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mieWATCHTOWER.

the Kingdom covenant:For this reason, after setting
up the Memorial supper, Jesus said to his faithful
apostles: ''You are they who have continued with me
in my trials. And I covenant for you, even as my
Father has covenanted for me, a Kingdom, that you
may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit
on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel."
(Luke 22: 28-30, Diaglott; Rotherham) Those faithful apostles were the main ones of a small remnant
of Jews that then believed in Jesus as Christ the
Heir to the Kingdom covenant. Now Jesus was taking them into the covenant with him.
7 How did Jesus covenant for his 144,000 faithful
disciples a kingdom together with him in heaven ~ He
did so by preaching the kingdom of heaven during the
three and a half years of his public activity on earth,
thus informing them of it and inviting them to it.
He then laid down his human life as a sacrifice for
sins that they might be cleansed in his blood and be
justified from all inherited sin and be righteous and
acceptable in God's sight. He acted as High Priest to
offer these justified ones in sacrifice with him for
the vindication of Jehovah's universal sovereignty
and name. He also acted as Jehovah's Prophet and
High Priest to pour out the holy spirit upon them
from Pentecost forward, in order to anoint them to
Kingdom service and to a place in the heavenly Kingdom with him. (Acts 2: 32-36) The number of these
joint-heirs of the Kingdom covenant was once not
known to be 144,000. It was as indefinite as that of
the stars of l1eaven and the sands of the sea. (Gen.
22: 17, 18) But by a later comment upon his covenant with David God bound himself to add these
joint-heirs to Jesus, saying:
8 "For thus saith Jehovah: David shall never want
a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
... If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my
covenant of the night, so that there shall not be day
and night in their season; then may also my covenant
be broken with David my servant, that he shall not
have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the
Levites the priests, my ministers. As the host of
heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the
sea measured; so will I multiply the seed of David my
servant, and the Levites that minister unto me."
-Jer. 33: 17, 20-22, Am. Stan. Ver.
9 So, from Pentecost of A.D. 33 down to the beginning of the thousand-year reign of Christ, God
occupies the time in gathering and preparing for the
Kingdom these 144,000 fellow heirs of the great Son
of David. Since :Moses' day the natural Jews had
Jehovah's name called upon them. First from among
them God picked out a faithful remnant of some
thousands of men and women who accepted Jesus as
7. How did Jesus covenant with his dlsclples for a kingdom?
8. How did God foretell he would add joint-heirs to the covenant?
9. Since when and how has God been adding these?

BROOKLYN,

N. Y.

Messiah. After giving these Jews who bore Jehovah's
name an exclusive opportunity for seven years to be
taken into the Kingdom covenant with Jesus, Jehovah began visiting the non-Jews or Gentiles who had
not been called by His name. He opened up to them
the chance to fill up the rest of the number of fellow
heirs of the royal covenant. He used Simeon Peter
as the first one to declare the Kingdom opportunity
to the Gentiles. Then God opened the eyes of the
disciple James to see that this was the fulfillment of
Amos' prophecy, whereupon James said: "Brethren,
hearken unto me: Symeon hath rehearsed how nrst
God visited the Gentiles, to take out of them a people
for his name. And to this agree the words of the
prophets; as it is written, After these things I will
return, and I will build again the tabernacle of David,
which is fallen; and I will build again the ruins
thereof, and I will set it up: that the residue of n1en
[the Jewish remnant] may seek after the Lord [Jehovah] and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is
called, saith the Lord [Jehovah], who maketh these
things known from of old."-Acts 15: 13-18, Am.

Stan. Ver.
THE HEIR'S GOVERNMENT TO INCREASE

During these centuries since Pentecost Jehovah
God has been taking out from Jews and Gentiles the
144,000 faithful followers who shortly "shall be
priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with
him a thousand years". (Rev. 20: 4,6) During all
those centuries of selection and preparation those
prospective heirs of the heavenly kingdom have given
their allegiance to Christ Jesus as Jehovah's anointed King, and with them as his subjects Jesus has
reigned over them. They say: "God ... hath delivered us from the power of darlmess, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son." They
obey Peter's admonition: "Love the brotherhood.
Fear God. Honour the king." (Col. 1: 10·13; 1 Pet.
2: 17) They will ever be subject to him, for he is
their Head and King of kings. But these are not the
only ones over whom Christ Jesus is to reign. The
time comes, and that shortly, when all the 144,000
will be with him, glorified in the heavenly kingdom,
and they will "reign with him a thousand years". He
will reign then, and the 144,000 together with him;
but over whom '-2 Tim. 2: 12.
11 The Scriptural answer is, He must reign over
all mankind and to the uttermost parts of the earth.
This is as certain as day follows night, and night day.
He has already begun to reign in an active sense.
The allotted "times of the Gentiles» ran out A.D. 1914.
Then the divine moment came for the great God of
the covenant to give the Kingdom to him whose right
it is to have it. This God did in fulfillment of his
10

10. Since Pentecost over whom has Jesus reigned. and how so?
11. Over whom must he and his 144,000 reign? Despite what?

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