Jehovahs Witnesses, why did the translators leave one verse in reference to the Holy Spirit being a person?

Question

In most of the mistranslation of the New Testament by the Watchtower, the reference to the words, “Him”, “His” or “He” when talking about the Holy Spirit, has been changed to try and show that the Holy Spirit is just a force, like electricity, from God and not the person of the Holy Spirit.

Yet in one verse, they failed to change the wording and left the word “He” there five times. These five times show that the Holy Spirit is referred to as a “He” and not an “It”.

How can a "He" be an "It"?

What does the word "He" mean, the five times it is used in this verse, if it is not in reference to the person of the Holy Spirit?

John 16: 13 However, when that one arrives, the spirit of the truth, he will guide YOU into all the truth, for he will not speak of his own impulse, but what things he hears he will speak, and he will declare to YOU the things coming. [NWT]
http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/joh/chapter_016.htm

Romans 8:26 In like manner the spirit also joins in with help for our weakness; for the [problem of] what we should pray for as we need to we do not know, but the spirit itself pleads for us with groanings unuttered.

How does the Spirit plead for us with groanings if it is not the person of the Holy Spirit?

Answer 1

So a person being filled with holy spirit is a bodily possession by the God person?



(Acts 13:9) "Saul, who is also Paul, becoming filled with holy spirit" No, the power of God filled Paul.



The Hebrew word for spirit "rûwach", means: a 'movement of air - breath or wind and this represents power or energy not a person. That this power is holy from Jehovah.





I think you are intentionally selling yourself with this trinity myth of 4th century invention. The trinity is a mystery for it's a doctrine of confusion and has blinded minds from the true nature of the genuine Oneness of Jehovah God who is the Father and the only spirit of God directed stated in the Bible.



(1 Corinthians 8:6) God the Father

(Galatians 1:1) God the Father

(Ephesians 6:23) God the Father

(Philippians 2:11) God the Father

(Colossians 1:3) God the Father

(Colossians 3:17) God the Father

(1 Thessalonians 1:1) God the Father

(2 Thessalonians 1:2) God the Father

(1 Timothy 1:2) God [the] Father

(2 Timothy 1:2) God [the] Father

(Titus 1:4) [the] Father

(1 Peter 1:2) God the Father

(2 Peter 1:17) God the Father

(2 John 3) God the Father

(Jude 1) God [the] Father



No God the Son. No God the Holy Spirit. Those words are only found in 4th century creeds of men not in the holy scriptures.

Answer 2

the word "holy spirit" is pnuema hagion, this is neuter in gender (greek words have gender like spanish) and rendered neuter "it".



In the verses your talking about the holy spirit is called a "paraclete" which is a masculine word meaning something like a helper or attorney or similar, when the spirit is refered to as a "paraclete" it is rendered masculine like "he".



However we cannot draw too much information from this. To Illustrate: in Revelation 22:3 the city of New Jerusalem is referred to in the Greek as "her" in the greek (you'll see what I mean if you check out an interlinear). Every translation I know of changes "her" to the "the city" because the gender of the word and the context show the city is obviously what is being referred to.



An interesting early quote from Gregory Thaumaturgus (ca. 213-270): "But of the wise men amongst ourselves, some have conceived of him as an Activity, some as a Creature, some as God; and some have been uncertain which to call Him, out of reverence for Scripture, they say, as though it did not make the matter clear either way. And therefore they neither worship Him nor treat Him with dishonor, but take up a neutral position, or rather a very miserable one, with respect to Him. And of those who consider Him to be God, some are orthodox in mind only, while others venture to be so with the lips also." - "The Fifth Theological Oration," section 5 (Vol. 7, The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers)



as the wikipedia article you cite points out gender used is dependent on the language. If you read it carefully you would see most bibles mistranslate John 16:13 as "spirit of truth" as masculine to support their preconceived theology.



Luke 1:35 shows the spirit to be power of the most high

Mark 13:32/Matt.24:36 show the spirit lacks the quality of God, omniscience

2 Cor. 6:6 the spirit is in list of qualities, not 'persons' of the 'being' of God

the spirit does not have a name, it does not receive worship in the Bible. the Bible talks a lot about the father and the son, while the holy spirit is conspicuously absent.



