Question:
Why did the Jehovah's witnesses add words supporting their doctrines while printing the New world translation?
worker4IAM <'><
2010-11-17 06:36:00 UTC
Why did the Jehovah's witnesses add words supporting their doctrines while printing the New world translation?
Twelve answers:
Big Guy 360
2010-11-19 06:07:32 UTC
First off we need to understand that the Jehovah's Witnesses are not the ones who wrote the NWT. It was the Watchtower Society that wrote it. Adding words, deleting words and rearranging words to go along with their concepts, that Jesus is not deity, not God. They had to make these changes as the real bibles did not support their views. They tell us that no one can understand the Bible without their (bias) rendering of the scriptures.



As a Jehovah's Witness you have been taught from the Bible and the Watchtower organization. You’ve attended numerous meetings, and are convinced that what you believe is the truth. You also believe the Trinity is a demonic doctrine and that Christendom is an apostate group preaching a false gospel. Additionally, you are taught the Watchtower organization is the true channel of God’s revelation to His church on earth. You are taught that you are in "The Truth."



But believing it does not make it so. I am sure you agree with this and respond by saying that your beliefs are in agreement with the Bible. After all, you study it deeply and often and have validated your beliefs with the word of God. I don’t deny that you study. But when you study, you study under the Watchtower's guidance and allow it to shape your understanding and thinking of the Bible and its doctrines.



Please consider these quotes from the Watchtower Magazine that verify what I am saying:



•"All who want to understand the Bible should appreciate that the "greatly diversified wisdom of God" can become known only through Jehovah's channel of communication, the faithful and discreet slave."

•"Thus the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian congregation as an organization, not to individuals, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible."

In short, you are led by what the Watchtower says the Bible says.



But if the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is from God, then...



•Why has it made false prophecies?

•Why has it altered the translation of the Bible?

•Why does the Watchtower say you will fall into apostasy if you read the Bible without the Watchtower? See their quotes

•Why are you not allowed to examine your own organization and its problems?

•Why does it tell you what to think and do?

Have you checked the documentation from the Watchtower Magazine? How do you know that the Watchtower is correct? Because it says it is?



Please don’t be offended by this. But when a group claims to be the prophet of God, yet mistranslates the Bible, takes verses out of context, makes false prophecies, and misquotes authorities all to make its position valid, its credibility is lost. It cannot be from God.



But you will never know that unless you "examine ALL things." Unfortunately, as a Jehovah's Witness, you are only encouraged to study what the Watchtower and Awake magazines tell you to study. That means you can't really check up on its false prophecies on your own. Instead, you must trust what it tells you about its own false prophecies. In addition, you are instructed to not take any literature from "apostate Christendom." This way, you will have far less opportunity to be challenged, something the Watchtower organization doesn't want to happen.



The Watchtower Magazine teaches by asking the questions and giving the answers. Sometimes it even uses a Bible reference (often out of context) to back up what it says. It all looks good and sounds good from your perspective. But it is a false method of study. The Watchtower organization tells you what to think and what to do; if you say that isn't true and that the Watchtower Organization is God's organization on earth, then you are simply repeating what the Watchtower tells you.



The Bible alone is sufficient. But the Watchtower denies this:



"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such 'Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago..."



What are the apostate doctrines: Trinity? Hell? Jesus is God? Funny thing is that, according to the Watchtower, if you study the Bible by itself, you will come to believe these things! Could it be that apart from the selected questions, answers, scripture quotes, and direction of the Watchtower teaching, that the Bible actually does teach these "apostate doctrines"? If you don't check for yourself, and only believe the Watchtower, you'll never know.



Do you want to trust your eternal soul to the teachings of several men headquartered in Brooklyn, New York who claim to be the directors of God's organization on earth? Do you? Eternity is a long time to be wrong.
anonymous
2010-11-17 15:33:11 UTC
Well...one can approach Bible translation in two theoretical ways:



1) I know what is true, therefore any passage in the Bible should be translated in a way that agrees with what I know is true.



