Why do Jehovah's Witnesses believe that their bible is the only true version?

Question

There is no evedance of any form that I have been able to find that suggest that any BIBLICAL SCOLARES have said that their version is the ONLY true version of the bible. In addation to this statement/question I have found Very evident changes to many of the verses throughout their "translation" Which seem to only fit THEIR doctrine. Also why do the authers of the JW's "translation" wish to remain ANNONYMOS?

THIS IS NOT A QUESTION FOR CLOSED MINDED JAHOVAH'S WITNESS'S TO ANSWER!!!

Answer 1

Jehovah's Witnesses prefer their own version but would not go so far as to say it's the only true version. They feel it is superior because it harmonizes more closely with their beliefs than any other Bible. They would tell you that they conform their translation and beliefs to the Bible text, whereas most other people believe they translated the Bible to conform to their own beliefs.

I believe it is some of both.

The following are some excerpts and summations from a review of the NWT of the Greek Scriptures, by Steven T Byington, a man who was regarded as a fine translator, even by the Watchtower.

On "cross" and "torture stake".

Mr. Byington says that "something can be said for" translating stauros as "torture stake." I agree, I think it's much better than "cross". It is unfortunate, though, that JW's do not realize that a stauros referred to a stake with or without a cross piece, all of which were instruments of torture. Mr. Byington disagrees with the translating of the word "impale"because in English the word impale has "the settled meaning of thrusting the stake through the vitals, not of fastening the body to a stake outside the body."

He also says: "The specialty which the book itself most emphasizes is the use of the name Jehovah instead of "the lord" in 237 places, besides 72 more in the margin. Fifteen pages of the preface present the arguments to justify this. I think the justification insufficient" End of quotation.

I'd like to know how anyone can justify changing the word kyrios which is Greek for "lord", to "Jehovah". If there had been even ONE old Greek manuscript that said Jehovah in a certain verse, then that would provide at least a little justification. But when all the thousands of manuscripts agree that the word is kyrios (Lord), it is mind boggling to change it to Jehovah, and then insist you did it for "accuracy". If there is a JW in the world who cannot see that these men translated these verses to fit in with their own belief rather than "accuracy", then they are truly blinded. Of course there is ample justification for translating "Jehovah" in the Hebrew Scriptures because the Tetragrammaton appears in those verses. But there is simply no justification whatsoever for altering the verses in the Greek and I challenge any JW on here to prove otherwise.

It's also mind-boggling to me that they then have the nerve to criticize the translators of other Bibles who translate YHWH in the Hebrew as "Lord", when they are guilty of the very same kind of alteration, in reverse, in the Greek .

As for the reason the translators remain anonymous, my guess is that

(1) most of them have little, if any, training in Biblical languages and would almost certainly be roundly criticized for their lack of expertise, and

(2) They don't want the translation to be seen as man-made, but as if it came from Jehovah. If people knew the names of these men, they would tend to see the New World Translation as a product of these men and be more aware of the fact that the translating is subject to human opinion and even error.

Answer 2

The premise of this question is false.

The so-called "Jehovah's Witness" bible, the New World Translation", was not even completed until the 1960's. That was decades after Jehovah's Witnesses had discerned the clear differences between what was being taught by Christendom compared to what the bible really teaches. By then, Jehovah's Witnesses had already become well known for their house to house preaching work and familiarity with the Scriptures.

Both before 1960, into the present and on to the future, Jehovah's Witnesses use many different translations in their personal bible reading and research. Jehovah's Witnesses are happy to use any bible that a householder may prefer. In fact, Jehovah's Witnesses themselves continue to distribute other translations besides NWT.

When critics of Jehovah's Witnesses extend their criticism to the New World Translation, their blind hatred for this Christian religion is exposed. Since its publishing, secular experts of Hebrew and Greek have appreciated the NWT's contribution to biblical scholarship, and have refused to condemn any particular verse as an unacceptable translation. Instead, it is religionists with preconceived theologies who bigottedly insist upon particular wordings, since these are necessary to prop up the shakey tenets of false worship.

(2 Timothy 4:3-5) For there will be a period of time when they will not put up with the healthful teaching, but, in accord with their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves to have their ears tickled; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, whereas they will be turned aside to false stories. You, though, keep your senses in all things, suffer evil, do the work of an evangelizer, fully accomplish your ministry.

It seems signficant that the relatively small religion of Jehovah's Witnesses are the ones best known for their worldwide preaching work. Yet Jesus commanded that ALL who would call themselves "Christian" perform this public work:

(Matthew 28:19,20) Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded you. And, look! I am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/library/jt/index.htm
http://watchtower.org/library/w/2003/3/1/article_01.htm
http://watchtower.org/library/w/2002/4/1/article_01.htm

Answer 3

1st. Jehovah's Witnesses don't believe the New World Translation is the only true version.

2nd. I personally own many translations of the bible and enjoy reading the different renderings to get a better understanding of the what is written. At work I keep the NWT & the NKJV.

