WHAT JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES BELIEVE |
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BELIEF
BASIS of Belief
(Exodus 6:3)
And I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty, but as respects my name Jehovah I did not make myself known to them.
(Psalm 83:18)
That people may know that you, whose name is Jehovah, You alone are the Most High over all the earth.
(John 17:17) Sanctify them by means of the truth; your word is truth.
(2 Timothy 3:16,17)
All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work.
(Matthew 3:16,17)
After being baptized Jesus immediately came up from the water; and,
look! the heavens were opened up, and he saw descending like a dove God's
spirit coming upon him. 17 Look! Also, there was a voice from the heavens
that said: "This is my Son, the beloved, whom I have approved."
YOU heard that I said to YOU, I am going away and I am coming [back]
to YOU. If YOU loved me, YOU would rejoice that I am going my way to the
Father, because the Father is greater than I am
17 Jesus said to her: "Stop clinging to me. For I have not yet
ascended to the Father. But be on your way to my brothers and say to them,
'I am ascending to my Father and YOUR Father and to my God and YOUR God.'"
And God proceeded to create the man in his image, in God's image he
created him; male and female he created them. 2:7 And Jehovah God
proceeded to form the man out of dust from the ground and to blow into
his nostrils the breath of life, and the man came to be a living soul.
That is why, just as through one man sin entered into the world and
death through sin, and thus death spread to all men because they had all
sinned-.
For the living are conscious that they will die; but as for the dead,
they are conscious of nothing at all, neither do they anymore have wages,
because the remembrance of them has been forgotten. 10 All that your hand
finds to do, do with your very power, for there is no work nor devising
nor knowledge nor wisdom in She'ol, the place to which you are going.
Look! All the souls-to me they belong. As the soul of the father so
likewise the soul of the son-to me they belong. The soul that is sinning-it
itself will die.
O that in She'ol you would conceal me, That you would keep me secret
until your anger turns back, That you would set a time limit for me and
remember me!
And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered
up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according
to their works.
(John 5:28,29)
Do not marvel at this, because the hour is coming in which all those
in the memorial tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who did
good things to a resurrection of life, those who practiced vile things
to a resurrection of judgment.
(John 11:25)
Jesus said to her: "I am the resurrection and the life. He that
exercises faith in me, even though he dies, will come to life;
(Acts 24:15)
and I have hope toward God, which hope these [men] themselves also entertain,
that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the
unrighteous.
(Matthew 20:28)
Just as the Son of man came, not to be ministered to, but to minister
and to give his soul a ransom in exchange for many."
(1 Peter 2:24)
He himself bore our sins in his own body upon the stake, in order that
we might be done with sins and live to righteousness. And "by his
stripes YOU were healed."
(1 John 2:1,2)
My little children, I am writing YOU these things that YOU may not commit
a sin. And yet, if anyone does commit a sin, we have a helper with the
Father, Jesus Christ, a righteous one. 2 And he is a propitiatory sacrifice
for our sins, yet not for ours only but also for the whole world's.
(Matthew 6:9)
"YOU must pray, then, this way: "'Our Father in the heavens,
let your name be sanctified.
(John 14:6,13,14)
Jesus said to him: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through me. 13 Also, whatever it is that
YOU ask in my name, I will do this, in order that the Father may be glorified
in connection with the Son. 14 If YOU ask anything in my name, I will do
it.
"You must not make for yourself a carved image or a form like anything
that is in the heavens above or that is on the earth underneath or that
is in the waters under the earth. 5 You must not bow down to them nor be
induced to serve them, because I Jehovah your God am a God exacting exclusive
devotion, bringing punishment for the error of fathers upon sons, upon
the third generation and upon the fourth generation, in the case of those
who hate me; 6 but exercising loving-kindness toward the thousandth generation
in the case of those who love me and keep my commandments.
(1 Corinthians 10:14) Therefore, my beloved ones, flee from idolatry.
(Deuteronomy 18:10-12) There should not be found in you anyone who makes
his son or his daughter pass through the fire, anyone who employs divination,
a practicer of magic or anyone who looks for omens or a sorcerer, 11 or
one who binds others with a spell or anyone who consults a spirit medium
or a professional foreteller of events or anyone who inquires of the dead.
12 For everybody doing these things is something detestable to Jehovah,
and on account of these detestable things Jehovah your God is driving them
away from before you.
(Galatians 5:19-21) Now the works of the flesh are manifest, and they
are fornication, uncleanness, loose conduct, 20 idolatry, practice of spiritism,
enmities, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, contentions, divisions, sects,
21 envies, drunken bouts, revelries, and things like these. As to these
things I am forewarning YOU, the same way as I did forewarn YOU, that those
who practice such things will not inherit God's kingdom.
(Genesis 9:3,4) Every moving animal that is alive may serve as food
for YOU. As in the case of green vegetation, I do give it all to YOU. 4
Only flesh with its soul-its blood-YOU must not eat.
(John 17:16) They are no part of the world, just as I am no part of
the world.
The form of worship that is clean and undefiled from the standpoint of our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their tribulation, and to keep oneself without spot from the world.
4:4
Adulteresses, do you not know that the friendship with the world is
enmity with God? Whoever, therefore wants to be a friend of the world
is constituting himself an enemy of God.
"You are my witnesses," is the utterance of Jehovah, "even
my servant whom I have chosen, in order that you may know and have faith
in me, and that you may understand that I am the same One. Before
me there was no God formed, and after me there continued to be none.
And this good news of the kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations; and the end will come.
28:19,20 Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of
the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded
you. And, look! I am with you all the days until the conclusion of
the system of things."
