Genesis 1:2 “Now the earth proved to be formless and waste and there was darkness upon the surface of [the] watery deep; and God’s active force was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters.” (NWT)
The website says: The Hebrew phrase, weruach elohim, is literally “the Spirit of God,” but Jehovah’s Witnesses reject the idea of a being known as the Holy Spirit, so verses where the Spirit is active are modified.
Reply: It should be noted that the idea of a being known as the Holy Spirit is a later belief. We got our Hebrew Old Testament (the Masoretic text) and the Greek Old Testament (the Septuagint) from the Jews, and they did not believe in the idea of a being known as the Holy Spirit. "In Judaism, Holy Spirit (ruach ha-kodesh) refers to the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the universe or over God's creatures." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Spirit_in_Judaism
Naturally, this then would be reflected in the text of the Old Testament.*
The website says: Interestingly, in other passages where ruach appears, such as Genesis 6:3 and 41:38, they retain the translation “spirit,” though they make sure not to capitalize the word.
Reply: The website seems to have cherry-picked a couple of verses from Genesis in order to make their point, but the bigger picture exposes their lack of knowledge in this area. Please take note of the following occurrences of the word Ruach in Genesis, using the New Revised Standard Version, The King James Version, the New American Bible and the New World Translation:
Genesis 1:2
NRSV: a wind from God
KJV: the Spirit of God
NAB: a mighty wind
NWT: God’s active force
Genesis 3:8
NRSV: in the garden at the time of the evening breeze
KJV: in the garden in the cool of the day:
NAB: in the garden at the breezy time of the day
NWT: in the garden about the breezy part of the day
Genesis 6:3
NRSV: My spirit shall not abide in mortals forever
KJV: said, My spirit shall not always
NAB: My spirit shall not remain in man forever
NWT: My spirit shall not act toward man indefinitely
Genesis 6:17
NRSV: in which is the breath of life
KJV: all flesh, wherein [is] the breath of life,
NAB: in which there is the breath of life
NWT: in which the force of life is active
Genesis 7:15
NRSV: in which there was the breath of life
KJV: wherein [is] the breath of life.
NAB: in which there was the breath of life
NWT: in which the force of life was active
Genesis 7:22
NRSV: in whose nostrils was the breath of life
KJV: in whose nostrils was the breath of life
NAB: with the faintest breath of life in its nostrils
NWT: in which the breath of the force of life was active in its nostrils
Genesis 8:1
NRSV: And God made a wind blow
KJV: and God made a wind to pass over
NAB: God made a wind sweep over
NWT: and God caused a wind to pass over
Genesis 26:35
NRSV: and they made life bitter for Isaac
KJV: Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac
NAB: they became a source of embitterment to Isaac
NWT: they were a source of bitterness of spirit to Isaac
Genesis 41:8
NRSV: In the morning his spirit was troubled
KJV: in the morning that his spirit was troubled;
NAB: Next morning his spirit was agitated
NWT: in the morning that his spirit became agitated
Genesis 41:38
NRSV: one in whom is the spirit of God
KJV: in whom the Spirit of God
NAB: endowed with the spirit of God
NWT: in whom the spirit of God
Genesis 45:27
NRSV: to carry him, the spirit of their father
KJV: to carry him, the spirit of Jacob
NAB: the spirit of their father Jacob
NWT: the spirit of Jacob their father
As you can see, when the word "spirit" is actually used, the NRSV and NAB also made sure not to capitalize the word either. Is it because of some sinister agenda? The word spirit has many meanings, as you can see even in an Evangelical Bible like the New American Standard Version which translates Ruach as... air (2 times), anger (1 time), blast (2 times), breath (31 times), breathless (1 time), cool (1 time), courage (1 time), despondency (1 times), exposed (1 time), grief (1 time), heart (1 time), inspired (1 time), mind (3 times), motives (1 time), points (1 time), quick-tempered (1 time), side (4 times), sides (2 times), Spirit (76 times), spirit (127 times), spirits (3 times), strength (1 times), temper (2 times), thoughts (1 times), trustworthy (1 times), wind (98 times), winds (7 times), windy (2 times) and wrath (1 time).
*"Spirit in the Old Testament was originally wind and breath. To the ancient Israelite it meant the breath of life, and since Yahweh was the living God and the giver of life He was called spirit...the spirit of Yahweh has many functions. It is a creative force and a spirit of judgement..." The Triune God: A Historical Study of the Doctrine of the Trinity By Edmund J. Fortman (read the entire section at https://tinyurl.com/Spirit-Fortman )
See also: Answering Questions on the holy spirit
https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2018/01/answering-questions-on-holy-spirit.html
The Holy Spirit-Active Force or the 3rd Person of the Trinity?
https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-holy-spirit-active-force-or-3rd.html
May the Force Be With You: Genesis 1:2 and the Word "Spirit"
https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2018/06/may-force-be-with-you-genesis-12-and.html
Genesis 1:2 and the spirit of God in various translations of the Bible
https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2019/10/genesis-12-and-spirit-of-god-in-various.html
Buy: And the Word was a god: A New Book on the Most Disputed Text in the New Testament - John 1:1 and The Dark History of the Trinity, is now available on Amazon by clicking here...and both are only 99 cents
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