3rd. As to the accuracy of the NWT, please read the following quotes:

Old Testament:
In fact, the New World Translation is a scholarly work. In 1989, Professor Benjamin Kedar of Israel said:
"In my linguistic research in connection with the Hebrew Bible and translation, I often refer to the English edition as what is known as the New World Translation. In doing so, I find my feeling repeatedly confirmed that this kind of work reflects an honest endeavor to achieve an understanding of the text that is as accurate as possible. Giving evidence of a broad command of the original language, it renders the original words into a second language understandably without deviating unnecessarily from the specific structure of the Hebrew....Every statement of language allows for a certain latitude in interpreting or translating. So the linguistic solution in any given case may be open to debate. But I have never discovered in the New World Translation any biased intent to read something into the text that it does not contain."

New Testament:

While critical of some of its translation choices, BeDuhn called the New World Translation a “remarkably good” translation, “better by far” and “consistently better” than some of the others considered. Overall, concluded BeDuhn, the New World Translation “is one of the most accurate English translations of the New Testament currently available” and “the most accurate of the translations compared.”—Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament.

“Here at last is a comprehensive comparison of nine major translations of the Bible: King James Version, New American Standard Bible, New International Version, New Revised Standard Version, New American Bible, Amplified Bible, Today's English Version (Good News Bible), Living Bible, and the New World Translation. The book provides a general introduction to the history and methods of Bible translation, and gives background on each of these versions. Then it compares them on key passages of the New Testament to determine their accuracy and identify their bias. Passages looked at include:

John 1:1; John 8:58; Philippians 2:5-11; Colossians 1:15-20; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:8; 2 Peter 1:1

Also explored are passages involving "prostration" or "worship," gendered language, the "holy spirit," and the use of "Jehovah." Two hundred pages in all offering my most detailed examination of the issues and pressures involved in Bible translation. If you've found my comments, observations, and answers instructive or challenging in the past, now's your chance to get the complete picture.”
Thank you, and happy reading!
Jason BeDuhn
Associate Professor of Religious Studies, and Chair
Department of Humanities, Arts, and Religion
Northern Arizona University

(Read the book it's quite good, by the way, only the NWT translated all the above verses correctly and without bias.)

4th. The reasons our beliefs fit the bible is because we don't let traditions, and personal feelings cloud what the bible actually says.

When Jehovah says "This is my Son"

We believe Him.

When Jesus said "my Father is looking for such like ones to worship him. . . . those worshiping him must worship with spirit and truth."

"It is Jehovah your God you must worship, and it is to him alone you must render sacred service."

We do.

When Jehovah said at Ez 18:4 that "the soul it self dies."

That is what we teach.

Lastly: As to the name of the translators, This is a non issue due to the quality of the work they did.

Answer 4

Deluded...

Many people seem to be answering this that don't understand the jw's perversion of scripture. The new world mis-translation was written to support several positions which cannot be supported by the original documents or a true translation of the Bible. They deny major premises of several books in the Bible while claiming to be Christians.

2Th 2:9 The coming of the man of sin will be Satan’s work. His work will be seen in all kinds of fake miracles, signs and wonders. 10 It will be seen in every kind of evil that fools people who are dying. They are dying because they refuse to love the truth. The truth would save them.
11 So God will fool them completely. Then they will believe the lie. 12 Many will not believe the truth. They will take pleasure in evil. They will be judged.

Answer 5

probably for the same reasons Christians think their Bible is the only true version, Muslims think their version is right, Jews think theirs is, etc. (Yes, I know not all of these groups call their religious book the Bible, it is just easier not to type it all.) Everyone thinks they're right, I don't care if you are JW, Mormon, atheist, Southern Baptist, or Buddhist. I have never met anyone who says "I think I have everything all wrong!" unless they are in the process of converting.

Answer 6

Actually many parts of the bible have had different translations and I have never meet a person that has memorized it by heart.

Whereas Quran has never been altered and alot of persons have memorized it by heart. I am American and I have memorized large parts of it whereas the bible I was lucky to have memorized a few scriptures by heart, word for word.

P.S. I used to be J.W.

Answer 7

Maybe we should just believe that no matter what we think is true it's not. Hopefully one day we'll all find out what the real truth is. Perhaps that we've all been taught lies from the beginning. Or some convoluted story tale just to explain the things we can't.

Answer 8

see first of all it's about having a personal relationship with the living God which they do not have because they deny who jesus was . so thefore anything else they have to say concerning the things of God are invaliad because they don't know Him.man is always trying on his own to figure out God which his feble thinking is unable to do this is why there are so many religons because they are from the mind of men instead of the mind of God . This is why God say's that we must have relationshipwith Him sothat he can teach us to see as He sees and think as He thinks . Many people would rather form and shape their own God that is why they form religon and not relationship.

Answer 9

Because they get a cut from the bibles they sell. Actually, the entire structure of the "church" is set up like a business. You do not have to get too deep into their theology to discover how much is based on works. ALL
On the other hand, individuals who attend or are members that I have known, seem to love Jesus. Just don't get into theological discussions. God will judge the individuals...

Answer 10

I discovered the same things when I studied their version of the bible. It's because they have an agenda to prove their version of things. The KJV, NKJV, NIV, NRSV,.... all the mainstream versions of the bible try to follow the true intent of the original words as they believe it to be inspired by the Holy Spirit of the LORD, the only One True God.