forms part of the issue between Jehovah God and Satan is clear from God’s questioning his adversary about Job when Satan appeared during an angelic assembly in the courts of heaven. Satan imputed false motive to Job’s worship of God, alleging that Job served not out of pure devotion but for selfish benefits. He thereby placed in question Job’s integrity to God. Permitted to divest Job of his vast possessions and even of his children, Satan failed to crack Job’s integrity. (1:6–2:3) He then claimed that Job was selfishly willing to endure the loss of possessions and children as long as he could save his own skin. (2:4, 5) Thereafter stricken with a painful, consuming disease, subjected to dissuasion from his own wife and to disparaging criticism and slurs from companions who misrepresented God’s standards and purposes (2:6-13; 22:1, 5-11), Job’s response was: “Until I expire I shall not take away my integrity from myself! On my justness I have laid hold, and I shall not let it go; my heart will not taunt me for any of my days.” (27:5, 6) His maintaining integrity demonstrated that God’s adversary was a liar.

Satan’s challenging statements in Job’s case show he held the position that all persons could be drawn away from God’s side, that none served out of a purely unselfish motive. Thus humans, as well as God’s spirit sons, have the remarkable privilege of contributing to the vindication and sanctification of God’s name and demonstrating their support of Jehovah’s sovereignty, doing so by a course of integrity. The ones “blameless in their way are a pleasure” to Jehovah.—Prov. 11:20; contrast this with the false view advanced by Eliphaz at Job 22:1-3.

Basis for divine judgment

God’s favorable judgment is dependent on the creature’s integrity-keeping course. (Ps. 18:23-25) As King David wrote: “Jehovah himself will pass sentence on the peoples. Judge me, O Jehovah, according to my righteousness and according to my integrity in me. Please, may the badness of wicked ones come to an end, and may you establish the righteous one.” (Ps. 7:8, 9; compare Proverbs 2:21, 22.) Suffering Job expressed the confidence that “[Jehovah] will weigh me in accurate scales and God will get to know my integrity.” (Job 31:6) Job thereafter lists about a dozen examples from actual life that, if true of him, would have demonstrated a lack of integrity.—Vss. 7-40.

Possible for imperfect humans

Since all men are imperfect and unable to measure up perfectly to God’s standards, it is evident that their integrity does not mean perfection of action or speech. Rather, the Scriptures show it means wholeness of completeness of heart devotion. David, through weakness, committed several serious wrongs, but he, nevertheless, ‘walked with integrity of heart’ (1 Ki. 9:4), for he accepted reproof and corrected his way. He thereby proved that his heart still retained genuine love for Jehovah God. (Ps. 26:1-3, 6, 8, 11) As David later told his son Solomon: “Know the God of your father and serve him with a complete heart and with a delightful soul; for all hearts Jehovah is searching, and every inclination of the thoughts he is discerning.” Solomon’s heart, however, did not “prove to be complete with Jehovah his God like the heart of David his father.”—1 Chron. 28:9; 1 Ki. 11:4; the word “complete” in these two texts is from another Hebrew term, sha·lemʹ, as at Proverbs 11:1; 1 Kings 15:14.

Integrity is therefore not restricted to any one aspect of human conduct; it does not apply just to matters obviously “religious.” For God’s servant it is a way of life in which the individual ‘walks,’ constantly searching to know Jehovah’s will. (Ps. 119:1-3) David shepherded the nation of Israel “according to the integrity of his heart,” both in matters directly relating to Jehovah’s worship and in his conduct of governmental affairs. He also desired those around him and those acting as his ministers likewise to be persons of integrity, “walking in a faultless way.” (Ps. 78:72; 101:2-7) One ‘proves himself faultless’ before God over a period of time, as did Noah, Abraham and others.—Gen. 6:9; 17:1; 2 Sam. 22:24.

Integrity requires uncompromising loyalty to God and adherence to righteousness, not merely under favorable conditions or circumstances, but under all conditions and at all times. After stressing that only the integrity-keeper, “speaking the truth in his heart,” is acceptable to Jehovah, the psalmist says of such a one that “he has sworn to what is bad for himself, and yet he does not alter,” that is, even if something he has solemnly agreed to turns out to be apparently against his personal interests, he still stays true to his agreement. (Ps. 15:1-5; contrast Romans 1:31, 1 Timothy 1:10.) Integrity, then, is most evident when the individual’s devotion is under test and he is pressured to abandon his righteous course. Though made a laughingstock by opposers (Job 12:4; compare Jeremiah 20:7), or the object of their bitter speech (Ps. 64:3, 4), hatred and violent persecution (Prov. 29:10; Amos 5:10), in sickness or distressful adversity, one must ‘hold fast his integrity’ as did Job, no matter what the cost.—Job 2:3.

