Working With the Organizer of All the Universe

“For we are God’s fellow workers. You people are God’s field under cultivation, God’s building.”​—1 CORINTHIANS 3:9.

1. What expression voiced over 60 years ago thrilled its hearers, and what effect did it have on earnest Bible Students of that time?

“GOD’S ORGANIZATION.” That expression was used by a member of the Watch Tower Society’s editorial staff during the daily Bible discussion at the Bethel dining tables over 60 years ago. How it thrilled the headquarters family in Brooklyn, New York! That unique phrase, “God’s organization,” served to guide the future thinking, speech, and writing of those Bible Students. It broadened their spiritual vision with regard to all creation and greatly influenced their attitude toward the marvelous Organizer of the universe, Jehovah God.

2. As indicated by its Greek origin, how may the word “organization” be defined?

² Today, that may seem strange, since the word “organization” is used regularly among Jehovah’s Witnesses, who cherish their privilege of working with the Organizer of the universe. (1 Corinthians 3:5-9) The word “organization” is drawn from the Greek term orʹga·non. Among other things, it signifies an instrument or implement with which work is accomplished. It appears in the Septuagint Version a number of times and is used to refer to a musical instrument, such as David’s harp. The root of this word is erʹgon, a noun meaning “work.” So an organization is an arrangement of things put in force to get something done or worked out in the best way possible and with the least expenditure of time and energy.

Early Views of Organization

3. What did the March 1883 issue of this journal say about “our organization”?

³ Years ago, however, the Bible Students had some difficulty in applying the word “organization.” For instance, in the Watch Tower issue of March 1883, it was stated:

“But, though it is impossible for the natural man to see our organization, because he cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God, we trust that you can see that the true Church is most effectually organized, and is in the best possible working order. . . . We have unbounded faith in our Captain; and this perfect organization, invisible to the world, marches on to certain and glorious victory.”

4. What view of organizing was presented in the December 1, 1894, issue of this magazine?

⁴ However, the Watch Tower issue of December 1, 1894, said:

“But as that work of organizing the church of the new Gospel dispensation was no part of the harvest work of the old Jewish dispensation, so the present harvest work or reaping of the Gospel dispensation is also separate and distinct from the work of the new Millennial dispensation now drawing on. . . . It is plain that the forming of a visible organization of such gathered out ones would be out of harmony with the spirit of the divine plan; and if done would seem to indicate on the part of the church a desire to conform to the now popular idea of organization or confederacy. (See Isa. 8:12) The work now is not organization, but division, just as it was in the Jewish harvest proper. (Matt. 10:34-36) . . .

“While, therefore, we do not esteem a visible organization of the gathered ones to be a part of the Lord’s plan in the harvest work, as though we expected as an organization to abide here for another age, we do esteem it to be his will that those that love the Lord should speak often one to another of their common hopes and joys, or trials and perplexities, communing together concerning the precious things of his Word.”

5. Regarding organization, what was said in the book The New Creation?

⁵ So the Christian congregation was not then considered to be an organization. But it was thought well to set in order the congregation, or ecclesia. For example, Study V of the book The New Creation, published in 1904, was entitled “The Organization of the New Creation” and opens by saying: “As the New Creation will not reach its perfection or completion until the First Resurrection, so its organization will be completed only then. The temple figure illustrates this: as living stones we are now called, or invited to places in the glorious temple.”

6. How did the book Thy Kingdom Come identify the “mother” of members of the “new creation”?

⁶ Interestingly, the book Thy Kingdom Come, published in 1891, said regarding those anointed ones of the “new creation”: “As for Isaiah 54:1-8, the Apostle Paul has thrown the light of superhuman wisdom upon it, and has applied it to spiritual Zion, our mother or covenant, symbolized by Sarah. The fleshly seed of Abraham had been cast out from being heir of the promise, and the true seed, Christ (typified by Isaac and Rebecca), had been received as the only seed of promise.​—Gal. 4:22, 24, 26-31.”

7, 8. Who is the husband of the “mother” of the Christian congregation, and what does Isaiah 54:1-8 say in this regard?

