34567

AUGUST 15, 2011

SIMPLIFIED ENGLISH EDITION

STUDY ARTICLES:

September 26–October 2 ˙ PAGE 3

They Waited for the Messiah

SONGS TO BE USED: 116, 30

October 3-9 ˙ PAGE 9

They Found the Messiah!

SONGS TO BE USED: 109, 5

October 10-16 ˙ PAGE 15

Jehovah Is
“the God Who Gives Peace”
SONGS TO BE USED: 39, 76

October 17-23 ˙ PAGE 21

Make Efforts to Keep Peace

SONGS TO BE USED: 53, 73
34567 6
AUGUST 15, 2011

The purpose of this magazine, The Watchtower, is to honor Jehovah God, the Supreme This publication is not for sale.
It is provided as part of a worldwide
Ruler of the universe. Just as watchtowers in ancient times enabled a person to Bible educational work supported
observe developments from afar, so this magazine shows us the significance of world by voluntary donations.
events in the light of Bible prophecies. It comforts people with the good news that Unless otherwise indicated,
Scripture quotations are from
God’s Kingdom, which is a real government in heaven, will soon bring an end to the modern-language New World
all wickedness and transform the earth into a paradise. It promotes faith in Jesus Translation of the Holy Scriptures
—With References.
Christ, who died so that we might gain everlasting life and who is now ruling as
King of God’s Kingdom. This magazine has been published by Jehovah’s Witnesses “Some Words Explained” are
contextual explanations of words
continuously since 1879 and is nonpolitical. It adheres to the Bible as its authority. used within an article.

PURPOSE OF STUDY ARTICLES

STUDY ARTICLES 1, 2 PAGES 3-14
There are many prophecies about the Messiah in the Hebrew
Scriptures. Our study of some of these prophecies will help us
to know who the Messiah is. These articles will also help us in
our preaching work. And they will make our faith in Bible
prophecies even stronger.

STUDY ARTICLES 3, 4 PAGES 15-26

As Jehovah’s Witnesses, we are the only people on earth who
have true peace. This peace makes us united, and we should
always value it. The first article talks about examples in the
Bible that show us how important it is to keep peace with
others. The second article shows us how we can keep peace
in the congregation.

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

27 Questions From Readers
28 Some Ideas for Family Worship and Personal Study
30 Use the Internet in a Wise Way

The Watchtower (ISSN 0043-1087) is published semimonthly by Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc.; M. H. Larson, President; G. F. Simonis,
Secretary-Treasurer; 25 Columbia Heights, Brooklyn, NY 11201-2483, and by Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Canada, PO Box 4100, Georgetown,
ON L7G 4Y4. Periodicals Postage Paid at Brooklyn, NY, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Watchtower, 1000 Red Mills
Road, Wallkill, NY 12589-3299. 5 2011 Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. All rights reserved. Printed in Canada.
Vol. 132, No. 16 Semimonthly ENGLISH

They Waited for the Messiah
I T IS nighttime, and some shepherds
are in the fields, caring for their sheep.
Suddenly Jehovah’s angel stands next
to them, and a bright light shines all
around them! They are afraid, but they
listen to the exciting news that the an-
gel tells them: “Have no fear, for, look!
I am declaring to you good news of a
great joy that all the people will have, be-
cause there was born to you today a Sav-
ior, who is Christ the Lord.” The baby
that the angel is talking about is the one
who will be the Christ, or Messiah. The
angel tells the shepherds that they can
find this baby in a manger in a nearby
town. Then suddenly many angels ap-
pear. They praise Jehovah: “Glory in the
heights above to God, and upon earth
peace among men of goodwill.”—Luke 2:
8-14.
2 The Jewish shepherds know that the
Messiah, or “Christ,” is God’s Anoint-
ed One. (Exodus 29:5-7) But how could
these shepherds and others learn more
and know that Jehovah had chosen this
baby to be the Messiah? First, they
needed to study the prophecies in the
Scriptures about the Messiah, and then
they needed to see if these prophe-
cies came true during the life of this
child.
1. What exciting news did the angel tell the
shepherds?
2. What does “Messiah” mean? How could
people know who the Messiah really was?
3
WHY WERE PEOPLE
WAITING FOR THE
MESSIAH?
THEME
SCRIPTURE
3 Many years later, John “The people were waiting,
the Baptist started his and all were reasoning in
preaching work. Because their hearts concerning
John, whether he were not
of what he said and did,
the Messiah.”—LUKE 3:15,
some people began to
THE EMPHATIC DIAGLOTT.
think that maybe he was
the Messiah. (Read Luke
3:15.) But in the Bible,
there is a prophecy that talks about 70
weeks, and it helped people to know
when the Messiah would appear. The
prophecy says: “There are seventy weeks
that have been determined upon your
people . . . From the going forth of the
word to restore and to rebuild Jerusa-
lem until Messiah the Leader, there will
be seven weeks, also sixty-two weeks.”
(Daniel 9:24, 25) Bible experts agree that
these are not weeks of days but weeks
of years. So each of these weeks is sev-
en years long. The Revised Standard Ver-
sion Bible says at Daniel 9:24: “Seventy
weeks of years are decreed.”
4 Today, Jehovah’s people understand
that the 69 weeks of Daniel 9:25 are
equal to 483 years and that they be-
gan in the year 455 before Christ. This
was when King Artaxerxes of Persia
told Nehemiah to repair and rebuild Je-
rusalem. (Nehemiah 2:1-8) Those 483
3, 4. How did the prophecy at Daniel 9:24, 25
come true?
4 THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011

