Gods offer of Messiah to Jews hollow and insincere?

hamsterbait

I was just reading Blondies notes for the Witchtower Study for Sunday 5th April.

It points out that God foretold seven centuries in advance that the Jews would reject the Messiah and kill him.

The scriptures point out that God was sincerely offering them a gift.

Compare this to their teaching on Adam and Eve and the fruit.

The Society claims that God did not know that the first human pair would eat the fruit. Despite being omniscient, he chose NOT to "foreknow" what choice they would make. This based on the argument that if God had known what they were going to do his offer of life was insincere and that he was then also responsible for man's suffering.

Yet here we have God offering an all singing and all dancing hope to the Jews (apparently sincerely) but he then says that he knows he is wasting his time, because they will reject it and kill the Messiah!! In other words God (by the above reasoning) is responsible forthe rejection and murder of Jesus to ensure its fulfilment.

I guess if Israel had accepted Jesus we would all be up the creek.

Do you see a conflict between the society's interpretation of the two situations?

HB

WTWizard

Why give this "gift" to someone you know in advance is going to refuse it? And why make it so difficult and mind-numbing to keep all the laws in the first place? It is blatantly obvious that Jehovah knows nothing except how to create problems where none existed.

And, one of those is the whole idea of Original Sin. If not for that concept, the Washtowel Babble and Crap Slaveholdery wouldn't even exist.

Robdar

And, one of those is the whole idea of Original Sin. If not for that concept, the Washtowel Babble and Crap Slaveholdery wouldn't even exist.

Neither would the other Christian religions. All of them have their basis in the concept of original sin. If there is no original sin, there is no need for a "perfect sacrifice."

Jews do not believe in original sin. It is solely a Christian concept. Nor do Jews believe that Adam and Eve were created to live forever.

cameo-d

Hamsterbait,

You are on a roll, lately!

Narkissos

Leaving aside the WT specifics, it is approximately the problem Paul deals with in Romans 9--11. From an OT/Jewish perspective it is a completely artificial problem (since only a Christian interpretation of the OT leads to the concept of a Messiah like the Christian Messiah), but from a Christian perspective it is a rather important question.

Paul's concluding summary may be worth remembering (11:32) : "For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all." To Paul, God is entirely responsible (as the potter, etc.) for everything but it is not the end of the story.

Sad emo

Why give this "gift" to someone you know in advance is going to refuse it?

Why continue trying to communicate with family and friends when you know they're going to shun you?

On hamsterbait's original question, yes there is a conflict on the WT interpretation of the two situations. The mainstream Christian response would be that it is because they have tried to interpret each part on its own without recognising the entire redemption picture/plan written all the way through the Bible.

I guess it comes down to the whole "strict" predestination vs free will debate. In the cases in the original post, it seems the WT is trying to have the 'best' of both worlds!

So why don't they just teach the middle ground - Jehovah knows what you're going to do, but he doesn't make you do it? (Or "you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink")