A Biblical Refutation Of The Jehovah’s Witnesses

CONTENTS
Introduction

Meeting Outline With Explanations

Actual Outline With Scriptures (To Be Used for Refutation)

I. Meeting Introduction
II. History of the Jehovah’s Witnesses (Summary)
III. False Prophecies of the Watchtower
IV. Major Doctrines
A. Deity of Jesus Christ – Jehovah
B. The Efficacy of the Blood Atonement
C. Hell
D. Body, Soul, and Spirit of Man (Life after death)
E. Trinity
F. Bodily Resurrection of Christ
G. Visible (Bodily) Return of Christ
H. The Last Things
J. Obeying Human Government
K. One Mediator
V. New World Translation Errors
A. Manuscript Problems
B. Scripture Mistranslations
VI. My Testimony
VII. Beware
VIII. Bibliography

INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this document is to provide Christians with an easy-to-use tool for refuting the Jehovah’s Witnesses. Most Christians have had an encounter with one of the members of this organization at one time or another, and probably will again. My hope is that this will provide some effective Scriptural tools for revealing to them the tremendous errors of their beliefs.

The primary approach of this refutation is unique because the Scriptures used to prove the fundamental doctrines that the Jehovah’s Witnesses deny are taken from their version of the Bible, the New World Translation. I realize that this version is completely corrupt and mistranslated to agree with the Jehovah’s Witnesses beliefs. However, with this approach, the version of Scripture does not need to be an issue and the main issues (doctrine) can be effectively presented. I have found this approach to be very surprising (and catches them off guard) to a Jehovah’s Witness, since they usually come ready to explain why their version of the Bible is so much better, and ready to argue many other side issues. If the subject of the conversation is maintained as doctrine, and primarily the deity of Jesus Christ, the Jehovah’s Witness has but two choices: 1) try to argue why Jesus Christ is not Jehovah, and this study should provide ample Scriptural proof to offset any minor points they may raise in this area, and 2) realize that he is not going to convert you (and deep inside he is admitting to himself that you have a lot of very strong points) and say that it is time to leave.

Most Christians will find that Jehovah’s Witnesses travel in groups, but come to the door in two’s: usually a seasoned door-to-door witness and a trainee. If your arguments are focused and effective, the seasoned one will usually realize that the discussion is not good for the trainee, and that it is good to leave. I have found on more than one occasion that the trainee will begin to ask questions which seem to indicate that he realizes there may be something to fundamental Christianity. That is when the leader pulls out and takes the trainee back for more reprogramming.

As with any Christian endeavour, prayer and concern is the key. If a Jehovah’s Witness can see that you are genuinely concerned for his eternal welfare, it cannot but affect him in some way. In all honesty, I do not sense that same type of concern when a Jehovah’s Witness talks to me, rather I sense a slight arrogance that they are completely correct, and a resolve to convert me or leave me condemned. Whatever their attitude, they are a soul who needs Jesus Christ as their Saviour. Pray for them as you talk to them, and offer to pray with them when they leave. They will always deny this offer, but try anyway to show them that you care and that prayer is important to you as a Christian.

I, again, hope that this study will help many Jehovah’s Witnesses to find the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that many Christians will use it to face the enemy with their only weapon: the Word of God.

This document is presented in outline form for ease of use. The primary outline, with explanations, will be presented first. Then the actual outline, with the “meat” to be used for the refutation, will follow.

The Meeting Outline With Explanations
I. Meeting Introduction

A. The Purpose for the Meeting: to lead you to Christ and assurance of salvation and heaven.

It must be noted that in most cases, the meeting with a Jehovah’s Witness will not be planned. Because of their zeal, which puts most Christians to shame, it is likely that one will come to your door. It is still good to keep the purpose of talking with them in the back of your mind. The ultimate purpose should be to win them to Christ, or at least make them think hard about the possible errors in their beliefs. If a Christian is not confident that their testimony and discussion with a visiting Jehovah’s Witness will help win them to our Lord, he should not let them in his house according to II John 10-11.

B. I do not intend on criticizing, only comparing Scripture on fundamental “Christian” doctrines.

As with any religious group, the best way to insure that you will not get anywhere is to criticize their beliefs. For this reason, the sections on the History and False Prophecies of the Watchtower should be used with great care. The only way a person can be saved is to first accept and believe the fundamental doctrines of the Bible. One cannot accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour until they acknowledge that He is the Lord of Lords. That is why the main emphasis of this study in the doctrinal area is the Deity of Jesus Christ, since the Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe that Jesus Christ was “Jehovah” God in the flesh.

1. Will not discuss insignificant side points.

One of the greatest tools of the Jehovah’s Witnesses in confusing Christians is causing them to get off-track by bringing up “canned” issues in the Scriptures which they have all the answers for. Most Christians get drawn into these traps and find themselves arguing that they “know” something is true, but they don’t know where in the Bible to find proof. This just gives the Jehovah’s Witness the upper hand and more munition to continue with the same tactics. Most “Christians” who have become Jehovah’s Witnesses were people who were either unsaved or very weak in the faith, and through these tactics, the Jehovah’s Witness was proving to them that he knew more about the Bible than they did. They therefore concluded that the Jehovah’s Witnesses approach must be correct. Of course, the best defence is a good offence. If all Christians knew their Bible like they should, there would be many fewer Jehovah’s Witnesses.

Again, the key to the whole encounter is to not get off track, but concentrate on the major doctrines described later in the outline.

C. There are some doctrines we agree on:

It is always good to be as agreeable as possible with anyone, even a cult member. It also helps to show them that there are many things that traditional Christians and the Jehovah’s Witnesses agree upon. This puts both parties at ease, and shows that you do not consider them to be complete heretics (although you might).

1. The literal creation of the world by God.
2. Baptism by immersion to show commitment to God.
3. A belief in the virgin birth of Christ.
4. The Lord’s supper is not transubstantiation, only a memorial.
5. The millennial (1000 year) kingdom.

D. I don’t question the motives of the Watchtower. I believe you are sincere in what you believe and fervent in trying to win others to what you believe to be true.

Nobody can deny that Jehovah’s Witnesses do their best to convert others to what they believe is the truth. Of course, part of their zeal is encouraged with the teaching that works is the way to win favour with God, and not fulfilling the commands of the Watchtower will result in annulation. Notwithstanding, they do give their best and they are one of the fastest growing religious groups in the world.

E. There is no place for rationalism (human logic) as a basis for rejecting the literal interpretation of Scripture, God is above us even in logic (Isaac 55).

Many of the “fundamentals” that the Jehovah’s Witnesses reject (i.e. Hell, the Trinity) are rejected because these things do not agree with their limited human logic. A Christian has to be willing to admit that he does not understand fully the Trinity, but that he believes it to be true because God says it is true in the Bible. The Watchtower has reacted to these problem areas by manipulating Scripture, rather than accepting them by faith. The point to make is that God is above our understanding.

II. The history of the Jehovah’s Witnesses.

This is only a top level history of the Jehovah’s Witness movement, showing how quickly (100 years) a cult can grow to worldwide proportions. It shows why the movement has also been called Russellism (named after it’s founder Charles Russell). It also shows how much divine authority the movement claims for itself over its followers. This is illustrated in their constant updates of their own beliefs and the curses pronounced on those that leave the movement.

This history shows that a religion drastically different from the traditional approaches to the Scriptures can attract weary subjects very successfully; possibly because it is so different and implies something better; or possibly because people are looking for a movement that will tell them exactly what to believe, how to behave, and what will happen if they disobey.

III. False Prophecies of the Watchtower (Due 18:18-22).

This section is a sampling of the many false prophecies of the Watchtower organization and its proponents over the years. These prophecies of the end of the world show how much power the Watchtower believes it holds. They consider themselves to be God’s prophet on earth (April 1, 1972, page 197, Watchtower Magazine). The Scriptures teach (Due 18:18-22) that if a person claims to make a prophecy about the future in the name of the LORD, and that prophecy does not come to pass, then he is a false prophet. By this criteria, the Jehovah’s Witness organization is false many times over.

The Watchtower has tried to overlook their false prophecies by ignoring them or by claiming that Christ’s coming was spiritual; but it will be visible to all (see Section IV. G.). Their prophecies can be judged according to Deuteronomy 18.

A. Predicted by Christ – Matt 24:23-24.

Christ predicted that many would come in His name and prophecy in His name, and this organization is one of the fulfilments of that prediction.

IV. Major Doctrines

A. The Deity of Jesus Christ (Jehovah).

If one rejects the deity of Jesus Christ, he cannot be saved, since Jesus Christ as the Lord of Lords is the only Way, the only Door, and most of all the only God. For this reason, until this truth is accepted by a Jehovah’s Witness, any other argument is futile as far as his salvation is concerned, except for increasing his doubt in his organization and what it teaches.

1. The Unity of God.

It is important to emphasize that the Scripture clearly teaches that there is but “one” God. The New World Translation rendering of John 1:1, “a god”, shows their complete disregard for the doctrine of the Unity of God. Once this doctrine is used as the preface, then when it is proven that Jesus Christ is God, one cannot say that He is only “a god” and not “Jehovah God”.

2. Scriptural Proof.

Since the entire Bible is permeated with one person, Jesus Christ, it is not hard to find verses which prove, either directly or indirectly, His divinity. One will find that in this study many of the “standard” proofs have been left out. The reason for this has been explained before: the verses are from the Jehovah’s Witnesses version of the Bible, the New World Translation, and that version has drastically changed many of the fundamental doctrine proof verses. But God gets the last say, since there are still more verses in their Bible which prove that Jesus Christ is Jehovah than there are which do not, and a very large number of those verses are included in this study.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses will quote John 1:18, “No man hath seen God at any time” and say that is proof that Jesus Christ could not be God. The very simple explanation of this is the analogy of a person. In reality, no man hath seen me at any time, he has only seen my body, not my soul. When Christ was on earth, His body was visible, but not God’s entire person and glory. Jesus said Himself that they had seen the Father (John 14:7-9).

