Post by brobrent77 on Apr 8, 2008 1:57:56 GMT -5
Messianic Jewish Terms Glossary
Technical (In Depth) Study of The Names of God
Yeshua is the given Hebrew name of Jesus of Nazareth, the one and only Messiah, and creator and redeemer of the whole world. Yeshua is the name of G-d come in the flesh. Yeshua is the name that He was known by all the apostles and first century saints. Every time you see the word salvation in the scriptures it is Yeshua. There are 2 situations in which you should KNOW to use His real given Hebrew name. #1 Whenever speaking of Messiah to a Jew. #2 Whenever you are in spiritual warfare to overcome demonic principalities.
To meditate on God's names is a source of peace, joy and powerful prayer life. What can we tell God that He does not already know? We need to know Him better. His names tell us about who He is. They show His Majesty, His Power, His Glory, and His Infinite Love for His people.
The revelation of God to man is one of authority and of redemption. He requires righteousness from man, but saves the unrighteous through sacrifice; and in His redemptive dealings with man all the divine persons and attributes are brought into manifestation. The Tenach reveals the justice of God as fully as His mercy, but never in opposition to His mercy. The flood, may be seen as an unspeakable mercy to unborn generations. From Genesis to Malachi He is revealed as the seeking God who has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and who heaps up before the sinner every possible motive to persuade him to faith and obedience. In the Brith Hadasha we see the sacrifice perfected in the Blood of Yeshua Messiah. As Abraham said, and as history has recorded, and as the redeemed KNOW, indeed G-d has provided Himself a Lamb. Yeshua Messiah will soon return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE NAMES OF GOD
Hebrew: ----------- English Meaning
Elohim ------------ God - The One and Only True God
Yahweh:----------- LORD - He that is who He is, The eternal I AM
Adonai:------------ Lord - Master
El Shaddai -------- God Almighty - The All-sufficient One
El Elyon ---------- Most High - Possessor of heaven and earth
El Olam ----------- Everlasting God - God over eternal things
El Gibbor --------- Mighty God - The Only All Powerful God
Yahweh Jireh ----- The LORD will provide
Yahweh Rapha ---- The LORD who healeth
Yahweh Nissi ---- The LORD is my banner, The LORD is my victory
Yahweh Shalom --- The LORD our peace, The LORD gives peace
Yahweh Tsidkenu - The LORD Our Righteousness
Yahweh Shammah - The LORD is present
Yahweh Sabaoth - The LORD of Hosts, LORD Almighty, King of Glory
This is by no means an exhaustive list. It is just a starting point for what some have said are over 800 different names of God in the scriptures. It is a starting point.
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Note: We write G-d and L-rd without vowels as a sign of respect.
In the original Hebrew there were no vowels, and no difference between upper and lower case (capital and small letters). Hellenistic Christians choose to mark the respect by inserting the vowel, and capitalizing the first letter, neither of which are in the original. Jewish people mark the respect by capitalizing the first letter (which is not in the original), and indicating the vowel is not there in the original. One extra thing about this method is that if G-d is never written in full, no-one can deface the word!
G-d's personal name is spelt Yod Heh Vav Heh in the Hebrew. This approximates to Y H V H. The vowels were not written until about the thirteenth century C.E. G-d's personal name was only spoken in the temple on Yom Kippur after the High Priest had entered the Holy of Holies, and resulted in those hearing falling prone and reciting the second phrase of the Shema, "Blessed be His name (HaShem) whose glorious kingdom shall be for ever and ever." During the Babylonian captivity His personal Name was never spoken of at all, there was no access to the temple. Upon return to Jerusalem 70 years later, no-one was sure how to pronounce His name, so the word Adonai was substituted, which means 'L-rd'. Alternatively haShem was used which means 'the Name', especially when the word Adonai immediately preceded G-d's personal name.
When the vowel points were added, over a thousand years later, the vowels were not actually known. The vowels for Adonai were used instead. In England at about that time, and for some time later, there was a great persecution of the Jews, and they were driven out of the country, killed, or forced to abandon Judaism. When the English versions of the Bible were becoming popular (Wycliffe, Tyndale et al.) there was no significant Jewish presence to speak of in England. So the gentiles, in ignorance, assumed that G-d's personal Name had the vowels of Adonai in it. It would be like taking the consonants of your first name and using the vowels of your last name.
