Jesus showed the utmost reverence for His heavenly Father and esteemed His name above all others, giving it primary importance in the Lord’s prayer. Jesus emphasized that the divine name was both sacred and holy. The Lord’s prayer was to serve as a model prayer, for all of His disciples.
Matthew 6:9 states: “Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name (may thy name be held holy).”
Jesus glorified His Father’s name and made His name manifest or known to men. He did not seek his own glory or praise from men, but only sought the glory of Him who sent Him, His heavenly Father.
Jesus said at John 17:6: “I have manifested thy name (made your name known) to the men whom thou gavest me out of the world.”
Jesus said at John 17:26: “. . .and I have made your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love from which you loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
Jesus said at John 5:41: “I do not accept glory from human beings (I take no praise from men).”
Jesus said at John 7:18: “Those who speak on their own (authority) seek their own glory (glory for themselves); but the one who seeks the glory of Him (the Father) who sent him is true, and their is nothing false in him.” (See also John 13:16)
Jesus said at John 14:13-14: “Whatever you ask in my name, that I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”
Jesus said at John 12:28: “‘Father, glorify thy name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.'”
Jesus prayer to His Father at John 17:1: “After Jesus had spoken these words, He looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you.'”
The Divine Name
These questions are then raised, “What is God’s name?” “Is not, ‘God,’ His name?” No, it is not!
“God” is a title (or noun), in Hebrew pronounced “Elohim.”
“LORD” is a title (or noun), in Hebrew pronounced “Adonai.”
“Father” is a title (or noun), in Hebrew pronounced “Abba.”
“God Almighty” is a title (or noun), in Hebrew pronounced “El Shaddai.”
In ancient Hebrew, the sacred and personal name of God the Father was represented by four consonants, “YHWH.” The (YHWH) is commonly referred to as the Tetragrammaton. In ancient Hebrew there were no vowels, only consonants. Most scholars now concur that the divine name of God was originally pronounced, “Yahweh.”
Unger’s Bible Dictionary states: “The Hebrew tetragrammaton (YHWH), traditionally pronounced Jehovah, is now known to be correctly vocalized Yahweh. New inscriptional evidence from the second and first millennia B. C. point toward this fact.”
The name, “Yahweh,” in ancient Hebrew means: “He that causes to be,” “He that causes to exist,” or “He that creates.”
The name, “Jehovah,” is an aberration of the divine name. It is a combination or amalgamation of an entirely different word, “Adonai” (“LORD” in Hebrew), with God’s sacred name as represented by the “YHWH” (the Tetragrammaton). How did this come about?
Once again, in ancient Hebrew there were no vowels, only consonants. It was up to the reader or speaker, when reading or quoting the sacred text, to supply or insert the vowels between the consonants and vocalize them. Vocalization was based on the principals of pronunciation that were found in ancient Hebrew. After the completion of the Old Testament, superstitious Jews began to avoid writing or speaking the sacred name of God (Yahweh), out of their fear of Him and that they might unwittingly take God’s name in vain. Over a period of time, it became the common practice for synagogue readers to substitute the word, “Adonai” (“LORD” in Hebrew), whenever they came to the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), in the ancient Hebrew text. This practice was also reflected in the later translation of the Hebrew text into the common Greek. The Greek translation of the scriptures, known as the Septuagint, removed the divine name, “Yahweh,” entirely from its text and substituted the word, “Kurios” (“LORD” in Greek ), in its place. The Greek Septuagint became the common Bible of the early Christian church.
Over a period of time, the name (Yahweh) had fallen into such disuse that no one was sure of the exact pronunciation. It wasn’t until several hundred years later, during the Christian era, that vowel points were eventually added to the Hebrew language to ensure proper pronunciation. Unfortunately, no vowel signs were ever added to the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), to ensure the accuracy of the original pronunciation. Most scholars and historians are now quite certain, if not absolutely certain, that the divine name was originally pronounced, “Yahweh.”
