Why did Jehovahh witness's change the name of the Lord into Jehova? it was originally YHWH.?

Question

it was written in the bible that we don't have to add or remove any into it.
Deu 12:32 What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it. "
"Rev 22:18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. "

Answer 1

The existence of God can be proven by using science, history and the Bible. God’s pronouncements and prophecies can become our stronghold in believing that He exists.

The words of our Lord Jesus in Matthew 24:5, 7 showed how His prophecies are coming to pass right now in our time. These prophecies include the proliferation of deceivers, the occurrence of wars and rumors of wars, famine, pestilences, and earthquakes in diverse places.

The God of the Holy Scriptures will be our topic. And with God’s help, questions like “Who is God?” “What is His name?” and “Where is He?” would be resolved by using the Bible.

Any wise person will surely believe in the existence of a Supreme Being because no one will exist without Him. According to the Bible, our existence is a concrete proof of His existence. Acts 17:28 says that our existence proves the existence of God—

“For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also His offspring.

“For in Him we live, we exist, and we move, and have our being.” The Bible says that there is really a Supreme Being who created everything that exists—the visible and the invisible, the spiritual and the material, and everything that exists on earth and in the universe. In fact, their existence proves the existence of God – the Creator of everything.

But we have to know the person of that Supreme Being that we call God. The word “God” has been used in different ways in the Bible. That is why we have to be specific about the person and the being of that one Supreme Being we call “God”, so that we can pay Him due respect, service, praises, and honor. In the Bible, He is being introduced as a person with a name.

In introducing persons to one another, we normally introduce them by their names. And if we believe that there is a God who exists, if we believe in a powerful Being who is responsible in the existence of everything in the universe, we have to know His name.

The question concerning the name that we need to use in addressing the Almighty God has become a big controversy over time among the people who believe in God. Different religious denominations introduce Him in different ways. The Muslims call him Allah, while the members of the various Protestant groups as well as the Born Again Movements call Him Jesus. They believe that Jesus is the Father, Jesus is also the Son, and Jesus is also the Holy Spirit. That is why they refer to Him as God Jesus, Jesus the Father, Jesus the Son, and Jesus the Holy Spirit. All of them have the same name because according to them, they are but one person, and that is the person of Jesus.

This is, indeed, a very controversial issue. If we are going to turn the pages of the Bible to find out what the vital issues had arose in the past, we will find out that during the time of Moses, the name of God never became a subject of contention. And even during the time of the Apostles and the first century Christians, there had been no debate regarding the name of God. Why? It was because all of them knew the truth. They had our Lord Jesus Christ with them. It was very easy on their part to know what the name of God was because Jesus revealed it to His disciples. Moses, on the other hand, heard the name of God right from the angel’s mouth.

But now, the pronunciation of God’s name had been lost. The Jews, who knew it, were aware of the sacredness of that name that was why, they were too afraid to at least utter God’s name. In the Old Testament, it was a grave sin to use the name of God in vain. That is the reason why, in the course of time, the pronunciation of God’s name was lost.

The question about God’s name was neither an issue 2000 years ago. St. Paul never argued with anybody about the name of God because all of them knew His name. Even the Israelites did not doubt Moses when he mentioned the name of God. Nobody questioned him because he personally heard the angel who uttered the name of God.

But today, it is totally different. Now, God’s name and its pronunciation have become a debatable issue. It is an issue that would be resolved through the available evidences that we have inasmuch as we could no longer, directly, ask the disciples and the Apostles nor the early Christians. But one thing is sure. The name of God is not Jehovah! Why are we saying that Jehovah is not the name of God? What is our reason? We are saying that Jehovah is not the name of God because the Jehovah’s Witnesses themselves are admitting that the name “Jehovah” is not God’s real name. And if we are going to refer to the foreword of the Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, which was translated by the Jehovah’s Witnesses in 1950, it says—

“While inclining to view the pronunciation “Yahweh” as the more correct way, we have retained the form “Jehovah” because of people’s familiarity with it since the 14th century.”

The Jehovah’s Witnesses are admitting that the pronunciation “Yahweh” is the more correct pronunciation of God’s name. But simply because the people were already familiar with the name “Jehovah,” they had decided to continue using that name in all of the Kingdoms everywhere. They continue to preach this erroneous belief. It is erroneous because, in one of their publications, “Reasoning from the Scriptures,” they confessed the truth about the name “Jehovah”. Page 192 says—

“Hence, some moderns have framed the name Jehovah, unknown to all the ancients, whether Jews or Christians.”

