Why did the jehovah's witnesses change the bible by moving the comma.?

Question

It's in luke 23:43
In the original Jesus says "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with me in paradise."
The JW version says ""Truly I say to you today, you shall be with me in paradise."

JW's annoy me. One of them tried to convert my dying friend. She was dying and really suffering with Motor Neurone disease and wanted to end her suffering with a euthenasia pill.
The JW told her it would be a sin and so she did not take a pill.
She died last thursday after incredible suffering. The JW caused her extra distress that she did not need. It makes me angry. Even after we asked her to stop preaching to her, she kept coming and upseting my friend and reading from the watchtower and awake.
I know she thought she was helping but she made her last days miserable.

Answer 1

Well, I share your frustration with the overly zealous from any religion.

However, regarding your question, You seem to be forgetting that the English version of the Bible has been through many translations. The most widely accepted version is the "King James" version. However, even it was subject to linguistic interpretation due to differing language conventions, not to mention general world view of the times.

Jesus spoke in Aramaic and his words are recorded through stories told by his apostles. Thus, there is much room for debate of the actual intent of some of the passages.

Answer 2

First there are no commas in Greek.

So it is the translator's responsibility to place the comma in English (because English requires commas)

You have to ask yourself, did Jesus go to Paradise the day he died?

No the bible is very clear, he went to the grave.

Where did the evil doer go with Jesus that day, it was not to Paradise, but also to the grave.

Therefore the correct location of the comma is in the NWT.

Edit

The original name of Jehovah's Witnesses was
"International Bible Students" or "Bible Students" depending on where in the world they were.

Russellite was a slur given by opposers.

So if you call yourself a bible student, you are identifying yourself with Jehovah's Witnesses.

Answer 3

The NWT one will find many things changed from the original text. It must be remembered they work solely for the Watchtower earning a so called salvation for the 144,000. The oringinal name for the JW's was the ( Russellites), but as the rapture did not take place as they said they received an inspiration from God - changed thier name to JW's.

Answer 4

According to the Kingdom Interlinear Translation, footnote on this scripture "Westcott and Hort puts a comma in Greek text before the word for "today". In the original Greek, no comma is found. Hence we omit comma before "today".

This footnote neglects to mention that there is also no comma found AFTER "today" in the Greek text, yet the NWT puts one there anyway.

Answer 5

Notice the footnote for the scripture at Luke 23:43 in the Reference Bible of Jehovah's Witnesses:

“Today.” Although WH puts a comma in the Gr. text before the word for “today,” commas were not used in Gr. uncial mss. In keeping with the context, we omit the comma before “today.” Syc (fifth cent. C.E.) renders this text: “Amen, I say to thee to-day that with me thou shalt be in the Garden of Eden.”—F. C. Burkitt, The Curetonian Version of the Four Gospels, Vol. I, Cambridge, 1904.

Answer 6

All of Christianity recognizes that Jesus was dead for three days. There is no practical way that a statement Jesus made on the day he was impaled could be interpreted as referring to later that same 24-hour period.

(Matthew 12:40) For just as Jo′nah was in the belly of the huge fish three days and three nights, so the Son of man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.

Also, earlier during the day in which Jesus spoke with the evildoer, Jesus had made a special covenant with those ‘who had stuck with him in his trials’; that covenant for the first time opens a heavenly hope to faithful humans. The evildoer had no such record of comparable faithfulness to qualify him for that unique privilege.

(Luke 22:28-30) You are the ones that have stuck with me in my trials; 29 and I make a covenant with you, just as my Father has made a covenant with me, for a kingdom, 30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel.

The entire text of the New World Translation is available online at the official website of Jehovah's Witnesses. Also, a printed copy can be requested by writing to the branch in your area, or via their online form:
http://watchtower.org/bible
http://watchtower.org/how_to_contact_us.htm
https://watch002.securesites.net/contact/submit.htm

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/library/w/2003/11/15/article_01.htm
http://watchtower.org/library/pr/article_08.htm

Answer 7

it somewhat is gloomy that any such enormous volume of persons do not truly comprehend the Bible and are quick to sentence Jehovah's Witnesses, at the same time as certainly they count upon rumour rather of investigating issues for themselves. As 2 responders have already suggested (and received thumbs down votes for his or her solutions), the language in which the Greek Scriptures were written contained NO PUNCTUATION. No commas, no citation marks, no exclamation factors, and so on. when you consider that we talk English, punctuation marks might want to be extra for the textual content to furnish us the staggering which technique of what Jesus replaced into declaring. In Luke 23:40 3, by technique of putting the comma before "as we talk", it would want to signify that Jesus replaced into telling the evildoer next to him that they could be in paradise on that very day. notwithstanding, that would want to no longer be the case because after Jesus execution, he might want to be asleep in the grave for elements of three days. it truly is definitely no longer paradise. by technique of putting the comma after "as we talk" shows that Jesus replaced into telling the evildoer at that second (on that day) that at a destiny time he might want to be in paradise--no longer accurate once they were finished. One responder shows his lack of expertise of Jehovah's Witnesses by technique of declaring they have a doctrine of 'soul-sleep". i might want to like to ask him this: at the same time as Lazarus had died, what difficulty did Jesus say Lazarus replaced into in? He replaced into dozing in lack of life. See John 11:11-14. lack of life is likened to when you've died until eventually they are wakened in the resurrection.

Answer 8

Of all o fthe christian religious cults jehovah's witnesses are probley the most miserable. They have broken many homes, and
caused much misery among the sick and dieing with their misguided feelings . Their knowledge of the bible is the least of any of the cults.

Answer 9

They thought it would help with what they want the Bible to say.