Detailed Personal Bible Study

    This Detailed Personal Bible Study includes a great deal of supplementary information from the Kingdom Interlinear Translation regarding the specific words used in the Greek text, verifiable dates for both Hebrew and Greek words, and information regarding the use of the Tetragrammaton in Hebrew versions.

    Nonetheless, it is a personal Bible study in which you will need no other reference books aside from the Kingdom Interlinear Translation which we would encourage you to use for your Greek Scripture text. You will only need to read the interlinear English translation and compare it with the New World Translation side-bar text. However, you will want to look at the Greek words Kyrios (or Theos) in each of the verses you study. You will also want to read the "J" footnote at the bottom of the page. Of course, you will also use your New World Translation as you study the Hebrew Scripture passages.

    Your objective in this study is to evaluate each of the 237 occurrences of "Jehovah" in the Christian Scriptures. In those instances where a Hebrew Scripture passage is cited, you will particularly want to compare each Christian Scripture verse with the Hebrew Scripture passage from which it was quoted. Ask yourself why the Christian Scripture author chose that particular verse to quote, and what the verse is actually saying about Jehovah in the Hebrew Scriptures. You will soon discover that it becomes very important to determine whether or not the Tetragrammaton (יהוה) or the Greek word Kyrios (Κύριος) (Lord) was used in the original writing of the Christian Scriptures. Study each "J" reference note carefully, considering the date of each Hebrew version and Greek manuscript. (The date for each Hebrew version's translation and the Greek manuscript is given in the front of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation in the section Explanation of the Symbols Used.)

    You may also want to read the introduction to the simpler accompanying Personal Bible Study for additional suggestions.

    This Detailed Personal Bible Study is also downloadable in both PDF format for easy printing and Microsoft Word format so that you can work with the text. For additional information, refer to Appendices A, B, and C from the book THE TETRAGRAMMATON AND THE CHRISTIAN GREEK SCRIPTURES.

    Appendix A: "J" Reference Sources

    Appendix B: Comparison of 237 Jehovah References

    Appendix C: Kyrios in the Christian Greek Scriptures

    See Table 8 from Appendix C for an explanation of the grammatical functions represented in the multiple spellings of the Greek word Kyrios (Κύριος).

[1] Early Greek manuscripts do not bear precise dates. The section entitled EXPLANATION OF THE SYMBOLS USED in the foreword of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation lists the most probable date of each Greek manuscript. (Generally the listing is by century, though in rare cases it is more precise.) To give a more understandable comparison with the adjacent column which precisely dates Hebrew versions, the century designation is given as a date range. That is, the 4th century C.E. is written as 301-400.

[2] In keeping with recognized Greek capitalization style, the Westcott and Hort Greek text of the Christian Greek Scriptures uses an upper-case (capital) letter only for a proper noun (a name) and the beginning of a quotation. The capitalization style of the Westcott and Hort text used in the Kingdom Interlinear Translation text has been followed in the appendix.

[3] Bold type identifies the reference as coming from J20 wherein the divine name is listed. In all cases, where multiple cross references are possible, preference is given to the citation found in J20. For this reason, not all references will correspond to those given in the center reference column of the New World Translation Reference Edition. Not all Hebrew Scripture quotations shown in J20 are cited in the KIT footnotes or Appendix 1D in the NWT Reference Edition. (For example, see Mark 1:3.)

[4] Refer to footnote 2 for an explanation of capitalization of Greek words. The Greek word qeou' (God) is written with a lower-case theta (q). Though not occurring in any of the references cited in this appendix, the upper-case theta is written Q.

[5] The noun identified in the English text as Kyrios is shown in this appendix with five spelling variations (kurivou, kuvrio", kurivw/, kuvrie, and kuvrion). In the Greek language, the noun must agree (or be identified) with its function in the sentence. This is achieved by spelling variations in the suffix (ending letters) of the word. Thus, each of the forms of the word Kyrios in this appendix is the same root word in the Greek language, though the spelling is altered according to the grammatical function of the word in the Greek sentence. The same is true of the variations in the spelling of Theos (qeov" [God]). (See Appendix C for an identification of the function of each of these Greek word forms.)

[6] Refer to footnote number 2 regarding upper- and lower-case first letters.

[7] The "X" indication in this column denotes that the Hebrew verse cited does not support or offer any parallel thought to the Jehovah wording. No cross reference is indicated for Greek Scripture citations.