2) The Bible words should be translated as the author wrote them; any additional meaning intended by the author should not be included unless that additional meaning is absolutely certain (conclusively defensible linguistically)





These are two ideals, not realities; in translating the Bible, interpretation (which necessarily includes the translators' biases) is inescapable - and so we have at least some of 1) in any Bible translation. However, the NWT seems to include a stronger bias than any English translation I have ever read (the exception being, perhaps, The Inclusive Bible). *Whenever* the most obvious (most likely) translation of the Bible disagrees with the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses, the NWT translators use a less likely translation (sometimes a very much less likely translation) so that the translation agrees with their existing beliefs. Sometimes they add words in pursuit of this - but not in a way that can be identified as "mistranslation" in most cases. I know, for example, of an actual case of mistranslation in the NASB that is the result of adding a clearly inappropriate word (but only a single instance - notice "merely" in 1Pe 3:3).

http://www.studybibleforum.com/htm_php.php3?do=jump_to_chapter&refstr=1%20Pet%203&trans=NASB



To put it another way: the NWT translators translated the Bible to agree with their beliefs. This is NOT the same as "mistranslation". On the other hand, most translators TRY (but do not succeed completely) to translate the Bible as seems most likely (as it is written) and then force their beliefs to agree with what that Bible teaches. Above is a clear example where the translators of the NASB did NOT follow that ideal!



Jim, http://www.bible-reviews.com/
?
2010-11-17 14:52:09 UTC
They are deluded.



The same thing happens with more recent translations of the bible. Like the NIV, NKJV, NASB, The Message, The Living Bible and so on. Translators do this because they don't like what the KJV has to say about God and there is a profit motive. Because there are copyright laws these bibles have to say different things otherwise they will infringe on copyright laws.
?
2010-11-17 17:31:11 UTC
Yes, they added words in many places to make the text agree with JW doctrine, especially in areas of Jesus' deity.



Other versions translate Titus 2:13 like this, "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ."



That verse equates Jesus with God. But the NWT inserts words not found in the Greek to change the meaning. It states, "while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of [the] Savior of us, Christ Jesus." This is done to separate God from Christ. There is no article in the Greek here, it's added out of a biased attempt to change the meaning.



One name given to God in the OT is "I am." It is the name God divulged to Moses (Exodus 3:14). Most all versions translate John 5:58 as "I am," except for the NWT which renders it, ". . . Before Abraham came into existence, I have been.” Out of JW bias they avoid using a name equating Jesus with God.



In the KJV Act 20:28 reads, “. . . . to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”



In the NWT Acts 20:28 reads, ". . . to shepherd the congregation of God, which he purchased with the blood of his own [Son]."



"Son" doesn't occur in the Greek. The NWT adds "Son." They change it because the verse speaks of God purchasing the church “with His own blood”. They flipped it from “own blood” to “own Son,” which is blatantly altering the text to strike at the deity of Christ.



Colossians 1:16-17states, "For by him all things were created. . . ." But since JWs teach that Jesus is the first creation, they add the word "other" not found in the Greek to teach he created the other things after he was created. The NWT reads, "because by means of him all [other] things were created in the heavens and upon the earth, the things visible and the things invisible, no matter whether they are thrones or lordships or governments or authorities. All [other] things have been created through him and for him. Also, he is before all [other] things and by means of him all [other] things were made to exist."



But see how this verse views the creation. Lord in the following verse is Yahuweh (or Jehovah). Isaiah 44:24, "Thus saith the LORD, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the LORD that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself."



Since it says Jehovah created all things, when the NT says all things were created by Jesus, this is showing Jesus and the Father are one since both are attributed with creating all things.
Outta Control
2010-11-17 14:37:28 UTC
Why don't believers learn Hebrew & Greek and read the scriptures as they were intended to be read, instead of relying of translations?
Abdul Ghaffar
2010-11-17 14:42:32 UTC
They all add words , the original document is not available to check.Frankly not even a human court will accept any of them so-called bibles as " the Bible" ask any judge
?
2010-11-17 14:40:10 UTC
Obviously to deceive people by their false translation.



If they would not have added words and changed the translation they could not give much support to their false doctrine.
The Doctor
2010-11-17 14:42:12 UTC
I read Greek: the NWT is far from the best translation.
infowars.com/wnd.com
2010-11-17 16:20:03 UTC
haven't seen their bible but with a strong's exhaustive concordance and dr.bullinger's companion bible with notes and appendixes anyone can unlearn the translators errors and get at understanding most of what the original text means
anonymous
2010-11-17 14:37:45 UTC
Because they are liars eager to pry that 10% away from the cult members that are deluded by it....
Bumblebee
2010-11-17 14:38:16 UTC
They believe their interpretation is correct. That's pretty much why.
Journey
2010-11-17 14:39:15 UTC
Same reason the mormons do...deceit.


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