⁷ This statement had nothing to do with the Zionist World Organization, founded by Theodor Herzl in 1897. That organization dealt with Jerusalem below, here on earth, not “the Jerusalem above,” the “mother” of the Christian congregation. (Galatians 4:26) The book Thy Kingdom Come did not go on to develop the fact that the husbandly owner of the “mother” of the Christian congregation is God, who was pictured by Abraham. Jehovah is married, not to the Abrahamic covenant or the new covenant, but to “Jerusalem above,” pictured by Isaac’s mother Sarah. Like her, as a “mother,” “the Jerusalem above” must be something alive and having personality.

⁸ Who, then, is “Jerusalem above”? To find out, let us first consider Isaiah 54:1-8, which reads in part:

“‘Cry out joyfully, you barren woman that did not give birth! Become cheerful with a joyful outcry and cry shrilly, you that had no childbirth pains, for the sons of the desolated one are more numerous than the sons of the woman with a husbandly owner,’ Jehovah has said. . . . ‘For your Grand Maker is your husbandly owner, Jehovah of armies being his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Repurchaser. The God of the whole earth he will be called. For Jehovah called you as if you were a wife left entirely and hurt in spirit, and as a wife of the time of youth who was then rejected,’ your God has said. ‘For a little moment I left you entirely, but with great mercies I shall collect you together. With a flood of indignation I concealed my face from you for but a moment, but with loving-kindness to time indefinite I will have mercy upon you,’ your Repurchaser, Jehovah, has said.”

9. (a) At Isaiah 54:1-8, to whom or to what was Jehovah speaking comfortingly? (b) According to Galatians 4:25, 26, who is the figurative “woman” addressed in the antitype?

⁹ There, in the first instance, Jehovah was not talking to a covenant. He was addressing a nation, his chosen people in the Mosaic Law covenant with him. From God’s standpoint, that nation made up a composite “woman” that was like a wife to him. According to the apostle Paul’s letter to the Galatians, that figurative “woman” was typical, but he does not say that she is a covenant, or compact. A covenant could not be comforted, consoled. Rather, Paul shows that the antitypical “woman” is something alive, like a “mother,” just as the “husbandly owner,” Jehovah, is alive as a Person having intelligence and ability to give comfort. Speaking of women of ancient history, the apostle wrote: “Now this Hagar [the maidservant who substituted for her mistress Sarah in bearing Ishmael to Abraham] means Sinai, a mountain in Arabia, and she [Hagar] corresponds with the Jerusalem today [when Paul was on earth], for she is in slavery [to the Mosaic Law covenant] with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.”​—Galatians 4:25, 26.

The Jerusalem in Slavery

10, 11. (a) What significant development involving the Israelites took place at Mount Sinai? (b) With regard to the Law covenant, what happened in 33 C.E.?

¹⁰ Hagar does not typify, or represent, the Mosaic Law covenant. Nor is that covenant with its Ten Commandments pictured by Mount Sinai, with which Hagar corresponds. Of course, God did not make any covenant with Mount Sinai. But it was there that he brought the Israelites, whom he had freed from Egyptian bondage, into a covenant relationship with himself, and he dealt with them as a free nation. This took place centuries after God made a unilateral covenant with Abraham, promising him a male seed.

¹¹ When Moses, the mediator of the Law covenant, came down from Mount Sinai, his face had a superhuman effulgence of such intensity that he had to veil it so that the Israelites could look at him. (2 Corinthians 3:12-16) But up on Mount Sinai, Moses was not in direct touch with Jehovah, for it was by means of an angel that God entered into the covenant with the Israelites. (Acts 7:37, 38; Hebrews 2:2) In that way the nation of Israel became subject to the Law covenant. Centuries later, however, that covenant was removed, being nailed to Jesus’ torture stake in 33 C.E.​—Colossians 2:13, 14.

12. (a) Of whom was earthly Jerusalem a “mother”? (b) Jerusalem on earth was under what servitude 19 centuries ago, and why did she never get free?

