JEHOVAH HAS PRESERVED HIS WORD 9 Jehovah has preserved his Word against all odds. Says the Enciclopedia Cattolica (Catholic Encyclopedia): “In 1229, the Council of Toulouse prohibited laymen from using them [vernacular Bibles] in view of the fight against the Albigenses and the Waldenses . . . The assembly held in 1234 in Tarragona, Spain, under James I issued a similar prohibition. . . . The Roman See intervened in the matter for the first time in 1559, when Paul IV’s Index forbade the printing and possession of vernacular B[ibles] without the permission of the Holy Office.” 10 Despite various assaults on the Bible, it has been preserved. About 1382, John Wycliffe and his associates produced the first Bible translation in English. Another Bible translator was William Tyndale, who was put to death in 1536. Tied to a stake, he reportedly cried out, “Lord, open the eyes of the king of England.” Then he was strangled and burned. 11 The Bible has survived in the face of opposition. In 1535, for instance, the English translation of the Bible by Miles Coverdale came on the scene. Coverdale used Tyndale’s rendition of the “New Testament” and of the “Old Testament” from Genesis through Chronicles. He translated other parts of the Scriptures from Latin and from Martin Luther’s Bible in German. Today, the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures is appreciated for its clarity, fidelity to the Bible text, and usefulness in our ministry. We rejoice that no demonic or human power will ever block the preservation of Jehovah’s Word. JEHOVAH’S PRESERVATION OF HIS NAME Such men as Tyndale gave their lives for the sake of God’s Word 12 Jehovah God has seen to it that his name is preserved in his Word. In this regard, the New World Translation is playing a major role. In the introduction, its committee of dedicated translators wrote: “The foremost feature of this translation is the restoration of the divine name to its rightful place in the English text. It has been done, using the commonly accepted English form ‘Jehovah’ 6,973 times in the Hebrew Scriptures and 237 times in the Christian Greek Scriptures.” The New World Translation is now available, in whole or in part, in over 116 languages, and more than 178,545,862 copies have been printed. 13 People have known God’s name since the creation of mankind. Adam and Eve were aware of it, and they knew exactly how to pronounce it. When Ham showed disrespect for his father after the Flood, Noah said: “Blessed be Jehovah, Shem’s God, and let [Ham’s son] Canaan become a slave to him.” (Gen. 4:1; 9:26) God himself declared: “I am Jehovah. That is my name; and to no one else shall I give my own glory.” God also stated: “I am Jehovah, and there is no one else. With the exception of me there is no God.” (Isa. 42:8; 45:5) Jehovah has seen to it that his name has been preserved and made known to people around the earth. How privileged we are to use the name Jehovah and serve as his Witnesses! In effect, we cry out: “In the name of our God we shall lift our banners.”—Ps. 20:5. 14 God’s name does not appear only in the Bible. Consider the Moabite Stone, found at Dhiban (Dibon), 13 miles (21 km) east of the Dead Sea. The stone mentions Israel’s King Omri and gives Moabite King Mesha’s version of his revolt against Israel. (1 Ki. 16:28; 2 Ki. 1:1; 3:4, 5) But the Moabite Stone is of special interest because God’s name appears on it in Tetragrammaton form. The Tetragrammaton also appears repeatedly in the Lachish Letters, earthenware fragments found in Israel. 15 Early Bible translators had a part in the preservation of the divine name. After their exile in Babylon from 607 B.C.E. to 537 B.C.E., many Jews did not return to Judah and Israel. By the third century B.C.E., Alexandria, Egypt, had become the home of numerous Jews who needed a translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek, then an international language. Completed by the second century B.C.E., that version is the Septuagint. Some copies of it contain the name Jehovah in its Hebrew form. 16 The divine name is found in the Bay Psalm Book, the first piece of literature published in England’s American colonies. Its original edition (printed in 1640) contains the Psalms, translated from Hebrew into the English of that day. It uses God’s name in such passages as Psalm 1:1, 2, which says that a “blessed man” does not walk in the advice of the wicked, “but in the law of Iehovah, is his longing delight.” For more information about God’s name, see the brochure The Divine Name That Will Endure Forever. JEHOVAH PRESERVES SPIRITUAL TRUTH 17 We joyfully serve “Jehovah the God of truth.” (Ps. 31:5) “The truth about something is all the facts about it, rather than things that are imagined or invented,” says Collins Cobuild English Dictionary. In Biblical Hebrew, the term often translated “truth” pertains to something that is true, trustworthy, faithful, or factual. The Greek word rendered “truth” denotes that which conforms to fact or to what is proper and right. 18 Jehovah has preserved spiritual truth and has made knowledge of it available to us in ever-increasing abundance. (2 John 1, 2) Our comprehension of the truth steadily becomes clearer, for “the path of the righteous ones is like the bright light that is getting lighter and lighter until the day is firmly established”! (Prov. 4:18) Of course, we fully agree with Jesus, who said in prayer to God: “Your word is truth.” (John 17:17) God’s written Word contains “the truth of the good news,” which consists of the whole body of Christian teachings. (Gal. 2:14) In part, these include facts about Jehovah’s name, his sovereignty, Jesus’ ransom sacrifice, the resurrection, and the Kingdom. Let us now consider how God has preserved the truth despite Satan’s attempts to suppress it. JEHOVAH FOILS AN ASSAULT ON THE TRUTH 19 After the Flood, there was a saying: “Just like Nimrod a mighty hunter in opposition to Jehovah.” (Gen. 10:9) As an opposer of Jehovah God, Nimrod in effect worshipped Satan and was like those opposers to whom Jesus said: “You are from your father the Devil, and you wish to do the desires of your father. That one . . . did not stand fast in the truth.”—John 8:44. 20 Nimrod’s domain included Babel and other cities between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. (Gen. 10:10) It was possibly under his direction that the building of Babel and its tower began about 2269 B.C.E. Contrary to Jehovah’s will that mankind spread throughout the earth, those builders said: “Come on! Let us build ourselves a city and also a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a celebrated name for ourselves, for fear we may be scattered over all the surface of the earth.” But that scheme had to be abandoned when God “confused the language of all the earth” and scattered the would-be tower builders. (Gen. 11:1-4, 8, 9) If Satan had thus planned to start one religion with everyone worshipping him, his plot was an utter failure. Throughout human history, the worship of Jehovah has prevailed and is gaining momentum with each passing day. 21 Never has false religion posed a serious threat to true worship. Why? Because our Grand Instructor has seen to the preservation of his written Word, has kept his name before mankind, and has been the limitless Source of spiritual truth. (Isa. 30:20, 21) Worshipping God in accord with the truth brings us joy, but doing so requires that we remain spiritually vigilant, relying fully on Jehovah and following the guidance of his holy spirit. 22 In the next article, we will trace the development of certain false doctrines. We will find that these crumble when tested in the light of the Scriptures. Moreover, we will see how the incomparable Preserver of truth, Jehovah, has blessed us with true teachings that we cherish as part of our spiritual heritage.
Posted on: Tue, 19 Aug 2014 04:46:15 +0000
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