Yahweh as used in English, the God of the Israelites, his name being revealed to Moses as four Hebrew consonants YHVH {Yhvh is written יהוה}, called the tetragrammaton or more common ("I-be that I-be;" traditionally "I am that I am"). After the Exile (6th century bc), and especially from the 3rd century bc on, Jews ceased to use the name Yahuah for two reasons. As Judaism became a universal religion through its proselytizing in the Greco-Roman world, the more common noun Elohim, meaning “god,” tended to replace Yahuah to demonstrate the universal sovereignty of Israel’s God over all others. At the same time, the divine name was increasingly regarded as too sacred to be uttered; it was thus replaced vocally in the synagogue ritual by the Hebrew word Adonai (“My Lord”), which was translated as Kyrios (“Lord”) in the Septuagint.
(YHWH), It is a transposition of letters, a kind of code, to denote "Adonai" so that Hebrews could avoid using the name of God in vain and risk blasphemy. Even at that, there is no singular name of the Most High, Who defined Himself by the descriptor "I AM" as noted, that is, "Is-ness." He is the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob if we ask for Him by a "brand name." Yasha prayed to Yah calling Him "Abba" and counseled us to do so. Christ Himself is titled "Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty King, Everlasting Lord." The Holy Spirit is also our "Counselor" and "Advocate."
"Yahweh" or the corrupted "Jehovah", It has been maintained by some recent scholars that the word Jehovah dates only from the year 1520 (cf. Hastings, "Dictionary of the Bible", II, 1899, p. 199: Gesenius-Buhl, "Handwörterbuch", 13th ed., 1899, p. 311). Drusius (loc. cit., 344) represents Peter Galatinus as the inventor of the word Jehovah, and Fagius as it propagator in the world of scholars and commentators. the meaning of Jehovah would be "he who will be, is, and has been". But such a word-formation has no analogy in the Hebrew language. God can be called by what He is, and what He does. Also of singular importance is what God calls us! Abba calls us His children, so we know we are not defining Allah and Baal and their slaves. Jesus calls us friend, and brother & sister.
What the Joseph Campbell types forget are the usurpers who made false claims in their war against God. They conveniently forget to look for "hiding in plain sight" monotheist roots. There were lots of male-ish female-ish moon gods, and other planet and comet gods after the Velikovsky-ian tumult in the heavens. But our foundation is monotheism and all cultures have the Genesis 2 sacrament of marriage and a standard of modesty; and recollect the Flood story. We are God's family...even if there was corrupted preservation of, or outright rebellion against, all God revealed about His nature and His will. A remnant was always spared and may we be accounted "faithful and true."
I know of no serious scholar who proposes that the Israelite Yhwh is a direct borrowing of specifically the obscure Egyptian moon deity Iah (jȝḥ) or even the Canaanite Yariḥ. In fact, we aren't even completely sure where the name Yhwh comes from or what it originally meant, although the consensus is that it is associated with the root היה h-y-h (hāyah) 'to become'. Exodus 3:14: אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֶֽהְיֶ֑ה ’ehyeh ’ăšer ’ehyeh "I-be that I-be;" or more traditionally "I am that I am".
Now, in the topographical list of Amenhotep III (c. 1395-1358 BC) the expression tȝ šȝsw yhw[ȝ], "the land of Shasu-Yhw" appears. Similar references occur in a block from Soleb (also from Amenhotep's reign) and twice in lists from Medinet Habu (Rameses III, 1186-1155 BC). In addition, there are quite a number of names which consist of or contain the יה (yh) element attested in various Western Semitic contexts, which might be that of a god (or gods) known to the local inhabitants.
Considering these attestations, there have been a popular suggestion that Yhwh and His name might have been already known in some form to certain peoples like the Edomites, Midianites and Kenites even before the Israelites, the so-called "Kenite hypothesis." Support for this is generally gleaned from the fact that Moses was associated with the priest Reuel/Jethro (Exodus 2:16; 3:1-6; 18:1); the latter might have been the one who taught Moses the name. In addition, there is also the portrayal of the Rechabites (descendants of the Kenites) as staunch Yahwists, with links to Israel. There is also the portrayal of Yhwh as coming from Edom in the south Judges 5:4). However, some point out certain problems with this theory, such as the fact that Jethro is named as "a priest of Midian," not "a priest of Yhwh," and that it is not likely that the Hebrews would have followed a foreign name. On the contrary, it would seem from a closer reading of Exodus that Jethro learned of Yhwh from Moses. Aside from this idea, there are some other theories proposing the origin of Yhwh and His name from within Levantine culture (such as the Amorites) or even from areas like Ugarit, but it seems that they are all rather unsatisfactory. It would seem rather that Yhwh was an integral part of Israelite culture and belief from its very beginning.
(YHWH), It is a transposition of letters, a kind of code, to denote "Adonai" so that Hebrews could avoid using the name of God in vain and risk blasphemy. Even at that, there is no singular name of the Most High, Who defined Himself by the descriptor "I AM" as noted, that is, "Is-ness." He is the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob if we ask for Him by a "brand name." Yasha prayed to Yah calling Him "Abba" and counseled us to do so. Christ Himself is titled "Wonderful, Counselor, Almighty King, Everlasting Lord." The Holy Spirit is also our "Counselor" and "Advocate."
"Yahweh" or the corrupted "Jehovah", It has been maintained by some recent scholars that the word Jehovah dates only from the year 1520 (cf. Hastings, "Dictionary of the Bible", II, 1899, p. 199: Gesenius-Buhl, "Handwörterbuch", 13th ed., 1899, p. 311). Drusius (loc. cit., 344) represents Peter Galatinus as the inventor of the word Jehovah, and Fagius as it propagator in the world of scholars and commentators. the meaning of Jehovah would be "he who will be, is, and has been". But such a word-formation has no analogy in the Hebrew language. God can be called by what He is, and what He does. Also of singular importance is what God calls us! Abba calls us His children, so we know we are not defining Allah and Baal and their slaves. Jesus calls us friend, and brother & sister.
What the Joseph Campbell types forget are the usurpers who made false claims in their war against God. They conveniently forget to look for "hiding in plain sight" monotheist roots. There were lots of male-ish female-ish moon gods, and other planet and comet gods after the Velikovsky-ian tumult in the heavens. But our foundation is monotheism and all cultures have the Genesis 2 sacrament of marriage and a standard of modesty; and recollect the Flood story. We are God's family...even if there was corrupted preservation of, or outright rebellion against, all God revealed about His nature and His will. A remnant was always spared and may we be accounted "faithful and true."
I know of no serious scholar who proposes that the Israelite Yhwh is a direct borrowing of specifically the obscure Egyptian moon deity Iah (jȝḥ) or even the Canaanite Yariḥ. In fact, we aren't even completely sure where the name Yhwh comes from or what it originally meant, although the consensus is that it is associated with the root היה h-y-h (hāyah) 'to become'. Exodus 3:14: אֶֽהְיֶ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֶֽהְיֶ֑ה ’ehyeh ’ăšer ’ehyeh "I-be that I-be;" or more traditionally "I am that I am".
Now, in the topographical list of Amenhotep III (c. 1395-1358 BC) the expression tȝ šȝsw yhw[ȝ], "the land of Shasu-Yhw" appears. Similar references occur in a block from Soleb (also from Amenhotep's reign) and twice in lists from Medinet Habu (Rameses III, 1186-1155 BC). In addition, there are quite a number of names which consist of or contain the יה (yh) element attested in various Western Semitic contexts, which might be that of a god (or gods) known to the local inhabitants.
Considering these attestations, there have been a popular suggestion that Yhwh and His name might have been already known in some form to certain peoples like the Edomites, Midianites and Kenites even before the Israelites, the so-called "Kenite hypothesis." Support for this is generally gleaned from the fact that Moses was associated with the priest Reuel/Jethro (Exodus 2:16; 3:1-6; 18:1); the latter might have been the one who taught Moses the name. In addition, there is also the portrayal of the Rechabites (descendants of the Kenites) as staunch Yahwists, with links to Israel. There is also the portrayal of Yhwh as coming from Edom in the south Judges 5:4). However, some point out certain problems with this theory, such as the fact that Jethro is named as "a priest of Midian," not "a priest of Yhwh," and that it is not likely that the Hebrews would have followed a foreign name. On the contrary, it would seem from a closer reading of Exodus that Jethro learned of Yhwh from Moses. Aside from this idea, there are some other theories proposing the origin of Yhwh and His name from within Levantine culture (such as the Amorites) or even from areas like Ugarit, but it seems that they are all rather unsatisfactory. It would seem rather that Yhwh was an integral part of Israelite culture and belief from its very beginning.
