My wife is onto something ... and it isn't me (hint: 586/87) (page 2)

garybuss

Good job! You probably already know all this but maybe some readers may like to see it.
The Society claims they alone have access to "reliable Bible chronology" and they write they have used that to speculate (guess) about end time (and other) Bible texts. If they alone are really "spirit directed" and if they alone have "reliable Bible chronology", why would they have to guess at anything? And why would they ever have to be wrong? If the Society alone is "spirit directed" and the Society alone has access to "reliable Bible chronology", why would the Society have to appeal to worldly wisdom? Below in the quote from the Reasoning From The Scriptures book the Society appeals to worldly wisdom and write that each creative day "COULD" have been thousands of years long.
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Reasoning From The Scriptures 1989 p. 88 Creation
Was all physical creation accomplished in just six days sometime within the past 6,000 to 10,000 years?
The facts disagree with such a conclusion: (1) Light from the Andromeda nebula can be seen on a clear night in the northern hemisphere. It takes about 2,000,000 years for that light to reach the earth, indicating that the universe must be at least millions of years old. (2) End products of radioactive decay in rocks in the earth testify that some rock formations have been undisturbed for billions of years.
Genesis 1:3-31 is not discussing the original creation of matter or of the heavenly bodies. It describes the preparation of the already existing earth for human habitation. This included creation of the basic kinds of vegetation, marine life, flying creatures, land animals, and the first human pair. All of this is said to have been done within a period of six “days.” However, the Hebrew word translated “day” has a variety of meanings, including ‘a long time; the time covering an extraordinary event.’ (Old Testament Word Studies, Grand Rapids, Mich.; 1978, W. Wilson, p. 109) The term used allows for the thought that each “day” could have been thousands of years in length.
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"Consider the relationship between Jehovah and Jesus. They were together in heaven for perhaps billions of years."
The Watchtower, August 15, 2005
Page 27, Paragraph 15
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The creative day issue reported by the Witnesses in publications for required belief needs to be revisited by us. Who has done any work on this? This chronology is how the Society came up with 1975 as an important date. Without the creative day chronology, even IF all archeology on ever done is wrong and humans have only been on the planet 6,000 years, the date 1975 is only interesting at most, and not connected to creation at all.
The same radioactive decay as referred to above in the Reasoning book is used to date human remains MUCH older than 6,000 years. When the Society dumps this part of their chronology, they dump it all. They are obviously trying to change it now and that change will not go un commented on:-)

ithinkisee

Thanks for the varying degrees of experiences on this everyone:

Tetrapod: I don't think the Insight books even MENTION 586/87. They COMPLETELY ignore it. (Unless someone knows a place where it is mentioned. She has one volume opened up to Chronology and another one opened up to Zedekiah (subheading Fall of Jerusalem))

AK-JEFF: I gave her the KISS method by Alleymom that explains the regnal lengths of kings according to the Society's listings of the Babylonian kings about two months ago. This is the first time I have actually seen it out on the desk - as if she has been looking at it. I have kept my notes on 586 laying around lately. And I have been reading the bible alot more lately (Go figure ...). She does like to do deep research ... unfortunately all her research up til now has been reading the Botchtower and Asleep mags. Naturally, our busy JW schedules have kept her from REALLY doing research. She knows I have been hitting the research thing pretty hard lately - yet my JW stuff has been non-existant ... I imagine she either thinks (a) I'm turning apostate and she's nervous, or (b) I am just verifying and validating my JW faith, and she's giving me space.

Runningman: Thanks for the big-time encouragement. I hope that is the case.

Mulan: Awesome! I love it! I need to hear things like that more often. Where were you when I needed you a week ago! (j/k ... don't worry about it)

Kwin: I am mostly staying away from that for now ... if we get deep into the 70 years I may use Zechariah at least ... but in general save that for a while separate discussion

My original thread about breaking the news to my wife (which I still haven't done ... though I have been leaving clues around):
http://www.jehovahs-witness.com/6/94888/1.ashx

Thanks again everyone. I'll keep you posted. We are over to North Carolina for vacation first thing in the morning, so I may only have sporadic internet access.

(I'll be on most of the night tonight though!)

-ithinkisee

luna2

Very encouraging, ithinkisee! I hope your wife continues her research and really starts questioning.

Have a lovely time on your vacation!

ezekiel3

Congradulations! I have been watching your wife's denouement with much interest, and I believe from what you say that she is beginning to bias against the WTS pubs.

Also amused to see you laid out the time table with BCE. Dude, its BC and AD!

Just to confirm, your wife is not finding this info in the Insight books. I put the corresponding quotes in red from the WTS references: Next to the year 605BCE she wrote: "Daniel taken captive"

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it-1 p. 415 Captivity ***

But it was more than a decade later, in 617 B.C.E., that the first captives from Jerusalem were taken into exile at Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar came against the rebellious city and carried off the upper class of the population, including King Jehoiachin and his mother, and men such as Ezekiel, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, together with "the princes and all the valiant, mighty men—ten thousand he was taking into exile—and also every craftsman and builder of bulwarks.

Next to 597 BCE she wrote:"Jehoiakin on throne 3 months. Zedekiah 'puppet king' left ruling - 11 yrs later Babylon returned in full force (586 BCE)"

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dp chap. 2 pp. 18-19 Daniel—A Book on Trial ***

When first made king in 628 B.C.E. by Pharaoh Necho, Jehoiakim became a mere puppet of that Egyptian ruler. This was about three years before Nebuchadnezzar succeeded his father to the throne of Babylon, in 624 B.C.E.

Next to 589BCE she wrote:"Babylon sacks Lachesh & Azekah. They turn to Jerusalem. Seige begins."

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it-2 p. 188 Lachish ***

When the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar overran Judah (609-607 B.C.E.), Lachish and Azekah were the last two fortified cities to fall before Jerusalem was taken.

ithinkisee

Ezekiel3:

LOL ... I put BCE because I figured it was a safe "give" on the Society side ... I know it is part of the way they help mask dates - even if it seems insignificant.

Heh.

Thanks man ... for the last week I had about a dozen books on my desk regarding ancient Jerusalem, Babylon, etc. I just had her return them to the library for me two days ago ... not sure ... may be something there she found ...

Thanks for the encouragement ... and the references ...

-ithinkisee

talesin

No advice/help here,,, just wanted to let you know that I am pulling for ya!

She has definitely got her 'thinking cap' on.

tal

Honesty

Let her see it for herself and then look out for the fireworks display at the KH.

After she does the research on what you gave her then let her read Zechariah 7:1 and 5 and then look at the Onslaught article about Darius and his reign.

Make sure you hide all accelerants and igniters just in case she gets a wild hair.

The JWs trained me well as a child for that ...

-ithinkisee

My wife is onto something ... and it isn't me (hint: 586/87)

garybuss

ithinkisee

luna2

ezekiel3

ithinkisee

talesin

Honesty

ithinkisee

stillajwexelder

ithinkisee

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