Posts by Daniel Michaels

posted

18
Greg Stafford releases JWD 3
by AliveinChrist in
1. watchtower
2. bible
greetings group .

i saw today that stafford is going to be releasing a third addition of his jehovahs witnesses defended publication at a pre-sale price, on his web site at http://www.elihubooks.com/ .

it will be of interest to those of us who have read his publications to see what changes will be in version 3 that were not in version 2, since the release of his three dissertations book, which was a more candid look at the history of the wt history and doctrinal changes.
Daniel Michaels

Greeting AuldSOul Thank you for you post I didnt mean to inply that all ex JW's still beleive all of the teachings of thw WT religion, but many of them do still carry with them SOME of the teachings, for example, there just was jsut today a post in the beliefs section a post about how long the brainwashing stays with you after you leave, from a poster who years after leaving was still worried about armageddon coming soon. I personally have been out for 3 years now, and have helped over a dozen of my friends to get out, and get e-mails from JW's around the world, and try to help out as many JW's as possible to get out. My wife and I had to move out of state to avoid being DF'ed for not believing the teachings anymore. I know from my own experience as well as listening to and talking to many other ex JW's that it takes years and years to get out of the JW mind set of beliefs and more on. Many seem to leave very bitter and hateful of religion, others turn to atheism or the Catholic faith for support. SInce JW's are not taught the art of critical thinking, many when they leave have trouble expressing there thoughts and react with emotion and simply attck the person making comments, as seen in some of the post above. I am not Greg Stafford, in fact, I dont agree with many of the ideas that Stafford defends, and think that he was far to nice to the Watchtower in his 'Three disserations on the Teachings of the JW's' publication. Nor is what I wrote 'spam' since I worte it myself a few days ago, and it is based upon my life, my experiences, my thoughts, and my desire to help other JW's who are going through the same experiences we all go through who have left. I post on a few ex-JW web sites, so as to reach more people. For example, read what I posted about the Watchtower and mind control in the Beliefs section here a few days ago, and yes I did post it on more forems than this one. JWD is just one among many sites dedicated to helping JW's become free of the organizations teachings and control, and anyone who thinks that one can only post on one site or what hey write is 'spam' is simply mistaken and has a very narrow mindset, something that they seem to be holding onto from their days in the WT. We all as Ex JW's carry with us differant ideas and theologies, and we should all be able to come together and respectfully communicate with each other about both our experiences and thoughts. Many of us have lost many frineds and family, and need the support from others who have been affected by the Watchtower and its practices. What I stated, and I will clearify, is that many JW's when they leave carry with them from the WT what they think the WT was correct about that the bible does in fact teach, while rejecting the many claims that the Watchtower makes that are not in the bible. I certianly still hold to the WT teachings that the bible is the Word of God, that Jesus is the Son of God, that Christ died to save sinners, that we are saved by faith in Christ, that Christian should love one another, that Gods name is Jehovah, that Christ will one day return, that we will all be judged, ect.. However reject that the WT is Gods sole means of communication, that only the WT can understand the bible, that the 'other sheep' are not the Gentiles, that only the Witnesses will be saved, that Christ came in 1914, that Jerusalem was destroyed in 607, that there will be a resurrection of Christians on earth, that the bible was only written to 144,000, that birthdays are pagan, that the WT is the 'faithfull and discreet slave; that bible propecy talks at all about the Watchtowers history, that Chrit is only the medator of the 144,000, just to list a few things. Well it was nice to meet you, thank you for your responce AliveinChrist AliveinChrist, Welcome. I agree with Poztate, although I wouldn't have worded it quite that way. But, you know how those Canadians are known for being rude . I don't know an answer to everything, but I can compare the core doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses just as critically against the Bible as Jehovah's Witnesses can manage with any other organized religion. What I mean is, I don't know the truth about everything, nor do I claim to, but I do know that if anyone claims that the core doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses are based on the Bible they are supporting and promoting a lie. Respectfully, AuldSoul
8
Did Christ and the Jews commonly speak Aramaic, Hebrew, or Greek?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
did christ and the jews commonly speak aramaic, hebrew, or greek?

greetings group

ever since the movie on the passion of christ, i have been interested in why it is that the majority of scholars have thought that aramaic was the language that jesus mostly spoke and taught in.
Daniel Michaels

Did Christ and the Jews commonly speak Aramaic, Hebrew, or Greek?
Greetings group
Ever since the movie on the Passion of Christ, I have been interested in why it is that the majority of Scholars have thought that Aramaic was the language that Jesus mostly spoke and taught in. I am not at all saying that it was not spoken at all in the area, however, when reading the bible and noting what it has to say on this subject indirectly, the evidence seems to point to the languages of Greek and Hebrew being the common languages of the Jews of that time.
Note first, an event recorded in scripture that took place in the times of King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah.
ESV Isaiah 36:11 Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to the Rabshakeh, "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it. Do not speak to us in the language of
From this text we can see that these 3 educated Jews who served in official positions in the city of were able to speak both Hebrew and Aramaic, and it is clear also in this text that both the bible and the Jews made a clear distinction between the language of Aramaic, (Gr. Syristi) and Hebrew. It is also noteworthy that Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah wanted Rabshakeh to speak in a language that the Jews would not understand, namely, Aramaic, instead of the language of the Jews, which was Hebrew.
One WT publication made this observation about the languages of the Jews.
?Later, in the days of the Jewish kings, Hebrew came to be known as ?the Jews? language.? (2 Ki. 18:26, 28) In Jesus? time, the Jews spoke a newer or expanded form of Hebrew, and this still later became a rabbinic Hebrew. However, it should be noted that in the Christian Greek Scriptures, the language is still referred to as the ?Hebrew? language, not the Aramaic. (John 5:2; , 17; Acts 22:2; Rev. 9:11)?
We can also look at the evidence in the NT to see that the languages that the bible seems to indicate that were spoken at the time of Jesus were Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.
Note first Acts 21:37, which identifies Paul as speaking both Greek and Hebrew, and that the Jews, and perhaps even the Roman officer, understood the Hebrew language that he spoke.
*** Rbi8 Acts -22:2 ***
37 And as he was about to be led into the soldiers? quarters, Paul said to the military commander: ?Am I allowed to say something to you?? He said: ?Can you speak Greek? 38 Are you not really the Egyptian who before these days stirred up a sedition and led the four thousand dagger men out into the wilderness?? 39 Then Paul said: ?I am, in fact, a Jew, of in Ci·li´cia, a citizen of no obscure city. So I beg you, permit me to speak to the people.? 40 After he gave permission, Paul, standing on the stairs, motioned with his hand to the people. When a great silence fell, he addressed them in the Hebrew language, saying:
22 ?Men, brothers and fathers, hear my defense to YOU now.? 2 (Well, when they heard he was addressing them in the Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent, and he said:)
Acts 26:14 shows that the resurrected Christ, when he spoke to Saul, spoke to him in the Hebrew language, with again, no mention of the language of Aramaic.
*** Rbi8 Acts 26:14 ***
14 And when we had all fallen to the ground I heard a voice say to me in the Hebrew language, ?Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? To keep kicking against the goads makes it hard for you.?
Act 6:1 talks about 2 different languages that the Jews were speaking, namely, the Greek and Hebrew speaking Jews, with no mention again of a group of Jews who were speaking Aramaic, which we would expect to find if the majority of Jews were in fact speaking Aramaic. Either, that, or we are to belief that the Aramaic speaking Jews were not ever causing trouble.
*** Rbi8 Acts 6:1 ***
Now in these days, when the disciples were increasing, a murmuring arose on the part of the Greek-speaking Jews against the Hebrew-speaking Jews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution
John 19:13-14, as well as John 5:2, make mention of only the Hebrew language, with again, no mention of Aramaic.
*** Rbi8 John 19:13-14 ***
Therefore Pilate, after hearing these words, brought Jesus outside, and he sat down on a judgment seat in a place called The Stone Pavement, but, in Hebrew, Gab´ba·tha. 14
*** Rbi8 John 5:2 ***
2 Now in at the sheepgate there is a pool designated in Hebrew Beth·za´tha, with five colonnades.
The text of Revelation 9:11gives Christ 2 names, one in Greek, and another in Hebrew. If the Jews were in fact speaking Aramaic, than you would expect John to tell us what his name in that language would be. But again, only Hebrew and Greek are identified for the reader.
*** Rbi8 Revelation ***
In Hebrew his name is A·bad´don, but in Greek he has the name A·pol´lyon.
Also, Revelation 16:16 speaks of only the Hebrew language.
*** Rbi8 Revelation ***
16 And they gathered them together to the place that is called in Hebrew Har?Ma·ged´on.
John 20:16 clearly identifies a language that Mary spoke to the risen Lord, which was Hebrew, showing that Mary at least spoke Hebrew, or was knowledgeable of Hebrew, and this text also tells us that John likely did not write in Hebrew but in Greek, since he writes that it was Hebrew that she spoke this word in, which, if he had wrote in Hebrew, he would not have had to identify.
*** Rbi8 John ***
Jesus said to her: ?Mary!? Upon turning around, she said to him, in Hebrew: ?Rab·bo´ni!? (which means ?Teacher!?)
Perhaps one of the more important verses in identifying the languages of the land, are the languages mentioned at John 19:17-21. Since Pilate wrote in Hebrew, in Latin, in Greek, so that the Jews could read the title, we would expect Pilate to have written in the common languages of the people. It is of great interest to note that we don?t find any mention here of Aramaic, which we would expect to see if in fact that was the common language of the Jews.
*** Rbi8 John 19:17-21 ***
17 And, bearing the torture stake for himself, he went out to the so-called , which is called Gol´go·tha in Hebrew; 18 and there they impaled him, and two other [men] with him, one on this side and one on that, but Jesus in the middle. 19 Pilate wrote a title also and put it on the torture stake. It was written: ?Jesus the Naz·a·rene´ the King of the Jews.? 20 Therefore many of the Jews read this title, because the place where Jesus was impaled was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, in Greek. 21
It would be of interest to me to understand why the majority of Scholars believe that Christ spoke in Aramaic, as well as the majority of Jews of that day. Since the LXX was the bible that the NT writer often quoted from, as well as the Hebrew Text, it would seem that the Jews would be able to speak those languages, since the NT authors wrote and quoted from those languages. Also, the written texts of Hebrew and Greek would have a preserving effect on the languages, allowing the Jews to preserve them in spoken form. The evidence in the NT also points to Greek and Hebrew as being the languages commonly spoken at the time, as well as the only languages specifically mentioned by the NT authors, besides the mention of Latin at the crucifixion of Christ. Since the bible does show that Hebrew and Aramaic are distinct languages, although similar, the text of Isaiah 36:11 seems to shows that a speaker of Hebrew would not understand Aramaic. Had Aramaic been the common language of the time, as the movie ?The Passion of the Christ? displays, we would expect to see its common usage by the biblical authors, who were also Jews and who wrote to the Jews. However, the evidence in the bible seems to point only to Hebrew and Greek, which are the languages that the oldest text of the bible, with the exception of the Aramaic Targums and parts of the writings of Daniel. Since the NT authors mentions only the Hebrew and Greek languages as being spoken by the Jews, I submit that Christ did in fact not speak in Aramaic, but in the common languages of the Jews, which NT biblical evidence indicates to be Hebrew, and perhaps some Greek, since Acts 6:1 tells us of only two categories of Jews, namely Greek-speaking Jews, and Hebrew-speaking Jews.
Free in Christ
Daniel Michaels
20
Does the Watchtower Society claim to be ?divinely appointed? and inspired?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
3. who speaks in his name, .