¹² Paul wrote that Mount Sinai corresponded with the Jerusalem below of his day. Of course, Jerusalem was not a covenant; it was a prized city occupied by Jewish residents. As the capital city, it stood for the nation and was the symbolic “mother” of “children,” that is, of all members of the Jewish, or Israelite, nation. (Matthew 23:37) In Jerusalem stood the temple of Jehovah, the God with whom the Israelites were in covenant relationship. But the Jewish people did not then have an independent kingdom of their own ruled by a descendant of King David. Hence, they were not free but were in servitude under Gentile political authorities. More importantly, they were in religious slavery. Only the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ, could free them from that, as well as from slavery to sin. But that Jerusalem did not accept Jesus as Messiah and King and never did get free. Instead, she perished at Roman hands in 70 C.E., with disaster for her “children.”

The Free Jerusalem

13. What did Paul say about the free Jerusalem, and in freedom from what should her “children” stand fast?

¹³ Paul contrasted enslaved earthly Jerusalem with “Jerusalem above,” which is “free.” Quoting from Isaiah 54:1-8, he wrote:

“But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written: ‘Be glad, you barren woman who does not give birth; break out and cry aloud, you woman who does not have childbirth pains; for the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than those of her who has the husband.’ Now we, brothers, are children belonging to the promise the same as Isaac was. But just as then the one born in the manner of flesh began persecuting the one born in the manner of spirit, so also now. Nevertheless, what does the Scripture say? ‘Drive out the servant girl and her son, for by no means shall the son of the servant girl be an heir with the son of the free woman.’ Wherefore, brothers, we are children, not of a servant girl, but of the free woman. For such freedom Christ set us free. Therefore stand fast, and do not let yourselves be confined again in a yoke of slavery.”​—Galatians 4:26–5:1.

14. Why was Isaac’s birth “in the manner of spirit”?

¹⁴ The Galatian Christians thus addressed were “God’s children as a result of his promise.” (Galatians 4:28, Today’s English Version) Foreshadowing this, Isaac was born to the centenarian Abraham and his 90-year-old wife Sarah in fulfillment of Jehovah’s promise to that faithful patriarch. Yes, Isaac’s birth to Abraham was miraculous, absolutely not “in the manner of flesh.” (Genesis 18:11-15) So it had to be “in the manner of spirit.” Yes, the spirit of the Greater Abraham, Jehovah God, surely was needed to revive the reproductive powers of the free woman Sarah, as well as those of Abraham. (Romans 4:19) It is noteworthy that the “promise” itself was not old when Isaac was born in 1918 B.C.E., for that was only 25 years after Abraham’s entry into the promised land of Canaan in 1943 B.C.E., when the “promise” went into effect.

15. For how long was “Jerusalem above” childless, and when did her offspring begin to become numerous?

¹⁵ “Jerusalem above” was “desolate,” childless as it were, much longer than Sarah had been. Actually, “Jerusalem above” was in that state from 1943 B.C.E., when the promise to Abraham went into effect, until Jesus was baptized in 29 C.E. It was then that Jesus was begotten by the spirit of the Greater Abraham, Jehovah, and was anointed with His spirit to be the Christ or Anointed One, the Messiah. But “Jerusalem above” was to have more than one spiritual child. So at Pentecost of 33 C.E., after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven, about 120 of his faithful disciples were begotten by the spirit of the Greater Abraham. They were then anointed with that spirit to become the spiritual brothers of the Greater Isaac, Jesus Christ. Later that day about 3,000 more Jews got baptized as Jesus’ disciples and were anointed with the holy spirit. (Acts 2:1-42) Thus on that day “Jerusalem above” became “mother” to many children.

16. What is the identity of “Jerusalem above”?

¹⁶ The apostle Paul reveals that the woman addressed at Isaiah 54:1-8 is “the Jerusalem above.” Jehovah God is her “husbandly owner,” as well as her Grand Maker. Figuratively speaking, she is his “woman,” his “wife,” or wifelike organization in heaven above. Like a husband, he is the One who makes her fruitful so as to produce the true “seed” promised in Abraham’s day.​—Galatians 3:16, 26-29.

