This is a typical example of the Society’s dishonest scholarship. The beast that “is destined to ascend out of the abyss” (Rev. 17:8) is the same beast “that ascends out of the abyss” (Rev. 11:7). [In Revelation the beasts are identified by their origin, e.g., the beast from the sea (Rev. 13:1), the beast from the earth (Rev. 13:11), etc.]
The Society identifies the beast that “is destined to ascend out of the abyss” of Rev. 17:8 with the League of Nations and the United Nations (Revelation Climax -book, Chapter 34, p. 248).
The scarlet-colored wild beast did indeed climb out of the abyss. On June 26, 1945, with noisy fanfare in San Francisco, U.S.A., 50 nations voted to accept the Charter of the United Nations organization. This body was “to maintain international peace and security.” There were many similarities between the League and the UN. TheWorldBookEncyclopedia notes: “In some ways, the UN resembles the League of Nations, which was organized after World War I . . . Many of the nations that founded the UN had also founded the League. Like the League, the UN was established to help keep peace between nations. The main organs of the UN are much like those of the League.” The UN, then, is actually a revival of the scarlet-colored wild beast. Its membership of some 190 nations far exceeds that of the League’s 63; it has also taken on broader responsibilities than its predecessor.
However, at Rev. 11:7 the beast “ascending out of the abyss” is identified as the great political beast of Revelation 13:1 “ascending out of the sea” (Revelation Climax -book, Chapter 25, pp. 167, 168).
From 1914 to 1918 the nations were occupied with the first world war. Nationalistic feelings ran high, and in the spring of 1918, the religious enemies of the two witnesses took advantage of the situation. They maneuvered the State’s legal apparatus so that responsible ministers of the Bible Students were imprisoned on false charges of sedition. Faithful coworkers were stunned. Kingdom activity almost ceased. It was as though the preaching work were dead.
Notice now the footnote in the Revelation Climax-book (p. 167): The “abyss” (Greek, a′bys·sos; Hebrew, tehohm′) refers symbolically to a place of inactivity. (See Revelation 9:2.) In a literal sense, however, it can also refer to the vast sea. The Hebrew word is often translated “watery deep.” (Psalm 71:20; 106:9; Jonah 2:5) Thus, “the wild beast that ascends out of the abyss” can be identified with the “wild beast ascending out of the sea.”—Revelation 11:7; 13:1.
Interestingly, the person(s) in the Writing Department, resposible for the Revelation Climax-book, did indeed notice the discrepancy. Why else the elaborate footnote? Question: Why on earth would they go to such lengths to bend the truth? Answer: To defend their 1914-1918 doctrine at all costs, even at the expense of honest scholarship and the truth.