The Watchtower Society
& The Scarlet-coloured Wild Beast

Just what is the Scarlet-coloured Wild beast? Ask this question to any Jehovah's Witness and they will immediately give you the answer taught by the Watchtower Society for the past fifty years. In their recent book "Pay Attention to Daniel's Prophecy" (1999) the Beast is revealed: -

  • "What "disgusting thing" has been "put in place" in modern times, it is a "disgusting" counterfeit of God's Kingdom. This was the League of Nations, the scarlet colored wild beast that went into the abyss, or ceased to exist as a world peace organisation, when World War II erupted. (Revelation 17:8). "The wild beast" however was to "ascend out of the abyss". This it did when the United Nations, with 50 member nations including the former Soviet Union, was established on October 24, 1945. Thus "the disgusting thing" foretold by the angel -- the United Nations -- was put in place".
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    In an earlier book published in 1998 "Revelation, It's Grand Climax at Hand" it says of the "scarlet colored wild beast" on page 248 :-

    "The UN, then, is actually a revival of the scarlet-colored wild beast. Its membership of over 150 nations far exceeds that of the League’s 63; it has also taken on broader responsibilities than its predecessor."

    Page 254 continues :-

  • "These are symbolized by "ten horns" that support the United Nations, "a scarlet-colored wild beast" that is the image of Satan’s bloodstained political system.—Revelation 16:2; 17:3-16."
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    The book "Mankind's Search for God (1990)" says on page 369 :-

  • "Notice that the "scarlet-colored wild beast "is also itself an eighth king." Thus, the United Nations today is designed to look like a world government."
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    The 1986 book "Worldwide Security" says of the beast on page 30 :-

  • "Thus Babylon the Great was permitted to survive into the postwar era. When the League of Nations was proposed as a world peacekeeping body, the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America came out in support of it, publicly announcing that the League of Nations was "the political expression of the Kingdom of God on earth." When the proposed League was finally established, Babylon the Great climbed onto its back and thus began her ride on this symbolic "scarlet-colored wild beast."—Revelation 17:3."

    "When the man-made peacekeeping agency, in the form of the United Nations, ascended out of the abyss of inactivity at the close of World War II, Babylon the Great immediately climbed upon its back and started exercising her influence over it."

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    The book "Your Kingdom Come" (1981) says on page 166

  • "What composite "beast" has appeared in these "last days," and what has been its performance on the world stage? At an international convention of Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1942, the public talk entitled "Peace—Can It Last?" called attention to the prophecy at Revelation 17:7, 8. The speaker, Watch Tower president N. H. Knorr, identified "the wild beast that . . . was" as the League of Nations—brought forth in 1920. But now, in that wartime year of 1942, he stated: "The League is in effect in a state of suspended animation, and needs to be revived if it is ever to live again. It has gone into the abyss of inaction and ineffectiveness. It ‘is not.’" President Knorr went on to show that "the wild beast that . . . was, but is not, . . . is about to ascend out of the abyss, and it is to go off into destruction." True to the Bible prophecy, that "beast" was revived in 1945 as the United Nations."
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    Another publication "Your Will Be Done" (1958) states on page 282

  • "The seven-headed scarlet-colored beast was again out of the abyss, and on January 10, 1946, its first General Assembly opened in London, England. It was the same beast, for the United Nations had a striking resemblance to the League of Nations, which now closed up and later turned over its physical properties to the U.N."
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    The above quotes are only some of the many that show that the Watchtower Society has never had a doubt that the United Nations was not only the "Scarlet-colored Wild Beast", but also the "disgusting thing" and the "eighth king". According to the Watchtower Society the United Nations was a despised, doomed organisation according to the Watchtower's twisted interpretation of Revelation 17:8 which reads:-

  • "The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is."
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    It really surprises us that the Watchtower Society can get all this out of this one Scripture with a few link ups to others. As time passed nothing changed the status quo on the "scarlet-coloured wild beast -- the UN" until a strange thing happened in 2001. At that time it came as a great shock to everyone both inside and outside the Watchtower Society to learn that the Watchtower Society was a member in good standing of this same United Nations. (See our article).

