Because of such prophecies Christadelphians pin great hopes on the Jews’ returning to Palestine, overlooking the fact that all these are gathering in unbelief, merely for selfish considerations, and that the entire tenor of the Christian Greek Scriptures is that what counts is not being a Jew according to the flesh but according to the spirit.—Rom. 2:25-29; Gal. 3:28.

As for the first text quoted to prove their position, let it be noted that for Christians Jerusalem is above, a heavenly city or organization. (Gal. 4:26) The second text says nothing about Jesus reigning on the earth but refers to Jehovah (as the Hebrew shows) reigning over the earth. And as for the third text, telling of Christians reigning “on” the earth, the Greek word here translated “on” is epi, and it can just as well be rendered “over” as “on,” and in fact is rendered “over” by such Bible translators as Goodspeed, Knox, Weymouth and the New World Bible Translation Committee.

Yes, at first glance Christadelphianism appears to be of God, but not upon closer examination. Its ignoring the importance of the name of Jehovah and the issue of universal sovereignty, its glaring lack of unity, its failure to carry out Jesus’ command to preach the good news in all nations, its ignoring the Scriptural hope for mankind in general, its denial of Jesus’ prehuman existence, its denial of the personality of Satan and his demons, its denial of a corresponding ransom provided by Jesus and its denial of the heavenly, spiritual nature of God’s kingdom and of the heavenly reward of the saints all combines to stamp it to be deserving of the Scriptural description: “This scheme and this work is from men.”—Acts 5:38.

Jehovah Gives the Victory

IN CANADA the clergy’s ministerial association in one city became concerned with the preaching work of Jehovah’s witnesses in the community. It engaged the services of a man from out of town to address churchgoers there and answer their questions about the Witnesses. Notices were published in newspapers that welcomed the public to the talk he would give. Church members began to make insinuations that the Witnesses would be in a bad way as a result of this clergy action. But the Witnesses remained calm and undisturbed about the matter. They assured those who brought up the matter that they were not worried and that honesthearted persons would be helped by what would be heard, that those looking for the truth would be able to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

Those who brought up these things to the Witnesses were among the more prominent ones of the churches. When they saw that the Witnesses were not worried, then they themselves became disturbed. They called their ministers and told them that there was no sense in paying them a salary if they had to hire an outsider to speak about Jehovah’s witnesses. Although it was late to do so, the visit and the talk were both canceled.

That same Sunday the local Baptist minister and his leading deacon came to the public talk and The Watchtower study. During the study they would snicker and poke one another to show their amusement at points of the discussion. At times they would raise their hands as if to take part in the study but then cover their mouths if the chairman looked their way. What the clergyman and his deacon did not know was that one of their members was just a few rows behind them, observing their antics. This young man had just been to a few Bible talks at the Kingdom Hall and was still a member of the church. After the study the clergyman saw this young man and said to him: “Let us get out of here. They twist the Scriptures to suit their own needs.” The young man replied: “No thanks! I have seen enough to know that Jehovah’s witnesses have the truth.”

When Jehovah’s people are courageous and keep trusting in him, he will give the victory: “Any weapon whatever that will be formed against you will have no success.”—Isa. 54:17.

Questions From Readers

● In view of Proverbs 22:6, why is it that children who have been reared by dedicated Christian parents at times depart from the way of Jehovah in which they were taught?—L. G., United States.

Proverbs 22:6 reads: “Train up a boy according to the way for him; even when he grows old he will not turn aside from it.” When those reared in the way of Jehovah depart from it upon growing old, it might be said that more likely than not something was lacking in their rearing. It may be that the parents were not sufficiently conscientious or thorough, not strict enough, or failed to show sufficient love. Then again, it may be that they did not set as good an example as they might have done. So while these seemingly were reared in the way for them because of having Christian parents, such may not actually have been the case.

However, we may not rule out exceptions. So we must conclude that what is meant at Proverbs 22:6 is that the weight of probability is, the chances are, the forces or factors set in motion by proper training are such as to make it most likely that the children will not depart from the right way upon growing old; but not that there might not be exceptions.

On the other hand, it cannot be denied that not all children who have been sadly neglected by their parents have turned out badly. But this is not to say that because of such exceptions no attention need be given to children or that training them in the way for them is futile.

● Please explain Amos 3:14, which reads, in part: “I will also hold an accounting against the altars of Bethel; and the horns of the altar will certainly be cut off and must fall to the earth.”—V. D., United States.

King Jeroboam made two golden calves for his people to worship, placing one at one end of his kingdom and the other at the other end, at Dan and at Bethel. This he did out of fear that his people would fall away to the two-tribe kingdom of Judah if they regularly went to Jerusalem to worship. (1 Ki. 12:26-30) This became known as “the guiltiness of Samaria.” The altars mentioned at Amos 3:14 are those associated with this apostate worship.—Amos 8:14.

The text makes mention of altars, plural, and then altar, singular. Apparently the singular refers to each individual altar, not merely the great altar that Jeroboam had first built at Bethel and that is mentioned at 1 Kings 13:2. The plural refers to the numerous altars, similar to those mentioned at 2 Chronicles 34:5, which, although in the land of Judah, were equally evidence of apostasy. All the altars had horns, a symbol of power; and their being cut off and falling to the earth foretold the destruction of this false worship. In line with this understanding, the Knox; translation renders Amos 3:14 as follows: “I will have a reckoning with the rebellions of Israel, a reckoning with those altars of theirs at Bethel, that shall have the horns of them cut off and hurled to the ground.”

● Why does the New World Translation at Colossians 2:9 state that in Jesus “all the fullness of the divine quality dwells bodily,” where as other translations state that in Jesus dwells the fullness of Deity or the Godhead?—T.B., United States.

At Colossians 2:9 the word in the Greek that the New World Translation renders “divine quality” is theótes, and this is the only use of the word in the Christian Greek Scriptures. The same is true of a similar Greek word, theiótes, which appears only at Romans 1:20, and which the New World Translation there renders “Godship,” as follows: “For his invisible qualities are clearly seen from the world’s creation onward, because they are perceived by the things made, even his eternal power and Godship, so that they are inexcusable.”