17. How did “Jerusalem above” become the “mother” of the primary “seed” of the Greater Abraham?

¹⁷ To become the primary “seed” of the Greater Abraham, the only-begotten Son of God had emerged from Jehovah’s wifelike celestial organization. Thus she became like a “mother” to God’s Son. Jesus Christ was not the figurative son of the earthly Jerusalem of his days on earth, for that city then was in bondage, or slavery, with her “children,” and Jesus never was enslaved. (Galatians 4:25) Earthly Jerusalem was the “mother” of those natural Jews who rejected Jesus Christ as the promised “seed” not only of the patriarch Abraham but also of the Greater Abraham, Jehovah God.​—Matthew 23:37-39.

Work With the Great Organizer

18. Why was earthly Jerusalem a center of attention in the days of King Solomon?

¹⁸ Jesus Christ, who had God’s heavenly organization as his “mother,” was greater and wiser than King Solomon, the renowned son of David and ruler in ancient earthly Jerusalem. Solomon’s glory and wisdom surely attracted the attention of the non-Israelite nations, even as Jesus indicated in saying: “The queen of the south will be raised up in the judgment with this generation and will condemn it; because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, but, look! something more than Solomon is here.” (Matthew 12:42; Luke 11:31) In part, Solomon displayed that outstanding wisdom in the way he arranged the affairs of his administration. How he had everything wisely organized was a cause of wonderment.

19. What was there about King Solomon’s reign that amazed the queen of Sheba?

¹⁹ Accordingly, at 1 Kings 10:4, 5 we read: “When the queen of Sheba got to see all the wisdom of Solomon and the house that he had built, and the food of his table and the sitting of his servants and the table service of his waiters and their attire and his drinks and his burnt sacrifices that he regularly offered up at the house of Jehovah, then there proved to be no more spirit in her.” (NW; Rotherham; Young; Revised Standard; Septuagint. See also 2 Chronicles 9:4.) The queen of Sheba had reason to be impressed with the arrangement of Solomon’s staff. And in having things well arranged and in good order, he was in harmony with the God of Order.​—1 Corinthians 14:33.

20. (a) In response to Solomon’s prayer, what did Jehovah give him? (b) As “something more than Solomon,” what does Jesus Christ do, and what is the course of his followers?

²⁰ In keeping with Solomon’s humble prayer, Jehovah gave him “a wise and understanding heart.” (1 Kings 3:5-14) The Great Organizer of all the universe gave Solomon the ability to organize things in behalf of good order and efficiency. Hence, it became the obligation of the king of Jehovah’s covenant people to work with the divine Organizer of all created things in heaven and on earth. Comparably, the glorified Jesus Christ, who is “something more than Solomon,” wisely does so. Therefore, his faithful followers on earth also need to do this, and they do.

At Unity With the Creator of the Universal Organization

“Look! How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!”​—PSALM 133:1.

1, 2. (a) What disturbing factor appeared some 6,000 years ago? (b) What does the Bible call this renegade, and how did he try to make himself like the Most High?

THE Creator of the universal organization desires to keep it pure, righteous, and unified. But shortly after the beginning of mankind’s existence some 6,000 years ago, a disturbing factor appeared on the universal scene. This occurred when a superhuman resister broke away from the Creator’s organization and set out to form his own independent organization.

² Because this renegade opposed his Creator, the Bible calls him Satan, meaning “Resister.” He is the archresister of Jehovah, the rightful Sovereign of the universe. (Job 1:6, 7) Ambitious to make himself like the Most High in having his own organization, the Resister would not stop short of trying to act as a rival organizer and god. Satan thus made himself attractive-looking. Satan’s attitude was reflected in the dynasty and brilliant worldly position taken by “the king of Babylon,” to whom the terms “shining one” and “Lucifer” were aptly given. (Isaiah 14:4, 12-14; King James Version; An American Translation) To this day, but only by Jehovah’s permission, Satan is “the god of this system of things.”​—2 Corinthians 4:4.

3. (a) At what part of Jehovah’s organization did this resister first strike? (b) What developments resulted in the Devil’s becoming the ruler of the demons?