It must be emphasized that the barrage of Scriptures available in this section must be used. The Jehovah’s Witnesses are constantly finding what they believe to be explanations for more and more of these Scriptural proofs (or they just change what it says!). It is true with any major doctrine of the Bible that the way to find the true Biblical teaching is to accumulate all of the Scriptures that relate to the subject, and then form the doctrine. Since there are literally hundreds of Scriptures that teach
Jesus Christ is Jehovah, He is. It is advisable to see section VII. Beware and be prepared for some “canned” Watchtower “problems” with the deity of Jesus Christ.

B. Efficacy of the Blood Atonement (not the JW organization).

This is just a sampling of Scriptures to show that more than 144,000 can be saved, and that Christ died for “all” men. When presenting salvation (if you made it this far and they have not left yet), you should continually emphasize that salvation is a gift given to us by grace, and that works earn rewards, not grace. I have not included Scriptures to prove this point, since any Christian who knows how to witness will know a list of Scriptures on salvation.

C. Hell – not annihilation or extinction (there is no second chance).

The Jehovah’s Witnesses will be quick to tell you that they do not believe in Hell. They use rationalism to say that God would never punish anyone eternally. They believe that they will either live on a perfect earth (since all that can go to heaven have already gone in the invisible rapture of 1914), or that they will be annihilated from consciousness forever by Jehovah for not being faithful enough to the Watchtower.

Since they do not believe in Hell, the word has been removed from their version of the Bible. Included in this section is a list of Scriptures that still teach the truth of everlasting punishment without using the word “Hell”.

D. The body, soul, and spirit of man (life after bodily death).

The Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe in a separate soul and spirit, and they do not believe in life after bodily death (immediately). The Scriptures given show that there are saints of old living now, and that believers go to be with the Lord immediately after death.

E. The Trinity

1. Scriptural proof

Despite the fact that Jehovah’s Witnesses call us “pluralists” (i.e. believe in more than one God), they are the ones that worded John 1:1, “a god”. Christians believe that there is one God in three personalities. Some of the Scriptures that still teach the unity of God in their version are given.

2. The Deity of the Holy Spirit

Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the existence of the Holy Spirit as a person, and call Him a “force”. These Scriptures are meant to show that He is one with Jehovah God.

3. The personality of the Holy Spirit.

If the Holy Spirit is only a force, as the Jehovah’s Witnesses teach, then He would not have the characteristics of a person with a personality. These Scriptures show that the Holy Spirit exhibits many of the characteristics of a person.

F. The bodily resurrection of Christ.

The Watchtower teaches that Jesus Christ resurrected spiritually, and not bodily. These Scriptures show that He resurrected bodily.

G. The visible (bodily) return of Christ.

In an effort to cover up their false prophecies, the Jehovah’s Witnesses have invented the story that their prophecy of 1914 was fulfilled spiritually, and that Christ came then (invisibly) and took over the kingdom. I usually point out that if this is the kingdom, we have problems. The Scriptures prove that when He comes, everyone will know it.

H. The Last Things.

This section is included to show how the last things will unfold:

1. The world will be destroyed.
2. The final state of Satan.

Despite what the Jehovah’s Witnesses teach about Satan, and his departure from the earth, he is not gone yet, as shown by these Scriptures.

J. Obeying Human Government.

The Jehovah’s Witnesses are well known for their anti-patriotism and many other strange practices relative to the government. As shown in these Scriptures, Christians are to be obedient to the government that the Lord has placed over them until that obedience directly violates the Scriptures. The Jehovah’s Witnesses have carried this too far and called patriotism idolatry and many other similar things.

V. New World Translation Errors

The New World Translation is specific to the Jehovah’s Witnesses. There have been many blatant mistranslations, and some of them are given in this section.

If you are one of the Christians who believes that God has preserved His Word in the collection of modern Bible versions, the beginning of this section is not for you. Since the Jehovah’s Witnesses reject Catholicism, they are not too happy to hear that the manuscripts used to translate their Bible came from the Catholic church, and it includes the Apocrypha. Unfortunately, this same argument applies to all of the modern versions of Scripture.

It is also important to note that if Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that their version of Scripture is the only correct one, then God left the whole world in darkness until 1901, when the first New World Translation came out.

VI. My Testimony

Every born-again Christian should be able to give a testimony of a new life in Jesus Christ and of the assurance of their salvation. Assurance is one thing a Jehovah’s Witness does not know of, he lives in a system of fear, wondering until the end if he met enough of the strict requirements to be one of the few who made it. If you can do nothing else when talking to a Jehovah’s Witness, tell them that you got saved, Christ made you new, and you know that you are going to heaven because of the promises of Scripture.

This is where a Christian should also be able to tell of miraculous answers to prayer in his Christian life. Ask the Jehovah’s Witness if he has experienced the same, as promised in the Bible.

Always leave a Jehovah’s Witness with your glorious testimony of new life and assurance of eternal life. They will ponder it.

VII. Beware

There are some Scriptures that the Jehovah’s Witnesses use which they believe help defend their doctrines and disprove the Christian “fundamentals”. Some of these are listed in this section. It is always important to remember that a major doctrine is understood by studying the compilation of Scriptures relative to that doctrine, then difficult passages can be better understood in the context of the clear teaching of Scripture.

VIII. Bibliography

This is a partial listing of the books that I used to better understand the Jehovah’s Witnesses, especially their history and false prophecies. The King James Bible is listed because that was the major resource for this study. I first collected a very large list of Scriptures that prove the Deity of Jesus Christ, I then looked all of those references up in the New World Translation to see if the doctrine was preserved. If it was, then it was included in the doctrinal proof section of this study. The same method was used for the other doctrinal proofs, although not as extensively. As explained before, the place to always begin with a Jehovah’s Witness is with the Deity of Jesus Christ, for all other beliefs rise and fall on this one, since He is the Source of salvation, the Creator, the One who permeates the Word of God.

The Actual Outline With Scriptures (To Be Used For Refutation)
I. Meeting Introduction

A. The Purpose for the Meeting: to lead you to Christ and assurance of salvation and heaven.

B. I do not intend on criticizing, only comparing Scripture on fundamental “Christian” doctrines.

1. Will not discuss insignificant side points.

C. There are some doctrines we agree on:

1. The literal creation of the world by God.
2. Baptism by immersion to show commitment to God.
3. A belief in the virgin birth of Christ.
4. The Lord’s supper is not transubstantiation, only a memorial.
5. The millennial (1000 year) kingdom.

D. I do not question the motives of the Watchtower. I believe you are sincere in what you believe and are fervent in trying to win others to what you believe to be the truth.

E. There is no place for rationalism (human logic) as a basis for rejecting the literal interpretation of Scripture, God is above us even in logic (Isaiah 55).

II. The History of the Jehovah’s Witnesses (Summary)

1852 Charles Taze Russell was born.

1877 Russell was a Seventh Day Adventist (many of the beliefs similar).

1879 Russell founded the organization with the publication of “Zion’s Watchtower and Herald of Christ’s Presence”.

1881 Zions Watch Tower Tract Society formed

1908 The headquarters was moved to Brooklyn, NY.

1910 Russell wrote that it was better to study his “Scriptural Studies” than the Bible to “stay in the light”, “The Watchtower” Sept. 15, 1910, pg. 98. (He later called some of his writings immature).

1913 Russell went to court against a man that wrote a tract against Russell’s teachings (J. J. Ross). In the files of the High Court of Ontario, Canada, Mar. 17, 1913 is the record. Russell lied many times. He said that he knew Greek, under oath, and then admitted that he did not. He perjured himself under oath. He admitted that he did not know Latin or Hebrew, that he did not have any higher learning, and that he was not ordained.

1916 Russell died. Joseph Franklin Rutherford took over.

1917 – 1928 The Watchtower magazine changed the doctrines 148 times.

1927 Watchtower factory constructed in Brooklyn, NY, USA.

1931 Rutherford changed the name to “Jehovah’s Witnesses” to reunite splinter groups that had broken off.

1933 Rutherford said that all who had left the Jehovah’s Witnesses because of his renunciation of Russell’s pyramid theories would suffer destruction. “The Kingdom”, pg. 14, by J. F. Rutherford.

1940 The society began street distribution of the “Watchtower” and “Consolation”.

1942 Rutherford died. Nathan H. Knorr was the next president.

1943 Knorr established the Jehovah’s Witnesses school in Brooklyn.

1950 “New World Translation” of the New Testament published.

1954 Haydon C. Covington, legal counsel and vice-president of the JW’s, admitted under oath in court (Scotland) that he had never read “Studies in the Scripture”, that false prophecy was promulgated by the JW’s, and that unity had to be maintained “at all costs”, even at the expense of the truth.

Fred Franz, president, admitted under oath that the Watchtower Society publishes errors that they must later correct.

1960 “The Watchtower” declared that The Watchtower Bible and Tract Society is “God’s sole collective channel for the flow of Biblical truth to men on earth in these last days.”

1981 “WatchTower” published “Jehovah God has also provided his visible organization…unless we are in touch with this channel of communication that God is using, we will not progress along the road to life, no matter how much Bible reading we do.” (Dec. 1, 1981, pg. 27)

1985 3 million distributing literature, 7.8 million attend annual communion.

III. False Prophecies of the Watchtower (Deu 18:18-22)

1877 End of the world is very near.

1880 Earthly kingdom will begin in 1914, “Watchtower” Mar. 1880, pg. 82 – 1914 date based on 607 BC fall of Jerusalem. It is now known to be 587 BC.

