The Importance of 1914
As Jesus was said to have begun his Kingdom reign in 1914, how much longer could the New World be in coming? The hopes of the Jehovah's Witnesses still hung on a statement made by Jesus. Having condemned the Scribes and Pharisees for their hypocrisy and treatment of the prophets, Jesus went on to speak of the destruction of Jerusalem. He was talking to the Scribes and Pharisees and telling them they would pay for the wrong they had done with their lives:
Truly I say to you. All these things will come upon this generation. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the killer of the prophets… Matthew 23:36, 37 - New World Translation
Jesus then left them and was approached by his disciples who asked him to look at the temple buildings with them. Jesus was asked by them when the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of their temple would be. He then gave a detailed description of the events leading up to this. Jesus then repeated his statement concerning the generation then living to his disciples:
I tell you this: this present generation will live to see it all. Matthew24:34- The New English Bible
Truly I say to you that this generation will by no means pass away until all things occur. Matthew 24:34 - New World Translation
(Taken from, Can Jehovah’s Witnesses Survive? By Trevor Willis)