Why Do You See JW's Studying Their WT Magazines & Rarely the Bible?

The WT emphasizes that studying their material is superior to studying the Bible. The founder and first President, Charles Taze Russell wrote a series called “Studies in Scriptures.” About these “Studies” the WT states, “Furthermore, not only do we find that people cannot see the divine plan in studying the Bible by itself, but we see, also, that if anyone lays the 'Scripture Studies' aside, even after he has used them, after he has become familiar with them, after he has read them for ten years - if he then lays them aside and ignores them and goes to the Bible alone, though he has understood his Bible for ten years, our experience shows that within two years he goes into darkness. On the other hand, if he had merely read the 'Scripture Studies' with their references, and had not read a page of the Bible, as such, he would be in the light at the end of the two years, because he would have the light of the Scriptures." (Zion’s Watchtower—later renamed The Watchtower Sep. 15, 1910, p. 298.) 

To summarize the above: If you read nothing but the WT 'Studies' you will be in the 'light' (truth). If you read only the Bible, you will be in 'darkness' (error).

According to the WT, a JW would be better off spiritually to lay the Bible aside and read WT materials. Check out the following WT quotes. They will show you why you see Witnesses reading the WT and Awake magazines and rarely the Bible.

“With the Bible alone many parts can be seen, but with the aid of the WT publications a much more complete picture of Jehovah’s purposes comes into view.” WT, March 15, 1954, p. 164

“God has not arranged for that Word to speak independently or to shine forth life giving truths by itself. It is through his organization (Watchtower Bible and Tract Society) God provides this light.” WT, May 1, 1957, p. 274

“The world is full of Bibles . . . Why then do the people not know which way to go? Because they do not also have the teaching or law of the mother (WTBTS), which is light.” WT, May 1, 1957, p. 274

“He wants his earthly servants united, and so he has made understanding the Bible today dependent upon associating with his organization (WTBTS).” WT, Nov. 1, 1967, p. 668

“It is through the columns of The Watchtower that Jehovah provides direction and constant Scriptural counsel to his people . . . “ WT, May 1, 1964, p. 277

“Heavy research is not necessary. The Watch Tower has done it for you. The most beneficial study you can do is to read The Watchtower or Awake! or a new book by the organization.” WT, June 1, 1967, p. 338

“the Bible is an organizational book . . . For this reason the Bible cannot be properly understood without Jehovah’s visible organization (WTBTS) in mind.” WT, Oct. 1, 1967, p. 587

“Jehovah caused the Bible to be written in such a way that you need his human channel (WTBTS) to understand it.” WT, Feb. 15, 1981, p. 17

“An individual must have The Watchtower to understand the Bible.” 1983 Yearbook, p. 21

“Avoid independent thinking . . . questioning the counsel that is provided by God’s visible organization (WTBTS).” WT, Jan 15, 1983, p. 22.

How does someone become a JW? Part 1

The short answer is—someone becomes an expert in WT doctrine and thinks it is what the Bible teaches. This is what happened to my wife and to many other Witnesses that I know.

If you could rewind the life of a typical JW and take them back to before they were a Witness, they would probably say that they were looking to answer the question that the crowd asked of Jesus in John 6:28, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" They were a sincere person looking to do the will of God. Unfortunately, a JW crossed their path and they entered into a Witness “Bible” study. However, they ended up not studying the Bible but studying a WT book and using the Bible as a reference book. The WTBTS doesn’t believe that you even need to use the Bible in such a study. You only need to use their materials—skip the Bible—and you will have the truth. 

Consider this quote from “The Watchtower Magazine,” August 15, 1981:

"From time to time, there have arisen from among the ranks of Jehovah's people those, who, like the original Satan, have adopted an independent, faultfinding attitude...They say that it is sufficient to read the Bible exclusively, either alone or in small groups at home. But, strangely, through such ‘Bible reading,' they have reverted right back to the apostate doctrines that commentaries by Christendom's clergy were teaching 100 years ago..."

In other words, if you read the Bible alone, you will not arrive at Watchtower doctrines. This is an amazing admission by the Watchtower organization. It is clear; Jehovah's Witnesses do not get their teachings from the Bible, but from Watchtower literature.

