How many scholars were involved with translating the NWT and were they all JWs?

Question

NWT = New World Translation

JW = Jehovah Witness

Foxtrot,
The question is not in regards to the reliability of the text. I simply wanted to know this specific information. And from what I have read of the NWT, it does not seem to be more accurate. I studied Koine Greek for 2 years at the College Level. And have Strongs, BDAG, TDNT, and others in my hands. And they seem to counter the NWT in those few areas that I have studied.

To Q & A,

So they were anonymous? Do we know of their religious conviction? Were they JWs? How many were there? If they remained anonymous we should still know how many there were and what religious affliation they belonged to.

Hmmm...well what i thought was a simply question seems more difficult then I had expected. Because NO ONE has even tried to answer my question directly.....Hmmmm

Regards to trk Comments:

Another one of my trick questions? Umm, can you please state a previous trick question? And how this could be a trick question? I am just curious.

Also I love JWs, and do not despise them nor the NWT. I have not said anything against the NWT as a whole in this question.

Please do not be quick to judge. I am trying to keep and open mind and would like some basic information about the NWT. Thanks.

I notice TRK that you have amended your answer. Can I take that as an apology? Thanks.

trk,
you say that scholars do not agree with me? do not agree with me about what? I did not say that the NWT, was a bad translation overall but that in the few areas that I have looked that I believe it misrepresents the Greek text. And I can name probably 15-20 scholars right away that agree with me on those conclusions on those specific texts.

Why am I defending myself? I dont' care, people, can we please answer the question? Or is this info. really unknown? Thanks.

There is ONLY one JC is the Man....lol! I try not to degrade anyone.

Answer 1

The "New World Translation Committee" (which oversaw the translation work) requested anonymity 'en perpetuity', so there is no way of knowing how many members were on the Committee, or the size and religious affiliation of every person working under them.

In any event, they are likely all dead since the primary work was completed 45 years ago. Guesses at specific names have always been merely guesses. Since the same manuscripts used by the NWT translators are still widely available for study, and since there are dozens of alternate translations for comparison, anyone who chooses to use NWT does so informedly. NWT stands on its own merits and was never intended as vehicle to glorify any human translator.


Jehovah's Witnesses have distributed more than 145 million copies of "New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures", in dozens of languages.
http://watchtower.org/languages.htm

The entire text of NWT is freely available at the official website of Jehovah's Witnesses, and a personal printed copy can be requested at no charge:
http://watchtower.org/bible/
https://watch002.securesites.net/contact/submit.htm
http://watchtower.org/how_to_contact_us.htm


Jehovah's Witnesses certainly like NWT, but they are happy to use any translation which an interested person may prefer, and in fact Jehovah's Witnesses themselves distribute other translations besides NWT. Jehovah's Witnesses attach no particular infallibility or inspiration to NWT.

It seems that the vast majority of the criticism against the New World Translation is actually as a proxy for blind hatred against Jehovah's Witnesses. The hatred must be "blind" since secular experts of biblical Hebrew and Greek have consistently refused to condemn any particular verse or phrase as an unacceptable translation. Instead, it is religionists with preconceived theologies who bigotedly insist upon particular wordings, since these are necessary to prop up the shaky tenets of their 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 significant 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/e/20000622/
http://watchtower.org/e/pr/index.htm?article=article_04.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/na/
http://watchtower.org/e/20020915/article_01.htm
http://watchtower.org/e/20050715/article_02.htm

Answer 2

Your allegations aren't precise. On the opposite, the New World Translation, the Bible that Jehovah’s Witnesses use, used to be in a position to have God’s identify restored at the same time many, many different models deleted God’s identify from the normal Bible copies. Many Bible students and thousands of folks around the globe agree that the New World Translation is the nearest translation to its normal verse. It has been famous to be the high-quality today's Bible via many students. You are speakme with none foundation, and might be repeating some thing any individual advised you or that you just learn on-line as you acknowledged with out doing the correct research. If you might learn it and spot for your self, and do a “truly” study, you might feel otherwise and verify that Jehovah’s Witnesses don't upload or delete from its normal content material as they're very conscious God has mentioned it Himself that this can be a lethal sin to take action.