1881 pg. 126, C. T. Russell said if earthly kingdom did not come in 1914, he was a false prophet.

1886 Marshalling of hosts for great battle is in progress.

1889 Battle, already commenced, will end A. D. 1914, The Time Is At Hand, by C. T. Russell, 1889, pg. 101.

1894 1914 will be the end of the time of trouble.

1904 Stress of the great time of trouble will be Oct. 1914.
– there will be a rapture in 1914.

1914 Armageddon may be next spring (1915).

1915 WWI is beginning of Armageddon.

1917 Earthquake in 1918, fire will come Fall 1918.

1918 Rutherford prophesied the physical return of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as 1925, – “Millions Now Living Will Never Die”, 1918, pg. 89-90.

1920 Kingdom and earthly resurrection to come in 1925.

1929 End very soon.

1930 Climax is at hand.

1931 Armageddon is at hand.

1932 The end is a very short time away.

1939 The end is very near. Armageddon is just ahead.

1940 Final settlement is near at hand.

1941 Armageddon will be in a few years. Rutherford said, “Why marry when so close?”.

1942 New world is at the doors, the time is short.

1943 The beginning of the final war is near.

1944 The end of the world arrangement is near.

1946 Armageddon will be before 1972.

1953 1954 could well be “the year”.

1955 Armageddon is nearing its breakingout point.

1966 The climax of history is at the door.

1968 Armageddon in 1975

1969 Only a short time left.

1975 F. W. Franz (VP) predicted (in Feb.) Sept. 1975 as the end of history. Many parents pulled their children out of school, many quit their jobs and sold their homes.

Today: Still predicting the end of the world within one generation of 1914. (A generation is typically 73 years, or 1987 at the latest).

IV. Major Doctrines

A. Deity of Jesus Christ – Jehovah
– Scripture references from the New World Translation

1. The Unity of God, There is no other God but Jehovah, the Father: Deu 4:35; Is 43:10; 44:6,8; 45:21-22; I Cor 8:6; I Tim 1:17.

2. Scriptural Proof

a. Isaiah 9:6 – Jesus is called Mighty God (Jehovah: Is 10:20-21).
– same word “eel gibboor”: Deu 10:17; Jer 32:18; Neh 9:32.

b. Isaiah 9:6 – Jesus is called Eternal Father (Only one: Eph 4:6).

c. John 20:28-29 – Thomas called Jesus “my God” and broke a commandment (Ex 20:3), said unto “him”.
– Jesus did not rebuke Thomas but accepted the title.

d. Isaiah 40:3,10 with Matthew 3:3 – John the Baptist prepared the way for Jehovah (Jesus).

e. Isaiah 43:10 with Acts 1:8 – saints called witnesses of Jehovah and Jesus.

f. Acts 2:21, Romans 10:13 – people to call upon Jehovah.
I Corinthians 1:2, Acts 16:31 – people to call upon Jesus.

g. Proverbs 16:4 – all things created for Jehovah.
Colossians 1:16-18 – all things created for Jesus.

h. Isaiah 43:11 – Jehovah is the only saviour (Tit 1:3; 2:10; 3:4)
Acts 4:12 – Jesus is the only saviour (Tit 1:4; 2:13; 3:6)

i. Titus 2:13 – [remove NWT inserted words which are in
brackets] Jesus (God) is prophesied to come back.

j. John 1:1 – Jesus is called God.
– cannot be “a God” or he is a false god, see Unity above.
– mistranslated (see Jn 1:6,12,13,18 – same Greek words).

k. Jesus is called God [remove NWT inserted words] (Rom 9:5; II Pet 1:1; I Jn 5:20).

l. Matthew 28:19 – Name (singular) of Father and Son.

m. Genesis 1:26 – God called “us” (also in many other places).
– Elohim is the plural name of God (“us”).

n. Jesus was worshipped by men (Matt 4:10; Lk 4:8).
– the disciples said no (Acts 10:25-26, even to obeisance).
– the angels said no (Rev 19:10; 22:9).
– Jesus didn’t say no (Matt 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 15:25; 18:26; 20:20; 28:9,17; Mk 5:6; Lk 5:8; 24:52; Jn 9:38)
– NWT translators changed the word to “obeisance” in some
places and not in others, even though the Word says not
to ever do either unto any but God (Matt 4:10, the same Greek words translated obeisance in other passages)

o. Jesus is worshipped by angels (Heb 1:6).

p. Jesus said he was one with the Father, and the disciples saw the Father [remove NWT inserted words] (Jn 10:30; 12:45; 14:7-10).

q. Acts 20:28 – God’s (Jesus’) blood paid for our sins.

r. His name Emmanuel means “God with us”.
– Is 7:14: mistranslated “maiden”.
– Matt 1:23

s. I Tim 3:15-16 – Jesus was God in the flesh.

t. Jesus had the glory of Jehovah – Jn 17:5 with Is 42:8; 48:11.
– He showed it (Matt 17:2; Jn 18:6)

u. Jesus is equal to God, and therefore God, since there is only “one” God (Jn 5:18; Phil 2:5-6).
– In Jn 5:18 the Greek word “ison” means: equal in quantity and quality, nature, rank, authority.

v. Jehovah is the theme of the Old Testament, Jesus is the theme of the New Testament. The Bible says to believe on Him, be baptized in His name, suffer for His name, gather in His name, all will bow to Him, all to be done in His name, justified, etc. in His name.

w. Jesus possesses the names of Jehovah.

