1. Which style Brother Russell and e group de use study, and why this style wey they use dey good?

E DON pass one hundred years now wey Brother C. T. Russell and one small group of people begin meet together to study Bible. They want learn the correct thing wey Bible de teach about Jehovah God, Jesus Christ, the condition of dead people, and the sacrifice of Jesus. That time, the style wey them de use study, dey simple. One of them go ask question, then everybody for the group go check all the Bible verse wey talk about that topic. And the last thing wey they go do na to write wetin they don learn from their study. Jehovah help this men make they fit understand plenty important truth for inside Bible. And this different-different truth still dey important for us today.

2. As we de try to understand Bible prophecy, wetin fit make us no understand-am for correct way sometimes?

² But small time, this Bible students come see say to understand Bible prophecy (things wey Bible talk about the future) hard pass to understand other things wey Bible de teach. Why e be like that? One reason be say, plenty times, we de understand Bible prophecy when e don de happen or after e don already happen. But another reason dey. If we want really understand any prophecy, we need to check everything about the prophecy. If we de put our mind for only one part of the prophecy, and we no check other parts of the prophecy, we fit no understand-am for the correct way. E be like say na this kind thing happen about one prophecy for inside the book of Joel. Make we look that prophecy again and discuss why we need to change the way we understand-am.

3-4. For long time now, how we don understand the prophecy for Joel 2:7-9?

³ Read Joel 2:7-9. For Bible, Joel talk say plenty-plenty  locusts go cause serious problem for the land of Israel. Their teeth and their jaw be like the one wey lion get, and they go chop all the plant wey they see for the land of Israel! (Joel 1:4, 6) For many years, we understand say this prophecy de talk about the way servants of Jehovah de preach like plenty locusts wey nothing fit stop. We understand say this work don really affect the “land,” or the people wey the leaders for religion de control. *

⁴ That explanation fit be like wetin correct if we read only Joel 2:7-9. But when we check other parts of the prophecy, we see say we need to change the way we understand-am. Make we see four reasons why e be like that.

5-6. Which question we fit ask when we read (a) Joel 2:20? (b) Joel 2:25?

⁵ Number one, notice the thing wey Jehovah promise about the plenty locusts: “The one from the north [the locusts], I go drive-am go far from wuna.” (Joel 2:20) If the locusts na Jehovah Witness people as them de obey the command wey Jesus give to preach and make disciples, then why Jehovah go promise say e go drive them comot? (Ezek. 33:7-9; Matt. 28:19, 20) So e clear say, Jehovah no de drive e people comot. But na something or person wey de give e people problem e de drive comot.

⁶ Number two reason, think about wetin dey Joel 2:25. Jehovah talk for there say: “I go pay wuna back for the years wey the plenty locusts don chop wuna things, the locust wey no get feather, the locust wey de over chop, and the locust wey de destroy. Na my powerful army wey I send come meet wuna.” Because of the things wey the locusts don spoil, notice say Jehovah promise say, “I go pay wuna back.” If the locusts na servants of Jehovah as them de preach, this one go mean say the message wey them de go tell people de make the people suffer. But the message de save life and e fit make some wicked people to repent. (Ezek. 33:8, 19) This one na really good thing for this wicked people if they repent!

7. For Joel 2:28, 29, wetin the “after that one” help us to understand?

⁷ Read Joel 2:28, 29. Number three reason na about the way the things for the prophecy go de happen one by one. You notice say Jehovah talk say: “After that one, I go pour my spirit”? And this one na after the locusts don finish the work wey they send them to do. If the locusts na Jehovah’s people as them de preach the good news of the Kingdom, then why Jehovah go give them e spirit after they don complete the preaching work? The truth na say, if God no de help them with e holy spirit, they no for continue to preach for plenty-plenty years even as people de give them trouble and de try to stop their work.

8. Who be the locusts wey Revelation 9:1-11 talk about? (Check picture for front cover.)

⁸ Read Revelation 9:1-11. Now, make we talk about the number four reason. Before-before, we talk say the attack of the locusts for the book of Joel na about our preaching work because this kind prophecy still dey the book of Revelation.  This prophecy talk about plenty locusts wey their face be like face of people. And for their head, they wear wetin be like golden crown. (Rev. 9:7) For five months, they cause pain for “the people [enemies of God] wey the mark of God no dey for front of their head.” Na around five months locust fit live. (Rev. 9:4, 5) True-true, this one really describe the way anointed servants of Jehovah be. They no de fear to tell people about how God go judge this wicked world, and this one de really pain people of the world.

9. Wetin make the locusts wey Joel see dey different from the one wey John see?

⁹ True-true, somethings for the prophecy for Revelation and the one for Joel resemble, but they still dey different for some important ways. Think-am: For the book of Joel, the locusts for the prophecy chop the plants. (Joel 1:4, 6, 7) But for the vision wey John see, they tell the locusts ‘make they no spoil the plant for the earth.’ (Rev. 9:4) The locusts wey Joel see come from north. (Joel 2:20) But the locusts wey John see come out from one deep pit. (Rev. 9:2, 3) They drive the locusts wey Joel talk about. But for Revelation, they no drive the locusts. Instead, they allow them make they finish their work. No place for Bible talk say Jehovah no dey happy with them.​—Check the box  “ Two Prophecy About Locusts—They Resemble But No Be the Same.”

10. Give example from Bible to show say the locusts wey Joel and John talk about mean different things.

¹⁰ The things wey make the two prophecy different help us understand say the two prophecy no connect. So, we de talk say the locusts wey the book of Joel talk about no be the same with the locusts wey the book of Revelation talk about? Yes. Sometimes, something wey Bible use as sign to mean one thing fit still mean different thing when Bible use-am for different way. For example, for Revelation 5:5, Bible call Jesus “the Lion from the tribe of Judah.” But for 1 Peter 5:8, Bible describe Devil as “lion wey de shout.” The four reasons and other things wey we don talk about show say we need to understand this prophecy of Joel for another way. Which way be that?