4. who speaks by his authority,.

12. and who have been divinely appointed and is the organized channel of communication.
Daniel Michaels

Greetings group
I do give anyone here permission to use any of my articles where ever they want. That is why I place them online, for any one to read, agree, or disagree with. thanks for all your comments. There are a few other things that I would like to point out about this issue.
When we evaluate the text which Moses warns us about a person who claims to be a prophet, note exactly what the claim is that is being made in the text
*** Rbi8 Deuteronomy 18:20-22 ***
20 ??However, the prophet who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded him to speak or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet must die. 21 And in case you should say in your heart: ?How shall we know the word that Jehovah has not spoken?? 22 when the prophet speaks in the name of Jehovah and the word does not occur or come true, that is the word that Jehovah did not speak. With presumptuousness the prophet spoke it. You must not get frightened at him.?
Thus, this person is simply called a ?prophet.? The bible does not make a distinction between an inspired prophet, and an uninspired prophet in this text, the person is simply called ?prophet.? Second, it is stated that the ?prophet? ?presumes to speak in my name.? That is all that the bible tells us. We as Chirstians need to be alert to persons claiming to be a ?prophet? and who also claims to ?speak in the name of Jehovah.? If we have a situation in which a person or group of people claim both to be a prophet and to speak in the name of Jehovah, then Deuteronomy 18 would in fact apply to them, and we are to look and see if ?the word does not occur or come true.?
This is the biblical message, it is clear and simple. There are two simple things that the Bible talks about this ?prophet.?
1. He is called ?prophet?
2. He claims to speak in Jehovah?s name.
We are told by Christ that there will be many false prophets. There is no doubt about it, there are those claiming to be Christians who are in fact False Prophets. If we have a group, such as the Watchtower organization, who claims both?.
1. To be a prophet.
2. To speak in the name of Jehovah
then Deuteronomy 18 is applicable on them, if what they will say or have said does not in fact come true. It is that simple. That is what the bible teaches, you can either accept it, or reject it, but there is no getting around that the bible teaches it, and that which the bible warns us concerning is exactly what the Watchtower religion claims, both to be a prophet, and to speak in the name of Jehovah. The evidence is well documented.
For the WT apologist to say that the WT does not claim to be inspired is beyond the point, and is trying to split hairs, since they are trying to say that since they are not inspired, this text does not apply to them. The article that I presented earlier documents that when they say this, they are speaking out of both sides of their mouth, since they do claim to be ?divinely appointed? and that ?Jehovah sent? them, and to ?have been anointed with His spirit for their work.? Thus, they are claiming to have been ?divinely appointed? and sent by Jehovah to ?speak in his name and by His authority,? what else could the ?prophet? in Deuteronomy 18 have said about himself?
As it turns out, the ?prophet? in Deuteronomy 18, like the WT also claims, was not ?inspired? either. Since his word did not come true, it is obvious that Jehovah was in fact not using him as a channel of information. But evidently he was misleading God?s people by making the claim to be a prophet sent by Jehovah and speaking in his name. However, what he said did not come to pass.
I wonder if any prophet in biblical times ever thought of trying what the WT does, in saying after what he said turned out false, ?oh, yeah, but I meant that I was an uninspired prophet.? It is simply amazing that so many persons, true to Christ words, have followed a group that, more than most any other group, has left a paper trail of evidence which proves that Deuteronomy 18 and the warnings there are still occurring. Since the WT religion has indeed fulfilled the biblical requirements given in this text, now a person needs to look critically at the historic record of that ?prophet? who is claiming to ?speak in Jehovah?s name? to see if all they have said has come to pass, or if they have and are speaking falsehood in the name of Jehovah. Deuteronomy 18 is still bearing true witness against all persons claiming to be ?prophets? sent by Jehovah, and we need to keep spiritually awake, not allowing ourselves to be mislead by persons how have sit themselves in the house of God, and who make lofty claims of divine authority, but whose teachings are not coming to pass.
Free in Christ,
Daniel Michaels
[email protected]
20
Does the Watchtower Society claim to be ?divinely appointed? and inspired?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
3. who speaks in his name, .

4. who speaks by his authority,.