Let me not, please, show partiality to a man; And on an earthling man
I shall not bestow a title;
"And as for you, O Daniel, make secret the words and seal up the
book, until the time of [the] end. Many will rove about, and the [true]
knowledge will become abundant."
While he was sitting upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached
him privately, saying: "Tell us, When will these things be, and what
will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of
things?" 4 And in answer Jesus said to them: "Look out that nobody
misleads YOU; 5 for many will come on the basis of my name, saying, 'I
am the Christ,' and will mislead many. 6 YOU are going to hear of wars
and reports of wars; see that YOU are not terrified. For these things must
take place, but the end is not yet. 7 "For nation will rise against
nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be food shortages and
earthquakes in one place after another. 8 All these things are a beginning
of pangs of distress. 9 "Then people will deliver YOU up to tribulation
and will kill YOU, and YOU will be objects of hatred by all the nations
on account of my name. 10 Then, also, many will be stumbled and will betray
one another and will hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will
arise and mislead many; 12 and because of the increasing of lawlessness
the love of the greater number will cool off. 13 But he that has endured
to the end is the one that will be saved. 14 And this good news of the
kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all
the nations; and then the end will come.
But know this, that in the last days critical times hard to deal with
will be here. 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money,
self-assuming, haughty, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful,
disloyal, 3 having no natural affection, not open to any agreement, slanderers,
without self-control, fierce, without love of goodness, 4 betrayers, headstrong,
puffed up [with pride], lovers of pleasures rather than lovers of God,
5 having a form of godly devotion but proving false to its power; and from
these turn away.
While he was sitting upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples approached
him privately, saying: "Tell us, When will these things be, and what
will be the sign of your presence and of the conclusion of the system of
things?"
A little longer and the world will behold me no more, but YOU will behold me, because I live and YOU will live.
Why, even Christ died once for all time concerning sins, a righteous [person] for unrighteous ones, that he might lead YOU to God, he being put to death in the flesh, but being made alive in the spirit.
Now there is a judging of this world; now the ruler of this world will
be cast out.
We know we originate with God, but the whole world is lying in the [power
of the] wicked one.
"And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom that will never be brought to ruin. And the kingdom itself will
not be passed on to any other people. It will crush and put an end to all
these kingdoms, and it itself will stand to times indefinite;
They are, in fact, expressions inspired by demons and perform signs, and they go forth to the kings of the entire inhabited earth, to gather them together to the war of the great day of God the Almighty. 16 And they gathered them together to the place that is called in Hebrew Har-Ma·ged'on.
(Revelation 18:1-8)
After these things I saw another angel descending from heaven, with
great authority; and the earth was lighted up from his glory. 2 And he
cried out with a strong voice, saying: "She has fallen! Babylon the
Great has fallen, and she has become a dwelling place of demons and a lurking
place of every unclean exhalation and a lurking place of every unclean
and hated bird! 3 For because of the wine of the anger of her fornication
all the nations have fallen [victim], and the kings of the earth committed
fornication with her, and the traveling merchants of the earth became rich
due to the power of her shameless luxury." 4 And I heard another voice
out of heaven say: "Get out of her, my people, if YOU do not want
to share with her in her sins, and if YOU do not want to receive part of
her plagues. 5 For her sins have massed together clear up to heaven, and
God has called her acts of injustice to mind. 6 Render to her even as she
herself rendered, and do to her twice as much, yes, twice the number of
the things she did; in the cup in which she put a mixture put twice as
much of the mixture for her. 7 To the extent that she glorified herself
and lived in shameless luxury, to that extent give her torment and mourning.
For in her heart she keeps saying, 'I sit a queen, and I am no widow, and
I shall never see mourning.' 8 That is why in one day her plagues will
come, death and mourning and famine, and she will be completely burned
with fire, because Jehovah God, who judged her, is strong.
For there has been a child born to us, there has been a son given to
us; and the princely rule will come to be upon his shoulder. And his name
will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince
of Peace. 7 To the abundance of the princely rule and to peace there will
be no end, upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom in order to establish
it firmly and to sustain it by means of justice and by means of righteousness,
from now on and to time indefinite. The very zeal of Jehovah of armies
will do this.
"I kept on beholding in the visions of the night, and, see there! with the clouds of the heavens someone like a son of man happened to be coming; and to the Ancient of Days he gained access, and they brought him up close even before that One. 14 And to him there were given rulership and dignity and kingdom, that the peoples, national groups and languages should all serve even him. His rulership is an indefinitely lasting rulership that will not pass away, and his kingdom one that will not be brought to ruin.
(Matthew 6:10)
Let your kingdom come. Let your will take place, as in heaven, also
upon earth.
"Have no fear, little flock, because YOUR Father has approved of giving YOU the kingdom.
(Revelation 14:1-4)
And I saw, and, look! the Lamb standing upon the Mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand having his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads. 2 And I heard a sound out of heaven as the sound of many waters and as the sound of loud thunder; and the sound that I heard was as of singers who accompany themselves on the harp playing on their harps. 3 And they are singing as if a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one was able to master that song but the hundred and forty-four thousand, who have been bought from the earth. 4 These are the ones that did not defile themselves with women; in fact, they are virgins. These are the ones that keep following the Lamb no matter where he goes. These were bought from among mankind as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb,
(Revelation 20:4)
And I saw thrones, and there were those who sat down on them, and power
of judging was given them. Yes, I saw the souls of those executed with
the ax for the witness they bore to Jesus and for speaking about God, and
those who had worshiped neither the wild beast nor its image and who had
not received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand. And they
came to life and ruled as kings with the Christ for a thousand years.
And he said to him: "Truly I tell you today, You will be with me in Paradise."
(John 3:16)
"For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life.
(Revelation 21:1-4)
And I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea is no more. 2 I saw also the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God and prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: "Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away."