Here is some info from the 1997 CD.
I shortened it as much as possible, but I hope it still makes sense - well as much as it ever could.
Enjoy!!!!
*** it-2 260-1 Locust ***
LOCUST.
Locust
Plagues. An invasion of locusts can transform a land from a paradiselike state into a wilderness, for their appetite is voracious. (Joe 2:3) A single migratory locust consumes its own body weight in food in a day; that is proportionately 60 to 100 times as much as a human consumes. They eat not only greenery but also linen, wool, silk, and leather, not even sparing the varnish on the furniture as they penetrate the houses. The daily food consumption of a large swarm has been estimated as equaling that of a million and a half men.
A swarm of locusts progresses like a well-organized, disciplined fighting force, but without king or leader, this testifying to their instinctive wisdom. (Pr 30:24, 27) Even though many perish, the onslaught continues. Fires built to check their advance are extinguished by the bodies of the dead locusts. Water-filled ditches are of no avail in impeding their progress, for these likewise become filled with their dead bodies. (Joe 2:7-9) "There is no known natural enemy that can keep their devastating migrations in check," wrote a zoology professor.The
New
York
Times
Magazine, "The Locust War," May 22, 1960, p. 96.
*** re 142-8 22 The First Woe-Locusts ***
Chapter
22The
First
WoeLocustsThe
20th-Century
Plague 7
The account continues:
"And
he
opened
the
pit
of
the
abyss,
and
smoke
ascended
out
of
the
pit
as
the
smoke
of
a
great
furnace,
and
the
sun
was
darkened,
also
the
air,
by
the
smoke
of
the
pit.
And
out
of
the
smoke
locusts
came
forth
upon
the
earth;
and
authority
was
given
them,
the
same
authority
as
the
scorpions
of
the
earth
have."
(Revelation
9:2,
3) Scripturally, "the abyss" is a place of inactivity, even of death. (Compare Romans 10:7; Revelation 17:8; 20:1, 3.) The small band of Jesus brothers spent a short time in such an "abyss" of relative inactivity at the end of the first world war (1918-19). But when Jehovah poured his spirit upon his repentant servants in 1919, they swarmed forth to meet the challenge of the work that lay ahead.
Those
Tormenting
Locusts! 9
What battle instructions did those locusts receive? John reports:
"And
they
were
told
to
harm
no
vegetation
of
the
earth
nor
any
green
thing
nor
any
tree,
but
only
those
men
who
do
not
have
the
seal
of
God
on
their
foreheads.
And
it
was
granted
the
locusts,
not
to
kill
them,
but
that
these
should
be
tormented
five
months,
and
the
torment
upon
them
was
as
torment
by
a
scorpion
when
it
strikes
a
man.
And
in
those
days
the
men
will
seek
death
but
will
by
no
means
find
it,
and
they
will
desire
to
die
but
death
keeps
fleeing
from
them."Revelation
9:4-6. 10
Notice that this plague is not directed first against the people or prominent ones among themthe vegetation and trees of the earth. (Compare Revelation 8:7.) The locusts are to harm only those men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads, those in Christendom who claim to be sealed but whose record belies that claim. (Ephesians 1:13, 14) Thus, the tormenting utterances of these modern-day locusts were directed first against the religious leaders of Christendom. How these self-assuming men must have been tormented at hearing it publicly announced that not only were they failing to lead their flocks to heaven but they themselves would not get there! Truly, it has been a case of the blind leading the blind!Matthew 15:14.
11
The torment lasts for five months. Is that a relatively short time? Not from the point of view of a literal locust. Five months describes the normal life span of one of these insects. Therefore, it is for as long as they live that the modern-day locusts keep stinging Gods enemies. Moreover, the torment is so severe that men seek to die. True, we have no record that any of those who were stung by the locusts actually tried to kill themselves. But the expression helps us to picture the intensity of the tormentas though by the relentless assault of scorpions. It is like the suffering foreseen by Jeremiah for those unfaithful Israelites who would be scattered by the Babylonian conquerors and for whom death would be preferable to life.Jeremiah 8:3; see also Ecclesiastes 4:2, 3.
