Friday 20 December 2013
The Watchtower Society's commentary on the book of Job
A reproduction of the Watchtower Society's article
JOB, BOOK OF
JOB, BOOK OF
Written by Moses, according to
both Jewish and early Christian scholars. Its poetry, language, and
style indicate that it was originally written in Hebrew. The many
similarities to the Pentateuch in the prose portion of the book tend to
point to Moses as the writer. During his 40-year stay in Midian, Moses
could have had access to the facts about Job’s trial, and he likely
learned of the outcome of Job’s life when Israel came near Uz on the way
to the Promised Land, in 1473 B.C.E.
Arrangement. The book of
Job is unique in that it consists largely of a debate between a true
servant of Jehovah God and three others who claimed to serve God but who
erred in doctrine in their attempts to correct Job. Job, they
mistakenly thought, was being punished by God for some grievous hidden
sin. Thus, arguing on this basis, they actually became Job’s
persecutors. (Job 19:1-5, 22)
The debate consists of a series of three rounds of speeches, in which
all four speakers participate, except that Zophar does not speak in the
last round having been silenced by Job’s argument. Thereafter all are
corrected by Jehovah’s spokesman Elihu and finally by God himself.
It is clear, therefore, that one
has to bear in mind when reading or quoting from the book that the
arguments presented by Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar are erroneous. At
times these three companions of Job state true facts, but in a setting
and with an application that is wrong. Satan used this tactic against
Jesus Christ when he “took him along into the holy city, and he
stationed him upon the battlement of the temple and said to him: ‘If you
are a son of God, hurl yourself down; for it is written, “He will give
his angels a charge concerning you, and they will carry you on their
hands, that you may at no time strike your foot against a stone.”’ Jesus
said to him: ‘Again it is written, “You must not put Jehovah your God
to the test.”’”—Mt 4:5-7.
The companions of Job said that God punishes the wicked. This is true. (2Pe 2:9) But they concluded that all suffering a person undergoes is a result of sins on his part—that God is thereby
administering punishment to him. Suffering, they said, is an evidence
that an individual has specially sinned. They spoke untruthfully
concerning God. (Job 42:7)
They slandered Him. As they presented God, he was lacking in mercy.
Their claim was that God has no delight in the integrity-keeping man and
that he has no trust in His servants, even in angels. This denies the
many Scriptural statements revealing Jehovah’s love for his intelligent
servants. An example of God’s confidence and trust in his faithful
worshipers is seen in his conversations with Satan, in which he called
attention to Job and expressed the greatest confidence in Job’s loyalty
when giving the Devil permission to test Job. Note, however, that he
protected Job’s life. (Job 2:6) The Christian writer James says of God’s dealings with Job: “Jehovah is very tender in affection and merciful.”—Jas 5:11.
Importance. The book of Job is essential, in conjunction with Genesis 3:1-6
and other scriptures, in revealing the great issue of the righteousness
of God in his exercise of sovereignty as well as the manner in which
the integrity of God’s earthly servants is involved in the issue. This
issue Job did not understand, but he, nevertheless, did not allow his
three companions to make him doubt that he had been a man of integrity. (Job 27:5)
He did not understand why his calamity came upon him, since he was no
practicer of sin. He was off balance on the matter of
self-justification, no doubt being pushed farther in that direction by
the constant charges of his three companions. He was also mistaken in
insisting on receiving an answer from God as to why he was suffering,
when he should have realized that no one can rightly say to Jehovah:
“Why did you make me this way?” (Ro 9:20)
Nevertheless, Jehovah mercifully answered Job, both through his servant
Elihu and by speaking to Job from the windstorm. The book therefore
strongly drives home the wrongness of attempting to justify oneself before God.—Job 40:8.
Authenticity and Value. Ezekiel refers to Job, and James makes mention of him. (Eze 14:14, 20; Jas 5:11)
Arguing powerfully for the book’s canonicity is the fact that the Jews
accepted it as of equal authority with the other inspired books of the
Hebrew Scriptures, even though Job was not an Israelite.
Perhaps the strongest evidence of
the book’s genuineness exists in its harmony with the rest of the
Bible. It also reveals much about the beliefs and customs of patriarchal
society. More than that, it greatly helps the Bible student to get a
better understanding of Jehovah’s purposes through a comparison with
other Bible statements. There are a remarkable number of points that are
parallel in thought with other Bible passages, and some of these are
listed on the accompanying chart.
