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Yahweh Is the Sweetest Name I Know
Desiring God ^ | July 23, 2013 | John Piper

Posted on 03/10/2014 12:36:42 PM PDT by redleghunter

You are not wrong to sing, “Jesus is the sweetest name I know,” even though Yahweh is.

Here’s why.

God gave himself the name Yahweh. No man gave him this name. It is God’s chosen personal name. He loves to be known by this name. It is used over 5,000 times in the Old Testament. It is almost always translated by *Lᴏʀᴅ* (small caps). But it is not a title. It is a personal name, like James or Elizabeth.

You know the name Yahweh best from its shortened form Yah at the end of Hallelujah, which means “praise Yahweh.” I love to think about this when I sing. When I sing, “Hallelujah,” I love to really mean, “No! I don’t praise you Bel, or Nebo, or Molech, or Rimmon, or Dagon, or Chemosh. I turn from you with disdain to Yah! I praise Yah. Hallelu Yah!”

God announced his name to Moses in Exodus 3:15. God said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers. . . . This is my name forever.”

He preceded this announcement with two other statements so the meaning would be clear. He said, “I am who I am” (verse 14a). And he said, “Say to the people of Israel, ‘I am has sent me to you’” (verse 14b).

The Hebrew name Yahweh is connected to the Hebrew verb “I am.” So Yahweh is most fundamentally the One-Who-Is. “I am who I am” is the most foundational meaning of Yahweh. It means: My am-ness comes from my am-ness. My being from my being. My existence from my existence.

There are vast personal and covenantal implications of this. But this is foundational. No beginning. No ending. No dependence. He simply is, always was, and always will be. He communicates all of this with a personal name. To be sure, he has titles, and he has attributes. But this is a personal name. He packs the weightiest truth about himself into a personal name. Infinite greatness and personal knowability are in the name Yahweh.

Then in the fullness of time, Yahweh came into the world to seek and save the lost. The angel said to Joseph, “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). Jesus is an English transliteration of the Greek Iesoun. And this in turn is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew Joshua. And Joshua is a combination of Yah and “salvation” or “save”. It means “Yahweh saves.”

So Jesus means “Yahweh saves.” Jesus is Yahweh with a human nature coming to save his people from sin.

Paul confirms this in Philippians 2:11. He says of the risen Jesus, “Every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” That is a quote from Isaiah 45:23 where Yahweh is the one to whom every knee shall bow and every tongue confess. Paul is saying that, in the end, the whole world will acknowledge that Jesus is in fact Yahweh incarnate.

So you don’t have to choose between singing, “Jesus is the sweetest name I know,” and, “Yahweh is the sweetest name I know.” Indeed you dare not choose.


TOPICS: Evangelical Christian; Mainline Protestant; Theology; Worship
KEYWORDS: piper
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To: redleghunter
Great discussion. Which we can point out we are on "this side of the Cross and Empty tomb" so it is the Name Yeshua/Jesus which we invoke as the Name above all names:

Amen!

21 posted on 03/10/2014 3:36:05 PM PDT by rjsimmon (The Tree of Liberty Thirsts)
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To: rjsimmon

Well, your “tradition” may lead you to believe their isogesis, but the Hebrew text uses the tetragrammaton as the Name in Gen. 4:26. So, unless your new and spurious hermeneutic can overthrow the Hebrew, your contentions are incorrect.


22 posted on 03/10/2014 4:24:09 PM PDT by Dutchboy88
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To: roamer_1

Thank you for your very good, and clear, post. It is a sweet name, and is to be on our lips. Again, thanks.


23 posted on 03/10/2014 4:26:34 PM PDT by Dutchboy88
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To: rjsimmon
The name God used in Ex 3:15 was אֱלֹהִים 'elohiym which means God of gods. And if you recall, Ex 3:15 is RIGHT AFTER Ex 3:14 where God tells Moses His name: "I am, that I am."

That's not what I have over here (KJV):

Exo 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.