Some people still believe these were the correct consonants. However it is likely that they are not the right consonants, and no-one can be sure. To avoid being disrespectful by using a nonsense word to refer to G-d, most Jewish people will not refer to Him as Jehovah or Yahweh, the English equivalents of this nonsense word. Some regard the idea of referring to the Almighty One by a nonsense word as blasphemous, and there is a good case for viewing things this way.
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Thanks to Monte Judah for the Next Section
Some believers, particularly in the Messianic Movement, have taught that a failure to pronounce God’s name in THEIR specified Hebrew sounding way constitutes everything from a flaw in one’s spiritual walk to a failure to know God and His salvation.
God’s name is important. He has made it important. Knowing the name of God and honoring His name are extremely important spiritual matters for all believers. God, Himself, has given commandment not to take His name in vain. Therefore, we should do that which brings honor and glory to His name.
What name of God are we talking about? The name Y-H-V-H is the four-letter name given to Moses at the burning bush. The four letters in question are Yod, Hey, Vav, Hey. Each letter means something special. God is not hiding Himself, but for many, His name is full of secrets.
Exo 3:13-15 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 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.
The King James Version bible pronounced the name "Jehovah." Most bible scholars prefer "Yahweh." The exact pronunciation is in question. Consequently, most English bibles print "LORD" (all caps) for "Yahweh" and "Lord" (upper and lowercase) for the word Adonai.
What do Rabbis and the sages of Israel say? They won’t pronounce it.
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
In keeping with the commandment of not taking His name in vain (to make common), most Rabbis follow a tradition of rendering the greatest respect possible by avoiding the pronunciation. Instead, they will say HaShem (the name). In traditional blessings, Hebrews say the word "Adonai" (Lord) in place of it. This is because Moses used "Adonai" when addressing God directly at the burning bush. Many go to the length of removing the vowels from the words "God" and "Lord" by writing G-d or L-rd. It is not that Jews don’t know the name; it is a matter of not making God’s name common in language, or in vain. When the temple was operational, the name was spoken, especially when the priest would bless all of Israel. However, anyone hearing the name would fall on their face and say, "Blessed be His name, whose glorious kingdom is forever and ever." This is where we get the second line of the Shema in the "watchword" of our faith.
Christian scholars throughout the years have speculated on the pronunciation and have generally agreed that Yahweh is the most probable. It should be emphasized that the knowledge of God is through His Son, Jesus Christ. Most Christian scholars have placed no special significance in the name. All attention is directed toward the Christ.
The modern Messianic Movement, led by believing Jews, knows full well that referring to the Jewish Messiah as Jesus Christ will get you nowhere in the Jewish community. They have used the name Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus) and referred to Him strictly as Messiah from the Hebrew "Meshiach" to avoid Christ from the Greek derivation "Christos." With all this attention of getting back to our Hebrew roots, it was inevitable that the actual name God gave to Moses for the sons of Israel would also take on greater attention.
Some Messianic believers in their zeal have abandoned the name Jesus, despising the Greek transliteration, and prefer a strictly Hebrew pronunciation. However, there is even some debate over whether His name is "Yeshua" or "Yahshua." More so, some have rejected the substitutions of the Hebrew "Adonai" in blessings and the word "Lord" in the common English expressions. Sometimes their zeal knows no bounds. Some of our brethren assert that failure to pronounce the name "Yahweh" means your heart is not circumcised nor the Spirit of God is present. They assert that the name referred to in John 1:12 must be "Yahweh" or "Yahshua."
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
This whole argument seems like an effort to spiritually Judaize brethren and smacks of ancient gnosticism (I am spiritually superior because of my knowledge).
The assertion of "Yahshua" for "Yeshua" has a bit of a humorous twist. There is no question that "Yah" is an expression of God. Yeshua was the fullness of God and therefore deity in every sense of the definition. According to Yeshua, He was present with Abraham and gave the commandment at Mount Sinai. I am convinced that Yeshua was in the burning bush. Therefore, there is no issue as to whether Yeshua is God; the question is the Hebrew pronunciation of His name.
Let’s first explain the difference between a transliteration and a translation. A transliteration is a spelling to make you sound the word. A translation is the use of another word in another language that means the same thing. The King James Bible wanted to give the phonetic sound to the name of Jesus, so in the story of Luke’s Gospel they transliterated the name that the angel is heard to say to Mary...
Luke 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.(transliterated Joshua)
Joshua! What does Joshua have to do with all this? In Old English, the "J" sound was a "Y" sound. In an attempt to get English readers to say "Yeshua," they transliterated it as Joshua. However, Joshua is actually another Hebrew name. Remember Joshua led the children of Israel across the Jordan and took the land of Israel.