As i pointed out with the quote from Gregory (a prototrinitarian) they didnt know what to call the spirit, it was debated whether in some verses it was personified or a person or what. In most verses where the spirit is personifed other verses show the spirit was speaking thru someone



From one site "the most common misunderstanding of the holy spirit is that he is a force", if its such a common misunderstanding is it really a misunderstanding? thats what happens when evangelicals think for themselves

Answer 3

The Bible is perfectly clear in stating that the holy spirit is NOT a person and it is NOT God. Only those deceived by false religion think otherwise.



The simple explanation (which you will undoubtedly ignore simply because you hold a personal bigotry and prejudice against Jehovah's Witnesses) is found in the April 15th, 2008 Watchtower:



"When referring to the helper, or the spirit of the truth, why is the pronoun “it” used at John 14:16, 17, whereas “him” and “he” are used at John 16:7, 8, 13, 14?



- The reason for this is strictly grammatical. In the Greek language, in which John’s Gospel was written, the word for “helper” is in the masculine gender, but the term for “spirit” is neuter. In recording Jesus’ statement, John therefore used the masculine pronoun, such as “he” or “him,” when referring to what the helper would do. The neuter pronoun “it” was employed when reference was made to what the spirit of the truth would accomplish."



** The spirit "pleads for us with groanings unuttered" is in reference to our being faced with problems so stressful we may not know what exactly to pray for. It's at that time that Jehovah accepts our prayers, knowing what our problem is and what we're trying to express in our prayer even if the right words don't come out of it. It has NOTHING to do with the holy spirit being a person.



** Also, the Bible never refers to the holy spirit being a person. There is figurative language used in parts that seems to give personal traits to things that aren't people, such as wisdom and knowledge, and the same goes for the holy spirit.



** The holy spirit does NOT have a personality, nor is it possible for it to have one. It is a force, according to the Bible....not a person.

Answer 4

If JW's were encouraged to think for themselves rather than just blindly agree with whatever the Watchtower tells them is "the truth" (today), they would see that the reason Jesus refers to the Holy Spirit as "he" and several other places in the Bible refer to him as "he" is because HE IS a Person. He can be lied to (Acts 5), he can speak (Acts 13:2), he can testify (John 15:26), seal God's promise in believers' hearts (Ephesians 1:13-14), and more.



In the Bible, the Holy Spirit has intellect, passions, and will, and can be grieved. In short, the Spirit has a personality.



The key way of giving the Holy Spirit grief is malice, which is shown as bitterness, rage, anger, clamor (making lots of noise and disruption), and slander. Paul follows this description by what makes for a happy Holy Spirit: forgiving others as, in Christ, God forgave you.



The Holy Spirit can act in whatever manner the Spirit wants to act. The Spirit generally acts through the church, but doesn't have to; the Wind blows where it will. The Spirit is free not to always be seriously focused on those purposes; the Spirit can have fun while at work.



As God, the Holy Spirit is cause, and that cause has effect. Yet, the Watchtower org reduces the Holy Spirit to a force, describing a different spirit than the Holy Spirit as viewed by the Christian faith. The Spirit works in all of these ways and more, yet against all of them at times. The Spirit works in whatever ways are needed to do what needs to be done, except in choosing not to take forceable control of people's actions.

Answer 5

The difficulty with the NWT translators lies in their misguided effort, and their lack of education in trying to change scriptures to fit their beliefs. It has created many unanswerable points, including that of Holy Spirit(Holy Ghost) being a force or a person.



Several unaltered verses in the NWT show not only Holy Spirit is a person, but that He is also God

Your John 16:13 is a good start, here is a few more

Verses from the NWT:

Acts 5:3 where Peter asked Ananias "...why has Satan emboldened you to play false(lie) to the Holy Spirit, ............you have played false (lied) not to me but to GOD" (emphasis mine) You dont lie to a force, only to a person , in this case, Jehovah God, third person of the triadic nature of God

Mark 13:1 says the Holy Spirit was speaking.....a force does not speak,, only a person.

Acts 28:25 says " the HolySpirit aptly SPOKE.... (a force does not speak)

Heb 3:7 "for this reason, just as the Holy Spirit says:..." again, a force does not speak, only a person



The language is clear, I pray they see it .



re: Fuzzy's reply: Two additional things from Graces comments that stand out which are the basis for his error :

Opening sentence:

.1. Jesus (aka Michael) was "transferred" to Marys womb. Another JW said Jesus was "inserted" .....ie: no egg from Mary , and no human sperm.....just simply "transferred"

The difficulty here is you have an incarnation of Michael....and the JW cant wrap their head around that one because Luke says it is the Holy Ghost who came upon Mary for the purpose of impregnation with her egg, thus giving the Jesus the incarnation of the Word.