[Box on page 82]
HIGHLIGHTS OF JOB
The account of Job’s experiences when Satan challenged his integrity before Jehovah
Likely recorded by Moses
during Israel’s wandering in the wilderness, although the trial of Job
must have occurred some years before Moses’ birth
Job’s prosperity and well-being end when Jehovah grants Satan permission to test Job (1:1–2:10)
Satan claims that Job’s uprightness is motivated simply by self-interest
Job loses cattle, flocks, and his ten children all in one day, but he keeps integrity
He is then afflicted with a loathsome, painful disease but refuses to curse God; thus, Job remains faithful
Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar, three companions of Job, come together by appointment to “sympathize” with him (2:11–3:26)
They sit around him in silence for seven days
Job breaks the silence, cursing the day of his birth
He wonders why God allows him to go on living
The three so-called comforters debate at length with Job (4:1–31:40)
They contend that he is
suffering because of his sins, arguing that Job must be in the wrong
since God is treating him as an enemy
They try to persuade Job of
this by resorting to false reasoning and slander and by appealing to
tradition and visions they claim to have seen
The three companions urge Job
to confess his wrongdoing and change his ways; then, they say, he will
regain his former prosperity
Job insists that he is
upright; he does not understand why Jehovah allows him to suffer, but he
silences the false counsel of his three companions
In his final words, Job
contrasts his former days as a respected elder with his present period
of affliction and humiliation; he points out how careful he has been to
avoid sin
Elihu, a young bystander, corrects Job and his companions (32:1–37:24)
He shows that Job was in the
wrong when he justified himself rather than God, and he upbraids Job’s
three companions for failing to answer Job correctly
Elihu upholds Jehovah’s justice, impartiality, glory, and almightiness
Jehovah himself now speaks out of a windstorm (38:1–42:6)
Jehovah asks where Job was
when the earth was created, and whether he understands the wonderful
ways of wild things, thus demonstrating man’s littleness in comparison
with God’s greatness
He then asks whether Job should find fault with Him
Job admits that he spoke without a proper understanding; he repents “in dust and ashes”
Job’s trial ends, and his integrity is rewarded (42:7-17)
Jehovah expresses displeasure
to Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar because they spoke untruthfully; he
directs them to make sacrifices and to ask Job to pray on their behalf
Job is healed when he prays for his companions
He comes to be blessed with
twice as much in flocks and herds as formerly, as well as with ten more
children, seven sons and three daughters
[Chart on page 83]
Book Point of Other Bible
of Job comparison references
10:8, 9, 11,12 God’s great care in forming Ps 139:13-16
man
12:23 God lets the nations grow Re 17:13, 14, 17
powerful and even unite
against him so that he can
justly destroy them at one
stroke
14:13-15 Resurrection of the dead 1Co 15:21-23
24:3-12 Affliction by wicked; 2Co 6:4-10; 11:24-27
Christians so treated
Chap 28 Man cannot find the true Ec 12:13;
wisdom from ‘book of divine 1Co 2:11-16
creation,’ only from God
and fear of him
32:22 Bestowing unscriptural Mt 23:8-12
titles is wrong
Other noteworthy comparisons are: Job 7:17 and Ps 8:4; Job 9:24 and 1Jo 5:19; Job 10:8 and Ps 119:73; Job 26:8 and Pr 30:4; Job 28:12, 13, 15-19 and Pr 3:13-15; Job 39:30 and Mt 24:28.
Psalm6 NWT(2013)
Psalm5 NWT(2013)
Be attentive to my sighing.
2 Pay attention to my cry for help,
O my King and my God, because to you I pray.
No one bad may remain with you.+
5 No arrogant person may stand in your presence.
You hate all those who behave wickedly;+
9 For nothing they say can be trusted;
Within them is nothing but malice;
Their throat is an open grave;
May they be driven away because of their many transgressions,
For they have rebelled against you.
They will always shout joyfully.
You will block approach to them,
And those loving your name will rejoice in you.
12 For you will bless anyone righteous, O Jehovah;
You will surround them with approval as with a large shield
Psalm4NWT(2013)
To the director; to be accompanied with stringed instruments. A melody of David.
Show me favor and hear my prayer.
2 You sons of men, how long will you turn my honor into humiliation?
How long will you love what is worthless and search for what is false? (Selah)
Jehovah will hear when I call to him.
Have your say in your heart, upon your bed, and keep silent. (Selah)
6 There are many saying: “Who will show us anything good?”
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Jehovah.+
7 You have filled my heart with greater rejoicing
Than those who have an abundant harvest of grain and new wine.
For you alone, O Jehovah, make me dwell in security.+
Thursday 19 December 2013
Yet another bumper harvest from the tree of trinitarian logic
The Holy multi-millionity courtesy of trinitarian logic.
These examples show the absolute necessity for CLEAR, PRECISE SCRIPTURAL STATEMENTS proving the trinity such as: "(1) The Father, (2) The Son [or Christ, or Jesus, or Messiah, etc.] and (3) The Holy Spirit are three persons who are all equally God. These 3 persons are the only true God, and there are no others." Surely the inspired Bible writers were capable of making a statement AT LEAST as clear and precise as that! They certainly had no trouble making CLEAR, PRECISE, many-times-repeated statements on other ESSENTIAL teachings such as exactly who was the long-awaited Messiah ("Christ" in NT Greek).
Here are a tiny fraction of such statements about the precise identity of the Christ: "These are written [the whole Gospel of John], that ye may believe that JESUS IS THE CHRIST, The Son of God...." - John 20:31. And John 1:41, 42 and 4:25, 26 CLEARLY AND SPECIFICALLY state that Jesus is the Messiah and Christ. Even the evil spirits "knew that he [Jesus] was THE CHRIST" - Luke 4:41. The angel said of Jesus: "for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, WHO IS CHRIST the Lord." - Luke 2:11. The high priest asked Jesus: "Art thou THE CHRIST, the Son of the Blessed? And Jesus said, I am..." - Mark 14:61. Jesus' Apostles CLEARLY stated exactly who he was: "And Simon Peter answered and said, THOU ART THE CHRIST, the Son of the Living God," - Matt. 16:16.
Certainly these CLEAR, COMPLETE STATEMENTS and hundreds more like them are necessary because that knowledge is an essential step toward gaining eternal life!! "And this is LIFE ETERNAL, that they should KNOW ...him whom thou didst send, even Jesus Christ." - John 17:3.
This knowledge of exactly who the Christ is was not essential beforeJesus' earthly birth and so was not provided until the necessary time when he was on earth (and thereafter). Then it was provided in overwhelming abundance and clarity because it was essential for eternal life!
So why is there no correspondingly clear, precise statement that `God is THREE and God is one' anywhere in the entire Bible?
