The MOST famous name for God in the OT is called the Sacred Tetragrammaton –It is YHWH.
Yahweh was changed into Jehovah by Christians -- Mark 12:29
Harpers Bible Dictionary says that the name JEHOVAH was "the result of the translators' ignorance of the Hebrew language and customs" (1985 edition , p. 1036)
Jehovah is a mistaken name of YHWH.
The Book "World Religions From Ancient History to the Present" says : "The name Jehovah is a medieval misreading and does not occur in the Hebrew Bible" (edited by Geoffrey Parrinder, p. 386)
The Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible says the name Jehovah is "an artificial name" (vol. 2, p.817) ------------ Asimovs Guide to the Bible says that the name Jehovah "arose by mistake" (vol 1, p. 135). The author further says : "This mistake has persisted and will probably continue to persist" (p.135)
"When it came to God's name instead of putting the proper vowel signs around it, in most cases they put other vowel signs to remind the reader that he should say "Adonai". From this came the spelling Lehouah, and eventually Jehovah ...(pg. 8 ,Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, 1984)
"The truth is , nobody knows for sure how the name of God was originally pronounced". -(page 7- Watchtower Bible and Tract Soceity, 1984.) ------------
The name Yahweh is derived from the statement God made to Moses in Exodus 3:14. Moses asked God as to what his name was and he got the reply -- "ehyeh esher ehyeh" .
The editors of the NEW JERUSALEM BIBLE explain this as : "The Hebrew can be translated literally 'I am what I am' , which would mean that GOD did not wish to reveal his name to them" (p. 85)
"The truth is , nobody knows for sure how the name of God was pronounced" (Pg. 7 - Watchtower Bible and Tract Society)
Is the name you are using in your prayers the name of God or a manmade name of God ?
2007-04-25 12:34:52 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
The premise of this question is false. The Divine Name appears nearly SEVEN THOUSAND TIMES in the bible, and was well known to contemporaneous Jews and Christians.
(John 17:6) [Jesus said of God] “I have made your name manifest to the men you gave me out of the world.
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
2007-04-25 17:06:28 · answer #1 · answered by achtung_heiss 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
God calls himself by YHWH multiple times in the Bible, so right off the bat your reasoning is skewed.
And what is your problem with the name Jehovah? Of course it's a TRANSLATION of the divine name. Of course we don't have the original pronunciation- it was lost due to Jewish tradition and the fear of saying it out loud. Of course ancient Hebrew had no vowels.
Why are you telling us things we already know and acknowledge? If Jehovah is such a terrible translation then you better stop using Jesus too! That name is also an ENGLISH TRANSLATION of a Hebrew name!
Sheesh! Move on and find something to do other than ask the same question 500 times a minute!
2007-04-25 12:42:44 · answer #2 · answered by danni_d21 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
That's not an entirely fair accusation, friend. A Roman Catholic priest first coined the name 'Jehovah' in the middle ages, and there were reasonable linguistic grounds for so doing. But the real problem with the Divine Name is that it is ineffable! It is unutterable as it is too great for description, and the Jewish nation (to whom God revealed something of his Name) realised they must not take it in vain by trying to pronounce it. So everyone who tries to work out how to verbalise it has completely missed the point! However you put it - YHWH, YVWH, Jehovah, Jah, or whatever - it must also be said that there are other Names of God - too many to list here. The one Name JWs don't like facing up to is, "I AM" because Jesus took that Name upon himself and nearly got stoned to death for supposed blasphemy. (It would have been blasphemy, if He wasn't who He actually was!) JWs were "given" this name of Jehovah's Witnesses by their former President, Judge Rutherford, at the Columbus, Ohio, convention in 1931. It was explained to them that from 1919 to 1931 the parable of "the vineyard of God" was being fulfilled (Mat 20:1-16) those 12 years being the 12 hours of the parable. Now, at the end of the 11th hour, the newest converts (who were not Spirit-begotten) would get their reward - a penny - which was the name "Jehovah's Witnesses" - just the same as the Spirit-begotten members who had been working longer. Just another false interpretation of Scripture, of course, for we are now 70+ years on from that "11th hour". Time drags when you're not having fun. Instead of making so much fuss over the name Jehovah, JWs would do better to ponder the significance of Jesus' name, for there is no other name under heaven given us by which we must be saved.
2016-05-18 22:45:24 · answer #3 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Why did you stop reading at Ex 3:14?
Why not read vs 15?
(Exodus 3:15) . . .“This is what you are to say to the sons of Israel, ‘Jehovah the God of YOUR forefathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, has sent me to YOU.’ This is my name to time indefinite, and this is the memorial of me to generation after generation.
Or how about?
(John 12:27-28) . . .. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Therefore a voice came out of heaven: “I both glorified [it] and will glorify [it] again.”
(John 17:6) 6 “I have made your name manifest to the men you gave me out of the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have observed your word.
(John 17:26) 26 And 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 and I in union with them.”
In your question, Have you glorified God's name, or defamed it?
2007-04-27 01:54:47 · answer #4 · answered by TeeM 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