This idea about not needing the Bible in a Bible study goes back to the WTBTS’s first president Charles Taze Russell who wrote a series called “Studies in Scriptures.” About these “Studies” the Watchtower states, “Furthermore, not only do we find that people cannot see the divine plan in studying the Bible by itself, but we see, also, that if anyone lays the 'Scripture Studies' aside, even after he has used them, after he has become familiar with them, after he has read them for ten years - if he then lays them aside and ignores them and goes to the Bible alone, though he has understood his Bible for ten years, our experience shows that within two years he goes into darkness. On the other hand, if he had merely read the 'Scripture Studies' with their references, and had not read a page of the Bible, as such, he would be in the light at the end of the two years, because he would have the light of the Scriptures." (Zion’s Watchtower—later renamed The Watchtower, Sep 15, 1910, p. 298.)

What arrogance! "The arrogance of your heart has deceived you . . ." Obadiah 1:3. The WT says that you cannot know the divine plan without their “Studies in Scriptures”—and they say if you study their ‘Scripture Studies’ and not ONE page of the Bible, you will have the truth, but if you read the BIBLE ALONE you will be in darkness (error).

How does someone become a JW? Part 2, here, will look at how a typical JW “Bible” study is conducted and why it leads to ‘Watchtower truth’ and not Biblical truth.

Is the JW Bible (The New World Translation) Reliable?

This question reminded me of a talk I had with a JW elder. He told me that the Billy Graham Ministries approved of the “New World Translation.” This was a common understanding among JW’s at that time (1980) and was passed along without checking. I wrote to Billy Graham and his Ministry said that, "the NWT was not an honest translation and that many of the WT doctrines were put into the NWT without any support from the original languages." 

The Bible was written in the languages of ancient Palestine—Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Therefore, anyone translating the Bible needs to be well versed in those languages. Who were the translators of the NWT? The WT does not reveal the names of these people and points to the New American Standard as a translation that also does not reveal its translators. However, the NAS will send the names of the translators to anyone who asks. The WT refuses to release the names of its translation committee. They claim this is in order that all credit for the work will go to God. However, it is easy to see that by shielding the translators they cannot have their credentials checked.

Well, who did translate the NWT? Raymond V. Franz, a former member of the Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses and nephew of the organization’s late president Fred Franz, spent nine years as a member of its top-secret Governing Body. In his book, “Crisis of Conscience,” Ray names those on the translation committee: George Gangas, Albert Schroeder, Fredrick Franz and Nathan Knorr. Fredrick Franz was self-taught in Hebrew and studied Greek for two years at the University of Cincinnati. None of the other members had any ancient language training. Fred Franz, when asked in a Scotland courtroom if he could translate Genesis 2:4 into Hebrew, replied that he could not. The truth is that Franz was unable to translate Hebrew or Greek. With an unqualified translating committee, the NWT ended up twisting Scripture to make it fit the Society's doctrine. It is not a reliable, unbiased translation. For examples of “Scriptures Twisted by the JW’s” see my blogs on "Twisted Scriptures and other Shenanigans" Part 1 is here and "Presto Change-O!" Part 1 is here.

What do true Bible scholars think of the NWT?

Dr. Bruce M. Metzger, professor of New Testament at Princeton University, calls the NWT "a frightful mistranslation," "Erroneous" and "pernicious" "reprehensible," "If the Jehovah's Witnesses take this translation seriously, they are polytheists."

Dr. William Barclay, a leading Greek scholar, said, "it is abundantly clear that a sect which can translate the New Testament like that is intellectually dishonest."

British scholar H.H. Rowley stated, "From beginning to end this volume is a shining example of how the Bible should not be translated."

"Well, as a backdrop, I was disturbed because they (Watchtower) had misquoted me in support of their translation." (These words were excerpted from the tape, "Martin and Julius Mantey on The New World Translation"; Mantey is quoted on pages 1158-1159 of the Kingdom interlinear Translation)

Dr. Julius Mantey, author of “A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament,” calls the NWT "a shocking mistranslation." "Obsolete and incorrect." "It is neither scholarly nor reasonable to translate John 1:1 'The Word was a god.'"

"I have never read any New Testament so badly translated as The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of The Greek Scriptures.... it is a distortion of the New Testament. The translators used what J.B. Rotherham had translated in 1893, in modern speech, and changed the readings in scores of passages to state what Jehovah's Witnesses believe and teach. That is a distortion not a translation." (Julius Mantey, Depth Exploration in The New Testament (N.Y.: Vantage Pres, 1980), pp.136-137)

The translators of the NWT are "diabolical deceivers." (Julius Mantey in discussion with Walter Martin).

JW.ORG wrote an article, "Is the New World Translation Accurate." My response to that article is here.