2. Fuzzy's last sentence.............the parenthetical comment " (if I make it)" , meaning no assurance of Salvation

BOTH of those comments could be cured if Fuzzy, and all JW's knew the real Jesus.



g'day

Answer 6

Got to love it.. guess it's time for a redo.. lol



Fuzzy, Mat. 3:



16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.



The reason the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the indwelling of God and the indwelling of Christ is one thing.. is because they are ONE God.





Fuz, Do you have a Biblical reference for this idea.. or just something you pulled out of thin air?



(When Jesus died, he went to his Father in heaven after a few days. There he received holy spirit from his Father which was special.)



Eph 4:4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling

Answer 7

Don't call the NWT a mistranslation until you learn New Testament Greek. If you knew New Testament Greek, there would be nothing to question.



At least the NWT is honest enough to say "he" where the Greek text says "he," and "it" where the Greek text says "it."



Your question really has no merit.



Presenting your theology proves nothing, it is just a different opinion.

Answer 8

Go away, learn about personifications and anthropomorphisms. Take a class in logic. Perhaps a couple. Then learn *sound* biblical exegesis. Then you can come back and ask JWs questions on R&S.

Answer 9

Do you realize what caused Jesus to be transferred into Mary's womb? The holy spirit right?

What caused the prophets of old Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Daniel, Samson, etc, do speak for God and to cause miraculous events to happen? THS, right!



By what means did Jesus cure and resurrect people while he walked on earth? THS, right!



By what means did his disciples sent out cure people and expel demons? THS, right!



Matthew 10:5-7 . . .. These twelve Jesus sent: commanding them, saying: Go ye not into the way of the Gentiles, and into the city of the Samaritans enter ye not. 6But go ye rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7And going, preach, saying: The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out devils: freely have you received, freely give.

~~

How can Jesus then be right if he says this:



John 16:7, "Nevertheless I tell you the truth: It is expedient for you that I go away; for if I go not away, the (1) Comforter will not come unto you; but if I go, I will send him unto you.(1) Or Advocate ; Or Helper ; Gr Paraclete ) (ASV)



John 7:39, Now this he said of the Spirit which they should receive, who believed in him: for as yet the Spirit was not given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. (DRC)



Is this insanity? Since the spirit is already at work! Or, is there something deeper here!

~~~~

What we see is that there is something deeper ignored by all it seems.

This is it:

Acts 2:33, Having therefore been exalted by the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which *ye* behold and hear. (Darby)



John 14:25-26, `These things I have spoken to you, remaining with you, 26and the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and remind you of all things that I said to you. (YLT)



When Jesus died, he went to his Father in heaven after a few days. There he received holy spirit from his Father which was special. How special? It was special because the Father sent this out in Jesus' name, this is why this is given a name. Just as a newborn baby receives a name because it is a new person, the holy spirit which Jesus received from his Father and which was sent in Jesus' name was different and for a different purpose. It was named the Comforter, the Paraclete, the Helper, etc. This is to differentiate it from God's general holy spirit.



It comes in Jesus name with his stamp on. It teaches us; it tells some Christians that they are born again; that they are sons of God (gender independent).



Rom 8:16, 17, The Spirit itself testifieth with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if we suffer with [him], that we may be glorified together. (Webster)



(YTL) John 14:26-27, and the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and remind you of all things that I said to you. 27`Peace I leave to you; my peace I give to you, not according as the world doth give do I give to you; let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid.



John 16:13, and when He may come--the Spirit of truth--He will guide you to all the truth, for He will not speak from Himself, but as many things as He will hear He will speak, and the coming things He will tell you.

~~~

For this reason in Romans 8:9, God's spirit is called Jesus' spirit.



Because it has a name it is personified. It teaches. If it is a person or not, I do not dare say either way, but it is not God's general holy spirit, it is Jesus' spirit. It is given the male gender and we call it "he" - it speaks, he speaks several times to Christians without the mentioning of Jesus as such or of any other agent.



I am sure perhaps I may be given the knowledge once (if I make it) I am glorified with Christ, but at this moment I can only go by what is given - nothing more, and nothing else.