[37] The application of the 7 stars and the 7 lampstands to the Lord's day

Counting time in sevens was God's idea, he invented the week, the 7 creative days of the creative week are the first thing in the bible. It is not a natural thing for man, who counts in base ten, or in dozens, to count time in sevens. God instigated this 'base' for counting time.

Time is what he counts in sevens, with release after 7 times, counting 7 exclusively or after 6 times counting 7 inclusively this being the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a concept which relates always to time. In the Hebrew language, the word for 'seven' and the word for 'Sabbath' are from the same root. Therefore the very language of God's people was and is declaring that 7 has to do with time. The concept that 7 relates to 7 things occurring one after the other with a release after or during the 7th one (depending on whether we count inclusively or exclusively), is enshrined in the language of the old testament.

But we fear that we have not laboured this seemingly trivial point enough. The Watchtower Society have 7 standing for 'divine completeness', but the sense in which this completeness occurs is the temporal sense, it is a completeness in time, with the 7 repetitions occurring one after the other, consecutively, successively. For example, Daniel 9 literally says:

24 Seventy sevens, he is decreed for people of you and for city of holiness of you ( Dan 9:24 NIVHEOT).

From issuing of decree to restore and to rebuild Jerusalem until anointed one, ruler, sevens seven, and sevens sixty-two (Dan 9:25 NIVHEOT).

It is implicit, it is understood that these sevens refer to time, and are therefore consecutive. It does not have to be spelt out. Similarly in the definition of the Jubilee, we see:

And you must count for yourself seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years, and the days of the seven Sabbaths of years must amount to forty-nine years for you (Leviticus 25:8).

A 'Sabbath' of years is here defined as 7 years. The holy spirit is actually equating, identifying 7 with the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a function of time, therefore the holy spirit is declaring 7 to be also a function of time, as regards its scriptural symbolism or significance.

We have the example of the 7 sons of Sceva, the Jewish high priest:

The man in whom the wicked spirit was leaped upon them, and got the mastery of one after another (Acts 19;16).

'One after another' is the point we are trying to make. So since Monday and Tuesday do not occur together, but the former entirely precedes the latter, we now turn our attention to the 7 stars in Jesus' right hand and the 7 congregations of Revelation 1,2 & 3. Now it can hardly be described as a giant leap of intellectual brilliance and mental flexibility to recognise that these 7 are successive in time, and may in fact occur one after the other in the Lord's day. They would then make up a week and the Sabbath over which the Christ is Lord, the 1,000 year reign would follow, this being the release at the end of 7 times counting exclusively. Just as in the case of the Gentile Times, the release of the malediction on the Jews occurred after the end of 7 times - see [123]. Or just like the falling down of the walls of Jericho, they marched round 7 times and then the walls fell down. In both of these further examples, the Gentile times and the fall of Jericho, the 7 times related to time, i.e. temporal repetition.

Fine, so here is the application to the 7 stars and the 7 congregations in the Lord's day, which is after all when the vision is said to be for:

By inspiration I came to be in the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a strong voice like that of a trumpet (Revelation 1:10).

The 7 stars are the 7 presidents of the two true religions. The first five are Presidents of  the Jehovah's Witnesses (the truth) and second two are Presidents of  the Lords' Witnesses (the life), who will preside before Armageddon. They are actually the heads on earth of an/the entire congregation, which is the golden lampstand, which is all of the baptised brothers during the presidency of the star or messenger or angel.

As for the sacred secret of the seven stars that you saw upon my right hand, and [of] the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars mean [the] angels of the seven congregations, and the seven lampstands mean seven congregations (Revelation 1:20).

For although in recent years the presidents have claimed only to be figure-heads, having no more authority than the other members of the governing body, who decide things together, this is not theocratic because there is no creature which God created with two heads. And the governing body should not be a 10 headed wild beast, but one should be their head on earth as one is their head in heaven, Jesus Christ. He does not take a vote of the apostles to decide what to do.

Now we are in a position to perceive the full force of Jesus' counsel to the 7 congregations, because:

The Lord's day is just the day of the presence of the Lord through a first new covenant saint. This is the symbolism. Charles Russell was baptised in water from heaven on 1871Heshvan21 as the third Elijah (John and Paul being his predecessors) and s as a 1NC saint on the same day - see U42.