12
Why is it granted to torment these ones, in a spiritual sense, and not to kill them? This is an initial woe in the exposing of the lies of Christendom and her failures, but only later, as the Lords day progresses, will her deathlike spiritual state be fully publicized. It will be during a second woe that a third of the men are killed.Revelation 1:10; 9:12, 18; 11:14.
Locusts
Equipped
for
Battle 13
What a remarkable appearance those locusts have! John describes it:
"And
the
likenesses
of
the
locusts
resembled
horses
prepared
for
battle;
and
upon
their
heads
were
what
seemed
to
be
crowns
like
gold,
and
their
faces
were
as
mens
faces,
but
they
had
hair
as
womens
hair.
And
their
teeth
were
as
those
of
lions;
and
they
had
breastplates
like
iron
breastplates.
And
the
sound
of
their
wings
was
as
the
sound
of
chariots
of
many
horses
running
into
battle."Revelation
9:7-9. 14
This well illustrates the loyal group of revived Christians in 1919. Like horses, they were ready for battle, eager to fight for the truth in the way described by the apostle Paul. (Ephesians 6:11-13; 2 Corinthians 10:4) On their heads John sees what
seem to be crowns as of gold. It would not be proper for them to have actual crowns because they do not begin ruling while they are still on earth. (1 Corinthians 4:8; Revelation 20:4) But in 1919 they already had a royal appearance. They were brothers of the King, and their heavenly crowns were reserved for them provided they continued faithful to the end.2 Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 5:4.
15
In the vision, the locusts have iron breastplates, symbolizing unbreakable righteousness. (Ephesians 6:14-18) They also have mens faces, this feature pointing to the quality of love, since man was made in the image of God, who is love. (Genesis 1:26; 1 John 4:16). Their hair is long like a womans, which well pictures subjection to their King, the angel of the abyss. And their teeth resemble a lions teeth. A lion uses its teeth to tear meat. From 1919 onward, the John class has again been able to take in solid spiritual food, particularly the truths about Gods Kingdom ruled by "the Lion that is of the tribe of Judah," Jesus Christ. Just as the lion symbolizes courage, so great courage has been needed to digest this hard-hitting message, to bring it forth in publications, and to distribute it around the globe. Those figurative locusts have made a lot of noise, like "the sound of chariots of many horses running into battle." After the example of first-century Christians, they do not intend to stay quiet.1 Corinthians 11:7-15; Revelation 5:5.
16
This preaching involves more than the spoken word!
"Also,
they
have
tails
and
stings
like
scorpions;
and
in
their
tails
is
their
authority
to
hurt
the
men
five
months."
(Revelation
9:10) What could this mean? As they go about their Kingdom work, Jehovahs Witnesses leave behind them publicationsbooks, magazines, brochures, timely tracts. These contain authoritative statements, based on Gods Word, for the people to read in their homes, and they have a scorpionlike sting because they warn of Jehovahs approaching day of vengeance. (Isaiah 61:2) Before the present generation of spiritual locusts lives out its life span, its divinely ordained work of declaring Jehovahs judgments will be completedto the hurt of all stiff-necked blasphemers.
17
That locust band was overjoyed when a new magazine,
The
Golden
Age, was announced at their 1919 convention. It was a biweekly magazine, designed to intensify the sting of their witnessing. Its issue No. 27, of September 29, 1920, exposed the clergys duplicity in persecuting the Bible Students in the United States during the 1918-19 period. Through the 1920s and 1930s,
The
Golden
Age tormented the clergy with further stinging articles and cartoons that exposed their crafty dabbling in politics, and especially the Catholic hierarchys accords made with the Fascist and Nazi dictators. In response, the clergy framed mischief by law and organized mob violence against Gods people.Psalm 94:20,
King
James
Version.World
Rulers
Put
on
Notice 18
The modern-day locusts had a job to do. The Kingdom good news had to be preached. Errors had to be exposed. Lost sheep had to be found. As the locusts went about these tasks, the world was forced to sit up and take notice. In obedience to the angels trumpet blasts, the John class has continued to expose Christendom as deserving of Jehovahs adverse judgments. In response to the fifth trumpet, a particular aspect of these judgments was emphasized at a convention of the Bible Students in London, England, May 25-31, 1926. This featured a resolution, "A Testimony to the Rulers of the World," and a public talk at the Royal Albert Hall on "Why World Powers Are TotteringThe Remedy," the complete text of both of these being printed in a leading London newspaper the following day. Later, the locust band distributed worldwide, as a tract, 50 million copies of that resolutiona torment indeed to the clergy! Years later, people in England still spoke of this stinging expos.