11. Which things dey for Joel 1:6 and 2:1, 8, 11 to help us understand who the locusts be?

¹¹ When we check other verse them for the prophecy of Joel, we understand say the prophet de talk about how one group of army go attack God’s people. (Joel 1:6; 2:1, 8, 11) Jehovah talk say e go use e “powerful army” (soldiers from Babylon) to punish Israel people because they no de do wetin e like. (Joel 2:25) Bible dey correct when e call the army “the one from the north” because Babylon people go come from north to attack Israel people. (Joel 2:20) Bible talk say the way plenty locusts arrange well, na so that army be like. Joel talk about them say: “Each of them [the soldier] de match for e own line. . . . Them de rush enter the city, them de run ontop the wall. Them de climb ontop house them, them de pass window de enter like thief.” (Joel 2:8, 9) You fit imagine wetin this Bible verse describe? Soldiers dey every corner. No place to hide. Nobody fit escape from the army of Babylon!

12. The prophecy for the book of Joel about locusts, how e happen?

¹² Like locusts, Babylon people (or, Chaldeans) attack the city of Jerusalem for the year 607 B.C.E. Bible talk say: ‘The king of the Chaldeans kill their young men with sword. E no get pity for young man or virgin, for old or sick person. God give-am everything. E burn the house of the true God reach ground. E scatter the wall of Jerusalem reach ground. E burn all the tall building with fire, and e destroy all the better-better things.’ (2 Chron. 36:17, 19) After the soldiers from Babylon don attack and destroy the land, the only thing wey people fit talk na: “Na useless land wey man and animal no dey, and they don give-am to the Chaldeans.”​—Jer. 32:43.

13. Explain wetin Jeremiah 16:16, 18 mean.

¹³ Around 200 years after the prophecy for the book of Joel, Jehovah use Jeremiah to talk another thing about this attack. Jehovah talk say the army go sofri look for the wicked people for Israel and the army go arrest all of them. Bible talk say: “‘See, I go bring plenty fishermen,’ na the thing wey Jehovah talk, ‘and they go find them. After that one, I go bring plenty hunters, and they go find them go all the mountain and all the hill and for inside the holes of the rocks. . . . I go . . . pay them back the complete amount, because of their mistake and their sin.’” If Israel people no repent, no river or forest fit hide them from the soldiers  wey Babylon go use attack them.—Jer. 16:16, 18.

14. Which time Joel 2:28, 29 happen?

¹⁴ So now, Joel tell us good news. E talk say the land go produce food again. (Joel 2:23-26) Then for future, plenty people go learn about the truth. Jehovah talk say: “I go pour my spirit ontop different-different kind of people. And wuna sons and wuna daughters go talk things about the future . . . And for that time, I go give my spirit even to my slaves, both man and woman.” (Joel 2:28, 29) The thing wey this Bible verse talk no happen just after they release Israel people from Babylon make they go back to their land. Instead, this one happen after about 600 years, for Pentecost 33 C.E. How we manage know this one?

15. As e dey for Acts 2:16, 17, wetin Peter change for inside Joel 2:28, and wetin that one show?

¹⁵ One wonderful thing happen for the day of Pentecost, and Jehovah use e spirit help apostle Peter talk how the thing connect with Joel 2:28, 29. Around nine o’clock for morning that day, Jehovah give e holy spirit to some people and this people start to talk about the wonderful things wey God de do. (Acts 2:11) When Peter de talk wetin dey that prophecy of Joel, the way e talk-am dey different small. You notice the thing wey Peter change? (Read Acts 2:16, 17.) Instead of Peter to first talk “after that one,” e talk say: “For last days.” For here, Peter de talk about the time just before they destroy Jerusalem and the temple. Na that time God go pour e spirit “ontop all kind of people.” This one show say plenty time don pass before  the thing wey Joel talk for e prophecy happen.

16. For time of the apostles, wetin happen to the preaching work because of the holy spirit from God, and what about our time?

¹⁶ After God give e spirit to Christians for time of the apostles, na that time the preaching work start to really go far. Around the year 61 C.E., when apostle Paul write letter to the Christians for Colossae, Paul fit talk that time say the good news don reach every corner for the earth. (Col. 1:23) When Paul talk say every corner, this one mean the different-different place wey Paul and other people fit travel reach that time. The preaching work don go far place for our time pass the time of apostle Paul. Jehovah de use holy spirit to give us power make we fit do the preaching work go “all corner of the earth”!​—Acts 13:47; check the box “ I Go Pour My Spirit.”

17. How the way we understand the prophecy for the book of Joel about the locusts don change?

¹⁷ So, wetin don change? The way we understand the prophecy for Joel 2:7-9 don correct pass the way we understand-am before. E clear say, this verse them for the book of Joel no de talk about the way we de put all our heart for the preaching work. Instead, e de talk about the way the army from Babylon attack Jerusalem for the year 607 B.C.E.

18. Wetin never change about servants of Jehovah?

¹⁸ Wetin never change? Servants of Jehovah de continue to preach the good news for every corner, and them de use every way wey they fit to preach. (Matt. 24:14) No law from government fit stop us make we no obey the command to preach. And we dey sure say Jehovah de help us to do the work more-more, and de help us make we no fear as we de preach the good news of the Kingdom. Because we dey humble, we go continue to allow Jehovah help us to understand Bible prophecy. And we dey sure say when the correct time reach, Jehovah go make us know all the truth!​—John 16:13.