Jehovah's Witnesses in Georgia

Jehovah's Witnesses—Who Are They?

Jehovah's WITNESSES sincerely desire that you become better acquainted with them. You may have met them as neighbors, fellow employees, or schoolmates. Most likely you have been greeted by them on the street while they were talking with people about the Bible. Or you may have enjoyed their personal visit at your home.

Jehovah's Witnesses are Christians, and they face the same economic, physical, and emotional problems as everyone else. In all their activities, they seek guidance from the Holy Bible, and they try to be exemplary in Christian conduct not just with fellow Witnesses but with everyone. Being imperfect, they do not always succeed 100 percent. Yet, it is the desire of their hearts to do good to all people and to extend a helping hand whenever possible.

The Witnesses believe that the entire Bible, which includes the "Old Testament" as well as the "New Testament," is God's Word. (1 Thessalonians 2:3) When it comes to teachings offered as Bible truth, they encourage people to follow the course of some of the inhabitants of Beroea in ancient Macedonia, who heard the apostle Paul preach. The historical account relates that "they received the word with the greatest eagerness of mind, carefully examining the Scriptures daily as to whether these things were so."—Acts 17:11.

Their Name—Jehovah's Witnesses

The name Jehovah's Witnesses is descriptive. It is based on the statement at chapter 43, verse 10, of the Bible book of Isaiah, which says: "'You are my witnesses,' is the utterance of Jehovah." Since all of Jehovah's Witnesses have dedicated their lives to God, they bear witness concerning his name, his Godship, and his purposes.

A careful reading of the Bible will show you that Jehovah is the personal name of the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Many Bible translators and scholars use the name Jehovah in their Bible translations and religious books. For example, in the book Divine Law, Archbishop Nestor quotes the Bible passage recorded at 1 Kings 18:39, which says: "Jehovah is the God!" In a Russian-language portion of the Bible translated by Gerasim Petrovich Pavsky and published by the Russian Bible Society in 1822, we find the divine name, Jehovah, in the book of Psalms. At Psalm 83, verse 18, we read: "That people may know that you, whose name is Jehovah, you alone are the Most High over all the earth."

The Divine Name
in Georgian Literature

Many Georgian contemporary writers and poets were well acquainted with the divine name, Jehovah. For example, Ilia Chavchavadze uses the divine name in his translation of Byron's Cain . Konstantine Gamsakhurdia uses the name Jehovah in several of his works: David the Builder, The Apology of Rustaveli, and Leonardo da Vinci. The divine name appears in the lyrics of Hebrew Melody and The Vanity Is Immortal, by Titsian Tabidze. Both Condrate Tatarishvili, in his novel Sholty, and Merab Costava, in his book Reflections on the Mission of Georgia, mention the divine name.

Although modern Georgian Bibles do not use the divine name, Jehovah, the 1992 Georgian Church Calendar, page 203, footnote, says: "In the Georgian Genesis [in the old Georgian, the whole Bible was called Genesis] the divine name, Jehovah, is translated by the titles Lord and God."

"God," "Lord," and "Creator"—like "president," "king," and "general"—are titles and may be applied to several different people. Titles are neither personal nor distinctive. However, the name Jehovah identifies the true God as a real person. Hence, the more than 5,800,000 of Jehovah's Witnesses in over 230 lands are today telling the good news of God's heavenly Kingdom by his Son, Christ Jesus, and they are using God's name regularly in their worship.

Jehovah's Witnesses use the form "Jehovah," which people have been familiar with for centuries.

The German scholar and professor Gustav Friedrich Oehler supported the usage of "Jehovah" in his work Theology of the Old Testament, page 143, which says: "From this point onward I use the word Jehovah, because, as a matter of fact, this name has now become more naturalized in our vocabulary, and cannot be supplanted."

God's name has been in use throughout history, even down to this day. It is noteworthy that God's name, written in the Hebrew letters of the Bible (Tetragrammaton), has been a part of the decoration of many religious buildings, indicating that it is not a new term but, rather, a well-established name that goes back to Bible times.

The divine name written in Hebrew letters is featured in a Catholic church built in Tbilisi in 1877