The Watchtower Study, “Article 24”, Week August 8-14, 2022, No One Forgives Like Jehovah, Answers.

The Watchtower Study, “Article 24”, August 8-14, 2022, No One Forgives Like Jehovah, Answers.

1. What truth did King Solomon say in Ecclesiastes 7:20?

King Solomon said, "There is no one on earth who is just who always does good and never sins."

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We are all sinners. Therefore, we all need forgiveness from God and from others.

King Solomon said in this verse that we are all sinners, that is, we are imperfect and at some point we are going to fail, therefore we need to be forgiven.

In this text Solomon expresses a great truth, he said: “we are all sinners”. Because of this, it is necessary for us to seek forgiveness from God and from others.

2. How do we feel when a good friend forgives us?

We feel a great relief and we take a great joy.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We feel a great relief and we are happy to recover the friendship that was in danger.

Well, we feel a great relief and we feel enormously happy.

We feel happy, relieved that he has forgiven us and that we have resolved the situation, in this way, we can continue to maintain our friendship. 

3. What will we talk about in this article?

We will talk about the following questions: why can we be sure that he wants to forgive us? Why do we say that Jehovah's forgiveness is very different from that of human beings? And finally, whom does God forgive?

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

We may do or say something that Jehovah does not like, so we will talk about: Why can we be sure that he wants to forgive us? Why do we say that Jehovah's forgiveness is very different from that of human beings? And finally, who does God forgive?

In this article we will answer some questions like: Why can we be sure that he wants to forgive us? Why do we say that Jehovah's forgiveness is very different from that of human beings? And finally, who does God forgive?

In this article we will analyze the reasons why we can be sure that Jehovah wants to forgive us? Also, why do we say that Jehovah's forgiveness is very different from that of human beings? And, finally, we will see who does God forgive? 

JEHOVAH IS WILLING TO FORGIVE

4. Why can we be sure that Jehovah is willing to forgive?

“Jehovah, Jehovah, a merciful and compassionate God, patient and full of loyal love and truth, showing loyal love to thousands, forgiving mistakes, offenses and sins.”

 ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

His word the Bible says so. In Exodus 34:6,7 it says, "Who forgives mistakes, trespasses and sins," Jehovah is willing to forgive repentant sinners.

Because he himself tells us what kind of God he is, and he is merciful, compassionate and forgives mistakes, offenses and sins. In addition, we already have many cases in which Jehovah has forgiven in a great way, for example Nehemiah 9:17, reminds us that Jehovah was willing to forgive stubborn Israel.

5. According to Psalm 103:13, 14, how does Jehovah treat us because he knows us so well?

He is aware of each of the experiences that have influenced our way of being. Knowing us so thoroughly prompts him to show us mercy.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

He knows us in detail and knows what are the imperfections that we have inherited from our parents. He also knows all the experiences that have influenced our way of being, that's why he shows us mercy.

Since Jehovah knows every detail about us, and knows about our imperfections and our problems and experiences, then this makes him feel compelled to treat us with mercy.

In these texts the psalmist recognizes that Jehovah treats us with the same mercy that a compassionate father treats a son, at the same time, he reveals to us that another reason that drives him to be merciful is because: "remember that we are dust ». The creator knows every detail of us and takes into account each of the experiences that have influenced our way of being. Furthermore, he knows our inclination to sin, so he is "ready to forgive and show us mercy as long as we repent from the heart."  

ILLUSTRATION:

The words “He knows well how we are formed”, from Psalm 103:13, 14, appear next to a sister who is surrounded by photographs that collect her experiences from childhood to the present.

Jehovah is aware of everything that has influenced our way of being. (See paragraph 5).

6. How has Jehovah shown that he wants to forgive us?

As explained at John 3:16, out of love Jehovah sent his only-begotten Son to die for us. Jesus died in our place to free all who show faith in him.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

The greatest proof of this was that he sent his only begotten son to die for humanity, so that all who show faith in this sacrifice can be forgiven.

