Category Archives: Q&A – Sacred name

the Millennium

Nehemia Gordon, a Karaite Jew, recently made the claim that Yahweh and Jupiter share the same etymology. Is there any truth to this statement?

Posted on by

Q.   Nehemia Gordon, a Karaite Jew, recently made the claim that Yahweh and Jupiter share the same etymology. He bases this on Gesenius’ statement: “I suppose this word to be one of the most remote antiquity, perhaps of the same origin as Jovis, Jupiter, and transferred from the Egyptians to the Hebrews.” Is there any truth to this statement?

A.   While Gesenius made this statement, indication is he later retracted it. Consider the below excerpts:

“To give my own opinion [This opinion Gesenius afterwards THOROUGHLY retracted; see Thes. and Amer. trans. in voc.: he calls such comparisons and derivations, ‘waste of time and labour;’ would that he had learned how irreverend a mode this was of treating such subject!], I suppose this word to be one of the most remote antiquity, perhaps of the same origin as Jovis, Jupiter, and transferred from the Egyptians to the Hebrews [What an idea! God himself revealed this as his own name; the Israelites could never have received it from the Egyptians].  (Compare what has been said above, as to the use of this name on the Egyptian gems [but these gems are not of the most remote antiquity; they are the work of heretics of the second and third centuries]), and then so inflected by the Hebrews, that it might appear, both in form and origin, to be Phenicio-Shemiti” (Gesenius’s Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament Scriptures, p. 23).

“In There is one other remark before quitting this chapter.  We have seen that the principal part of the Jehovistic ideas in this second portion of Dr. Colenso’s work are taken from the articles on that subject in the lexicon of Gesenius.  We shall now see that Gesenius is responsible for some part of Dr. Colenso’s new belief.  The Bishop writes as follows: –‘My own conviction, however, from the accumulated evidence (!) of various kinds before us is, that Samuel was the first to form and introduce the name, perhaps in imitation of some Egyptian name of the Deity which may have reached his ears.’  Gesenius wrote before him:  ‘I suppose this word to be one of the most remote antiquity, perhaps of the same origin as Jovis, Jupiter, and transferred from the Egyptians to the Hebrews’ (see Lex. p. 337).

“This opinion, as we have shown, Gesenius afterward thoroughly retracted, probably through having become convinced that the Egyptian Gems on which it was founded were the work of heretics of the second and third centuries.  Bishop Colenso, however, adopts the discarded opinion of Gesenius, and parades it as his own.  We think he might at least have had the candour to acknowledge from whence it was obtained”  (The Bible in the Workshop, Part II, p.  95).

“The name Yahweh is explained by some as being connected etymologically with the Indo-Aryan ‘Jovis.’ It is, then, derived from [delta, iota, upsilon] “to shine,” hence Yahweh would signify the ‘bright ether.’ This name is also declared to be ideally, though not etymologically, related to ‘daeva,’ ‘deus.’  Thus the name would signify the ‘High One,’ the ‘Heavenly.’  But there is so little common to both languages of which we can speak with any degree of certainty that we cannot think of deriving [Yahweh] from the Indo-Aryan stem [delta, iota, upsilon].  The untenableness of this derivation was already recognized by F. Tuch, who says:  ‘The similarity of [Yahweh] with Jovis, Jupiter, which is insufficient enough in itself, disappears entirely when the name is pronounced rightly [Yahweh] = Jahve.'”    (Hans H. Spoer, The Origin and Interpretation of the Tetragrammaton, pp. 7, 8)

According to the above scholarly references, Gesenius withdrew his statement regarding the possible connection between Yahweh and Jupiter. In addition, Spoer further explains that these words share so little in common that this connection disappears entirely.

It should also be noted that Gesenius used the words “suppose” and “perhaps” in his initial statement. These words convey that while he believed there may have been a possible connection, such a conclusion could not be authenticated based on the evidence.

