Posts by JosephMalik

15

Bible Book of Hebrews

by ssn587 in

who was it written by and why or in other words who, what, when, where, why.. wanted to know for the upcoming wt recital.. another question was just what was happening in and around jerusalem from 45 ce up to its destruction.

how was everday life?

what factions were vieing for dominance etc.. .

JosephMalik

Who was it written by and why or in other words Who, What, When, Where, Why.

SSN587,

The book was most likely commissioned by Paul after his struggle with James and the Jewish Christians still keeping the Law not only in Jerusalem but in all his territories. It seems reasonable that all NT books were either written or commissioned by an Apostle since they had real authority over others to make such decisions for the Faith. John would have commissioned the letter by James. Apostles that resided with James needed correction as well and Paul did that when he made several trips to them there. Thousands of Christian Jews were keeping the Law for some 20 to 40 years and James and the Apostles with him did nothing to stop them. You should be able to see this throughout the books of the NT. Then after Paul’s last visit to Jerusalem they nearly killed him. The Roman armies were called in to save his life. It is a story few tell and the WT would not like it revealed because of their claim of being modeled after this Jerusalem congregation with James seemingly in charge. Just so that you can see that all was not rosy in the Faith back then look at what they said to Paul during his fourth visit. Acts 21:24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law. 25 As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication. Can you imagine doing that? Law keeping Hebrew Christians with apostles among them. Hebrews was written to put a stop to this practice once and for all. Paul even appointed elders to do that in his territories even before the book was written. Look how they applied their letter written in Acts chapter 15 some 14 years later. It is the same letter that the WT uses to enforce no blood laws. They restricted it to the Gentiles, forcing just a few Jewish laws and traditions on them instead of all the Law that they kept themselves and wanted Paul to keep. This is apostasy hiding in plain sight and few notice. That is the why as I understand it.

Joseph

54

Romans 10:13

by PSacramento in

we all know that the passage from paul's letter to romans, romans 10:13 says:.

"all those who call on the name of the lord will be saved".. now, in the nwt they translate that as jehovah instead of the word "lord", because this is a quote from joel 2:32 and in the ot the tetragrammaton yhwh is used, which the nwt translates as "jehovah" (not only the nwt does that, the asv,yng and dby, do it also in regards to joel).. however, of the 16 translations i have seen, all translate that passage in romans as lords and all the commentaries i have read so far, point to view that paul was applying that passage to jesus, being his name that is salvation.. commentaries by james, fausset and brown, by matthew henry and by barnes, to name only 3.. comments?.

JosephMalik

To me, I am not a Trinitarian, it is not a case of Jesus being God, or the refute thereof, but a case of Jesus being the fullfillment of that passage in the NEW Covenant.

PSacramento,

That is correct. It is not a matter of identity. The scripture was not written to prove identity and does not try to do that. It is how the verse is now applied to the one that God sent to represent him that mattered and the Tetragrammaton can be used to do that. This is not any different than what happened to the angel that came in the name of the Tetragrammaton in other texts like in the burning bush. In NT texts we learn: Mr 12:26 And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? The fact that it was really an angel representing the tetragrammaton and identified by the name of God at the time does not matter. It is the application of this angel representing God not the identity of the one delivering the message that is the point of the text. Yet both the angel and the God that sent him are identified in the texts so we know how such things are done. The use of Lord by Paul made this applicatoin apparent like the word angel did in Ex. 3:2 and the text in Romans should not have been tampered with by the Watchtower.

John Gill comments on Joel 2:32 Ver. 32. And it shall come to pass, [that] whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered, &c.] Or "saved," as in #Ac 2:21; from those miseries and calamities before described, from the impending ruin and destruction of the city; and so it was, that those that believed in Christ, that were in the city, had an intimation of it beforehand, and removed from thence to a place called Pella {w}, and so escaped being involved in the common calamity: though this also may be understood of a spiritual deliverance and salvation by Christ, from sin, Satan, and the world, and from the second death, and wrath to come, and out of the hands of every enemy; which such share in who call on the name of the Lord, pray to him for grace and mercy, life and salvation, through Christ; that have a spiritual knowledge of God in Christ, real and sincere desires after him, and trust and confidence in him, which this phrase supposes; and which also includes the whole worship of God, internal and external, performed in a spiritual and evangelical manner; see #Ro 10:13;

Joseph

10

What does the WT say about 1 Cor 14:34?

by asilentone in

i would like to see the wt article about it.

thanks!.

