“Jael the wife of Heber took a tent pin and a hammer in her hand. Then while he was fast asleep and exhausted, she stealthily approached him and drove the pin through his temples and beat it into the ground, and he died.”

(Judges 4:21)

What can we learn from Jael today? To find that out, we need to examine her action in detail. Sisera was “army chief under Canaanite King Jabin.” (Insight on the Scriptures, volume II, page 975) The Canaanites dwelt in the country that God had promised to the Israelites. Hence they foreshadowed the worldlings of today, who also live on the earth that Jehovah has promised to his witnesses. So Jabin and Sisera depict people who are hostile towards Jehovah’s Witnesses – apostates, sect advisers, scientists, or intellectuals. Our task today is to kill these people in a transferred sense, while we are waiting on Jehovah to arrange for their literal death before long.

When Sisera approached Jael’s tent, she readily asked him in though her husband was not at home (Judges 4:18) If a Jehovah’s Witness of our time would do the same, the elders would assume that there is fornication, and in fact, the Babylonian Talmud says that Jael committed adultery with Sisera. (Horavoth 10b) Besides, “there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite [to which Jael belonged].” (Judges 4:17) She must have known “that, according to the Oriental code, it was a host’s responsibility to protect guests in his home, defending them even to the point of death if necessary.” (The Watchtower, December 1, 1979, page 31) But “Jael acted courageously, seizing the opportunity” to kill her guest insidiously. – The Watchtower, September 15, 1978, page 23.

What do we learn from this? Adultery has always been a serious sin, and murdering a guest was something utterly unthinkable in Jael’s culture. Still, she knew that she was not to miss any opportunity to kill the enemies of Jehovah and his witnesses. Sisera’s death was by far more important that any worldly or religious laws. We too “must obey God as ruler rather than men” whenever we run across an apostate. – Acts 5:29.

“Jehovah is a Killer.”

(1 Samuel 2:6, NWT 1984)

At all times “Jehovah killed” people. (Exodus 13:16) When the Israelites were dwelling in Egypt “Jehovah let Pharaoh’s heart become obstinate” so that he had reason to send a “destroyer” through the country. (Exodus 10:27, NWT 1984; Hebrews 11:28) Shortly afterwards he was fed up with his own people, “and Jehovah began striking the people with a very great slaughter.” – Numbers 11:33.

Sometimes, though, “Jehovah kills” indirectly. (1 Samuel 2:6) Admittedly, we usually blame humans for earthquakes, floods, plane crashes, terror attacks, and other calamities. However, the Bible says clearly and unequivocally: “If a calamity occurs in the city, is it not Jehovah who has acted?” (Amos 3:6) The book of Revelation also states that God instructed a horseman “to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth.” – Revelation 6:8.

Without doubt, “Jehovah is a killer,” even if at times he makes it look like a natural disaster or lets assistants do the actual slaughtering. He announced to kill even more people in the future, so that “those slain by Jehovah in that day will be from one end of the earth clear to the other end of the earth.” (Jeremiah 25:33) Certainly “the slain of Jehovah will be many.” – Isaiah 66:16.

No wonder that the apostle Paul wrote: “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:31) Let us, therefore, avoid Jehovah and his witnesses!

“O God of vengeance, Jehovah, o God of vengeance, shine forth! Rise up, o Judge of the earth. Repay to the haughty what they deserve.”

(Psalm 94:1, 2)

The Bible shows clearly that Jehovah is “a God of vengeance” who will soon be “taking vengeance on his enemies … Why so? Because it would clear the way for all persons who love God to be glad, to rejoice.” (The Watchtower, January 15, 1981, pages 4, 5) Indeed, the prospect of seeing God annihilate all his enemies is for Christians a reason “to be glad, to rejoice.” Will it not be wonderful to watch how “in the very near future all ungodly persons” – all who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses or did not have enough field service hours, including our neighbors, workmates, and closest relatives – “will suffer destruction at the hands of God?” – The Watchtower, November 1, 1985, page 7.

People have really heaped a heavy burden of guilt upon themselves. Some have participated in political elections and so have opposed God. (John 15:19) Others live together in one apartment without being married, just because they cannot afford the administrative marriage. (1 Corinthians 6:9) Some children are “disobedient to parents” only because these want to abuse and mistreat them. (Romans 1:30) It goes without saying for true Christians that God can no longer sit and watch while such gross sins are happening on earth. “Jehovah is a God … taking vengeance; Jehovah is taking vengeance and is disposed to rage. Jehovah is taking vengeance against his adversaries.” (Nahum 1:2, NWT 1984) “God will come with vengeance, God will come with retribution.” – Isaiah 35:4.

