In this post, I am going to again prove from the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ own Bible that Jesus is described as Jehovah Almighty in the flesh. I will be using the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (2013 Revision).

According to the Hebrew Bible, Jehovah God forgives and saves for his own sake and by his own name or authority:

“For the sake of your name, O Jehovah, Forgive my error, though it is great.” Psalm 25:11

“O God, save me by your name, And defend me with your power.” Psalm 54:1

“Help us, O God of our salvation, For the sake of your glorious name; Rescue us and forgive our sins for the sake of your name.” Psalm 79:9

“‘You are my witnesses,’ declares Jehovah, ‘Yes, my servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and have faith in me And understand that I am the same One. Before me no God was formed, And after me there has been none.  I—I am Jehovah, and besides me there is no savior. I am the One who declared and saved and made known When there was no foreign god among you. So you are my witnesses,’ declares Jehovah, ‘and I am God. Also, I am always the same One; And no one can snatch anything out of my hand. When I act, who can prevent it?… I, I am the One who is blotting out your transgressions for my own sake, And I will not remember your sins.’” Isaiah 43:10-13, 25

The inspired NT writings, on the other hand, proclaim that forgiveness and salvation are granted for the sake of Christ and by the power of his name:

“He then said to them: ‘These are my words that I spoke to you while I was yet with you, that all the things written about me in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and Psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then he opened up their minds fully to grasp the meaning of the Scriptures, and he said to them, ‘This is what is written: that the Christ would suffer and rise from among the dead on the third day, and on the basis of his name, repentance for forgiveness of sins would be preached in all the nations—starting out from Jerusalem. You are to be witnesses of these things.’” Luke 24:44-47

“The next day their rulers, elders, and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, along with Anʹnas the chief priest, Caʹia·phas, John, Alexander, and all who were relatives of the chief priest. They stood Peter and John in their midst and began to question them: ‘By what power or in whose name did you do this?’ Then Peter, filled with holy spirit, said to them: ‘Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today about a good deed to a crippled man, and you want to know who made this man well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that in the name of Jesus Christ the Naz·a·reneʹ, whom you executed on a stake but whom God raised up from the dead, by means of him this man stands here healthy in front of you. This is “the stone that was treated by you builders as of no account that has become the chief cornerstone.” Furthermore, there is no salvation in anyone else, for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must get saved.’ Now when they saw the outspokenness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were astonished. And they began to realize that they had been with Jesus. As they were looking at the man who had been cured standing with them, they had nothing to say in answer to this.” Acts 4:5-14

“He sent out the word to the sons of Israel to declare to them the good news of peace through Jesus Christ—this one is Lord of all… Also, he ordered us to preach to the people and to give a thorough witness that this is the one decreed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone putting faith in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Acts 10:36, 42-43

“My little children, I am writing you these things so 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. And he is a propitiatory sacrifice for our sins, yet not for ours only but also for the whole world’s… I am writing you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for the sake of his name.” 1 John 2:1-2, 12

The Hebrew Bible also testifies that Jehovah is the Source of salvation and the One who redeems all who would trust in him from their sins:

“Salvation belongs to Jehovah. Your blessing is upon your people. (Selah)” Psalm 3:8

“Let Israel keep waiting for Jehovah, For Jehovah is loyal in his love, And he has great power to redeem. He will redeem Israel from all their errors.” Psalm 130:7-8

“Look! God is my salvation. I will trust and feel no dread; For Jah Jehovah is my strength and my might, And he has become my salvation.” Isaiah 12:2

“But as for me, with the voice of thanksgiving I will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed, I will pay. Salvation is from Jehovah.” Jonah 2:9

“But I am Jehovah your God from the land of Egypt; You knew no God except me, And besides me there is no savior… From the power of the Grave I will redeem them; From death I will recover them. Where are your stings, O Death? Where is your destructiveness, O Grave? Compassion will be concealed from my eyes.” Hosea 13:4, 14

The reason why Jehovah had to be the One who would save and redeem his people is because there was no one righteous or holy enough to do so:

“None of them can ever redeem a brother Or give to God a ransom for him, (The ransom price for their life is so precious That it is always beyond their reach); That he should live forever and not see the pit… But God will redeem me from the power of the Grave,” Psalm 49:7-9, 15

“Truth has vanished, And anyone who turns away from bad is plundered. Jehovah saw this and was displeased, For there was no justice. He saw that there was no man, And he was astonished that no one interceded, So his own arm brought about salvation, And his own righteousness supported him.” Isaiah 59:15-16

