Many times, when referring to God, we use a title such as when we see the minister at our church and we say “Hi, Pastor!” We are using “pastor” as a name, but it is really a title. We do the same with our boss (“What do you need, Boss”) or our doctor (“Give it to me straight, Doc!”). We will often say “thank you, God, for …” We use the term “God” as a name, which is correct, but it is also a title. But in this post, we are studying the Name of God. Actually, the personal Name He gave to us for Himself. (Note that we capitalize “Name” out of respect for the Holiness of God and His Name) This is important to keep in mind. We did not name God; He named himself!
Background
Originally Hebrew was written with just consonants. Of course, the language had vowels; for it is impossible to say any word without a vowel; but they were not written. It was just understood which vowels were needed based on the consonants, experience with the language, and the context.
Can you read this line: “Lv th LRD yr Gd wth ll yr hrt.”?
I bet you got it. “Love the LORD your God with all your heart.” It seems odd, but once you get used to it, especially if it is the only way you have ever written or read the language, it is not at all difficult to understand.
Vowels were added as marks mostly just above or right below the written line (some consonants do function as vowels) to the text between 600 and 900 AD. Yes, that was AD. Since the first books of the Bible were written about 1400 BC, this is rather recent historically. Even before 600 AD, Hebrew was becoming a lost language. Hebrew literacy was becoming a grave issue for Jewish leaders. A group of scribes in Tiberias called the Masoretes—meaning tradition—began developing the vowel marking system. (This group also gave us the major family of OT texts known as the Masoretic Text.)
The Name of God is represented by the four Hebrew consonants יהוה (YHWH in our alphabet). There are no vowels. These four consonants, YHWH, became known as the tetragrammaton (your $10 word for the day). The term “tetragrammaton” means “consisting of four letters.” It was used for this Name of God, as the Masoretes never added vowels to YHWH in the Hebrew text. When Moses met God at the burning bush and asked what he should say God’s name was, God said YHWH. Yet, centuries later the Name was no longer spoken. For the Jewish people, from the time of the Exile from Israel in 586 BC down to this very day, the name of God is too holy to be pronounced. They did not want to mistakenly take the Name of God in vain (Ex 20:7; Lev 24:16). Thus, vowels were never added. You don’t need vowels if you are not supposed to pronounce the Name.
Use
So, when the Jewish people read the Scriptures and came to YHWH, they would substitute Adonai (Lord) or Hashem (the Name). They would also use Adonai or Hashem in everyday speech. When translating the Scriptures from Hebrew to Greek, around 300 BC, the Hebrew scholars used the Greek word Kurios (Lord) for both Adonai and YHWH. From the KJV to modern translations of the Bible, YHWH is translated generally as The LORD—with all caps and the addition of the definite article. (In other posts we will deal with the use and translation of YHWH in combination with other terms such as Elohim YHWH (Lord God))
YHWH is used over 6,800 times in the OT. (See our List of Abbreviations for help with abbreviations below) From the KJV to the ESV, the most frequent way YHWH is rendered is almost exclusively as the LORD (all caps). A few translations use a mix of LORD and Yahweh or Jehovah, such as the NLT (8 times in Exodus as Yahweh), HCSB (over 600 times as Yahweh), the LB (over 400 times as Jehovah, with the rest as Lord with only the first letter capitalized), and even the KJV uses Jehovah 4 times. YHWH is rendered as Yahweh by the LEB, and the LSB. The ASV uses Jehovah (which is why the Jehovah Witnesses used this translation until they produced their own translation). The Amplified Bible uses Lord with only the first letter being capitalized. The Message alone renders it as GOD (all caps). The Voice Translation even uses The Eternal.
While most of the time YHWH is rendered with a definite article in English, in the Hebrew text, it is never the YHWH, as if He is the YHWH among other YHWHs. The Scriptures speak of the God of Israel but never YHWH of Israel, for He is not limited to just that place nor to just Israelites. He is never the living YHWH as if He could be anything but living.
You might find it interesting to know that Yahweh and Jehovah point to the same Hebrew word, YHWH. The Name had not been pronounced for centuries, and with it not having vowels, it is unclear how YHWH should be pronounced. Jehovah was long used as the best pronunciation for it. It was first introduced in Early Modern English in 1520 AD. But, it is really an anglicized version of the Name with some German influence.
