Home Page About Us "MY HOLY NAME" 'Do not swear falsely by My Name and so profane the Name of your God. I am YHWH' (YaHWeH). (Lev 19:12) His Holy Name Ignored! By your servant, Dan Baxley www.servantsofyahshua.com www.yahshuaservant.com Email: dan@servantsofyahshua.com Why is the Divine Name of our God ignored? It is found in certain translation, like the Jerusalem Bible, but ignore by nearly every other translation. Is it important? Should we be concerned? What about our Savior's Name? When considering verses like Acts 4:12 shouldn't we be concerned? The name has not been lost His Holy Name has been ignored! But not for long! It seems right to go to some of the expert sources in regard to the use and abuse, or lack of use, of the Holy Name of our Creator, and the Name given to our Savior at His birth. By going to the source of excuses containing the reasoning for nonuse of so important an Identity it is my hope you will be supplied with the material you need and may quote from as authority from the translators themselves. You may not like some of the material quoted, as if they had any authority in the first place, but the singleness of mind can be seen from one to the other and in this we do see a kind of "inspiration", but not from our Heavenly Father. Why would He want to erase the Name of His son? He wouldn't of course, but there is another that would. Why would He allow it? I don't have all the answers but anyone taking his or her bible study serious will soon discover He has not hidden His Name and ther are well over 7000 references to His and the Name of His son, it has been the translators that has substituted a different name or title
under the inspiration of another. We are children of the light, not of the darkness, and it is for us to uncover His Divine Name, a certain "key" to helping unlock some of the hard things to be understood. This would be my guess as to why our Creator and Savior has allowed this covering up, to keep certain understanding of scripture in the shadows until we approach the end of the ages -- this, of course, is only my guess. It is my pleasure to present to you the reasoning given by the translators for hiding, substitution, ignoring, and ultimately profaning the Holy Name of our Creator. This, then, leads to the covering up of our Saviors Name, a Name by which we must be saved. Uncover the Divine Name of the God of the Old Testament and you will easily uncover the Name of the Savior, and Name proclaiming salvation. Please consider the following material carefully. * * * New International Version (NIV) 1985 Preface, xii, 5 th paragraph: In regard to the divine name YHWH, commonly referred to as the Tetragrammaton, the translators adopted the device used in most English versions of rendering the name as LORD in capital letters to distinguish it from Adonai, another Hebrew word rendered lord, for which small letters are used. Wherever the two names stand together in the Old Testament as a compound name of God, they are rendered Sovereign LORD Because for most readers today the phrase the LORD of hosts and God of hosts have little meaning, this version renders them the LORD Almighty and God Almighty. Insight on the Scriptures Volume 2, 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 call the Tetragrammaton (from Greek te-tra-, meaning four, and gram ma, letter ). These four letters (written from right to left) are and may be transliterated into English as YHWH (or, JHVH) (note: and this if from a Jehovah s Witness source book they are a witness against themselves)
The New Jerusalem Bible 1984 General Editor s Forward It has seemed wise to retain the spelling of the proper names traditional in English-speaking lands. Many names in biblical Hebrew have a meaning: for instance Adonijah means My Lord is Yah (Yahweh). Others are given a meaning by a more or less forced pun. Many of these meanings are given in the footnotes. In the rendering of Hebrew words in the footnotes, etc., a more modern system of transliteration is, however, used, thus enabling the reader to come closer to the original sounds. This is often important for onomatopoeia and to understand how textual corruption has occurred. (Note: onomatopoeia the formation of a word by imitating the natural sound associated with the object of action involved; echoism. Webster s New World Dictionary) also (The formation or use of words such as buzz or murmur that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to.[late Latin, from Greek onomatopoiia, from onomatopoios, coiner of names : onoma, onomat-, name -- American Heritage Talking Dictionary) This is pronounced as follows -- on - o - mat - o - pe - yah) The Bible Speaks of His Holy Name: MY HOLY NAME! Ezekiel 36:21 But I had pity for My Holy Name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations where they went. (My note: "profaned", that is made useless, made of non-effect, discarded, abused by neglect under the guise of holiness) Ezekiel 39:7 And I will make My Holy Name known in the midst of My people Israel. And I will not let them profane My Holy Name any more. And the nations shall know that I am LORD (YHWH), the Holy One in Israel. (My note: this is after the restoration of Israel s physical resurrection. By restoring" The Name in (brackets ( ) )you will see how the translators used substitution, not translation nor transliteration abandoning all rules governing the "phonetics" of a word or Name to make it sound as it originally does in another language reproducing
that sound in another language. The term LORD in no way sounds like or comes close to defining our Creator. Ezekiel 20:39 And you, O house of Israel, so says the Lord Jehovah (YHWH): Every man go and serve his idols, and do so from now on if you will not listen to Me. But never again defile My Holy Name with your gifts and with your idols. (Ezekiel 36:2) So says the Lord (YHWH): Because the enemy has said against you, Aha! Even the old high places have become a possession to us. (Ezekiel 39:25) Therefore so says the Lord (YHWH): And I will return the captivity of Jacob, and will have mercy on the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for My Holy Name; (Ezekiel 43:8) In their setting of their doorstep by My threshold, and their doorpost by My doorpost; and the wall between Me and them, they have even defiled My Holy Name by their abominations which they have done. And I have consumed them in My anger. (Psalms 33:21) For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we trust in His Holy Name. (Psalms 105:3) Glory in His Holy Name; let the heart of those who seek Jehovah (YHWH) rejoice. (Psalms 106:47) Save us, O Jehovah (O' YHWH) our God, and gather us from among the nations, to give thanks to Your Holy Name and to triumph in Your praise. (Psalms 145:21) My mouth shall speak the praise of Jehovah (YHWH); and let all flesh bless His Holy Name forever and ever. (Ezekiel 36:22) Therefore say to the house of Israel, So says the Lord Jehovah (YHWH): I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name's sake, which you have profaned among the nations where you went.
