by Ding 6 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
Zephaniah 1:18 reads as follows (NWT): "Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah's fury; but by the fire of his zeal the whole earth will be devoured because he will make an extermination, indeed a terrible one, of all the inhabitants of the earth."
How does the WTS explain this verse?
When is this supposed to happen, and where will Jehovah's faithful followers be when it does?
They don't explain it, as far as I know. But then they point you to another verse somewhere that says "hide for a while until the denunciation is over, perhaps you will be spared" or something like that. Then they say you have to look at the overall context of the Bible, and since there are a few more scriptures that say the earth will have survivors, we're supposed to just write off as Biblical hyperbole the ones that say everything will be burnt to smithereens, to scare the shit out of the wicked who don't understand....
....or something like that.
Jehovah's just a big huggable teddy bear, ain't he?
The book "Paradise Restored to Mankind- By Theocracy!' was published in 1972 by the WTS. It contains an explanation of Haggai and Zephania. Perhaps the answers to dings questions can be found there.
If anyone has this book (light blue cover) perhaps they can post the info here. My copy is down the basement somewhere and I will be out all day tomorrow but if no one else has found the answer I'll try to find my copy and see what it says.
"Living WithJjehovah's Day In Mind" may also have a reference-of course I cannot find my copy right now.
If anyone has the WT Library CD-Rom they should be able to find something on what Zeph.1:18 means.
Zeph 2:3 is quoted in the Reasoning book... pick a scripture, any scripture... (sigh)
*** w01 2/15 pp. 16-17 pars. 21-23 Jehovah’s Day of Judgment Is Near! ***
21 What a horrendous day of judgment was foretold at Zephaniah 1:17, 18! “I will cause distress to mankind,” says Jehovah God, “and they will certainly walk like blind men; because it is against Jehovah that they have sinned. And their blood will actually be poured out like dust, and their bowels like the dung. Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah’s fury; but by the fire of his zeal the whole earth will be devoured, because he will make an extermination, indeed a terrible one, of all the inhabitants of the earth.”
22 As he did in the days of Zephaniah, Jehovah will soon bring distress upon “all the inhabitants of the earth,” those who refuse to heed his warning. Because they sin against God, they will walk about as helpless as blind men, unable to find deliverance. In Jehovah’s day of judgment, their blood “will actually be poured out like dust,” as something worthless. Theirs will be a disgraceful end indeed, for God will strew the bodies—even the entrails—of these wicked ones upon the earth, “like the dung.”
23 Nobody can save those who fight against God and his people. Neither silver nor gold could deliver the wrongdoers of Judah, even as hoarded wealth and bribes will provide no protection or escape “in the day of Jehovah’s fury” upon Christendom and the rest of this system of things. In that day of decision, “the whole earth will be devoured” by the fire of God’s zeal as he exterminates the wicked. Because we have faith in God’s prophetic word, we are convinced that we are now deep in “the time of the end.” (Daniel 12:4) Jehovah’s day of judgment is near, and he will soon execute vengeance on his enemies. Yet, Zephaniah’s prophecy does hold out the hope of deliverance. What, then, is required of us if we are to be concealed in the day of Jehovah’s anger?
I guess Jehovah gave the faithful and discreet slave authority to change what He said in the Bible!
Let's remind ourselves of what the verse actually says (NWT): ""Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Jehovah's fury; but by the fire of his zeal the whole earth will be devoured because he will make an extermination, indeed a terrible one, of all the inhabitants of the earth."
The possiblity that the Bible is teaching that those who are spared will temporarily be elsewhere when this judgment occurs (i.e. heaven) doesn't comply with WT teaching. Since the WTBTS doesn't like what their own translation says here, they change it to teach what they believe!
WTBTS version: "Jehovah will soon bring distress upon `all the inhabitants of the earth,' those who refuse to heed his warning."
So "he will make an extermination, indeed a terrible one" (NWT) is changed to "will soon bring distress upon" (WTBTS)
In other words "an extermination, indeed a terrible one" (NWT) is changed to "distress" (WTBTS); and
"all the inhabitants of the earth" (NWT) is changed to "those who refuse to heed his warning" (WTBTS)
Using this approach, the WTS can make the Bible say anything it wants!
Using this approach, the WTS can make the Bible say anything it wants!
Ding, you've nailed it. This was one of my issues back in my teen years when studying with the JWs. I constantly didn't agree with their interpretation of scripture, nor did I like a lot of the scriptures in the Bible itself. I figured I was a goner when Armageddon arrived.