Then Christian scholars learned of their transliteration mistake and went back to use the Greek transliteration which was even worse than Joshua. The Greek text had tried to do the same thing and tried to phonetically sound the name with "Iesous."
Then Christian scholars translated the Greek Iesous into Jesus.
Now days we have some other brethren striving for the Hebrew roots in all this found the name Joshua in the KJV and translated it back to the Hebrew Yehoshua. The name Yehoshua (Joshua) means God is Salvation; whereas, Yeshua is just Salvation.
Mary was told to name her son "Salvation" for He would save His people. Simeon, the old man in the temple waiting for the Messiah, held up Yeshua and said, "Mine eyes have seen the Salvation of Israel."
However, these other brethren have done the translating of Joshua and are convinced that Yeshua is really Yahshua (a western dialect of Yehoshua). The Strong’s word number from the King James Bible clearly shows it is a name for Joshua and Jesus. It is amazing what a simple mix-up in transliterations and translations can do. There is no secret in this.
God is smart enough to know when someone is attempting to say His name and speak with or about Him. He also knows our heart and INTENT in how we speak His name, whether it be honorable or profane. God hears and answers His people even if they pronounce a Greek transliteration that was then translated into to English to make "Jesus." God even understands Hebrew, Spanish, and all the languages of the world. Calling upon the name of God is what God wants all people to do. He has ears to hear and a heart that understands. Furthermore, He most likely is watching the controversy of the name pronunciation shaking His head in wonder at how we can waste so much energy on this matter and cause so much discord among brethren.
Some of our brethren flaunt the use of Yahweh as though it is the very standard of the faithful. This is wrong. I take issue with my New Covenant Church brethren who act like Sadducees. I also take issue with my Messianic brethren who behave like Gnostic Greeks.
There is something wonderful and glorious about God’s name that Moses received. The name that most are struggling with to pronounce illustrates the great manifestations of God. These revelations always involve multiple persons and God’s voice is heard. Abraham became the father of us all spiritually, by his faith being counted for righteousness. What Moses learned of God’s name at the burning bush took precedence on the name issue. Abraham didn’t know the name (YHVH) and yet his faith was counted for rigtheousness. Clearly, you don’t need to know the name given to Moses for salvation. Instead, it is an example of God progressively manifesting and revealing Himself to us.
Exo 6:2 -3 And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD[Yahweh]: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty [El Shaddai], but by my name JEHOVAH [Yahweh], was I not known to them.
At the burning bush, God stated His name in response to the questions of Moses. Moses knew that he was incapable of convincing either Pharaoh or the children of Israel. God explained to Moses and later showed all that by God’s hand the children of Israel were brought out. The first letter of God’s name is the Yod. It means hand. In fact, the very shape of the letter is in the shape of a hand.
The second letter of God’s name is Hey. It is the shape of a slightly open door and it means "what comes forth." There are actually two Hey’s in God’s name. Moses and the children of Israel learned that "salvation" and "deliverance" were to come from the "hand" of God.
When Yeshua came to Israel teaching His disciples, there came a moment as He was entering Jerusalem the final time that He made reference to God’s name and the voice of God from heaven responded.
John 12:28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
This is very intriguing conversation. Yeshua later said that the voice was given for our sakes. What is it that we are to know and understand in the words, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again?"
Remember Abraham? His name used to be Abram and God added a letter Hey to it just before he received the rite of circumcision and his promised son Isaac. The letter Hey added glory and honor to Abram. He would now become the father of many nations, not just a son. In an effort to honor the name of Joseph, Hebrews after the life of Joseph refer to him as Yehoseph. They add the letter Hey to his name to honor him.
There are two Hey’s in God’s name. They represent the coming forth of God’s Son. First, He comes to do the work of God's Salvation. Secondly, He will return to deliver the whole world and establish His earthly kingdom.But what about the letter Vav, the third letter in God’s name? The Vav is the shape of a nail. When Yeshua died on the cross, He was lifted up like Moses’ staff and we saw the picture of God’s name. Salvation and deliverance comes from the nailed hand of God. The sign above Yeshua at the crucifixion read, "Yeshua of Nazareth, King of the Jews." This was written in four Hebrew words – Yeshua Hanetzeret V’melech Hayehudim. The first letters of the four words are YHVH (Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey). No wonder the religious Jews wanted the sign changed. It was as Yeshua had said that they would see I AM when the Son of Man is lifted up (John 8:28).