According to the Jehovah’s Witnesses, the name “Jehovah” was just framed and formulated by some modern translators. That means only the modern translators have framed it from the Tetragrammaton, YHWH. And they, likewise, admitted that “Jehovah” was not known to the ancients, whether Jews or Christians. Therefore, the first century Christians did not have any idea of the name “Jehovah”. Not even our Lord Jesus Christ, not even the Apostles, not even Paul, who wrote so many epistles, none of them knew of any “Jehovah” because it came out only in the 14th century.There are people who call themselves “witnesses” but, in truth, they are “false witnesses”. They are playing witnesses to something not true. They are inculcating in the minds of their 2 million members (as they claim) that the name of God is “Jehovah”. Members who refuse to accept it are threatened of not being saved. That belief is a blatant lie because they, themselves, had confesses that such was not really the correct pronunciation to God’s name. They believe that the word “Yahweh” is the more correct way of pronouncing God’s name. In spite of the fact that they are more inclined to believe that “Yahweh” is the more correct pronunciation to God’s name, they still instill in the minds of the people that God’s name is “Jehovah”. This is one reason why we are saying that the name of God is, indeed, a very broad topic. Not only that, it is also a very sensitive subject matter.

Now, let us familiarize ourselves with the word “name” in the Bible. Biblically speaking, the word “name” is very important, although some Catholics believe that a name is not that important. In fact, there was one religious pastor who remarked, Why talk about the name when a name is immaterial? He even cited a Shakespearean line, “A rose by any other name will still be sweet.” That is not true! If somebody gives you this quotation, that would mean that, that person is out of his mind. Why say that, a rose by any other name is sweet? In the Philippines, there is a flower called, katuray. By the mere sound of its name, we can already tell that this flower is not sweet, even if you call it “rose”. Using the name “rose” for a “katuray” will not make it any sweeter. Misnaming anything is not good. You have to name all things accordingly – exact and precise. If you will not consider certain factors and circumstances in naming persons or things, the result is a misnomer.

If you are going to call bronze, or an iron painted with gold as gold, you will be fooling a lot of people. When you say gold, it must be a soft metal, not necessarily yellowish in color because there is such a thing as white gold, with a certain luster. It is also attractive to the eye. But if you are going to ascribe the word “gold” to a bronze, that is deception.

When we talk about the name of God, we have to be precise because we are referring to the Creator of all things, of every truth, and of every goodness. Aside from that, He is the reason behind our existence. Insofar as the Bible is concerned, a name is very important. Proverbs 22:1 says—

“A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.”

The written word of God introduces the value of a name. A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches. Take note, it is not just riches but “great riches”. We have known great riches in the Bible. For example, the house of Balak was full of gold and silver. Numbers 24:13 says—

“If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the Lord, to either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the Lord saith, that will I speak.”

Balak’s house contained great riches; it was full of silver and gold. But the Bible says, “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches.” See how important a good name is?

And if we are going to choose among names, surely, we will choose the most appropriate and the most fitting. Now, let us try to analyze further the reasons behind a name. The name “Isaac” means joy, happiness, laughter. And Isaac was given that name because before he was born, an angel of the Lord told his father, Abraham, the following year, Sarah, his wife, will conceive and give birth to a son. But upon hearing this, Sarah laughed. Why did she laugh? She laughed because she was already very old. She was past her menopausal years. And even Abraham was almost a hundred years old already. From Sarah’s laughter was the name Isaac originated.

In the Bible, naming a person is sometimes based on the incidents in the person’s life. Sometimes, it is based on his physical appearance, like Esau, for instance. Esau means “hairy”. He was called Esau because of his physical traits – his skin was hairy. Genesis 25:25 says—

“And first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they call his name Esau.”

Therefore, the name of Esau fits his physical appearance.

Sometimes, a name also speaks of an incident in a person’s life. Like in the case of Moses for instance. What does Moses’ name signify? Because he was taken out of the water, they called him Moses. The name “Moses” is not Hebrew. It was Egyptian, and it means, “He was taken out of the water.”

Now, the name “Yashua” is another thing. In Hebrew, it means “savior”. The name “Yahsua”, or “Jashua”, or “Jesus”, in Greek, refers to a savior.

That is why, if we are going to ask the Bible of the real name of the Creator, who is commonly called God, we will come across a very great idea of a very broad truth. The question is, What is His name? Who named Him? These are sensible questions. It is wise to believe that somebody named everything that has a name. In Genesis, all the animals and the fowls were named by Adam. Genesis 2:19—

“And out of the ground the Lord God formes every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them to Adam to seen what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.”

