one higher, yes, from Jehovah, who rides supreme above all his holy heavenly organization as on a chariot, Ezekiel received an empowering to carry out his courageous service as watchman. In Ezekiel 3:22, 23, the newly appointed prophet at Tel-abib tells us:

³⁸ “And the hand of Jehovah came to be upon me there and he proceeded to say to me: ‘Get up, go forth to the valley plain, and there I shall speak with you.’ So I got up and went forth to the valley plain, and, look! the glory of Jehovah was standing there, like the glory that I had seen by the river Chebar, and I went falling upon my face.”

39. What assurance was Ezekiel given as far as the divine organization is concerned, and what was he not to expect as regards his ministry to the Israelites?

³⁹ Thus the chariotlike organization of Jehovah had followed Ezekiel to this new location. This should have assured him that this divine organization would be with him in his ministry, and the further evidences show that this was so. It was no longer the time to remain merely awe-struck at the “glory of Jehovah” seen in the vision. Realizing the glorious source of his appointment to service, he must get on his feet and be on the move. But first a word of caution. He was not to expect that his service would be without opposition and outside efforts to restrain him. Concerning this God warned him, as Ezekiel himself also reports:

40. What restrictions was Ezekiel to expect to be put upon him as to movement and as to speech?

⁴⁰ “Then spirit entered into me and made me stand up on my feet, and he began to speak with me and say to me: ‘Come, be shut up inside your house. And you, O son of man, look! they will certainly put cords upon you and bind you with them so that you cannot go forth into the midst of them. And your very tongue I will make stick to the roof of your mouth, and you will certainly become mute, and you will not become to them a man administering reproof, because they are a rebellious house. And when I speak with you I shall open your mouth, and you must say to them, “This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has said.” Let the one hearing hear, and let the one refraining refrain, because they are a rebellious house.’”—Ezekiel 3:24-27.

SPEAKING DESPITE ATTEMPTED RESTRAINTS

41. Who were the ones that would try to put the restraints upon Ezekiel as a reprover, and how would his mouth be opened or his tongue be made to stick to the roof of his mouth?

⁴¹ It was not the Babylonian captors of the Israelites who were to put the cords and bands upon Ezekiel. It was the Israelites themselves, Ezekiel’s own people, who would try to hinder and hamper him and try to restrain him from coming out of his house and restrain him from coming into the midst of them to declare what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah had said. All this would be in expression of their rebelliousness. They did not want Ezekiel to administer reproof to them. But Ezekiel was to trust in divine inspiration. When Jehovah had no message for him to deliver, then, in that regard, Jehovah would, as it were, make Ezekiel’s tongue stick to the roof of his mouth so that he would become mute. But when Jehovah had a message for him to deliver, then Jehovah would speak with him and open Ezekiel’s mouth to declare it, irrespective of what those rebellious Israelites did.

42. In view of what study was the modern Ezekiel class not surprised at Christendom’s treatment of them, and at their deepening discernment of what were they strengthened for their work and the right stand?

⁴² In this “time of the end” more than two thousand five hundred years later, Christendom has treated the anointed remnant of Jehovah’s servants similarly to the way in which the rebellious Israelites treated Ezekiel. But the modern-day Ezekiel class was not left without a forewarning of this. From their previous study of the prophecy of Ezekiel they knew what to expect from Christendom. True to prophecy, Christendom tried to impose restraints upon them, as the history of those postwar years all the way down into and through World War II shows. This did not surprise the courageous Ezekiel class. Their spiritual eyes were opened to see and deeply appreciate Jehovah’s chariotlike organization, his universal heavenly organization. At their discernment of this they were strengthened for their work. They realized that there were just two great organizations in existence, Jehovah’s organization and that of Satan the Devil. They chose to put their services at the disposal of Jehovah’s organization. They relied, not upon any divine inspiration resting upon them, but upon Jehovah’s holy spirit to aid them in speaking His message.

43. In what words of Jesus, in Mark 13:10-13, did the Ezekiel class trust?

⁴³ They trusted in Jesus’ words to his disciples, as set out in his prophecy concerning the “conclusion of the system of things,” namely: “Also, in all the nations the good news has to be preached first. But when they are leading you along to deliver you up, do not be anxious beforehand about what to speak; but whatever is given you in that hour, speak this, for you are not the ones speaking, but the holy spirit is. Furthermore, brother will deliver brother over to death, and a father a child, and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death; and you will be objects of hatred by all people on account of my name. But he that has endured to the end is the one that will be saved.”—Mark 13:10-13; Matthew 24:3-14.

44. Accordingly, despite what dictatorial regimes in Christendom have the Ezekiel class endured, and what is the motive behind their determination to endure till Christendom ends?

⁴⁴ Here we are in the decade of the 1970’s, and, despite all that Christendom has attempted against them by her religious clergy and the dictators Benito Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and others, the anointed remnant of Jehovah’s servants have endured down to this time as a watchman to Christendom. They are determined to endure to the end of their earthly ministry, and that will also be to the end of Christendom and to the end of this system of things of which Christendom has been a predominant part. They do not desire that Jehovah will have to hold them responsible for the tremendous loss of the lives of the adherents of Christendom at the time of her destruction. Their purpose is to prove themselves a faithful, obedient watchman class. This is what they purpose, not just in order to deliver their own souls, but that Jehovah might be vindicated as having given to Christendom full and fair warning by means of them. The faithful example of ancient Ezekiel in his watchman duty is an assurance that Jehovah will likewise have a faithful watchman class now until the execution of His foretold judgment upon Christendom.

Chapter 6

The Days of Christendom Are Numbered

1. Why may the matter of time be asked with regard to Christendom, and why are her days numbered?

“WHAT time is it?” We might well ask this question with regard to that world-embracing religious organization, Christendom. The God whom she professes to worship is a Numberer of Years. He has placed within his own jurisdiction the “times and seasons” with respect to his human creatures, and especially those who religiously claim to be representatives and servants of Him. (Daniel 2:20-22; Acts 1:7) This fact should be of great comfort to all who love what is right. Why? Because it assures us that the Almighty God of righteousness will not forever put up with wickedness here on earth. He has marked off the time when he will permit false religion to prevail over all the earth, enslaving practically the entire