³ Likely in order to undermine Jehovah’s organization, Satan first struck at its lowest part, Adam, the appointed head of the human family. (Genesis 3:1-24; Psalm 8:3-5; Romans 5:12) Later, many angels disobediently forsook their “original position,” or proper dwelling place in heaven, and materialized in flesh so as to marry and cohabit with good-looking, though imperfect, women. (Jude 6) Their hybrid offspring, abnormal in size and strength, were called Nephilim. This term, believed to mean “fellers,” was apropos since they apparently caused mere humans to fall by violence. At the time of the Flood, the disobedient angels dematerialized and returned to the spirit realm. (Genesis 6:1–7:23) By disuniting themselves from Jehovah’s organization, they made themselves demons, and Satan the Devil became their ruler.​—Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37; Matthew 12:24; Luke 11:15-19.

4. What did the human Flood survivors do, but what did Satan set out to do, and with what objective?

⁴ In that way, Satan set up the invisible, superhuman spirit part of his organization. The Flood survivors, Noah and his family, remained at unity with Jehovah’s invisible heavenly organization. (Genesis 6:9; 8:18-21) But Satan set out to break up the unity of faithful Noah’s descendants. What was the Devil’s objective? Why, to bring forth a visible part to his wicked organization!

5. How did The Watch Tower of May 1, 1921, suggest that Satan has an organization?

⁵ It took some time for the International Bible Students to discern that Satan has an organization. But The Watch Tower of May 1, 1921, said: “Not content with what he had already done, Satan seduced these of the heavenly host and caused them to debauch mankind and to fill the earth with violence. He organized a system invisible to human eyes, as well as a system on earth that is visible to human eyes, and has sought to counterfeit every part of the revealed plan of God.”

6. What did The Watch Tower of December 1, 1922, say about Satan’s purpose?

⁶ “Satan’s Purpose” was a subheading under which The Watch Tower of December 1, 1922, plainly said: “We are now in the evil day. The fight is on between Satan’s organization and God’s organization. It is a desperate fight. Satan is attempting to destroy the morale of the Lord’s organization and, if possible, to destroy the members of the house of sons. To this end he resorts to every possible scheme.”

7, 8. (a) How was it helpful to discern the two antagonistic organizations? (b) In The Watch Tower of March 1, 1925, what was shown to be against the figurative “man child”?

⁷ Discerning the two antagonistic organizations helped to clarify many Bible teachings and prophecies. For example, Revelation chapter 12 was not correctly understood until the article “Birth of the Nation” appeared in The Watch Tower of March 1, 1925. Its theme text (Revelation 12:5, KJ) reads: “And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.”

⁸ On pages 67 and 68 this article stated:

“What has been the outstanding feature of the divine plan during the ages? . . . The establishment of the kingdom for which Jesus taught us to pray. That means the birth of the new nation, which shall rule and bless all the families of the earth. . . . What has been the opposing power that has kept the people in ignorance of this glorious new nation and the blessings it will bring to them? . . . Satan the devil, and his organization. . . . The real fight is God against the devil, the kingdom of righteousness putting out of possession the kingdom of wickedness and darkness, and establishing the kingdom of truth instead. . . . Following 1918 the devil’s organization, financial, political and ecclesiastical, particularly the latter, openly repudiated the Lord and his kingdom; and then and there the wrath of God against the nations began to be expressed. From that time forward the battle has gone on in the earth. Prior to that the battle was fought in heaven.”

9. In 1925, what was the “woman” of Revelation chapter 12 explained to be?

⁹ It was then mistakenly thought that both Isaiah 66:7 and Revelation 12:5 foretold the birth of the same “man child.” (KJ) So the above-quoted Watch Tower also said:

“The ‘woman’ seems clearly to symbolize that part of Zion, God’s organization, which gives birth to the new government or nation which shall rule the nations and peoples of the earth with a rod of iron and with righteousness. . . . (Galatians 4:26) In other words Zion or Jerusalem, God’s organization, is the mother which gives birth to the new nation, or governing factors. The anointed ones on earth are a part of ‘the woman’, and surely represent her. The woman ‘clothed with the sun’ means Zion in heaven and the approved ones on earth of God’s organization at the time the Lord comes to his temple. . . . Now in his temple encompassing the temple class or investing them with his robe of righteousness, his organization producing the new nation, otherwise designated Zion, shines as the sun.”