SOME WORDS years ended in the year esis 49:10) Jewish teachers always be-
EXPLAINED 29 when Jesus was bap- lieved that Jacob’s words to Judah were
tized. At that time, Je- about the Messiah. But what do Jacob’s
ˇ Illustration: hovah anointed him with words mean? We know that he is talk-
An example holy spirit and he became ing about a king because the scepter and
that helps us the Messiah.—Matthew 3: commander’s staff were rods carried by
to understand
13-17.1—See footnote. a king to show that he had the right
Bible truths 5 In the Bible, there are to rule and to give commands. So this
ˇ Scroll: many other prophecies prophecy shows that the king, the one
A roll of parchment, about the Messiah. We with the right to rule, had to come from
leather, or papyrus will learn about some of the tribe of Judah. The first king from Ju-
used by Bible writers them in this article. They dah was King David, and Zedekiah was
ˇ Tribe of Judah: are prophecies about his the last king from Judah on earth. But
A tribe in Israel. birth, his life as a child
Descendants of and as an adult, and his Prophecies about
Judah, the son ministry. We will learn
of Jacob about how these prophe- the Messiah’s birth,
ˇ Anointed:
cies came true during the his life as a child
life of Jesus. This will
A person chosen
make our faith in the Bi- and as an adult,
by God for a special
purpose. Anointed ble stronger and also and his ministry
prove that Jesus was the
Christians are the
Messiah whom people
came true
144,000
were waiting for.
PROPHECIES
Jacob’s prophecy talked about another
ABOUT HIS EARLY LIFE
king after Zedekiah. That king would be
The Messiah would be from the
6
king forever. He is called Shiloh, which
tribe of Judah in Israel. Just before Ja- means he is “the one to whom it be-
cob died, he blessed his sons, and to Ju- longs.” God told Zedekiah that this king
dah he said: “The scepter will not turn is the one who has the legal right. (Eze-
aside from Judah, neither the command- kiel 21:26, 27) Before Jesus was born, the
er’s staff from between his feet, until angel Gabriel told Mary: “Jehovah God
Shiloh comes; and to him the obedi- will give him the throne of David his fa-
ence of the peoples will belong.” (Gen- ther, and he will rule as king over the
1 To learn more about the “seventy weeks,” house of Jacob forever, and there will be
read chapter 11 of the book Pay Attention to no end of his kingdom.” (Luke 1:32, 33)
Daniel’s Prophecy! Jesus was from the tribe of Judah and
from the family of David. And after Zed-
5. What prophecies are we going to learn
about? ekiah, Jesus was the only person in the
6. How did the prophecy at Genesis 49:10 family of David to whom Jehovah prom-
come true? ised the right to be king. So Shiloh must
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
be Jesus Christ.—Matthew 1:1-3, 6; Luke
3:23, 31-34.
7 The Messiah would be born in a
place called Bethlehem. The prophet
Micah wrote: “You, O Bethlehem Ephra-
thah, the one too little to get to be among
the thousands of Judah, from you there
7. How did the prophecy about the birth of
the Messiah come true?
5
will come out to me the one who is to
become ruler in Israel, whose origin is
from early times, from the days of time
indefinite.” (Micah 5:2) The prophecy
tells us that the Messiah would be born
in Bethlehem. This was a town in Ju-
dah that was once called Ephrathah. But
Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her hus-
band, Joseph, lived in a different town
6 THE WATCHTOWER
called Nazareth. When it was close to
the time for Jesus to be born, the rul-
er of Rome told people to return to the
city where their father was born to reg-
ister their names. So Mary and Joseph
went back to Bethlehem, where Mary
gave birth to Jesus. (Matthew 2:1, 5, 6)
Jesus could not
control what
happened at his birth
or in his early life
So the birth of Jesus happened exactly
as the prophecy said!
8 A virgin, or maiden, would give
birth to the Messiah. (Read Isaiah 7:14.)
This verse says that the maiden would
give birth to a son. The word for virgin
in Hebrew is bethulah. This verse uses al-
mah, a word that means “maiden.” But
we know that almah also means “virgin”
because the Bible calls Rebekah a maid-
en (almah) before her marriage. (Gene-
sis 24:16, 43) God’s holy spirit directed
Matthew to write that Isaiah 7:14 came
true when Jesus was born. In this verse,
he did not use the Greek word for “maid-
en.” He used the Greek word for “vir-
gin,” parthenos. The Gospel writers Mat-
thew and Luke both say that Mary was
a virgin and that she became pregnant
through God’s holy spirit.—Matthew 1:
18-25; Luke 1:26-35.
9 After the Messiah was born, chil-
dren would be murdered. This is simi-
8, 9. What does the prophecy say about the
birth of the Messiah? What would happen af-
ter the Messiah was born?
˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
lar to what happened hundreds of years
before the Messiah was born. Pharaoh
of Egypt ordered the people to throw all
the Hebrew baby boys into the Nile Riv-
er. (Exodus 1:22) A prophecy at Jeremi-
ah 31:15, 16 talks about “Rachel weep-
ing over her sons” because enemies took
them away. People heard the sound of
her crying far away in Ramah, which was
in Benjamin, north of Jerusalem. Mat-
thew tells us that this prophecy came
true when King Herod ordered the mur-
der of all the baby boys in Bethlehem.
(Read Matthew 2:16-18.) Imagine the
grief that the people felt!
10 The Messiah would be brought out
of Egypt. (Hosea 11:1) To save Jesus
from King Herod, an angel told Joseph
and Mary to leave Israel and take Jesus
to Egypt. They stayed there until Herod
died. After Herod died, Joseph brought
Jesus back to Israel. What Jehovah said
to Hosea came true: “Out of Egypt I
called my son.” (Matthew 2:13-15) Of
course, it was impossible for Jesus to
control the things that happened at his
birth and in his early life.
THE MESSIAH
BEGINS HIS MINISTRY!
11 A messenger would prepare the
way for the Messiah. Malachi said that
someone would come before the Messi-
ah to prepare the way for him. He
would help people to be ready to accept
the Messiah when he appeared. Mala-
chi calls him Elijah the prophet. (Read
Malachi 4:5, 6.) Jesus said that John the
Baptist was the one who was like Elijah.
(Matthew 11:12-14) Mark said that John
10. How did the prophecy at Hosea 11:1 come
true?
11. Who prepared the way for the Messiah?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
prepared the way. This is exactly what
Isaiah had prophesied. (Isaiah 40:3;
Mark 1:1-4) Jesus did not tell John to pre-
pare the way for him. God wanted peo-
ple to know who the Messiah was. So it
was God who chose John to do a work
that was like the work of Elijah and pre-
pare the people to welcome the Messiah.
12 God would give the Messiah a spe-
cial work to do. One day Jesus was in the
synagogue in Nazareth, the town where
he grew up. Jesus opened a scroll and
read the words of Isaiah. This is what
he read: “Jehovah’s spirit is upon me,
because he anointed me to declare good
news to the poor, he sent me forth to
preach a release to the captives and a
recovery of sight to the blind, to send
the crushed ones away with a release, to
preach Jehovah’s acceptable year.” Jesus
said that this prophecy was about him.
He really was the Messiah. That is why
Jesus had the right to say: “Today this
scripture that you just heard is fulfilled.”
—Luke 4:16-21.
13 One prophecy tells us about the
Messiah’s ministry in Galilee. Isa-
iah prophesied about “Zebulun” and
“Naphtali” and “Galilee of the nations.”
He wrote: “The people that were walk-
ing in the darkness have seen a great
light. As for those dwelling in the land of
deep shadow, light itself has shone upon
them.” (Isaiah 9:1, 2) Jesus began his
ministry in Galilee, in the town called
Capernaum. He also taught in the areas
of Zebulun and Naphtali. Jesus helped
the people in these places by teaching
them truths that shone like a great light.
12. What special work did God give the Mes-
siah to do?
13. What did Isaiah say about Jesus’ ministry
in Galilee?
7
(Matthew 4:12-16) It was in Galilee that
Jesus gave his Sermon on the Mount,
chose his apostles, and performed his
first miracle. It was also here in Gal-
ilee that Jesus appeared to more than
500 disciples after his resurrection.
(Matthew 5:1–7:27; 28:16-20; Mark 3:
13, 14; John 2:8-11; 1 Corinthians 15:6)
So Isaiah’s prophecy came true when
Jesus preached in “the land of Zeb-
ulun and the land of Naphtali.” Jesus
also preached the good news about the
Kingdom in other places in Israel.
MORE PROPHECIES
ABOUT THE MESSIAH
14 The Messiah would use stories and
illustrations to teach people. In one
of the psalms, Asaph sang: “In a pro-
verbial saying I will open my mouth.”
(Psalm 78:2) Matthew tells us about
how this prophecy came true. Jesus
Jesus’ disciples
were convinced that
he was the Messiah
always used illustrations, or exam-
ples, to teach. Matthew wrote about
the time when Jesus used a mustard
seed and yeast as illustrations to teach
people about the Kingdom of God. He
wrote: “Without an illustration he would
not speak to them; that there might be
fulfilled what was spoken through the
prophet who said: ‘I will open my mouth
with illustrations, I will publish things
hidden since the founding.’ ” (Matthew
14. How did Psalm 78:2 come true?
8 THE WATCHTOWER
WHAT IS YOUR 13:31-35) The stories and
ANSWER? illustrations that Jesus
used helped many people
ˇ What are some of the to understand the truth
prophecies about the about Jehovah.
birth of Jesus? 15 The Messiah would
ˇ Who prepared the way heal people. Isaiah proph-
for the Messiah? esied: “Truly our sick-
ˇ How did the prophe- nesses were what he him-
cies of Isaiah chap- self carried; and as for
ter 53 come true? our pains, he bore them.”
(Isaiah 53:4) When the
mother-in-law of Peter
was sick, Jesus healed her.
After that, many other people came to
the house of Peter, and Jesus healed
them too. Matthew said that this ful-
filled what was spoken through Isaiah
the prophet, saying: “He himself took
our sicknesses and carried our diseas-
es.” (Matthew 8:14-17) But this was not
the only time that Jesus healed people.
The Bible talks about many other times
when Jesus made people well again.
16 Many people would not believe that
Jesus was the Messiah even though he
did good things. (Read Isaiah 53:1.) The
apostle John said that this prophecy
came true. He wrote: “Although he had
performed so many signs before them,
they were not putting faith in him, so
that the word of Isaiah the prophet was
fulfilled which he said: ‘Jehovah, who
has put faith in the thing heard by us?
And as for the arm of Jehovah, to whom
has it been revealed?’ ” (John 12:37, 38)
15. How did the prophecy at Isaiah 53:4 come
true?
16. What did the apostle John write that
proves that Isaiah 53:1 was about Jesus?
˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
Even years later, when the apostle Paul
preached the good news, not many peo-
ple believed that Jesus was the Messiah.
—Romans 10:16, 17.
17 People would hate the Messiah for
no reason. (Psalm 69:4) Jesus said: “If
I had not done among them the works
that no one else did, they would have
no sin; but now they have both seen
and hated me as well as my Father. But
it is that the word written in their Law
may be fulfilled, ‘They hated me without
cause.’ ” (John 15:24, 25) The “Law” men-
tioned here means all the Scriptures that
existed at that time. (John 10:34; 12:34)
What we read about Jesus in the Gos-
pels proves that many people hated Je-
sus, especially the Jewish religious lead-
ers. Also, Jesus said: “The world has no
reason to hate you, but it hates me, be-
cause I bear witness concerning it that
its works are wicked.”—John 7:7.
18 The disciples of Jesus in the first
century were sure that Jesus was the
Messiah. They knew that Jesus fulfilled
all the prophecies in the Hebrew Scrip-
tures about the Messiah. (Matthew 16:
16) From this article, we learned that
the prophecies about the early life and
ministry of Jesus came true. But there
are many more prophecies in the Bi-
ble that prove who the Messiah is. We
will learn about them in the next article.
If we think deeply about these prophe-
cies, we will never doubt that Jesus is the
one whom Jehovah chose to be the Mes-
siah.
17. How did the prophecy at Psalm 69:4 come
true?
18. What will we learn in the next article?
 9

They Found the Messiah!

