How long is a generation?

by LevelThePlayingField 50 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • LevelThePlayingField
    LevelThePlayingField
    What Splain does in his talk and chart illustration is make the leap that a generation can have two groups. And in this case the two groups span more than 108 years. But no where in scripture is there ever a notion that a generation has two groups. No where. So what Splain said was supposing that Franz was the last of his group of the generation, dying in 1992, then the second group starts at 1992 and goes for another generation, a whole lifetime. So you have a life time of someone born in 1893 and living for 99 years. Then you have a second group of that generation being born in 1992 and living for how ever long they live. The second group won't die off before the end comes. But again, no where in scripture is such a notion found, that a father and his son are considered one generation, they are always considered to be two generations. What a mess.

    So does this actually make any sense to you? I have not run into a single JW who says they can explain this using their Bible, not one.

    Here's a bunch of scriptures that say a generation is roughly 40 years.

    (Matthew 1:17)
    17 All the generations, then, from Abraham until David were 14 generations; from David until the deportation to Babylon, 14 generations; from the deportation to Babylon until the Christ, 14 generations
    (Exodus 1:6) 6 Eventually Joseph died, and also all his brothers and all that generation.
    (Numbers 32:13) 13 So Jehovah’s anger blazed against Israel and he made them wander about in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that was doing evil in the eyes of Jehovah came to their end.
    (Deuteronomy 2:14) 14 And the days that we walked from Kaʹdesh-barʹne·a until we crossed the torrent valley of Zeʹred were thirty-eight years, until all the generation of the men of war had come to their end from the midst of the camp, just as Jehovah had sworn to them.
    (Joel 1:2, 3) 2 “Hear this, YOU older men, and give ear, all YOU inhabitants of the land. Has this occurred in YOUR days, or even in the days of YOUR forefathers? 3 Concerning it give an account to YOUR own sons, and YOUR sons to their sons, and their sons to the following generation. Again, here, from you to your sons is a generation.
    The following scriptures deal with Jesus concerning the generation that he kept talking about so much, that they were wicked:(Matthew 16:4) 4 A wicked and adulterous generation keeps on seeking for a sign, but no sign will be given it except the sign of Joʹnah.” With that he went away, leaving them behind.(Matthew 17:17) 17 In reply Jesus said: “O faithless and twisted generation, how long must I continue with YOU? How long must I put up with YOU? Bring him here to me.” (Matthew 24:34, 35) 34 Truly I say to YOU that this generation will by no means pass away until all these things occur. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away.
    So how long was this generation of Jesus time? Depending on where you start it at, it's about 40 years. The destruction of Jerusalem was in 70CE. So from when Jesus was speaking these things, say in 30CE to 70CE is 40 years.
    Why does the Bible keep telling us that a generation is between 30-40 years, again and again. The reason is simple. It's because a generation is really that long, about 40 years, not 100 plus years. No where in the Bible can you get that using scriptures in their context, no where.

  • Sour Grapes
    Sour Grapes

    Desperate people say and do desperate things. Jesus clearly said, "This generation," not generations. If you ask a JDub how long is a generation, while not talking about what the Gibbering Body says, they will tell you 40 to 50 years. Now if you tie that in with the blinding nulight™ then you get the dear in the headlights look. It just goes black behind their eyes.

  • TD
    TD

    Jesus clearly said, "This generation,"

    Yes. The near demonstrative pronoun refers to something close at hand, which in this case, would have been Jesus' immediate audience. The end of the Jewish system occurred within their lifetime.

    The idea of a secondary fulfillment evaporates into thin air when that pattern is broken.

    --And "broken" is probably too mild a word at this point.

  • James Mixon
    James Mixon

    The lie clock...After a long life as one of the GB member, dumb nuts dies and arrives at the gates of heaven, where he sees a huge wall of clocks behind him. He ask an angel, "what are those clocks"? The angel answer "those are lie clocks, especially lies when speaking of the End Time"..Dumb nuts ask "whose clock is that one"? That's Moses clock, not a lot of movement. How about that one ask the GB member? Angel answered, "that Noah's clock, it moved a lot".. OK, where is my clock?"Your clock is in God's office, He's using it as a ceiling fan"..