Answer 3

This is a good question.
Because none of the rank and file JWs actually know. All they know is that it was a 'committee' assigned by the faithful and discreet slave (so yes they would have been JWs).
As for being 'scholars' they were scholars of the publications produced by the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society. (HQ). Apart from that, no theological training.
For real insight as to what went on behind closed doors of WTBTS pick up a copy of Crisis of Conscience written by Ray Franz. A former member of the Governing Body of JWs.

Answer 4

The men who translated the New World Translation did not list their names. Most people do not know who translated the Bible they chose to use. I am a Jehovah's Witness and I like to cross reference many Bible translations. I use the Bible Gateway Web site to look up the King James, New King James, and so on. When I see John 1:1 in some Bible translations it says the word was God. Some says a god.
Alot of people think that only the New World Translation says a god, but others do as well. But when you drop down to verse 18 no mas has seen God at anytime. It's clear that John did not believe that Jesus was God. Read all of Johns writing and this is made clear. I'm happy that these men who translated the New World restored God's name where it was in the original writings. YHWH.

Answer 5

What do you know about the beliefs or personal lives the the original creators of the KJV? Were they true Christian or only Sunday Christians? Were the adulterers? They took the commission to do the do from a King who thought the Genesis Bible was too strict. Also, why was their work not acceptable to the Church of England? It had to be revised four times, during a 150 year time period for it could be "Authorized." Apparently they were wrong about the use of God's Name, since it has been revised since then, removing it. What else were they wrong about? What were they wrong about that their work could not be authorized?

What about all the other Bible Versions, that predate the NWT, that match its wording. What do you or can you know about the people who worked on?

Naming names makes little use or sense, as you cannot know the people and what they intents or purposes were. Were they doing it as a scholarly work, or because they were getting paid?

Answer 6

What YOU should do, is use your KJV and YOUR Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, to check out the NWT yourself (I did) and you will find it the best modern English trans, available today.
Answerer Erica B.? what a misrepresentation of the facts.
The court case you refer to where Russel was found to not know the Greek alphabet was conducted 50 years before the first part of the NWT was published, great way to promote a lie.
Of course you know Jesus Christ said the 'Father of the lie is Satan, which would make a liar a Child Of Satan.
All of the so-called "experts" can not legitimately support any claim of ANY error in the NWT when it is EASY for a non-scholar ( like myself) to check the translation using the Strong's.
All of the claims, I have checked, and they all are clearly libelous based more on previously held bias and religious indoctrination rather than looking at the clear and indisputable facts.

Answer 7

The translators are not listed, and they will not supply you with that information. So the question can not be answeres with a number.

But as someone who can read the original Hebrew and Greek language, I have looked at the NWT and found it to be one of the poorest translation in existence. It skips whole portions of verse, adds words and phrase that are not present in the original, and frequently mistranslations phrases.

It claims to be based on the "Received Text" of the Hebrew and Greek, but does not follow anywhere close to it.

If you want to test the accuratcy of the translation, get ANY four or five other versions (or go online to a site like http://biblegateway.com which has multiple versions) and compare them side by side. You will find that the NWT consistency varies with all the translations. not just in style, but in content and doctrine. Either everyone else who has translated the Bible for the last 2000 years is wrong, or the NWT is. (Hint: It is the second one.)

Answer 8

^^ Excellent response.

The reason for the anonymity of the NWT translating team was not because of a lack of credentials. It was because they wanted no glory ... no credit ... Have you never heard of the term "anonymous donor". Does that term automatically infer that the donor chooses to remain anonymous because they have something BAD to hide?

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the number? I honestly don't know and now you have me curious. I'll do a little research and if the question is open long enough I'll get back to you on that.

Answer 9

The website in the link below DOES NOT answer the question asked, but it does provide a great deal of information in defense of the New World Translation:

Answer 10

The Watchtwer will not say who they were. Kind of keeps them from being checkout as to being real scholars or not.

But that seems to go along with the Watchtower history of wanting to keep things "secret" or "hidden"
from the followers.