Therefore, to state that Gesenius asserts an undeniable and certain connection between Yahweh and Jupiter is quite disingenuous, especially with the fact that there is indication that Gesenius thoroughly retracted this statement along with other scholars confirming that there is so little in common between the origins of these words.

For additional information on Yahweh’s Name, please see the below articles:

Literary Support for Yahweh’s Name
Your Father’s Name
The Yehovah Deception 

Also, watch the below videos:

 

the Millennium

We know that Abraham knew Yahweh’s name. Genesis 22:14 states, “And Abraham called the name of that place YAHWEH Yireh.” However, Exodus 6:3 says, “And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as El Shaddai, and by My name YAHWEH have I not been known to them” How do we reconcile these passages?

Posted on by

Q.   We know that Abraham knew Yahweh’s name. Genesis 22:14 states, “And Abraham called the name of that place YAHWEH Yireh.” However, Exodus 6:3 says, “And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as El Shaddai, and by My name YAHWEH have I not been known to them” How do we reconcile these passages?

A.   Exodus 6:3 is not stating that the patriarchs did not know Yahweh’s name, as we have many examples of them calling on Yahweh’s Name. In addition to the example you provided in Genesis 22:14, we also have the below passages confirming that they were well aware of Yahweh’s Name:

  • “And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of Yahweh” (Genesis 4:26).
  • “And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto Yahweh, and called upon the name of Yahweh” (Genesis 12:8).
  • “Unto the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of Yahweh” (Genesis 13:4).
  • “And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of Yahweh, the everlasting El” (Genesis 21:33).

Based on the above passage, there’s no doubt that Abraham and the other patriarchs knew and used Yahweh’s Name.

With this being the case, how do we explain Exodus 6:3? There are two schools of thought as to the meaning of this passage. The first explanation is that the patriarchs did not experience the power behind Yahweh’s Name as Israel would in Egypt. It’s important to remember that Yahweh’s Name not only identifies His identity, but also His character and power. The other explanation is that this passage should be viewed as a question and not a statement. In other words, it might be better read, “And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El Shaddai, and by my name Yahweh was I not known to them?”

In closing here is a note that will be included within the 4th ed. of the Restoration Study Bible: “This is not stating that the Name ‘Yahweh’ was unknown to the patriarchs. Scripture states that the patriarchs called upon Yahweh’s Name (Gen. 12:8). There are two possible explanations. One, this was written as a rhetorical question, which would then require a question mark at the end of the verse. Biblical Hebrew contains no punctuation; it was added later by translators. Two, the patriarchs did not understand the Name, as representing His character and power, as did Moses and the Israelites after witnessing their deliverance from Egypt. The NIV note says, ‘This does not necessarily mean that the patriarchs were totally ignorant of the name Yahweh, but it indicates that they did not understand its full implications as the name of the One who would redeem His people. That fact could be comprehended only by the Israelites who were to experience the Exodus, and by their descendants.’ A similar interpretation is found from author Kenneth L. Barker in his book, Making of a Contemporary Translation: ‘A problem has been imagined in Exodus 6:3 because of the words “by my name the Lord (Yahweh) I did not make myself known to them (i.e., the patriarchs).” Yet there are several references to Yahweh in the patriarchal narratives and earlier (e.g., Gen. 2:4; 4:26; 13:4; 15:7) and in the names like Jochebed (Exod. 6:20), apparently meaning “The Lord (Yahweh) is glory.” Kidner points the way to one solution: “In ex 3:14 the divine exposition, ‘I am …’ introduces and illuminates the name given in 3:15, and this remains the context for 6:3 as well… The name, in short was first known, in any full sense of the word, at its first expounding.’ See Jer. 16:21, Ezek. 20:5. Men in general began to call upon the Name Yahweh after Enos, the son of Seth (Gen. 4:26).”

the Millennium

Nehemia Gordon, a Karaite Jew, has now discovered over 1,000 manuscripts with the proper pronunciation Yehovah. Considering this newfound evidence, why do you continue to use Yahweh?

