What do YOU think?

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

"It also says that each person will be judged by Jehovah on their heart condition"

Is this people who are kind hearted and are spiritual to a sense but not of the JW faith? People who have struggled through horrible events, held a faith of sorts?

I can only tell you definitively what the Bible says, anything else is my interpretation based on what I've read ITMS At the end of the day, Jehovah will protect those He finds worthy, and it will be just.

In the Bible we can read what Jehovah expects of us, which is where JW's come from and the instructions we follow. However, Jehovah understands that we are not perfect and cannot achieve everything set out in the Bible. So, if we have the right heart condition and are trying the best that we can in our personal circumstances, He is happy with that. Sometimes people don't read the Bible because they believe it's not from God, or they stay away from organized religion because they've had horrible experiences. Sometimes our faith is shaken by the people who profess to uphold it. But as far as I understand, if I get to that day, and I can honestly say that I have done what I could for Jehovah, based on my own understanding and meditation of what He wanted, I should be okay. I don't know if I'm making any sense

Also is the JW bible the same as the other ones? I really don't want to sound rude or crude by the way I ask this, simply lack of a better way of putting it. If its not, when did it come about?

Our Bible is the New World Translation. It's slightly different to most generalised Bibles, the biggest difference being the restoration of God's name, Jehovah. Somewhere along the line people decided that God's name was too holy to be spoken, which is not based on the Bible. If you go back to the original scrolls they have the Tetragrammaton, which is the Hebrew characters meaning Yahweh, or Jehovah.

When you look at different Bible translations, there's 3 main types. Interlinear, which has the original language directly translated into the target language. Paraphrase, which is translated into the target language and then rewritten to the author's personal understanding and how they feel it will appeal to their audience. And then there's another type which strikes a balance between the two other types, by conveying the original text message and flavour in a way that is easy to read in the target language - this is how NWT was done.

There's a few reasons it can't be translated word for word in an Interlinear fashion. There are no two languages alike in sentence structure, grammar and vocabulary. An example of this would be in Ephesians 4:14, where Paul uses an ancient Greek expression which is literally translated 'in the (dice) cube of men'. The expression referred to cheating others using dice, and doesn't make any sense when translated directly. So in the NWT it is translated 'the trickery of men' which is clearer. There are also words whose meaning changes depending on the context they're used in. The Hebrew termed generally meaning the human hand can also be translated as openhandedness, control or power, depending on the context. So in the translation of the NWT, the context for each word has been taken into account to convey a clearer message.

Interpretation of the Bible is another topic again. Jehovah's Witnesses, originally called 'Bible Students', came from CT Russell, who felt he couldn't get satisfactory answers from his priest. He decided to study the Bible himself, and compare it to itself to gain a full understanding of its message. Through his study of the Bible he came to understand Bible prophecys, how they worked in the past, which helped him to understand how they would work in the future. At times he was wrong, or he misunderstood the message. For example, he and the rest of the Bible Students came to understand that 1914 was a very significant year, and they believed that they would be taken to Heaven, similar to what some call the Rapture. Obviously that came and went, and they weren't taken to heaven. After looking back at historical events and gaining a greater understanding through God's holy spirit though, they understood that 1914 was the year that Jesus was made King, and banished Satan and his demons from Heaven. If you read secular accounts of 1914, they all say that that's when the world changed; that's when World War 1 started, and the world was never the same. We know that it was because Satan had been thrown to Earth, and the Last Days had begun, so he was now on a time limit.

This is heavy stuff, it took me a few years to understand it and no doubt I will continue to unravel more as I continue to study it LOL Arimeh, it IS interesting! The basic point is, we should be able to firmly back up our beliefs in the Bible. I don't always use scriptures in my posts because I can't remember the exact reference, but if there's anything anyone wants clarified, just ask and I'll look it up

[misty]

Keike - So do you have a new testament and an old testament? I know some christian religions have both, but some only hold to the 'new' testament (ie, from the birth of Jesus); while Juddism holds firmly to the old testament (veiwing Jesus as a minor prophet rather then the son of god). I think that alot of what you have said makes sense to me and isn't in contradiction with my own faith, although there are certainly some aspects with which we hold different interpretations. The (catholic) bible I have been brought up with and studied has been the literal translation, but we were always taught the churches interpretations and translations of specific phrases - which I know occaisionally differ interpretation of meaning to how my DH has been taught in his church (Anglican).

[Bumperstump Cummerbund]

The NWT includes both the Hebrew (old testament) and the Greek (new testament) writings

I love your new tagline BTW!

[NaeNae]

Thank you Keike, it really is fascinating.

I often wonder (on a side note) how much of the original texts would have been mistranslated BECAUSE of the language used like your example. I think the first bible was written/published in 15-- something. I often wonder how much of the text has been mis translated or meanings changed due to own interpretation.

thank you again hun, it really is interesting stuff x x