Jehovah’s Witnesses
In Comparative Theology
Jehovah’s Witnesses
They have a corrupted translation of the Holy Bible,
made to agree with their false beliefs and heresies.
This false translation began in 1950, and they call it:
“The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.”
It exists in both Arabic and English. It is a very badly corrupted translation of some verses of the Holy Bible, altered to match the ideas they spread. It was done by people who are not scholars of the original biblical languages, but who ensured that the translation would submit to their doctrines.
The errors of the Jehovah’s Witnesses regarding the Holy Bible are not limited to this distorted translation, but they also have their own interpretations of some books of the Bible such as Isaiah, Daniel, the Epistle of James, and the Book of Revelation, as well as many reflections on the Scriptures.
Their method of interpretation alternates—sometimes symbolic, sometimes literal. When you quote a particular verse to them in discussion, they may evade it by quoting another verse they think contradicts it, moving from one topic to another without focus, in a tiresome manner.
One of the most famous examples of their distortion is their deletion of 1 John 5:7,
where the Apostle says:
“For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one.”
Since they deny the doctrine of the Trinity, they find no problem in deleting this verse, claiming it does not exist in some manuscripts—though it is found in the most famous Bible translations. We have already refuted this objection before.
Another well-known verse they distorted is John 1:1, which says:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
Because this verse affirms the divinity of Christ, which contradicts their belief, they translate it as:
“In (the) beginning the word was, and the Word was with God, and the word was a god.”
The phrase a god means “a small god,” not the Almighty God.
Yet there are many verses about the divinity of Christ. The fundamental question remains:
Is He truly God or not?
If He is truly God, then the Jehovah’s Witnesses have fallen into polytheism.
But if He is not truly God, how then could He be the Creator?
For “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (John 1:3).
(See our book The Divinity of Christ.)
How also could He be present everywhere (John 3:13; Matthew 18:20)?
And how could it be said of Him that He is “God over all, blessed forever. Amen” (Romans 9:5)?
Let us reflect on the phrase “over all.”
If He is “a god” but not God, how can we understand what God said in Isaiah:
“I am He; before Me no god was formed, nor shall there be after Me” (Isaiah 43:10).
He said this in the very same chapter and context from which the Jehovah’s Witnesses took their name!
Another verse they distort is Acts 20:28, where Saint Paul says to the elders of Ephesus:
“Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you bishops, to shepherd the Church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”
Therefore, He must have become incarnate and been crucified—something Jehovah’s Witnesses deny about God. So they change the verse to:
“Pay attention to yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit appointed you overseers, to shepherd the congregation of God which He purchased with the blood of his Son.”
In English:
“Overseers to shepherd the congregation of God which he purchased with the blood of his own (Son).”
They replace “His own blood” with “the blood of his own” and add “(Son)” in parentheses.
They also replace “bishops” with “overseers,” since they do not believe in priesthood, and “Church of God” with “congregation of God,” since they do not believe in churches.
See how many distortions they made in just one verse!
They also corrupted Colossians 2:8–9,
“…and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,”
which clearly means God was manifested in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16).
They altered it to read:
“…and not according to Christ, because in Him all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily.”
In English:
“Because it is in him that all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily.”
What is the meaning of “the divine quality”?
There are divine attributes that belong only to God—eternity, creation, omnipresence, omnipotence, omniscience, and so on. Which of these do they mean—or none? They evade the issue.
They left Colossians 1:19, which says:
“For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,”
and translated it as:
“Because (God) saw good for all fullness to dwell in Him.”
Perhaps because it mentions “fullness” without “fullness of the Godhead” as in Colossians 2:9.
Another verse they altered is Luke 23:43, where Christ says to the thief on the cross:
“Today you will be with Me in Paradise.”
This verse proves that the thief’s soul remained alive after death and met the Lord that same day in Paradise.
But since Jehovah’s Witnesses deny the immortality of the soul, they translated it:
“Truly I tell you today, you will be with Me in Paradise.”
placing “today” with the act of speaking, not the entrance to Paradise.
However, a question arises: which Paradise is meant—earthly or heavenly?
Is the thief to be in an earthly paradise or with the Lord in heaven? They believe most people will live in an earthly paradise, while Jesus is in heaven.
They also distorted Matthew 26:26, 28, when the Lord said during the Last Supper:
“Take, eat; this is My body… This is My blood of the new covenant.”
Since they deny the sacrament of the Eucharist, they translated it as:
“Take, eat, this means my body… Drink from it, all of you. For this means my blood…”
In English:
“Take eat. This means my body… Drink out of it, this means… For my blood.”
The English is slightly milder than the Arabic.
The same distortion appears in 1 Corinthians 11:24–25, where the Apostle repeats the Lord’s words:
“Take, eat; this is My body… This cup is the new covenant in My blood.”
They translate:
“This means my body… This cup means the new covenant by virtue of my blood.”
Yet when speaking about partaking unworthily, they still mention “the body and blood”:
“…will be guilty respecting the body and the blood of the Lord… For the one eating and drinking eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the body.”
Do you see the contradiction between their own texts?
They also distorted Matthew 25:46, concerning eternal punishment.
The Lord said:
“And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Since Jehovah’s Witnesses deny eternal torment, believing that the wicked will be annihilated instead, they translate it as:
“And these will go away into everlasting cutting-off, but the righteous into everlasting life.”
In English:
“And these will depart into everlasting off, and the righteous ones everlasting life.”
Does “cutting off” mean annihilation? It seems so.
However, they did not alter Revelation 20:10, which says of the devil, the beast, and the false prophet:
“They will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”
They translated it correctly:
“And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”
But this contradicts their belief in the annihilation of the devil and the wicked!
If “the lake of fire and sulfur” means “the second death” or annihilation, how does that agree with being “tormented day and night forever”? Did this verse escape their corrupt translation? Perhaps they will try to fix it in a future revision!
Another verse that likely escaped distortion is Matthew 13:42, which they render:
“They will throw them into the furnace of fire; there there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Of course, “weeping and gnashing of teeth” do not fit with annihilation—for one who is annihilated cannot weep!
Article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, El-Keraza Magazine, Year 29, Issues 27–28 (17 August 2001).
For better translation support, please contact the center.
