Posts by JesusISJehovah

posted

45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

Thank you Marcos, that was a stupid mistake on my part. Anyway, one reason that we have not translated the original Yahweh, is because, for the umpteenth time, it is a derivation of the verb "to be", it was only used in reference to God. The reason that people have not translated it, is because it has lost meaning since the ancient times, and no one knows any more than the fact that it comes from "to be". There is no concrete definition, because the superstitious Jews never spoke it, and without active use of the word, it lost its meaning. This is why some translators translate it in different ways. IW is right though, in searching for the meaning, we need to look no further than Exodus 3:14. God says that He is, and all we need to recognize is that He exists: always.
-Me
Edited by - JesusISJehovah on 31 December 2002 18:9:8
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

May I ask then, every time the name Jehovah or its equivalent is used in the OT is it translated as "I Am"?
I already said, Yahweh is a DERIVATIVE of "to be", when God is referred to as "I AM" as in Exo 3:14, it is translated that way.
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

let me give you a little history lesson:
Today, names are just arbitrary labels, but in ancient times, they were meant to be an insight into the nature of a person. In the OT, God says his name is "I AM" (Exodus 3:14). Originally, that "I am" was in Hebrew, but when that NT was written, it was written in greek, and therefore, the "I AM" of Hebrew (Yahweh) was no longer applicable, and He was called "kurios" (a different name, with a different meaning, offering different insight into who God is), therefore, as I said before, God has no static name. It changes. In the OT, he wanted the Jews to refer to him as I AM, and they spoke Yiddish. We speak English, and because he hasn't designated to us what he wants to be called in English, we revert to the literal translation of the greek (Lord, God etc) or, in the case of the JW's, the Yiddish Jehovah.
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

"Definite predicate nouns which precede the verb usually lack the article" This is from the article you recommended.
theos en ho logos
that was the original greek
theos is before the verb, lacks an article, and is definite. If you wish, you may add the "ho" definite article (yeilding "ho theos en ho logos") but the meaning remains the same.
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

Because, as I said before, Jehovah is not a name, but a derivative of the verb "to be" (in Hebrew).
God has no static name, he was called something different in the New Testament.
The OT and the NT, are in different languages.
That is why the Jehovah's witnesses are wrong. God has no name, He is. He needs no name, He is.
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

Well, I registered under the assumption that this site would be host to a membership of predominantly Jehovah's Witnesses, and therefore that my screenname would be significant to them. In reality, God Himself has no name that we humans can perceive, not that he needs one. "Jehovah" isn't even a hebrew name, it is a derivative of the verb "to be". I do believe that the person of Jesus in the New Testament is the "Jehovah", "Adonai", "God", "I am" etc. of the Old Testament.
Carmel,
Your analogy is flawed, mainly because all that you have managed to point out is that the verb "to see" has abstract connotations. The verb "to be" is always the most concrete, rational, tangible verb. The Word was God. There's not much room for interpretation there.
Edited by - JesusISJehovah on 30 December 2002 20:27:32
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

yeah, that is their rationalization, but because there was no greek literate translators on the comittee that CREATED the translation, they didn't realize that the greek was rendered "theos en ho logos", not "ho logos en theos".
it literally means "God was the word"
According to Colwell's Rule (Colwell was a greek scholar), this sentence DEMANDS translation with the definitite article "ho"
Result
THE God was the Word
not: "A God was the Word"
45
Jesus Is God (John 1:1)
by JesusISJehovah in
1. watchtower
2. bible
according to john 1:1, jesus is god.

how do jehovah's witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of jesus' deity?
JesusISJehovah

According to John 1:1, Jesus is God. How do Jehovah's Witnesses rationalize that blatant statement of Jesus' deity?