Matthew 23:37,38

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . Behold, your house is left unto you desolate."

Problem:

This passage is referred to by J.W.'s as the "irrevocable divorce decree"1 and is coupled with such passages as Rom. 2:29 to justify the application of the prophecies of restoration of natural Israel in a "spiritual sense".

Solution:

1. "Irrevocable" suggests the exact opposite to what this passage in Matthew affirms. The passage is not an "irrevocable divorce decree", but a conditional statement: "Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord". (vs. 39, cf. Ezek. 21:27).
   
2. This passage has a parallel in Jer. 3:8, in which God gives Israel a bill of divorcement saying: "I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce . . . " But God offers mercy to her: "I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, saith the LORD, and I will not keep anger for ever." (Jer. 3:12, cf. vs. 13-15). God has not cast away his people. (Rom. 11:1). The house of Israel will say, "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the LORD" (Matt. 23:39), since "blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in." (Rom. 11:25, cf. Isa. 59:20,21; Heb. 8:8; Jer. 31:31-34).
   
3. Not being infallible, a Bible student may change his mind over the years regarding an interpretation of obscure or highly symbolic passages of Scripture, but J.W.'s change fundamental doctrines. This is an important point. The J.W. must afford an explanation as to how his organization can claim to be a theocracy of absolute truth and yet revise its teaching on a Gospel theme which affects one's understanding of hundreds of passages in many Biblical books in both Old and New Testaments.
   
4. The contradictory teaching ofJ.W.'s:
   

   What earlier J.W.'s taught	What later J.W.'s teach
   "We find statements by both prophets and apostles which clearly indicate that in the times of restitution, Israel as a nation will be the first among the nations to come into harmony with the new order of things; that the earthly Jerusalem will be rebuilt upon her own heaps, and that their polity will be restored as in the beginning under princes or judges. (Isa. 1:26; Psa. 45:16; Jer. 30:18)."3 The Divine Plan of the Ages, p. 294.	"The facts and prophecies prove that natural Jews will never again be a chosen regathered people." Let God Be True, p. 208.2 (1946 edition)
   "Israel is now [1921] being regathered, and is rebuilding Palestine exactly as foretold." The Harp of God, p. 256.4	"Hence the regathering of unbelieving natural Israelites to Palestine cannot be construed as fulfillment of prophecies." Let God Be True, p. 218.(1952 edition).5

    

5. It is the claim of J.W.'s that "preaching in harmony with God's revealed Word" is that which "proves [one] to be a minister".6 Who then does one take to be the minister, the earlier writers or modern day J.W.'s?
   
6. Can one "true witness" prove wrong the "clear indications" postulated by another "true witness", and yet both remain "faithful and true witnesses"?
   
7. Fleshly descent constitutes a Jew, a subject of the kingdom, but confers on him no right to sit and rule on the thrones of the House of David. All Jews and Gentiles who become Jews "inwardly" (Rom. 2:29; 9:6-8) will reign as associate kings with the Messiah. (2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 5: 10). The J.W.'s confuse Israel's national position as subjects in the kingdom with the position of the saints who will be rulers.

---

Footnotes:

1. The Watchtower, (Aug. 1, 1962), No. 15, Vol. LXXXVIII, p. 475.
2. "Let God Be True", (Brooklyn, N.Y.: Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1946), p. 208.
3. Charles T. Russell, A Helping Hand: Millennial Dawn Vol. 1. The Divine Plan of the Ages, (Pennsylvania: Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1886), P. 294, This publication is still referred to in Watchtower articles. See The Watchtower, (March 1, 1965). No. 5, Vol. LXXXVI, p. 155.
4. J. F. Rutherford, The Harp of God, (Brooklyn, N.Y.: Watch Tower Bible & Tract Society, 1921), p. 256.
5. "Let God Be True", (Brooklyn, N.Y.: Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, Inc., 1952), p. 218.
6. Ibid. p. 224

Ron Abel