In the Bible, a name refers to the way a person, or a thing, is called. We have also learned that in naming persons and things, there are factors to consider. And we have seen that in the names of Isaac, Esau, and Moses.

Therefore, in studying the name of the Almighty God, it is imperative that we get to know how we should address Him. How are we going to call Him? How are we going to praise and worship His name? Our Lord Jesus Christ said—

“Pray unto this manner, Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name …”

We have to worship the name of the Lord. But what is His name? Certainly, it is not Jehovah. Using their own published material, we can prove that without a shadow of a doubt. Jehovah is not the name of God

Answer 2

To answer this, we have to remember that the Bible was not originally written in English. The Bible writers were Hebrews, and they mostly wrote in the Hebrew and Greek languages of their day. Most of us do not speak those ancient languages. But the Bible has been translated into numerous modern tongues, and we can use these translations when we want to read God's Word.

In the Hebrew language it is written as four letters, called the Tetragrammaton, and are read from right to left in Hebrew and can be represented in many modern languages as YHWH or JHVH. God's name, represented by these four consonants, appears almost 7,000 times in the original "Old Testament," or Hebrew Scriptures.

Forms of the divine name in different languages, indicating international acceptance of the form Jehovah

Awabakal - Yehóa
Bugotu - Jihova
Cantonese - Yehwowah
Danish - Jehova
Dutch - Jehovah
Efik - Jehovah
English - Jehovah
Fijian - Jiova
Finnish - Jehova
French - Jéhovah
Futuna - Ihova
German - Jehova
Hungarian - Jehova
Igbo - Jehova
Italian - Geova
Japanese - Ehoba
Maori - Ihowa
Motu - Iehova
Mwala-Malu - Jihova
Narrinyeri - Jehovah
Nembe - Jihova
Petats - Jihouva
Polish - Jehowa
Portuguese - Jeová
Romanian - Iehova
Samoan - Ieova
Sotho - Jehova
Spanish - Jehová
Swahili - Yehova
Swedish - Jehova
Tahitian - Iehova
Tagalog - Jehova
Tongan - Jihova
Venda - Yehova
Xhosa - uYehova
Yoruba - Jehofah
Zulu - uJehova

It is just that the form Jehovah is likely to meet with a quicker response from the reader because it is the form that has been "naturalized" into most languages. The important thing is that we use the name and declare it to others. "Give thanks to Jehovah, you people! Call upon his name. Make known among the peoples his dealings. Make mention that his name is put on high."—Isaiah 12:4.

To take the most prominent example, consider the name of Jesus. Do you know how Jesus' family and friends addressed him in day-to-day conversation while he was growing up in Nazareth? The truth is, no human knows for certain, although it may have been something like Yeshua (or perhaps Yehoshua). It certainly was not Jesus.

However, when the accounts of his life were written in the Greek language, the inspired writers did not try to preserve that original Hebrew pronunciation. Rather, they rendered the name in Greek, I·e·sous'. Today, it is rendered differently according to the language of the reader of the Bible. Spanish Bible readers encounter Jesús (pronounced Hes·soos'). Italians spell it Gesù (pronounced Djay·zoo'). And Germans spell it Jesus (pronounced Yay'soos).

Sorry so long, just wanted to answer the question as best as possible.

Answer 3

Jehovah's Winesses were not the first to use the English form of YHWH. Martin Luther was. Please read on:

The "J" in "Jehovah" is a result of Martin Luther's[citation needed] rendering of the Biblical Hebrew name יְהֹוָה‎ in his German translation of the Masoretic Text first published in 1534.

Due to the fluid position of the letters J and I in English before the 17th century, Luther's convention fit with earlier English transcriptions and was thus retained in early English translations. The Encyclopedia Americana states:

The form of J was unknown in any alphabet until the 14th century. Either symbol (J,I) used initially generally had the consonantal sound of Y as in year. Gradually, the two symbols (J,I) were differentiated, the J usually acquiring consonantal force and thus becoming regarded as a consonant, and the I becoming a vowel. It was not until 1630 that the differentiation became general in England.