J OHN THE BAPTIST is with two of
his disciples. As Jesus walks toward
them, John says: “See, the Lamb of
God!” The two disciples of John the Bap-
tist, Andrew and John, immediately fol-
low Jesus and stay with him the rest of
that day. Later, Andrew goes to find his
brother, Simon Peter, and makes this
very exciting announcement: “We have
found the Messiah.” Andrew then takes
Peter to see Jesus.—John 1:35-41.
2 As time passes, Andrew, Peter, and
others will carefully study the Scriptures
1. What happened before Andrew made
the announcement: “We have found the
Messiah”?
2. How will our study of the prophecies about
the Messiah help us?
and will say without any
doubt that Jesus is the
THEME
SCRIPTURE
promised Messiah. We
will now study some more “We have found the
prophecies in the Bi- Messiah.”—JOHN 1:41.
ble that prove who the
Messiah is. This will help
us have stronger faith in the Bible and
in the one whom Jehovah chose to be
the Messiah.
“LOOK! YOUR KING IS COMING”
3 The Messiah would enter Jerusalem
as a king. Zechariah’s prophecy said:
“Be very joyful, O daughter of Zion.
Shout in triumph, O daughter of
3. What prophecies came true when Jesus
entered Jerusalem as a king?

What prophecies
were fulfilled
when Jesus en-
tered Jerusalem
as a king?
10
SOME WORDS Jerusalem. Look! Your
EXPLAINED king himself comes to
you. He is righteous, yes,
ˇ Sanhedrin: saved; humble, and riding
The Jewish high court upon an ass, even upon a
ˇ Cast lots: full-grown animal the son
This was a way to de- of a she-ass.” (Zechariah
cide a question. Lots, 9:9) One Bible writer said:
or small pieces of “Blessed be the One com-
wood or stone, were ing in the name of Je-
marked and then hovah.” (Psalm 118:26) A
thrown on the ground large crowd shouted with
or shaken in a con- great joy as Jesus entered
tainer. A decision was Jerusalem. Jesus did not
made based on how tell the crowd what to do.
the lots fell or on which But they did exactly as
lot was pulled out the prophecy said. As you
read the Bible verses that
describe the scene, imag-
ine that you are there and that you can
hear the happy voices of the crowd.
—Read Matthew 21:4-9.
4 Jesus is precious to God, even
though many people would not accept
him as the Messiah. As the prophe-
cies said, many people hated Jesus and
thought that he was of no account, or
of no value. These people did not have
faith. (Isaiah 53:3; Mark 9:12) But the
Bible says: “The stone that the build-
ers rejected has become the head of the
corner. This has come to be from Jeho-
vah himself.” (Psalm 118:22, 23) Once,
Jesus spoke about this prophecy when
he was talking to his religious enemies.
And Peter said that this prophecy was
about Jesus and the congregation. He
compared the congregation to a build-
ing. A building has one cornerstone, or
one main stone, in its foundation. In the
same way, Jesus was the main stone in
4. How did Psalm 118:22, 23 come true?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
the foundation of the Christian congre-
gation. Men without faith did not ac-
cept Jesus as the Messiah, but he is “cho-
sen, precious, with God.”—1 Peter 2:4-6;
Mark 12:10, 11; Acts 4:8-11.
ONE DISCIPLE BETRAYS HIM
AND THE OTHERS ABANDON HIM
5 Someone who seemed to be the
Messiah’s friend would betray him. Da-
vid prophesied: “The man at peace with
me, in whom I trusted, who was eating
my bread, has magnified his heel against
me.” (Psalm 41:9) In Bible times, it was
an act of friendship to eat bread to-
gether. (Genesis 31:54) So the prophecy
meant that someone who was a friend of
the Messiah would do something terri-
ble. He would betray the Messiah! Jesus
talked about this person when he said
to his apostles: “I am not talking about
all of you; I know the ones I have chosen.
But it is in order that the Scripture might
be fulfilled, ‘He that used to feed on my
bread has lifted up his heel against me.’ ”
(John 13:18) Jesus was talking about Ju-
das Iscariot, who was a follower and a
friend of Jesus. When he betrayed Jesus,
David’s prophecy came true.
6 The one who betrayed the Messiah
would betray him for 30 pieces of silver,
that is, the price paid for a slave! Mat-
thew said that Judas betrayed Jesus for
only 30 pieces of silver and that this ful-
filled the prophecy at Zechariah 11:12,
13. But Matthew says that what was spo-
ken through Jeremiah the prophet was
fulfilled. Why does he say Jeremiah if
the prophecy is in the book of Zechari-
ah? In Matthew’s day the book of Jere-
5, 6. What did the prophecies say about the
Messiah’s betrayal? How did they come true?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
miah may have appeared first in a group
of books that included Zechariah. Ju-
das did not spend those 30 pieces of sil-
ver. He threw the money into the tem-
ple and “went off and hanged himself.”
—Matthew 26:14-16; 27:3-10.
7 The Messiah’s disciples would leave
him. Zechariah wrote: “Strike the shep-
herd, and let those of the flock be scat-
tered.” (Zechariah 13:7) On Nisan 14
of the year 33, Jesus told his disciples:
“All of you will be stumbled in con-
nection with me on this night, for it is
written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and
the sheep of the flock will be scattered
about.’ ” And that is exactly what hap-
pened. Matthew said that all the dis-
ciples abandoned Jesus and fled.—Mat-
thew 26:31, 56.
SOME WOULD
ACCUSE AND BEAT HIM
8 People would take the Messiah to
court and condemn him to death. (Read
Isaiah 53:8.) On the morning of Ni-
san 14, all the members of the Sanhe-
drin Court gathered together. They tied
Jesus with ropes and took him to the
Roman Governor Pontius Pilate. Pilate
questioned Jesus and said that Jesus had
done nothing wrong. But when Pilate
asked the crowd if they wanted him to
free Jesus, the crowd shouted: “Impale
him!” They said that they wanted Pilate
to free Barabbas, a criminal, instead of
Jesus. Because Pilate wanted to please
the crowd, he freed Barabbas. Then he
ordered his men to beat Jesus with a
whip and to hang him on a stake.—Mark
15:1-15.
7. How did Zechariah 13:7 come true?
8. How did Isaiah 53:8 come true?
11
9 There would be false witnesses
against the Messiah. David wrote: “Vi-
olent witnesses rise up; what I have not
known they ask me.” (Psalm 35:11) Ex-
actly as the prophecy said, “the chief
priests and the entire Sanhedrin were
looking for false witness against Jesus
in order to put him to death.” (Matthew
26:59) The Bible says that many, indeed,
were giving false witness against him,
but their testimonies were not in agree-
ment. (Mark 14:56) The enemies of Je-
sus did not care that the witnesses were
telling lies about him. They just wanted
Jesus dead.
10 The Messiah would not answer
those who accused him. Isaiah proph-
esied: “He was hard pressed, and he
was letting himself be afflicted; yet he
would not open his mouth. He was
being brought just like a sheep to the
slaughtering; and like a ewe that before
her shearers has become mute, he also
would not open his mouth.” (Isaiah 53:7)
While Jesus “was being accused by the
chief priests and older men, he made no
answer.” Pilate asked: “Do you not hear
how many things they are testifying
against you?” But Jesus “did not answer
him, no, not a word, so that the governor
wondered very much.” (Matthew 27:12-
14) Jesus did not insult his enemies.—Ro-
mans 12:17-21; 1 Peter 2:23.
11 Isaiah prophesied that they would
beat the Messiah. Isaiah wrote: “My
back I gave to the strikers, and my
cheeks to those plucking off the hair.
9. How did Psalm 35:11 come true in Jesus’
time?
10. How did Isaiah 53:7 come true?
11. How did Isaiah 50:6 and Micah 5:1 come
true?
12
My face I did not conceal from humili-
ating things and spit.” (Isaiah 50:6) Mi-
cah prophesied: “With the rod they will
strike upon the cheek the judge of Isra-
el.” (Micah 5:1) Mark showed that these
prophecies were about Jesus. Mark
wrote: “Some started to spit on him and
Our study of the
prophecies about the
Messiah helps us
have stronger faith
to cover his whole face and hit him with
their fists and say to him: ‘Prophesy!’
And, slapping him in the face, the court
attendants took him.” Mark said that
soldiers would hit him on the head with
a reed and spit upon him, and bend-
ing their knees, they would do obeisance
to him. (Mark 14:65; 15:19) Of course,
there was no reason for those people to
treat Jesus that way.
HE WAS LOYAL TO GOD
UNTIL DEATH
12 The Messiah would die on a stake.
David said: “The assembly of evildoers
themselves have enclosed me. Like a
lion they are at my hands and my feet.”
(Psalm 22:16) As Bible readers know
and as Mark tells us in his Gospel, this
prophecy came true. Mark wrote that
they impaled Jesus about nine o’clock
in the morning. They nailed his hands
and his feet to a stake. (Mark 15:25)
Another prophecy said that the Messi-
12. How did Psalm 22:16 come true? How did
Isaiah 53:12 come true?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
ah would die with sinners. Isaiah wrote:
“He poured out his soul to the very
death, and it was with the transgres-
sors that he was counted in.” (Isaiah
53:12) This came true when “two rob-
bers were impaled with him, one on
his right and one on his left.”—Matthew
27:38.
13 David prophesied that people
would insult the Messiah. (Read Psalm
22:7, 8.) People insulted Jesus while he
was suffering on the stake. Matthew tells
us: “The passersby began speaking abu-
sively of him, wagging their heads and
saying: ‘O you would-be thrower-down
of the temple and builder of it in three
days, save yourself! If you are a son of
God, come down off the torture stake!’ ”
The chief priests, scribes, and older men
made fun of him and said: “Others he
saved; himself he cannot save! He is
King of Israel; let him now come down
off the torture stake and we will believe
on him. He has put his trust in God;
let Him now rescue him if He wants
him, for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’ ”
(Matthew 27:39-43) Jesus suffered, but
he remained calm and never said any-
thing wrong. He is a very good example
for us.
14 They would cast lots to take the
Messiah’s clothes. David wrote: “They
apportion my garments among them-
selves, and upon my clothing they cast
lots.” (Psalm 22:18) That is exactly what
happened. The Bible says that after the
Roman soldiers put Jesus on the stake,
they distributed his outer garments by
13. How did Psalm 22:7, 8 come true?
14, 15. Some prophecies talked about the
Messiah’s clothing and that he would be given
vinegar to drink. How did they come true?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011 13

casting lots.—Matthew 27:

35; read John 19:23, 24.
15 They would give the

Messiah vinegar and bit-

ter gall to drink. The
prophecy says: “But for
food they gave me a poi-
sonous plant, and for my
thirst they tried to make
me drink vinegar.” (Psalm
69:21) We know that this
prophecy came true be-
cause Matthew tells us:
“They gave him wine
mixed with gall to drink;
but, after tasting it, he re-
fused to drink.” And lat-
er, “one of them ran and
took a sponge and soaked
it with sour wine and put
it on a reed and went giv-
ing him a drink.”—Mat-
thew 27:34, 48.
16 It would seem that

God had left the Messiah.

(Read Psalm 22:1.) Mark
tells us that at the ninth
hour, Jesus called out
with a loud voice: “ ‘Eli, Eli,
lama sabachthani?’ which
means, when translated:
‘My God, my God, why have you forsak-
en me?’ ” (Mark 15:34) When Jesus said
that God had left him, he did not say this
because he had lost faith in his Father.
He knew that God would not protect
him from his enemies at the time of his
death. This was an opportunity for Jesus
to show that he would always be loyal to
God. When Jesus said with a loud voice,
“My God, my God, why have you for-
16. How did Psalm 22:1 come true?
saken me?” the prophecy at Psalm 22:1 Jesus died
came true. for our sins,
17 Enemies would stab the Messiah. but now he
They would not break his bones. Zech- rules as King
ariah said that the people of Jerusa-
lem would look to the One whom they
pierced through. (Zechariah 12:10) And
Psalm 34:20 says that God “is guarding
all the bones of that one; not one of them
17. How did Zechariah 12:10 and Psalm 34:20
come true?
14
WHAT IS YOUR has been broken.” The
ANSWER? apostle John said that
these prophecies came
ˇ How did the prophe- true. John wrote: “One
cies about Jesus’ of the soldiers jabbed his
being betrayed and side with a spear, and im-
abandoned come mediately blood and wa-
true?
ter came out. And he that
ˇ How did the proph- has seen it has borne wit-
ecies about Jesus’ ness, and his witness is
death come true? true.” John also wrote:
ˇ Why are you sure that “These things took place
Jesus is the Messiah? in order for the scripture
to be fulfilled: ‘Not a bone
of his will be crushed.’
And, again, a different
scripture says: ‘They will look to the One
whom they pierced.’ ”—John 19:33-37.
18 The Messiah’s burial place would
be among the graves of rich people.
(Read Isaiah 53:5, 8, 9.) Late in the after-
noon of Nisan 14, “a rich man of Arima-
thea, named Joseph,” asked Pilate if he
could take Jesus’ body. Joseph wanted
to bury him, and Pilate agreed. Matthew
tells us: “Joseph took the body, wrapped
it up in clean fine linen, and laid it in his
new memorial tomb, which he had quar-
ried in the rock-mass. And, after rolling
a big stone to the door of the memorial
tomb, he left.”—Matthew 27:57-60.
PRAISE THE MESSIAH, OUR KING!
19 Jehovah would resurrect the Mes-
siah. David wrote: “You will not leave
my soul in Sheol,” that is, in the grave.
18. The prophecy said that Jesus would be
buried among the graves of rich people. How
did that prophecy come true?
19. How did the prophecy at Psalm 16:10
come true?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
(Psalm 16:10) On Nisan 16, some women
came to the tomb where Jesus was bur-
ied. Imagine their surprise when they
saw an angel sitting inside the tomb!
The angel said to the women: “Stop be-
ing stunned. You are looking for Jesus
the Nazarene, who was impaled. He was
raised up, he is not here. See! The place
where they laid him.” (Mark 16:6) Later,
on the day of Pentecost of the year 33,
the apostle Peter talked to a large group
of people in Jerusalem about David’s
prophecy in Psalm 16. He said about Da-
vid: “He saw beforehand and spoke con-
cerning the resurrection of the Christ,
that neither was he forsaken in Hades
nor did his flesh see corruption.” (Acts
2:29-31) God did not allow the body
of his dear Son to decay. And Jehovah
did something even more wonderful. He
resurrected Jesus to life in heaven!—1 Pe-
ter 3:18.
20 God would announce that Jesus is
his Son. (Read Psalm 2:7; Matthew 3:
17.) When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the
crowds praised him and his Kingdom.
Today, we also praise Jesus. We are hap-
py to tell others about him and his King-
dom. (Mark 11:7-10) Soon, Christ will
destroy his enemies when he rides “in
the cause of truth and humility and righ-
teousness.” (Psalm 2:8, 9; 45:1-6) Then
he will rule over the whole earth. All will
live in peace and have what they need.
(Psalm 72:1, 3, 12, 16; Isaiah 9:6, 7) Jeho-
vah’s beloved Son, Jesus Christ, already
rules as King in heaven. It is a great hon-
or to be Witnesses of Jehovah and to tell
others about these truths!
20. What do the prophecies say about the
Messiah’s rule?