The knowledge of exactly who is God is (and always has been) an ESSENTIAL first step toward eternal life. "Father, .... this is LIFE ETERNAL, that they should KNOW THEE THE ONLY TRUE GOD...." - John 17:1,3 ASV. (Compare 2 Thess. 1:7-9; Ps. 79:5,6; Hosea 4:1,6) And throughout the Holy Scriptures from the time of Moses until today, the only true God (Jer.10:10 KJV, ASV, RSV), the Father (Is. 63:16; 64:8) was known by the Hebrews as a single individual with an individual personal name, JEHOVAH (or `Yahweh'/'Yehowah' if you should prefer a likely HEBREW pronunciation).
"That they may know that thou [SINGULAR personal pronoun] ALONE, whose name is Jehovah art the Most High over all the earth." - ASV (compare KJV) - Ps. 83:18. "JEHOVAH, the God of your fathers ... THIS IS MY NAME FOREVER..." - Ex. 3:15 ASV (compare NEB). "...I JEHOVAH, and there is no God else besides me.... Look unto ME and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is NONE ELSE." - Is. 45:21,22 ASV. (The Bible clearly and repeatedly shows that others ARE called elohim and theos ["God/god"], including angels and human judges of Israel, but NONE are EQUALLY GOD with the Father, Jehovah!) "For I am God, and there is none else; I am God and there is none LIKE ME." - Is. 46:9 ASV. "He that sacrificeth unto ANY god, save JEHOVAH ONLY shall be utterly destroyed" - Ex. 22:20 ASV. And "Through Jesus [as our High Priest], therefore, let us continually offer to God a SACRIFICE of praise - the fruit of the lips that confess his name." - Heb. 13:15 NIV. But if we then give a "SACRIFICE of praise" to JESUS as being GOD, and he is not truly equally God with Jehovah the Father, then we have violated the command of God that was just quoted (Ex.22:20)! And most certainly we do not "know God" (John 17:3; 2 Thess. 1:7,8)!
The knowledge of exactly who God is has been CLEARLY, REPEATEDLY taught THROUGHOUT the Scriptures (as any ESSENTIAL, LIFESAVING information must be).
Christendom's popular trinity-defender Dr. Walter Martin admits the PRIMARY importance of the knowledge of Jesus and God (Jn 17:3) which he proclaims to be the Trinity Doctrine. But even for an admittedly less important doctrine (concerning the reward of all God's faithful followers) Martin has declared: "A doctrine of such momentous importance ... would CERTAINLY [if true] have been CAREFULLY DEFINED in the New Testament; yet it is not!" And, therefore, he concludes that that important doctrine must not be scriptural and, therefore, MUST NOT BE TRUE! - p.120, The Kingdom of the Cults, 1985 ed. But nowhere in the entire Bible is the much more important PRIMARY doctrine of the Trinity "CAREFULLY DEFINED"! And, therefore IT MUST NOT BE TRUE!
The ONLY way trinitarians can support the idea that God is many and God is one (an ancient Hindu - among others - concept), in spite of the clear conception THROUGHOUT the history and writings of the MONOTHEISTIC Jews even up to today, is by using the SAME KIND of vague, indirect picking and choosing to MAKE the scriptures seem to say what they want, as we have done in the following examples "proving" (trinitarian-style) that "God is many (millions?), but God is one."
Trinitarian-type "Evidence"
We know, of course, that God is made up of more than one person. But the whole "body" of Him includes ALL the Sons of God (Jesus is only the first of many brothers in that one "body" who are all joint-heirs with Christ - Ro.8:17,29). 1 Cor. 12:12, for example, teaches: "For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body [a classic description of how God can be MANY, but still only one]; SO ALSO IS THE CHRIST."
Now what is this body of Christ which is ONE (but composed of many members)? Paul continues, "Now YE [Christ's human brothers, the rest of the Sons of God, the new Israel] are the BODY OF CHRIST" - 1 Cor 12:27.
So the mystery is now revealed! Just as the one God is composed of three "persons", all EQUALLY GOD, so God the Son is made up of thousands (millions?) of his earth-born brothers, the "New Israel" (see Americana, 1957, v.6, p.604)!
Therefore, since the second member of the Holy Trinity is COMPOSED OF all his many brothers, THEY TOO MUST ACTUALLY BE GOD! 1 Cor. 6:15,17,20 and Eph. 1:23 confirm this great truth (compare Gal. 3:26-28 NIV, TEV). God is many, but God is one!
Yes, the last and greatest mystery of all has been revealed by the Apostle Paul: Those Christians who actually make up Christ's very body are "one flesh" with Him and are, therefore, equally God with Him just as man and wife are mysteriously united into one flesh which makes th And Ephesians 5:21-32 again re-emphasizes the importance of this great mystery: knowing that ONLY God can have absolute perfection, the Apostle Paul first describes Jesus' body of loyal brothers as "not having spot or blemish or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish [i.e., `PERFECT']" - (:27). He then tells us that "no man ever hated his OWN FLESH; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, EVEN AS CHRIST ALSO THE CHURCH; BECAUSE WE ARE MEMBERS OF HIS BODY [his `OWN FLESH']." - (:29,30 ASV - compare KJV - "body", "flesh", and "bones".)
In explaining this great, mysterious oneness of Christ's body, Paul specifically uses the example (which trinitarians well know is descriptive of the plural oneness, "echad", of their three-in-one God): a man shall "cleave to his wife; and the two SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. This mystery is great: BUT I SPEAK IN REGARD OF CHRIST AND OF THE CHURCH [his body of brothers who are one with Him or who have become `one flesh' with Him - compare 2 Cor. 11:2]." - Eph. 5:31,32 ASV.