(e-Sword:KJV)

Exo 3:15 And GodH430 saidH559 moreoverH5750 untoH413 Moses,H4872 ThusH3541 shalt thou sayH559 untoH413 the childrenH1121 of Israel,H3478 The LORDH3068 GodH430 of your fathers,H1 the GodH430 of Abraham,H85 the GodH430 of Isaac,H3327 and the GodH430 of Jacob,H3290 hath sentH7971 me untoH413 you: thisH2088 is my nameH8034 for ever,H5769 and thisH2088 is my memorialH2143 unto all generations.H1755 H1755

(e-Sword:KJV+ [Strong's annotated])

H3068
יהוה

yehôvâh
yeh-ho-vaw'

From H1961; (the) self Existent or eternal; Jehovah, Jewish national name of God: - Jehovah, the Lord. Compare H3050, H3069.

(e-Sword:Strongs)

Once again, their rules.

No, YHWH's rules. Torah means 'instruction'.

Why do so many people get this simple concept all wrong? The Name, in this inference, is the POWER and AUTHORITY of God. Not whether you swear by Tom, Dick, or Harry. Same for "Blessed is he who comes in the NAME OF THE LORD." It is authority, not "Bob sent me.".

No, I think not - Hosea is instructive in his words to the House of Israel:

Hos 2:16 And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali.
Hos 2:17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.

'Baali' is 'Lord' or 'Master'... Authority, YES, But not the regimented respect of a title, born in fear, but rather the respect of a wife for her husband (Ishi), born of love. What woman calls her husband by his title? She calls him by his name. This passage should be eye-opening to Christians who have covered up His Name with 'The LORD', and use the generic 'God'...

So what? That has nothing to do with the text.

I wasn't faulting the text. I was faulting your statement: "[...] so the letters JHVH/YHWH came into being as a way to get around that."

'YHWH' did not 'come into being' that way, The name pre-existed the vowel markers. Moses wrote the name, along with every other word, without the vowel markers.

Of that we can agree, though it is not because we get to call Him "Josh" but by His sacrifice and willingness to share in His inheritance.

You miss the point. That we are to call Him Yeshua, rather than Yehoshua (which is the proper, formal name) indicates the sort of personal relationship YHWH intends.

24 posted on 03/10/2014 4:28:29 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: redleghunter; rjsimmon
Great discussion. Which we can point out we are on "this side of the Cross and Empty tomb" so it is the Name Yeshua/Jesus which we invoke as the Name above all names:

Technically, Yeshua always pointed to the Father - Technically we are to pray to the Father in the name of Yeshua.

But in that, You and I will eventually be in agreement - No man has seen the Father. So who was it walking in the Garden with Adam? Who was it in the Burning Bush and on Sinai? In the end, I think YHWH has pre-positioned the term of endearment his bride will call Him by... Yeshua. Just sayin'.

25 posted on 03/10/2014 5:23:44 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: redleghunter
Amen, Amen, and Amen!! No one should ever be ashamed to proclaim the name of Jesus. Only one name by which we are saved!

Acts 4: 10 Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

26 posted on 03/10/2014 5:27:35 PM PDT by CynicalBear (For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ)
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To: redleghunter; rjsimmon; Dutchboy88
I noticed the Lexham English Bible (LEB) by the LOGOS group uses “Yahweh” in the OT text in their literal translation:

While I may seem to be a sacred name guy, I really am not - I am OK with Jehovah and Jesus - I use the Name as an in-your-face distinction to try to remind Christians who they worship. There is meaning in the names that are sadly lost in transliteration.

But more importantly IS the distinction. I think it is all too easy in the false-ecumenicism present today, to lean to generics - That everyone's god is our God - and that, FRiends, is *not* correct.

YHWH, Yahweh, Yahovah, Yahua, Jehovah... I know WHO you are talking about. allah... well, not so much. 'god'... many claim to hold that title.

27 posted on 03/10/2014 5:36:34 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: Dutchboy88

Thx for your kind reply.


28 posted on 03/10/2014 5:39:10 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis; redleghunter
>>His name isn’t really “Jesus”<<

Oh yes it is.

Matthew 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS (Iēsoun): for he shall save his people from their sins.

Luke1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS (Iēsoun).

