Is the NWT of JW's an accurate translation of the Bible?

Haeo

2014-12-01 03:04:35 UTC

No. It was altered to suit their beliefs better.

Even if somehow their beliefs are right (doubtful), it is undeniable that they have changed the original texts to have meanings which coincide with JW beliefs rather than Christianity.

DP.

2014-12-01 05:33:32 UTC

In order judge the NWT we need to set criteria.

1) Credibility of the translators - unless we all become Greek and Hebrew scholars as well as Jewish cultural experts we cannot assess in any detail the accuracy of a translation. Therefore to a large extent we have to trust the ability and integrity of the translators. Unfortunately JW org tried to hide the translators on the pretense it was about humility. The obvious reality is that only one of the translators had any kind of real knowledge of the Greek and Hebrew and even then he was not an expert. This alone casts a huge shadow over the credibility of the NWT.

2) Clear and unambiguous guidelines for translation. There are lots of ways to approach translations from word for word (that doesn't end up making sense) to general meaning (which is highly interpretative). Then there's rules that are applied... e.g we should always translate such a word in such a way unless there is clear evidence of exceptions and why they are exceptions. Unfortunately we are completely devoid of any of the guidelines or rules the NWT translators used because they were not clear. Furthermore they arbitrarily translate words differently without explanation or consistency. e.g proskuneo Which is translated as "worship" when it refers to God, idols, the devil, etc but as "obeisance" when it refers to Jesus.

3) The meaning of bible verses can hinge on a word or even a comma. Therefore we have to be extremely careful in our approach and reliance on single verses for the establishment of doctrine and our beliefs should never direct the translation. Again unfortunately the evidence is overwhelming that the NWT translators deliberately sought to change the KJV bible verses to match their beliefs rather than their beliefs being derived from accurate translation.

Ultimately JWs don't want to accept the obvious facts and have consistently sought external approval of the NWT from outside sources. To be fair they have found some. Some of these are deliberate misquotes from the expert, some are from questionable experts but some are also from valid sources. This allows JWs to cling to the idea that the NWT is accurate. The fact that such experts are few and that there are thousands of experts who question the accuracy of the NWT doesn't phase JWs. They see it simply as the world against them.

cristoiglesia

2014-12-01 07:11:47 UTC

I am a former Bible translator and the NWT is a paraphrase of the Bible and not a translation. Since there was not a single biblical language scholar on the translation team it is impossible to have an accurate translation. But then such a result was not the goal but instead to write a "bible" that was in accordance with their man-made doctrines.God bless!

In Christ

Fr. Joseph

mt75689

2014-12-01 03:29:39 UTC

No. Every authorized version of The Bible has been translated from the original manuscripts. The NWT is nothing more than a revision of an already existing translation. Back in 1950, the Jehovah's Witnesses intentionally revised the Scriptures in order to make them fit their beliefs.

dewcoons

2014-12-01 04:01:32 UTC

No. As someoe who can read the original languages and thus knows what an accurate translation would be, I have looked through the NWT and it fails the test.

The authors are inconsistent in how the translate words, using different English words when it advances their doctrines (or when the word is against their beliefs). It drops words and phrases. It adds words and phrases that are not in the original. And in interjects the name of God (mistranslated as Jehovah - when Hebrew does not have the letters J or V) into verses where it is not found.

It is a poor translation at best, and is often a deliberately misleading translation.

2014-12-01 03:01:55 UTC

No, the New World Translation has deliberately altered God's Word in order to support their beliefs. The New World Translation (NWT) is defined by the Jehovah's Witnesses’ parent organization (the Watchtower Society) as "a translation of the Holy Scriptures made directly from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek into modern-day English by a committee of anointed witnesses of Jehovah." The NWT is the anonymous work of the “New World Bible Translation Committee.” Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that the anonymity is in place so that the credit for the work will go to God. Of course, this has the added benefit of keeping the translators from any accountability for their errors and prevents real scholars from checking their academic credentials.

The New World Translation is unique in one thing – it is the first intentional, systematic effort at producing a complete version of the Bible that is edited and revised for the specific purpose of agreeing with a group's doctrine. The Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Watchtower Society realized that their beliefs contradicted Scripture. So, rather than conforming their beliefs to Scripture, they altered Scripture to agree with their beliefs. The “New World Bible Translation Committee” went through the Bible and changed any Scripture that did not agree with Jehovah’s Witness theology. This is clearly demonstrated by the fact that, as new editions of the New World Translation were published, additional changes were made to the biblical text. As biblical Christians continued to point out Scriptures that clearly argue for the deity of Christ (for example), the Watchtower Society would publish new editions of the New World Translation with those Scriptures changed.