Woman and man UNITED (echad - ONE flesh) are two distinct persons who, together, compose ONE! And Christ and His brothers, united IN THE VERY SAME WAY, make up one perfect body (or "flesh") that is truly Christ Himself! The great Mystery of the "Trinity" is finally completed - God is three "persons": God the Father (who BEGOT Jesus AND all His brothers in the beginning - Ro. 8:16,17; 1 John 3:1,2; 1 John 5:1,2), and God the Son (who is actually COMPOSED of all His brothers who are literally IN Him), and God the Holy Spirit (who is IN each and every one of the brothers of Jesus, actually MAKING them EQUALLY GOD). Truly God is MANY, but God is one!
We know that this BODY of Christ, His very "flesh", His BROTHERS (of whom He was only the FIRST - Ro. 8:29), is FULLY God in the very same sense that Jesus is fully God (for in Jesus DWELLS ALL THE FULNESS OF DEITY - Col. 2:9) since Ephesians 3:19 tells us that some (if not all) Christians will be filled with "ALL THE FULNESS OF GOD"! (Paul, guided by Holy Spirit, could not pray for something that was not in line with God's will and purpose and certainly would not incorporate it into the God-inspired Holy Scriptures otherwise.) This mystery-truth is further explained at Eph. 1:22,23 - "the Church [Christ's brothers], which is his [Christ's] BODY, the FULNESS OF HIM [Who is also GOD] that filleth all in all." His brothers have the FULNESS of GOD and are the FULNESS of Christ (who is also God). There could be no clearer statement that all those Christians really are God!
As Romans 8:29 tells us, "Those whom God had already chosen he had also set apart TO BECOME LIKE HIS SON [who we know is fully God] so that the Son would be the first AMONG MANY BROTHERS." - TEV.
In fact, we even find the Holy Scriptures plainly saying that CHRISTIANS belong to the same RACE or KIND as God!
Yes, many trinitarian scholars, realizing the literal meaning of genos (often translated "begotten") as "kind" or "race", interpret John 1:18 as "Only Son" (or even the "only Son who is of the God `kind'") rather than "only-begottenGod" or "only-begotten Son". This, they say, shows the Son IS God because he is of that "kind" or "race" (genos).
But to expand this understanding properly, notice Acts 17:28,29. Here genos is applied TO CHRISTIANS. When we use the proper, literal meaning for genos at Acts 17:28,29 (as at John 1:18), we can see the Great Mystery again being unveiled for us: Christians also are (like Jesus) of the "God-KIND" or of the "God-RACE"! - see any New Testament Greek-English Interlinear at Acts 17:28,29 (genos).
The New Testament word ek or ex (meaning "out of") is used for offspring, naturally-born children. For example, "They have COME OUT OF [ek] the loins of Abraham" (Heb. 7:5). And Matt. 1:16 shows Jesus as being literally "out of" (ek) Mary. Therefore, it is very clear that true Christians, the Sons of God, are of the God-kind when scripture tells us "We know that we are ek ['out of'] God." - 1 John 5:19. John 1:13 even proves that these Sons of God were actually BORN "out of" (ek) God just as the Word, Jesus (their elder brother, the FIRSTborn) was!
Further proof can be found at Heb. 2:11,12. We are told here that Jesus and his followers are all from the same source ("out of - ex - one source"): "all have one ORIGIN" - RSV, Mo; "are of the same family" - NIV.
We also see from 2 Peter 1:4 that Christians actually "share the DIVINE NATURE" - NJB and The New Testament in the Language of Today, 1964 ed., Beck. Or as the NEB and REB put it: They "share in the VERY BEING OF GOD." - Compare NAB (1970 and 1991), TEV.
Of course this should come as no surprise to trinitarians who are familiar with the great Qualitative Rule of NT Greek grammar. This rule, used by such scholars as Philip B. Harner (see the Journal of Biblical Literature, 1973, Vol. 92, pp.75-87), proves that John 1:1 truly describes Jesus as being equally God! This rule states that when the anarthrous (without the definite article) predicate noun comes BEFORE its verb (as at John 1:1 - "god was the word"), then that predicate noun is QUALITATIVE. That is, it has the very ESSENCE of the word and applies it to the subject of that sentence. Therefore, the very highest essence of the word "god" (which must be "God Himself") must be applied to the subject ("the Word" or Jesus) since the predicate noun "god" without the definite article comes before its verb at John 1:1.
This very same rule was used by Jesus at John 10:34 when he figuratively described those members of New Israel who would be appointed Judges by God (1 Cor. 6:2,3 - but compare John 8:50, Ps. 75:7). Yes, Jesus chose to use the Qualitative Rule when he said, "I said `gods you are.'" Notice that the predicate noun "gods" without the definite article comes BEFORE its verb and therefore the subject "you" (those "Israelites" God appoints as judges) takes on the qualitative HIGHEST ESSENCE of "godship." In other words, "Israel" IS the Most High God. An infallible rule of New Testament Greek grammar proves the Godship of Christ's brothers!
The same Qualitative Rule when applied to the already extremely significant "he who is joined to the Lord is ONE SPIRIT" (1 Cor. 6:17) shows the Christian brothers of Jesus to be God the Holy Spirit!
And again the Qualitative Rule shows this great truth at Gal. 3:26 ("for IN Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith" - RSV) where the predicate noun "sons of God" comes before the verb in the original NT Greek - cf. 1 John 3:2. So Christians share the HIGHEST ESSENCE of the term "Son of God" and are therefore equal to the Son of God himself.