[8] This passage is shown in the Bodmer 14 and 15 (P75) manuscripts showing a date of circa 200 C.E. The Bodmer 14 and 15 manuscripts record no use of the Tetragrammaton. Thus, the Greek entry of Kyrios as shown was used in approximately 200 C.E. ("All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial," p. 312, 1983 edition. Also see the Kingdom Interlinear Translation, 1985, p. 15.) The date of 301-400 C.E. used in this appendix reflects the date shown in the footnote of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation which is restricted to Greek manuscripts aAB.

[9] Possessive forms are not indicated in this appendix. In all cases, "Jehovah's" is indicated as "Jehovah." This entry procedure has been followed inasmuch as the English sentence may express the possessive as either "Jehovah's" or "of Jehovah."

[10] This passage is shown in both the Bodmer 14 and 15 (P75) manuscripts (see footnote 8 above) and the Bodmar 2 (P66) manuscript also showing a date of circa 200 C.E. The Bodmer 2 manuscript records no use of the Tetragrammaton. Thus, the Greek entry of Kyrios as shown was used in approximately 200 C.E. as attested by multiple ancient Greek manuscripts. ("All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial," p. 312, 1983 edition. Also see the Kingdom Interlinear Translation, 1985, p. 15.) The date of 301-400 C.E. used in this appendix reflects the date shown in the footnote of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation which is restricted to Greek manuscripts aAB.

[11] See footnote in the New World Translation Reference Edition for this verse.

[12] The suffix ...ato (from the Greek word evphggeivlato) is the third person singular, masculine, past (aorist) tense ending for the Greek verb which is translated "promised" in the text. The verb ending agrees with the subject kurivou in verse 8 which is translated as "Jehovah." Thus, evphggeivlato is translated in verse 12 as "Jehovah promised."

[13] This passage is shown in the Bodmer 7 and 8 manuscripts (together classified as P72) dating from the 3rd century C.E. Bodmer 7 and 8 manuscripts record no use of the Tetragrammaton. Thus, the Greek entry of Kyrios is verified by P72 as dating from 201 to 300 C.E. ("All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial," p. 313.) The date of 301-400 C.E. used in this appendix reflects the date shown in the foreword material of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation.

[14] This passage is shown in the Chester Beatty 3 (P47) manuscript dating from the 3rd century C.E. The Chester Beatty 3 manuscript records no use of the Tetragrammaton. Thus, the Greek entry of Kyrios is verified by P47 as dating from 201 to 300 C.E. ("All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial," p. 313.) The date of 301-400 C.E. used in this appendix reflects the date shown in the foreword material of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation.

[15] The total number of Hebrew Scripture quotations appearing in the 237 Jehovah references includes inclusively the 42 J20 citations, the 50 other citations, and the 20 references in the following column citing verses which refer to the divine name even though the name is not found in the particular Hebrew Scripture verse per se. Thus, 112 is the correct total for this category.

[16] The total of 58 includes all instances of subject or parallel-thought Jehovah cross references.

[17] The New World Translation "reinstates the divine name in the Christian Greek Scriptures" on the basis that the Tetragrammaton is found in a verse quoted from the Hebrew Scriptures. This is quite different from a criteria which would allow reinstating the divine name on the basis of parallel thought or wording cross references. Thus, when considering only the criteria of verses quoted which employed the divine name, the 64 and 61 of the last two columns can be combined, giving a total of 125 references which use Jehovah in the Greek Scriptures of the New World Translation without a quotation source in the Hebrew Scriptures.

[18] The total of 64 includes all instances of Jehovah cross references irrespective of the content of that citation, and inclusive of the 58 previously tabulated.

Note 1: The summary totals expressed in footnotes 14 and 15 must be used cautiously. Aside from the J20 citations which can be counted with certainty, the distinction between such categories as, 1) Hebrew Scripture quotation using the divine name, 2) Hebrew Scripture quotation referring to the divine name, 3) Cross reference citation only, and 4) No quotation or reference to the Hebrew Scriptures are difficult to assign with certainty. Consequently, the numbers given in summary of these categories do not represent absolute values. The reader is encouraged to do his own search to determine the appropriateness of the assignment of each of the 237 references to any one of the various tabulated columns.

Note 2: The value of the number 20 in footnote 13 is as significant as the values of the figures 42 and 50 in the previous column. That is, a Greek Scripture writer is able to faithfully attribute a quotation to "Jehovah" when the divine name is contextually understood, even though the Hebrew Scripture source does not actually use the divine name in the verse itself. Thus, the number of times a Hebrew Scripture verse containing the divine name is quoted by a Greek Scripture writer is 112. The division between the two columns was made for interest and precision, but does not represent a difference in importance.