"In its own version of the Bible, called the New World Translation, we read, 'You made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.' This is an example of how the Watch Tower organization changes the Scriptures to fit their theology. All recognized translations of Holy Scripture are rendered to the effect that the kings rule upon the earth, not over it. For example, the New American Standard Bible reads at Revelation 5:10, 'Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.' The King James Version renders the final part of the verse 'We shall reign on the earth.' The Living Bible renders it 'They shall reign upon the earth.' Today's English Version, the New International Version, Phillips Modern English, the Revised Standard Version, and The New English Bible all translate the final phrase 'on' or 'upon' the earth. In 1969 the Watch Tower organization produced The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures. They took the original Greek text and rendered a word-for-word translation in English underneath each line. Then in a parallel column they provided the English text, using their New World Translation. The translation printed directly underneath the original Greek words for Revelation 5:10 reads, 'and they are reigning upon the earth.' Nevertheless, the New World Translation printed alongside reads, 'and they are to rule as kings over the earth.' The reason we have gone to such length with this example is to show that the Watch Tower organization will torture even the most obvious biblical rendering to fit their theo1ogy."
Reply: Such damning language, and such ignorance.
The word here in the Greek for ON/OVER is EPI which can mean over as well as ON or UPON.
What have scholars and resources said about this word?
"Our best Greek scholars prefer rendering the preposition 'epi,' over, and then it will read, 'we shall reign over the earth.'" The Earthen Vessel and Christian Record & Review, Volumes 12-14 (Baptist) 1856
Thayer's Lexicon gives the following definitions for EPI: "1) upon, on, at, by, before 2) of position, on, at, by, over, against 3) to, over, on, at, across, against"
Strong's gives the following definitions: "A primary preposition properly meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etc.), as a relation of distribution [with the genitive case], that is, over, upon, etc.; of rest (with the dative case) at, on, etc.; of direction (with the accusative case) towards, upon, etc.: - about (the times), above, after, against, among, as long as (touching), at, beside, X have charge of, (be-, [where-]) fore, in (a place, as much as, the time of, -to), (because) of, (up-) on (behalf of) over, (by, for) the space of, through (-out), (un-) to (-ward), with. In compounds it retains essentially the same import, at, upon, etc. (literally or figuratively)."
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary remarks: "Kelly translates, "reign over the earth" (Greek, "epi tees gees"), which is justified by the Greek (Septuagint, Jud 9:8; Mt 2:22)."
Edward D. Andrews (BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, MDiv in Theology) writes: "I do believe that the English is a problem in trying to say, 'They shall reign on the earth.' First, because it is not a location issue i.e. where. The genitive EPI is dealing not with where, but with authority over, which is expressed by having it over - not on."
Robert Bratcher in A Handbook on the Revelation to John adds: "The verb "to reign" is properly used of Kings and Queens, and here implies complete power over the world and its inhabitants. So another way of expressing this is 'and they shall rule over the world and its inhabitants' or 'they shall have power over...'"
Let us look at how the New American Standard Bible translated EPI as OVER in the Book of Revelation:
Rev. 1:7 and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him.
Rev 2:26 TO HIM I WILL GIVE AUTHORITY OVER THE NATIONS
Rev 6:8 Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth
Rev 7:15 and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.
Rev 9:11 They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss.
Rev 11:6 and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood.
Rev 11:10 And those who dwell on the earth [will] rejoice over them.
Rev 13:7 It was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him.
Rev 14:16 Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth.
Rev 14:18 Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar
Rev 16:9 Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues.
Rev 17:18 "The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth."
Rev 18:9 "And the kings of the earth, who committed [acts of] immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning"
Rev 18:11 And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her
Rev 18:20 Rejoice over her, O heaven
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power
And there are 4 other times where EPI(over) is used with BASILEUO (to rule) and most versions render it as "over." Here they are according to the New American Standard Bible:
Luke 1:33 - "He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”
Luke 19:14 - "We do not want this man to reign over us."
Luke 19:27 - "But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them"
Romans 5:14 - "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam"
That is why other versions use "over the earth" at Rev 5:10 like the Darby Bible, the Simple English Bible, Williams NT, Literal Translation of the Holy Bible, Beck's translation, Amplified Bible, Smith & Goodspeed's Bible, the Modern King James Version. the Holy Bible in Modern English by Ferrar Fenton, The Holy Bible Knox Translation, Aramaic Bible in Plain English, Exposition of the Revelation of Jesus Christ By Walter Scott, Simple English Bible, The New Testament in the Language of Today by William F. Beck, The New Testament Rendered from the Original Greek by Kleist & Lilly, The Revelation: Verse by Verse Study By Oliver B. Greene and Weymouth's NT
All the ex-Witnesses like Leonard & Marjorie Chretien have shown here is that the New World Translation, yet again, proves to be a superior translation of the Bible.
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