12 After a while the sun was about to set,
and a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and, look! a frightfully great darkness was falling upon him.
13 And he began to say to Abram: You may know for sure that your seed will become an alien resident in a land not theirs, and they will have to serve them, and these will certainly afflict them for 400 years.
14 But the nation that they will serve I am judging, and after that they will go out with many goods (Genesis 15).
On November 28th 1974 the GB of the Watchtower was packed with 8 new members. This was done by Knorr in order to rig the democratic balance therein as part of the struggle between the president Knorr and the younger power grabbers who were not 1NC saints. Knorrite conservatives were appointed. But in fact the majority of the GB were too young in age or too young in the Watchtower to be 1NC saints both before and after the expansion of the GB (1NC saints must have been baptised into the Watchtower before 1925Tishri (30 years of Jesus body being built up until Michael entered it from 1895Tishri, the start of the second 1NC sanctification, to 1925Tishri) and must have been 20 years old by Hebrew counting at their baptism (since no one could be registered into the army before they were 20 years old under law). But the way the voting worked somehow handed control to the non 1NC saints. Certainly the 1NC saints on the GB did not have an outright majority from that time forward, so the Watchtower was no longer being run by them.
So the affliction began on 1974Chislev10 and ended 400 months later on 2008Nisan10. It ended because the 1NC saints in heaven went into the grooms house and at that time, the reserves on earth who did not go into the grooms house ceased to be the fiance of the Christ. In fact Jesus' presence would have ended on that day had it not been ended on 2007Adar27 when the one and only 1NC reserve in the LWs resigned. The sons of the 1NC served the 'Watchtower' for 400 months.
Here are the life details of the WTBTS Governing Body members from 1974 to 1977.
| Name | Born | Baptised | Year Appointed | 1NC saint | 1974 nov 28 GB |
| Fekel, C. | 1897 | pre-'21 | 28-Nov-74 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Chitty, E. | 1898 | pre '25 | 28-Nov-74 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Barber, C. | 04/07/1905 | 1921 | 77 | Yes | No |
| Suiter, G. | 1908 | 10/10/1926 | Sec/Treas '38 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Jackson, W. | 1901 | 1915 | 1-Oct-71 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Barr, J. | 1913 | 1932 | 1-Sep-77 | No | No |
| Barry, L. | 1918` | 1939 | 28-Nov-74 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Booth, J. | 1902 | 1923 | 28-Nov-74 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Franz, Fred | 1893 | 1913 | president 1971 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Gangas, G. | 1896 | 1921 | 1-Oct-71 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Klein, K. | 1905/06 | 1918 | 28-Nov-74 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Poetzinger, M. | 1904 | post 1926 | 1-Sep-77 | No | No |
| Schroeder, A. | 1911 | 1932 | 18-Dec-74 | No | No |
| Sydlik, D. | 1919 | late 30's | 28-Nov-74 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Jaracz, T. | 1925 | 1940 | 28-Nov-74 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Franz, Raymond | 1922 | 1939 | 1-Oct-71 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Swingle, L. | 1910 | 1923 | 1971 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| ***Greenlees, Leo | pre 1942? | 1971 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes | |
| Henschel, M. | 1920 | 1939 | 1977 | No | No |
| Groh, J | July 1, 1906 | 1934 | pre 1974, died Jan 1975 | No (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
| Knorr, Nathan | 4/23/1905 | 1923 | President 1942 | Yes (Nov28 GB) | Yes |
Prior to the November 28th expansion there were 8 GB members, 4 were 1NC saints and 4 were not. On 1974November28 there were 16 GB members, 8 were 1NC saints and 8 were not. On 1974December18, when Schroeder was appointed, there were 17 GB members, 8 were 1NC saints and 9 were not.
Certainly the 1NC saints did not have a numerical majority in the 70s. The question is how did GB democracy work? When did the 2/3 majority rule come in. It looks like non 1NC saints could in theory veto anything.
***Not much is published about Leo Greenlees but allegations that he was a long time homosexual who was forced to resign the Governing Body but was still in good standing in the Congregation. Also, allegations of Paedophilia.
Gordon told the GB of the Watchtower that he was a 2NC mediator and needed to celebrate the Passover in a different way to the 1NC saints on 1995Nisan10 - see H21. They did not accept this and so they lost their authority over the saints for denying the Christ 3x in the Passover night (1996Nisan14/1997Nisan14/1998Nisan14) on 1998Tishri27 (late 2nd tablet shattering day, when FDS3 fell over the saints).