12. and who have been divinely appointed and is the organized channel of communication.
Daniel Michaels

Does the Watchtower organization claim divine appointment and inspiration?
Greetings group
In typical style, most WT defenders will respond to the allegation that the WT Organization has been and continues to function as a False Prophet with rejoinders such as this one given to me in an e-mail. Note the claim that the WT cannot not a false prophet because they ?admit that they are not inspired?.
Quote
Also, does it bother you to hold such a biased opinion in
light of the many WT quotes where they admit that they are not
infallible, or not an inspired prophet?
End quote
Thus, even when the Watchtower functions as an inspired prophet, making claim after claim that would only be appropriate for a prophet who considered himself inspired, with claims to ?speak in the name of Jehovah? and to be His ?prophet? like Moses and Ezekiel, or that the organization is ?God?s sole means of communication, among many others that will be shown in this article, the WT apologist will always resort to saying that the WT does not claim inspiration, and in fact, denies it.
While it is true that the WT does in fact state that they are not inspired, this is really only a smoke screen, since they also do claim to be inspired by the position that they claim to have, as well as the language that they use in describing who they are and the authority that they have. Thus, the Watchtower really is speaking out of both sides of their mouth. Out of one side, they claim not to be inspired, and on the other side, they are claiming to be inspired, with language that only an inspired prophet would use about himself. Thus, the WT wants the authority of an inspired prophet, but not the accountability and responsibility before God and man for that claim. Therefore, the WT can use all the rhetoric they desire about the authority that they have claimed to been appointed to, and yet, since they also say that they are not inspired, they offer the WT defenders a way out of being labeled as a ?false prophet? according to the biblical definition.
I will present evidence, however, that the WT does in fact claim to be an ?inspired prophet,? by noting that the language that is used in the organizations publications shows that it must be inspired, and functions in application as an ?inspired prophet.?
It should also be noted, that since the WT does also claim to be a ?prophet,? any way that the WT defender seeks to define the word ?prophet? they are still a ?false prophet? even if you want to define ?prophet? as something other than a person who is ?inspired? by God to teach a message.
One matter of extreme import is that the WT has claimed to speak IN THE NAME OF GOD. If you are claiming to speak in God?s name, then you are claiming to speak according to the authority of God, as God?s sent forth representative. While many WT defenders will make the claim ?well the WT has never claimed to speak in the name of God,? the truth of the matter is that they in fact have. Witnesses who make this claim are not really grounded in reality. Please note the following quotes from the WT, which show that the WT organization teaches that it is in fact an inspired prophet who has been divinely appointed. Please note the quotations below from the Watchtower publications themselves to see that this is in fact what the organization teaches about itself. It is taught by the organization that it functions as?
1. Jehovah?s earthly channel of communication,
2. is the modern Jeremiah and Ezekiel,
3. who speaks in His name,
4. who speaks by his authority,
5. who has been sent forth by God,
6. who are likened to the inspired prophets in the bible,
7. are communicating God?s messages,
8. commissioned by Jehovah to deliver His message,
9. whom peoples need to obey as they would the voice of God,
10. who has been anointed by His spirit to do His work,
11. who is alone Jehovah?s spokesman today,
12. and who have been divinely appointed and is the organized channel of communication.
*** w79 9/1 p. 29 The Royal ?Shepherd? of Bible Prophecy ***
Unlike the clergy class, those of the Jeremiah class have been sent by Jehovah to speak in his name? ? True, the Jeremiah class back up their message by quoting the words, ?This is what Jehovah has said.?
*** w79 11/1 p. 25 Divine Judgment Against the False Prophets of Christendom ***
. Whom, then, did Jehovah send and who are the ones that speak in his name, Christendom?s clergy who prophesy oppositely, or the Jeremiah class of today? Future events will identify the truthtellers.
*** w56 8/1 p. 463 Jehovah?s Message Against Gog of Magog ***
As Ezekiel was merely the spokesman used by God, so also are those today who are privileged to speak in the name of Jehovah as his message-bearing witnesses.
*** kj chap. 4 p. 66 Commissioned to Speak in the Divine Name ***
24 Why, though, are all these facts of history brought to our attention? It is to show the fulfillment of prophecy. Jehovah has found and commissioned his modern-day ?Ezekiel.? It is a composite Ezekiel. It is composed of those dedicated, baptized proclaimers of God?s kingdom, who have been anointed with His spirit for their work. (Isaiah 61:1-3) It is manifest that in the year 1919 the invisible heavenly organization of Jehovah, like the celestial chariot seen in Ezekiel?s vision, rolled up and stopped, not before Christendom?s advocates of the League of Nations, but before the anointed proclaimers of the heavenly kingdom of God in the hands of Jesus Christ. From atop this celestial chariotlike organization Jehovah commissioned this dedicated, baptized, anointed class of servants to speak to all the nations in His name. Thus, like Ezekiel, they became Jehovah?s witnesses.
*** w55 5/15 p. 305 Jehovah?s Channel of Communication ***
. Thus Jehovah?s earthly channel of communication is identified. The earthly channel is either a prophet or a collective prophetlike organization.
*** w55 5/15 p. 314 Christian Channel of Communication ***
20 What of Jehovah?s Christian channel of communication today? Which of the hundreds of sects and denominations of those who claim to be Christian is Jehovah?s spokesman today in the earth as his divinely appointed and organized channel of communication? ??Only the remnant of Jehovah?s anointed witnesses.?1 John
*** w56 8/1 p. 467 Delivering Satan?s Death Notice ***
AS THE previous article stated, Jehovah?s witnesses, of all people, are the ones commissioned by God to deliver his special message just prior to this world?s end. The message is one of doom directed against Gog of Magog, that is, Satan the Devil, and against his allies. And there are very good reasons why Jehovah God in these ?last days? passed over all others and chose what at the time was a small and obscure group of people to speak in his name and by his authority as his witnesses. Whom else can God trust to speak for him?
*** w56 1/1 p. 32 Announcements ***
. What a privilege to be serving with Jehovah?s channel of communication and to have the joy and pleasure of inviting others to receive the water of life!
*** w57 6/15 p. 370 Overseers of Jehovah?s People ***
7 Let us now unmistakably identify Jehovah?s channel of communication for our day, that we may continue in his favor. ??..It is vital that we appreciate this fact and respond to the directions of the ?slave? as we would to the voice of God, because it is His provision.
*** w58 2/1 p. 79 Cultivate a Good Mental Disposition ***
We must always remember that we learn the truth from Jehovah?s channel of communication, the ?faithful and discreet slave? class. (Matt. 24:45-47) We receive of his spirit by our continued association with his channel.
Thus the Watchtower Organization does in fact claim to be ?divinely appointed,? and to speak ?in the name of Jehovah? and ?by His authority,? being ?sent forth? by Jehovah Himself, commissioned by God, acts as His modern day ?prophet,? is the modern day ?Jeremiah,? and the ?sole channel of communication? today for Jehovah to reveal His truths.
I don?t know what else the Watchtower can write about itself to lay claim to being an ?inspired prophet,? or one who would be able to be judged in light of the text of Deuteronomy 18, since they claim for themselves everything that this verse warns about.
1. Those who claim to ?speak in Gods name.?
2. Those who claim to be a ?prophet.?
*** Rbi8 Deuteronomy 18:20-22 ***
20 ??However, the prophet who presumes to speak in my name a word that I have not commanded him to speak or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet must die. 21 And in case you should say in your heart: ?How shall we know the word that Jehovah has not spoken?? 22 when the prophet speaks in the name of Jehovah and the word does not occur or come true, that is the word that Jehovah did not speak. With presumptuousness the prophet spoke it. You must not get frightened at him.?
However, the WT organization goes FAR BEYOND what this verse states concerning simply being a prophet and to speak in the name of God. But yet, if you read what the Bible is telling us, this text is exactly what the WT has claimed, and then some. Thus, there is good reason for many christians to be concerned with the claims of the Watchtower, for the Watchtower can be honestly judged in light of the biblical text at Deuteronomy 18, and one can read the history of the Watchtower religion and see for themselves if all that they have stated has come true, or if what they have been saying as a ?divinely appointed? ?prophet? who speaks ?in the name of Jehovah? as His ?sole channel of communication? has all in fact come true, or if they have been ?presumptuous?, speaking falsely in the name of Jehovah. If in fact the WT organization has not been ?divinely appointed? in 1919, and are not ?Gods means of communication? and not a ?prophet? sent froth to speak Jehovah?s message, than they are in fact a False prophet, and according to the biblical text, ?that prophet must die.? Those claiming to be JW?s and who represent the WT need to be very aware of the importance of what this text is stating, and if the WT?s many claims might not actually correspond to what Moses was warning us about.
For the WT to also claim not to be inspired is intellectually dishonest and amounts to speaking out of both sides of their mouth. This position that they have amounts to them having the Authority of God, but not the responsibility of an appointed prophet to speak the truth and have their words come true.
Jehovah?s Witnesses today must be extremely careful not to allow themselves to be deceived by false teachers who come to them with claims of divine appointments, and yet who have time after time been found to be teaching falsehood in the name of Jehovah, and who have set themselves us as an Idol, whose publications are taught to be both inspired and should even be prayed over as being directly from Jehovah himself.
Note the following Watchtower which presents the Watchtower as a ?message from Jehovah? and some thing that one should even ?kneel down and pray? over before reading! Such outright idolatry should be of great concern to Christians. IF this does not qualify as an example of both the WT teaching that it is inspired, and of the idolatry that it encourages the Witnesses to have for it, I don?t know what will.
*** w64 9/15 p. 574 Experiencing Jehovah?s Love ***
?In contrast to the attitude of these elective elders was that of an elderly couple with whom I stayed on the outskirts of . The brother went down to get the mail before breakfast, and when we had breakfast he said, ?Brother Riemer, I got a new Watchtower this morning, and do you know the first thing that Ma and I do when we get that Tower? We kneel down before we take the wrapper off and ask Jehovah to make us worthy to see what the message is that Jehovah has for us. Now, before we take the wrapper off, will you kneel down and pray with us?? How different that elective elder was from this humble couple who appreciated Jehovah?s organization!?
End quote
How I pray that Jehovah will remove the veil that blinds the Witnesses from this deception.
Free in Christ
Daniel Michaels
[email protected]
16
Greg Staffords commits on the WT and idolatry
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
this was posted by greg stafford on the channel c board concerning the wt religion and idolatry