Because he understands that Adam introduced the curse of sin and death on all his descendants. He felt compassion to free us from sin. That is why he sent his only begotten son to die for us and all who show faith in him can be freed from this curse.

Jehovah has shown that he wants to forgive us because he allowed his Son Jesus to give his life as a sacrifice so that we can be freed from the curse of sin and death that fell on everyone because of Adam. What Hebrews 2:9 says makes us meditate on how valuable this "sacrifice and the great undeserved kindness of Jehovah" is, without these, no human being would have had the opportunity to be worthy of life or the forgiveness of our Creator .

7. Name some Bible characters that Jehovah generously forgave.

King Manasseh was very bad and committed very serious sins against Jehovah. And he even had the gall to put an idol in the temple of Jehovah, a holy place. But when Manasseh showed that he was truly sorry, Jehovah forgave him. King David, who fell into grave sins like adultery and murder. But, when David recognized his mistakes and repented from his heart, Jehovah also forgave him.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

To King Manasseh, he was a very bad king, he committed very serious sins against Jehovah, such as promoting the worship of false gods, he offered his own children in the fire as a sacrifice and even placed an idol in Jehovah's temple. But when he showed repentance Jehovah forgave him and even allowed him to be king again. Another case was King David who committed adultery and murder. He recognized his mistakes and repented from his heart and Jehovah also forgave him.

We have the case of King Manasseh, he committed many serious sins, for example, he promoted the worship of false gods and even burned his children as sacrifices, and put an idol in the temple of God, but when he reached a point where he was truly repentant, Jehovah forgave him to the degree that he became king again.

We also have the case of King David, he committed adultery and then murder, but when he sincerely repented for everything he had done, Jehovah forgave him, so with these two examples we can be sure that God forgives greatly.

One of them was King Manasseh, the Bible says that he: "He did what was wrong in the eyes of Jehovah on a large scale", for example, he promoted the worship of false gods, burned his own children and even had the nerve to bring an idol into the temple of Jehovah. However when he showed that he was truly sorry, Jehovah generously forgave him and even allowed him to be king again.

Another example is King David, he committed serious sins like adultery and murder. But, when he recognized his mistakes and repented from his heart, Jehovah also forgave him. These examples give us the assurance that Jehovah really wants to forgive us.   

JEHOVAH'S FORGIVENESS IS INCOMPARABLE

8. Why is Jehovah the best judge of all, and how does that affect his forgiveness?

A good judge has to know the law thoroughly. Before sentencing, he has to be able to take into account all the important factors in a case. In this sense, there is no one as qualified to be a judge as Jehovah.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

He thoroughly knows all the laws and can tell what is right from what is wrong. That is why before passing sentence he takes into account all the factors of a case, that is why he is the best judge of all.

A good judge has to know the laws perfectly, and in Jehovah's case this is so because he himself is the one who has established the laws, that is why he is our legislator and he also knows how to distinguish between good and bad, so before sentencing takes into account all important factors.

Jehovah is the best judge of all, because he is "The Supreme Legislator" who knows the laws thoroughly, therefore, he knows how to distinguish what is right from what is wrong. This influences the manner of sentencing him, since he has enough ability to take into account all the important factors of a case, which allows him to decide whether the person will receive a pardon from him or not.

9. What information does Jehovah have when deciding whether or not to forgive someone?

He always knows perfectly all the factors that influence the cases that come before him. He does not judge based only on what human beings see and hear.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

He understands very well how our DNA, our upbringing, the environment we live in and the state of mind we have influence our actions. He knows what our motivations, intentions and desires are, everything is exposed in his eyes. That is why his decision is based on each situation.

Jehovah has all the information he knows all the details of each case, so he does not get carried away by what he sees and hears, because he understands very well how they influence our actions, our upbringing, environment and emotional state, he also reads our hearts, bone, understands our motivations and desires.