If you are familiar with Spanish, you know it does not have a “J” sound, it is more of a “Y” sound as in Jaun, while English speakers say John. In the same way, Hebrew has different ways of pronouncing letters than in modern English. Yahweh, by all accounts is a very close rendering to how YHWH would have been originally spoken.
For myself, I would prefer to use Yahweh, but I understand the desire to not upset those who would find using the Name offensive. Yet, at the same time, I think that since God gave us His personal Name; we should use it. The probation is against taking God’s name in vain (Ex 20:7; Lev 24:16) not against saying the Name. We were told in Ex 3:15 His Name was to be His Name forever. This lack of the use of Yahweh is a bit of a superstition by the Jewish people. An understandable one as their nation, temple and capital were just destroyed, and most of the people either exiled or escaping to Egypt and other places due to their unfaithfulness to God. They rightly did not want to fall back into that error. But, I do think it was an overreaction and denied them and us—as we continue the practice—of a meaningful way of knowing and calling on our God.
It would be nice if they would put the tetragrammaton in the text, thus letting the reader decide how he wants to render it. No one would be offended, and it would make it clear when the personal Name of God is being used. It adds depth to a passage when you realize it is the transcendent God of the universe Who is being addressed by His personal Name. It enriches those passages which emphasize the glory and honor of His Name. It would also make it easier to distinguish it from the use of Lord (Adonai).
Origin
We briefly mentioned above Moses’ encounter with God in which God reveled His Name to him. But, this is not the first use of Yahweh in the Bible. We see Yahweh in the very beginning, in creation. In Gen 2:4 we see the first use of Yahweh. It is “the LORD God made the earth and the heavens.” Therefore, expanding the picture of the Creator from chapter 1. It is still Elohim (God), but He is also being referred to by His Name Yahweh. Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all use Yahweh. In fact, Yahweh is used 165 times in Genesis.
What we have in the Exodus account is a reconfirming of God’s Name. One likely reason for this is Moses, due to his time with the Egyptian royal family, may have had a diminished understanding of the faith of his people. He would have been steeped in the polytheism of Egypt and may have neglected his own monotheistic faith. This may have been true of some of the Jewish people also. Moses knows they are going to ask for the Name of the God of their fathers (Ex 3:13). God gave an interesting response. Instead of saying “Yahweh,” He makes a pun out of using a verb based on the Hebrew noun, Yahweh. He says, “I AM WHO I AM” (Ex 3:14). Then from there on, the name Yahweh is used over 6,800 times. It appears in every book but Esther, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs.
Before looking at the meaning of Yahweh, there is an interesting verse in Exodus 6 which we should look at. In the beginning of a passage where Yahweh speaks of his promise to deliver His people, He mentions that to the patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jabob— He appeared as El Shaddai (God Almighty) but to them He makes Himself known by His Name (Ex 6:3). This should not be understood to indicate that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did not know the name Yahweh; but at the time of the exodus, God was revealing His desire for a deeper and closer relationship with His people than just His power. He is powerful, but He is also a God who loves, seeks a covenant relationship, and will deliver His people.
Meaning
I find all of this fascinating. It is the kind of thing I enjoy studying. But the important question for us is what Yahweh means. Yahweh is derived from a word for “being” or “state of being.” In Ex 3:14, God explains His Name as “I AM WHO I AM.” He is existence, and life itself. He is timeless and eternal. He is the uncaused cause of all things. All things, seen or unseen, were created and have life through Him (Jn 4:24; 5:21, 26; Col 1:16). The idea is the One is self-existing, self-sufficient, and Eternal (thus the Voice’s use of “The Eternal” for the Name).
Yahweh is not a God created by the imagination of man or carved from a tree, metal, or rock. He has always existed! He is the all-powerful Creator of the universe. He needs nothing. He lacks for nothing. Yet, He came to this group of enslaved people making a covenant with them to be their God and for them to be His people. The all-powerful, infinite, transcendent God is making Himself known to these people and through them to us as He had never done before. He tells them, “This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations” (Ex 3:15). What an incredible moment in history!
Takeaway
The key to take away from this study is no matter how YHWH is rendered, we should see in it the personal Name of God. Personal! God wants to relate to us one-on-one in a personal, meaningful way. Now meditate on that. The infinite, all-powerful, transcendent God of the universe wants to know you and me!
Until the next time we see you here at CultivatingFaith.org, God Bless! #CultivatingFaithOrg