(Psalms 106:8) Nevertheless he saved them for His Name's sake, that He might make His mighty power to be known. (Psalms 148:13) Let them praise the name of the LORD (YHWH): for his name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven. * * * The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text, 1965 Preface, page vi Personal pronouns referring to Deity have been capitalized. As an aid to clearness direct discourse has been indicated by quotations marks. In the prophetical writings, where the speech of the prophet imperceptibly glides into the words of the Deity, and in the legal portions of the Pentateuch, it has been thought best to use quotation marks sparingly. Although the spelling of proper names in the English Bible in many instances deviates somewhat from an accurate representation of the Hebrew, it has nevertheless been deemed wise, owing to the familiarity of Hebrew names in their usual English form, generally to retain the current spelling. (This preface is dated September 27, 1916) TANAKH The Holy Scriptures ( The Jewish Bible ) 1985 Exodus 3:15 concerning the use of The LORD, the God of your fathers -- note c The name YHWH (traditionally read Adonai the LORD ) is here associated with the root hayah to be (note: The Tanakh makes no mention of the usage of the Tetragrammaton in its Preface but it can be seen from the note concerning the Name being revealed to Moses is YHWH and that they reproduce this name in their translation as LORD, as do virtually all English translations. In the original Hebrew they use the substitute, Adonai which is the equivalent of the title Lord. By their translation they continue to follow the same tradition of profaning the Name by substitution making it of little use by lack of use) What happens when the two forms of our Creator s Name come together? Example: YaH YaHweh (YH YHWH). Following the Christian translators example (already quoted) it would be rendered, LORD Almighty, or Almighty LORD. The following Scriptural quote is from The Jewish Publication Society s, TANAKH The Holy Scriptures and is an example of how the Jewish translators handled this occurrence: Isaiah 26:4 Trust in the LORD for ever and ever, For in Yah the LORD (YHWH) you have an everlasting Rock. (my note: YH YHWH, is rendered Yah the LORD, or Yah the YHWH. Following the example of the Christian translators as the Christian translators follow the Jewish
scribes use of Adonai, or Lord in place of His Holy Name. We see each pointing the finger at the others before them the excuse We are only following the traditions of those before us, of our fathers, they say) * * * New Century Version 1993 Preface, xviii Following the tradition of other English version, the New Century Version indicates the divine name YHWH, the Tetragrammaton, by putting LORD, and sometimes GOD, in capital letters. This is to distinguish it from Adonai, another Hebrew word that is translated Lord. (Isaiah 47:4) As for Our Redeemer, the LORD (YHWH) is His name, the Holy One of Israel. (Exodus 3:15) God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'The LORD (YHWH), 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 forever, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation. (Exodus 6:3) And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name JEHOVAH (YHWH) was I not known to them. KJV (note: KJV Bibles have a notation in the center reference column: Heb. YHWH, and referred to by Hebrews as Adonay, that is, the LORD ) New American Standard Bible, Preface (ix), Principles of Translation The Proper Name of God in the Old Testament: In the scriptures, the name of God is most significant and understandably so. It is inconceivable to think of spiritual matters without a proper designation for the Supreme Deity. Thus the most common name for deity is God, a translation of the Hebrew Elohim The normal word for Master is Lord, a rendering of Adonai. There is yet another name which is particularly assigned to God as His special or proper name, that is, the four letters YHWH (Exodus 3:14 and Isaiah 42:8) This name has not been pronounced by the Jews because of reverence for the great sacredness of the divine name. Therefore, it was consistently pronounced and translated LORD. The only exception to this translation of YHWH is when it occurs in immediate proximity to the word Lord, that is Adonai. In that case it is regularly translated GOD in order to avoid confusion. (Isaiah 42:8) I am the LORD (YHWH): that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images. New Living Translation 1996, Introduction to The Rendering of Divine Names: All appearances of el, elohim or eloah have been translated God, except where the context demands the translation god(s). We have rendered the tetragrammaton (YHWH) consistently as the LORD, utilizing a form with small capitals that is common among English translations. This also distinguishes it from the name adonai, which we render Lord. When adonai and YHWH appear in conjunction, we have rendered it Sovereign LORD. This also distinguishes ;adonai YHWH from cases where YHWH appears with elohim, which is rendered LORD GOD. When YH (the short form of YHWH) and YHWH appear together, we have rendered it LORD GOD. The Hebrew word adon is rendered lord, or master, or sometimes sir.
