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Jehovah "Restored" In The New Testament?
A Jehovah's Witness wrote:
Alpha and Omega: To whom does this title properly belong?
1.At Revelation 1:8, its owner is said to be God, the Almighty. In verse 11
according to KJ, that title is applied to one whose description thereafter shows
him to be Jesus Christ. But scholars recognize the reference to Alpha and Omega
in verse 11 to be spurious, and so it does not appear in RS, NE, JB, NAB, Dy.
My Response:
I agree, Alpha and Omega is applied to Almighty God in Revelation 1:8.
The Jehovah's Witness continues:
2.Many translations of Revelation into Hebrew recognize that the one described
in verse 8 is Jehovah, and so they restore the personal name of God there.
My Response:
What does the word "restore" mean? I checked the Kingdom Interlinear
and the Emphatic Diaglott (both published by the Watchtower) and NEITHER ONE
CONTAINS THE WORD JEHOVAH. What's the deal? What do you mean
"restore"? Don't you really mean "tamper with" or
"change the inspired text to something better because God didn't know how
to write it in the first place"? I am shocked at the boldness of Jehovah's
Witnesses who speak of "restoring" something to the text that is NOT
PRESENT. I, for the life of me, do not see how that makes them better Bible
students. To treat the inspired text so flippantly is disrespectful to the Lord
and speaks lowly of your faith in His ability to inspire the original and
preserve the subsequent texts. Now, before you go off on umpteen thousand
different "rules" and "evidences" and what-nots about Greek
grammar, let me remind you that you and I ARE NOT GREEK SCHOLARS. I simply
performed the easiest test to verify what you are saying... I looked in a JW
Greek Bible and found that "JEHOVAH" is NOT in the Greek text. So, put
your arguments away and admit that "restoring" has nothing to do with
Greek and every thing to do with making the Bible fit your theology.
The Jehovah's Witness continues:
3.At Revelation 22:12, TEV inserts the name Jesus, so the reference to Alpha and
Omega in verse 13 is made to appear to apply to him. But the name Jesus does not
appear there in Greek, and other translations do not include it.
My Response:
Would you apply this rule TO YOUR OWN BIBLE PLEASE? If a NAME does not appear in
the Greek text, DO NOT INCLUDE IT PLEASE. (Hint hint. I'm talking about the
insertion - I mean "restoration" - of the name JEHOVAH in the New
Testament) I hope you can appreciate the irony of your argument here.
The Jehovah's Witness continues:
4.At Revelation 22:13, the Alpha and Omega is also said to be "the first
and the last," which expression is applied to Jesus at Revelation 1:17, 18.
Similarly, the expression "apostle" is applied both to Jesus Christ
and to certain ones of his followers. But that does not prove that they are the
same person or are of equal rank, does it? (Heb. 3:1)
My Response:
Pardon me, but "first and last" as a title for God has a bit more
exclusivity than "apostle". We're not talking about someone wanting to
be called something common or non-exclusive. We are talking about one of the
most exclusive titles that could be used to describe someone. Didn't you read
it? First and last. How many can be "first and last"? Millions?
Thousands? Hundreds? Dozens? Tens? Gee, let me think.... how about... ONE?!?!?!?
It would be just as exclusive a title for someone as "almighty" or
"eternal". Those kinds of words can only apply to God. And guess what?
You just said that Jesus is called the "first and last". Hhmmm. Kind
of makes you stop and think, doesn't it?
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