As we all know, no man has been "perfect" except the GOD-Man, Jesus. He was perfect BECAUSE HE IS GOD! But, as we have already seen, the very BODY of that God-Man, Christ, (all his brothers) is also PERFECT. - Eph. 5:27. This is shown also by Jesus at John 17:22,23: "That they may be ONE, even as we are one: I IN them, and thou in me, that they may be made PERFECT in one." (Also see Matt. 5:48, Phil. 2:15) - but ONLY GOD can be PERFECT!
Obviously Christ's many brothers are to be WORSHIPED as He is. They are equally God with Jesus and, therefore, deserve worship. But as we know, ONLY God is to be WORSHIPED. Jesus knew this - Matt. 4:10. The angel of God understood this when John attempted to "worship [proskyneo] before his [the angel's] feet." - Rev. 22:8. Notice how other men will have to come to the true followers of Jesus, His brothers, the true "Israel" today: Men will come and "WORSHIP [proskyneo] BEFORE THEIR FEET." - Rev. 3:9. We see a similar statement in Isaiah: speaking of His faithful followers in the last days God says - "they [the rest of surviving mankind] ... shall WORSHIP [proskyneo in Greek Septuagint and shachah in Hebrew OT] YOU and PRAY [proseuchomai in Sept. and palal in Heb.] TO YOU: BECAUSE GOD IS IN [ev - Sept.] YOU; and there is NO GOD BESIDE YOU" - Is. 45:14 Septuagint, Zondervan Publishing House, 1980 printing. (KJV also translates "God is IN you," and JB says "they will PRAY TO YOU".)
Since people are to "Worship only God," and since Christ's brothers (His body, the `Church') are to receive WORSHIP, then, they ARE GOD!
Only God is OMNISCIENT (or all-knowing). This is one of the "UNTRANSFERRABLE, metaphysical attributes of God" according to many orthodox trinitarians. By this we are able to positively identify the Body of Christ (Jesus' brothers) as True God. As John declared to his fellow Christians: "But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and YE KNOW ALL THINGS." - 1 John 2:20.
Paul also acknowledged this truth about Jesus' brothers being FULLY GOD: "Ye also are full of goodness [but only God is GOOD], FILLED WITH ALL KNOWLEDGE [OMNISCIENT]..." - Ro. 15:14. But ONLY GOD is all-knowing!
An example of this omniscience was displayed by the Apostles. Ananias told Peter and the Apostles that he had laid ALL the money he had received for his property at their feet. Peter (since all the Sons of God are ALL-KNOWING) KNEW Ananias was lying to them. And to reaffirm that the brothers of Jesus are equally God with Him, Peter said to Ananias who had lied TO THE APOSTLES, "thou hast not lied unto [mere] men, BUT UNTO GOD." - Acts 5:4. Yes, Peter told Ananias that it was no use lying unto the brothers of Christ because they were ALL-KNOWING (omniscient) and, therefore, not mere men but TRULY GOD! Remember that such omniscience is an UNTRANSFERABLE quality of GOD ALONE!
This is reminiscent of Jesus' statement at Luke 10:16. He said to the 70 Christians he sent forth: "The one who listens to you listens to me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects the One who sent me." (Or, "You haven't rejected MEN, you have rejected GOD.") Here, then, Jesus Himself declares that His Christian brothers are truly God with His Father and Him! (Compare Matt. 25:40.)
As certain trinitarians have pointed out: ONLY God is omnipotent (ALmighty or ALL powerful). This is one of the "UNTRANSFERABLE, metaphysical attributes of GOD alone." Surely it would be blasphemous for the Apostle Paul to pray for this "UNTRANSFERABLE attribute of God" to be TRANSFERRED to Jesus' brothers unless they too WERE GOD! But see Col. 1:11 - Paul prays that the faithful brothers be "strengthened with ALL MIGHT." Paul knows that ONLY God can receive this UNTRANSFERABLE attribute! There is only one possible conclusion: the brothers of Christ ARE GOD.
Another UNTRANSFERABLE attribute of God alone is that of OMNIPRESENCE (being everywhere simultaneously). But notice the OMNIPRESENCE of the brothers of Jesus: "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them which shall believe on me through their word; (21) THAT THEY ALL MAY BE ONE; as thou, Father, art IN me, and I IN thee, that THEY MAY ALSO BE ONE IN
US... (22) And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that THEY MAY BE ONE EVEN AS WE ARE ONE: (23) I IN them, and thou IN me, that they may be made PERFECT in one." - John 17:20-23 KJV.
Notice not only their ONENESS with God, but their being IN the Father and IN the Son! Jesus and the Father are known to be omnipresent by their being IN others. So, too, are the Sons of God! "Ye are IN our hearts to...LIVE TOGETHER." - 2 Cor. 7:3 (compare 1 Thess. 2:17). And Paul describes himself as being absent in body from his Corinthian brothers "BUT PRESENT IN SPIRIT"! - a clear description of OMNIPRESENCE - 1 Cor. 5:3. Notice how this untransferable quality of God alone is displayed by the brothers in this verse: "and whether one member [of the body of Christ] suffereth, ALL the members suffer with it." - 1 Cor. 12:26. Clear omnipresence is shown when one of Christ's brothers in Rome (or anywhere else) stubs his toe and Christians in Canada (and everywhere else) wince in sympathetic pain!
If God owns ALL THINGS (as He must) and Jesus owns all things (except the Father Himself) and this makes Jesus equally God - 1 Cor. 15:27 - then we see that true "Israelites" (Jesus' Christian brothers) are also equally God: Writing to the Corinthian brothers, Paul says - "Therefore let no man GLORY in men. For ALL THINGS ARE YOURS." - 1 Cor. 3:21.