But there is more to the letter Vav. The meaning of the nail is to make secure, to attach, to hold together. On the day of Pentecost (Hebrew Shavuot), the Holy Spirit was poured out on the same day the voice of God was heard from the mountain. The disciples began to preach and Peter explained that what was happening was like what the Prophet Joel spoke of. Joel said that God would some day pour out His Spirit on all mankind, causing many to prophesy and see visions. He also said it would precede the day of the Lord.
The two houses were still separated at the time of Yeshua. The Apostle Paul spoke of a time at the end of the age of the Gentiles when all Israel would be saved. This is like what Ezekiel (chapters 37-39) spoke of at the end of the age when Israel would become a nation out of dry bones. He said God’s Spirit would begin to move in us and that He would cause the House of Israel (Ephraim) to be rejoined to the House of Judah. The modern Messianic Movement matches these prophecies. He went on to say that there would be a war in the land of Israel with the enemy Gog and Magog. The aftermath would be a great victory and God would show Himself to the nations. All peoples are to then know that there is a God in the midst of Israel. With that, two incredible events take place: the exile is over and God pours out His Spirit on us.
Ezek 39:21-29 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward. And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against me, therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.
The restoring of the two houses of Israel comes after the nation of Israel is re-established after a great exile. This was not fulfilled after the Babylonian exile. History and our generation has seen the modern nation of Israel born out of the ashes and dry bones of the Holocaust. Ezekiel 37-39 chapters speak of the modern nation of Israel, not ancient Israel.
The great outpouring of the Holy Spirit comes AFTER a great battle and the name of Israel is never put to shame again ( Joel 2:37-38). This is yet to happen.
So, how does this take us back to the letter Vav and the name of God? The next step in the pattern of God’s name is the outpouring of God’s Spirit after the exile is ended. The Vav is the manifestation of God’s Spirit binding and securing the House of Judah and Ephraim together into one stick. Look at the letter. It is like the Yod, a hand but something is being poured out. It also looks like a stick. It also looks like a nail.
God’s name, therefore, reveals to us a pattern of first the Yod, the Father’s hand delivering the children of Israel out of Egypt. The first Hey shows us the Son of God bringing us Salvation and being our Redemption. The Vav is the Spirit of God, poured out to bind us together again. The final Hey is the Messiah returning on the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory. This is not a secret to us. All of these events share one thing in common – to glorify God’s name.
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Some "Messianic or Christian" groups claim that G-d is a single Personage and that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are G-d's three "titles" or "offices." That G-d must have both unity and diversity is clear. The Allah of Islam, or the Jehovah of Jehovah's Witnesses, or the G-d of some aberrant "Messianic or Christian" groups would be incomplete in Himself. He would be unable to love or communicating before creating other beings capable of interacting with Him in these ways. (For G-d to be just, true, holy, and pure would not require the existence of other beings in order for these qualities to be expressed, as would be the case for G-d to express, let alone, be love.)
The quality of love and the capacities for fellowship and communion, by their very nature, require another personal being with whom to share them. The Bible says that "G-d is love." This could only be true if within the Godhead there is diversity as well as unity. The actual word "trinity" does not occur in the Bible. The concept of the diversity of G-d is clearly expressed there, providing the unity and diversity that makes possible the love, fellowship, and communion within the Godhead.
The Bible presents a G-d who did not need to create any beings to express love, communion, and fellowship. This G-d is complete in Himself, existing eternally in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, distinguishable from each other, yet at the same time eternally one G-d. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit loved, communed, and fellowshiped together and took counsel together before the universe, angels, or man were brought into existence. Truly the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, love. The One "G-d is love" (1 John 4:8, 16) - and He alone.
Love is G-d's principal weapon in His battle with Satan for the souls and destiny of mankind. For the battle rages not only for man's mind but above all for his love. Every sin, therefore, has its root in man's failure to respond to G-d's love in the fullness of the capacity of love which He has given us. As the first and greatest commandment declares: (Mark 12:30) And thou shalt love the L-rd thy G-d with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this [is] the first commandment. (Deuteronomy 6:5)
We don't have the ability within ourselves to keep this commandment, for "love is of G-d." It is G-d's love to us that woos and wins our hearts and awakens in us a love for Him: "We love him because he first loved us." The great act (and thus the proof) of G-d's love is that G-d became a man in order to personally pay the penalty demanded by His justice against our sin. He could only do this because He is a personal and triune Being.
