“Avraham got up early in the morning, went to the place where he had stood before YAHWEH, and looked out toward Sodom and Gomorrah, scanning the entire plain. There before him the smoke was rising from the land like smoke from a furnace! But when YAHWEH destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Avraham and sent Lot out, away from the destruction, when he overthrew the cities in which Lot lived.”-Genesis 19:28-29
Notice God’s name bolded in red.
I took the liberty of changing this English translation to reflect the name used in the original Hebrew manuscripts.
Before I changed it, the translator had substituted the word “Adonai” for God’s name.
Most other English Bibles use the word “Lord” as a substitute.
However, I reiterate that the actual Hebrew is Yud-Heh-Vav-Heh, God’s personal name.
So the point I’m making here is that it was the Father God Almighty who instructed the angels to destroy Sodom.
Some pre-incarnate Yeshua did NOT give the order.
Neither was it the Holy Spirit.
It was God the Father who gave the order.
I just had a talk with a Christian the other day about this and I am amazed at how difficult it is communicate this point.
Rest assured that what I have said is undisputed.
The Hebrew letters Yud-heh-vav-heh are really there.
And they’re not just in some of the ancient Hebrew manuscripts.
They are in ALL of them.
However, in verse 18, when addressing the angels, Lot says “Please no, my adonai“.
Actually in this case the original Hebrew is NOT “YHVH” but “Adonai“.
Adonai has two different meanings.
It is a term that can be used to refer to God or a title used to extend deference or respect to an other regular human party.
In this case, since Lot was was using “Lord” as a sign of respect.
I don’t remember where in th ot, but I’ve read it before where God is saying do not call me Lord. So should we not call God or Yeshua Lord? As far as pronouncing God’s name, should we pronounce God’s name YHWH, Yud-heh-vav-heh or Yehova? A hebrew roots teacher said that Israel’s leaders did not want the people to blasphem the name of God so they removed the name from the manuscripts so the people would forget the name as to not blasphem God, but that they have found in the manuscripts where the scribes sliped in the name every so often. & I’ve also heard that when Constantine took over, the Jews were not allowed to say the name of God so they would make the letters of God’s name with their hands. Which is it? And if so then how can God’s name b in all of them if they were supposed to hide the name?
Hi Karen,
Thanks again for your insightful questions. I’m not sure I’ll be able to answer all of them to your satisfaction.
First, it is certainly okay and proper to call Yeshua Lord, for He is all the fullness of God in human flesh. However, I believe it is a mistake to call Yeshua by the Holy personal Name reserved for the Father alone, which is YHVH.
Second, in terms of the proper pronunciation, I can’t be dogmatic about this, but I believe the linguistic evidence supports a 3-syllable YE-HO-VEH pronunciation. But nobody knows for sure.
Third, I assert that you will NOT find an injunction anywhere in Scripture forbidding us to say God’s Name out loud. If God didn’t want us to say it, why give it to us in the first place?
The original reason why a tendency arose to not say God’s name out loud is because it was decided that it was disrespectful to address our heavenly “Father” by His personal name, just like we don’t address our own fathers by their personal names. We say “Daddy” or “Dad” etc. However, I believe this is NOT Scriptural, but traditions of men.
Finally, in ALL the original Hebrew manuscripts, “YHVH” is there.
I’m sorry but I’m not familiar with Constantine’s decrees on this matter. Nor have I heard of scribes removing God’s name from the manuscripts. Would that not be wrongfully tampering with God’s Word?
I look forward to exploring this issue deeper as I walk through the Torah.
It is not only ignorant but also unethical to teach others (in order to mislead them) that Constantine forbade anyone (let alone Jews) to use God’s name. Constantine was not a Jew and would not have known God’s name to begin with. He was the one who ALLOWED people the FREEDOM to practice their respective religions and ended the persecution of the Saints (Christians). Constantine get’s blamed for a lot of junk that historically he had nothing to do with.
As for the correct pronunciation of the Sacred Name of God. It should be pointed out that the V did not exist in ancient Israel and the Tetragrammaton (the 4 letters) was actually YHWH and was pronounced YaHWeh. How do I know this is the correct pronunciation? Based on the transliteration (how a word sounds) of the name into other languages (such as Greek).