posted by gregstafford on mon - feb 10 - 2:39pm: .

in the article ?god?s servant preserved,?
Daniel Michaels

This was posted by Greg Stafford on the Channel C board concerning the WT religion and idolatry
Posted by GregStafford on Mon - Feb 10 - 2:39pm:

In the article ?God?s Servant Preserved,? The Watch Tower and Herald of Christ?s Presence, April 1, 1930, page 116, we find these words directed at those who believed that C. T. Russell was himself the ?faithful and wise servant? appointed by Christ over all his possessions:
quote:
They formed themselves into groups and claimed that the sum total of truth revealed to God?s people is found in what Brother Russell did and wrote and that he is ?the faithful and wise servant whom the Lord has made ruler over all his goods?; and they insist that the only true worship is by and through him and his works, and thereby they set up for themselves an image for worship.
While those responsible for the writing and editing of these words in The Watch Tower did themselves at one time believe and strongly write in support of Russell as the ?faithful and wise/discreet servant/slave,? they here noted that some had continued to do so after the time when they had identified the ?slave? as a group of people, not just one man. Indeed, prior to changing their view off the ?slave,? Watch Tower writers presented Russell and his works in such a way that it could be said that they ?insisted that the only true worship is by and through him and his works.? Consider:
quote:
Gradually, as the dark night settles over humanity, it will be recognized more and more that the only comfort and consolation to be had from the Word of God is through an understanding of the plan as outlined by Pastor Russell in his STUDIES IN THE SCRIPTURES. These volumes furnish the only interpretation which harmonizes the Bible and demonstrates the truth of the Book of books.---?Views from the Watch Tower,? The Watch Tower and Herald of Christ?s Presence, May 15, 1923, page 147.
Today it is clear that the Governing Body of Jehovah?s Witnesses and, hence, Jehovah?s Witnesses as a whole (at least those who actively support the Watchtower Society), do not identify Russell as the ?faithful slave? but instead accept the Society?s teaching that the ?slave? is a group of persons chosen by Jesus Christ in 1919. This group was appointed to give ?food at the proper time? to Christ?s people and proclaim his judgments and Gospel throughout the earth. It is this group, the ?slave class,? that wrote against those who were ?setting up for themselves an image for worship? in Brother Russell by ?insisting that the only true worship is by and through him and his works.? While this statement against the idolatry involving Russell is commendable, Witnesses today cannot help but ask, Did we displace one image for another? Are we today in danger of committing a similar act of idolatry?
If the basis for the criticism against setting up Russell as an image for worship was because they insisted that the only true worship was by and through him and his works (a position, again, that the Watch Tower Society itself maintained at least up into the mid-1920s), then how should we interpret the Society?s present position regarding itself and its works:
quote:
The Bible and helpful publications of the ?faithful slave? enable us to acquire ?the very knowledge of God.??Proverbs 2:1-6. ---*** w99 11/15 22 Are You Fulfilling Your Whole Obligation to God? ***
quote:
Those of spiritual Israel still remaining on earth make up ?the faithful and discreet slave.? (Matthew 24:45-47) Only in association with them can acceptable sacred service be rendered to God. ---*** w98 2/1 17 Greater Blessings Through the New Covenant ***
quote:
The Lord Jesus Christ guides this faithful slave to provide vital information at such gatherings for all who want to survive the end of this wicked system and gain life in God?s righteous new world.--- *** w98 3/1 14 Appreciating Christian Gatherings ***
quote:
Today, we have God?s complete inspired Word, the Holy Bible. We also have ?the faithful and discreet slave,? appointed by Jesus to provide spiritual ?food at the proper time.? (Matthew 24:45-47) Thus, God is still speaking. ---*** w98 7/15 12 Beware of a Lack of Faith ***
quote:
Christians show their submission to Jesus, and therefore to Jesus? head, Jehovah, by accepting the oversight of that ?slave.? (Matthew 24:45-47; 25:40) ---*** w98 9/1 15 Stay Close to the Theocracy ***
Jehovah?s Witnesses today must be extremely careful that we do not allow those taking the lead among us to set themselves up as an image of worship, in any sense. As was rightly noted in the April 1, 1930, Watch Tower quoted at the beginning of this post, one way we can tell if those whom we trust are betraying that trust by leading us along the path of idolatry is by their insistence that the only true worship is ?by and through them and their works.?
Greg Stafford
4
Two WT views of salvation
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
greetings group .

one interesting observation that is of note is the two different positions that the wt religion teaches on the idea .

concerning the issue the witnesses having to identify themselves as being a member of the watchtower organization for their salvation one the one hand, it is taught that were one to impute salvation toward ?an organization?
Daniel Michaels

Greetings group

One interesting observation that is of note is the two different positions that the WT religion teaches on the idea
concerning the issue the Witnesses having to identify themselves as being a member of the Watchtower organization for their salvation One the one hand, it is taught that were one to impute salvation toward ?an organization? own would be engaging in a ?modern version of idolatry.? And yet, one the other hand, it is ?essential to their salvation? for a member of the Watchtower religion to ?identify themselves with Jehovah?s organization.? Indeed, two sets of scales is not good, and outright deception and intellectual dishonesty is seen clearly in that the WT teaches of these two different views. How the reader of WT publications could have missed this one in the exact same month is simply amazing. Note the following quotes.

We cannot take part in any modern version of idolatry?be it worshipful gestures toward an image or symbol or the imputing of salvation to a person or an organization. (1 Corinthians 10:14; 1 John 5:21)
And in the next breath?