Posted on by

Q.    Nehemia Gordon, a Karaite Jew, has now discovered over 1,000 manuscripts with the proper pronunciation Yehovah. Considering this newfound evidence, why do you continue to use Yahweh?

A.    There are several facts to acknowledge regarding Nehemia Gordon’s “new” finding. To begin with it’s not new. Secondly, all these Hebrew documents with the vowel points forming Yehovah are from the 9th century or later and part of the Masoretic manuscripts, i.e. Leningrad Codex, Aleppo Codex. According to the overwhelming majority of scholarship, the Masoretes purposefully added the vowel points from Adonai to the Tetragrammaton, forming the hybrid Yehovah (also rendered as Yehowah or Jehovah). First we need to clarify where these vowels come from. The Masoretes were not trying to preserve the name but replace the name with Adonai and Elohim through an orthographic device called Kativ Qere. This device is used in every synagogue every Sabbath as the torah is read. (See full vowels of Adonai vs. Elohim) To date we have never seen a scholarly reference or historic document from before the medieval timeframe confirming Yehovah.

Consider the following: “In the early Middle Ages, when the consonantal text of the Bible was supplied with vowel points to facilitate its correct traditional reading, the vowel points for Adonai with one variation – a sheva (short ‘e’) with the first yod [Y] of YHWH instead of the hataf-patah (short ‘a’) under the aleph of Adonai – was used for YHWH, thus producing the form YeHoWaH. When Christian scholars of Europe first began to study Hebrew they did not understand what this really meant, and they introduced the hybrid name ‘Jehovah’” (Encyclopedia Judaica, vol. 7, p. 680).

“Jehovah, modern form of the Hebrew sacred name of God, probably originally ‘Yahweh.’ From c.300 B.C. the Jews, from motives of piety, uttered the name of God very rarely and eventually not at all, but substituted the title ‘Adonai,’ meaning ‘Lord,’ the vowels of which were written under the consonants of ‘Yahweh.’ In the Middle Ages and later, the vowels of one word with the consonants of the other were misread as Jehovah” (The Collegiate Encyclopedia, vol. 9, p. 580).

“Jehovah….What has been said explains the so-called qeri perpetuum, according to which the consonants of Jehovah are always accompanied in the Hebrew text by the vowels of Adonai except in the cases in which Adonai stands in apposition to Jehovah: in these cases the vowels of Elohim are substituted. The use of a simple shewa in the first syllable of Jehovah, instead of the compound shewa in the corresponding syllable of Adonai and Elohim, is required by the rules of Hebrew grammar governing the use of Shewa” (The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. VIII, p. 329).

“Jehovah, an erroneous pronunciation of the name of the God of Israel in the Bible, due to pronouncing the vowels of the term ‘Adonay,’ the marginal Masoretic reading with the consonants of the text-reading ‘Yahweh,’ which was not uttered to avoid the profanation of the divine name of magical or other blasphemous purposes. Hence the substitution of ‘Adonay,’ the ‘Lord,’ or ‘Adonay Elohim,’ ‘Lord God.’ The oldest Greek versions use the term ‘Kurios,’ ‘Lord,’ the exact translation of the current Jewish substitute for the original Tetragrammaton Yahweh. The reading ‘Jehovah’ can be traced to the early Middle Ages and until lately was said to have been invented by Peter Gallatin (1518), confessor of Pope Leo X. Recent writers, however, trace it to an earlier date; it is found in Raymond Martin’s Pugeo Fidei (1270)” (Encyclopedia Americana, vol. 16, p. 8.).

