming to represent Christ, only the "Bible Students", from which Jehovah's Witnesses developed, met God's approval. Watch Tower Society publications claim that the world's other religions have misrepresented God, and filled the world with hatred. They identify "Babylon The Great" and the "mother of the harlots" referred to in Revelation 17:3–6 as the "world empire of false religion"
During the final great tribulation, all other religions will be destroyed by "crazed" member governments of the United Nations, acting under the direction of Jehovah. Witness publications identify the United Nations as the "beast" to whom the "ten kings" of Revelation 17:12,13 give their "power and authority."
History of eschatology The eschatological beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses developed from those of the Bible Student movement, based on the teachings of Charles Taze Russell.
Background Russell's eschatology developed out of the teachings of Nelson Barbour and other Adventists in the 1870s. Barbour and Russell taught that Christ had returned invisibly in 1874, that a “harvest” period would run from 1874 to 1914, and that key prophetic events were tied to 1878 and 1914. Russell retained these ideas after separating from Barbour in 1879, teaching that Christ became king in 1878, that the saints would progressively be resurrected and glorified, and that Armageddon and the full establishment of God's Kingdom would culminate around 1914. He also adopted pyramidology, believing the Great Pyramid of Giza confirmed prophetic dates such as 1874 and 1914. Transition from Bible Student movement After Russell's death in 1916, Joseph Franklin Rutherford became president of the Watch Tower Society in 1917 and gradually altered many of Russell's teachings. The 1917 publication The Finished Mystery raised expectations about the destruction of Christendom in 1918. In early 1918, Rutherford introduced the "Millions Now Living Will Never Die!" campaign, promoting 1925 as the year when various biblical “princes” would be resurrected to inaugurate a new order.Rutherford, J. F. (1920). Millions Now Living Will Never Die. International Bible Students Association. pp. 89–90."Work for the Anointed". The Watch Tower. January 1, 1925. p. 3. "The year 1925 is here. With great expectation Christians have looked forward to this year. Many have confidently expected that all members of the body of Christ will be changed to heavenly glory during the year. This may be accomplished. It may not be. In his own due time God will accomplish his purposes concerning his own people." In July 1920, Watch Tower magazine moved Christ's enthronement from 1878 to 1914.
After 1925, Rutherford continued to revise earlier chronology and doctrines. A 1927 Watch Tower dated the timing of the resurrection of the "saints" to 1918, explaining that they would be raised as spirit creatures to heavenly life to be with Christ there. In 1928, Russell's pyramidology was abandoned entirely and the Great Pyramid of Gizeh was redefined as satanic in origin.The last favorable reference to the Great Pyramid in Watch Tower Society publications appears in The Watchtower, the April 15, 1928, p. 125Pyramidology was first rejected in the November 15, 1928 Watchtower, p 344: "It is more reasonable to conclude that the great pyramid of Gizeh, as well as the other pyramids thereabout, also the sphinx, were built by the rulers of Egypt and under the direction of Satan the Devil...The Devil, by the use of the descendants of Ham, set up Egypt, or the land of Ham, as the first great world power. Then Satan put his knowledge in dead stone, which may be called Satan's Bible, and not God's stone witness. In erecting the pyramid, of course, Satan would put in it some truth, because that is his method of practising fraud and deceit." In 1929, the beginning of the "last days" was changed from 1799 to 1914, and by 1930 Christ's “presence” was also moved from 1874 to 1914. Christ's Second Advent was explained as "turning of attention" to the earth, with Christ remaining in heaven. The judgment of "Babylon the Great" was dated to 1919 with the publication of the book Light in 1930. By 1931, these cumulative revisions had significantly transformed Russell's original Bible Student framework into the doctrinal structure associated with Jehovah's Witnesses.
In the 1930s, Rutherford lived in a "Spanish mansion"Time magazine, March 31, 1930, p. 60. Scan of article.The Messenger. July 25, 1931. in California which he called Beth Sarim, meaning, House of the Princes. It was held in trust for the ancient biblical "princes" who were expected to be resurrected immediately prior to Armageddon.Golden Age, March 19, 1930, pages 496 -497 Interview with J. F. Rutherford about Beth Sarim. San Diego Sun. March 1930. Rutherford spent the winter months at Beth Sarim and died there in January, 1942. The belief that Old Testament "princes" would be resurrected before Armageddon was abandoned in 1950.