Therefore whereas the inscription on C. T. Russell's tomb reads: 'The Laodicean messenger', he was in truth 'The Ephesian messenger'. This of course was his mistake, and Gordon's too. Russell foreshortened the Lord's day to end in 1914. And had it done so he would have been the Laodicean messenger. Whereas Gordon, 7 times, has mistakenly believed that the society would have to call him in line with Eli finally calling Samuel, but this happens after a whole load of other events which are now happening. Gordon foreshortened his battle with spiritual Israel, because he didn't want a battle, he wanted to go straight to the predetermined outcome, as did Charles Russell. Actually this proves that the brother knew that the 7 congregations were temporally successive, Russell knew it! He thought that he was the Laodicean messenger because he thought he was the angel of the last congregation and he knew that Laodicea, the 7^th congregation of Revelation chapters 2,3 came last. This means he knew that the 7 were temporally successive. His organisation. the Watchtower, now know less than him, they are going backwards:

Woe to the sinful nation, the people heavy with error, an evildoing seed, ruinous sons! They have left Jehovah, they have treated the Holy One of Israel with disrespect, they have turned backwards (Isaiah 1:4).

This obviously has a fulfilment in the last days, because Isaiah chapters 1,2,3 are all the same vision, and chapter 2 is about the mountain of the house of Jehovah being established above the top of the other mountains in the last days. If chapter 2 has a current fulfilment today then so do chapters 1 and 3.

Russell did not have enough information to complete the puzzle back then. If he were a human now he would like me put the Watchtower to shame for sure. Since he is not and he can't shame you people personally (perhaps he can from heaven?), we hope that he is pleased with the Job that we are doing in his absence. And we hope that you witnesses of a multi headed governing body are ashamed of the mess that has been made of his beautiful baby. Although he was not perfect himself, but then who is? Only two. To God, and to his firstborn, his image, we look for our salvation not to men.

But here we are. It's a big battle, a battle between the seeds, between Esau and Jacob, the latter of whom supplanted the former, this being the meaning of the name 'Jacob'. Jacob was born holding on to the heel of Esau. Jesus was to be wounded in the heel…

And after that his brother came out and his hand was holding onto the heel of Esau; so he called his name Jacob. And Isaac was sixty years old at her giving them birth (Genesis 25:26).

And I shall put enmity between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed. He will bruise you in the head and you will bruise him in the heel (Genesis 3:15).

Yes, you have been the hunter, oh Watchtower! Loads and loads of field service, loads and loads of door knocking, you have performed. But we are the dwellers in a plurality of tents, beautifying God's house so that we become so attractive that we will hardly need to do any field service at all.

For know this, a thing which was worked out by Massoud...

A really good restaurant does not have to advertise !

If the food of the Watchtower was any good, and if the price was reasonable, then they would not need to do any field service, and their kingdom halls would be bursting at the seems. They would be double booked and would have a waiting list, purely from recommendations. But right now they are trying to sell stale hamburgers at $50 a piece. What do you think that this scripture means all of you who believe that Jesus' only commandment is to preach the word, and that this is his only work for his people at this time? And that the field service is 'our work' period ?

Well, on getting out, he saw a great crowd, but he was moved with pity for them, because they were as sheep without a shepherd. And he started to teach them many things (Mark 6:34).

Here is a clue to the meaning: the 'great crowd' stands for the great crowd. These people do not need to do any more preaching themselves. They desperately need someone to preach to them, and to teach them many things. For our brothers should not be hunted like animals, they should be home grown, reared like sons. They should be cultivated. We do not mean to belittle the great efforts in hunting that have been made, for Isaac loved Esau's food:

Isaac had love for Esau because it meant game in his mouth (Genesis 25:28).

But look! you will have to abandon your nets (Mark 1:18), because:

From now on you will be catching men alive (Luke 5:10),

Alive judicially, alive in the spirit. 

Tammuz 4, 1977 was June 22, 1977, the memorial in 1977 was on April 3. Please notice that the president of the 4th watch was inaugurated on the 4th day of the 4th month. This is not a coincidence. It means there will be 4 watches including his one, before the end. Just as the law covenant being concluded on the third day of the third month meant that there will be two further temples of the law after the tabernacle. Just as the temple of Solomon being started on the second day of the second month, meant there would be one further physical temples before the end of physical temples, the temple of Zerubbabel. We know this from the no coincidences principle of the bible code.

With this perspective it is now possible to understand what John was saying to the 7 congregations. The reader can work this out for himself, or please read U38.