The Old Testament Records The God of the Bible Establishing The Test For a True or False Prophet

If any person should speak a word of prophecy in seeking to predict a future event and that event does not come to pass exactly as it was described, that person is a false prophet. The test of a true prophecy from the one true God is whether all the words comes to pass exactly as they were predicted, with one-hundred percent accuracy. Even the smallest failure in any part of any prophetic utterance is an indication that the prophecy is false and the person who spoke the words is a false prophet. The people of God are not to listen to any words or persons who make these false predictions.

According to the Bible, anyone who claims to make predictions that God has allegedly spoken, are tested, for their validity, by whether their predictions actually took place later. If any prediction spoken does not occur precisely as that prophet has spoken, he is defined as a “false prophet”; and no one should listen to them.

Deuteronomy 18:22: “… when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously…”

Biblical Prophecy and Its Record of Accuracy

Not one prophecy of the Bible has ever failed to be fulfilled exactly as God said that they would. Only a transcendent being with an unlimited intelligence who lives outside of time could tell us what will happen hundreds or thousands of years before these events take place. The Bible has a perfect record of accuracy in the prophetic predictions that it has made.

See The 400 Messianic Prophecies Jesus Fulfilled

It is for this reason that we should trust only the words of the Bible and not the words of men who do not speak for God. The Bible claims that “Holy men of God spoke,” as the Spirit of God gave them understanding. The test for whether or not God spoke the things that these men wrote is whether the words they said actually came to pass in the process of time.

2 Peter 1:19-21 “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”

True prophecy that originates from God will always be confirmed by the events of history. No prophecy that is contained within the Bible has its origin in the mind or heart of a man. The words of these prophecies came from the eternal mind and unlimited knowledge of the Living God. He spoke to the hearts and minds of men who had set themselves apart for God, so that He could speak through them. These men recorded the words of God in the Bible for us, so that we would be able to test whether these words are the words of God. If any prophecy of the Bible had ever failed, we would not need to listen to the words of the Bible, for they would not be the words of God.

The Record of the Jehovah’s Witnesses In Their Prophecies of Jesus’ Return

The religious movement now known as Jehovah’s Witnesses was originally founded in 1879 under the leadership of Charles Taze Russell. However, it underwent several name changes and organizational developments before becoming the modern Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Founding Timeline of the Jehovah’s Witnesses

1870 – Formation of the Bible Student Movement

Charles Taze Russell, then 18 years old, formed a small Bible study group in Allegheny, Pennsylvania (now part of Pittsburgh). This group laid the foundation for what would become the Bible Student movement.

1879 – Official Beginning of the Movement

Russell began publishing Zion’s Watch Tower and Herald of Christ’s Presence in July 1879.

This marks the formal founding date of the movement as an organized religious publishing and teaching effort.

Russell believed that Christ had returned invisibly in 1874, and the journal aimed to spread this belief.

1881 – Establishment of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society

Originally formed as Zion’s Watch Tower Tract Society, incorporated in 1884 with Russell as president.

This became the legal and publishing entity behind the movement.

1931 – Name “Jehovah’s Witnesses” Officially Adopted

Under Joseph Franklin Rutherford, Russell’s successor, the group adopted the name Jehovah’s Witnesses in Columbus, Ohio, at a convention in 1931.

The name was taken from Isaiah 43:10, to distinguish the group from other “Bible Student” offshoots and emphasize their unique identity.

Official Founding Date of the Jehovah’s Witnesses as a Movement:

• July 1879 – with the launch of Zion’s Watch Tower
• 1881/1884 – incorporation of the Watch Tower Society
• 1931 – adoption of the name Jehovah’s Witnesses

A Detailed History of Jehovah’s False Predictions of Jesus’ Return

1. 1874 – The First “Invisible Return”

• Charles Taze Russell taught that Jesus returned invisibly in October 1874.
• Based on William Miller’s Adventist chronology but altered.
• Believed Christ began a secret “presence” (Greek: parousia).
• This teaching continued until about 1930 when the date was reassigned to 1914.

2. 1914 – The Most Famous Failed Date

• Russell predicted the end of the “Gentile Times” and the beginning of Christ’s Kingdom on earth.
• Expected Armageddon and the end of human governments.
• When nothing occurred visibly, the doctrine was reinterpreted:
• Jesus began ruling invisibly from heaven in 1914.
• This remains a central doctrine of Jehovah’s Witnesses today.