Yes, Christ's brothers, his own "flesh", own ALL THINGS with him and, therefore, they must also BE GOD! Notice that Paul also recognizes that GLORY belongs to God alone. He even commands: "let no MAN glory in MEN." - 1 Cor. 3:21 KJV. So, when he told his brothers: "ye are our GLORY and joy" - 1 Thess. 2:20 - he clearly stated their (and his) GODHOOD! As we know, God shares his GLORY with no one else - Is. 42:8. But, of course, Jesus shares the Father's glory (Jn 17:22), and, therefore, this makes him God, also. But his brothers also share that GLORY from the Father (Jn 17:22) and, therefore, they too MUST BE GOD!
This is also stated by Peter at 1 Peter 5:10 - "God...hath called us unto his eternal GLORY by Christ Jesus," or as the Living Bible puts it: "God...will give you HIS eternal GLORY." Surely, if God will not share his glory with ANYONE ELSE, then those persons God gives his glory to MUST BE GOD HIMSELF! Ro. 8:30 tells us, "And so those whom God set apart [Jesus' BODY - his brothers], he called...and HE SHARED HIS GLORY WITH THEM." - GNB.
Paul not only calls his brothers (the other Sons of God) "the GLORY of God," but also the very "IMAGE of God" - 1 Cor. 11:7, "[man] is the IMAGE and glory of God." This is the very same description by which we know Jesus is God: "Christ, who is the IMAGE of God" - 2 Cor. 4:4. Of course Christ's BODY (his brothers who make up his very ONE "flesh") is the same image of God as Christ himself: They are one and the same God
We know for a CERTAINTY that ONLY God can FORGIVE (aphiemi) sins - Mark 2:7. Since Jesus was able to FORGIVE (aphiemi) sins, he is God! Since his brothers are also able to FORGIVE (aphiemi) sins, they too MUST BE GOD! - "Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.' And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive Holy Spirit [and thereby become God]. If you FORGIVE [aphiemi] the sins of any, THEY ARE FORGIVEN.'" - John 20:21-23 RSV. ONLY God can FORGIVE SINS!! Jesus' body of brothers MUST BE GOD!
We know there is ONLY ONE SAVIOR : Jehovah God - Is. 43:11. But Jesus also SAVES men: John 12:47 ("save" - soso) and Matt. 1:21 ("shall save" - sosei) so he must be equally Jehovah God! But notice Jesus' brothers (the rest of the Sons of God) also SAVE men: 1 Cor. 9:22 ("save" - soso) and James 5:20 ("shall save" - sosei). THEREFORE THEY ARE ALSO EQUALLY JEHOVAH GOD!
Jehovah God, of course, is "The Light" - Is. 60:20; Ps. 27:1. And since Jesus is a part of the Godhead that is Jehovah, he too is "The Light" - John 8:12 (refers to Is. 49:6). But we can also see that Jesus' brothers, being Jesus' very BODY and therefore also part of the Godhead that is Jehovah, are also "The Light" - Acts 13:47 (which, significantly, ALSO refers to Is.49:6); Matt. 5:14. This understanding is reinforced by the parallel description of "the Lamp." Jehovah is the Lamp. - 2 Sam. 22:29. But so is one of Jesus' followers: John the Baptist. - John 5:35, RSV.
Jeremiah 51:19 tells us: "The portion of JACOB is not like these: FOR HE IS THE FORMER OF ALL THINGS; and Israel is the tribe of HIS inheritance; JEHOVAH OF HOSTS IS HIS NAME." - ASV. We are told very plainly here that not only did "Jacob" (or "Israel" as he became known) CREATE ALL THINGS, but that Israel's real name is JEHOVAH!!
Yes, God (actually COMPOSED of the Father and his "Sons") formed all things. Those Christian men and women chosen by Him in this life were (and will be again) actually a PART OF HIM in the beginning and helped in the original creation (Job 38:4-7). As Paul tells us, "we are God's FELLOW WORKERS" - 1 Cor. 3:9, NIV, ASV, NEB.
And who is this "Israel" today? Christ's body, his brothers, the Sons of God! ("that the community of believers in Jesus, irrespective of their natural origin, is looked upon as the new ISRAEL throughout the NT is clear." - New Bible Dictionary, p. 541, 2nd ed., 1984, Tyndale House Publ.) Christ's brothers, then, according to Jeremiah, ARE Jehovah God! No objective Bible student could possibly doubt such clear, irrefutable proof!
For further proof that "Israel" is God: The prophet Samuel told Saul, "God is with you" - 1 Sam. 10:7. But now notice the NAME of that God who was "with Saul": "ISRAEL who was with Saul" - 1 Sam. 14:21. See NIV Interlinear Hebrew-English Old Testament, v.2, p.192 for the actual, literal, honest translation. It literally says "Israel" (singular) was WITH Saul. But as we well know, the man Israel (or Jacob) had been dead long before Saul was even born! So we then understand that Samuel is declaring that spiritual "Israel" (or Jesus' pre-existent brothers, his "body") made up the "God
who was with Saul".
Incidentally, the plural-unity of the "God of Israel" ("God composed of Israel" - see Luke 1:68) is shown by the PLURAL word "names" of the 12 tribes of the spiritual Israel taking the SINGULAR verb "is" (estin) at Rev. 21:12.
As we all know, "Israel" refers to a single person (Jacob) OR it refers to a COMPOSITE BODY of individuals who actually sprang from the loins of that man and which is composed, then, of the "SONS of Israel". So, in its sense of PLURAL UNITY "Israel" and the "Sons of Israel" were different terms for that very same COMPOSITE BODY. It is easy to see, then, that just as all the "SONS of Israel" make up the composite "Israel" so too the "SONS of God" actually make up the composite "God"!