Such an integrity-keeping course is possible, not by the individual’s personal moral strength, but only through deep faith and trust in Jehovah and his saving power. (Ps. 25:21) God’s promise is that he will be a “shield” and “stronghold,” guarding the way of those walking in integrity. (Prov. 2:6-8; 10:29; Ps. 41:12) Their constant concern for gaining Jehovah’s approval brings stability to their lives, enabling them to follow a straight course to their goal. (Ps. 26:1-3; Prov. 11:5; 28:18) Though, as Job perplexedly observed, the blameless may suffer due to the rule of the wicked and may die along with the wicked, Jehovah assures that he is aware of the life of the faultless one and guarantees that such one’s inheritance will continue, his future will be peaceful and he will come into the possession of good. (Job 9:20-22; Ps. 37:18, 19, 37; 84:11; Prov. 28:10) As in Job’s case, it is being a man of integrity, rather than one’s wealth, that makes one a person of genuine worth, meriting respect. (Prov. 19:1; 28:6) Children privileged to have such a parent are to be counted happy (Prov. 20:7), receiving a splendid legacy in their father’s life example, enjoying a share in his good name and the respect he gained.

In addition to Job and David, the Hebrew Scriptures are replete with examples of men of integrity. Abraham showed unswerving loyalty to God in his willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac. (Gen. 22:1-12) Daniel and his three companions provide sterling illustrations of integrity under test, in youth and in later life. (Dan. 1:8-17; 3:13-23; 6:4-23) At Hebrews chapter 11, the apostle Paul lists a long line of men of pre-Christian times who through faith displayed integrity under a wide variety of difficult circumstances.—Note particularly verses 33-38.

INTEGRITY IN THE CHRISTIAN GREEK SCRIPTURES

Whereas no exact word for “integrity” appears in the Christian Greek Scriptures, the idea pervades this entire portion of the Bible. God’s Son, Jesus Christ, gave the finest example of integrity and of supreme trust in his heavenly Father’s strength and care. He thereby was “made perfect” for his position as God’s high priest, as well as the anointed king of the heavenly kingdom, one greater than David’s. (Heb. 5:7-9; 4:15; 7:26-28; Acts 2:34, 35) Integrity is embraced in the commandment Jesus singled out as the greatest of all—loving Jehovah God with one’s whole heart, mind, soul and strength. (Matt. 22:36-38) His injunction that “you must accordingly be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt. 5:48) also stressed a completeness of one’s devotion to righteousness. (The Greek terms for perfection convey the idea of that which has been ‘brought to completion’ and so are somewhat similar in meaning to the Hebrew terms already discussed.)

Jesus’ teachings emphasized purity of heart, singleness of outlook and intent, freedom from hypocrisy—all these being qualities that characterize integrity. (Matt. 5:8; 6:1-6, 16-18, 22, 23; Luke 11:34-36) The apostle Paul showed the same concern as had David and earlier servants of God for proving blameless and faultless in his ministry, free from any charge of corruption or deviousness in his dealings with others.—2 Cor. 4:1, 2; 6:3-10; 8:20, 21; 1 Thess. 1:3-6.

Perseverance in a God-given commission in the face of opposition, and endurance of privations, persecution and suffering for adhering to a course of godly devotion, also marked Paul and other early Christians as persons of integrity.—Acts 5:27-41; 2 Cor. 11:23-27.

INTEREST

The price or rate paid by a debtor for the use of what he borrows. Already in the second millennium B.C.E. Babylon had a fully developed loan system. The Hammurabi “code” indicates a 20-percent interest rate on money and grain, and stipulates that a merchant charging a higher rate would forfeit the amount lent. By contrast God’s law to Israel prohibited making loans on interest to needy fellow Israelites. No one was to profit from another’s financial reverses. (Ex. 22:25; Lev. 25:36, 37; Deut. 23:19) And Proverbs 28:8 indicates that fortunes acquired from interest wrongfully collected would eventually become the possession of the “one showing favor to the lowly ones.”

Foreigners, however, could be charged interest by the Israelites. (Deut. 23:20) Jewish commentators understand this to apply, not to cases of need, but to business loans. (The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, edited by J. H. Hertz, 1950, p. 849) Usually foreigners were in Israel only temporarily, often as merchants, and could reasonably be expected to pay interest, particularly since they would also be lending to others on interest.

Whereas upright Israelites obeyed God’s law about making interest-free loans (Ps. 15:5; Ezek. 18:5, 8, 17), lending on interest apparently became common and brought hardships on needy debtors. (Neh. 5:1-11; Isa. 24:2; Ezek. 18:13; 22:12) Jesus Christ, though, upheld God’s law in this regard and gave it an even broader application, saying: “Continue . . . to lend without interest, not hoping for anything back.” (Luke 6:34, 35) It would therefore be improper to withhold assistance from one who because of continued adversity and through no fault of his own might be unable to repay a debt. But when actual need is not involved, there would be no objection to a person’s charging interest on a loan. Jesus himself, by having the wicked slave in one of his illustrations censured for failing to deposit his master’s money with the bankers so as to draw interest, implied that receiving interest from invested capital is proper.—Matt. 25:26, 27; Luke 19:22, 23.