10. What has happened to the spirit part of Satan’s organization, and what war is it now waging?

¹⁰ The “dragon,” now understood to be Satan the Devil himself, failed to devour the “man child,” the Messianic Kingdom born in heaven at the end of the Gentile Times in 1914. (Luke 21:24, KJ) During the war that followed in heaven, the spirit part of Satan’s organization was cast down to the vicinity of the earth, never again to enter heaven and exercise a disunifying influence there. That demoted organization now goes after the visible part of Jehovah’s universal organization, relentlessly waging war “with the remaining ones of her seed, who observe the commandments of God and have the work of bearing witness to Jesus.”​—Revelation 12:17.

United Service

11. (a) To whom can Paul’s words about “Jerusalem above” be applied today? (b) What did David say about earthly Jerusalem, where Jehovah’s house of worship was situated?

¹¹ God’s figurative “woman” is likened to the chosen city Jerusalem, poetically called Zion. Hence, Paul’s words about the free “Jerusalem above” can now be applied to “the remaining ones of her seed” against whom the “dragon,” Satan the Devil, continues to “wage war.” (Galatians 4:26) Earthly Jerusalem was strongly built and closely knit together in the days of David, who said: “I rejoiced when they were saying to me: ‘To the house of Jehovah let us go.’ Our feet proved to be standing within your gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is one that is built like a city that has been joined together in oneness, to which the tribes have gone up, the tribes of Jah, as a reminder to Israel to give thanks to the name of Jehovah.”​—Psalm 122:1-4.

12. (a) To what unity do the words of Psalm 122:1-4 apply today? (b) Jerusalem and the sacred tabernacle there had what bearing on the unity of Israel’s tribes?

¹² What a lovely picture of the unity of Jehovah’s universal organization! Especially was unity evident at national festivals, when the 12 tribes of Israel joined in united worship of Jehovah at the sacred tabernacle in Jerusalem. And during the reign of their shepherd-king David, the tribes remained united not just due to fleshly ties but primarily because of the organized worship of their God. Yes, Jerusalem was the divinely approved center of united, organized worship under the one priesthood taken from the tribe of Levi and the family of Israel’s first high priest, Aaron, the older brother of the prophet Moses. Moreover, all 12 tribes were in the one Law covenant that divided them off from all the demon-worshiping nations.

13. What did David say about the unity enjoyed by the ancient Israelites?

¹³ What unifying factors all these things were! They kept God’s people united as one national organization for their safety and blessing. David put it this way: “Look! How good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity! It is like the good oil upon the head, that is running down upon the beard, Aaron’s beard, that is running down to the collar of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon that is descending upon the mountains of Zion. For there Jehovah commanded the blessing to be, even life to time indefinite.”​—Psalm 133:1-3.

14. (a) By whom is Israel’s national unity being duplicated today? (b) Where are the spiritual Israelites depicted as standing, and what “song” do they sing in unison?

¹⁴ The national unity that inspired such heartfelt expressions is being duplicated today. By whom? By “the Israel of God,” the spiritual Israelites whose one motherhood Paul called to mind in saying: “But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.” (Galatians 6:16; 4:26) She does not put her spirit-begotten children under bondage to the Law covenant. Although “the Israel of God” is pictured as consisting of 12 tribes, all 144,000 members thereof are sealed with the same “seal of the living God,” and all are depicted as standing on the one heavenly “Mount Zion.” (Revelation 7:1-8; 14:1-4) What a choral group they make up as they unitedly sing “the song of Moses the slave of God and the song of the Lamb,” Jesus Christ! (Revelation 15:3, 4; John 1:29, 36) That “song” delights God and bespeaks victory!

15. (a) The 144,000 are organized for what besides for singing? (b) How does the very word “organization” denote unity?

¹⁵ The 144,000 and their Choirmaster, “the Lamb,” are organized for more than making the heavens ring with their singing. Theirs is a royal organization that is to reign a thousand years for the vindication of Jehovah’s universal sovereignty and the blessing of all responsive mankind. (Revelation 20:4-6) The word “organization,” an antonym of “disorganization,” pertains to an arrangement of things with each part being put in its proper place and given its assignment of work so that they all operate together to bring about a common result. Thus, organization makes for unity, cooperation, good order, and harmony​—not friction.