*** km 11/90 p. 1 Directing Bible Students to Jehovah?s Organization ***
Directing Bible Students to Jehovah?s Organization
1 Bible students need to get acquainted with the organization of the ?one flock? Jesus spoke about at John 10:16. They must appreciate that identifying themselves with Jehovah?s organization is essential to their salvation. (Rev. 7:9, 10, 15) Therefore, we should start directing our Bible students to the organization as soon as a Bible study is established.

I can only hope and pray that the JW?s who are actually really interested in the truth will see such clear contradiction in Witness theology, and see how dangerous it is when the WT organization has set itself up as an idol to be looked at for salvation.
*** Rbi8 Proverbs 20:23 ***
23 Two sorts of weights are something detestable to Jehovah, and a cheating pair of scales is not good.
7
What if the other sheep of John 10:16 are actually the Gentiles?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
what if the ?other sheep?

of john 10:16 actually are the gentile believers that came to christ following his resurrection?

what would this mean for the watchtower organization, since so much is riding on their interpretation of this passage?
Daniel Michaels

What if the ?other sheep? of John 10:16 actually are the gentile believers that came to Christ following His resurrection?

What would this mean for the Watchtower Organization, since so much is riding on their interpretation of this passage? Are the ?other sheep? of John 10:16 the Gentiles?

It would mean that there are not 2 classes of Christian, one with a different hope than the other, but that the hope laid out in the NT for Christians is one that all those who have faith in Christ can hope for.

It would mean that all Christians have the hope that the NT offers to all who have faith in Christ, that is, heaven.

It means that the resurrection hope that Paul talks of at 1 Corinthians 15 is the true and only biblical hope, and that there is not in fact another one that was not spoken of in the Bible, but mysteriously known to the WT. All Christians will have a glorious powerful, spiritual, incorruptible, immortal body as Paul states.

Christians can read the bible without wondering if that was written to and for them, or to another group of Christians.

It would mean that the NT was written to all Christians down through the ages, not just 144,000.

It would mean that nothing biblical happened in 1935, when the Witnesses say that the main calling for the 144,000 came to its end.

That there is no difference between those who claim to be of the little flock and the other sheep, other than one was a Jew and one was a Gentile, but now they are both ?one flock? being lead by Christ, the one Shepard of the sheep.

It would mean that Christ is, after all, the mediator between God and man, not God and a few select, or 144,000, men.

It would mean that the WT can add this to the list of theological errors that they have taught, all the while claiming to be divinely appointed by Christ, and to be ?God?s sole means of communication.?

It would mean that each year the Witnesses all get together and symbolically reject the Blood and Body of Christ by their not obeying His words to partake of the emblems.

It would mean that all Christians should and must eat of the loafs and drink the wine at the memorial celebration, or else they would ?have no life? in themselves.

16 ?And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; those also I must bring, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd. 17 This is why the Father loves me, because I surrender my soul, in order that I may receive it again.? 18

Thus you have two folds of sheep, but Christ Himself would bring them together by His death, and the two folds would become ?one flock.? Christ also says of the ?other sheep? that he would also ?bring? these with Him. Since Jesus says in John 14:2-4 that there were many abodes in heaven, and he would also come again and receive them, it is logical to say that just as he was planning to bring Israel with him to His Fathers house, so to he would open the way for the gentiles to be with him.

The two groups seen in the bible are always the Israelites and the gentiles, Jew and non-Jew. That is how the biblical language separates people, and I believe that the only biblical separation possible with John 10:16 and the 2 folds who, under the leadership and death of the one Shepard, Jesus, become one again, is the biblical distinction between the Jews and gentiles. Indeed, that biblical distinction between Jews and the gentiles (or Greeks) is presented and expounded upon all through the NT. Note, for example, the following examples, of the distinction between these two groups.

(John 14:2-4 )
2 In the house of my Father there are many abodes. Otherwise, I would have told YOU, because I am going my way to prepare a place for YOU. 3 Also, if I go my way and prepare a place for YOU, I am coming again and will receive YOU home to myself, that where I am YOU also may be. 4 And where I am going YOU know the way.?

(Acts 10:34-36)
?For a certainty I perceive that God is not partial, 35 but in every nation the man that fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him. 36 He sent out the word to the sons of Israel to declare to them the good news of peace through Jesus Christ: this One is Lord of all [others].

(Acts 15:7-9)
: ?Men, brothers, YOU well know that from early days God made the choice among YOU that through my mouth people of the nations should hear the word of the good news and believe; 8 and God, who knows the heart, bore witness by giving them the holy spirit, just as he did to us also. 9 And he made no distinction at all between us and them, but purified their hearts by faith.

(Romans 10:11-13)
? 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for there is the same Lord over all, who is rich to all those calling upon him. 1

(Romans 11:24) For if you were cut out of the olive tree that is wild by nature and were grafted contrary to nature into the garden olive tree, how much rather will these who are natural be grafted into their own olive tree!

(1 Corinthians 12:13)
13 For truly by one spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink one spirit.

(Galatians 3:26-29)
26 YOU are all, in fact, sons of God through YOUR faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For all of YOU who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor freeman, there is neither male nor female; for YOU are all one [person] in union with Christ Jesus. 29 Moreover, if YOU belong to Christ, YOU are really Abraham?s seed, heirs with reference to a promise.

(Colossians 3:11)
where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, foreigner, Scyth´i·an, slave, freeman, but Christ is all things and in all.

Perhaps the most powerfully and remarkably parallels Christ words at John 10:16 are found in Ephesians 2:11-18.
*** Rbi8 Ephesians 2:11-18 ***
11 Therefore keep bearing in mind that formerly YOU were people of the nations as to flesh; ?uncircumcision? YOU were called by that which is called ?circumcision? made in the flesh with hands? 12 that YOU were at that particular time without Christ, alienated from the state of Israel and strangers to the covenants of the promise, and YOU had no hope and were without God in the world. 13 But now in union with Christ Jesus YOU who were once far off have come to be near by the blood of the Christ. 14 For he is our peace, he who made the two parties one and destroyed the wall in between that fenced them off. 15 By means of his flesh he abolished the enmity, the Law of commandments consisting in decrees, that he might create the two peoples in union with himself into one new man and make peace; 16 and that he might fully reconcile both peoples in one body to God through the torture stake, because he had killed off the enmity by means of himself. 17 And he came and declared the good news of peace to YOU, the ones far off, and peace to those near, 18 because through him we, both peoples, have the approach to the Father by one spirit.

Right here in the text, Paul, using a different analogy than Christ used, creates the same picture, showing that the apostles and disciples understood Christ illustration of the 2 groups to be that of the Jews and gentiles. All the same elements are presented. In Ephesians 2 you have two groups of people who are separated by the wall, which Christ by his death abolishes, uniting the two peoples into one, all in union with Jesus Christ, the head.

John 10- Two fold of Sheep
Eph 2- Two peoples

John 10- Other sheep hear Christ voice
Eph 2- Gentiles hear the gospel message

John 10- Christ death brings together into one Flock
Eph 2- Christ death brings together into unity with Himself

John 10- both sheep fold become one flock
Eph 2 ? Both parties made one

John 10- Both folds to be lead by Christ
Eph 2- Both Jews and gentiles lead by Christ

Thus, when you allow the bible to interpret itself, you come to a clear and scriptural understanding of who the ?other sheep? of John 10:16 are. They are, as Christians have long understood, the gentile believers who have faith in Christ and by His death are sanctified and lead to the Father. The Watchtower has misapplied this verse and added post biblical theology to fit their 2 class system of Chirstians, making the bible a book that, like the Catholics have falsely taught, is not a book for all men, but only for a privileged few. They have made Christ the mediator, not for mankind, but only for a select few, and the marvelous hope that the bible gives to all Christians, they have again, said that that hope is not really available for all mankind. By the unscriptural interpretation that they have placed on the ?other sheep? of John 10:16, the Watchtower religion has taken away many truths in the bible, and have had to add lie upon lie to sustain their interpretation. How much better it is to allow the bible to speak and interpret itself, then have to create the post-biblical distinctions that the Witnesses are currently teaching.