Twisted Scriptures and other Shenanigans! Part 1

Colossians 1:15 - "And He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation." New American Standard. WT quotes are in RED.

The JW’s teach that Jesus is a created being and not equal to the Father and therefore, cannot be eternal. The WT in the "Aid to Bible Understanding" book states the following about Jesus, “Thus the scriptures identify the Word (this is Jesus before he was made flesh, the pre-human state) as God’s first creation, his firstborn Son. This son was actually a creation of God.” (p. 918). To back their claim that Jesus was created, the WT turns to Colossians 1:15, “And He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation.” The WT equates “firstborn” to mean “first created.” What the WT doesn’t tell you is that there is a Greek word for “first created” (Protóplastos) that the apostle Paul could have used if he wanted to say that Jesus was “first created,” but since he did not, we need to ask ourselves what did Paul mean by using “firstborn,” (Prototokos).

The Bible is best used to define its own words. In Psalms 89:20, 27 it reads, "I have found David My servant; with My holy oil I have anointed him . . . I also shall make him My first-born." David was the youngest of eight brothers but here is referred to as “first-born.” In what sense is he “first-born.” He was the one whom God selected to be king of Israel. He was the “preeminent one,” selected by God to lead Israel.

Look at Genesis 41:51 where Manasseh is first-born (here it means first in numeric order) and Ephraim is second born. But in Jer. 31:9  God states, “For I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is My first-born.” How can this be if firstborn means first created? But it makes perfect sense if firstborn means the “preeminent one.”

Lastly, Exodus 4:22, “then you shall say to Pharaoh, 'Thus says the LORD, ‘Israel is My son, My first-born.’” Again, Israel is obviously not the first created among nations but is “preeminent” among the nations in that it was chosen by God to be the channel to produce the Messiah and to be a nation of priests, prophets, and missionaries to the world. God’s intent was for Israel to be a distinct people, a nation of people that pointed others towards God and His promised provision of a Redeemer, Messiah, and Savior.

Firstborn can also be shown to mean “preeminence” in Colossians by simply continuing to read through verse 18. The verses read: “ . . .“And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything.”

Only the Almighty God, omnipresent and omnipotent can hold all things together. Colossians also says that Christ “is before all things” and “is the beginning.” This shows that Christ is eternal. No ‘angel’ could have such power! No angel is eternal. Only God, creator of the universe, Who came to earth and "became flesh’’ and rose from the dead could be described in such lofty words. Christ alone, as God, deserves worship and praise as given to Him by the angels in heaven. (Heb. 1:6; Luke 4:8).

Therefore, Paul is saying that Christ is the head, the ruler, the creator, the Preeminent One (Prototokos) over all creation. He was not first created (Protóplastos).

Twisted Part 2 is here.

How does the Arian Heresy relate to the JW's view of Jesus?

The basic Jehovah's Witness view of Jesus is a revival of the Arian heresy of the fourth century. Arius (AD 280 to 336) taught that the Son, whom they called the Word, had a beginning, and when the word ‘beget’ is used in reference to the Son, it means 'to make.' Thus, the Son was not of the same essence as the Father and in fact was created by the Father.

The Arians taught that there was a time when God was alone and not yet a Father. Arius taught that Christ had a subordinate, secondary divinity. Any title given to the Son was a courtesy title. Thus Jesus is God in name only.

The Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325 firmly put down the Arian heresy. The Nicene Creed, a product of the council, states in part—“We believe . . . in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten from the Father, only-begotten, that is from the substance of the Father . . . begotten not made, of one substance with the Father . . . “

The Council included this statement which was directly aimed at the Arians: “But as for those who say, 'There was when He was not, and before being born He was not, and that He came into existence out of nothing, or who assert that the Son of God is from a different . . . substance, or is created, or is subject to alteration or change—these the universal church anathematizes.'”

(For more information on this topic or any topic concerning the JW’s, I highly recommend the book, Jehovah’s Witnesses by Anthony Hoekema.)

Jesus of the WT vs Jesus of the Bible!

To understand the Watchtower teachings about Jesus you have to keep in mind that the Jesus of the WT has existed in three different forms: prehuman, human, and post human or more simply put: angel—human—angel.

Pre-Human Form according to the WT

To answer this question I turned to my copy of a Witness book, “Aid to Bible Understanding" (a 1,700 page book much like a Bible dictionary) and looked up “Michael.” Why would I look up Michael in looking for information about Jesus? Because the WT teaches that Jesus was Jehovah’s first and greatest creation and was Michael, the Archangel. The Aid book further states, “Scriptural evidence indicated that the name Michael applied to God’s Son before he left heaven to become Jesus Christ and also after his return.”