JosephMalik

Narkissos,

I don't doubt it. Everyone seems to have trouble with these verses. I was confused for years myself. I am sure that others tried to correct something that was seemingly in error long ago. But the verses make perfect sense as they stand as long as we know the context, the background, the story about the problems that existed then that most miss and what Paul did about them. It was so bad that Paul had to lay hands on Timothy and others to go around, investigate and appoint elders in such places where the problems existed to put a stop to it. And Paul trained Timothy in his letters so that he knew exactly who and what to look for and who to pass over. They were not appointed for the purposes that the WT uses them for, that's for sure.

Joseph

10

What does the WT say about 1 Cor 14:34?

by asilentone in

i would like to see the wt article about it.

thanks!.

JosephMalik

allelsefails,

Well, Paul was a Jew and knew the law so he could have known that it would end someday without any revelations of any sort. Other Jews came to that conclusion without him. This is what being born again meant to them. And since it was not lawful for him to reveal what he heard and had other visions and sources of information I would not use that source. But Paul did reveal the letter as source of his information in this case and many scholars came to recognize it. After discussing one such issue that appeared in their letter in chapter seven notice how this discussion continued into subsequent chapters:

Introduction to 1st Corinthians Chapter 8 from Barns commentary

IN this chapter another subject is discussed, which had been proposed by the church at Corinth for the decision of the apostle:

INTRODUCTION TO 1 CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 8 from Matthew Henry's full Commentary

The apostle, in this chapter, answers another case proposed to him by some of the Corinthians, about eating those things that had been sacrificed to idols.

And Paul went on and on like this to the end of 1 Cor. so that how we read it makes a big difference. We can see their doctrines and read their letter if we are looking carefully. We can also see how Paul refuted it so we know his methods. It is not just the words that Paul had penned, but what Paul was doing with them that makes the big difference. He also did things like this in other letters of his on similar subjects that go unnoticed. This was part of a doctrinal war for most of this Apostles life and included Apostles like Peter and John for a long time years in fact. Thousands of Jews including James were on the wrong side of the arguments. Not the nice and supposedly Holy Spirit perfection that many like the WT try to make out of such times. That is why the book of Hebrews had to be written as it finally put a stop to such lawkeepers and changed the mind of men like James and John.

Joseph

10

What does the WT say about 1 Cor 14:34?

by asilentone in

i would like to see the wt article about it.

thanks!.

JosephMalik

asilentone,

The real question should be why did the apostle Paul include this comment in his letter? We all know that the Watchtower does not understand it. But does anyone else understand it and did Paul say this to the church in Corinth? The answer is no! Paul did not make this comment. It is the Corinthians that made this comment to Paul in the letter that they sent him 1 Cor 7:1 and now Paul would quote from their letter and straighten them out. The comment reads:

34 Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 35 And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church.

Paul did not keep the law, but they did as did thousands in Jerusalem who followed James, and they were trying to get Paul to keep it as well. And this is just one of the things that they were teaching that Paul would put down in his letter. Consistently throughout 1 Cor. Paul refuted what they were teaching and Paul often quoted or alluded to their doctrines as he followed their letter the way we would a thread here on JWD. The personal pronoun "I" does not always mean Paul when he is quoting from their work. "I" in that case means them or the Corinthian writer of the document they sent him. How can anyone think that Paul did this to the church when he said to such ignorant men:

36 What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only? 37 If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. 38 But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.

Paul was tough on them and did not pull any punches when it came to such teachings. But if we are not aware of what is happening and just read the text without thinking it through then yes Paul will get blamed for something that he was really against and this is the way most see it. What Paul taught to men and women alike in Corinth was:

39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues. 40 Let all things be done decently and in order.

Joseph

1

Listen to Trinity debate, including active anointed Jehovah's Witness

by the research lady in

jw
friends

on june 20 the first "in search of truth" conference call took place.

the subject discussed on this first call was the trinity.

people called in from all over the world as this subject seemed to interest them.

JosephMalik

The Research Lady,

I listened to it and the conference was very clear this time. I found the place where I also made comments and how they argued against them like the expression "all things" or PAS in Strongs. Now this was discussed by me many times here on JWD but it does not seem to be clear to others. So I updated Beyond Trinitarianism and included the definition of PAS found in Strongs along with the comment by C H Spurgeon that was included with it. I also noticed that Beyond Trinitarianism was a mess from the many touch ups that I did over the years as better information became available. It did not look anything like what I thought that I actually wrote. So I am going through and corrected the poor sentences and mistakes to bring it back to what it was nearly 30 years ago when I formed it up. "So in a few days it should be in good shape. It does not have to be perfect mind you as it was only intended to help the reader think for themselves and let them know where the problems are and possible solutions. What we teach others should come from within ourselves and the way we understand the text.

