What is the Name of God?

During their captivity in Babylon, they adopted pagan practices and beliefs called “ineffability”. They believed that by invoking the name of gods, the gods would target you and make your life uncomfortable. This idea of ineffability was also espoused by other cultures, Greece, which became instrumental in propagating this practice during the translations of ancient Biblical manuscripts.

 

An example of substituting a different name for the actual name of a deity is mentioned here:

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Herodotus, Histories 1.181-2; tr. Aubrey de Sélincourt Marduk was, therefore, a very important god of Babylon. In the first millennium BCE, his name was considered so holy, that it was almost never pronounced; instead, people said and wrote Bêl, ‘LORD’. Herodotus correctly calls the supreme god of Babylon Bêl (“lord”), because his real name was not pronounced. Egyptians, Babylonians and Greeks were among the influential pagan cultures that promoted the practice of ineffability:

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THE FINAL REFORMATION; KOSTER, pg. 54, pg. 112

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“The idea that only the priest could utter The NAME of The HEAVENLY FATHER, and that he was to disguise or hide it from the common people, came from the idea that the NAME was “ineffable” or “unutterable”. However, this was a pagan doctrine that they adopted from the Egyptians, Babylonians, and the Greeks…”

The Final Reformation By Dr. Koster; pp. 54 and 112

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“The ineffability of divine names was an old idea in Egypt…the name of Osiris himself was said to be ineffable…the name Marduk of Babylon was also declared ineffable. The Greeks avoided the names of their deities and preferred to call them by the titles Kurios and Theos.”

 

The Babylonians' pagan influence of using substitute names, namely Adonai or lord, to replace the tetragrammaton, began by at least the third century BC:

Encyclopedia Judaica, pg. 679

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“…But at least by the third century B.C.E., the pronunciation of the name YHWH (Yahuah) was avoided, and Adonai, “the Lord,” was substituted for it…”

 

Eventually, the Jewish teachers of the Law began enforcing the practice of ineffability:

 

The Living Torah: A New Translation Base on Traditional Jewish Sources by Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan

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According to the Talmud (Sanhedrin 90a), you lose your portion in the world to come if you “pronounce the Divine Name as it is spelt,” therefore, the letters YHVH when read aloud are not to be pronounced under any circumstance. The word “Lord” or “Hashem” (“The Name”) is usually substituted and this illustrates the reverence with which the Jews hold this particular name of God. Such a prohibition is not based on Torah, or the word of God according to the teachings of Moses, which as admitted by Jewish authorities themselves:

 

Jewfaq.org

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“Nothing in the Torah prohibits a person from pronouncing the Name of God. Indeed, it is evident from Scripture that God’s Name was pronounced routinely. Many common Hebrew Names contain “Yah” or “Yahu,” part of God’s four-letter Name. The Name was pronounced as part of daily services in the Temple.”

 

Does God forbid us to use His Name?

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Exodus 3:15 (NIV)*
15  God also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites, 'jwjy, 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.

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Exodus 20:7 (NIV)*
7  "You shall not misuse the name of jwjy your God, for jwjy will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

 

Correct Ways of Using the Name of God:

• Ruth 2:4 (NIV)*
  4  Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, "jwjy be with you!" " jwjy bless you!" they called back.

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• Psalm 9:1-2 (NASB)*
  1  I will give thanks to jwjy with all my heart; I will tell of all Your wonders. 2  I will be glad and exult in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

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• Zechariah 13:9 (NKJV) — 9 I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; And each one will say, ‘jwjy is my God.’ ”

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• Malachi 3:16 (NKJV)
  16  Then those who feared jwjy spoke to one another, And jwjy listened and heard them; So a book of remembrance was written before Him For those who fear jwjy And who meditate on His name.

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• Acts 2:21 (NKJV) — 21 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of jwjy Shall be saved.’

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• Deuteronomy 32:3 (NKJV)

3  For I proclaim the name of jwjy: Ascribe greatness to our God.

The Hebrew word for proclaim used in this passage is “qara” which means to call out, recite, cry, and pronounce.

 

What is the wonderful meaning of God’s Name?

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Can we be close to someone whose name we don’t even know? Yahuah revealed His Name because He wants to have a relationship with us. Throughout the Bible, we can see an ever-increasing expression of Alahym’s Name, Yahuah as He relates with people.

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By what Name did Yahuah want to be known by and what is its meaning?

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Exodus 3:13–15 (NIV84) — 13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”

 

15 God also said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘jwjy, 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.

 

The Hebrew word translated “name” is H8034 “sem” which identifies a mark or memorial of individuality, one’s authority, and character. Thus, the Name of God expresses Who God is and His attributes. Knowing the Name of God is knowing the character and attributes of God. To answer the question “What is his name?” God responds by first speaking about His attribute: I AM WHO I AM (Ahayah Ashar Ahayah). After which He reveals His Name as the Tetragrammaton which is transliterated as Yahuah. Essentially, I AM WHO I AM is one expression of the dynamic Name of Yahuah.

 

The dynamic nature of the meaning of the Name of God derives from scope of meaning of the Hebrew verb “Hayah” which is the main building block of I AM WHO I AM (Ahayah Asher Ahayah). According to the Hebrew lexicon, there are several meanings attached to the word Hayah. These include: To be, come to pass, exist, happen, come into being, to arise, to appear, to become, to abide, to remain, to accompany, to stand, to be done, and to be finished.