Human Form according to the WT

They also teach that this archangel was transformed into a human at Bethlehem and was named Jesus but he was not yet the Christ. The Society's book, "Things In Which it is Impossible for God to Lie," teaches, "Not at birth but at thirty years of age Jesus became the Christ or the `Anointed One.'" (p. 211).

Post Human Form according to the WT

In "The Kingdom is at Hand" they explain, "At death he laid aside the human organism in which he ministered as a new creature for three and a half years; and in his resurrection he was no more human. He was raised as a spirit creature." (p. 258). Since Jesus was raised a spirit creature, his second return (JW’s prefer second presence) would be as a spirit being, invisible to human eyes and this second presence was predicted to occur in the autumn of 1872, "The Divine Plan of the Ages," 1927 ed., p.4. The Society later changed this date and now says this invisible second presence occurred in the year 1914, "The Truth that Leads to Eternal Life," (p. 86).

Jesus of the Bible

Fully God—not a created being as the WT teaches

"In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and The Word was God."(John 1:1)

"And Thomas answered (Jesus) and said unto Him, The Lord of me and the God of me." (John 20:28)

"But of the Son he says, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever and the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom."(Hebrews 1:8)

"looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our Great God and Savior, Christ Jesus." (Titus 2:13)

Creator of all things—not created as the WT teaches

"All things came into being by Him (Jesus), and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." (John 1:3).

"For by him (Jesus) were all things created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or by Him and for Him."(Colossians 1:16)

Resurrection of the same body

Not a spiritual resurrection as the WT teaches

"For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father." (John 10:17-18).

"But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit. And He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." (Luke 24:37-39).

"Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand, and put it into My side and be not unbelieving, but believing." (John 20:27).

Second Coming is visible—not invisible as the WT teaches

"and they also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven." (Acts 1:11).

"Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. Even so. Amen." (Revelation 1:7).

Is Jesus Jehovah?

Deuteronomy 6:4, "Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one!" New American Standard

How can Jehovah and Jesus both be God, since Deuteronomy is clear that there is only one God?

This chart demonstrates that Jesus and the God of the Old Testament are one and the same by showing that the very same titles applied to Jehovah in the Old Testament are applied to Jesus in the New Testament.

Jesus Is Jehovah!
True of Jehovah		True of Jesus
Isaiah 40:28	Creator	John 1:3
Isaiah 45:22, 43:11 Psalm 49:7, 15	Savior	John 4:42 Acts 20:28
1 Samuel 2:6	Raise Dead	John 5:21
Joel 3:12	Judge	John 5:27 Matthew 25:31
Isaiah 60:19-20	Light	John 8:12
Exodus 3:14	I Am	John 8:24, 58, 18:5-6
Psalm 23:1	Shepherd	John 10:11
,Isaiah 42:8, 48:11	Glory of God	John 17:1, 5
Isaiah 41:4, 44:6	First and Last	Revelation 1:17, 2:8
Hosea 13:4	Redeemer	Revelation 5:9
Isaiah 62:5 Hosea 2:16	Bridegroom	Revelation 21:2 Matthew 25:1
Psalm 18:2	Rock	1 Corinthians 10:4
Jeremiah 31:34	Forgiver of Sins	Mark 2:7, 10
Psalm 148:2	Worshiped by Angels	Hebrews 1:6
Throughout the OT	Addressed in Prayer	Acts 7:59
Psalm 148:5	Creator of Angels	Colossians 1:16
Isaiah 45:23	Confessed as Lord	Philipians 2:11
Jeremiah 32:18 Isaiah 10:20-21	Mighty God	Isaiah 9:6

Why this Blog?

For 15 years my wife was a door-knocking Jehovah's Witness. We married in 1975 and I started to study Watchtower doctrine with the view of being baptized as a JW. However, praise God, he opened my eyes to the truth in the scriptures which I shared with my wife. We then shared with her mom and dad (also JW's). The four of us became born again believers, professing that Jesus is both Savior and Lord. See my blog on "The Gospel According to the Bible" which is here.

This blog grew out of a desire to answer the question, “How can someone reach Jehovah’s Witnesses for the Lord?” The typical method of evangelism in the book of Acts, in dealing with both Jews and Gentiles, was to preach the Word of God. I hope that this blog will help concerned Christians effectively communicate what the Bible has to say on many vital subjects and expose the false doctrines of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society.