Jehovah Is
“the God Who Gives Peace”
I MAGINE this: Two brothers were
about to meet. They were going to
meet close to Penuel, near the valley of
Jabbok on the east side of the Jordan Riv-
er. The brothers were Esau and Jacob,
and they had not seen each other for a
long time. Twenty years earlier, Esau had
sold his right as firstborn to his broth-
er, Jacob. When Esau heard that Jacob
was returning home, he went to meet Ja-
cob with 400 men. When Jacob heard
this, he became afraid. He thought that
his brother might still be angry with him
and want to kill him. So Jacob sent his
servants with animals as gifts for Esau.
Each time the servants came with more
animals, they told Esau that they were
gifts from his brother. Jacob sent him
more than 550 animals.
2 What happened when the brothers
finally met? Jacob showed courage and
humility. He walked toward Esau and
bowed down before his brother seven
times! But before this, Jacob had already
done the most important thing. He had
prayed to Jehovah and asked Jehovah
to protect him from Esau. Jehovah an-
swered his prayer. The Bible tells us that
Esau went running to meet him, and he
began to embrace him and fall upon his
neck and kiss him.—Genesis 32:11-20;
33:1-4.
3 This situation shows us that we
1, 2. What situation do we read about in Gen-
esis chapters 32 and 33? What was the result?
3. What do we learn from the story of Jacob
and Esau?
15
should do everything we
can to solve problems
with others in the congre-
THEME
SCRIPTURE
gation. If we do not, the “May the God who gives
peace and unity of the peace be with all of you.”
congregation will be dam- —ROMANS 15:33.
aged. Jacob had not done
anything wrong. He did
not have to tell Esau that he was sorry.
It was Esau who did not value his right
as firstborn and who had sold it to Ja-
cob for just one meal. But Jacob still did
everything he could to have peace with
him. (Genesis 25:31-34; Hebrews 12:16)
Jacob’s example shows how much ef-
fort we should make to keep peace with
our Christian brothers and sisters. It
also shows that when we ask Jehovah to
help us do this, he answers our prayers.
There are many other examples in the
Bible that show us how to keep peace
with others. We will talk about some of
them.
THE BEST EXAMPLE TO FOLLOW
4 The best example of someone who
keeps peace is Jehovah. He is “the God
who gives peace.” (Romans 15:33) Think
of all that Jehovah did to make it possi-
ble for us to be his friends. Because we
are descendants of Adam and Eve, we
sin. And those who sin deserve death.
(Romans 6:23) But because God loved
us so much, he wanted to save us from
4. What did God do to save mankind from sin
and death?
16
SOME WORDS sin and death. So he sent
EXPLAINED his beloved Son, Jesus,
from heaven to be born
ˇ Ransom: as a perfect human and
The price Jehovah die for our sins. And Jesus
paid through Jesus was happy to do what his
to free humans Father wanted and to sac-
from sin and death
rifice his life for us. (John
ˇ Repent: 10:17, 18) Then Jehovah
To feel regret for past resurrected Jesus to life in
sins and to make the heaven. It was in heaven
necessary changes that Jesus presented to Je-
to please God hovah the value of his
ˇ Covenant: sacrifice. This sacrifice, or
A serious promise ransom, saves from eter-
or agreement nal death all those who re-
pent of their sins.—Read
ˇ Undeserved kindness:
Jehovah’s great kind- Hebrews 9:14, 24.
5 Because of sin, hu-
ness that he gives free-
mans became enemies of
ly to sinful humans
God. How does Jesus’ sac-
rifice help humans? Isa-
iah 53:5 says: “The chas-
tisement meant for our peace was upon
him, and because of his wounds there
has been a healing for us.” Jesus’ sacri-
fice makes it possible for obedient hu-
mans to become friends of God. The Bi-
ble also says: “By means of him we have
the release by ransom through the blood
of that one, yes, the forgiveness of our
trespasses.”—Ephesians 1:7.
6 The Bible says about Jesus: “God saw
good for all fullness to dwell in him.”
This means that God uses Jesus to make
his purpose come true. And what is
God’s purpose? It is “to reconcile again
to himself all other things by mak-
ing peace through the blood” of Jesus
Christ. The things that God reconciles to
5, 6. How does Jesus’ sacrifice help humans
to become friends of God?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
himself, or causes to become his friends,
are “the things in the heavens” and “the
things upon the earth.” What are they?
—Read Colossians 1:19, 20.
7 Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, anoint-
ed Christians “have been declared righ-
teous” as sons of God and “enjoy peace
with God.” (Read Romans 5:1.) The Bi-
ble calls them “the things in the heav-
ens” because God resurrects them to live
in heaven with Jesus Christ. There they
Prayer helped
Jacob to keep
peace with Esau
will “rule as kings over the earth” and
serve as priests. (Revelation 5:10) “The
things upon the earth” are humans who
repent of their sins and who will live for-
ever on earth.—Psalm 37:29.
8 The words of Paul to the anointed
Christians in Ephesus show how grate-
ful he was for the ransom. He said
that God is “rich in mercy” and that he
“made us alive together with the Christ,
even when we were dead in trespass-
es.” He said that God saved us “by un-
deserved kindness.” (Ephesians 2:4, 5)
All of us, those who will live in heav-
en and those who will live on earth, are
very grateful for God’s mercy and un-
deserved kindness. We are grateful for
everything Jehovah did to make it pos-
sible for humans to have peace with him.
At times, we have problems that can
7. What are “the things in the heavens” and
“the things upon the earth”?
8. How does Jehovah’s example help you
when there are problems in the congregation?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
put the unity of the congregation in dan-
ger. In these situations, we should think
about God’s example and keep peace
with our brothers and sisters.
LEARN FROM THE EXAMPLES
OF ABRAHAM AND ISAAC
9 The Bible says about Abraham:
“ ‘Abraham put faith in Jehovah, and it
was counted to him as righteousness,’
and he came to be called ‘Jehovah’s
friend.’ ” (James 2:23) One way that
Abraham showed his faith in Jehovah
was by keeping peace with others. For
example, there was an argument be-
tween the men who took care of Abra-
ham’s animals and those who took care
of the animals of his nephew Lot. (Gen-
esis 12:5; 13:7) Abraham and Lot decid-
ed that the best solution for them was to
go to different parts of the land. Notice
what Abraham did in this difficult situ-
ation. He did not think that he should
make the final decision just because
he was older and had a special friend-
ship with Jehovah. Instead, he showed
that he wanted to keep peace with his
nephew.
10 Abraham told his nephew: “Please,
do not let any quarreling continue be-
tween me and you and between my
herdsmen and your herdsmen, for we
men are brothers.” And he continued:
“Is not the whole land available to you?
Please, separate from me. If you go to
the left, then I will go to the right; but
if you go to the right, then I will go to the
left.” Lot chose the best part of the land,
the most fertile part. Abraham accepted
Lot’s choice and did not get angry with
him. (Genesis 13:8-11) We know this be-
9, 10. How did Abraham show that he want-
ed to keep peace with others?
17
cause later when enemies took Lot as a
prisoner, Abraham hurried to save him.
—Genesis 14:14-16.
11 Think also of how Abraham did
what he could to keep peace with the
Philistines, who were his neighbors in
the land of Canaan. The Philistines had
violently stolen a well of water that Abra-
ham’s servants had dug at Beer-sheba.
In this situation, Abraham chose not
to do or say anything. Later, the Phi-
listine king visited Abraham to make a
covenant of peace between them. Abra-
ham agreed to be kind to the descen-
dants of the king. Only after that hap-
pened did Abraham tell the king about
the stolen well. The king was shocked
to hear about the well, and he returned it
to Abraham. And Abraham continued to
live in peace as a foreigner in that land.
—Genesis 21:22-31, 34.
Because of Jesus’
sacrifice, obedient
humans can have
peace with God
12 Abraham’s son Isaac loved peace
just like his father. He did what he could
to keep peace with the Philistines. Be-
cause there was no food in the land,
Isaac and his family moved from the
dry area of Beer-lahai-roi, in the Negeb,
to the more fertile area of Gerar. This
11. How did Abraham keep peace with his
Philistine neighbors?
12, 13. (a) How did Isaac follow the example
of his father? (b) How did Jehovah bless
Isaac’s efforts to keep peace?
18 THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011

area belonged to the Philistines. Jeho- for his right to use all the wells that
vah blessed Isaac with good crops and his servants had dug. The Philistine
many animals. The Philistines became king knew that Jehovah blessed Isaac in
jealous of him. They did not want Isaac’s everything he did. When the king came
wealth to keep increasing, so they filled with his officials to visit Isaac in Beer-
his wells with dirt. Finally, the Philistine sheba and make a covenant with him, he
king told Isaac: “Move from our neigh- said: “We have unmistakably seen that
borhood.” To keep peace with the Phi- Jehovah has proved to be with you.” But
listines, Isaac did what the king said. to keep peace, Isaac chose to move more
—Genesis 24:62; 26:1, 12-17. than once. He did not want to fight. This
13 After Isaac and his family moved,
time too, when the king and his officials
his shepherds dug another well. Philis- came to visit him, Isaac showed that he
tine shepherds argued with Isaac’s shep- wanted to keep peace with the king. The
herds because of the well and said that
the water was theirs. Like his father,
Isaac did not want to fight. Instead, he
told his servants to dig another well.
The Philistines argued because of that
one also. Again, just to keep peace with
the Philistines, Isaac moved his fami-
ly and everything he had. His servants
dug a well in that place, and Isaac
called it Rehoboth. Later, he moved to

Abraham, Isaac,
Jacob, and Joseph
always tried to keep
peace with others

the more fertile area of Beer-sheba. Je-

hovah blessed him there and told him:
“Do not be afraid, because I am with
you, and I will bless you and multiply
your seed on account of Abraham my
servant.”—Genesis 26:17-25.
14 Of course, Isaac could have fought

14. When the Philistine king came to make a

covenant with Isaac, how did Isaac show that
he wanted to keep peace with him?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
Bible tells us: “He made a feast for them
and they ate and drank. Next morn-
ing they were early in rising and they
made sworn statements one to the oth-
er. After that Isaac sent them away and
they went from him in peace.”—Genesis
26:26-31.
LEARN FROM
THE EXAMPLE OF JOSEPH
15 The Bible says that Isaac’s son Ja-
cob was “a blameless man.” (Genesis 25:
27) As we learned earlier, Jacob did what
15. Why were Joseph’s brothers not able to
speak peacefully to him?
What was the most important
thing Jacob did to keep peace
with Esau?
19
he could to keep peace with his brother,
Esau. Jacob had learned from the good
example of his father, Isaac. Did Jacob’s
sons learn from his example? Of all his
12 sons, Jacob loved Joseph the most.
He obeyed and respected his father and
was a son Jacob could trust. (Genesis
37:2, 14) But the Bible says that Joseph’s
older brothers became so jealous of him
that they were not able to speak peace-
fully to him. They hated Joseph so much
that they sold him as a slave and then
made their father believe that a wild an-
imal had killed him.—Genesis 37:4, 28,
31-33.
20 THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011