“The pronunciation you mentioned [i.e., Yehovah] is a mistake. The Hebrew consonantal text is YHWH and no one really knows how that was pronounced in Old Testament times. At a later date (the latter half of the 2nd millennium CE) Masoretes added vowel signs to the consonantal text. Whenever the Tetragrammaton was written, they added the vowel signs of the word “Adonay,” which means “My Lord” – there was a taboo on pronouncing the Divine name and one was supposed to read the word “Adonay – my Lord.” Much later some started reading the vowel signs together with YHWH and came up with the nonsensical word Jehovah” (email correspondence between Professor Fassberg and Pastor Randy Folliard). Note: Professor Fassberg, Ph.D., is one of the leading professors at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem within its Hebrew language department.

In addition to the fact that scholarship nearly universally confirms that the Masoretes added the vowel points from Adonai to the Tetragrammaton, another issue with Yehovah is that there are other variants based on the vowel pointing within the Masoretic manuscripts. For example, the Leningrad Codex contains at least six different spellings for the divine name. Similar evidence can also be found within the Aleppo and other codices. The fact that we find different pronunciations within the Masoretic manuscripts confirms that they cannot be trusted.

Another issue with Yehovah and this claim of a 1,000 manuscripts is that the pronunciation Yahweh is confirmed within Greek documents from church fathers and Gnostic writings 700 years before the Masoretic documents.

One such example from the Gnostic library is The Secret Book of John. Within this codex, it mentions the name Yahweh and notes, “Eloim and Yawe, two names of God in the Hebrew scriptures…. Yahweh is the name of God (based on the Tetragrammaton, the ineffable four-letter name)” (Dr. Marvin Meyer, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, p. 127).

The Secret Book of John dates to the second century, as it was known to the church father Irenaeus. This was the same timeframe as Clement of Alexandria, who also confirmed the name. Even though Gnosticism was rightly deemed heretical by the early church, it is another witness to the pronunciation of Yahweh. The fact that these groups were at odds, but agreed on “Yahweh,” is significant and adds credence to this pronunciation. It verifies that “Yahweh” was widely recognized as early as the second century.

Evidence for the short form “Yah” is also found in early Greek documents of the Septuagint, part of the Dead Sea collection, dating to 1 BCE.

Based on these facts, the number of manuscripts found with the vowel points of Yehovah is irrelevant. Scholarship confirms that Yehovah is a hybrid that arose through the vowel points of Adonai. Additionally, antiquity confirms the pronunciation Yahweh through Greek inscriptions dating back to the 2nd century CE, 700 years before any manuscript containing Yehovah.

For additional information, read our online article: The Yehovah Deception.

Also, watch our videos:

Why do you use the name Yahweh? Don’t you know that this name was invented by a Catholic monk in 1725 AD?

Posted on by

YHWH     Why do you use the name Yahweh? Don’t you know that this name was invented by a Catholic monk in 1725 AD? Plus, there are 20 different ways our Heavenly Father’s name can be pronounced.

 

YHWH     The belief that “Yahweh” originated from a Catholic monk could not be further from the truth. This statement can be proven false with a simple Google search. The official website of the Catholic Church states: “About the 13th century the term ‘Jehovah’ appeared when Christian scholars took the consonants of ‘Yahweh’ and pronounced it with the vowels of ‘Adonai.’ This resulted in the sound ‘Yahowah,’ which has a Latinized spelling of ‘Jehovah.’ The first recorded use of this spelling was made by a Spanish Dominican monk, Raymundus Martini, in 1270” (www.catholic.com/qa/is-gods-name-yahweh-or-jehovah).

From this citation, it was not “Yahweh” that was originated by a Catholic monk, but the hybrid “Jehovah,” arising from Yehowah or Yehovah.  Additionally, scholarship overwhelmingly confirms “Yahweh” as the likely pronunciation. Evidence for this is found in ancient inscriptions dating back to the second century of the Common Era, including early church fathers and gnostic sources. Following are other sources attesting to the correctness of “Yahweh.”

“The true pronunciation of the name YHWH was never lost. Several early Greek writers of the Christian Church testify that the name was pronounced ‘Yahweh’” (Encyclopaedia Judaica, vol. 7, p. 680).

