Scriptures out of context

by Lady Lee 21 Replies latest watchtower bible

• 

  Lady Lee

  I'm working on my column nad came across this thought by Ray Franz regarding how often the WTS takes things out of context. They take a scripture from one places in the Bbiel and match it up with a couple of other scriptures from 2 or more other places and piece them together liek one huge jigsaw puzzle. And then present some kind of doctrinal picture based on their out-of-context jigsaw pieces.

  That is like taking 3 sentences from various books on history and putting them together to create a new theory

  Or even worse taking 3 words each from 3 different books and putting them together to make a whole 9 word sentence. It might work but it might not and even if the sentence itself makes some sense the final creation would bear no likeness to the original contexts where the words were taken.

  And this is how they come to their "new light" doctrines.

  Kinda makes one wonder about the people who think this is honorable scholarship.
• 

  minimus

  Ahhhh but this is why the Watchtower Organization is so enlightened! They make the Witnesses think these "scriptural" gymnastics are evidence of how they ONLY have understanding of the deep things of God.
• 

  Lady Lee

  you are right Min

  any monkey could do the same. Just have them point out a few words here and there and see what they come up with
• 

  believingxjw

  I agree Lady Lee, but then the NT itself does the same. It takes quotes from the OT and applies them to the Christ but the context of those quotes do not always apply directly to the Christ. So, I suppose, JWs and Bible Students and other Christian faiths have some support for using the same practice.
• 

  sd-7

  Hmm. Touche, believingxjw. I kind of had similar thoughts about the NT as I was reading it myself after my awakening. I always thought that "Out of Egypt I called my son" was one good example. That verse was referring to Israel in its original context. One would have to really stretch it to make it a prophecy about the Messiah, I would think. I may be wrong.

  I think one of the last meetings I attended had an interesting example of this. They quoted Hebrews 2:10, where a scripture, I think from Psalms is applied to Jesus. The context indicates that Paul was making the point that Jesus called men his 'brothers', but at the KH they focus on the part where it says Jesus will praise God's 'name' in the middle of the congregation. So now the scripture isn't about Jesus calling humans his brothers, but rather about Jesus praising the name of Jehovah. But the context shows it was not about that at all. And indeed, the writer of Hebrews could very well have taken that verse out of its context himself. Possible double whammy.

  I'm pleased to see a thread on this subject. Hope more people will comment on it.

  -sd-7
• 

  Lady Lee

  I'm pleased to see a thread on this subject. Hope more people will comment on it.

  I hope so too. I would love it if people had more examples like yours
• 

  believingxjw

  It is what it is. What we believe or do not believe is not that important, imo. What's important is how we treat one another. People who love their fellow man or who love the earth and try to care for it are found in all nations and religions. That part of mankind is ONE!
• 

  blondie

  http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/bible/120751/1/Worst-scriptures-taken-out-of-context
• 

  OUTLAW

  LadyLee..

  Your ignoring the Fact..In WatchTower World..

  The Bible was Written..To Support the Watchtower..

  If people would just read more WBT$ Literature..They would understand the Bible better..

  ...................... ...OUTLAW
• 

  james_woods

  One of the biggest context frauds they have committed is to amplify two obscure references to the "144,000" in Revelation (which are very unclear as to their actual meaning) into their seemingly ironclad doctrine that there are two classes of christians - one heavenly, one earthly.

  This two-classes doctrine is never stated in the scriptures - they simply made it up from disconnected verses, including some that obviously refer to Jewish and non-Jewish christians.

  EDIT - to say that I was amazed when I began to question this and talked to life-long witnesses about it that they simply thought Revelation clearly said only 144,000 go to heaven: They never even realized that it said nothing of the kind until reading the verses without the surrounding nonsense of a watchtower article.