The Sacred Name YHVH

Handout:

Not Just Another Church

Introduction

Why this Study?

On occasion the doctrine comes up through some believers who teach that unless a person addresses God by His Hebrew Name, that he or she isn’t saved.

This Causes Confusion

Among other believers and has contributed to split ups of Messianic congregations and even Christian churches.

Making a “defense” for the Hope that Lies within Us – 1 Peter 3:15

15 …but treat the Messiah as holy, as Lord in your hearts; while remaining always ready to give a reasoned answer to anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you - yet with humility and fear…

I Confess that in the Past

Since a congregation that I led had split over the Sacred Name doctrine, I haven’t addressed this with humility – but rather, with fear over another potential split.

And I came Down on the Doctrine (as Someone Put It)

Like an “Atomic bomb”

I Hope and Pray that I Don’t Do That in this Course of Study

And that by ALL of us more completely understanding the Doctrine and what our response to those who hold this doctrine should be.

We ALL Should Know How to

Make a “defense” for our Faith and not be Dependent upon me to always make the Defense in this Body.

With That:

We Shall Begin to Delve into the Subject of the Sacred Name.We will Divide up the Teaching into Bite-sized Parts.

Part 1

Regarding Ancient Names

In the ancient world of the Bible, names had meaning.

Some names depicted the wish of parents (or of God) for a child to fulfill a certain destiny. Or a name could describe a child's

hoped-for character.

Or if in later life he did not live up to his character name, he might

be renamed. Sometimes God renamed people.

We have Abram/Abraham, Yakob/Israel, Yedidiah/Solomon.

God’s Names Have Meaning to Them As Well!

• Adonai (Lord, Master) – used 439 times in the Bible.• Elohim (God) – first revelation of

God about Himself.

• El (God)• El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty) • El Elyon (The Most High God) • El Olam (The Everlasting God)

Yahweh - I AM (Will be) Who I AM(Will Be) – Exodus 3:15; aka “Jehovah” (No such word in Hebrew since there is NO “J” sound)Yahweh is a “best Guess” pronunciation, since No One Knows how the Name is pronounced at this time. More about that later.

• Yahweh Rapha (The Lord That Heals) • Yahweh Shammah (The Lord Is

There) • Yahweh Tzidkenu (The Lord

Our Righteousness)

• Yahweh Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You) • Yahweh Yireh (The Lord Will

Provide) • Yahweh Shalom (The Lord Is

Peace) • Yahweh Sabaoth (The Lord of

Hosts)

• Yahweh Nissi (The Lord My Banner) • Yahweh-Raah (The Lord My

Shepherd)

In Ancient Times

It was thought that to control the god you wished to beseech for favor, you had to know the name of the god.

A common concept in history is that knowing the name of something or someone gives one power over that thing or person. This concept occurs in many different forms, in numerous cultures—in ancient and primitive tribes, as well as in Islamic, Jewish, Egyptian, Vedic, Hindu, and Christian traditions. The strength of this belief varies, and there are certainly exceptions to it. Nonetheless, the persistence and historical continuity of the linking of naming and power are unmistakable.

The Power of Names: Religion & Mathematics, Loren Graham, MIT and Harvard University, November 11, 2009, http://philoctetes.org/news/the_power_of_names_religion_mathematics

God's name is not a magic amulet that must be pronounced correctly in order to conjure Him or to persuade Him to hear one's prayers. His name conveys His character, the essence of His person. It says something about who He is. When God explains His name to Moses on Mount Sinai, He doesn't expound on Hebrew grammar but reveals character:

YHVH passed by in front of him and proclaimed: • YHVH, YHVH — a God compassionate and

gracious, slow to anger, • abounding in unchanging love and faithfulness, • who guards unchanging love for thousands, • who forgives iniquity, rebellion, and sin; • yet who will not leave the guilty unpunished.

(Exodus 34:6-7, my translation)

God's self-revealed name is here woven into the covenant which he made with Israel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True_name

A true name is a name of a thing or being that expresses, or is somehow identical with, its true nature. The notion that language, or some specific sacred language, refers to things by their true names has been central to philosophical and grammatical study as well as various traditions of magic, religious invocation and mysticism (mantras) since antiquity.

Genesis 32 – Yaakov and the Man

23 He took them and sent them across the stream, then sent his possessions across; 24 and Ya'akov was left alone. Then some man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When he saw that he did not defeat Ya'akov, he struck Ya'akov's hip socket, so that his hip was dislocated while wrestling with him. 26 The man said, "Let me go, because it's daybreak." But Ya'akov replied, "I won't let you go unless you bless me."