“Early Christian writers, such as Clement of Alexandria in the 2nd century, had used the form Yahweh, thus this pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton was never really lost. Greek transcriptions also indicated that YHWH should be pronounced Yahweh” (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 15th ed., vol. x, p. 786).

“The pronunciation Yahweh is indicated by transliteration of the name into Greek in early Christian literature, in the form iaoue (Clement of Alexandria) or iabe (Theodoret; by this time Gk. b had the pronunciation of v)…Strictly speaking, Yahweh is the only ‘name’ of God. In Genesis wherever the word sem (‘name’) is associated with the divine being that name is Yahweh” (Eerdman’s Bible Dictionary, 1979 p. 478).

“Such a conclusion, giving ‘Yahweh’ as the pronunciation of the name, is confirmed by the testimony of the Fathers and gentile writers, where the forms IAO, Yaho, Yaou, Yahouai, and Yahoue appear. Especially important is the statement of Theodoret in relation to Ex. lvi, when he says: ‘the Samaritans call it [the tetragrammaton] ‘Yabe,’ the Jews call it ‘Aia’…” (The New Schaff-Herzog Religious Encyclopedia, “Yahweh,” p. 471)

In addition to early Christian sources, evidence for Yahweh is also found in the Nag Hammadi codices, dating from the 2nd to 4th century CE. This library of Gnostic writings was discovered in Upper Egypt, near Nag Hammadi, in 1945. In all, there are over 50 texts within this library. Since they are in Greek, as with the church fathers, they preserve the pronunciation.

One such book is The Secret Book of John. This codex mentions the name Yahweh and notes, “Eloim and Yawe, two names of God in the Hebrew scriptures…. Yahweh is the name of God (based on the Tetragrammaton, the ineffable four-letter name)” (Dr. Marvin Meyer, The Nag Hammadi Scriptures, p. 127).

The Secret Book of John, as it was known to the church father Irenaeus, dates to the second century. This was the same time-frame as Clement of Alexandria, who also confirmed the name. Even though gnosticism was rightly deemed heretical by the early church, it is another witness to the pronunciation of Yahweh. The fact that these groups were at odds, but agreed on “Yahweh,” is significant and adds credence to this pronunciation. It verifies that “Yahweh” was widely recognized as early as the second century, nearly 700 years before any Hebrew manuscripts containing Yehovah.

Based on these ancient inscriptions, modern scholarship also favors Yahweh as the proper and correct pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton:

“Correct pronunciation of the Divine Name. ‘Jehovah’ is the best known English pronunciation of the divine name, although ‘Yahweh’ is favored by most Hebrew scholars.  The oldest Hebrew manuscripts present the name in the form of four consonants, commonly called the Tetragrammaton (from Greek te∙tra-, meaning ‘four,’ and gram’ma, ‘letter’).  These four letters (written from right to left) are yhwh and may be transliterated into English as YHWH (or, JHVH)” (“Jehovah,” Insight on the Scriptures, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1988.  vol. 2, p. 5).

Insight on the Scriptures is a Jehovah’s Witness publication. Even though this organization continues to use the hybrid “Jehovah,” they have no choice but to acknowledge that “Yahweh” is favored by Hebrew scholars. Considering that the name of our Heavenly Father comes to us through the Hebrew language, this point is significant.

“Jehovah in that form was unknown to the ancient Israelites.  In fact, Hebrew scholars say that Jehovah would have been impossible according to the strict principles of Hebrew vocalization.  The God of Israel was known by a name approximately rendered into English as Yahweh” (A Book About the Bible, George Stimpson, p. 247).

“Yahweh was doubtless the approximate pronunciation of the tetragrammaton, the four-letter word YHWH, since transliterations into Gr. in early Christian literature have been found in the form of iaoue (Clement of Alexander) and iahe (Theodoret) pronounced ‘iave.’  The name is a variant connected with the verb haya, ‘to be,’ from an earlier form, hawa” (“God, Names and Titles of,”  Wycliff Bible Dictionary, Charles Pfeiffer, Ed., p. 694).