”Jehovah’s witnesses today merely proclaim the ‘day of vengeance on the part of our God’ … They do not execute vengeance [themselves].” (The Watchtower, November 1, 1972, page 660) They proclaim the good news “of Jehovah’s vengeance” from house to house, and they look forward to the fulfillment of David’s prophecy: “The righteous one will rejoice because he has seen the vengeance; his feet will be drenched with the blood of the wicked.” – Psalm 58:10.

“That is enough of you, you sons of Levi! … So must you men also try to secure the priesthood?”

(Numbers 16:7, 10, NWT 1984)

Moses had enough of Korah and the other wannabe priests. In our day, “such ‘sons of Levi’ correspond to the collective body of anointed ones today” who would like to serve “as priests under Jesus, the High Priest.” – The Watchtower, June 15, 1987, page 15.

Back in Moses’ time, “the earth opened and swallowed them up, along with their households … So they and all who belonged to them went down alive into the Grave.” (Numbers 16:32, 33) Soon “the Greater Moses, Jesus Christ,” will make sure that the same fate will befall the antitypical Levites “who make up ‘the faithful and discreet slave.’” – Worldwide Security Under the “Prince of Peace”, page 10; Live With Jehovah’s Day in Mind, page 91.

“Solomon offered … 120,000 sheep.”

(1 Kings 8:63)

“Solomon proceeded to offer the communion sacrifices that he had to offer to Jehovah … a hundred and twenty thousand sheep, that the king and all the sons of Israel might inaugurate the house of Jehovah.” (1 Kings 8:63, NWT 1984) As is known, “Jesus Christ [is] the Greater Solomon,” and soon he will offer a similar sacrifice for the inauguration of the great spiritual temple. (Awake!, February 22, 2002, page 9) Considering the greatness of this temple, the sacrifice will have to be much bigger – a “little flock” would never be enough. (Luke 12:32) It is a good thing that Jesus has “millions of ‘other sheep’” at his disposal. (The Watchtower, August 15, 2009, page 10) Sure, they “look forward to living right on into an earthly paradise.” (The Watchtower, April 15, 1995, page 31) But in actual fact, “Jesus Christ, the greater Solomon,” will offer them to his father as a communion sacrifice.

“On the mountains he has not eaten.”

(Ezekiel 18:15, NWT 1984)

Ezekiel divided his contemporaries into two groups. On the one hand he mentioned someone who “he has eaten … upon the mountains” and said with regard to him: “A detestable thing is what he has done … He positively will not keep living … He will positively be put to death.” (Ezekiel 18:11-13, NWT 1984) On the other hand he spoke of a man who “happens to be righteous and … has executed justice and righteousness; on the mountains he did not eat.” (Ezekiel 18:5, 6, NWT 1984) He said about this righteous man: “On the mountains he has not eaten … my judicial decisions he has carried out; in my statutes he has walked … He will positively keep living.” – Ezekiel 18:15-17, NWT 1984.

So whoever ‘eats upon the mountains’ will be eliminated by Jehovah. To whom does this apply today? “Jehovah’s Witnesses are … streaming to ‘the mountain of Jehovah’s house’ in ever-increasing numbers” and taking “rich spiritual feasts” there. (The Watchtower, July 15, 2002, page 25; January 15, 1985, page 28) Thus as a group they “will positively be put to death,” that is, cease to exist.

“Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.”

(Matthew 6:32)

Jesus told his disciples: “God your Father knows what things you are needing.” (Matthew 6:8, NWT 1984) Does this mean that Christians do not have to worry about anything because God cares for them? No, this is not the case. The key to understanding Jesus’ words can be found in another statement that he made a white later: “Two sparrows sell for a coin of small value, do they not? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father’s knowledge.” – Matthew 10:29.

So God also “knows” when birds “fall [dead] to the ground, and still “as many as 988 million birds die annually in window collisions” alone. (The Washington Post) Millions more are killed by cats and other predators, or dying from starvation or disease.

What can we learn from this? Granted, God knows when birds “fall to the ground” – but they do “fall to the ground.” God knows that they perish, but he does nothing about it. In the same way he cares for Christians: God ‘knows what things they are needing,’ but he does not give these to them.

“Make the heart of this people unreceptive … that they may not actually turn back.”

(Isaiah 6:10, NWT 1984)

Jehovah’s Witnesses “are eager to see as many people as possible saved from the impending ‘great tribulation.’” (The Watchtower, February 1, 1987, page 11) But is this God’s will? Not necessarily, since “the sanctification of Jehovah’s name is far more important than human salvation” and “our being freed from bondage to sin and death and gaining life.” – The Watchtower, October 15, 2008, page 15; January 15, 2007, page 10.

