Jehovah's Witnesses
Catholic
Mormon
SDA
JW
Preliminary
Strategy
Genesis 9:4
Isaiah 43:10
Matt. 23:37,38
Matt. 24:3
Rev. 7:4; 14:3
British Israel
Church
of Christ
Pentecostal
Islam
Common
Trinity
Soul
Heaven
Hell
Satan/Demons
"Saved"
Baptism
Resurrection
Antichrist
Science
Miracles
Evolution
Creation
Carbon
Dating
Inspiration
Partial
Contradictions
& Inaccuracies
- Daniel 10:13, 21
- "But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia."
- "But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and [there is] none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince."
- Daniel 12:1
- "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation [even] to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.
"
- Problem:
- These verses are cited by J.W.'s to support the doctrine that Jesus Christ was a mere angel, who was somehow "born" as a human at a later date, died as a sacrifice for sins, and was raised up from the dead as an angel once again. They refer to him as "Jesus Christ, whom we understand from the Scriptures to be Michael the archangel..." 1
-
- Solution:
- The Bible mentions Michael five times: (1) "one of the chief
princes" (Daniel 10:13); (2) "your prince" (Daniel
10:21); (3) "the great prince which standeth for the children of thy
people" (Dan. 12:1); (4) "the archangel" that had
a dispute over "the body of Moses" (Jude 9); and (5) a
participant in a heavenly conflict with the dragon (Revelation
12:7). In none of these passages is Michael ever described as the
Christ, nor called Jesus.
- The JW's doctrines regarding Jesus have changed over the years.
For instance, in 1879 they denied that Christ could be Michael the
Archangel! From their own Watchtower magazine, the official
mouthpiece of the organization, we find these words:
Hence it is said, "Let all the angels of God worship him"; [that must include Michael, the chief angel, hence Michael is not the Son of God] and the reason is, because he has "by inheritance obtained a more excellent Name than they." 2 (brackets theirs). This is just one example of how the JWs have changed their doctrines over the years.
- The book of Hebrews makes it clear that no angel has ever been called
THE Son of God: "For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?"
(Hebrews 1:5). The Son of God was superior to the angels: "Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they."
(Heb. 1:4)
- The JWs also attempt to use 1 Thessalonians 4:16 for their support, even though the name Michael cannot be found there: "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first." The JWs conclude that since "the Lord" descends "with the voice of the archangel" that the Lord must be the archangel Michael. Using the same faulty logic, however, we could come to the conclusion that Jesus is God, since Jesus is described in 1 Thes. 4:16 as returning "with the trump of God". Surely the JWs don't want us to believe that Jesus is God, do they? The very logic they use to prove that Jesus is Michael also disproves the very thing they are trying to prove!