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of knowledge, since the present tense marks a continuance, a progressive
perception." (Italics his.) A. T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament
suggests translating the word "should keep on knowing."
Therefore, in the original Greek, Jesus' words at John 17:3 imply continuous
effort to get to know the true God and his Son, Jesus Christ, and this is well
brought out in the rendering of the New World Translation. We acquire this
knowledge by diligently studying God's Word and by obediently conforming
our lives to its standards. (Compare Hosea 4:1, 2; 8:2; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17.)
What fine reward awaits those who acquaint themselves with God's personality
and with that of his Son and then strive to imitate them? Everlasting life!
(Copyright © 1992, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society)
29. If the soul is the body, why does Jesus make a distinction between the body
and the soul in Mt 10:28? Similarly, if the soul is the body, why does Paul make
a distinction between the spirit and soul and body of you in 1Thess 5:23? In
addition, the NWT renders 2Tim 4:22 as, The Lord [be] with the spirit you
[show]& even though the Kingdom Interlinear Translation (KIT) translates
the Greek phrase soul pneuma as the spirit of you . Why is there a
difference between the KIT and the NWT rendition of this verse? Why does the
NWT add the word [show] when it does not appear in the Greek? Wouldn t
the KIT version be a much simpler and straight forward rendition of this verse?
If the KIT version is used, what does this verse say about the spirit of a
person?
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You are mistaken. Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe that the body and
soul are the same thing. "Soul" has several different meanings. It is used in
the Bible to refer to the person or the life that a person possesses. There is
more to a person than merely a body. The Watchtower has published much
information to help people understand these elementary yet fundamental
Bible teachings.
30. If the NWT is the most accurate word for word translation of the Bible, why
does it alter the word of God by adding the word [Son] in Acts 20:28 when
this word does not exist in the Greek? See Gr-Engl Interlinear.
The NIV renders this verse as saying: "Be shepherds of the church of
God, which he bought with his own blood."
However, the Contemporary English Version (CEV) agrees with the NWT, it
reads: "Be like shepherds to God's church. It is the flock that he bought
with the blood of his own Son."
Which translation is correct? The NWT and CEV are correct. The original
Greek does not support the so-called "popular" rendering. Neither do the
Scriptures support the idea that God gave his own life as a ransom. The
Bible says in dozens of places that God gave his son, not himself.
The Kingdom Interlinear transliterates the verse in question to say that God
purchased the congregation "through the blood of the own (one)." That is
not to say God's own blood, but the blood of one who belonged to God
namely his Son's blood. The NWT is fully justified in making that clear.
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31. In Phil 2:9, the NWT inserts the word "[other]" even though it doesn't
appear in the original Greek. See Gr-Engl Interlinear. Why does the WTS alter
scripture by adding the word [other] to this verse? Is the word "Jehovah" a
name? See Exo 6:3, Ps 83:18, and Isa 42:8. How would the verse read if the
word "other" had not been inserted? What does scripture say about adding
words to the Bible? See Prov 30:5-6. If Christians are persecuted for the sake of
Jehovah's name, why did Christ tell the first Christians that they would be
persecuted for the sake of his (Jesus') name, instead of Jehovah's (Mt 24:9, Mk
13:13, Lk 21:12,17, Jn 15:21, and Acts 9:16)? If the name "Jehovah" is so
important, then why does Acts 4:12 say, "Furthermore, there is no salvation in
anyone else, for there is not another name (Jesus Christ vs 10) under heaven
that has been given among men by which we must get saved"? If the teachings
of the WTS are correct, would this not have been the logical place for God to
have used the name "YHWH" or "Jehovah"?
The NWT has not altered the Scripture. Every translation inserts words as
they see fit to make sense of the text. To imply that the NWT is guilty of
something sinister is simply not honest. But, rather than try and make sense
of this maze of questions, the reader will no doubt be better served by simply
reasoning on the text in question. Philippians 2:9 reads: "For this very
reason also God exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him
the name that is above every [other] name, so that in the name of Jesus
every knee should bend of those in heaven and those on earth and
those under the ground, and every tongue should openly acknowledge
that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."
The context of Philippians reveals Jesus to be a humble and willing servant
of God, who willingly forsook his privileged place in heaven and came to the
earth and died a horrible death on a torture stake. That's why Paul said "for
this very reason also God exalted him." It does not matter which translation a
person chooses to read, the truth is still obvious to those who are not bent on
deception: God exalted Christ and gave him an honored name above all
others. What does the word "gave" mean to you? It means that God granted
Jesus the most honored place in the universe as a reward for his
faithfulness. That is the simple truth. Christ Jesus did not exalt his own name.
Jehovah did. Anything that distorts that precious truth is antichristian and
from the Devil.
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32. The NWT translates Mt 25:46 as, And these will depart into everlasting
cutting-off& . The Greek word that is translated as cutting-off is kolasis
(Strong # 2851). According to Strong s Greek dictionary, this word can only
mean correction, punishment, or penalty , but no reference is made to
cutting-off . If the word kolasis was translated correctly as correction,
punishment, or penalty , as it should be according to Strong s Greek
Dictionary, how would this verse read?
Regardless of the word used, Matthew 25:46 contrasts eternal life and
eternal punishment. The NIV reads: "Then they will go away to eternal
punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." If those punished are
tortured in hell's inferno, as you no doubt suppose, then they would also
have to live eternally in order to endure everlasting torture. However, eternal
life is not our birthright. It is a gift of God. The eternal punishment is
everlasting death or being permanently cut off from life.
Elsewhere the Scriptures make it plain the final judgment imposed upon the
symbolic goats of Christ's illustration is everlasting destruction not
everlasting torment in hell. For example, 2 Thessalonians 1:9-10 reads in the
NIV: "They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out
from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the
day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at
among all those who have believed."
What does the word "destruction" mean to you?
33. According to scripture, Jesus is the first and the last (Rev 1:17-18), the
first and the last is the Alpha and Omega (Rev 22:13), and the Alpha and
the Omega is God (Rev 1:8). In other words, Jesus = the first and the last =
the Alpha and the Omega = God. How can this be if Jesus is not God?
Jehovah and Jesus share titles, although there are subtle differences in the
offices they each occupy. Alpha and Omega, the Greek equivalent to saying
A-to-Z in English, is a descriptive title that Jehovah and Jesus may share, but
for different reasons. Jehovah is the ultimate First and Last, in that he is the
only person in existence that had no beginning. And, he alone innately
possesses immortality and life in himself. No one gave Jehovah life, but he
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