Iésous - 2424 Iēsoús – Jesus, the transliteration of the Hebrew term, 3091 /Lṓt ("Yehoshua"/Jehoshua, contracted to "Joshua") which means "Yahweh saves" (or "Yahweh is salvation"). [http://biblehub.com/greek/2424.htm]

29 posted on 03/10/2014 5:42:33 PM PDT by CynicalBear (For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ)
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To: redleghunter

It is the name of one of the original Anuna Gods. The one they call Enki or Ea as he was called on his place of origin. He was one of the good ones. We wouldnt be here if it werent for him. The other ones wanted us destroyed becuase we were too stupid, made too much noise and we were just a general nuisance to them for the most part.


30 posted on 03/10/2014 6:14:19 PM PDT by rwoodward ("god, guns and more ammo")
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To: rwoodward; redleghunter
It is the name of one of the original Anuna Gods. The one they call Enki or Ea as he was called on his place of origin. He was one of the good ones. We wouldnt be here if it werent for him. The other ones wanted us destroyed becuase we were too stupid, made too much noise and we were just a general nuisance to them for the most part.

No... If you research the matter, YHWH's enemies are the Anunaki - The Anakim, Nephilim of the Bible.

31 posted on 03/10/2014 6:38:10 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: CynicalBear; DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis; redleghunter
Iésous - 2424 Iēsoús – Jesus, the transliteration of the Hebrew term, 3091 /Lṓt ("Yehoshua"/Jehoshua, contracted to "Joshua") which means "Yahweh saves" (or "Yahweh is salvation"). [http://biblehub.com/greek/2424.htm]

Technically this definition is not true.

The contracted form of Yehoshua IS Yeshua. The long form of the name means 'YHWH Saves'. The contracted form, Yeshua, Joshua, means 'salvation'.

And DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis is correct.

32 posted on 03/10/2014 6:49:43 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: roamer_1; DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis; redleghunter
>>Technically this definition is not true.<<

You would have to take that up with Strong, Thayer, NASEC, and others. They are the experts I quoted. I'm not sure where you get your information.

33 posted on 03/10/2014 8:23:52 PM PDT by CynicalBear (For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ)
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To: roamer_1

Sorry but you are incorrect. The sons of Anuk were not the original Anunaki. The Anakim were the sons of Anuk. And yes they were the enemy of Yaweh or as translated at the beginning of this post
“La Ea”. Ea = Enki. Anuk was most likely part of the Enliite clan but there is missing geneology links once you go back to a certain point.


34 posted on 03/10/2014 8:47:01 PM PDT by rwoodward ("god, guns and more ammo")
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To: redleghunter

There is lot of hate and discontent stirred up by the under the law sacred namers on the tetragrammaton and how is should be pronounced, yet where is this controversy in the NT? Under the law sacred namers condemn each other to the lowest infernal regions for the slightest deviation from how they claim it should be pronounced: Yahweh, Yahovah, Jehoveh, Yahuah, Yahoo, and so on.

Yet when we go to our Strong’s Concordance and try to find “Yahweh” or any of these other names in the NT, they are not to be found. What we do find everywhere in hundreds of places is the name “Jesus” (the English transliteration of the Greek “Ieseus”) This tells me that “Jesus” is the name all the focus should be on - as the New Testament or new covenant name of God.

If the Jewish writers of the NT were under the law sacred namers, we would expect they would have left the tetragrammaton untranslated in the Greek text, so that great emphasis be put on this. But this we do not find. They simply translated the tetragrammaton as the Greek “Kurios,” our English world “Lord.” The Jewish translaters of the Septuagint did likewise several hundred years before this.

The Jewish writers of the NT certainly knew this tetragrammaton issue, and the Hebrew and Greek on it, better than any of these modern under the law sacred namers.


35 posted on 03/11/2014 2:36:23 PM PDT by sasportas
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To: sasportas

One of the reasons I posted this article is because it is from John Piper. John Piper is hardly in any ‘sacred name’ movement.


36 posted on 03/11/2014 3:15:45 PM PDT by redleghunter
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To: rwoodward
Sorry but you are incorrect.

No, I am not.

The sons of Anuk were not the original Anunaki. The Anakim were the sons of Anuk.

I don't care which incursion or iteration. The seed of the adversary IS the adversary.

And yes they were the enemy of Yaweh or as translated at the beginning of this post
Anuk was most likely part of the Enliite clan but there is missing geneology links once you go back to a certain point.

It doesn't matter ALL of those who 'from heaven to earth came' are fallen ones. And their offspring are damned.

“La Ea”. Ea = Enki.