The name, “Jehovah,” came from a later editorial error and misunderstanding. Because the Hebrew practice was to substitute, “Adonai” (Hebrew for “LORD”), in place of, “Yahweh” (YHWH), in the oral reading of the text, the Masoretic scribes inserted the vowels from Adonai into the Tetragrammaton (YHWH). Instead of the YHWH of the unpointed Hebrew text (the Tetragrammaton with no vowels), they took the vowels a, o, & a, from Adonai, and inserted them between the letters, YHWH. The result was a new name for God the Father, “YaHoWaH.” The intent was that the reader would recognize the weird vowel points (the a, o, & a, of Adonai) that were inserted between the consonants of the tetragrammaton (YHWH), and would remember to say, “Adonai” (Hebrew for LORD).
Later, scholars were confused by this and taking directly what they found in the Masoretic text, “YaHoWah,” through a transliteration process into Latin, German, and English, they gave birth to a new name for God, “Jehovah.” Jehovah, as translated from YaHoWaH, is a total aberration of the divine name! When translated into Latin and German, the “Y” of YaHoWah was later substituted with the letter, “J,” and the “W” of YaHoWaH with the letter, “V.” These editorial errors in the transliteration process resulted in the present day rendering of the divine name, “Jehovah.”
Both the Revised Standard Version and the New American Standard Version of the Bible confirm this fact in the preface:
“The form ‘Jehovah’ is of late medieval origin.”
“The word ‘Jehovah’ does not accurately represent any form of the Name ever used in Hebrew.”
“While it is almost if not quite certain that the Name was originally pronounced ‘Yahweh,’ this pronunciation was not indicated when the Masoretes added vowel signs to the consonantal Hebrew text. To the four consonants YHWH of the Name, which had come to be regarded as too sacred to be pronounced, they attached vowel signs indicating that in its place should be read the Hebrew word ‘Adonai,’ meaning ‘Lord’ (or ‘Elohim’ meaning ‘God’). The ancient Greek translators substituted the word ‘Kyrios’ (‘Lord’) for the Name.”
Most scholars now agree that the sacred name of God was originally pronounced, “Yahweh.”
The Divine Name and the Old Testament
One of the most important factors about the divine name, “Yahweh,” is that it appears in Holy Scripture more than any other word. The divine name, “Yahweh,” occurs 6,823 times in the Old Testament. Next in frequency is, “Elohim” (the Hebrew word for God), which occurs 2,588 times in the Old Testament, less than half as many times as “Yahweh.”
Many other names in the Old Testament are derived from Yahweh. In each of these examples a form of the prefix, “Yah” (as found in Yahweh), appears in such names as: Joshua (Yehoshua), Jehoshaphat (Yehoshaphat), Jeremiah (Yirmiyahu), etc. In these names the “Y” in Hebrew is substituted with the letter “J” in Latin or English. In a similar manner, the prefix, “Yah” (as found in Yahweh), also serves as a suffix in such names as: Isaiah (Yeshayahu), Jeremiah (Yirmiyahu), Obadiah (Obhadhyah), etc.
The Divine Name & the New Testament.
An abbreviated form of the divine name also appears in the New Testament.
Revelation 19:1 states: “After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying, ‘Hallelujah (Allelujah)! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.”‘
In this verse, the prefix of the divine name, “Yah,” appears as the suffix in the expression, “Hallelujah” or “Allelujah.” The expression, “Hallelujah” (“Halleluyah” in Hebrew), means to praise or hail, “Yah,” a shortened or abbreviated form of, “Yahweh.” In the Hebrew word, “Halleluyah,” the Y in Hebrew is substituted with the letter, “J,” in English, “Hallelujah.” This expression, Hallelujah, which later appeared in the Christian Greek scriptures, would also be an indication that early Christians were aware of the Hebrew pronunciation of the divine name. “Yah,” the abbreviated pronunciation of the divine name (Yahweh), was later retained in the expression, “Hallelujah.”