“The Bible often refers to God by his proper name, which was probably pronounced Yahweh …In the Hebrew Bible, the consonants hwhy [yhwh] are usually to be read as Adonai…’my Lord,’ for the sake of reverence, and English versions represent the word by ‘Lord’ or (less often) ‘God’ in capital letters” (“Names of God in the Hebrew Bible,” Oxford Companion to the Bible, Bruce Metzger, Ed., p. 548).

“Although the meaning of the name remains subject to debate, Yahweh is most likely a verbal form of Heb. haya (perhaps originally hwy)…Because of the utmost sanctity ascribed to the name, Jews from postexilic times on have declined to pronounce it in public reading, and only the consonants were written (YHWH; the Dead Sea Scrolls use the archaic, ‘paleo-Hebrew’ script).  Although the original pronunciation was thus eventually lost, inscriptional evidence favors yahwae or yahwe.  The name is represented in the MT by the consonants with the vowel pointing for ‘adonay ‘Lord.’  From this derived ca, the sixteenth century the form ‘Jehovah’ (yehowah).  In modern usage pious Jews often substitute the expression has-sem ‘the Name’” (“Yahweh,” The Oxford Companion to the Bible, Bruce Metzger, Ed., p. 1075).

“The scribes reasoned that if they did not point the name Yahweh then it could never be treated lightly since his name would not really be known.  Initially the real pointing was probably passed along by tradition, but in time it was lost.  In Exodus 20:7 the name Lord is written in capital letters according to the convention of signifying the name Yahweh, but the name as it appears in the Hebrew text is hwhy (yehowa), in which appear the consonants from the name Yahweh (hwhy [yhwh]) and the vowels from the word Lord (ynda [‘idonay]).  Proof for the fabricated nature of this word are the two vowels which appear on the waw, an impossibility in Hebrew.  However, until the revival of the Hebrew language in western Europe scholars read the consonants YHWH (Germans would read them as JHVH) with the vowels of ‘adonay, thereby originating the incorrect form Jehovah.  This word was then introduced into English by William Tyndale and was continued by the King James Version” (The Journey from Texts to Translations, Paul D. Wegner, pp, 172-173).

There are many other scholarly sources supporting that the name of our Heavenly Father is Yahweh. A belief that “Yahweh” arose through a Catholic monk is completely counter to ancient and modern scholarship and should be dismissed by the student of the Bible.

For More info on Yahweh’s Name please check out our post: Literary Support For Yahweh’s Name

Please take a moment to complete our short survey. We appreciate your time and value your feedback.

What is the status of believers who have died not knowing our Father and Savior’s proper names? Are they not saved?

Posted on by

Second coming     What is the status of believers who have died not knowing our Father and Savior’s proper names? Are they not saved?

Second coming     Yahweh does not condemn those who are ignorant of His truth. This includes Yahweh and Yahshua’s name. There are two passages that verify this conclusion:

“Yahshua said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth,” John 9:41.

“And the times of this ignorance Elohim winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.”

Yahshua in John 9:41 confirms that when we are blind to the truth, sin or perhaps more correctly, the condemnation of sin, does not exist. Yahweh does not condemn a person when they are blind or ignorant to His Word. However, as Acts 17:30 verifies, once we know the truth, we must repent.

For those who never had the opportunity to accept the names of Yahweh and Yahshua, assuming they lived a righteous life based on what they understood, they will be given an opportunity in the Second Resurrection, which will occur after the millennial Kingdom. At this time, all those, except for the elect who were resurrected to eternal life at Yahshua’s Second Coming, will be judged based on their works, Revelation 20:12. For those who never had the chance to hear the truth, but who lived a moral and pleasing life, they will be given a chance to accept and receive eternal life at at this time.