27 The man asked, "What is your name?" and he answered, "Ya'akov." 28 Then the man said, "From now on, you will no longer be called Ya'akov, but Isra'el; because you have shown your strength to both God and men and have prevailed." 29 Ya'akov asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he answered, "Why are you asking about my name?" and blessed him there. 30 Ya'akov called the place P'ni-El [face of God], "Because I have seen God face to face, yet my life is spared.

Judges 13 Manoach and The Angel

16 The angel of Adonai said to Manoach, “Even if I do stay, I won’t eat your food; and if you prepare a burnt offering, you must offer it to Adonai.” For Manoach did not know that he was the angel of Adonai. 17 Manoach said to the angel of Adonai, “Tell us your name, so that when your words come true we can honor you.” 18 The angel of Adonai answered him, “Why are you asking about my name? It is wonderful.”

21 But the angel of Adonai did not appear again to Manoach or his wife. Then Manoach realized it had been the angel of Adonai. 22 Manoach said to his wife, “We will surely die, because we have seen God!”

Acts 1913 Then some of the Jewish exorcists who traveled from place to place tried to make use of the name of the Lord Yeshua in connection with people who had evil spirits. They would say, “I exorcise you by the Yeshua that Sha’ul is proclaiming!” 14 One time, seven sons of a Jewish cohen gadol named Skeva were doing this;

15 and the evil spirit answered them. It said, “Yeshua I know. And Sha’ul I recognize. But you? Who are you?”16 Then the man with the evil spirit fell upon them, overpowered them and gave them such a beating that they ran from the house, naked and bleeding.

Folklore and FantasyAccording to practices in folklore, knowledge of a true name allows one to affect another person or being magically. It is stated that knowing someone's, or something's, true name therefore gives the person (who knows the true name) power over them. This effect is used in many tales, such as in the German fairytale of Rumpelstiltskin - within Rumpelstiltskin and all its variants, the girl can free herself from the power of a supernatural helper who demands her child by learning its name.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True_name

Dungeons & Dragons

In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, certain spells are more powerful if the target's true name is known.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True_name

Instead of Using Any Pronunciation of “the Name”

The Jewish people use Circumlocutions -ambiguous or roundabout figures of speech -

such as “Adonai (Lord),” “haShem (the Name),” “AdoShem

(contraction of Lord and Name).

There ARE Several Reasons for This Related to Exodus 20:7:

They Don’t want to violate the Commandment (Exodus 20:7):  �הלא ת�ש���א �הו �, א�ת-ש�ם-י א�לה�יך

�א :ל�ש��ו

Strong’s #7723 א� ל�ש���ו

shawv, shav  emptiness, vanity, falsehood a. emptiness, nothingness, vanity b. emptiness of speech, lying c. worthlessness (of conduct) 

When written or printed, God's Hebrew name (and many of the “stand in names” used to refer to God) cannot be erased or destroyed (made nothing).

1) Don’t Want to Make the Name into Nothing or to Destroy IT

Because of this, many Jews substitute "God” with “G-d” so that they can erase or dispose of the writing without showing disrespect to God.

This is Why Scrolls With Hebrew are Given a Respectful Burial, as

would a Human body

Instead of being thrown away or destroyed by fire or other method.

The custom of substituting the word "God" with “G-d” or “Lord” with “L-rd” in English is based on the traditional practice in Jewish law of giving God's Hebrew name a high degree of respect and reverence.

2) Reverencing and Respecting the Name of God

There is no prohibition in Jewish law against writing out or erasing the word "God" in English. However, many Jews have afforded the word "God" with the same level of respect as the Hebrew equivalents.

3) Don’t Want The Name to Become “Common” or “Worthless”

4) Don’t Want to Give the Name to the Gentiles to Be Desecrated Among

Them “Emptiness of Speech”

One does NOT have to live very long in this world to hear God’s Name (in whatever language) taken in vain and blasphemed.

It is human sin nature to curse God regardless the language.

5) No One Knows How IT is Pronounced Today

To Some Jewish People Today

Any use of the Name is Offensive.We (as a Messianic congregation) need to have a sensitivity to be an outreach to them. We’ll talk about that at the conclusion of this Topical Study. The following Handout will hopefully help you understand.