Jehovah has complete information to decide whether to forgive someone or not, He has the ability to know in depth and perfectly all the factors that influence people to act in a certain way, no detail escapes him, he knows our DNA , our upbringing, the environment, our mental and emotional state. Furthermore, Jehovah reads hearts, as Hebrews 4:13 says "nothing is hidden from his sight, but all things are naked and fully exposed to his eyes."

10. Why can we say that Jehovah's decisions are always just? (Deuteronomy 32:4).

He is completely impartial. His forgiveness never depends on a person's appearance, economic situation, social position or capabilities.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

He is impartial. His forgiveness does not depend on a person's appearance, economic position, social position or abilities. He is not carried away by feelings. He cannot be pressured or bribed.

Because he is totally impartial, in addition his understanding of everything is perfect, also if forgiveness will never depend on the person's appearance or social position, much less allow himself to be pressured or bribed.

Because as Deuteronomy 32:4 says "He is the Rock, everything he does is perfect", therefore, his forgiveness will never depend on a person's appearance, economic situation, social position or capabilities. Without a doubt, Jehovah's decisions will always be just and upright, since "all his ways are justice." 

ILLUSTRATION:

The words “He is the Rock, everything he does is perfect” from Deuteronomy 32:4 appear next to a mountain range.

Jehovah is impartial and just. He cannot be bribed. (See paragraph 10).

11. Why is Jehovah's forgiveness incomparable?

 Only Jehovah has the power to completely forgive a repentant sinner. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

The writers of the Hebrew Scriptures used a Hebrew term which, according to one reference work, "is reserved especially to denote God's forgiveness of the sinner." This work adds: "It is never used to denote that inferior kind and measure of forgiveness which is exercised by one man towards another."

Because God's forgiveness cannot be compared to the forgiveness we give to another human being, since only our loving heavenly father has the power to completely forgive a sinner who shows repentance.

Because only Jehovah has the power to completely forgive a repentant sinner. In fact, the paragraph highlights a unique detail, it says that: sometimes the writers used a Hebrew term that, "is specially reserved to denote the forgiveness granted by God to the sinner, that term is never used to refer to the kind of forgiveness that it is exercised by 'one man towards another', which shows us that Jehovah's forgiveness is incomparable.   

12, 13. (a) What does a person who receives Jehovah's forgiveness enjoy? 

“times of relief”. And that includes peace of mind and a good conscience.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Relief is felt which includes peace of mind and a good conscience. We make his friends again, as if we had never sinned.

As the paragraph clearly says, he enjoys times of relief, that is, of peace of mind and a clear conscience, in addition to being forgiven by Jehovah, we can be his friends.

We enjoy true relief which includes peace of mind and a good conscience. As Acts 3:19 says, “it is the Lord who blots out our sins and makes times of relief come to us.”

b) Does Jehovah's forgiveness have an expiration date?

Jehovah places their sins “as far as the east is from the west.” Thinking of the immensity of his forgiveness awakens in us gratitude and reverence.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

When Jehovah forgives a person, he never again accuses or punishes him for what he did. He puts that person's sins "as far as east is from west."

Of course not, since when he forgives he never again accuses the person of his past sins. 

No. Jehovah assures us that when he forgives us, he never again accuses or punishes us for what we did. In Psalm 103:12 he says that He puts our sins "as far as the east is from the west," which means that when Jehovah forgives us, he removes the sins to the greatest distance imaginable.

WHO DOES JEHOVAH FORGIVE?

14. What have we learned so far about Jehovah's forgiveness?

We have learned that Jehovah's forgiveness does not depend on the seriousness of a sin. Jehovah uses the knowledge of him as our Creator.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

His forgiveness does not depend on the seriousness of a sin. He uses the knowledge of him as our creator, lawgiver and judge. When forgiving someone or not.

We have learned that Jehovah's forgiveness does not depend on the seriousness of a sin. Also, that He uses the knowledge of him as our Creator, Lawgiver and Judge in deciding whether or not he forgives someone.  

