Pagină:Organization-part-II-1938.djvu/13

JUNE 15, 1938 elders represented the number of all the ‘‘royal priest- hood’’ under the Head, Christ Jesus, including the ones who ‘preach this gospel of the kingdom’. Fur- thermore, it is stated, at Revelation 14:3 and 15: 2, 3, that the 144,000 faithful members of Christ’s body stand by the ‘‘sea of glass’’ with Christ Jesus, harp- ing upon their harps. This picture includes the rem- nant on earth engaged in singing the ‘‘new song’’ to the praise of Jehovah God. The twenty-four elders are described as having golden vials or bowls full of incense, ‘‘which are the prayers of saints.’’ In the tabernacle and temple service of the nation of Israel a golden censer burned in the Most Holy, and was carried there by the high priest on the yearly ‘‘day of atonement’’, (Heb. 9:3, 4) This further supports the conclusion that the twenty- four elders are members of the body of the great High Priest of the order of Melchizedek, to wit, Christ Jesus, and that in the picture they symbolically represent all the body members ; and the prayers’ being ‘‘ the prayers of saints’’ is further proof that the twenty-four elders are the 144,000 faithful saints constituting the body of the High Priest. This also shows that prayer is an essential part of the life of the faithful. No one can hope to get on in his faithful service of the Lord with- out frequent prayer. This being ‘‘the last day’’, it is the time to ‘‘continue in prayer, and watch in the same’’, (Col. 4:2) The remnant will not be able to stand without prayer and watchfulness. (Eph. 6: 13-18) The Lord hears the prayer of the right- eous, and the prayer of the upright is his delight. (1 Pet. 3:12; Prov. 15:8,29) ‘‘Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense.’’ (Ps. 141:2) They pray for victory.—Ps. 118: 25. “(And they sung a new song.’’ (Rev. 5:9) Thus is pictured that no longer is this a time of weeping, but - the time has come to sing the new song to the honor and glory of Jehovah and his glorious King. The new song in effect says: ‘A new epoch has begun; the kingdom is here and the tried and precious Stone, Christ Jesus, has been laid in Zion and made the chief Stone of the corner’; ‘‘a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation.’’ (Isa. 28:16) He is a tried, precious and sure foundation, and the Head of God’s organization, and every member thereof sings his praises and the praises of Jehovah. All these (rep- resented by the twenty-four elders) say: ‘Thou art worthy to reccive this portfolio and to open the seals and to reveal the truth; thou hast redeemed us by thy. blood and made us unto our God kings and priests,’ Thus the Lord Jesus is identified as the Redeemer and Savior, High Priest and King, and the twenty- four elders are members of his royal line. She WATCHTOWER. 189 Then John marks that others join in the song of praise. As stated at verse 11: ‘‘I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the clders {that is, God’s organization, including Christ’s body members]: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands.’’ Thus is shown the entire organization of Jehovah God giving praise to the Lamb which has received the riches and power and glory at the hands of Jehovah as his reward for faithfulness. The angels mentioned must be that myriad of angels who act as the retinue of servants to the Lord Jesus and who are at the general assembly. (Heb. 12: 22, 23, Diag.) The song thus begun continues until every creature that has breath and lives praises God. (Ps. 150: 6) The living ones of God’s entire organization say ‘fAmen’’, And the members of his royal house fall down before Jehovah and worship him for ever and ever. (Rev. 5:14) They are obedient to his orders, and in the ages to come are the recipients of the ex- ceeding riches of his grace through Christ Jesus, the Head of his organization, and the Chief Offieer of Jehovah. Jehovah spoke through his prophet, saying: ‘‘I have installed my king on Zion my holy mountain, let him teli my decree!’ (Ps. 2:6, Rotherham) The period of waiting ended with A.D. 1914, and there Jehovah installed his King upon his throne and di- rected him to begin action. (Ps. 110:1,2) When on earth Jesus gave his great prophecy concerning his second coming and the end of the world. (Matthew, chapter twenty-four) Chapter six of The Revelation parallels that prophecy, and is a tableau in which Christ Jesus is the chief actor. It is Christ Jesus who opens the ‘‘seven seals’’ of the book ‘‘in the right hand of him that sat on the throne’’, thus proving that no man can open the prophecies; but God permits his men to understand the prophecies after the seals are opened. It does not even follow that a man would understand the proph- ecies as soon as the seals are open. It can now be seen that the events pictured in the first five seals were fulfilled from A.D. 1914 to 1918, but the meaning thereof man could not understand until after the coming of the Lord to his temple, in 1918. Prior thereto the faithful church had been applying the prophecy of Matthew twenty-four to the events that came to pass from A.D. 1874 to 1914. Not until after 1918 was it understood by the church that these sealed events apply after 1914; and hence the seals were not open to or discerned by the John class, that is to say, by the remnant, until after 1918, and, in fact, very little until after 1922. O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion, get thee up on a high mountain; O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem, lift up thy voice with strength; lift +t up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold, your God!—Isaiah 40:9, 4.2.7.