You will be hated.—Matt. 24:9.
The early Christians benefited from Roman law, which was in force throughout the empire. Similarly, present-day Christians benefit from legal provisions. However, freedom to exercise certain rights had to be legally established in the courts. (Phil. 1:7) When legal action was brought against Jehovah’s people in the United States, appeals to higher courts repeatedly upheld their right to be Kingdom proclaimers. Courts of other countries have also upheld our freedom of worship and the right to preach publicly. In some lands, we have lost court battles, but we have applied to international courts. For example, as of June 2014, the European Court of Human Rights has ruled in our favor in 57 cases that are binding on all nations of the Council of Europe. Even though we are “hated by all the nations,” the courts of many countries have ruled that we have the right to practice true worship.