 

As one can easily see, the word Hayah has multiple meanings and when paired together with a connecting word “asher” the phrase I AM WHO I AM (Ahayah Asher Ahayah) can be understood to have different layers of meaning and applications. In this sense, the Name Yahuah, in conjunction with I AM WHO I AM (Ahayah Asher Ahayah) can be said to have a dynamic nature because it can be expressed with these different layers of meaning in mind.

 

For example, I AM (Ahayah), the qal imperfect form of the verb hayah suggests that Yahuah is the self-existent one. This is confirmed by Scripture:

 

Revelation 1:4 (NASB)
4  John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,

 

Furthermore, adding WHO I AM to I AM, tells us that Yahuah is not only the Self-existent One, but He also is the One who causes all things to exist. This is just one layer of meaning that can be derived by combining various meanings of the word hayah. Continuing in this fashion we have the following meanings of the I AM WHO I AM:

 

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Caused All Things To Exist

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Is Ever Present

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Will Be There For You To Accompany You

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Will Help You

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Enters Into A Covenant Relationship And Remains Faithful To It

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Will Carry Out My Counsel, Purposes, and Promises To Completion

I Am The Self-Existent One Who Will SAVE you

 

Didn’t Christ say that we should call God Father?

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A common argument raised by many is that Yahusha never required His disciples to call God by His Name and to rather call Him Father. They often cite Matthew 6:9 which says:

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Matthew 6:9 (NKJV) — 9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.

 

There is nothing in this passage that forbids us from using the Name of God. What it does tell us is that when we pray to God we begin by addressing Him as Father. We are instructed to address God as Father because Yahusha wants to emphasize that God is different from pagan gods whose answers to prayers depend on how long the prayers are:

 

Matthew 6:7–9 (NKJV) — 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you need before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.

 

It is clear from the context that God answers our prayers because of our relationship with Him as our Father. Yahusha wants us to understand that prayer works not because of our many words but because Yahuah is our Father. The religious leaders of that time often represented man’s relationship with God in a legalistic way. Yahusha taught that God was a Father who seeks what is best for His children:

 

Matthew 7:11 (GNB) — 11 Bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

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The reason why we can receive from God what we pray for is because He is a loving Father who deeply cares for His children. Thus, Yahusha instructs that we call Him Father in prayer.

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However, when Yahusha tells us to address God as Father, it is not to the exclusion of calling Him by His memorial Name, Yahuah. Examining closely the verse Matthew 6:9 reveals the following important detail:

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Matthew 6:9 (NKJV) — 9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.

 

Yahusha also mentioned, “Hallowed be Your name”. The equivalent Hebrew word for “hallow” is qadash which means to make holy, consecrate, pronounce, and proclaim. Thus we make holy the name of God by calling upon His memorial Name, Yahuah, in the act of prayer. Yahusha did not forbid the use of the Name when calling upon God. To the contrary, Yahusha instructs us to proclaim His Name, Yahuah, as a way of glorifying Him in prayer. That is because proclaiming the Name, Yahuah, in the context of prayer and worship gives glory to Him.

 

What is the equivalent of not using the Name of God?

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Clearly, according to the Scriptures, God expects us to call upon His Name Yahuah in worship. To do so would be to give Him glory. On the other hand, not calling upon His Name is a way of rejecting God. Some take lightly the importance of calling upon God’s Name. But the Scriptures tell us otherwise. It is well known, for example, that we are forbidden from worshipping false gods as illustrated in the following passages:

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Exodus 23:13 (NIV84) — 13 “Be careful to do everything I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips.

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Joshua 23:6–8 (NKJV)* — 6 Therefore be very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, lest you turn aside from it to the right hand or to the left, 7 and lest you go among these nations, these who remain among you.

You shall not make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause anyone to swear by them; you shall not serve them nor bow down to them, 8 but you shall hold fast to jwjy your God, as you have done to this day.

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It is clear from these Scriptures that calling on the name of false gods is the equivalent of worshipping them. This is why the people of Yahuah God are not to invoke the names of other gods nor mention their names. What happens when the names of these false gods are not invoked?

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Deuteronomy 7:24 (NKJV) — 24 And He will deliver their kings into your hand, and you will destroy their name from under heaven; no one shall be able to stand against you until you have destroyed them.

 

Deuteronomy 12:3–4 (NKJV)* — 3 And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place. 4 You shall not worship jwjy your God with such things.

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By not invoking the names of false gods their names are destroyed. Given the truth of the following statements:

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Not invoking name of false gods = destroying their name

Invoking the name of false gods = worship them

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it implies that:

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Not invoking the Name of God = destroying His Name

Invoking the Name of God = worship God

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The enemy certainly does not want us to worship Yahuah and so we should not be surprised that there are Bible teachers today who would forbid the use of the Sacred Name just as there were prophets during the days of ancient Israel who caused people to forget the Name of God:

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Jeremiah 23:26–27 (NKJV) — 26 How long will this be in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies? Indeed they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart, 27 who try to make My people forget My name by their dreams which everyone tells his neighbor, as their fathers forgot My name for Baal.