The first English translators to transcribe God's name into English had no reason to believe that the vowel points of "יְהֹוָה‎" might be incorrect, so they transcribed "יְהֹוָה‎" into English just as it was written [i.e. Iehouah [AD 1530] and Iehovah [1611] and Jehovah [1769]

Iehouah[3] is the first English transcription of God's name and is found a small number of times in Tyndale's Pentateuch, which was written in 1530

Answer 4

The English word for YHWH (a word with no vowels, by the way) is "Jehovah". We use many English words in place of the original Hebrew and Greek words. We do this even when we refer to God as "I Am."

I am not a Jehovah's Witness and yet I understand this.
Blessings.

Answer 5

i'm undecided your clarification is right. it unquestionably relies upon on while Torahs have been first pointed. As you're saying, the Tetragrammaton become seen unpronounceable, or extremely, it become unwise to pronounce it. yet early Torahs had no vowels besides. It become as much as the cantor to bear in mind how the words have been reported, shop One. Later, while vowels have been further to HEBREW Torah scrolls, to eliminate the temptation to pronounce the call, the vowels for Adonai (Lord) have been further as a replace, notifying the cantor, with a nonsense be conscious, that he ought to replace the honorific. while Western Christianity in the seventeenth and 18th Centuries grew to become curious appropriate to the Hebrew scriptures, they ran for the era of this curious be conscious. no longer being Jews, they figured it rather become God's call and reported it as written, "Jahovah". those specific Christians have been German and reported "J" like we pronounce "Y". So while ignorant English speaking Christians have been given ahold of the commentaries, they reported a demanding "J" as a replace, and placed it of their Bible translations too. maximum Christians have been ultimately straightened out, yet because of the fact that "Jehovah" become part of their call, the JWs favourite to proceed making use of the unsuitable pronunciation.

Answer 6

It is just another translation like any other name can be translated. And back in the bible days 1 day was not one 24 hr day , one day was hundreds of years so tech the world is alot older that 4000 - you are obviously a very intelligent person to pick up on these isues - continue studying you will go far!!!

Answer 7

God's name is still YHWH, this is the Hebrew version of god's name. The english translation of god's name is Jehovah. Jehovah's Witnesses' did not change God's name to Jehovah. This is the english translation of YHWH. It's just like the english name is John, the french name is Jean and the spanish is Juan.

Answer 8

The King James Version included "Jehovah" as an English translation of "YHWH" about 400 years ago; it was certainly not Jehovah's Witnesses who invented the Name. "Jehovah" was used for hundreds of years before KJV.


It is true that the Almighty did not say, "Listen, thousands of years from now when a new language called English comes along, they can pronounce my name as 'Jehovah' and that's fine."

Instead, like with any and every personal name, different languages TRANSLATE personal names to fit their lingual tendencies. George becomes "Hor-hey" in Spanish or "Gay-org" in German and no one gets upset.

It's not exactly wrong to call the Almighty by the impersonal "God", just as it's not wrong to call one's offspring "Child". If we want a familiar and close relationship, however, it makes sense to use the personal name of someone we love. The Scriptures encourage us to use God's personal name.

The Hebrew name “Yahweh” (or “Yehowah”) does seem to accurately pronounce the divine name. Just as the Hebrew name “Yeshua” (or “Yehoshua”) is translated into “Jesus” in English, the Hebrew name “Yahweh” is translated into “Jehovah” in English.

The important thing is to use God’s personal name in whatever language you speak, rather than insisting upon the impersonal! The name “Yahweh” is certainly preferable to the non-name “God” or “Lord”, especially if you speak Hebrew. If you speak English, feel free to use the name "Jehovah".

(Psalms 83:18) That people may know that you, whose name is Jehovah, You alone are the Most High over all the earth

(John 17:26) [Jesus said] I have made your name known to them and will make it known, in order that the love with which you loved me may be in them

Learn more:
http://watchtower.org/e/na/
http://watchtower.org/e/20040122/
http://watchtower.org/e/19990208/article_03.htm

Answer 9

they didn't. why do you think that they did?

deut. was talking about commandments not the bible. besides that is in the old testament.

don't you realize that john was talking about rev. not the entire bible which is made up of many books.

martin luther took several books out of the original bible to make the kjv.

eclectic pagan

Answer 10

It wasn't the Jehovah's Witnesses that changed it. You can thank the King James Translators for that. In the KJV, the word Jehovah is the translation that they use for "YHWH".

Answer 11

Jesus in hebrew is Yehoshua/Yeshua, Elijah is Eliyahu, Jehosaphat is Yehosaphat and so on...I hope you get my point.

Hallelujah! means Praise be to Jah!, Jah is the short form of the name Jehovah.