The idea that G-d is a single Personage (Unitarianism), and not Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, existing eternally in one G-d, invaded the church around 220 A.D. Though the idea is condemned by the vast majority of Christians, this idea survives to this day in some groups.
Yeshua said, "The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into his hand"(John 3:35). G-d's love is not just toward mankind but first of all within the Godhead. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit can't be mere offices, titles, or modes in which G-d manifests Himself, for such cannot love, consult, and fellowship together. Not only is the Son presented as a the Only Savior, but the Father and the Holy Spirit are presented as well. The Bible presents each as having His own personality: each wills, acts, loves, and cares, and can also be grieved or become angry. Unitarianism robs the Godhead of the essential qualities of self-existent and self-sufficient deity.
Godhead? Is that a biblical term? Yes, indeed. It occurs three times in the b'rit chadashah, (New Testament): in Acts 17:29, Romans 1:20, and Colossians 2:9. In contrast to theos, which is used consistently throughout the New Testament for G-d, in these verses (theios, theiotes, theotes), which the KJV, in contrast to other versions, carefully designates by the special word Godhead. That very term indicates a plurality of being.
Paul wrote, "In him dwelleth all the fulness if the Godhead bodily"(Colossians 2:9). This statement makes no sense if, as the "Yeshua only or Yahweh only" advocates teach, Messiah is the only G-d, and the Father and Holy Spirit are merely "offices" or "titles." Paul would then be making the meaningless statement that in Messiah dwelt all the fullness of Messiah.
Did Paul mean that in Messiah dwells all the fullness of deity, as non-KJV translations render it? That would detract from the deity of Messiah. For if Messiah is intrinsically G-d, then what is the point of saying that "in Him dwells all the fullness of deity"? But if Messiah is the Son and there are also the Father and the Holy Spirit in the Godhead, then it does mean something: that when the Son became man He brought that fullness of the Godhead with Him into flesh.
The Antichrist comes in the place of the true Messiah. Lacking the marks of crucifixion, he must therefore promote another view of Messiah that denies that Yeshua is the one and only Messiah. He must therefore deny that G-d has literally become a man and that this union between G-d and man continues eternally in the Person of Yeshua of Nazareth, who died for our sins and is now resurrected. This common "antichrist" doctrine takes many forms and is found in many religions. Such delusions have all been part of a centuries-long preparation for the time when Antichrist will be accepted by the world as its savior.
Like Jews, Muslims find the trinity particularly objectionable. One of Islam's most important teachings concerns the "absolute oneness of Allah." Yet the Koran repeats the Genesis statement: "Let us make man in our image." Islam has no explanation for this contradiction.
The very first verse in the Bible presents G-d's diversity as a plural being. It declares: "In the beginning G-d created the heaven and the earth." Yet instead of the singular Eloah for G-d in the Hebrew, the plural Elohim, is used. It literally means "In the beginning, G-ds created...." It is also Elohim (G-ds) who say later in the chapter, "Let us make man in our image...."
This plural noun (Elohim) is found over 2500 times in the Old Testament. Yet a singular verb, bara, is used in Genesis 1:1 and in almost every other place that Elohim is found. So we have both singularity (in the verb) and plurality (in the noun). The same is true all through the entire Tanakh (Old Testament). If G-d was a single Personage, then the single form, Eloah, would have been used, not Elohim. That fact is inescapable.
At the burning bush incident we read: "And G-d (Elohim) said unto Moses, I am that I am..."(Exodus 3:14). Here G-ds speak, but they don't say "We are" but "I am." Again that peculiar singularity and plurality at the same time in the same Being! So it is in Exodus 20:2 - "I am the L-rd thy G-d (Elohim)...." And Leviticus 11:44- "I am the l-rd your G-d (Elohim)...." Each time G-d uses Elohim (G-ds) of Himself (90 percent of the time) instead of Eloah (G-d)(10 percent), He reveals to us the plurality of His Being. And when He uses a singular verb and pronoun along with Elohim, He is clearly telling us that He is a unity.
Nor is the word Elohim the only way in which G-d's plurality is presented. Consider, for example, Psalm 149:2 "Let Israel rejoice in their Maker" (literally "makers"); Ecclesiastes 12:1; "Remember now thy Creator" (literally "creators"); and Isaiah 54:5 "For thy Maker is thine husband" (literally "makers, husbands"). Unitarianism has no explanation for this consistent presentation of G-d's plurality all through the Tanakh (Old Testament).