* * * We see the various translations witnessing against themselves in following the Jewish practice of substitution. It is interesting to note from the remark in the Preface of the Masoretic Bible that due to the familiarity of the English renderings of the divine names to continue this practice, using the English translators as their excuse to doing the same something they had been doing all along following the English translators example? Really? No, they had been practicing this art of cover-up for centuries. Let us reason: First, the religious leaders of the Hebrews refuse to use the Name of their God, saying it is too sacred to pronounce so they substitute a title. The Gentiles of the English speaking world follow suit using they substitute the title, Adonai, translated Lord or LORD in place of the divine Name of the Creator God. Then the Jewish (Hebrew) scholars point the finger at the Gentile English translators and say they are only following their practice. Second, if the Gentile scholars have turned the divine name into another name, LORD, and name no mistake, they do indeed call this a name, then they all, Jews and Gentile scholars are pronouncing the name God. Put another way, if the divine name has been discarded (profaned, treated as worthless, abandoned, and mistreated) for another name, then they have made a name for themselves that would then be divine. Not that it would truly be divine but by their very nature of usage would have substituted another name and if this is to refer to the Creator of all things than it too must be sacred. (Jeremiah 16:21) Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is The LORD (YHWH). The New Oxford Annotated Bible, and New Revised Standard Version 1994 To the Reader (xiii) Careful readers will notice that here and there in the Old Testament the word LORD (or in certain cases GOD) is printed in capital letters. This represents the traditional manner in English versions of rendering the Divine Name, the Tetragrammaton, following the precedent of the ancient Greek and Latin translators and the long established practice in the reading of the Hebrew Scriptures in the synagogue. 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 sounds 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 the vowel signs indicating that in its place should be read the Hebrew word Adonai meaning Lord
(or Elohim meaning God ). Ancient Greek translators employed the word Kyrios ( Lord ) for the Name. The Vulgate likewise used the Latin word Dominus ( Lord ). The form Jehovah is of late medieval origin; it is a combination of the consonants of the Divine Name and the vowels attached to it by the Masoretes abut belonging to an entirely different word. Although the American Standard Version (1901) had used Jehovah to render the Tetragrammaton (the sound of Y being represented by J and the sound of W by V, as in Latin), for two reasons the Committees that produced the RSV and the NRSV returned to the more familiar usage of the King James Version. (1) The word Jehovah does not accurately represent any form of the Name ever used in Hebrew. (2) The use of any proper name for the one and only God, as though there were other gods from whom the true God had to be distinguished, began to be discontinued in Judaism before the Christian era and is inappropriate for the universal faith of the Christian Church (Psalms 105:1) O give thanks unto the LORD (YHWH); call upon his name: make known his deeds among the people. (Isaiah 12:4) And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD (YHWH), call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted. Call upon His Name, declare His doings among the people, make mention that His Name is exalted Do we see this today? Do the preachers of Christianity do this today? How about the Jewish religion, are they doing this? Remember, this was addressed to them specifically but instead of exulting His Name they spend a lot of time hiding it, profaning it by lack of use, making it useless by not using it. And the Christians, what about them? Certainly we see many teaching about the Creation and speaking of the Bible and of the God of the Bible but virtually no one in the Christian community are calling upon His Name, let alone making mention of His Name no the vast majority of the Christian Community around the world call on another name, a name that is not His, believing the lie. But don t worry -- YaHshua is going to make His Name Great. Our Heavenly Father has glorified His name in our Savior YaHshua and will glorify it again. John 12:28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. Ezekiel 12:15 And they shall know that I am the LORD (YHWH), when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries. KJV Ezekiel 39:7 So will I make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel; and I will not let them pollute my holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD (YHWH), the Holy One in Israel. KJV
Isaiah 48:11 For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another. A time is coming when He will glorify His Name again. There is much more to say on this subject and deserves a separate study. For now I would like to present another source concerning the misuse, and abuse, the profaning, if you will, of His Holy Name. This next source is from a recognized scholar in biblical language and I would venture to say that nearly every scholar in the business of bible translation will have this translation in their library as well as many ministers, preachers and teacher. email: dan@ servantsofyahshua.com or servant@yashshuaservant.com at Please allow time for the Image below to load, it may take a few seconds depending upon your internet speed. The Emphasized Bible, by Joseph Bryant Rotherham, 1974 -- Introduction, pages 22-24 ---