What does it mean to be called by the Name of Yahweh as seen in 2 Chronicles 7:14?

Posted on by

2 chronicles 7:14     Kindly help me understand what it means to be called by the Name of Yahweh as seen in 2 Chronicles 7:14 that says “if my people who are called by my name…”

2 chronicles 7:14      Yahweh is more than a name. In addition to identifying the name of the Creator, it also identifies His people. This is similar to other religions. If you hear a person call upon Allah, you know he or she is a Muslim. If you hear someone call upon Vishnu, you know they are Hindu. If you hear them call upon Yahweh, you know they are a believer in the Mighty One of the Bible. The obvious difference between these examples is that Yahweh identifies as the one true Elohim, while Allah, Vishnu, and all other gods are imaginary.

While some say this does not include the actual calling or using of Yahweh’s name, the Bible disagrees. Scripture contains many examples showing that we are to call on His name. We are told to bless His name (Ps. 145:21), to call on His name (Ps. 80:18), to confess His name (2Chron. 6:24-25), to declare His name (Exodus 9:16), to exalt His name (Ps. 34:3), to glorify His name (Ps. 86:9, 12), to honor His name (Ps. 66:2), to magnify His name (2Sam. 7:26), to remember His name (Ex. 3:15), to sing to His name (Ps. 68:4), and to trust in His name (Isa. 50:10).  With so many references to His name, there should be no question as to its importance to proper worship and identification of His people.

For more info on Yahweh’s Name please check out our free booklet: Your Father’s Name

Some are claiming that not a single Jew in Israel has even heard the name Yahweh. Is this true?

Posted on by

   Some are claiming that not a single Jew in Israel has even heard the name Yahweh. Can you ask Pastor Randy, seeing that he has traveled to Israel several times, if this is true?

   Hello this is Pastor Randy. The claim that not a single Jew would use or support the name Yahweh is completely false. In my travels to the Holy Land I have spoken to messianic pastors and Jews, including archaeologists and graduates from Hebrew University who support the name Yahweh.

In one case, a pastor who has lived in Israel for many years confirmed that he personally has been at the Wailing Wall on the Day of Atonement and had distinctly heard the Jews pronouncing “Yahweh” throughout the day. Also, in our last trip, I personally spoke with our archaeologist, who was also our guide, about the pronunciation of our Heavenly Father. While he himself would not pronounce it, he did confirm that “Yahweh” was the right pronunciation. He also stated that this is how his Yemenite wife would pronounce the Name and explained how Yemenite Hebrew is closer to biblical Hebrew with the use of the “waw” in place of the newer “vav.” This is because the Yemenite Jews never migrated into northern Europe and consequently were not impacted by Germanic influence.

For more info on Yahweh’s Name please check out or free booklet Your Fathers Name.

Why is it that some people cannot accept the Truth of Scripture?

Posted on by

     Why is it that some cannot accept the Truth? Also, please help me understand what laws are required/not required. Also, do you have any articles defending the Sabbath and the use of Yahweh’s Name?

     Why people don’t accept the truth is a great question, but one not easy to answer. There are many reasons for this. Probably the biggest reason is tradition. It’s really hard to accept that what you and your family believe is not true. Another related reason is pride. It takes a person of humility to admit the possibility of being wrong and the ability to unbiasedly reconsider their belief system. Another reason is peer-pressure, as you have already experienced. The closer you get to the truth, the further you get from the world. The feeling of isolation and being alone is more than many can take.

Another reason for this, it’s not meant for all to hear and understand the truth now. This was the reason Yahshua said He spoke in parables: “He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted and I should heal them,” Matthew 13:11-15.

Regarding what is required today, while we cannot provide an all-encompassing list of commandments, we believe that the Ten Commandments, all moral laws, and all laws of worship, including the Sabbaths and Feast days, are required today. Regarding laws that would not be required for believers, this would include certain civil laws, judicial laws, and sacrificial laws. For example, the Bible commands that we place a railing around our roof. Since Israel used their roofs as an extension of their living space, this made sense. However, this would not be practical for most modern homes.

