When Will the End Come?
(An observation concerning the prophecies of Jehovah's Witnesses
and other "end-times" denominations and prophets)
By Frank J. Toth,
former member for many years of the Watchtower Society's headquarters staff
(All Bible quotations are from the New World Translation)
So-called "prophets" have been preaching for centuries that "the end is near" and that it will come in their lifetime. But the track record of every single one of them has been pathetically unimpressive. Before I was born, many of such prophets claimed that the Kaiser of Germany was the Antichrist. Later, they said it was Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin, Gorbachev, Reagan, Saddam Hussein, and others. But they've all been very wrong. Many predicted that the Soviet Union and/or the European Union would be involved in some way with the return of Jesus. The failure of former predictions have been brushed aside with the belief that "This time things are really different!" Now the focus is on the nation of Israel and other Mideast countries such as Iran and Iraq. Some are saying the Antichrist will be a Jew from Iran or what was formerly Assyria. If Jesus doesn't return in our lifetime, false prophets will continue to arise and make claims that others are "the Antichrist."Jesus made it very clear that only one person knows when the end is coming. He said, "Concerning that day and hour nobody knows, neither the angels of the heavens nor the Son, but only the Father." (Matthew 24:36) Later, he told the apostles, "It does not belong to you to get knowledge of the times or seasons which the Father has placed in his own jurisdiction." (Acts 1:7) If the Father intended that we should be concerned about when the end is coming, Jesus would not have said so many times that he is coming like a thief, at a time when even Christians do not expect him. Jesus said, "You also, keep ready, because at an hour that you do not think likely the Son of man is coming.” (Luke 12:40) Contrary to what the Watchtower Society taught us, Matthew 24 does not contain a list of things that will serve as a "composite sign" that the end is near. Jesus was stating the very opposite. He was telling the disciples about things that should NOT excite them. They asked for one "sign," and Jesus gave them only one. The sign would be in heaven, not upon the earth. He said, "And then the sign of the Son of man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will beat themselves in lamentation, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." (Matthew 24:30) As for any other signs, we must not forget that Jesus said, "A wicked and adulterous generation keeps on seeking for a sign." (Matthew 12:39; 16:4) Christians should keep themselves ready for Christ's return by obeying the teachings of Jesus such as are found in the Sermon on the Mount. People become proud and egotistical when they get preoccupied with prophecy and think they've got it all figured out when certain events are supposed to happen. I've been to religious meetings and Bible study classes where I've seen people engage in shouting matches because each side thinks it knows more than the other about future events. That is not Christianity. It is not what Jesus wants his disciples to be doing at any time. The Bible tells us that someday we will all be brought before the judgment seat of Christ. At that time, those who had been false prophets will be judged harshly. That will include all those who made false predictions about a great individual Antichrist. Jesus said, "Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and expel demons in your name, and perform many powerful works in your name?’ And yet then I will confess to them: I never knew you! Get away from me, you workers of lawlessness." (Matthew 7:24) 