2520 Years

by goodgifts 19 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

• 

  M.J.

  Wow, Leo. I never thought of the fact that the Society assumes extra days for the 1260 days, treating it as the equivalent to 3.5 solar years, and not taking it as a literal 1260 days.

  To prove this point, the "Revelation Climax" book (pages 10-13) declares that the 1260 days, or the "time, times and half a time" of Daniel 12:7 spans from the starting point of "December 1914" up until June 21, 1918, when Rutherford & Co were thrown in prison and the "organized preaching work was killed".

  But here's the rub. December 21, 1914 is exactly three and a half solar years before June 21, 1914. But if you count 1260 literal days backward from June 21, 1918 your starting point is January 8, 1915--missing the month of December, 1914 entirely!

  See what I mean at: http://www.onlineconversion.com/days_between.htm

  Here is proof that here the WTS makes a "time, times, and half a time" not a literal 1260 days, but inclusive of EXTRA days. If they stuck to this same methodology to determine the timespan of Daniel 4's "seven times", then they would say it represents seven solar years, admitting that 2520 days are simply representative of that time span, which is about 2557 actual days when the "extra days" are included, Essene/Sadducee calendar notwithstanding.
• 

  Leolaia

  Excellent point, M.J.!! I think you just pin-pointed the inconsistency from their own literature.
• 

  M.J.

  I'd like to see someone ask about that one during the Revelation Climax bookstudy next year!

  Not that anyone present would have the foggiest idea what you're talking about...
• 

  headmath

  A year is not 360 days everyone knows that. So who introduced the idea of 360 days in a year? The bible does not say 360 anywhere. So this number was contrived ny some bible students eager to solve bible phropecy. I

  Look at this rubbish

  http://www.360calendar.com/bible-prophecy-360-days-calendar-not-edited.htm

  They take an average of a solar and and a lunar day to arrive at 360 days a year. Well folks I judge a day by when the sun goes down and have never used the moon to tell me what time of day it is.
• 

  M.J.

  ***

  w948/1p.31QuestionsFromReaders***

  As to the ending, the magazine showed how the harassment of God’s anointed ones (Daniel 7:25) climaxed in June 1918 when J. F. Rutherford and other directors of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society were "sentenced on false charges to a long term in prison." That event certainly was "a finishing of the dashing of the power of the holy people," as noted at Daniel 12:7.

  Counting back from June 1918 leads us to December 1914 for the beginning of the 3 1/2 times. In that closing month of 1914, God’s anointed ones on earth learned the theme scripture for the coming year: "‘Are ye able to drink of My cup?’—Matthew 20:20-23." The article announcing it warned: "Who knows but that there may be some special trial, cup of suffering or ignominy, for the loyal followers of the Lamb during 1915!" As Daniel 7:25 foretold for this period of 3 1/2 times, ‘harassment arose and continued against the holy ones themselves of the Supreme One.’ Nations were embroiled in World War I, making it easier for them to carry out unjustified harassment. The conclusion is: All three parallel prophecies—Daniel 7:25, 12:7, and Revelation 11:3—found fulfillment in the 3 1/2 years, or 42 months, from December 1914 to June 1918.
• 

  Lady Liberty

  Thank you for posting this thread, and to everyone who have contributed to this topic! This would REALLY get a few heads "spinning"!!! I cannot wait to throw this at my JW grandmother to see what she says! She will probably say, "But what does it matter??" Then teach the 2520 years to her next Bible study! Anyhow, this really is a great way to blow someone away!

  Sincerely,

  Lady Liberty
• 

  Leolaia

  headmath....The year was reckoned 360 days in the old priestly solar calendar (which was used in Daniel and Revelation in imitation), thus the solar year was described as "six days" longer than the lunar year (i.e. 354 days) in 1 Enoch 74:11. In v. 17, the length of each month is fixed as "thirty days," yielding 360 days for the twelve months of the year (12 x 30 = 360), yet at the same time "the days add up to 364 days" when counted sequentially (72:32). This is because "the four days are not counted in the reckoning of the year" (75:1), these being the "four epagomenal days, the leaders who divide the four seasons of the year (i.e. the two solstices and the two equinoxes)" (82:11). The present form of the Book of Luminaries however was edited by a writer who wanted to refute this system of computation and argued that the 4 days should be included within the months and thus within the reckoning of the year:

  "Blessed are those who walk in the path of righteousness and have no sin like the sinners in the computation of the days in which the sun goes its course in the sky. The sun comes in through a door and rises for thirty days together with the chiefs of the thousands of the orders of the stars, together with the four which are added between the four seasons of the year to determine the intervals, those that lead them along come in on four days. On this account there are people that err ... the people make error and do not recognize them accurately; for they belong to the reckoning of the year. Truly, they are recorded forever: one in the first gate, one in the third, one in the fourth, and one in the sixth. The year is completed in three hundred and sixty-four days" (1 Enoch 82:4-6).

  This text shows that in the second century BC there was a debate within Judaism on whether the extra 4 days belonged to the months and to the yearly reckoning or whether they were counted as extramonthly days. The Qumran texts take the position described in the quote above, that the epagomenal days belong to the reckoning of the year. Daniel and Revelation, on the other hand, take the other position and compute the months without the solstices and equinoxes.
• 

  M.J.

  Same goes for the WTS treatment of the 1,290 days. They are not 1,290 consecutive days!

  Check it out:

  ***

  w9311/1pp.10-11Daniel’sPropheticDaysandOurFaith***

  The 1,290 Days

  15 The angel said to Daniel: "From the time that the constant feature ["the continual sacrifice," footnote] has been removed and there has been a placing of the disgusting thing that is causing desolation, there will be one thousand two hundred and ninety days." (Daniel 12:11) Under the Mosaic Law, "the continual sacrifice" was burned on the altar at the temple in Jerusalem. Christians do not offer burnt sacrifices, but they do offer a spiritual continual sacrifice. Paul referred to this when he said: "Let us always offer to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of lips which make public declaration to his name." (Hebrews 13:15; compare Hosea 14:2.) This continual sacrifice was taken away in June 1918. What, then, was "the disgusting thing"—the second feature to look for? It was the League of Nations, promoted by the victorious powers at the end of World War I. It was disgusting because the leaders of Christendom put it in the place of God’s Kingdom, representing the League as man’s only hope for peace. The League was proposed in January 1919. [January 25, 1919to be exact--M.J.] If we count 1,290 days (three years, seven months) from that time, we arrive at September 1922.
  16 What happened then? Well, the Bible Students were now refreshed, free from Babylon the Great, and ready to go on the offensive. (Revelation 18:4) At a convention held in September 1922 at Cedar Point, Ohio, U.S.A.[September 5-13, 1922 to be exact, go figure--M.J.], they began fearlessly to declare God’s judgments on Christendom .

  Here too, we can see that the 1,290 days are converted to three years (solar--not "prophetic"), seven months (modern months--not 30 day months), and therefore not reckoned as 1,290 literal days!

  1,290 literal, consecutive days starting on January 25, 1919 takes you to AUGUST 7, 1922--not September!

  So the big question all this leads to is...why convert "times" into days in the first place, if the number of days you get from the conversion can't be taken literally?
• 

  VM44

  Did not the 360 day year come from Babylon? --VM44
• 

  Wordly Andre

  Shit I came up with 1975