Fisherman..For the most part, most of us with a history in the WT org would never have known much of the history of Israel particulary the time period after the writings of Malachi. As I mentioned in an earlier post that time period is in part that of the Maccabean time period, circa 200-300 BCE. A lot happened during that time period that changed the face of Israel or Judah. Not the least of which were those appointed to the priesthood including the high priest. The Jewish nation became vassels to several dominating powers who had considerable influence on their religious processes. The Qumran population argued that the priesthood in Jerusalem was not legitimate. It went through the motions, but was apostate. The Herods eventually appointed the high priest. It would be difficult to accept that God's H.S. was the force behind those rulers.
For some background on this I found and would recommend 2 books by F. F. Bruce: "Israel and the Nations" & "New Testiment History". Also "The Dead Sea Scrolls: The Truth Behind the Mystique" by Lawrence H. Schiffmann (I listened to the audio discs in a series of 14 lectures while driving). Obviously there are many more resources, some already mentioned on this thread. If you were educated (indoctrinated) as I was by WT theology, one can understand why they would discourage outside reading and research. This stuff was fascinating. Whether it is completely correct, I wouldn't know, but there is enough documentation to make it very compelling, and certainly broadens out what was previously a very controlled interpretation of events given by the Org.
Hopefully all of us here will gain confidence in our decisions to leave behind ignorance and mind control, and expand in knowledge. We may end up in different dens, but we're better equipped to help those still under the spell. It's just so difficult to convey it to them...darn!