19
At this convention, the symbolic locusts received further fighting equipment, notably a new book entitled
Deliverance. It included a Scriptural discussion of the sign proving that the man child government, Christs heavenly Kingdom, had been born in 1914. (Matthew 24:3-14; Luke 21:24-26; Revelation 12:1-10) Thereafter, it quoted the manifesto published in London in 1918 and signed by eight clergymen, who were described as being "among the worlds greatest preachers." They represented the leading Protestant denominationsBaptist, Congregational, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, and Methodist. This manifesto proclaimed that "the present crisis points toward the close of the times of the Gentiles" and that "the revelation of the Lord may be expected at any moment." Yes, those clergymen had recognized the sign of Jesus presence! But did they want to do anything about it? The book
Deliverance informs us: "The most remarkable part of the affair is that the very men who signed the manifesto subsequently repudiated it and rejected the evidence which proves that we are at the end of the world and in the day of the Lords second presence."
20
Rather than announce the incoming Kingdom of God, Christendoms clergy have chosen to remain with Satans world. They want no part with the locust band and their King, concerning whom John now observes:
"They
have
over
them
a
king,
the
angel
of
the
abyss.
In
Hebrew
his
name
is
Abaddon [meaning "Destruction"]
,
but
in
Greek
he
has
the
name
Apollyon [meaning "Destroyer"]
."
(Revelation
9:11) As "angel of the abyss" and "Destroyer," Jesus had truly released a plaguing woe on Christendom. But more is to follow!
[Footnotes]
Compare Joel 2:4, 5, 7 (where the insects are described as horses, people, and men, and as making a sound like a chariot) with Revelation 9:7-9; also, compare Joel 2:6, 10 (describing the painful effect of the insect plague) with Revelation 9:2, 5.
See the article "United Against Nations in the Valley of Decision" in the December 1, 1961, issue of The
Watchtower.
Notice that this scripture cannot be used to prove that there was a fire in the abyss, as if the abyss were some kind of hellfire. John says he saw thick smoke that was "as," or like, the smoke of a great furnace. (Revelation 9:2) He does not report seeing actual flames in the abyss.
The Greek word used here comes from the root basani'zo, which is sometimes used of literal torture; however, it can also be used of mental torment. For example, at 2 Peter 2:8 we read that Lot "was tormenting his righteous soul" because of the evil that he saw in Sodom. The religious leaders of the apostolic era experienced mental torment although, of course, for a very different reason.
This magazine, now published semimonthly, was renamed Consolation in 1937 and Awake! in 1946.
[Study
Questions]1. Who follow through when the angels sound the trumpet blasts, and what does the fifth trumpet blast announce?
2. What Bible book describes a plague of locusts similar to the one that John sees, and what was the effect of it on ancient Israel?
3, 4. (a) When was there a fulfillment of Joel chapter 2, and how? (b) How was there a plague like a swarm of locusts in the first century C.E., and how long did the plaguing continue?
5. How has Joels prophecy had a fulfillment since 1919?
6. (a) What did John see when the fifth angel blew his trumpet? (b) Whom does this "star" symbolize, and why?
7. (a) What happens when "the pit of the abyss" is opened? (b) What is "the abyss," and who spent a short time in it?
