🕰️ A Brief History of the New World Translation (NWT)
In the early 1950s, the Watch Tower Society began releasing the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures—a Bible version produced entirely under the direction of the organization. The full Bible was completed by 1961. The translation committee’s identities were kept anonymous, supposedly “to give glory to God,” though it was later revealed that none of the translators had formal training in Biblical Hebrew or Greek.
The translation was introduced to align more closely with the organization’s doctrinal understandings, especially concerning the name Jehovah, the nature of Jesus Christ, and teachings around the soul, hellfire, and resurrection. Many mainstream Christian scholars and translators criticized the NWT for inserting doctrinal bias—such as translating John 1:1 as “the Word was a god”—a rendering not found in most other Bible versions.
🤔 Why Did the Organization Write Its Own Bible?
As Witnesses, we were taught that the NWT is the most accurate translation, carefully refined to remove bias. But when you examine the context, a few sincere questions arise:
- Why was it necessary to create a new translation instead of relying on the many available, well-respected ones?
- Why weren’t the translators named if their credentials could’ve inspired confidence?
- Why do key verses seem to support Watchtower doctrine more than original manuscript intent?
- Why is the Divine Name “Jehovah” inserted over 7,000 times in the New Testament when no Greek manuscript ever used it?
We’re told that Jehovah’s organization is “the only channel” He’s using today. But wouldn’t such a claim make it even more important to be transparent and academically credible—especially with something as sacred as the Bible?
✨ Encouraging Reflection
This isn’t about tearing down faith—it’s about seeking truth. Jesus said, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:17) Shouldn’t we be able to trust that what we read hasn’t been altered to match the interpretations of imperfect men?
If the truth is really truth, it can stand up to scrutiny.
📚 Scholarly Criticism of the New World Translation
- Bruce M. Metzger, Professor of New Testament Language and Literature at Princeton Theological Seminary:
- “A sectarian translation… the translators have carefully selected passages to support their own peculiar doctrines… it is not scholarly, and it is not accepted by Biblical scholars.”
- 📖 The Bible in Translation: Ancient and English Versions (2001), p. 165
- Robert H. Countess, PhD, in his detailed thesis and book:
- “The New World Translation is doctrinally motivated and not a trustworthy rendering of the original language texts.”
- 📖 The Jehovah’s Witnesses’ New Testament: A Critical Analysis of the New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures (1972)
- Julius R. Mantey, Th.D., co-author of a widely used Greek grammar:
- “[The rendering of John 1:1 as ‘the Word was a god’] is a grossly misleading translation… It is neither scholarly nor accurate, and it violates every rule of Greek grammar.”
- 📄 Letter to the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society (1980)
- William Barclay, Professor of Divinity and Biblical Criticism at the University of Glasgow:
- “The deliberate distortion of truth by this sect is seen in their New Testament translation… It is dishonest and completely unscholarly.”
- 📖 The Expository Times, 1953
- Jason D. BeDuhn, Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Northern Arizona University:
- BeDuhn actually praised parts of the NWT for its consistency and literalness, especially in his book Truth in Translation (2003). However, even he acknowledged that the translation includes ideologically driven choices in some key doctrinal texts.