Jehovah’s Witnesses teach that Jesus began ruling as heavenly king in 1914. In their published explanation, the date depends on a reading of several biblical passages and a starting date of 607 BCE for the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem. The chronology of that event offers a concrete way to examine one premise of the argument. Jehovah’s Witnesses’ explanation of 1914 · The Watchtower’s case for 607 BCE
How the calculation reaches 1914
Daniel 4 describes Nebuchadnezzar’s dream about a tree that is cut down and a period of seven times. Jehovah’s Witnesses read the dream as also referring to a longer interruption in divine rulership represented by the kings at Jerusalem. Their explanation uses Revelation 12 to express seven times as 2,520 days, then applies a day-for-a-year interpretation drawn from passages in Numbers and Ezekiel. Counting 2,520 years from their starting date of 607 BCE, with no year zero between 1 BCE and 1 CE, takes the calculation to 1914. A different starting year changes the result even if the length of the interval stays the same. Jehovah’s Witnesses’ explanation of 1914
What a Babylonian tablet can date
The tablet known as VAT 4956 contains astronomical observations for the thirty-seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar II. It records positions of the moon and planets, among other observations. The Electronic Babylonian Library dates the year described to 568–567 BCE. A 2011 Watchtower article discusses the same tablet, but argues for 588–587 BCE on the basis of its reading of the lunar evidence. These are proposed dates for the year of the observations. Connecting the diary to the destruction of Jerusalem requires another step that relates Nebuchadnezzar’s regnal years to evidence about the city. The Watchtower’s case for 607 BCE · Electronic Babylonian Library record for VAT 4956 · Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative’s tablet record
Connecting the regnal years to Jerusalem
Second Kings 25:8–9 places the burning of the temple and other buildings in Nebuchadnezzar’s nineteenth year. A 2024 archaeological study of Jerusalem explains why it uses 586 BCE as the historical date of the destruction. It relates the biblical regnal year to the Babylonian chronology in which Nebuchadnezzar came to power in 605 BCE. The researchers use the destruction as a dated reference point in their radiocarbon work. The radiocarbon measurements and the chronology used to anchor them have distinct roles in that study. Historical dates around 587 or 586 BCE are about twenty years later than the starting point used in the 1914 calculation. The Watchtower’s case for 607 BCE · 2 Kings 25:8–9 · Archaeological study of Iron Age Jerusalem
Conclusion
A discussion of 1914 can separate the interpretation of Daniel, the conversion of a symbolic period into years and the dating of Jerusalem’s destruction. The astronomical and historical records bear on the last of these. The claim about a heavenly reign is a theological interpretation. Identifying what each source addresses makes the disagreement more precise and gives readers a way to check the calculation on its own terms. Jehovah’s Witnesses’ explanation of 1914 · Electronic Babylonian Library record for VAT 4956 · Jehovah’s Witnesses’ beliefs and practices
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