  • moreconfusedthanever
    moreconfusedthanever

    Generation definition is. "all of the people born and living at about the same time regarded collectively". Synonyms "age, age group, peer group, cohort, stage of life.

    It is mind boggling that anyone at all actually buys the overlapping generation explanation. Further proof that they are not actually listening. They have latched onto the promise of eternal life with raised dead ones in a panda patting paradise and all the rest is not relevant to them.

  • flipper
    flipper

    At the risk of sounding redundant ( as I've posted this quote so many times before from Websters New World College Dictionary ) :

    Generation Definition : " The average period ( about 30 years ) between the birth of one generation and that of the next . A single stage or degree in the succession of natural descent ( father and son are two generations ) "

    Hope this is helpful

    P.S. All the gibberish about the Bible's interpretation or JW interpretation of " generation " doesn't mean a thing. What matters is the actual English language definition.

  • FedUpJW
    FedUpJW

    I noticed that Splane when he was attempting to splane things kept using the phrases like, we just don't know-for the sake of argument- and suppose. I don't know about others but I sure as the sun coming up n the East will not base any amount of belief in a argument based on supposition and we just don't know!

  • Vanderhoven7
    Vanderhoven7

    MATTHEW 24 STUDY

    Which generation was Christ referring to in Matthew 24:34?

    The Greek word “genea” (pronounced ghen-eh-ah') appears thirteen times in Matthew's gospel. Four times it is used to delineate “one set of parents to the next”. Ignoring Matthew 24:34 for the moment, in every other appearance, including 6 of the instances Matthew places the definite article “this” (houtos) before “generation”, “this generation” (houtos genea), in context, clearly cover the same group of people -i.e. “Christ's contemporaries”

    Mt 11:16 But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market places, who call out to the other children, (the persons then living contemporary with Christ)

    Mt 12:41 The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.(the persons then living contemporary with Christ)

    Mt 12:42 "The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. (the persons then living contemporary with Christ).

    Mt 12:45 "Then it goes and takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself.... That is the way it will also be with this evil generation ." (the persons then living contemporary with Christ)

    Mt 17:17 And Jesus answered and said, "You unbelieving and perverted generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? ..." (the persons then living contemporary with Christ)

    Mt 23:36 "Truly I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

    Reading Mt.23:36 in context again shows " the persons then living contemporary with Christ are being referred to:

    29. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye build the sepulchres of the prophets, and garnish the tombs of the righteous, 30 and say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we should not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye witness to yourselves, that ye are sons of them that slew the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. :33 Ye serpents, ye offspring of vipers, how shall ye escape the judgment of Gehenna? 34 Therefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: some of them shall ye kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city: 35 that upon you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of Abel the righteous unto the blood of Zachariah son of Barachiah, whom ye slew between the sanctuary and the altar. 36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation. (the persons then living contemporary with Christ)

    Mt 24:34
    "Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
    Question: What generation was Jesus referring to Matthew 24:34?
    Answer: His own generation; people living contemporary with Christ ...and this is the case in all 4 gospels.
  • Sour Grapes
    Sour Grapes

    The JDubs will say that even though Jesus was referring to his time period that his words were prophetic and had a second fulfillment in our time.

  • Vanderhoven7
    Vanderhoven7

    WT Theory: "all these things" were to happen to both Christ's generation and our generation.

    (dual fulfillment theory)

    • Impossible: -these buildings and are already destroyed.

    • Impossible -Jews are not to be led captive into all nations again at Christ's second coming...where they are already scattered and have been since 70 AD after the Roman conquest. (Luke 21:24)

    • Impossible -Matt.24:21 precludes dual fulfillment.

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