That is correct JeffT, the WTS counts time from the fall of the year to the fall of the next year. That is why they point to October 1, 1914, as the beginning of the fulfillment of the Jesus enthronment (except for that prior 1878 date). (Remember I am just reporting what the WTS has said...it does not imply I personally support it)
*** w07 11/1 p. 24 par. 11 The Word of Jehovah Never Fails ***
What of our time? On Friday morning, October 2, 1914, Charles Taze Russell, who took the lead at that time among the Bible Students, strode into the dining room at Bethel in Brooklyn, New York. “Good morning, all,” he said cheerily. Then, before taking his seat, he joyfully announced: “The Gentile times have ended; their kings have had their day.”
*** w12 8/1 p. 17 When Did Jesus Become King? ***
October October
607 B.C.E. 1914 C.E.
← 2,520 years →
1000 B.C.E. 1 B.C.E. 1 C.E. 1000 C.E. 2000 C.E.
← 606.25 years →← 1,913.75 years →
The kingdom Use your calculator: God makes Jesus
in Jerusalem 606.25 a King with power
is destroyed + 1,913.75 over the nations
= 2,520
*** it-2 pp. 899-900 Seventy Weeks ***
When did the prophetic “seventy weeks” actually begin?
As to the beginning of the 70 weeks, Nehemiah was granted permission by King Artaxerxes of Persia, in the 20th year of his rule, in the month of Nisan, to rebuild the wall and the city of Jerusalem. (Ne 2:1, 5, 7, 8) In his calculations as to the reign of Artaxerxes, Nehemiah apparently used a calendar year that began with the month Tishri (September-October), as does the Jews’ present civil calendar, and ended with the month Elul (August-September) as the 12th month. Whether this was his own reckoning or the manner of reckoning employed for certain purposes in Persia is not known.
*** w02 3/1 p. 4 A Whole World Destroyed! ***
Was an Ancient World Really Destroyed?
Such an awesome catastrophe, if it really happened, would never have been completely forgotten. Hence, in many nations there are reminders of that destruction. Consider, for example, the precise date recorded in the Scriptures. The second month of the ancient calendar ran from what we now call mid-October to mid-November. So the 17th day corresponds approximately to the first of November. It may not be a coincidence, then, that in many lands, festivals for the dead are celebrated at that time of year.
*** w65 10/15 p. 630 A Powerful Identification of the Messiah ***
Now, as to the start of Daniel’s time prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27, Nehemiah leaves no doubt. His calendar year began with the month Tishri (September/October, just as the Jews’ civil calendar today) and ended with the month Elul (August/ September) as the twelfth month
*** w75 10/1 p. 579 The End of 6,000 Years of Man-Rule Approaches—What Has Been Accomplished? ***
SINCE a new Jewish lunar year began in September 1975 a significant point in human history was reached. What was that? According to the Bible’s count of time, mankind then completed 6,000 years of existence on earth. Yes, the first man Adam, if he had chosen to remain obedient under God’s rulership, would have still been alive and 6,000 years old in September of this year.
*** w68 8/15 p. 499 par. 29 Why Are You Looking Forward to 1975? ***
After much of the mathematics and genealogies, really, of what benefit is this information to us today? Is it not all dead history, as uninteresting and profitless as walking through a cemetery copying old dates off tombstones? After all, why should we be any more interested in the date of Adam’s creation than in the birth of King Tut? Well, for one thing, if 4,026 is added to 1,968 (allowing for the lack of a zero year between C.E. and B.C.E.) one gets a total of 5,993 years, come this autumn, since Adam’s creation. That means, in the fall of the year 1975, a little over seven years from now (and not in 1997 as would be the case if Ussher’s figures were correct), it will be 6,000 years since the creation of Adam, the father of all mankind!