The most revealing evidence of the Watchtower's bias is their inconsistent translation technique. Throughout the Gospel of John, the Greek word theon occurs without a definite article. The New World Translation renders none of these as “a god.” Just three verses after John 1:1, the New World Translation translates another case of theos without the indefinite article as "God." Even more inconsistent, in John 1:18, the NWT translates the same term as both "God" and "god" in the very same sentence.

The Watchtower, therefore, has no hard textual grounds for their translation—only their own theological bias. While New World Translation defenders might succeed in showing that John 1:1 can be translated as they have done, they cannot show that it is the proper translation. Nor can they explain the fact that that the NWT does not translate the same Greek phrases elsewhere in the Gospel of John the same way. It is only the pre-conceived heretical rejection of the deity of Christ that forces the Watchtower Society to inconsistently translate the Greek text, thus allowing their error to gain some semblance of legitimacy in the minds of those ignorant of the facts.

It is only the Watchtower's pre-conceived heretical beliefs that are behind the dishonest and inconsistent translation that is the New World Translation. The New World Translation is most definitely not a valid version of God’s Word. There are minor differences among all the major English translations of the Bible. No English translation is perfect. However, while other Bible translators make minor mistakes in the rendering of the Hebrew and Greek text into English, the NWT intentionally changes the rendering of the text to conform to Jehovah’s Witness theology. The New World Translation is a perversion, not a version, of the Bible.

The article in the link below gives examples of intentional revisions:

Papa-G

2014-12-01 04:14:26 UTC

The English edition of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, published by Jehovah’s Witnesses, was prepared directly from the original languages by an anonymous committee. This version, in turn, has been the primary text used for translations into about 60 other languages. Translators for those languages did, however, make extensive comparisons with the original-language text. The New World Translation aims for a literal rendering of the original-language text whenever such a rendering would not hide its meaning. The translators seek to make the Bible as understandable to readers today as the original text was to readers in Bible times.

Some linguists have examined modern Bible translations—including the New World Translation—for examples of inaccuracy and bias. One such scholar is Jason David BeDuhn, associate professor of religious studies at Northern Arizona University in the United States. In 2003 he published a 200-page study of nine of “the Bibles most widely in use in the English-speaking world.” His study examined several passages of Scripture that are controversial, for that is where “bias is most likely to interfere with translation.” For each passage, he compared the Greek text with the renderings of each English translation, and he looked for biased attempts to change the meaning. What is his assessment?

BeDuhn points out that the general public and many Bible scholars assume that the differences in the New World Translation (NW) are due to religious bias on the part of its translators. However, he states: “Most of the differences are due to the greater accuracy of the NW as a literal, conservative translation.” While BeDuhn disagrees with certain renderings of the New World Translation, he says that this version “emerges as the most accurate of the translations compared.” He calls it a “remarkably good” translation.

Dr. Benjamin Kedar, a Hebrew scholar in Israel, made a similar comment concerning the New World Translation. In 1989 he said: “This work reflects an honest endeavor to achieve an understanding of the text that is as accurate as possible. . . . I have never discovered in the New World Translation any biased intent to read something into the text that it does not contain.”

2014-12-01 04:18:48 UTC

False religious leaders also accused Jesus of being demonic Matthew 12:22-26...Unless you are: 1) a Bible scholar; 2) able to read Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek 3) have access to the original manuscripts 4) a professional translator of all three languages I quoted in # 2, then I recommend you follow what Jesus Christ tells all true followers ~ STOP judging! -Matthew 7:1; Luke 6:37

ask

2014-12-01 04:07:45 UTC

The NWT is based on the oldest manuscripts known of the bible and put in modern language. We use all bibles, but do research on the King James. Things were added that were written in the margins by priest to agree with their doctrines. We don't need to change the bible to agree with our teaching, what we believe was from intense bible research of available bibles at the time. The complete NWT wasn't released until 1961.

Scarborough Fair

2014-12-01 05:32:13 UTC

It is the only translation written to purposefully change the meaning of scripture.

Rolando C I

2014-12-01 07:15:17 UTC

It is the most honest translation that there is.

?

2014-12-01 03:12:22 UTC

Yes it is, but if you let them explain the Bible to you, you will be thought to be an Israelite? But if you read it yourself you will discover that the Lord is God of Israelites, and the Father is God of mankind.

?

2014-12-01 02:57:03 UTC

Your interpretation.