15. According to Luke 12:47, 48, what does Jehovah consider when deciding whether to forgive?

One thing that Jehovah takes into account is whether the sinner knew that what he was doing was wrong.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

If he knew that what he was doing was wrong. When you do something knowing that Jehovah does not approve, he may risk not being forgiven.

What it takes into account is whether the person who committed the sin knew that what he was doing was wrong, since when a person knowingly does something that Jehovah condemns, he is committing a very serious sin and is risking not being forgiven.

Jehovah takes into account if the sinner knew that what he was doing was wrong, He knows if ignorance was a factor that contributed to the person sinning. Contrary to that, if someone knowingly does things that He condemns, he commits a serious sin and risks not being forgiven by God.

16. What does it mean to repent, and why is it so important to do so?

It means changing your mind, attitude or goals. The repentant person feels remorse and deep sadness for the bad things he did. Jehovah only forgives someone if he sees proof that he is sorry.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

It means changing your mind, attitude or goals. He must feel remorse and deep sadness for what he did. And Jehovah only forgives people whom he sees in them as evidence that they are repentant.

Well, it means changing your mind, attitude and goals, also the person who is repentant feels remorse and even sadness for what he has committed, and feels bad for the spiritual state in which he is, which is practically what led him to commit sins, and it is very important to make changes because Jehovah will only forgive us if he sees proof that we are truly sorry.

It means that we feel real regret for having done something wrong or not doing something. Also, as our mind and heart condemn us, we feel remorse and sadness, which leads us to feel the desire to change our behavior and goals. In this regard, it is important to show with actions that we are repentant, it is not enough just to be sorry, because Jehovah only forgives someone if he sees evidence that he is repentant.

17. What is conversion, and how does it help us not to repeat the same sins? (Isaiah 55:7).

To convert is to turn, that is, to leave the evil path and begin to live as Jehovah. Let us not forget that in reality what makes it possible for Jehovah to forgive us and cleanse us from our sins is that we demonstrate faith in the sacrifice of Jesus.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

To convert is to turn or turn around, leave the bad path and begin to live as Jehovah wants. She must be determined to leave behind his bad thoughts and actions and when Jehovah sees that he is trying his best to change his behavior he forgives her considering the sacrifice of his son.

It is to convert or to turn around, that is, to leave the bad path and begin to live as Jehovah wishes, to transform the mind to be guided by the thoughts of God, then by doing this we are completely determined to leave behind all the bad thoughts and actions, like this We will not repeat the same sins again.

Conversion is "a turning, leaving the evil way and beginning to live as Jehovah wants." This free and voluntary act helps us not to repeat the same sins because we know that we have reoriented our life so that it is in harmony with Jehovah's thoughts, so we reject the evil path and we determine to undertake a correct course. As Isaiah 55:7 says when “Jehovah sees that we are trying to change our behavior”, he forgives us considering the sacrifice of Jesus. 

ILLUSTRATION:

The words “He will forgive generously,” from Isaiah 55:7, appear next to a brother. In the background, he looks very downcast. In the foreground he looks happy and calm.

We can trust that Jehovah will forgive us if we repent from the heart. (See paragraphs 16 and 17).

TRUST JEHOVAH WILL FORGIVE YOU

18. What have we learned about Jehovah's forgiveness?

First, Jehovah is always willing to forgive. Second, Jehovah is the one who can best see if we are repentant from the heart. And, third, Jehovah forgives makes a clean slate. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Jehovah is always ready to forgive. He knows everything about us and sees if we are sorry from the heart. And when Jehovah forgives he wipes the slate clean allowing us to have a good conscience and his approval.

We have learned that he is always willing to forgive us, his forgiveness is unmatched because he knows everything about us and he is the one who can see if we are sorry from the heart and finally we learned that when Jehovah forgives he wipes the slate clean and does not remind us of our mistakes.