The most famous name in Holy Scripture that is derived from Yahweh is, “Yeshua.” The Hebrew name, “Yeshua,” when translated into English, is the name we now recognize as, “Jesus.” Once again the “Yah” (as found in Yahweh) acts as the prefix in the Hebrew name, “Yeshua.” The “Y” in “Yeshua” was later substituted with the letter, “J,” when translated into English and pronounced, “Jesu.” The Greeks may have contributed to our present day pronunciation of Jesus, by adding the letter, “s,” to the suffix. A more accurate pronunciation in English would be, “Jeshua” (“Yeshua” in Hebrew), or “Jesu” (“Yeshu” in Hebrew).
Yeshua in Hebrew means: “Yahweh saves,” or “Yahweh is salvation.”
The Revelation & Sacredness of the Divine Name
The proper pronunciation of the divine name should be of utmost importance to true worshipers and deserves our utmost reverence and respect. The sacredness of the name (Yahweh) is emphasized in one of the Ten Commandments, which expressly forbade anyone misusing or abusing God’s holy name.
Exodus 20:1 & 7 states: “1 Then God spoke all these words. He said, ‘I am Yahweh your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 7 You shall not utter the name of Yahweh your God to misuse it, for Yahweh will not leave unpunished the man who utters his name to misuse it.'” (All proceeding quotes are from The Jerusalem Bible, which accurately translates the divine name, “Yahweh” (YHWH), as it appeared in the ancient Hebrew text)
Leviticus 24:15-16 states: “15 And speak to the people of Israel saying: ‘Anyone who curses God shall bear his fault (shall bear his sin). 16 The one who blasphemes the name of Yahweh shall die (shall be put to death); the community must stone him (the whole congregation shall stone the blasphemer). . .'”
The divine name first appears in Holy Scripture at Exodus 3:13-15. There, the LORD God revealed His name, “Yahweh” (YHWH), to mankind. Yahweh would be His memorial name for all time.
Exodus 3:13-15 states: “13 Then Moses said to God, ‘I am to go, then, to the sons of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you. But if they ask me what His name is, what am I to tell them?’ 14 And God said to Moses, ‘I Am who I Am. This, he added, is what you must say to the sons of Israel: I Am has sent me to you.’ 15 And God also said to Moses, ‘You are to say to the sons of Israel: Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name for all time; by this name I shall be invoked for all generations to come.'”
Almighty God went on to state at Exodus 6:2, that formerly He had revealed Himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as, “El Shaddai” (“God Almighty,” in Hebrew). God was now making himself known to Moses by His personal name, “Yahweh.” The revealing of His name was a pivotal act on God’s part, in His self revelation to the human race.
Exodus 6:2 states: “God spoke to Moses and said to him, ‘I am Yahweh. To Abraham and Isaac and Jacob I appeared as El Shaddai (God Almighty); I did not make myself known to them by my name Yahweh.'”
The alternative name or title of God in ancient Hebrew, “I Am,” is derived from the Hebrew word “hiyah.” The name “Yahweh” (in ancient Hebrew) is comprised of the same root and third person ending as “hiyah.”
In ancient times, a failure to obey, fear, and revere the glorious and awesome name of Yahweh, brought the wrath of God and a curse on the nation of Israel.
Deuteronomy 28:58-62 states: “58 If you do not keep and observe all the words of this Law that are written in this book, in the fear of this name of glory and awe: Yahweh your God, 59 Yahweh will strike you down with monstrous plagues, you and your descendants: with plagues grievous and lasting, pernicious and enduring. 60 Once more he will bring on you the diseases of Egypt that you dreaded, and they will infect you. 61 Further, Yahweh will bring upon you every sickness, every plague, not mentioned in the book of this Law until you perish. 62 There will be only a handful of you left, you who were as many as the stars of heaven. 63 For not obeying the voice of Yahweh your God.”
The Distinction Between Father & Son
Knowing that God the Father has a name, “Yahweh,” also helps one to identify and distinguish between God the Father and the Son as being two distinct persons, when reading and referencing scripture.
A classic example of this is Psalms 110:1, which states: “Yahweh (The LORD) said to my Lord (Christ, the Son), ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool (a footstool for your feet).'”