Free in Christ

Daniel Michaels

[email protected]

Interestingly, although the WT identifies the 144,000 of Revelation 7 as the ?little flock? in Luke 12, the ?other sheep? in John 10 are also said to become intergraded into the ?one flock.? Thus, since both folds of sheep are to become ?one flock? and Christ states that the ?little flock? is to be given the kingdom, the ?other sheep? would also be among those who are given a kingdom that flesh and blood cannot inherit. Thus there is one God, one Faith, one Lord, and also, according to Christ, ?one flock.?

Robinsons Word Pictures

Joh 10:16 - Other sheep (alla probata). Sheep, not goats, but "not of this fold" (ek tês aulês tautês). See verse 1 for aulê. Clearly "his flock is not confined to those enclosed in the Jewish fold, whether in Palestine or elsewhere" (Westcott). Christ's horizon takes in all men of all races and times (Joh 11:52; 12:32). The world mission of Christ for all nations is no new idea with him (Mt 8:11; Lu 13:28). God loved the world and gave his Son for the race (John 3:16), Them also I must bring (kakeina dei me agagein). Second aorist active infinitive of agô with dei expressing the moral urgency of Christ's passion for God's people in all lands and ages. Missions in Christ's mind takes in the whole world. This is according to prophecy (Isa 42:6; 49:6; 56:8) for the Messiah is to be a Light also to the Gentiles. It was typified by the brazen serpent (Joh 3:14). Christ died for every man. The Pharisees doubtless listened in amazement and even the disciples with slow comprehension. And they shall hear my voice (kai tês phônês mou akousontai). Future middle indicative of akouô with the genitive phônês. These words read like a transcript from the Acts and the Epistles of Paul (Ro 9-11 in particular). See especially Paul's words in Ac 28:28. Present-day Christianity is here foretold. Only do we really listen to the voice of the Shepherd as we should? Jesus means that the Gentiles will hearken if the Jews turn away from him. And they shall become one flock, one shepherd (kai genêsontai mia poimnê, heis poimên). Future middle indicative of ginomai, plural, not singular genêsetai as some MSS. have it. All (Jews and Gentiles) will form one flock under one Shepherd. Note the distinction here by Jesus between poimnê (old word, contraction of poimenê from poimên, shepherd), as in Mt 26:31, and aulê (fold) just before. There may be many folds of the one flock. Jerome in his Vulgate confused this distinction, but he is wrong. His use of ovile for both aulê and pomnion has helped Roman Catholic assumptions. Christ's use of "flock" (poimnê) here is just another metaphor for kingdom (basileia) in Mt 8:11 where the children of the kingdom come from all climes and nations. See also the various metaphors in Eph 2 for this same idea. There is only the one Great Shepherd of the sheep (Heb 13:20), Jesus Christ our Lord.
______________________________________________________

Note 3.
Some who have not read first hand the WT publication might not know that many JW?s don?t even have the Lord Jesus as their personal mediator. Note the following WT article.

*** ws chap. 1 pp. 10-11 The Desire for Peace and Security Worldwide ***
Likewise, the Greater Moses, Jesus Christ, is not the Mediator between Jehovah God and all mankind. He is the Mediator between his heavenly Father, Jehovah God, and the nation of spiritual Israel, which is limited to only 144,000 members.
11
Romans 10:9, 13 Identifying Jesus as Jehovah?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
the use of the divine name in the nwtcgs