“I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled that no one offered support. So my arm brought me salvation, And my own wrath supported me.” Isaiah 63:5

And yet the NT writers teach that Jesus is the Source of salvation in union with the Father, who was sent to redeem all who would trust in him from their sins:

“She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save HIS people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

“For even the Son of man came, not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life as a ransom in exchange for many.” Mark 10:45

“For God did not send his Son into the world for him to judge the world, but for the world to be saved through him.” John 3:17

“and they said to the woman: ‘We no longer believe just because of what you said; for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the savior of the world.’” John 4:42

“But if anyone hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I came, not to judge the world, but to save the world.” John 12:47

“And after he had been made perfect, he became responsible for everlasting salvation to all those obeying him,” Hebrews 5:9

“In addition, we ourselves have seen and are bearing witness that the Father has sent his Son as savior of the world.” 1 John 4:14

“and from Jesus Christ, ‘the Faithful Witness,’ ‘the firstborn from the dead,’ and ‘the Ruler of the kings of the earth.’ To him who loves us and who set us free from our sins by means of his own blood— and he made us to be a kingdom, priests to his God and Father—yes, to him be the glory and the might forever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6

“And they sing a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, for you were slaughtered and with your blood you bought people for God out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.’” Revelation 5:9-10

“After this I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes; and there were palm branches in their hands. And they keep shouting with a loud voice, saying: ‘Salvation we owe to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ All the angels were standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell facedown before the throne and worshipped God, saying: ‘Amen! Let the praise and the glory and the wisdom and the thanksgiving and the honor and the power and the strength be to our God forever and ever. Amen.’ In response one of the elders said to me: “These who are dressed in the white robes, who are they and where did they come from?’  So right away I said to him: ‘My lord, you are the one who knows.’ And he said to me: ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. That is why they are before the throne of God, and they are rendering him sacred service day and night in his temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread his tent over them. They will hunger no more nor thirst anymore, neither will the sun beat down on them nor any scorching heat, because the Lamb, who is in the midst of the throne, will shepherd them and will guide them to springs of waters of life. And God will wipe out every tear from their eyes.’” Revelation 7:9-17

The OT further states that Jehovah is the God who came to redeem a people to be his cherished possession in the earth:

“For you are a holy people to Jehovah your God, and Jehovah your God has chosen you to become his people, his special property, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.” Deuteronomy 7:6

“That is why you are truly great, O Sovereign Lord Jehovah. There is no one like you, and there is no God except you; everything we have heard with our ears confirms this. And what other nation on earth is like your people Israel? God went and redeemed them as his people, making a name for himself by doing great and awe-inspiring things for them. You drove out the nations and their gods in behalf of your people, whom you redeemed to yourself from Egypt. You established your people Israel as your own people for all time; and you, O Jehovah, have become their God.” 2 Samuel 7:22-24

“They will no longer defile themselves with their disgusting idols and their detestable practices and all their transgressions. I will save them from all their unfaithfulness by which they have sinned, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I myself will be their God.” Ezekiel 37:23

Once again, the inspired Christian Greek Scriptures describe Jesus as the great God who has come to purify a people to be his very own special possession:

“while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of our Savior, Jesus Christ (tou megalou Theou kai Soteros hemon, Iesou Christou), who gave himself for us to set us free from every sort of lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people who are his own special possession, zealous for fine works.” Titus 2:13-14(1)

Finally, Jehovah is described as the only righteous God and Savior whom every person must confess and worship for salvation:

“Make your report, present your case. Let them consult together in unity. Who foretold this long ago And declared it from times past? Is it not I, Jehovah? There is no other God but me; A righteous God and a Savior, there is none besides me. Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth, For I am God, and there is no one else. By myself I have sworn; The word has gone out of my mouth in righteousness, And it will not return: To me every knee will bend, Every tongue will swear loyalty.” Isaiah 45:21-23

Astonishingly, the NT authors identify Jesus as that very God and Savior whom all creation must worship and confess since it is his righteousness that justifies all who trust in him:

“But it is due to him that you are in union with Christ Jesus, who has become to us wisdom from God, also righteousness and sanctification and release by ransom,” 1 Corinthians 1:30

“And yet that is what some of you were. But you have been washed clean; you have been sanctified; you have been declared righteous in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and with the spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:11

“But all things are from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of the reconciliation, namely, that God was by means of Christ reconciling a world to himself, not counting their offenses against them, and he entrusted to us the message of the reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors substituting for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us. As substitutes for Christ, we beg: ‘Become reconciled to God.’ The one who did not know sin, he made to be sin for us, so that by means of him we might become God’s righteousness.” 2 Corinthians 5:18-21