History reveals that the pronunciation was Yahweh. Clement of Alexandria transliterated the name into Greek in the form Iaoue. Theodoret used Iabe. According to the New Bible Dictionary (p. 478), the Greek b represented the v. The early writers and translators obviously used the letter v for the Tetragrammaton in English because it was then used as an equivalent for the Hebrew waw (w) and was considered a vowel.
The prestigious Oxford English Dictionary notes the following on “V”: “The 22nd letter of the modern English and the 20th of the ancient Roman alphabet, was in the latter an adoption of the early Greek vowel-symbol V, now also represented by U and Y (q.v.), but in Latin was employed also with the value of the Greek digamma (viz.w), to which it corresponds etymologically.” Webster’s New World Dictionary concurs that the digamma had the sound of the English w. (“V”, p. 1565)
By the time the Hebrew Tetragrammaton was transliterated into English as YHVH, the “v” had either the sound of “v” as in victory, or, more often, sounded as a “u.” There was no “w” or “u” in early English. Both these letters were latecomers to the alphabet, developing from the v, even though the sound was more like the “oo” in moon.
In Latin, Julius is spelled “Jvlivs,” the “v” pronounced like a “u.” In Anglo-Saxon the Germanic tongues, the Latin v was understood to mean uu or u, and so we get the w, made up of double v’s (double u’s”). Even today the German v is pronounced like a w: Volkswagen = ”Wolkvagen.”
Josephus tell us that the High Priest wore a miter or hat as a part of his habit, and the miter was inscribed with FOUR VOWELS (YHWH) (Wars, 5:5:7 {235}). (The “v” is the erroneous “Yahveh” or “Yahvah” is consonantal and not a vowel sound.)
About the ninth century B.C.E., Hebrew writing began to use certain letters for vowel sounds. The fact that the four letters of the Tetragrammaton are four vowels further substantiates the correct pronunciation, Yahweh!
Many people have the false notion that the Hebrew alphabet consists only of consonants. They fail to realize that the vowels were understood and inserted when read. Remember, the entire Old Testament is written in Hebrew and without vowels between consonants. Yet it is read from Genesis 1:1 to Malachi 4:6 and understood without vowels!
While I am writing this long after your comments, I would like to add for the sake of others reading this. I would refer you and others to Nehemiah Gordon at nehemiahswall.com, a Hebrew scholar that reviewed many Tanack manuscripts. Whether the history you give for the evolution of language is accurate or not, Nehemiah saw, at last count, 1000 times YHVH was written with vowels (inserted quite a long time ago to aid after Hebrew was rarely spoken in culture) that clearly indicate the pronunciation is Yehovah. Perhaps the fact that the Vav is often also used for the oo sound (as in aviyu [aleph bet yud vav]:his father in Gen. 27:38) also is part of the confusion, perhaps it was this use that Yosephus refers to. Besides that, there are other vowel sounds in Hebrew, the aleph and ayin. But the most fascinating part of Hebrew is the meaning each letter has for itself. I would refer to Jeff A Benner’s work, you will be blessed.
Shalom
Thank you for a very clear cut teaching on God`s name. The etymological explanation made it very clear and very well substantiated. But how could the Latin spelling of Julius have been Jvlivs when there was no letter j back then. Also is not Emmanuel the savior`s name? And who are they that should call Him that?
Finally, Does it matter that we spell or pronounce His name Yashua or Yeshua and can we pray in the name
Emmanuel?
According to the Hebraic scriptures,
ADONAI is the unique personal title of respect used for YHWH alone.
For all other beings (including angels), the title of respect used is adoni.
In those events where angels and YHWH’s presence is apparent, one (a man) may use both adoni & ADONAI depending on whether he is addressing the angel/ YHWH.
From another perspective, we may note that an angel who is sent (shalach) from YHWH, is a fully authorised to speak/ act as YHWH’s proxy. Hence, talking with a shaliah from YHWH is as good as talking with YHWH HIMSELF.