    They themselves were found to be part of this "disgusting thing" and therefore in league with this "eighth king", this "scarlet-coloured wild beast". As the news quickly spread around the world via the Internet the Watchtower Society quickly resigned from the membership of the United Nations. They quickly stated that they had only been a member to obtain a valid library ticket and had only been an NGO (Non Government Organisation). However on reading the rules and regulations, available on the United Nations website, even an NGO had to state that they supported the ideals of the United Nations.

    We, in the world of the cult watchers, knew that the Society had to do something quick to either prove they had never been a member, (unfortunately for them this was a little too late,) or else get "new light" on the United Nations to make the UN appear to be better than they had painted it in the past.

    Remember it was the United Nations, according to Watchtower teaching, that was to join up with "Gog of Magog" (Satan), to bring on the battle of Armageddon and destroy everyone who was not a Jehovah's Witness and then try to destroy the Watchtower faithful before being stopped by Jesus Christ (Michael the Archangel in their theology) leading the heavenly host. The United Nations has always been a major player in Watchtower theology.

    The June 1, 2003 Watchtower caused much interest in an article found on page 20 of that magazine under the heading of "Who Will Lead God's Attack?"

  • "Gog of Magog is identified as Satan the Devil in his debased position since 1914. As a spirit creature, he cannot carry out his attack directly, but will use human agencies to do his deeds. Who will those human agencies be? The Bible does not give us details, yet it does give us certain indications that can help us to identify who they will be. As world events unfold in fulfilment of Bible prophecies, we will gradually get an ever-clearer picture. Jehovah's people avoid speculation but remain spiritually alert, fully aware of political and religious developments that fit into the framework of the fulfilment of Bible prophecy"
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    In this important article it is not so much what the paragraph above says, rather more important is what it does NOT say. For over 50 years and more the "human agencies" working with Gog of Magog (Satan) have always been identified by the Society as this "eighth king, this "disgusting thing", this "scarlet coloured wild beast" the United Nations. Now suddenly, looking at the above quoted article, they do not know who these human agencies will be, nor do they have any details. All this is said by them without any reference whatsoever to the United Nations, no statement about change in doctrine, or any statement about "new light".

    It is interesting to note that a special meeting occurred within the Watchtower Organisation on October 8th 2001 for all Jehovah's Witnesses regarding important changes that were coming. The meeting turned out to be somewhat of a non-event as everyone heard a tired old talk with nothing new in it. All were disappointed. It is thought that maybe this special meeting had been called to divulge "new light" on the United Nations. When the scandal broke over the Watchtower involvement in the UN it was perhaps considered too soon and too divisive to bring this news to the members and perhaps that is why nothing happened at that meeting.

    Now in 2002/3 when things have calmed down somewhat, members are being carefully groomed to accept "new light" by this carefully worded paragraph in the June 2003 Watchtower. The promise is held out like a carrot on a stick, "The Bible does not give us details, yet it does give us certain indications that can help us to identify who they will be." The faithful will be the edge or their seats waiting for these indications and human agencies to be revealed. All the Jehovah's Witness has to do is to adjust their thinking to conform to the "new light"

    We can only hope that the Jehovah's Witnesses will recognise that they have been misled for more than a century with consistently false prophecies and changed interpretations which cannot be of God. The Watchtower Society claim to be God's prophet (WT April 1, 1972 p 197) and state that they alone in all the earth are directed by God's holy spirit (WT July 1, 1973 p402). When they constantly change their doctrines how can they be guided by God's Holy Spirit?, did God get it wrong and then have to give them another revelation to put it right? I think not, the Bible tells us that "God cannot lie" and the only other explanation is that God never gave the Watchtower Society any revelation at any time.

    We urge all Jehovah's Witnesses to leave this false organisation and give the real Jesus Christ a chance to redeem them with a salvation that is free, certain and unchangeable.