WHAT DID YOU 16 Jehovah blessed Jo- this, he “burst into tears” and said:
LEARN? seph. In time, Joseph “Do not be afraid. I myself shall keep
became Egypt’s prime supplying you and your little children
ˇ Just before he met minister, that is, the with food.” In this situation too, Joseph
Esau, what did Jacob second-most powerful showed that he loved peace. He “com-
do to keep peace person in Egypt. When forted them and spoke reassuringly to
with him? there was a terrible fam- them.”—Genesis 50:15-21.
ˇ Jehovah did a lot to ine in Canaan, Joseph’s
make it possible for brothers came to Egypt EXAMPLES
humans to become “FOR OUR INSTRUCTION”
to buy food. When they
his friends. What does met Joseph there, they 18 Paul wrote: “All the things that
that make you want did not know who he were written aforetime were written for
to do? was, probably because of our instruction, that through our endur-
ˇ What have you learned the Egyptian clothes he ance and through the comfort from the
from the examples of was wearing. (Genesis 42: Scriptures we might have hope.” (Ro-
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, 5-7) Joseph could have mans 15:4) What have we learned from
and Joseph? treated his brothers the the greatest example of all, Jehovah, and
same way they treated also the examples of Abraham, Isaac, Ja-
him and his father. In- cob, and Joseph?
19 If we think about all that Jehovah
stead, Joseph did what he
could to make peace with them. And did to make it possible for us to become
when they showed that they were sor- his friends, we will want to do every-
ry for what they had done, Joseph told thing we can to keep peace with others.
them who he was. He said: “Do not What we learned about Abraham, Isaac,
feel hurt and do not be angry with Jacob, and Joseph shows that parents
yourselves because you sold me here; can be good examples for their children
because for the preservation of life and teach them to keep peace with oth-
God has sent me ahead of you.” Then ers. We also learned that Jehovah bless-
“he proceeded to kiss all his brothers es the efforts of those who try to keep
and to weep over them.”—Genesis 45:1, peace. This helps us understand why
5, 15. Paul wrote that Jehovah is “the God who
17 After the death of their father, Ja- gives peace.” (Read Romans 15:33; 16:
cob, Joseph’s brothers thought that Jo- 20.) The next article will talk about why
seph might want to take revenge on Paul said that we need to keep peace and
them. When they talked to Joseph about how we can do that.

16, 17. How did the way Joseph treated his 18, 19. (a) What did you learn from the ex-
brothers show that he wanted to keep peace amples we talked about in this article?
with them? (b) What will we learn in the next article?

Make Efforts to Keep Peace
T HERE is no true peace among peo-
ple in the world today. Even people
from the same country and who speak
the same language are often not unit-
ed. They are divided by religion, poli-
tics, money, and education. But there
is peace among the more than sev-
en million who are Jehovah’s Witness-
es around the world, even though they
come from “all nations and tribes and
peoples and tongues.”—Revelation 7:9.
2 There are good reasons why we have
peace among us. The main reason is that
we “enjoy peace with God.” This peace
is the result of our faith in his Son, who
sacrificed his life for us. (Romans 5:1;
Ephesians 1:7) Also, Jehovah gives holy
spirit to his loyal servants, and the fruit-
age of that spirit includes peace. (Gala-
tians 5:22) Another reason we have
peace and unity is that we are “no part
of the world.” (John 15:19) This means
that we do not participate in politics or
war. As the Bible says, Jehovah’s peo-
ple “beat their swords into plowshares.”
—Isaiah 2:4.
3 We “love one another” in the congre-
gation even though we come from dif-
ferent places and have different customs
and ways of thinking. (John 15:17) The
peace we have is more than not want-
ing to harm our brothers. It allows us
to “work what is good toward all, but
1, 2. Why is there peace among Jehovah’s
Witnesses?
3. What does the peace we have make possi-
ble, and what will we talk about in this article?
21
especially toward those
related to us in the faith.”
(Galatians 6:10) This
THEME
SCRIPTURE
peace with Jehovah and “Let us pursue the things
with our brothers and sis- making for peace.”
ters is very precious. We —ROMANS 14:19.
need to protect it. We will
now talk about how we
can keep peace even when problems
happen in the congregation.
WHEN WE “STUMBLE”
4 The disciple James wrote: “We all
stumble many times. If anyone does
not stumble in word, this one is a per-
fect man.” (James 3:2) So there will be
times when two people in the congre-
gation will not agree with each other or
will have some other problem between
them. But if there is a problem, they
should be able to solve it and keep the
peace in the congregation. For example,
read what Jesus said we should do if we
think that we have offended someone.
—Read Matthew 5:23, 24.
5 What if someone did something
against us? Should we think that this
person has to come to us and tell us
that he is sorry? 1 Corinthians 13:5 says
that love does not keep account of the
injury. When someone offends us, we
show that we want to keep peace by
forgiving the person and forgetting the
4. What can we do to keep peace when we of-
fend someone?
5. What can we do to keep peace when some-
one offends us?
22
SOME WORDS problem. (Read Colos-
EXPLAINED sians 3:13.) This is the
best thing to do when
ˇ Gentile: there is a small problem.
A person who It helps us to stay unit-
is not of the ed with our brothers. And
Jewish nation we feel good because we
ˇ Conscience: did what was right. A
A sense of right wise proverb says that it
or wrong that we is beauty when we pass
have inside of us. over transgression.—Prov-
It can stop us erbs 19:11.
from doing wrong 6 What if someone does
things, and it can
something against us that
make us do good is difficult to forget? It is
things not wise to talk about it to
others. This kind of gos-
sip puts the peace of the
congregation in danger. What can we
do to solve the problem? Matthew 18:
15 says: “If your brother commits a sin,
go lay bare his fault between you and
him alone. If he listens to you, you have
gained your brother.” Even though Mat-
thew 18:15-17 talks about a serious sin,
we could use the principle, or lesson, in
verse 15 in other situations. So when we
have a problem with someone, it is best
to talk to him alone about it. We should
talk to our brother kindly and try to have
peace with him again.1—See footnote.
7 The apostle Paul wrote: “Be wrath-
ful, and yet do not sin; let the sun not
set with you in a provoked state, neither
allow place for the Devil.” (Ephesians 4:
1 The Bible gives us more information about
what to do when there are serious problems,
such as slander and fraud. See The Watchtower,
October 15, 1999, pages 17-22.
6. What if someone does something against
us that is difficult to forget?
7. Why should we solve problems quickly?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
26, 27) And Jesus said: “Be about set-
tling matters quickly with the one com-
plaining against you at law.” (Matthew
5:25) So to keep peace with others, we
must solve problems quickly. When we
do not do that, problems become big-
ger and more serious, just as a cut in
our skin gets infected if we do not treat
it quickly. We should not let pride, jeal-
ousy, or the love of money stop us from
solving any problems with our brothers.
—James 4:1-6.
WHEN A PROBLEM
INVOLVES MANY PEOPLE
8 Some problems in the congregation
may involve many people. This hap-
pened to some Christians in Rome.
There was an argument among Jew-
ish and Gentile Christians. Some had a
weaker conscience. There were a lot of
things that their conscience did not al-
low them to do, even though the Scrip-
tures did not say that these things were
wrong. Others in the congregation had
a stronger conscience. They thought that
they were better than those who had a
weaker conscience. And those who had
a weaker conscience started to condemn
the ones who had a stronger conscience.
But all these arguments were about per-
sonal choices. What did Paul tell the
congregation?—Romans 14:1-6.
9 Those with a stronger conscience
understood that they did not have to
obey the Law of Moses. Those with a
weaker conscience thought that it was
wrong to eat things that were not al-
lowed under the Law. Paul corrected
both groups of Christians. Paul told
8, 9. (a) What argument was there in the
congregation in Rome? (b) How did Paul cor-
rect the Christians in Rome?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
those with a stronger conscience not to
think that they were better than those
who had a weaker conscience. (Romans
14:2, 10) This way of thinking and act-
ing could cause those with a weaker
conscience to abandon their friendship
with Jehovah. Paul added: “Stop tearing
down the work of God just for the sake
of food.” He also said: “It is well not to
eat flesh or to drink wine or do anything
over which your brother stumbles.” (Ro-
mans 14:14, 15, 20, 21) Paul told those
with a weaker conscience not to judge
those who had a different way of think-
ing. (Romans 14:13) He told them: “I tell
everyone there among you not to think
We can solve
problems with our
brothers if we do
what the Bible
tells us
more of himself than it is necessary to
think.” (Romans 12:3) After he corrected
both groups of Christians, he said: “So,
then, let us pursue the things making for
peace and the things that are upbuild-
ing to one another.”—Romans 14:19.
10 We can be sure that the congrega-
tion in Rome accepted what Paul told
them and made the needed changes. To-
day, we can solve arguments with our
brothers and sisters in a loving way if
we do what the Bible tells us. As with
the Christians in Rome, if there is a
10. As with the Christians in Rome, what
should those now involved in an argument do
to solve the problem?
23
problem in the congregation today, all
those involved need to make changes
to “keep peace between one another.”
—Mark 9:50.
HOW ELDERS CAN HELP
11 What if someone has a problem
with a family member or with another
Christian and wants to talk to an elder
about it? Proverbs 21:13 says: “Anyone
stopping up his ear from the complain-
ing cry of the lowly one, he himself also
will call and not be answered.” An el-
der would be “stopping up his ear” if
he did not listen to someone asking for
help. But another proverb says: “The
first to state his case seems right, un-
til his opponent begins to cross-examine
him.” (Proverbs 18:17, New English Trans-
lation) An elder should listen kindly, but
he needs to be careful not to make any
decisions before he knows more about
the problem. After listening to the per-
son, the elder could ask him if he has
talked about the problem with the oth-
er person. The elder could also review
with him what the Bible says we should
do to keep peace with our brothers and
sisters.
12 It is dangerous to act too quick-
ly after hearing only what one person
has to say about a problem. Three Bi-
ble examples show this. The first one
is what happened to Potiphar. His wife
lied and told him that Joseph had tried
to rape her. Potiphar believed her. He
was so angry that he sent Joseph to
11. What should an elder do if a person wants
to talk to him about a problem that the person
is having with another Christian?
12. What three examples show the danger of
acting too quickly after hearing about a prob-
lem?
24
prison. (Genesis 39:19, 20) Another ex-
ample is what King David did. Mephib-
osheth’s servant, Ziba, told David that
Mephibosheth was helping David’s ene-
mies. David believed him and said with-
out thinking: “Look! Yours is everything
that belongs to Mephibosheth.” (2 Sam-
uel 16:4; 19:25-27) A third example is
what happened to King Artaxerxes. En-
emies of the Jews told the king that the
Jews were building Jerusalem again be-
cause they wanted to rebel against him.
The king believed this lie and ordered
that the Jews stop their work. Because of
this, the Jews stopped working on God’s
temple. (Ezra 4:11-13, 23, 24) Christian
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
elders are wise to do what Paul said to
Timothy and not make any judgments
before knowing all the facts about a sit-
uation.—Read 1 Timothy 5:21.
13 The Bible says: “If anyone thinks he
has acquired knowledge of something,
he does not yet know it just as he ought
to know it.” (1 Corinthians 8:2) We may
think we know what happened when
there is an argument between two peo-
ple. But we need to remember that we
may not know all the facts. Also, we may
13, 14. (a) When there is an argument be-
tween two people, what do we need to remem-
ber? (b) What can help elders to make correct
judgments?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
not know everything about the two peo-
ple who have the problem. Elders must
be very careful when they judge the situ-
ation and not let themselves be deceived
by lies or rumors about what happened.
Also, they should not believe someone
just because he is rich. Jesus, the judge
God chose, does not “judge by any mere
appearance to his eyes, nor reprove sim-
ply according to the thing heard by his
ears.” (Isaiah 11:3, 4) Jesus is guided by
God’s spirit. Christian elders too must
be guided by God’s spirit.
14 Elders need to pray for Jehovah’s
spirit before judging a problem. They al-
low God’s spirit to guide them by us-
25
ing the Bible and the publications of
“the faithful and discreet slave.”—Mat-
thew 24:45.
WE MUST KEEP PEACE WITH GOD
15 The Bible tells us to keep peace with
others. But it also says: “The wisdom
from above is first of all chaste, then
peaceable.” (James 3:17) The Bible says
that first we need to be chaste. To be
chaste, or clean, means to allow God to
tell us what is right and what is wrong
and to live in a way that pleases him. If
a Christian knows that a brother or sister
15. If a Christian knows of a serious sin, when
should he tell the elders about it?
Jehovah loves
those who
freely forgive
others
26
WHAT DID YOU has done something se-
LEARN? riously wrong, he should
tell that person to con-
ˇ What can we do to fess the sin to the el-
keep peace when we ders. (1 Corinthians 6:9,
offend someone? 10; James 5:14-16) If the
ˇ What can we do person does not confess
to keep peace when his sin, the Christian who
someone offends us? knows of the sin should
ˇ When there is an tell the elders about it.
argument between If the Christian does not
two people, what say anything because he
do we need wants to keep peace with
to remember? the sinner, then he too
is sinning.—Leviticus 5:1;
ˇ Why is it more im-
read Proverbs 29:24.
portant to do what 16 Jehu did something
is right than to keep
peace with someone that showed that it is
who practices sin? more important to do
what is right than it is to
keep peace with someone
who practices sin. God
sent Jehu to punish King Ahab’s family.
The son of Ahab and Jezebel was wick-
ed King Jehoram. He rode in his char-
iot to meet Jehu and asked: “Is there
peace, Jehu?” Jehu answered: “What
peace could there be as long as there are
the fornications of Jezebel your mother
and her many sorceries?” (2 Kings 9:22)
Then Jehu used his bow to shoot Jeho-
ram in the heart. Just as Jehu took ac-
tion, so elders will need to take action
if a sinner is not repentant. They can-
not allow those who refuse to repent of
their sins to remain part of the congre-
gation just to keep peace with them. The
elders remove them so that the congre-
gation can continue to have peace with
God.—1 Corinthians 5:1, 2, 11-13.
16. What can we learn from the action Jehu
took against King Jehoram?
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011
17 Most of the time, the problems be-
tween us are not about serious sins. So
it is much better to show love and for-
get the mistakes our brothers make. The
Bible says: “The one covering over trans-
gression is seeking love, and he that
keeps talking about a matter is sepa-
rating those familiar with one another.”
(Proverbs 17:9) If we do what the Bible
says, we will keep peace in the congre-
gation and keep our friendship with Je-
hovah.—Matthew 6:14, 15.
GOD BLESSES
THOSE WHO KEEP PEACE
18 Jehovah blesses us when we make
the effort to keep peace. We have a
strong friendship with Jehovah, and we
have a part in keeping the unity of the
congregation. When we keep peace in-
side the congregation, we also learn how
to keep peace with those to whom we
preach “the good news of peace.” (Ephe-
sians 6:15) We are ready to “be gentle
toward all” and to keep ourselves “re-
strained under evil.”—2 Timothy 2:24.
19 Our efforts to keep peace now train
us for the future. The Bible says that Je-
hovah will resurrect both the righteous
and the unrighteous. (Acts 24:15) This
means that Jehovah will resurrect mil-
lions of people of all types. They will
be from different parts of the world and
from different time periods, even from
the beginning of human history. (Luke
11:50, 51) It will be our great honor to
teach resurrected ones to love peace.
The training we get now will greatly help
us at that time!
17. What do all Christians need to do to keep
peace?
18, 19. How does Jehovah bless us when we
make efforts to keep peace?