16. According to Ephesians 4:8, 11-16, what goal was set more than 19 centuries ago, and what has been achieved among Jehovah’s Witnesses?

¹⁶ The goal of Christian unity was set more than 19 centuries ago, when “gifts in men” were given in the form of apostles, prophets, evangelizers, shepherds, and teachers. When the Watch Tower magazine began to be published in 1879, God also gave spiritual “shepherds and teachers.” This provision has brought Jehovah’s Witnesses to their present “oneness in the faith and in the accurate knowledge of the Son of God.” (Ephesians 4:8, 11-16) How grateful we are that Jehovah has done this after all the centuries of worldwide religious confusion and disorganization!

17. How do we know that God had more than the unity of anointed Christians in mind, and in this regard what did Jesus foretell?

¹⁷ Clearly, God had more than the unity of anointed Christians in mind, for “he purposed in himself for an administration at the full limit of the appointed times, namely, to gather all things together again in the Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth.” (Ephesians 1:9, 10) In this regard, Jesus foretold: “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those also I must bring, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd.”​—John 10:16.

18. (a) Who are among “the things on the earth” that must be gathered together? (b) In 1935, how was special attention given to the “other sheep”?

¹⁸ These “other sheep” are among “the things on the earth” that must be gathered together. So, under the influence of God’s spirit, about 21 years after Jesus Christ started reigning in 1914, special attention began to be given to the “other sheep.” During a convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Washington, D.C., in 1935, the president of the Watch Tower Society explained that the “great multitude” were “other sheep” eventually to be gathered by the Fine Shepherd, Jesus Christ. (Revelation 7:9-17, KJ) Did Jesus gather any “other sheep” at that epoch-making convention? Yes, for 840 conventioners then recognized themselves as being gathered by the Fine Shepherd and got baptized in symbol of their dedication to Jehovah God.

19. (a) So far, how large has the “great multitude” become? (b) By uniting with Jehovah’s visible organization, the “great multitude” have come into unity with whom, and what determination is theirs?

¹⁹ That only began the gathering of the “great multitude” of “other sheep,” who already number over 2,800,000. By uniting with the visible part of Jehovah’s organization​—that is, with the remnant of the “little flock” in “this fold” of the Fine Shepherd—​they have come into unity with the Grand Creator of the universal organization. And they are determined to maintain that unity throughout their eternal life on the Paradise earth that the Supreme Shepherd, Jehovah, will provide for them.​—Luke 12:32; 23:43.

20. As the anointed remnant and the “great multitude” contemplate what the Supreme Shepherd has done since 1914, what expressions are they moved to make?

²⁰ As the anointed remnant and the increasing “great multitude” contemplate all that the Supreme Shepherd has done universally since the Gentile Times ended in 1914, heartfelt gratitude moves them to sing together the grand Hallelujah psalm: “Praise Jah, you people! Praise God in his holy place. Praise him in the expanse of his strength. Praise him for his works of mightiness. Praise him according to the abundance of his greatness. Praise him with the blowing of the horn. Praise him with the stringed instrument and the harp. Praise him with the tambourine and the circle dance. Praise him with strings and the pipe. Praise him with the cymbals of melodious sound. Praise him with the clashing cymbals. Every breathing thing​—let it praise Jah. Praise Jah, you people!”​—Psalm 150:1-6.

21. (a) When will “every breathing thing” praise Jehovah? (b) With whom and with what purpose will all members of the universal organization then work?

²¹ Soon the present “heavens” and “earth” will be dissolved amid “the war of the great day of God the Almighty,” and the long-awaited “new heavens and a new earth” will be immovably established. (2 Peter 3:7-13; Revelation 16:14, 16) Then, indeed, “every breathing thing” that survives on this cleansed earth will praise Jah, the Grand Creator of the universal organization of righteousness. All members of that organization in heaven and on the earth will exultantly praise Jehovah and will loyally and lovingly work with him for the eternal vindication of his universal sovereignty and the sanctification of his most worthy name. O what magnificent unity all of this bespeaks!