The Sons of God were with God in the beginning. "When [Jehovah] laid the foundations of the earth" (Job 38:4) .... "ALL the SONS OF GOD shouted for joy." - Job 38:7. Who were these Sons of God who were WITH GOD in the BEGINNING? - "For IN Christ Jesus YOU ARE ALL SONS OF GOD" - Gal. 3:26, ASV, RSV, NASB, NIV, NEB, REB, MLB, CBW, AT, TEV. Remember, "He chose us IN Him BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD, that we should be holy and without blemish." - Eph. 1:4 ASV. Yes, IN THE BEGINNING the Word was WITH GOD and the Word WAS GOD. (John 1:1). As Jesus declared: "Ye have been WITH ME from the BEGINNING" - Jn 15:27. Yes, the Word (Jesus) was COMPOSED of "all the Sons of God who shouted for Joy" IN THE BEGINNING. They all made up the spirit BODY of Jesus, united into "one flesh" - "for IN Christ you are all SONS OF GOD." - Gal. 3:26. (And BROTHERS of Jesus - Ro. 8:29, Matt. 25:40, Heb. 2:11,12,17.)
Notice how Paul (as God) can urge other Christians "as MY BELOVED CHILDREN [Sons of God]" to "be IMITATORS OF ME" - 1 Cor. 4:14,16 RSV. So when he later restates this same command as, "be IMITATORS of GOD as BELOVED CHILDREN [Sons of God]" - Eph. 5:1 RSV - it is obvious that he is declaring his own (and his developing "SONS") Godhood! He further stresses his equality with God at Gal. 1:24 where the inspired text reads literally: "They were glorifying the God in me." - cf. KJV.
The Sons of God being IN (composing his very being, his "body") Jesus FROM THE VERY BEGINNING shows that they, too, MUST share his very eternal SELF-EXISTENCE. As trinitarians point out, eternalness is one of the "UNTRANSFERABLE attributes of God". And we see ALL the Sons of God (actually composing the BODY of the Word) in the VERY BEGINNING. We see the same for Jesus' brothers at Luke 1:2, "Even as they declared them unto us, which FROM THE BEGINNING were eyewitnesses, and ministers of THE WORD." And Paul says: "because God hath FROM THE BEGINNING chosen you to salvation..." - 2 Thess. 2:13. Since eternalness is one of the UNTRANSFERABLE attributes of God, and since Jesus is eternal: Jesus MUST be God. And since his BODY (his brothers, the Sons of God) is eternal, his brothers MUST be God! - John writes to his brothers: "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that YE HAVE ETERNAL LIFE." - 1 John 5:13.
What could be more obvious than the fact that if JESUS has eternal life, his very own BODY, his mysterious "one flesh" would also have to have eternal life? And since this is how we can know God, by his UNTRANSFERRABLE attributes, then the Sons of God, like their elder brother, the Son of God, are ALL ETERNAL, ALL GOD!
Also showing the eternalness and SELF-EXISTENCE (another "untransferable attribute of God ALONE") is a statement by Paul. Paul knew extremely well that Jehovah had identified himself for all time (and simultaneously defined himself as ETERNALLY SELF-EXISTENT) by saying at Ex. 3:14: "I AM WHO I AM" (RSV, NASB, NIV) or, more likely, "I AM WHAT I AM" (RSV, NRSV, and Living Bible footnotes). So Paul (knowing exactly what his words would mean to his brothers who were equally well-versed in the Holy Scriptures) explains that he is the least of those sent forth by Jesus (15:9) and shows that they must ALL, therefore, be eternally God (and by definition, self-existent) when he claimed for himself (and his brothers) that clear, eternal title of Jehovah God: "I AM WHAT I AM" - 1 Cor. 15:10. Yes, Paul has claimed the PRECISE Name of God (which also signifies his eternalness and SELF-EXISTENCE) and applied it to himself as one of the very "least" ones of the body of Christ (15:9)!
The Son, being God, has God's AUTHORITY. His faithful Christians have THE SAME AUTHORITY. "To those who win the victory ... I will give the SAME AUTHORITY which I have received from my Father." - Rev. 2:26,27 TEV. If Christ's brothers have the SAME AUTHORITY as God (Jesus), they must also BE GOD!
We know that "no MAN hath seen God at any time" - John 1:18. And yet we know that the Sons of God, Jesus' brothers in his "one flesh" or body, not only saw God when they were with him in the beginning but also SAW him after his resurrection on Earth! Since we know Jesus is equally God, and no MAN has seen God, then we know that his brothers who SAW him after his resurrection are not mere MEN, but also God. Their UNION with the Son and the Father makes them God and able to SEE the resurrected God - John 17:22.
This absolute union of the brothers with Christ is further shown at Eph. 2:6. Christ and the rest of the Sons of God are so inseparably ONE GOD that Paul can describe them as rising WITH and AS JESUS and assuming His very throne in heaven: Paul tells us that God "raised us up WITH Him [Jesus], and seated us WITH HIM in the heavenly places, IN Christ Jesus." - Eph. 2:6, NASB. Obviously Paul is describing the very BODY of Jesus as being COMPOSED OF HIS OTHER BROTHERS. John recognizes this great Mystery also when he declares: "Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth IN him, and he IN God .... because AS HE IS, SO ARE WE" - 1 John 4:15, 17. Yes, God lives IN his Sons, and, AS GOD IS, SO ARE THEY!!