QUESTIONS FROM READERS
˛ What does the information in the annual
service report mean?
Every year a report about the preaching work
is printed in the Yearbook. We are very happy to
know what Jehovah’s people around the world
are doing to preach God’s Kingdom and teach
others about it. But to understand what the re-
port really means, we need to understand what
some of the titles and numbers refer to. Here
are some examples.
Service year. A service year starts in Sep-
tember and ends in August. The report in the
Yearbook is always about the service year before
the date on the Yearbook. For example, the 2011
Yearbook contains the report for the service year
from September 1, 2009, to August 31, 2010.
Peak publishers and average publishers.
Publishers are baptized Witnesses and others
who are approved to preach the good news of
the Kingdom. The number of “peak publish-
ers” is taken from the month of the service year
with the highest number of reports. The num-
ber may include some reports that came too late
to be counted the previous month. The num-
ber of “average publishers” refers to the number
of publishers who normally report their time
in the preaching work each month.
Total hours. The 2011 Yearbook shows that
the total time that Jehovah’s Witnesses used
for the preaching work was more than 1.6 bil-
lion hours. But this total does not include all
the time that we use to worship Jehovah. For
example, it does not include the time that the
elders use to shepherd the members of the con-
gregation, that is, to help and encourage them.
It also does not include the time we use to at-
tend meetings, to study the Bible, and to med-
itate about what we learn.
Money. During the 2010 service year, Jeho-
vah’s Witnesses spent more than $155 mil-
27
lion to care for the needs of special pioneers,
missionaries, and traveling overseers. But this
amount of money does not include the money
needed for printing Bibles, books, and maga-
zines. And it does not include the money need-
ed to care for the more than 20,000 brothers
and sisters who work as volunteers in Bethel
homes around the world.
Memorial partakers. This is the number of
all the baptized Witnesses who partake of the
bread and wine at the Memorial. But this num-
ber may not be the exact number of anointed
ones on earth. For example, some may have the
wrong idea about going to heaven because of
what they believed in the past or because they
have mental or emotional problems. So it is not
possible to know the exact number of anoint-
ed ones who are on earth, and we do not need
The annual report tells us
what Jehovah’s people are
doing around the world
to know. The Governing Body does not keep a
list of the names of everyone who partakes of
the bread and wine at the Memorial.1—See foot-
note.
What we do know is that there will be some
of the anointed “slaves of our God” on earth
when the great tribulation starts. (Revelation 7:
1-3) While they are still on earth, the anoint-
ed are working very hard in the preaching and
teaching work. The annual report tells us what
Jehovah’s people around the world are doing in
this most important work in human history.
1 For more information, see the article “The Faithful
Steward and Its Governing Body,” in the June 15, 2009,
issue of The Watchtower, page 24.
28
Some Ideas for
Family Worship and
Personal Study
S INCE the beginning of 2009, the congrega-
tions of Jehovah’s Witnesses began meeting
just one evening each week instead of two eve-
nings. Because of this change, the Governing
Body encouraged us to use one evening a week
for family worship or personal study. Have you
been using this time well? What you choose to
do during this evening can help you and your
family very much.
What should we study during our family wor-
ship? The Governing Body does not tell families
what they should study every week. Every fam-
ily has different needs. So the head of the fam-
ily should think about what his family needs
and decide what will help them the most. In-
dividuals can also decide how they can use this
time in the best way.
Some families prepare for congregation
meetings together. But this is not the only thing
that we can do for family worship. Some fam-
ilies read the Bible or some information from
our publications and discuss it together. Oth-
ers prepare a drama about a story in the Bi-
ble. This is especially beneficial for young chil-
dren. So our family worship does not need to
be like a meeting in the congregation, where we
read paragraphs and ask questions. The time
for family worship should be a time when we
can talk and say what is in our heart. It is a
time when we can use our imagination and have
interesting conversations about the things we
read in the Bible. In this way, the evenings to-
gether as a family will be a happy time for every-
one.
One father of three children wrote to explain
what his family does for family worship. He has
a daughter, Kaitlyn, and two sons, David and
Michael. Kaitlyn is 15 years old, David is 13,
and Michael is 7. For family worship, the fami-
ly often uses the chapters from the Bible reading
for that week. First everyone reads the chapters.
Then the children choose something that they
would like to study more about. Later they tell
their parents what they learned. Michael often
draws a picture or writes something about what
he reads. Sometimes David and Kaitlyn write
about a story in the Bible as if they were watch-
ing what was happening. For example, one week
the family read in Genesis chapter 40 about the
time when Joseph explained to two of Pharaoh’s
slaves what their dreams meant. And Kaitlyn
wrote about this as if she were a prisoner watch-
ing what was happening.
This is just an example of what families can
do during their family worship. Because every-
one is different, each person or family can de-
cide what is best for them. The box in this ar-
ticle gives some other ideas of things we can
do during family worship or personal study. You
can probably think of many other ideas too.
For families with For married people with For those who are single
teenagers: no children: or alone in the truth:
˙ Read and talk about a ˙ Talk together about ˙ Study the new publica-
chapter from Questions chapters 1, 3, 11-16 in tions that we have re-
Young People Ask the book The Secret of ceived at our district
—Answers That Work. Family Happiness. conventions.
˙ Imagine that you were ˙ Read and study some ˙ Read the Yearbook and
living in Bible times. chapters of the Bible, also Yearbooks of other
(For example, see The and talk about what you years.
Watchtower of May 15, learn. ˙ Learn how to answer
1996, page 14, para- ˙ Prepare the Congregation different questions that
graphs 17-18.) Bible Study or the Watch- people ask when you
˙ Talk about what you plan tower Study. preach to them.
to do in Jehovah’s service ˙ Talk about how you could ˙ Prepare some ideas of
—now and in the future. do more in Jehovah’s what to say to people in
˙ Watch one of our videos service. the preaching work.
and talk about it.
˙ Study the articles “For
Young People” in The For families with
Watchtower.
young children:
˙ Prepare a drama about
a story from the Bible.
˙ Play games, for example
by using page 31 of
Awake!
˙ Do something that en-
courages the children to
use their imagination.
(For example, see “Study-
ing the Bible—In the Zoo!”
in Awake! of March 8,
1996, pages 16-19.)
˙ Read together the articles
“Teach Your Children”
in The Watchtower.
 USE THE
INTERNET IN A
WISE WAY
T HE Internet makes it possible for
us to have knowledge about almost
anything, anywhere, at any time. It is not
surprising that people everywhere in the
world use it to communicate.
The ability to communicate is a won-
derful gift from our Creator. It allows us
to exchange ideas and information with
others. Jehovah was the first to commu-
nicate with the human family. He gave
them clear information about how to
have a life full of meaning. (Genesis 1:
28-30) But it is possible to use the gift of
communication in the wrong way. This
is what happened in the beginning of
human history. Satan gave Eve false in-
formation. She believed what he said,
and she told Adam. Adam acted on the
false information, and his actions made
all humans suffer.—Genesis 3:1-6; Ro-
mans 5:12.
The Internet can give us access to
important information and help us do
things faster. But it can also give false
information, take a lot of time from
other things, and make it very easy to
look at immoral things. Let us talk about
how we can use the Internet in a wise
way.
IS THE INFORMATION
TRUE OR FALSE?
Do not think that all information on
the Internet is good. When we search
the Internet, we can get the very best
kind or the very worst kind of informa-
tion. We need to be wise and separate
the good from the bad.
Today, anyone with an Internet con-
nection can pretend to be an expert and
to have a lot of knowledge. And people
do not even have to use their names.
Anyone can publish ideas, information,
photographs, and suggestions.
Do not trust the information immedi-
ately. Before you trust it, ask: (1) Who
published this information? Is the writ-
er someone we can trust? (2) Why was
it published? Why was it written? Is the
writer a fair person, or is he just pro-
moting his own ideas? (3) Where did
the writer get the information? Does he
say where he got the information so that
people can check it? (4) Is the infor-
mation up-to-date? In the first century,
the apostle Paul gave Timothy some ad-
vice that is just as important for us to-
day. Paul wrote: “Guard what is laid up
in trust with you, turning away from
THE WATCHTOWER ˙ AUGUST 15, 2011 31