romans 10:9, 13

identifying jesus as jehovah
Daniel Michaels

The use of the Divine Name in the NWTCGS
Romans 10:9, 13
Identifying Jesus as Jehovah
The NWT translation 237 times in the Greek Scriptures, adds the Divine Name to its text in places that the greek text has the substantives ?theos? and ?kurios.? Many bible commentators and translators have objected to this practice, saying that we must translated what the greek text says, not what our theology dictates
that the bible should of said. While I do agree with the use of the Divine name in the OT in the places where HWHY does occur, I do not agree with the NWT translators adding of the name, ?Jehovah? to the CGS, especially where the referent as Lord is to Christ, since all the textual proof tells us that the NT always uses ?kurios? meaning ?Lord.? Also, imagine the outcry of the Witnesses if any committee of Translators decided that in the OT, the name ?Jehovah? was to be replaced by ?Jesus? since He is the ?Lord? of the NT, and printed such a bible? Why then, should the NT ?Lord? be replaced by ?Jehovah? in the NWTCGS since he was ?Lord? in the OT? Would the Witnesses not rightfully claim that to do such was ?robbing Jehovah of his position?? Why then, cannot Witnesses understand it when Christians say that about some of the passages where the NWTCGS replace ?Lord? with ?Jehovah? in places where it is obvious that the referent is the Lord Jesus Christ, and all the more so since the Witnesses demand that others translated according to the underlying ancient text?
Since none, not even one, of the thousands of ancient Greek texts of the NT of the early centuries have the name ?Jehovah? in any form found in them, the NWT translators have taken great and radically irresponsible positions on the Inspired text. In fact, neither does the early Latin, Aramaic, or Hebrew text of the early centuries have the Name found either. The earliest Hebrew Text of the CGS that the Watchtower Society list in its NWT is from the 14 th century, and many from the 17 th and 19 th . You would have to hold to a conspiracy ?black helicopter? theory to explain how all of the NT manuscripts were taken in all the regions of the world, and yet all of them divinely protected by Jehovah Himself to insure the accuracy of the manuscripts, for mankind who was going to need the Truth for salvation, that is, everything except for His own name! Yet, even though the OT that we know contained God?s name has been preserved, somehow we are supposed to believe that the NT, which He also inspired, was not protected by God, and that the WBTS has now done what God himself for 2000 years did not do, despite many christians who lived during those 2000 years who somehow received Christ as Savior without a greek text that had Gods name in it. Since we do know that earlier copies of the LXX did have a form of the Name in it, why did God not preserve it in the thousands of NT manuscripts? Could it be that the LXX is not inspired, but is a translation, but the NT was an inspired text, and that God was now ?exalting the name? of His beloved Son, so that ?just as they honor the Father, they will honor the Son?? Or could it be that Christians are now adopted ?sons of God? and as sons, they cry out ?abba? that is ?father?? After all, who, having a father that they truly love, would ever call him by his personal name? Would that not be disrespectful?
Now to me it would seem that if you either add or take away from the text, you are committing the same violation that God forbids. You cannot add to the biblical text and at the same time condemn those who have taken away from the Text, especially if you?re adding to the Text distorts the meaning of the text, as done in several places by the NWT adding of the Divine name in the CGS where the underlying Greek gives no warrant to it.
One such example, that many watchtower organizationalists are somewhat oblivious to the NWT implications of, is the well known text of Paul?s in Romans chapter 10.
*** Rbi8 Romans 10:9-14 ***
9 For if you publicly declare that ?word in your own mouth,? that Jesus is Lord, and exercise faith in your heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one exercises faith for righteousness, but with the mouth one makes public declaration for salvation.
11 For the Scripture says: ?None that rests his faith on him will be disappointed.? 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for there is the same Lord over all, who is rich to all those calling upon him. 13 For ?everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved.? 14 However, how will they call on him in whom they have not put faith?
According to a natural reading of the text, the ?Lord? that with the mouth a Christian is to ?call upon? is the ?Lord Jesus? according to verse 9. However, in verse 13, Paul quotes exactly the text of the LXX of Joel 2:32, a text which, in the Hebrew original, the Divine Name, HWHY, or ?Jehovah? is found, and the ?Lord Jehovah? is the Lord whom Joel is saying that should be ?called upon.? The LXX, however, from which Paul evidently translated, must not have the term HWHY, or ?Iao? or any other Paleo-Hebraic letters, or if it did, since a few manuscripts at that time did, Paul wrote the substantive ?kurios? in its place, thus applying a OT verse that was originally applied to the Lord Jehovah to the highly exalted Lord Jesus, of whom Paul wrote elsewhere,
? *** Rbi8 Philippians 2:9-11 ***
9 For this very reason also God exalted him to a superior position and kindly gave him the name that is above every [other] name, 10 so that in the name of Jesus every knee should bend of those in heaven and those on earth and those under the ground, 11 and every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
Note how the NWT has to add the term ?other? to this Christological text, thus making it agree with their theology. The Koine Greek language has a term for the adjective ?other? which is ?allos.? If Paul wanted to us it, he could of, especially since he is making a very big claim, and if he wanted to say that ?other? than God?s name Jehovah, Christ Jesus is the most highly exalted name, he certainly could have. Thus, even though the NWT claims to be a literal word for word translation, we can see that where the bible does not agree with Watchtower theology, the text of the bible must be altered.
Note, for example, the claim made in the NWT introduction?
*** Rbi8 p. 7 Introduction ***
Paraphrases of the Scriptures are not offered. Rather, an effort has been made to give as literal a translation as possible where the modern-English idiom allows and where a literal rendition does not, by any awkwardness, hide the thought. In that way the desire of those who are scrupulous for getting an almost word-for-word statement of the original is met. It is realized that even such a seemingly insignificant matter as the use or omission of a comma or of a definite or an indefinite article may at times alter the correct sense of the original passage.
Taking liberties with the texts for the mere sake of brevity, and substituting some modern parallel when a literal rendering of the original makes good sense, has been avoided.
End quote
However, the translators who claim to be even worried about the adding or omission of an articles use the important christological text of Philippians 2:9 proves that claim to be false about their ?scrupulous desire? for a word for word statement is not in fact met. It in fact does, ?by awkwardness, hide the thought.? Since Jesus Christ has now been given ?the name, which, as the BBE states, ? is greater than every name,? (not every other name) one does not have to look outside the bible itself to find out that ?the name? that is great and above every name is the name ?Jehovah? itself. For example?
*** Rbi8 2 Samuel
And let your own name become great to time indefinite, saying, ?Jehovah of armies is God over
*** Rbi8 1 Chronicles ***
24 And let your name prove faithful and become great to time indefinite, saying, ?Jehovah of armies, the God of Israel, is God to ,
*** Rbi8 Jeremiah 44:26 ***
Here I myself have sworn by my great name,? Jehovah has said
*** Rbi8 Psalm 102:15 ***
And the nations will fear the name of Jehovah,
And all the kings of the earth your glory.
*** Rbi8 Ezekiel 36:23 ***
And I shall certainly sanctify my great name, which was being profaned among the nations, which YOU profaned in the midst of them; and the nations will have to know that I am Jehovah
*** Rbi8 Malachi ***
11 ?For from the sun?s rising even to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place sacrificial smoke will be made, a presentation will be made to my name, even a clean gift; because my name will be great among the nations,? Jehovah of armies has said.
*** Rbi8 Psalm 148:13 ***
Let them praise the name of Jehovah, For his name alone is unreachably high.
Thus, Christ is given the name ?Jehovah? which is ?the name that is above every name.? It is not the name ?above every {other} name,? as the NWT misleadingly implies, for who?s name is above that of Jehovah? It?s interesting that the very organization that claims to represent the name ?Jehovah? more than all other organizations on earth, would miss this obvious point. Perhaps altering the text to meet predisposed theology wasn?t such a great idea after all. Since it is also very likely that the pre-human Jesus was also the messenger that God sent before the nation of Israel after the Exodus, it is all the more fitting that Christ would be given this name, since He already had ?the name? in Him, the Name of God, which would have been HWHY, as seen in Exodus 23:21. In my research, not one article in the Watchtower explains why Paul would make use of ?calling on the name of Jehovah? in a context that clearly talks about ?calling on the Lord Jesus.? Or why Paul would use the Joel quote as applicable to Christ as the Lord!
Thus, the issue of the NWT adding the name of ?Jehovah? to the text of Romans 10:13 to try to in some way modify the meaning actually only gives leverage to the fact that the Inspired apostle Paul himself understood that the Lord Christ Jesus has been given that name, ?the name? that is above EVERY name, the name Jehovah.
The unambiguous reading of the text of Romans 10:9-13 identifies Christ as Jehovah, although the NWT translators no doubt did not have this in mind, since the Watchtower was adding it to the text to try to not allow the Joel Septuagint quote from being directly applied and understood to be toward Christ.
Few, if any, Witnesses that I have talked to understand Paul?s words in Romans 10 to mean that Christ is now recognized as the ?Lord? whose name we are to ?call upon? for salvation. The NWT?s adding of the name Jehovah only proves conclusively that Jesus has been given the name Jehovah, since the context makes it clear, the natural and only understanding possible of the reading is that Paul was identified the Lord Jesus as Jehovah by quoting the verse in a clear context concerning ?calling on the Lord,? for salvation.
9 For if you publicly declare that ?word in your own mouth,? that Jesus is Lord, and exercise faith in your heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one exercises faith for righteousness, but with the mouth one makes public declaration for salvation.
11 For the Scripture says: ?None that rests his faith on him will be disappointed.? 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for there is the same Lord over all, who is rich to all those calling upon him. 13 For ?everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved.? 14 However, how will they call on him in whom they have not put faith?
Thus, Paul tells us, that if you declare that Christ is Lord, you will be saved, for ?everyone calling on the name of Jehovah? will be saved! Thus you have a semantic equivalency between calling on ?Jesus? and ?Jehovah.? To do one, is to do the other, since Christ has been given the name of Jehovah. It would be nice had the NWT and its commentary the Watchtower been more honest about this, and would of lead to less confusion and bad translation practices of adding to the greek text and inserting words that aren?t there to make the bible agree with the watchtower had the NWT translation committee only understand the ramifications of what they were doing when they decided to add the Divine Name Jehovah to the English translation of the CGS. Instead of having to say that Christ had been given ?the name above every {other} name,? they might have understood that Christ had been given the name Jehovah, as many NT passages that refer to Jehovah and are applied to Christ show, that is above every name, and that name is and will forever be Jehovah.
Free in Christ
Daniel
[email protected]
10
What if the NT autographs contained the divine name?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
what if the argument is correct that the inspired writers of the cgs did in fact use the divine name, jehovah, in either its greek or hebrew letters, in their writings?

for that is the argument that the wt and its defenders have offered us as the reason for the addition/restoration of the name in the nwtcgs, that the inspired authors would of faithfully translated what was in the lxx or the hebrew text when they quoted from it.

even if we are to take this argument to be true, all that would do is show all the more that in fact the authors of the gsc did in fact not hesitate to identify jesus as jehovah, and even directly quoted ot passages that identify jehovah and apply that to the lord jesus.
Daniel Michaels

What if the argument is correct that the inspired writers of the CGS did in fact use the Divine Name, Jehovah, in either its Greek or Hebrew letters, in their writings? For that is the argument that the WT and its defenders have offered us as the reason for the addition/restoration of the Name in the NWTCGS, that the Inspired Authors would of faithfully translated what was in the LXX or the Hebrew Text when they quoted from it.
Even if we are to take this argument to be true, all that would do is show all the more that in fact the authors of the GSC did in fact not hesitate to identify Jesus as Jehovah, and even directly quoted OT passages that identify Jehovah and apply that to the Lord Jesus.
For example, take the reading of Paul?s words in 2 Thessalonians 1:9, which reads?
*** Rbi8 2 Thessalonians 1:9 ***
9 These very ones will undergo the judicial punishment of everlasting destruction from before the Lord and from the glory of his strength
This is a direct quotation from the LXX, a passage that translated the Hebrew that we know contained the Divine Name, Jehovah, as seen in the NWT?s reading of Isaiah 2:21?
*** Rbi8 Isaiah ***
21 in order to enter into the holes in the rocks and into the clefts of the crags, because of the dreadfulness of Jehovah and from his splendid superiority, when he rises up for the earth to suffer shocks.
Thus, the LXX translators, when they came to the personal name of God, Jehovah, would have either written the Hebrew or Greek name for God, (YHWH, or Iao) or they would have written ?kurios.? Either way, the referent was in fact to God Almighty, the LORD, Jehovah Himself as written about by Isaiah in the OT. If the NWT was consistent and honest in its conversion of the substantive ?kurios? to the Divine Name in CGS passages that either quoted from the OT, or shows that in context or action that Jehovah was implied by the inspired authors, then why, in 2 Thess 1:9, do we not find the personal name for God, Jehovah, restored faithfully to the NT text by the NWT? Is it not also a direct quote from the OT, a passage that did in fact use the Divine Name? In fact, why do we not even see a footnote in the NWT here listing a reason why it was not restored, or the many ?J? documents that did in fact, use a form of the Divine Name here? When the Thessalonian congregation heard the reading of what we call 1:9, they would have immediately recalled the LXX from Isaiah 2:21, and understood that Jesus was the One that would bring ?judicial punishment of everlasting destruction? in line with what was spoken of Him in the preceding verse talking about the Lord Jesus coming ?from heaven with his powerful angels in a flaming fire.? Check and compare the NT to the LXX, and you will see that Paul was quoting word for word from the LXX.
If the NWT was faithful and consistent in its insertion of the Name, the Text at 2 Thess 1:9 should have read..