3. 1915 – Revised After 1914 Failed

• After the 1914 prophecy failed, the Watch Tower Society revised their calculations to 1915 as the new date for Armageddon.
• Prophecy Unfulfilled.

4. 1918 – Prophecy During World War I

• Predicted the destruction of “Christendom”, including all churches and religious leaders.
• The Millions Now Living Will Never Die campaign began.
• Claimed that by 1918, God would destroy churches “wholesale.”
• Prophecy Unfulfilled.

5. 1925 – Resurrection of Patriarchs

• Joseph Rutherford, second president of the Watch Tower Society, taught that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and others would return bodily to rule.
• A mansion called “Beth-Sarim” (“House of Princes”) was built in San Diego for them.
• 1925 passed with no resurrection; the Watchtower later quietly abandoned this teaching.

6. 1941 – World War II and Armageddon

• Declared that the publication of Children (a JW book) in 1941 was likely the last book before the battle of Armageddon.
• JW church urged young members to avoid marriage due to the “nearness” of the end.
  Armageddon did not arrive.

7. 1975 – 6,000 Years of Human History Ends

• A major campaign declared that 1975 might mark 6,000 years since Adam, and that Christ’s millennial reign could begin.
• Many JW members sold their homes, postponed careers, and chose full-time preaching.
• When nothing happened, the Watchtower eventually admitted members were “overly enthusiastic,” but never directly apologized.
• This false prediction resulted in a large exodus of members from the JW organization.

8. 1984 – The “Generation” Doctrine

• Claimed that the generation alive in 1914 would not pass away before Armageddon occurred.
• Repeated in Watchtower publications: “Millions now living will never die.”
• When the 1914 generation began dying, the doctrine was redefined multiple times: Now refers to overlapping generations or symbolic meanings.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses have made at least eight major failed predictions about the return of Jesus or the end of the world between 1874 and 1975, with doctrinal shifts after each disappointment.

This pattern of date-setting, failure, and reinterpretation is well-documented in their own publications, forming a clear record of doctrinal unreliability regarding the Second Coming.

The Predictions Directly Attributed to Charles Taze Russell

Russell made at least four major distinct predictions (with some internal adjustments), particularly tied to the return of Christ and the end of the Gentile Times:

1874 – Invisible Return of Christ

• Based on prophetic calculations involving prophetic days = literal years.
• Russell taught that Jesus had already returned invisibly in October 1874.
• Cited the Greek word parousia to support an invisible presence rather than a visible return.
• This was a foundational doctrine in his theology and lasted until the early 1930s.
• Prophecy Not fulfilled – later reassigned to 1914 by Rutherford.

1878 – Resurrection of the Saints / Rapture

• Russell taught that in 1878, the rapture of the “sleeping saints” (dead Christians) began.
• He claimed that from 1878 onward, the “dead in Christ” were resurrected invisibly to heaven.
• Also believed this was the start of the judgment of Christendom.
• This Prophecy Was Not visible or provable – spiritualized.

1881 – Close of High Calling

• Taught that after 1881, the opportunity for Gentiles to be part of the 144,000 “anointed” ended.
• Believers after that date would have a different reward (possibly earthly).
• This Prophecy Was Later modified this as more converts joined.

1914 – End of the Gentile Times

• This was Russell’s most famous date.
• Predicted that world governments would end, and Christ’s Millennial Reign would begin.
• Expected Armageddon and the destruction of human kingdoms.
• When nothing happened physically, later reinterpreted (by Rutherford) as the start of Christ’s invisible heavenly reign.
• Russell died in October 1916, still believing 1914 was an important prophetic year.

Impeaching The Assertion By Jehovah’s Witnesses That Jesus Is A Created Being, Not Yahweh/Jehovah, The Eternal God

SEE THE 400 TRUE PROPHECIES OF THE MESSIAH THAT JESUS FULFILLED

Sources and Citations

1. Charles Taze Russell, The Time is at Hand (1889) – predicted Christ’s return in 1874, end in 1914.
2. Joseph F. Rutherford, Millions Now Living Will Never Die (1920) – predicted 1925 resurrection.
3. Watchtower, May 15, 1984, p. 5 – stated people of the 1914 generation “will not pass away.”
4. Watchtower, July 15, 1976 – admitted “some” had expectations for 1975, but deflected blame.
5. Watchtower publications (1917–present) – document many of these teachings across decades.

Categories: Robert Clifton Robinson