We have already seen that the Sons of God were WITH God in the very beginning. Now we see that WHAT GOD IS, SO ARE THE SONS OF GOD (1 John 4:17). It is obvious, now that we know Jesus (or the Word) is actually COMPOSED OF all the Sons of God, that John is telling us at John 1:1 - "In the BEGINNING was the Word [all the Sons of God, Jesus' very own spirit body - Job 38:7] ... and what God was, the Word [ALL the Sons of God] was." Or as the New English Bible tells us: "When all things began, the Word already was...and what God was, the Word was" - John 1:1.)
Remember, "As God is, SO ARE THEY" (All the Sons of God) - 1 John 4:17, and "What God was, the Word was" - John 1:1 (NEB). The meanings are identical. The Word (God the Son) is really ALL the Sons of God!
So when John tells us that "we shall be LIKE him" (1 Jn 3:2), it is clear that these are part of the composite God. No one but God is "like God" - Is. 46:9.
REMEMBER, THESE EXAMPLES ARE MEANT TO BE RIDICULOUS - NO JEHOVAH'S WITNESS BELIEVES OR TEACHES SUCH A THING. BUT THEY ARE EXCELLENT EXAMPLES OF THE ONLY KIND OF "EVIDENCE" AVAILABLE TO THOSE WHO ATTEMPT TO "PROVE" A TRINITY DOCTRINE!!
Jesus made it very clear that NO ONE is GOOD (agathos) EXCEPT GOD. - Mark 10:18. But see how one of the members of his body is described at Acts 11:24. Barnabas is a GOOD (agathos) person! If Jesus can say, when he was called a GOOD teacher, "Don't call me good (agathos) [unless you recognize me AS GOD] because ONLY GOD is GOOD!" (Mark 10:18), then, obviously, the inspired Bible writer is proclaiming at Acts 11:24 that Barnabas (as well as the rest of the brothers) IS GOD! Paul also clearly states this truth when he says to the brothers: "ye also are FULL OF GOODNESS, filled with all knowledge...." - Rom. 15:14. If NO ONE but God is good and Jesus' body of brothers is GOOD, then, obviously, the mysteriously united one body of JESUS AND HIS BROTHERS is also GOD!
Similarly, "Only God is HOLY [hosios]" - Rev. 15:4. But responsible ones in the body of Christ MUST BE HOLY [hosios] - Titus 1:8 (also see 1 Peter 2:9; Heb. 3:1). To make this even clearer, we find Peter reminding his fellow Christians that God has said about them: "You MUST be holy BECAUSE I AM HOLY." - 1 Pet. 1:16, TEV, 3rd ed., 1971; also Living Bible. Yes, only GOD is holy, and, therefore, God's chosen ones must also be holy in order to BE GOD!
1 Cor. 3:23 tells us, "ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's." How superbly, unequivocally certain this makes the knowledge of the true God! Just as "Christ is God's" MUST mean (as every trinitarian must believe) that Christ is EQUALLY GOD, so the other matching half of the inspired PARALLEL statement ("ye [Christ's brothers] are Christ's") MUST mean that they are EQUALLY CHRIST. And, of course, BEING CHRIST makes them as equally GOD as he is! How beautifully, simply, and clearly stated! True Christians ARE God!!
But wait! An equally clearcut, plain comparison is found at 1 Cor. 11:3. How manifestly the truth shines forth in this splendidly revealing inspired writing! We KNOW that the woman and man are equal in nature. So when Paul says "the HEAD of the woman is the man" we see their absolute equality: They both make up one UNITED (echad) body ("one flesh"). The male is merely the "head" of that one body! In the very same breath Paul says "and the HEAD of Christ is God" - again, since we KNOW Christ is equally God (and we can see that this headship is compared to that of the man and woman - "united oneness"), we see the united "body" of the One God composed (in part) of Jesus! So it is, when we see the complete statement, the full COMPARISON, at 1 Cor. 11:3, we know that, just as the "HEAD of Christ is God" MUST mean Jesus is equally GOD in nature, and "the HEAD of the woman is man" makes her equally "man" in nature, then we know absolutely that "the head of every [Christian] man is Christ" makes "every [Christian] man" EQUALLY JESUS IN NATURE and, therefore, since Jesus IS GOD, they, too, are EQUALLY GOD IN NATURE!
We know that all true Christians are Christ Himself by Jesus' statement to them at Rev.2:27 where he quotes Ps. 2:9. Psalm 2:9 was spoken TO JESUS by the Father, but Jesus shows that it was spoken TO CHRISTIANS (Rev. 2:27)! Therefore, these Christians MUST actually make up the person (or body) of Jesus!
We find that same truth stated by Paul: The ONLY FOUNDATION (1 Cor. 3:10, 11) is Jesus alone! But "the foundation" of Eph. 2:20 is composed of Jesus AND HIS APOSTLES and PROPHETS. Therefore, the Apostles and Prophets (Jesus' brothers) also make up that same FOUNDATION which is Jesus ALONE. The Sons of God and The Son of God are one and together make up "God the Son."
The Apostle John clearly recognized and wrote about his absolute equality with God when he admitted that he, John, is not only the brother of those he wrote to but is also "the Alpha and Omega ... the Almighty." Yes, John speaking at Rev. 1:6-9 says Jesus "hath made us kings and priests .... I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord ... the Almighty. I John, who ALSO [in addition to being the Lord, Alpha and Omega, the Almighty] am your brother and companion" - KJV.
Of course there are no clear, precise scriptural statements proving this "doctrine" of Christians being equally God (such as "God the Father, God the Holy Spirit, and God the Son, who is Jesus AND ALL HIS MANY BROTHERS, are three `persons' who are equally God"). But the examples in this paper have shown the absolute NECESSITY for CLEAR, PRECISE statements PROVING the trinity, such as: "The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit are three persons who are equally God. These three are the One God and there are no others."
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