If you have not already, I might suggest reviewing the below booklets. These would equip you with many answers to some of today’s arguments with the Sabbath and Name.

https://yrm.org/sabbath-observers-not-neglect-third-commandment
https://yrm.org/challenges-sacred-name-answered
https://yrm.org/sabbath-keeping-answering-arguments

Why do you often spell out “God” and “Lord”?

Posted on by

Why do you often spell out “God” and “Lord” in your sermon messages instead of vocalizing the words?

 

We often spell out “God” and “Lord” to show a distinction between the common and proper titles / names for Yahweh. In the case of God, according to some sources, including the Britannia, God may refer to a molten image. Also, according to some scholars, the proper name of the supreme deity of the ancient Teutonic people was “God.” We further explain in the Restoration Study Bible, “…Today, Elohim has been falsely replaced with the generic title ‘God,’ which is neither correct, based on the Hebrew, nor honoring to Yahweh, based on its etymological roots. According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, ‘It has been also suggested that the word might mean a “molten image” from the sense of to “pour”‘ (Vol. 12, 1911). See [Oxford English Dictionary]. Additionally, according to others, the term ‘God’ was the proper name for the Teutonic Supreme Being. ‘In all Teutonic tongues the Supreme Being has always with one consent been called by the general name God.’ (Teutonic Mythology, Vol. 1, Jacob Grimm, p. 13, 1882).” note on Genesis 1:1.

Regarding Lord, this comes from the Old English hlāford and refers to a bread-keeper. Also, many biblical sources state the Baal means “Lord.” While the Old English etymology certainly is demeaning, the latter, i.e., meaning of Baal, is of more concern.

  • “Baal means lord, in the sense of owner, possessor…” (Fausset’s Bible Dictionary, Baal).
  • “ba’al; Heb. ba’al, ‘lord, possessor…'” (The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, Baal).
  • “BAY uhl (lord, master)-the name of one of more false gods, a place, and two people in the Old Testament” (Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Baal).
  • “(ba’-al:) (ba’al; or Baal): The Babylonian Belu or Bel, ‘Lord,’ was the title of the supreme god among the Canaanites” (International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Baal).

Interestingly, Jeremiah 23 describes a time when believers would forget Yahweh’s Name for Baal (Lord). “The anger of Yahweh shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly… Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal [Lord],” verses 20, 27.

For more Q&A’s please visit our main Q&A page here! 

Why isn’t Yahshua’s name in the Encyclopedia Britannica?

Posted on by

     I was listening to this guy mentioning that the Name YAHWEH was not in the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Of course I was curious so I looked myself and found Yahweh’s Name there, and was relieved. But I couldn’t find Yahshua’s name there. How come?

 

     Did you look up “Jesus Christ”? The 1974 edition of the Britannica says that his Hebrew name is Yesu. The Britannica Eleventh edition says, “An educated Greek…would have known that ‘Jesus’ was the Greek form of Joshua.” The Encyclopedia Americana does a little better job. Under “Jesus Christ,” it reads that Matthew 1:21 “interprets the name (originally Joshua, that is Yahweh is salvation).” Realizing that His name is the same as the Old Testament Joshua, with the “J” corrected to the “Y” because there was no J in the Hebrew, we can begin to see His true Name come through.

As the Americana points out, it is connected to Yahweh. Being that His Name means “Yahweh is salvation,” He would at least have Yah in His Name. Because the Greek lacks the “sh” form, it uses “s” instead.

It takes a bit of sleuthing to ferret out the historical truth of the Name because of 2,000 years of erroneous church tradition, subterfuge, and the popularity of error. Add to that a blind fear of profaning the holiest Name in the universe and we are left with a Latinized-Greek replacement.