INTERPRETATION

In the Bible an interpreter may be either of two kinds. He may be a translator, one who conveys the meaning of words spoken or written in one language to persons reading or speaking another, and he can do this either orally or in writing. On the other hand, an interpreter may be one who explains Bible prophecy by giving others the meaning, significance and understanding of prophetic dreams, visions and messages of divine origin.

TRANSLATION

The confusion of man’s language during the building of the Tower of Babel resulted in the human family suddenly becoming a multilingual race. This, in turn, gave rise to a new profession, that of interpreter or translator. (Gen. 11:1-9) Some five centuries later, in order to conceal his identity as the prime minister of Egypt, Joseph employed a translator to interpret for him when speaking to his Hebrew brothers in the Egyptian language. (Gen. 42:23) The Hebrew word luts—a form of which is rendered “interpreter” in this text—basically means to stammer, or to mimic a foreigner’s speech. The same word is sometimes rendered ‘spokesman’ when referring to an envoy versed in a foreign language, as were “the spokesmen of the princes of Babylon” sent to converse with King Hezekiah of Judah.—2 Chron. 32:31.

The gift of speaking in foreign tongues was one of the manifestations of God’s outpoured holy spirit upon the faithful disciples of Christ on Pentecost, 33 C.E. However, this was no duplication of what occurred on the Plains of Shinar twenty-two centuries earlier. For, instead of replacing their original language with a new one, these disciples retained their mother tongue and at the same time were enabled to speak in the tongues of foreign-language groups about the magnificent things of God. (Acts 2:1-11) Along with this ability to speak in different tongues, other miraculous gifts of the spirit were bestowed on members of the early Christian congregation, including the gift of translating from one language to another. Christians were also given instruction on the proper use of this gift.—1 Cor. 12:4-10, 27-30; 14:5, 13-28.

The most remarkable example of translation from one language to another is the rendering of the Bible into many, many tongues, a monumental task that has consumed centuries of time. Today this Book appears in whole or in part in well over 1,300 languages. However, none of such translations or their translators were inspired. Historically, such translation work dates back to the third century B.C.E. when work on the Septuagint Version was begun in which the inspired Holy Scriptures in Hebrew and Aramaic, the thirty-nine books as they are now reckoned, were rendered into the common koi·neʹ Greek, the international language of that time.

Bible writers of the twenty-seven books that make up the Christian Greek Scriptures, which books completed the Bible’s canon, often quoted from the Hebrew Scriptures. Apparently they sometimes used the Greek Septuagint translation rather than personally translate from the Hebrew text of the Scriptures. (Compare Psalm 40:6 [39:6, LXX] with Hebrews 10:5.) They also made their own rather free translations, however, as seen by comparing Hosea 2:23 with Romans 9:25. An example of where they paraphrased, rather than making a literal translation, may be noted by comparing Deuteronomy 30:11-14 with Romans 10:6-8.

These Bible writers often translated the names of persons, titles, places and expressions for the benefit of their readers. They defined and gave the meaning of such names as Cephas, Barnabas, Tabitha, BarJesus and Melchizedek (John 1:42; Acts 4:36; 9:36; 13:6, 8; Heb. 7:1, 2), also the meaning of the titles Immanuel, Rabbi and Messiah (Matt. 1:23; John 1:38, 41), the meaning of places like Golgotha, Siloam and Salem (Mark 15:22; John 9:7; Heb. 7:2), and translations of the terms “Talʹi·tha cuʹmi” and “Eʹli, Eʹli, laʹma sa·bach·thaʹni.”—Mark 5:41; 15:34.

Matthew first wrote his Gospel account in Hebrew, according to the ancient testimony of the noted Jerome, Eusebius Pamphili, Origen, Irenaeus and Papias. Who translated this Gospel later into Greek is not known. If Matthew did so himself, as some think, then it is the only known inspired translation of Scripture.

The Greek word her·me·neuʹo means “to explain, interpret.” (John 1:42; 9:7; Heb. 7:2) It is similar to the name of the Greek god Hermes (Mercury), regarded by ancient mythologists, not only as the messenger, envoy and interpreter for the gods, but also the patron of writers, speakers and translators. The pagans in Lystra called Paul “Hermes, since he was the one taking the lead in speaking.” (Acts 14:12) The English word “hermeneutics” pertains to interpretation or exegesis. The prefix me·taʹ implies “a change,” and so, added to her·me·neuʹo, the word