9 ?These very ones will undergo the judicial punishment of everlasting destruction from before Jehovah and from the glory of his strength.?
It is of interest that the Name was not used here with an OT quote, when it was used in other places in the NWT where the NT author does not quote from the LXX or OT text that uses the Name.
Indeed, if the autographs did have the Name in there before it was removed by ?apostate Christians,? as the WT maintains, then why did the NWT copy the ?apostate Christians? by not restoring the name to the text at 2 Thess 1:9, where you have a direct quote that must of included the Name?
The WT argument actually backfires on them, for if in fact the autographs of the NT had the Divine Name, then we have positive identification that Jesus was identified as Jehovah not just in OT quotes and applications, but in the authors also using the Name for Jesus. Thus, the NWT has actually outdone Trinitarians and other translations in adding the Divine Name of God to the GSC where the referent is the Lord Jesus Christ, such as Romans 10:13, Colossians 3:23,24, 1 Thess 5:2, 1 Peter 3:10, 12, and other verses that are speaking about the lordship of Christ. Thus, it is the NWT that allows for the understanding that the NT authors not only applied OT passages that spoke of Jehovah God and His actions to Christ, but the NWT also applied the name Jehovah to the Lord Jesus, going far beyond what others have done, yet all the while asserting that the NT nowhere identifies Jesus as Jehovah.
Thus, according to my research, the NWT at 1 Peter 3:15, 1 Peter 2:3, 2 Thess 1:9, 1 Thess 4:16, all should of read ?Jehovah,? not ?Lord,? since the evidence that the NWT appeals to in other places was also available in these verses. However, as I wrote about earlier, not even the NWT could mask the glory of Christ being identified as Jehovah in the NT, for Paul tells us, as read in the NWTGSC at Romans 10:9, 13..

9 ?For if you publicly declare that ?word in your own mouth,? that Jesus is Lord, and exercise faith in your heart that God raised him up from the dead, you will be saved?.

13 For ?everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will be saved.?
Thus I conclude by showing that if the NWT and the many persons that say that the NT should have the name ?Jehovah? restored to the NT, then this, if done faithfully, only works to show all the more overpoweringly that Jesus not only is the one whom the NT authors identified the actions of the OT Jehovah with, but that in fact they also knew that the Lord Christ Jesus was also given the name ?Jehovah,? the ?name that is above every name,? and used it with application to Him.
Indeed, the Witnesses own translation is bearing witness against them, when they deny this marvelous truth, so clearly presented in the NWT, that Jesus is called Jehovah. I have no problem with using the name ?Jehovah,? in fact, I encourage it. Neither would I have any issue with the NWT using the Name had they only been honest and faithfully rendered ?kurios? as ?Jehovah? in all the texts where the ?J? documents had inserted it, and not covered this up by keeping it as 'Lord' when the context was about Christ. However, there bias is clearly seen, and needs to be exposed by Christians who love truth more than all else. The position that the Witnesses take in this matter is therefore found to be contradictory, and is not based upon a solid and honest approach to Bible translation and exegesis. The fact of the matter is that there is clear evidence in the NT that the inspired authors did often identify Jesus with Jehovah, both in action and OT quotations, and that identification need not be veiled by Christians today who seek to know the Truth of the Bible?s teaching concerning the person of Christ, that He is indeed the Lord, the One who has all authority, not just over Earth, but also in the Heaven.
Free in the Christ
Daniel Michaels
[email protected]
17
Is there really no Rapture?
by Daniel Michaels in
1. watchtower
2. bible
?the word ?rapture?

does not occur in the inspired scriptures.?.

this we are told by one popular watchtower publication.
Daniel Michaels

?The word ?rapture? does not occur in the inspired Scriptures.?
This we are told by one popular Watchtower Publication. One is then left to wonder how a Latin reasoning book would read, and if they would still try to use this misleading form of deceptive argument, and if they would be able to quote a modern Latin bible translation, or if they would completely avoid the subject altogether. Since the word that Christians today use, ?rapture? comes from Jerome?s Latin Vulgate translation from the Greek which reads?
deinde nos qui vivimus qui relinquimur simul rapiemur cum illis in nubibus obviam Domino in aera et sic semper cum Domino erimus
Interestingly, Thayers Greek lexicon defines the word, ?harpazo? to mean ?to seize, carry off by force? and ?to seize and carry off speedily, John 6:15; Acts 23:10; used of divine power transferring a person marvelously and swiftly from one place to another, to snatch or catch away? thus causing Jerome in the 4 th century to translate ?harpazo? into the Latin using the word, ? rapiemur? from which we acquire the word ?rapture.? Thus the Watchtower is exceedingly misleading and not informative at all concerning the word when it states that it is not in the Bible.
Also we are told by the same Watchtower publication,
Quote
Who are the ones that will be ?caught up in the clouds,? as stated at 1 Thessalonians 4:17?
Verse 15 explains that they are faithful ones ?who are left until the coming of the Lord,? that is, they are still living at the time of Christ?s coming. Will they ever die? According to Romans 6:3-5 and 1 Corinthians
End quote
Thus the Watchtower contradicts the sacred secret that Paul informs his readers of at 1 Cor 15:51.52. where he says,
?See, I am giving you the revelation of a secret: we will not all come to the sleep of death, but we will all be changed. In a second, in the shutting of an eye, at the sound of the last horn: for at that sound the dead will come again, free for ever from the power of death, and we will be changed.?
Thus Paul tells us that not all Christians will face death, but will be changed instantly, thus clarifying what he had already written the Thessalonian congregation years earlier about the fact that when Christ does come again, the Trumpet he carries will sound, and the dead will rise, and after that, the living ones, who are surviving, will then be changed.
Why would Paul state so plainly that the dead rise first, and subsequent to that, the living who are surviving? Why the need for a distinction between the living and the dead if the WT is accurate?
If the Watchtower is correct, all Paul had to do is say that the dead would rise, since WT theology does not allow Christians who are living to be changed instantly and be ? harpazo? or ?raptured? or, as the NWT translates it, ?caught away,? unless they die first? The WT quoted above states that a ccording to Romans 6:3-5 and 1 Corinthians 15:35, 36, 44 Christians must die before they can gain heavenly life. However, a comprehensive reading of those text state nothing about a Christian MUST die before he gains eternal life in heaven, in fact, it tells us exactly the opposite! For in 1 Cor 15:51, Paul very clearly informs his readers of exactly the opposite of what the WT states, namely, that not all Christians will die, but that all Christians will be changed when Christ comes and sounds the trumpet.
The watchtower loyalist is in effect saying, ?We do not believe that the bible teaches that Christians will not all fall asleep in death, nor that we will be ?swept away.?
Perhaps the Watchtower writers would be better off writing an article on how the words ?Governing Body? or, ?faithful and discreet slave class? are not found in the bible!
Just something to think about
Free in Christ
Daniel Michaels