Currently, a number of JWs seem to think that the earth was created 7,000 years ago, basing this in part on the Society teaching that one day is as a thoudand years. Thus, since we are near the end of the seventh creative day, then the earth and all life on it are only about 7,000-years old. However, this is not official Watchtower teaching, unless the Society has made a radial change in the last 14-years that I somehow missed.
The February 1, 1973 Watchtower, pages 82-83 deal with this topic:
It should be remembered that trees and other vegetation have been on earth much longer than man. Man did not put in his appearance until immediately before the seventh "day" of the creative "week," or nearly 6,000 years ago.
Therefore, if the end of the sixth creative day was nearly 6,000-years ago (by 1973) then we are still in the seventh creative day, according to the Society. So, the article goes on to date trees:
Since each of the creative "days" or periods was evidently seven thousand years long, the whole creative "week" takes in 49,000 years. If that period is likened to a twelve-hour clock, then trees and other vegetation appeared between about three-thirty and five-fifteen [thousand years ago.] And man? Much later—sometime after ten o’clock! Yes, trees on earth for between twenty-seven thousand and thirty-four thousand years far outdate man’s nearly six-thousand-year tenure.
The Watchtower article had a typo, because they forgot to add in "thousand years ago" at the end of the first sentence. So, here they establish a creative day as 7,000 years. If Adam and Eve were created at the end of the sixth day, or at the end of 42,000-years of life on earth, and we are about 6,000-years from the creation of Adam, then the 1,000-year rule is just rightaround the corner: 42,000-years + 6,000-years + 1,000-years = 49,000-years of the completion of a creative week. Since God rested on the seventh-day, his rest will end at the end of Jesus rule 1,000-years from now, and then Jehovah will get back to work, and began creating again. Perfect humans will be there to enjoy it. Isn't that so clear and marvelous?
Of course, in discussing the age of trees and the length of creative days, and living to enjoy all these future life privilegs, the Society just had to mention APOSTATES, and managed somehow to fit this into their article:
For instance, by avoiding apostates you will not be led astray by their twisted ideas. Similarly, by shunning wrong and immoral association and bad practices you are not likely to fall victim to syphilis, gonorrhea or certain other forms of disease. - P. 83, ibid
The chart on page 83 sums it all up:
[Chart on page 83](For fully formatted text, see publication)
7,000 YEARS 14,000 YEARS Day Three Trees Created 21,000 YEARS 28,000 YEARS 35,000 YEARS Day Six Man Created 42,000 YEARS49,000 YEARS
Amen, Dark Lord, let trees sing, let man live to be a 1,000-years, and by all means, avoid Apostates, and sexually transmitted diseases! Praise Jah!
Jim Whitney