“so that in the name of Jesus every knee should bend—of those in heaven and those on earth and those under the ground—and every tongue should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:10-11

“What is more, I do indeed also consider all things to be loss on account of the excelling value of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have taken the loss of all things and I consider them as a lot of refuse, that I may gain Christ and be found in union with him, not because of my own righteousness from following the Law, but because of the righteousness that is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith.” Philippians 3:8-9

“Simon Peter, a slave and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have acquired a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and the Savior Jesus Christ (tou Theou hemon kai Soteros, ‘Iesou Christou):” 2 Peter 1:1(1)

The Apostle Peter employs a particular Greek construction that he uses four other times in his short epistle:

“In fact, in this way you will be richly granted entrance into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (tou Kyriou hemon kai Soteros, ‘Iesou Christou).” 2 Peter 1:11

“Certainly if after escaping from the defilements of the world by an accurate knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (tou Kyriou kai Soteros, ‘Iesou Christou), they get involved again with these very things and are overcome, their final state has become worse for them than the first.” 2 Peter 2:20

“that you should remember the sayings previously spoken by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior (tou Kyriou kai Soteros) through your apostles… No, but go on growing in the undeserved kindness and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (tou Kyriou hemon kai Soteros, ‘Iesou Christou). To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:2, 18

A JW should have no problem acknowledging that the inspired Apostle describes Jesus as our Lord and Savior who is to be glorified forever. In light of this, on what exegetical grounds would a JW then deny that Peter has identified Jesus as our God and Savior when he uses the exact same grammatical construction found in these four other instances?(1)

It is, therefore, clear that the NT writings proclaim that the man Christ Jesus is Jehovah God Almighty who saves, even though he is not the Father or the Holy Spirit.

I am not through just yet since I have more proof from the JW’s own Bible that Christ is Jehovah God in the flesh (https://islamunmasked.com/2020/07/30/jesus-and-jws-who-is-the-heavenly-king-that-comes-to-judge/).

Endnotes

(1) The particular Greek phrase which both Peter and Paul employed is known as a Granville Sharp construction, specifically Sharp’s first rule governing the use of the definite article in the Greek NT writings. This construction establishes beyond any reasonable doubt that the inspired Apostles are emphatically affirming that Jesus Christ is the great God and Savior of all believers, in fact, of all creation. As the following source explains:

20 tn The terms “God and Savior” both refer to the same person, Jesus Christ. This is one of the clearest statements in the NT concerning the deity of Christ. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. The only issue is whether terms such as “God” and “Savior” could be considered common nouns as opposed to proper names. Sharp and others who followed (such as T. F. Middleton in his masterful The Doctrine of the Greek Article) demonstrated that a proper name in Greek was one that could not be pluralized. Since both “God” (θεός, theos) and “savior” (σωτήρ, sōtēr) were occasionally found in the plural, they did not constitute proper names, and hence, do fit Sharp’s rule. Although there have been 200 years of attempts to dislodge Sharp’s rule, all attempts have been futile. Sharp’s rule stands vindicated after all the dust has settled. For more information on Sharp’s rule see ExSyn 270-78, esp. 276. See also 2 Pet 1:1 and Jude 4. (NET Bible https://netbible.org/bible/Titus+2; underline emphasis mine)

5 tn The terms “God and Savior” both refer to the same person, Jesus Christ. This is one of the clearest statements in the NT concerning the deity of Christ. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. In fact, the construction occurs elsewhere in 2 Peter, strongly suggesting that the author’s idiom was the same as the rest of the NT authors’ (cf., e.g., 1:11 [“the Lord and Savior”], 2:20 [“the Lord and Savior”]). The only issue is whether terms such as “God” and “Savior” could be considered common nouns as opposed to proper names. Sharp and others who followed (such as T. F. Middleton in his masterful The Doctrine of the Greek Article) demonstrated that a proper name in Greek was one that could not be pluralized. Since both “God” (θεός, theos) and “savior” (σωτήρ, sōtēr) were occasionally found in the plural, they did not constitute proper names, and hence, do fit Sharp’s rule. Although there have been 200 years of attempts to dislodge Sharp’s rule, all attempts have been futile. Sharp’s rule stands vindicated after all the dust has settled. For more information on the application of Sharp’s rule to 2 Pet 1:1, see ExSyn 272, 276-77, 290. See also Titus 2:13 and Jude 4. (Ibid. https://netbible.org/bible/2+Peter+1; underline emphasis mine)

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