Joseph

8

The WT blood doctrine versus the teachings of Christ...

by undercover in

i posted a similar thought about this on another thread a couple of weeks ago but i thought i would expand on it and start its on thread.... .

the watchtower society, as leaders of the jehovah's witness religion, claim to accept the bible as the divine word of jehovah god and jesus christ as his only begotten son sent to earth as a ransom sacrifice.

though it can be argued that jesus is demoted in jw doctrine compared to jehovah, jesus teachings are the basis for what they call the "true christian congregation".. if we compare the society's ban on blood with jesus' view of mercy versus sacrifice, it can be shown that the society's view on blood is actually against the teachings of christ and against the principles of mercy as he shows in the scriptures.. there is only one scripture in the new testament (greek scriptures) that the society can offer as evidence that god prohibits the ingestion of blood (forgetting the sidebar argument of eating vs transfusing).... acts 15:29 - ...to keep abstaining from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication.

JosephMalik

Acts 15:29 - ...to keep abstaining from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication. If YOU carefully keep yourselves from these things, YOU will prosper. Good health to YOU !”

Undercover,

This was recorded in scripture not as something we must do, but to show us how an Apostle or any disciple can easily be deceived even by supposed Church leaders. You will see this same letter mentioned in scripture once again but now we learn what its real intent was. At Acts chapter 21:24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law. 25 As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication. Wow. That letter was not intended for Jews but for Gentiles only. Why? Because the Jews that wrote it were still keeping the Law and wanted Paul tor prove to them that he was as well. They were wrong then and now 14 years later are still wrong in demanding that Paul prove this to them. Paul was now in a battle for his life. And the WT wants you to die to support these Jews, even though a few among them were also Apostles. It took years to get this kind of thinking out of the faith.

Joseph

39

The Last (Lord's) Supper

by PSacramento in

i wanted to ask this question beacuse at the last memorial supper it caught my attention more than it ever did:.

why do some (not just the jw's) believe that judas did not partkae of the lord's supper, the bread and the wine?.

in the synoptic gospels of matt, mark and luke, there is nomention of judas being sent away, indeed in luke jesus says "behold the hand of the betrayer at the table with me".. while in john judas is sent away, he is sent after the supper, though it is not clear if this was the lord's supper since there is no mention of the the partaking of the wine and bread in john.. help would be greatly appreciated.. .

JosephMalik

Well I did that back in the 70's and the answer came back that Judas was there. I even wrote them about it but all they wanted to do was to get rid of me. I put this information in my book and even revealed to them that Jesus did not die the next afternoon but was in prison for six days during Passover before being executed. It is all documented at http://home.earthlink.net/~jmalik/ You can see it for yourself. You should trust yourself more as the observations that you made were not your own understanding but what you found in scripture. That will prove trustworthy every time.

Joseph

39

The Last (Lord's) Supper

by PSacramento in

i wanted to ask this question beacuse at the last memorial supper it caught my attention more than it ever did:.

why do some (not just the jw's) believe that judas did not partkae of the lord's supper, the bread and the wine?.

in the synoptic gospels of matt, mark and luke, there is nomention of judas being sent away, indeed in luke jesus says "behold the hand of the betrayer at the table with me".. while in john judas is sent away, he is sent after the supper, though it is not clear if this was the lord's supper since there is no mention of the the partaking of the wine and bread in john.. help would be greatly appreciated.. .

JosephMalik

Why do some (not just the JW's) believe that Judas did not partake of the Lord's Supper, the bread and the wine?

PSacramento,

Because they are all pushing the idea that partaking of it was so sacred that Judas would not have been allowed. Like it would make him special, anointed or something like that. But Judas was there and this was not the Last Supper anyway as they call it. It was the Last Passover under the Law as this was always the first meal of the week long Passover. The example our Lord gave at that meal was not the reality it depicted. The reality would be when it was memorialized in remembrance much later in time. Their view makes them more important than sinners like Judas and they like it that way. Never mind what the truth is, control over you is what they want.

Joseph

44

Shocker! Watchtower says DON'T share experiences with demons..."it's promoting Satan!!"

by Witness 007 in

an incredible turn around when you see the watchtower index full of demonic handbags, houses, idols etc.

etc.. the new bookstudy book "keep yourselves in god's love.

" p.191 was a shocker for me!

JosephMalik

Scare them into obedience to the cult. Just one of many methods for controlling their minds.

Joseph