Another example of this is Zechariah 14:3-4, which states: “3 The LORD (Yahweh) will go forth and fight against those nations as when He fights on a day of battle. 4 On that day His feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives. . . and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two.” (This passage is commonly mistaken for being Yeshua (Jesus), when in actually, it is Yahweh)
The above passages show how the divine name, “Yahweh,” would have appeared in the Aramaic or ancient Hebrew text. The large case letters (LORD) would have been correctly translated as, Yahweh (YHWH), not Yeshua (Jesus).
Our Prayers & Exclusive Worship
Identifying God the Father as, “Yahweh,” also helps us to clarify and identify who our worship and formal prayers should be directed to. Note, Jesus own words in this regard and how the scriptural renderings would have appeared in the Aramaic or ancient Hebrew text.
Matthew 6:9 states: “Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name (may thy name be held holy).”
Matthew 23:9 states: “And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.”
And Jesus answered him (the devil), “It is written, ‘You shall worship Yahweh (the LORD) your God, and Him only shall you serve.'” Luke 4:8
“35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked Him (Jesus) a question, to test Him. ’36 Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?’ 37 And He said to him, ‘You shall love Yahweh (the LORD) your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the great (greatest) and first commandment.'” Matthew 22:35-38
(See the OT passages that Jesus quoted from at Deuteronomy 6:5 & 6:13, where the divine name, “Yahweh,” would have appeared in the original Hebrew text) (See also Father, Son, & Holy Spirit, topic III & IV)
To disregard, misappropriate, or profane God’s holy name (Yahweh), was an act as serious as any other sin or form of willful disobedience. As was already stated, the divine name was almost lost to history. It has not been until recent times, that many preachers and theologians are once again incorporating the use of God’s name, “Yahweh,” in both their sermons and literary works. The psalmist refers to Yahweh (the LORD), as the Most High God over all the earth.
Psalms 83:18 states: “Let them know that thou alone, whose name is Yahweh (the LORD), art the Most High over all the earth.”
The angel Gabriel referred to Jesus as the Son of the Most High God, not the the Most High God.
At Luke 1:32 the angel Gabriel said to Mary: “31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called Son of the Most High. . . ”
Note what the following sources state about the divine name:
Jehovah (Hebrew Yehowah): The name of God, devised. . . by artificially combining the consonants of the name Yehowah (JHWH: held by the Jews to be unutterable) and the vowels of the substitute name Adonai (the Lord). Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, pg. 682.
Jehovah: The name of the God of the Hebrew people as erroneously translated from the Masoretic Hebrew text. Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2000.
Jehovah: English transliteration of the Divine name, based on a misunderstanding of the Hebrew text, which should probably be read “Yahweh.” The Concise Jewish Encyclopedia, pg. 277.
Jehovah: A mispronunciation (introduced by Christian theologians, but most entirely disregarded by the Jews) of the Hebrew “YHWH,” the (ineffable) name of God (the Tetragrammaton). This pronunciation is grammatically impossible. . . The Jewish Encyclopedia, Vol. VII, pg. 87.
Jehovah: It was the Masoretes who, from about the 6th to the 10th century worked to reproduce the original text of the Hebrew Bible, replaced the vowels for the name YHWH with the vowel signs of the Hebrew words Adonai or Elohim. Thus the artificial name Jehovah (YeHoWaH) came into being. The Encyclopedia Britannica 1999-2000.
Jehovah: The name of the God of the Hebrew people as erroneously transliterated from the Masoretic Hebrew text. The word consists of the consonants JHVH or JHWH with the vowels of a separate word, Adonai (Lord). What its original vowels were is a matter of speculation. . . the name came to be regarded as to sacred for expression; the scribes, in reading aloud, substituted Lord. . . The evidence of the Greek church fathers shows. . . the shortened Hebrew forms of the words Jah and Jahu. It indicates the name was spoken Jahweh or Yahwe (often spelled Yahweh in modern usage). Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia 1999-2000.
Yahweh: the covenantal name of the God of Israel; often, although erroneously, rendered “Jehovah.”. . Instead of reading the sacred name “Yahweh,” pious Israelites substituted the word Adonai, “LORD” so that Yahweh is translated LORD in KJV and RSV. Harper’s Study Bible pg. 6.
*Red print is for variations of scriptural passages and/or for clarification.