8. How is it that the release of the locusts is accompanied by much "smoke"?
9. What battle instructions did the locusts receive?
10. (a) Against whom primarily is the plague directed, and with what effect on them? (b) What kind of torment is involved? (See also footnote.)
11. (a) How long are the locusts authorized to torment Gods enemies, and why is that not really a short time? (b) How severe is the torment?
12. Why are the locusts granted to torment the religious leaders of Christendom, in a spiritual sense, but not to kill them?
13. What appearance do the locusts have?
14. Why did Johns description of the locusts fit the group of revived Christians in 1919?
15. What is denoted by the locusts (a) iron breastplates? (b) faces like mens? (c) hair like a womans? (d) teeth as those of lions? (e) making a lot of noise?
16. What is the significance in the locusts having "tails and stings like scorpions"?
17. (a) What was announced at the 1919 convention of the Bible Students that would intensify the sting of their witnessing? (b) How have the clergy been tormented, and how did they act in response?
18. What job did the locusts have to do, and what occurred in response to the fifth trumpet blast?
19. What further fighting equipment did the symbolic locusts receive, and what did it have to say about the London manifesto?
20. (a) What choice have the clergy made with regard to the locust band and their King? (b) Who does John say is over the locust band, and what is his name?
[Picture
on
page
143]The blowing of the fifth trumpet introduces the first of three woes
[Picture
on
page
146]Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the Kings enemies. (Psalm 45:5) Appearing with this caption, the above cartoon is typical of many published in the 1930s that stung "those men who do not have the seal of God"
[Picture
on
page
147]The Royal Albert Hall, where the book
Deliverance was released and the resolution "A Testimony to the Rulers of the World" was adopted
"The
Locusts
Resembled
Horses
Prepared
for
Battle"The magazine
GEO reports that in 1784, South Africa was hit by "the largest swarm [of locusts] ever registered in recorded history." The swarm covered an area of two thousand square miles
[5,200
sq
km], which is about five times the size of Hong Kong.
Smiths
Bible
Dictionary says that the locust "commits terrible ravages on vegetation in the countries which it visits."
In his God-given revelation of things that would take place during "the Lords day," Jesus used a vision of a swarm of locusts. Concerning them it was said: "The locusts resembled horses prepared for battle." (Revelation 1:1, 10; 9:3-7) What was the significance of this symbolism?
Jehovahs Witnesses have long understood that the locusts of Revelation chapter 9 portray the anointed servants of God on earth in this century. These Christians have been assigned a particular jobto preach the Kingdom message earth wide and make disciples. (Matthew 24:14; 28:19, 20) This calls upon them to overcome obstacles and to stick to their work. What could better illustrate this than the indomitable locust?
Though little more than two inches
[5
cm] in length, the locust commonly travels between 60 and 120 miles
[100-200
km] per day. The desert locust may even stretch this to 600 miles
[1,000
km].
GEO explains that "its wings wave 18 times per second and for up to 17 hours a daysomething that no other insect manages to do." What an immense task for such a tiny creature!
As a group, Jehovahs Witnesses are steadfast in spreading the good news of the Kingdom. They now preach in over 230 lands. These servants of God overcome many difficulties in order to have a share in carrying out the work. What sort of problems do they face? Prejudice, legal restrictions, illness, discouragement, and opposition from relatives are just a few. But nothing has managed to stem their advance. They stick to their God-given work.
Continue
to
Exhibit
Christian
QualitiesYes, Jesus likened his followers to sheep, serpents, doves, and locusts. This is truly fitting for our day. Why? Because the end of this system of things is imminent, and problems are more pressing than ever.
Bearing in mind Jesus illustrative words, true Christians stick closely to the flock of God and meekly accept counsel from Jehovahs organization. They keep on guard and are alert to situations that could hamper their Christian activities, while they remain irreproachable in all things. Moreover, they persevere in doing Gods will in the face of obstacles. And they continue to learn from some "instinctively wise" creatures.
[Footnote]
See
RevelationIts
Grand
Climax
At
Hand!, published by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., chapter 22.