Alpha and Omega (1st and last) – Jehovah: Is 44:6; 48:12-13; Rev. 1:18; 21:6-7
– Jesus: Rev 1:17-18; 2:8; 22:12-16

Holy One – Jehovah: Is 41:14; 43:15; 54:5 (I Sam 2:2)
– Jesus: Mk 1:24; Lk 4:34

Judge – Jehovah: Gen 18:25; Ecc 12:14; Rom 14:10; II Tim 4:1
– Jesus: II Cor 5:10; II Tim 4:1

Light – Jehovah: I Jn 1:5
– Jesus: Jn 1:4-9; 3:19-21; 12:35-36

Lord (only one Eph 4:5) – Jehovah: Ps 71:5; Heb 1:10
– Jesus: Act 2:36; 10:36; Rom 10:9, 12; I Cor 2:8; Phil 2:11; Jas 2:1
– King of Kings and Lord of Lords: Rev 17:14; 19:16
– Jesus and Jehovah both called King in many places

Shepherd – Jehovah: Ps 23:1; 80:1
– Jesus: Heb 13:20

x. Jesus has the attributes of Jehovah

Creator – Jehovah: many Scriptures
– Jesus: Jn 1:3, 10; Col 1:15-18;

Giver of Life – Jehovah: Ps 36:9; Rom 6:23
– Jesus: Jn 1:4; 6:33, 44; 10:28; 14:6; Col 3:4; I Jn 4:9

Giver of Pastors – Jehovah: Jer 3:15
– Jesus: Eph 4:11-13

Object of Faith – Jehovah: Ps 71:5; Jn 14:1
– Jesus: Jn 6:40; 14:1; I Tim 1:1

Object of Prayer – Jehovah: Ps 5:2
– Jesus: Jn 14:14; Act 7:59; 9:10-17

Omnipresent – Jesus: Mt 18:20; Eph 1:23

Omnipotent – Jesus: Mt 8:27; 10:1; Jn 5:21; I Co 1:24; Php 3:20-21; Heb 1:3

Omniscient – Jesus: Mk 11:2-6; 14:13-16; Jn 1:48; 4:16-19; 5:42; 6:64; 16:30; 21:17; Rom 16:27; I Cor 1:24

Pre-existent – Jesus: Ge 1:26; Mic 5:2; Mt 22:45; Jn 1:1-3; Co 1:15-17

Power over elements – Jehovah: Jer 10:12
– Jesus: Mk 4:39, 41; Lk 8:24-25

Righteous (Bible says none righteous – I Ki 8:46; Rom 3:10, 23)
– Jesus: II Cor 5:21; II Pet 1:1

Sender of Spirit – Jehovah: Jn 14:16, 26; Rom 8:9
– Jesus: Jn 15:26; 16:7; Rom 8;9

Source of Peace – Jehovah: Rom 15:33; II Cor 13:11; I Thes 5:23; Heb 13:20
– Jesus: Eph 2:14

B. The Efficacy of the Blood Atonement

1. I Jn 2:2 – sins of the whole world
2. Jn 1:29 – sins of the world
3. Col 1:20 – He made peace through the blood
4. I Cor 15:3 – Christ died for our sins
5. Jn 3:16 – whosoever
6. I Pet 2:24 – bore our sins
7. Rom 5:10, 11, 17, 19 – imputed righteousness
8. Rev 7:9-10 – an innumerable crowd in heaven

C. Hell, not the grave

1. Rev 14:10-11 – smoke of torment ascends forever and ever
2. Rev 19:20 – while alive, hurled into lake of fire (second death)
– also Rev 20:11-15; 21:8
3. Jude 7 – everlasting fire
4. Matt 13:42, 50 – fiery furnace
5. Mark 9:43, 47-48 – the fire is not put out (Is 66:24)
6. “Hades” – place of destruction – gates of Matt 16:18
– people are conscious there (Lk 16:23-31, Jesus used names, therefore
must have been a true story)
– Jesus has keys to Rev 1:18
7. Jude 13 – blackness of darkness reserved forever
8. II Thes 1:8-9 everlasting destruction
9. “Gehenna” (the Hell of fire) – Matt 18:8-9 (everlasting)
– why would it be worse to enter everlasting fire (Mt 18:8) without hands if it represents the grave?
10. Rev 20:10-15, for ever and ever
11. Matt 26:24 – why should the end be worse if final end was annihilation?

