Bible Question: Most English Bibles translate God's name (YHWH - Strong's 3068) as LORD. Some use Jehovah, and a few use Yahweh. Bible scholars say Jehovah is incorrect and the correct pronunciation is not known for sure. We know that there is no "J" or "J" sound in Hebrew. My question: Since "LORD" is not God's name, and Yahweh is the best guess, Why don't more Bibles and people address God as Yahweh? |
Bible Answer: The only proper name for God [Boris Cat: This does not directly address your question, but is posted to provide background on the name YHWH. --kalos] '“Yahweh” [YHWH] is not one of God’s names—it is his only name. Other titles, like “El Shadday,” are not strictly names but means of revealing Yahweh.' (Study note at Exodus 6:3, The NET Bible, http://www.bible.org/netbible/exo6_notes.htm) The name 'YHWH' appears almost 7,000 times in the OT. However, in the KJV YHWH is usually translated as 'LORD.' 'Yahweh/Yah (or Jehovah). yhwh (or JHVH), the tetragrammaton because of its four letters, is, strictly speaking, the only proper name for God. It is also the most frequent name, occurring in the Old Testament 6,828 times (almost 700 times in the Psalms alone). Yah is a shortened form that appears fifty times in the Old Testament, including forty-three occurrences in the Psalms, often in the admonition "hallelu-jah" (lit. praise Jah). English Bibles represent the name yhwh by the title "LORD" (written in capitals to distinguish it from "lord" [adonai]. The Septuagint rendered yhwh as kyrios (Lord).' ____________________ (Baker's Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology, http://bible.crosswalk.com/Dictionaries/BakersEvangelicalDictionary/bed.cgi). |