YHWH is *NOT* Enki. the character of Enki alone - His capricious nature, and fornication, are completely against the character of YHWH. Let the reader decide.

Primary proof is that Enki's son is Marduk, whom YHWH HATES. YHWH has ONE Son, whom He loves.

37 posted on 03/12/2014 5:19:39 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: CynicalBear; DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis; redleghunter
You would have to take that up with Strong, Thayer, NASEC, and others. They are the experts I quoted. I'm not sure where you get your information.

I don't have to take it up with anyone. Your own sources tell you that 'Jesus' is a transliteration of the Hebrew Yeshua. They affirm that 'Yeshua' is the contracted form of 'Yahoshua'. You may not know, but Joshua's actual name was Hoshea or Hosea which is 'deliverer' and is from the root 'yasha' (salvation) The name was changed by Moshe to 'Yahoshua' which means 'YHWH will save', or 'YHWH is salvation'.

Now, to actually contract 'Yahoshua', it should look like Yah'Shua or Y'Shua - But by 2nd temple time, 'Yeshua' is the accepted contraction. So while it still figuratively means 'YHWH is salvation' by it's derivation from Yahoshua, It also literally means 'He is salvation' or 'He will save'... Assuming you know that there was no 'J' in Hebrew, therefore 'Y', you will find 'Yeshua' in Strong's under 'Jeshua':

H3442
ישׁוּע
yêshûa‛
yah-shoo'-ah

For H3091; he will save; Jeshua, the name of two Israelites, also of a place in Palestine: - Jeshua.

(e-Sword:Strong's)
A primary aside is to look at the Zadok and Joshua prophecies, where Yehoshua and Yeshua are used interchangeably - Both the 'deliverer' and the 'righteous High Priest' are the only places the two are interchangeable. Remember Yeshua pointing thing out to His disciples in the Tanakh and saying, 'see, this is me!' ??? Hence we know it is a 'familiar' contraction.

BUT, the Tanakh was not delivered with vowel pointers... So one has to wonder about ANYWHERE the root 'yasha', or derivations of 'yasha' are used... Because without the vowels, they all are 'yasha' - SO, one can maybe find some more:

Isa 62:11 Behold, Jehovah has sent a message to the end of the earth, Tell the daughter of Zion, Behold, your salvation [yasha / Yeshua] comes. Behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him.

How does 'salvation' have a male possessive? I will tell you how: His name is Yeshua.

38 posted on 03/12/2014 6:28:50 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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To: roamer_1; DeoVindiceSicSemperTyrannis; redleghunter

The New Testament was written in Greek not Hebrew. In addition. We speak English not Hebrew. If you want to play the sacred name game don’t try to force it on others. The apostles were given the gift of tongues so all could here “in their own language”. If those who ascribe to the sacred name cult want to be consistent and not hypocrites they had better stop referring to (hard J) Jerusalem, the (hard J) book of John, the (hard J) Jews, the land of (hard J) Judah and all begin to speak Hebrew.


39 posted on 03/13/2014 3:00:38 PM PDT by CynicalBear (For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ)
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To: CynicalBear
The New Testament was written in Greek not Hebrew.

Fine - All you have to do is explain how those Hebrew and Aramaic puns came to be hidden beneath the Greek text. That's all it takes... Otherwise your declarations are meaningless.

In addition. We speak English not Hebrew.

Right, so next time you meet a Mexican named Miguel, call him Mike, and be sure to tell him he has no right to be offended... because we speak English around here.

If you want to play the sacred name game don’t try to force it on others.

Read upthread

The bare FACT of the matter is that His name is undoubtedly YESHUA, as your own proofs admit. The one who is offended, and the one who is 'forcing', is the one insisting upon the Greek transliteration instead of the name it was transliterated from... The very height of absurdity. You want to call him Jesus, knock yerself out.

If those who ascribe to the sacred name cult want to be consistent and not hypocrites they had better stop referring to (hard J) Jerusalem, the (hard J) book of John, the (hard J) Jews, the land of (hard J) Judah and all begin to speak Hebrew.

Fine, if you want me to bump it up a notch, I surely can.

40 posted on 03/13/2014 3:42:48 PM PDT by roamer_1 (Globalism is just socialism in a business suit.)
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