D. Body, Soul, and Spirit of Man (Life after death)

1. I Thes 5:23 – body, soul, and spirit
2. Heb 4:12 – soul and spirit divisible
3. Spirit and body separate (Lk 8:55; Act 7:59; I Cor 5:5)
4. Soul and body separate (Matt 10:28; Gen 35:18; I Ki 17:21-22)
– Rev 6:9-11 souls spoke in heaven that had been slain
5. Lk 23:46 – Jesus gave God His spirit when He died
6. Life After Death
a. Saints are living now
– Lk 20:37-38 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all living (Matt 22:32)
– Matt 17:1-3 Moses and Elijah appeared to disciples
b. Believers immediately with Lord at death
– I Thes 4:13-17 God will bring dead with Him, dead will rise
– Jn 11:25 life after death
– Lk 16:19-31 consciousness after death
– Phil 1:21-24 to die is gain and be with Christ
– II Cor 5:2-8, 10 (judgment seat) absent from body, present with Lord
7. Act 23:8, if spirit is breath, what were they talking about?
8. Heb 10:39, says the soul can be preserved alive.

E. Trinity

1. Scriptures
– Jn 14:23 Jesus and God indwell believer (in the person of the Holy Spirit Jn 14:17)

2. Personality of Holy Spirit
– “He” Jn 16:7-8, 13-14
– Blasphemed Matt 12:31-32; Lk 12:10 (how can a force be blasphemed?)
– Lied to Act 5:3
– Hurt Is 63:10
– Grieved Eph 4:30
– Speaks Act 13:2-4; 21:11; 28:25
– He’s a teacher Jn 14:26
– Has a will I Cor 12:11

3. Deity of Holy Spirit
– God spoke (Holy Spirit) through His prophets Acts 28:25; therefore they are one
– They lied to God (Holy Spirit) Acts 5:1-4
– II Cor 3:17 Jehovah is the Spirit
– I Cor 3:16, God’s Temple the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:9, 11; II Tim 1:14)

F. Bodily Resurrection of Christ

1. Lk 24:36-44 flesh and bones, He ate (spiritual body – I Cor 15:50,53)
2. Jn 2:19-22 He said His body would raise again
3. Jn 20:25-28 He had a body (with substance)

If don’t believe His body, or soul, or spirit came out, then there was not resurrection

G. Visible (Bodily) Return of Christ – the JW’s teach that He came in 1914, “The Truth Shall Make You Free, pg. 300”

1. Act 1:9-11 He will come the same way He left – visibly and bodily
2. I Thes 4:16-17 a trumpet will sound, believers will go into clouds
3. II Thes 1:7-10 revelation of Jesus from heaven with angels and fire
4. Matt 24:30 “all” tribes of earth will see Him coming in glory Lk 21:27
5. Matt 26:64 He will come on clouds, and will be “seen”
6. Tit 2:13 “manifestation”
7. Rev 1:7 “every” eye will see Him
8. Zech 12:10 He will have scars
9. Zech 14:4 He will stand on the Mount of Olives
10. I Jn 3:2 when He is made manifest, we shall “see” Him

H. The Last Things

1. The world will be destroyed II Pet 3:10 (all dissolved)

2. The final state of Satan
– Matt 25:41 everlasting fire prepared for the Devil
– Ez 28:16-19 Satan not gone, same Greek word used in I Ki 20:40
– Rev 20:10 Devil hurled into Lake of Fire, tormented forever

J. Obeying Human Government

1. Rom 13:1-7 be in subjection to superior authorities; render to all what is asked for
2. Tit 3:1 be in subjection and be obedient to governments
3. I Pet 2:13-14 subject yourself to government

K. One Mediator – Jesus Christ, I Ti 2:5, but Watchtower claims we are not acceptable unless part of their organization, making themselves “another” mediator

V. New World Translation Errors

A. Manuscript Problems

The New World Translation is translated from Catholic manuscripts (Sinaiticus and Vaticanus) containing the Apocrypha.
– changed by Origen and the Popes over the years to attack important doctrines. The following verses were cut out: Matt 17:21; 18:11; 23:14; Mk 7:16; 9:44,46; 11:26; 15:28; Lk 23:17; Jn 5:4;Act 8:37; 28:29; Rom 16:24.
– Jesuit theologians were involved in the New World Translation: Jose Maria Bover S. J. and A. Merk S. J., found in the forward of the 1950 edition.
– The King James translators rejected the Roman Catholic manuscripts and chose the Texus Receptus (no Apocrypha) for translation.

If the NWT is better because of better educated men to translate, then God left us in the dark until 1901, because the NWT is drastically different from all other translations.

B. Scripture Mistranslations:

1. John 1:1, Greek scholars agree that there is no way it can be translated “a god” because the definite article is missing. Nowhere else in Scripture is this Greek construction (ho Theos) without the article translated
“a god” (i.e. Jn 1:6,12,13,18; 3:2,21; 9:16,33).