But there are some dan-

gers. For example, we
have to think about how
much time we use on the
Internet. Some spend too
How can you be sure that much time playing, shop-
the information you are ping, chatting, e-mailing,
getting is true? searching, and surfing
the Web. They sometimes
forget about their fami-
ly, friends, and congrega-
tion. They can become ad-
dicted to the Internet.
A branch office of Jeho-
vah’s Witnesses received
a letter from someone
who called himself an In-
ternet junkie, meaning
that he was addicted to
the Internet. Some days
he was on the Internet for
ten hours. He said that
the empty speeches that violate what is “at first, it all seemed so innocent.”
holy and from the contradictions of the But then he started to miss meetings
falsely called ‘knowledge.’ ”—1 Timothy and stopped praying. When he went to
6:20. the meetings, he was not prepared and
thought only about when he was going
DOES THE INTERNET to “be able to log on again.” In time, he
SAVE TIME OR WASTE TIME?
understood that he had a serious prob-
If we use the Internet in a wise way, lem, and he made the necessary chang-
it can help us use less of our time, en- es. We should never use so much time
ergy, and money. We can conveniently on the Internet that we become addict-
buy something without leaving home. It ed to it.
can help us to find the best price. Instead
of going to a bank, people can pay bills, WHAT KIND OF INFORMATION
transfer money, and do other things like DO YOU LOOK AT?
that from home. The Internet can help We read at 1 Thessalonians 5:21, 22:
us plan a trip and buy tickets. It is also “Make sure of all things; hold fast to
easy to search for phone numbers, ad- what is fine. Abstain from every form
dresses, and directions. Branch offices of of wickedness.” When we look at some-
Jehovah’s Witnesses all over the world thing on the Internet, we need to re-
use many of these services and benefit member what Jehovah thinks of it.
from them. What we look at should be morally clean
 What should you
think about before you
hit the send button?

and appropriate for a Chris-

tian. Internet pornography
has become very common.
If we are not careful, it can
very easily become a prob-
lem for us.
To help us decide about
what we should or should
not look at on the Internet,
think about this question: ‘Is
what I watch on the screen
something I would quick-
ly hide from my husband
(or wife), my parents, or my
Christian brothers if they entered the
room?’ If the answer is yes, it would be
better to use the Internet only when oth-
ers are with us. The Internet has com-
pletely changed the way people commu-
nicate and shop. But it has also shown
people a new way to commit adultery in
their hearts.—Matthew 5:27, 28.
WHAT SHOULD WE
FORWARD TO OTHERS?
When we use the Internet, we of-
ten exchange information with people.
We must be sure that the information
we write or forward to others is true, is
not immoral, and is information we have
permission to give.1 (See footnote.) We
should think about this: Is the informa-
tion going to help others? Why do we
1 We can say the same thing about photos. We
may take pictures of others for our own use.
But we do not have the right to show these pic-
tures to just anybody or to tell others the names
of the people in the photos and where they live.
www.watchtower.org
want to tell others about it? Is it just to
impress others?
E-mail can be very useful when we
use it the right way. But it can also
give us a lot of unnecessary information.
Are we giving others too much to read,
maybe using more of their time than
we should? Should we not think about
why we are sending an e-mail before we
hit the send button? In the past, people
wrote letters to their family and friends
to tell them about what was happening
in their life. This should be what our
e-mail is mainly about. Why send to oth-
ers something that we cannot prove is
true?
So, what should you do about the In-
ternet? Should you not use it at all? For
some this may be necessary. The Inter-
net junkie whom we talked about earli-
er had to do that. The Internet can be
helpful to you if you use “thinking abili-
ty” and allow it to “keep guard over you.”
—Proverbs 2:10, 11.
ws11 08/15-E