”The book of Ezekiel emphasizes … that the sanctification of Jehovah’s name is more important than anything else” – maybe Jehovah would love to save all people, but “as the prophecy shows, he will sanctify his name by destroying all.” (“All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial”, page 137) “Jehovah’s indignation is against all the nations, and his wrath is against all their army. He will devote them to destruction; he will give them to the slaughter. Their slain will be thrown out, and the stench of their carcasses will ascend.” – Isaiah 34:2, 3.

As in the past, where Jehovah regularly “struck down” thousands among his own people “with a great slaughter,” so it will be in the future. (1 Samuel 6:19) Thus “the worldwide preaching work of Jehovah’s Witnesses” is opposed to God’s purpose, for how should the prophecy be fulfilled that “those slain by Jehovah in that day will be from one end of the earth clear to the other end of the earth” if too many people would leave the false religion and join Jehovah’s people? – The Watchtower, July 15, 1990, page 18; Jeremiah 25:33.

The “abundance of grain on the earth” promised by Jehovah is only possible if “those slain by Jehovah … will become like manure on the surface of the ground.” (Psalm 72:16; Jeremiah 25:33) But unfortunately, the “truth is not presented in a complex, difficult-to-comprehend manner in the Bible.” (The Watchtower, October 15, 1996, page 5) If too many people would get to know the truth, Jehovah would be unable to destroy them. Not only would there be a lack of manure, but also his name would not be sanctified, which “would cause Satan to rejoice.” (Keep Yourself in God’s Love, page 129) Isaiah knew that, therefor he asked Jehovah to act in the same manner as he did with the Egyptian Pharaoh: “Make the heart of this people unreceptive, make their ears unresponsive, and paste their eyes together, so that they may not see with their eyes and hear with their ears, so that their heart may not understand and they may not turn back.” (Exodus 7:3; Isaiah 6:10) This strategy worked out; today “most people reject the good news,” and Jehovah “will crush them to clear the way for a much-needed change.” (The Watchtower, August 15, 2005, page 21; Awake!, October 8, 1969, page 11) “O the depth of God’s riches and wisdom and knowledge! How unsearchable his judgments are!” – Romans 11:33.

“Costly in the eyes of Jehovah is the death of his loyal ones.”

(Psalm 116:15)

Granted, Jehovah’s Witnesses believe “that God will destroy the wicked.” (The Watchtower, November 1, 2008, page 8) Like David in former times, they pray to Jehovah: “O God, if only you would slay the wicked!” (Psalm 139:19) But in actual fact, only “what he pleases or delights in will be done” – and Jehovah stated clearly: “I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked.” (Man’s Salvation Out of World Distress at Hand!, page 117; Ezekiel 33:11) Jehovah showed this attitude even at the very beginning of human history, when Cain slaughtered his brother Abel and so became the first “wicked” in history. God was afraid that someone would kill Cain, and “so Jehovah set up a sign for Cain in order that no one finding him would strike him.” (Genesis 4:15) The Bible proves that “the wicked live on” according to Jehovah’s purpose. – Job 21:7.

Whose death does please Jehovah, then? The first person ever killed was Abel, of whom we know “that he was righteous.” (Hebrews 11:4) Later Jehovah instructed Abraham to offer up his son Isaac – who was counted among the “great cloud of witnesses” – “as a burnt offering.” (Hebrews 11:20; 12:1; Genesis 22:2) The righteous “were stoned … they were sawn in two … they were slaughtered.” (Hebrews 11:37) Jesus was the most righteous man who ever lived, and, without doubt, his death was pleasing to Jehovah. (God’s Kingdom of a Thousand Years Has Approached, page 69) “There exists the righteous one perishing in his righteousness, and there exists the wicked one continuing long in his badness,” for “costly in the eyes of Jehovah is the death of his loyal ones.” – Ecclesiastes 7:15, NWT 1984; Psalm 116:15.

“See, you have become well. Do not sin anymore, so that something worse does not happen to you.”

(John 5:14)

Jesus said these words to a former lame man whom he just had healed. We can learn two deep truths from his simple statement. First: “Sickness can be a direct result of sin” (though “each sickness is not necessarily a result of a specific sin”). (The Watchtower, October 15, 1981, page 5; August 15, 1982, page 31) Second: It is possible to sin no more. If the man would have been fated to sin, Jesus would not have instructed him to “not sin anymore.” But obviously Jesus expected that the healed man would heed his previous command: “You must … be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48) Thus true Christians are perfect, as perfect as God. They can easily stop sinning. Only because of this they have “the prospect of living forever,” because “the person who sins will die.” – Awake!, October 8, 1988, page 25; Ezekiel 18:4, GWT.