2. If Jesus was “a god” he had to have been a false god because the Scriptures teach that there is only one true God (Is 43:10-11; 44:6-8; 45:21-22; 46:9; …)

3. Phil 2:5-6, same argument as with “a god” in Jn 1:1.

4. Heb 1:8, “God is your throne” a blatant mistranslation.

5. I Jn 5:20, a whole sentence was left out because it clearly taught that Jesus is God, even though that sentence is in the Greek manuscript used to translate the NWT.

6. Php 2:11 and Rom 10:13, not consistent in translating “Kurious” and “theos” as Jehovah because proves that Christ is Jehovah.

7. Col 1:16,17,19, “other” (Greek – Allos) is not found in the Greek, as it is not found in Lk 13:2,4.

8. Act 20:28, insertion of the word “Son” has no basis in the Greek.

9. I Cor 15:55, there is no basis for translating “death” as “grave”.

10. Act 2:17, insertion of word “some” has no basis in the Greek.

11. Matt 27:50, Greek word “pneumo” translated breathe (corrected in 1971 version), although other parallel passages (Lk 23:46) correctly translated the word as “spirit”.

12. Jn 8:58, Greek “Ego Eimi” can only be translated “I am” (Ex 3:14); the Jews knew what He said (8:59) and began to stone Him on legal grounds (blasphemy).

13. Col 2:9, “fullness of Godhead” mistranslated “the divine quality” by changing the Greek word “Theoit” to “Theiotes”, there is no justification for this based on “all” Greek texts.

14. Is 7:14, mistranslated maiden, see Matt 1:23.

15. Ez 28:19, “to be no more” (talking of Satan) for Greek word “ayin” is incorrect (compare with I Ki 20:40 talking of someone leaving).

16. Translators replaced “Lord” with “Jehovah” 237 times in the New Testament without textual basis.

17. II Tim 4:22, not understandable

18. Gal 5:15, translated “annihilated” to be consistent with false teaching of no hell, but does not make sense in this verse.

19. Php 3:11, the word “earlier” is not supported by any manuscripts.

VI. My Testimony

Give your testimony before the meeting is over, emphasizing
the assurance of salvation and the exciting new life in
Christ Jesus.

VII. Beware

A. Only Begotten – denotes uniqueness (see Heb 11:17, Isaac was not the only son, but the only begotten).

B. Greater (Jn 14:28) – speaking of the fact that He linked Himself to a man while on the earth. It did not mean better (Heb 1:4) but was speaking quantitatively, not qualitatively. He was speaking as a man (the God-man) in Jn 14:28. God was positionally greater while Christ was on the earth. Example: the president may be greater because of his position but not necessarily better.

C. Born again is through the Holy Spirit, the Word, and repentance (Jn 3:3-7; Eph 5:26; I Pet 1:23 – “have been”).

D. First born – Col 1:15 (Rev 3:14), the Greek word prototokos may also be “first-begetter” or “original bringer forth”. If He created all things (Col 1:16) then He couldn’t have created Himself. He was the first-born in the sense of first to rise in a glorified body.

E. Prov 8:22 speaks of personified wisdom.

F. Son of God – meant equality, see Jn 5:18; 10:30,33,36; 19:7; Matt 26:63,65

G. Phil 2:6 mistranslated to show Christ not equal to God.

VIII. Bibliography

1. Chick, Jack T. The Crisis Chino, CA, Chick Publications (tract).

2. Gruss, Edmond C. Jehovah’s Witnesses and Prophetic Speculation. Phillipsburg, NJ, Presbyterian Reformed Publishing Co., 1972.

3. Rice, John R. Jehovah’s Witnesses, Tenn, Sword of the Lord Publishers (pamphlet).

4. Schnell, Wm. J. Thirty Years a Watchtower Slave. Grand Rapids, Baker, 1956.

5. Wright, Gerald, The JW’s Bible. Fort Worth, TX, Star Bible and Tract Corporation, 1975.

6. Reed, David D. Jehovah’s Witnesses Answered Verse by Verse, Grand Rapids, Baker Book House.

7. New World Bible Translation Committee. New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures. Brooklyn, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., 1981.

8. Hoekema, Anthony A. The Four Major Cults. Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publ. Co., 1963.

9. Lewis, David Allen. Dark Angels of Light. Green Forest, AR, New Leaf Press, 1985.

10. Martin, Walter R. Kingdom of the Cults. Minneapolis, Bethany Fellowship Publications, 1965, Revised 1968.

11. Van Baalen, Jan K. The Chaos of the Cults. Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publ. Co., 1962.

12. Nave, Orville J. Nave’s Topical Bible. McLean, VA, MacDonald Pub. Co.

13. Strong, James. Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. McLean, VA, MacDonald Pub. Co.

14. Torrey, R. A. The New Topical Textbook. Murfreesboro, TN, Sword of the Lord Publishers.

15. The King James Bible (Authorized Version), no copyright, 1611.