We have learned that in the entire universe there is no one who forgives like Jehovah. The first reason is because He is always willing to forgive. Second, because He knows everything about us so He can see if we are truly sorry. And, third, because when Jehovah forgives he wipes the slate clean. Thanks to that we can have a good conscience and approval of him. 

19. Why can we be happy even though we will continue to sin because of imperfection?

Insight gives us comfort in the Scriptures, volume 1, page 209: “Since Jehovah has mercy, these do not need to be in a constant condition of remorse. If you conscientiously walk in the ways of God, you can feel joyful.”

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

"Since Jehovah has mercy on the carnal weaknesses of his servants, they need not be in a constant condition of remorse because of the mistakes they make because of their inherent imperfection.."

Because as the insight book says, Jehovah will always have mercy on our fleshly weaknesses so we do not need to be in a constant condition of remorse, so if we walk conscientiously in the ways of our God we can feel joyful.

We can be happy because we know that Jehovah does not condemn us for all the mistakes we make, if so, none of us could stand. Our merciful God knows how hard it is to fight against inherent sin and realizes that we strive to do his will, so it comforts us to know that "Jehovah is the God of undeserved kindness." 

20. What will we see in the next article?

In the next article we will answer the following questions: How can we imitate your example? What similarities and differences are there between Jehovah's forgiveness and ours? And why is it important to understand this? 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

How can we imitate his example? What similarities and differences are there between Jehovah's forgiveness and ours? And why is it important to understand this?

We will see how we can imitate the example of Jehovah, what similarities and differences there are between the forgiveness that Jehovah gives and the one that we give, and we will also analyze why it is important to understand all this well.

We will see: how can we imitate Jehovah's example? What similarities and differences are there between Jehovah's forgiveness and ours? And why is it important to understand this?

WHAT DID WE LEARN ABOUT JEHOVAH'S FORGIVENESS FROM THESE TEXTS?

Psalm 103:13, 14

So you can see all the imperfections that we have inherited from our parents. And that's not all. He is aware of each of the experiences that have influenced our way of being.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

He shows us mercy by understanding the imperfections we have inherited from our parents. And he knows the experiences that have influenced our way of being.

Since Jehovah knows every detail about us, and knows about our imperfections and our problems and experiences, then this makes him feel compelled to treat us with mercy.

In these texts we learned that «Jehovah treats us with the same mercy that a compassionate father treats a son», at the same time, reveals to us that another reason that drives him to be merciful is because: «he remembers that we are dust », knows our inclination to sin, therefore, is «ready to forgive and show us mercy whenever we repent from the heart».

Deuteronomy 32:4

Without a doubt, Jehovah is the best Judge there is because his understanding of us and our circumstances is perfect.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

His decisions are always fair. He cannot be pressured or bribed. He is not carried away by appearances, economic condition, social position, etc.

What we learn is that Jehovah is totally impartial, in addition his understanding of everything is perfect, also if forgiveness will never depend on the appearance or social position of a person, much less allow himself to be pressured or bribed.

This text says that "Jehovah is the Rock, everything he does is perfect", therefore we learned that his forgiveness never depends on a person's appearance, economic situation, social position or abilities. Without a doubt, some of Jehovah's decisions will always be just and upright, since "all his ways are justice." 

Isaiah 55:7

When a person knowingly does something that God condemns and that is evil, he commits a serious sin. This person risks not being forgiven by Jehovah. But we must admit that sometimes we realize that we did something wrong. 

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

What we learn is that in order for Jehovah to forgive us, we must stop our wrongdoing and repent of our sins.

Jehovah expects the sinner to transform his mind and leave the bad path and start doing things as Jehovah wants. When Jehovah sees that they are trying their best he forgives him considering the sacrifice of his son.

In this text we learned that "Jehovah wants us to turn around and leave the evil way and start living as He wants." When he sees that we are trying our best to change our behavior, he forgives us in light of Jesus' sacrifice.