Most Jewish people are not aware that the plural noun G-ds is found in the very center of Israel's famous confession of the oneness of G-d. It reads in Hebrew: "Shema yisroel adonai elohenu adonai echad" (Deutronomy 6:4). From this scripture Rabbi Maimonides taught Jews to recite daily, "I believe with a perfect faith that the Creator, blessed be His name, is ONE."
Maimonides, however, perverted the Scripture, apparently deliberately. To express "ONE" he used the Hebrew word yachid, which means single and absolute one. Yet Moses used echad, which could mean a unity of several into one. For example, it is used in Genesis 2:24, where man and woman become "one flesh"; in Exodus 36:13, when the various parts become one tabernacle"; in 2 Samuel 2:25, when many soldiers "became one troop"; and elsewhere.
G-d is telling us something important about Himself by His choice of Hebrew words. Had G-d wanted to show that He is an absolute one; He would have chosen yachid, but instead He chose echad. Maimonides made a serious mistake in changing G-d's Word. As a result, millions of Jews have been led astray and still are to this day.
The rabbis surely knew that Adonai had repeatedly declared, "I am the L-rd thy G-d, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior...and besides me there is no savior." Then who else, if He was to save His people, could the Messiah be except the L-rd G-d of Israel come down as a man? The full wonder of this fact, so essential to our salvation, shattered the skepticism of doubting Thomas and caused him to exclaim, when confronted by the resurrected Messiah, "My L-rd and my G-d"(John 20:28).
Yet the rabbis accused Yeshua of blasphemy because He said "that G-d was his Father, making himself equal with G-d"(John 5:18). They knew that He was claiming to be "the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," even though many today deny that Yeshua ever made such a claim. This "blasphemy" became the charge with which the Sanhedrin condemned Him to death: "For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy...thou being a man, makest thyself G-d"(John10:33; Mark 14:64)
They were blind to the prophecy of Zechariah that Israel would pierce Adonai - and they fulfilled that prophecy, for Yeshua is G-d, a conclusion one cannot escape. When Messiah returns visibly in power and glory at His second coming, the surviving Jews (whom He rescues from the Antichrist at Armageddon), will recognize Him by the marks of Calvary: "They shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him"(Zechariah 12:10). Adonai, the G-d of Israel, is speaking. When was He pierced? The Hebrew word means the piercing to death as when King Saul begged his armor bearer, "Draw thy sword, and thrust me through"(1 Samuel 31:4). Zechariah's prophecy is both remarkable and clear; G-d Himself will come as a man to rescue Israel when, in the last days, they will be surrounded by the armies of the world and will stand on the brink of destruction. Nor does he come as an ordinary man, but as One who was thrust through to death and has come back to life.
When Israel sees Him, they will know Yeshua by the marks of crucifixion that His resurrected body still bears. In that moment all Israel will be convinced at last that Yeshua of Nazareth, whom they crucified and have rejected for so long, is the Messiah long promised by their own prophets. They will repent and believe in Him (Zechariah 12:10-14:9).
Just as Israel's misunderstanding of G-d's diverse nature in the Godhead caused her to reject her Messiah, so that same misunderstanding will allow her to be deceived into accepting the Antichrist. He comes not as a member of the Godhead - in the name of the Father and under the anointing of the Holy Spirit - but "in his own name."
The New Testament presents the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who are distinct, yet One G-d. At the same time we repeatedly have the clear statement that there is only one true G-d. Messiah prays to the Father. Is He praying to Himself? "The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world"(1 John 4:14). Did He send Himself? Worse yet, did one "office" pray and send a "title"? Messiah said, "I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter...even the Spirit of truth" (John 14:16,17).
Throughout the New Testament, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are each separately honored and act as G-d, yet only in perfect unity with one another. G-d is one in purpose, power, and divine attributes - yet He is manifest as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, proving His diversity as well. The Old Testament also presents the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the Godhead. Take for example the following: Isaiah 48:12,13 &16 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I [am] he; I [am] the first, I also [am] the last. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens... from the time that it was, there [am] I: and now the L-rd G-D, and his Spirit, hath sent me.
The one speaking refers to Himself as "the first and the last" and the Creator of all, so He must be G-d. But he speaks of two others in the same passage who must also be G-d: "the L-rd G-d, and his Spirit, hath sent me." By whom could G-d be "sent" on some mission - and where? This can be none other than the Father and the Holy Spirit, sending the Son into the world to be our Savior.
One cannot escape the fact that all through the Bible G-d is presented as a plurality and yet as one, as having both diversity and unity. This concept of G-d is unique among all the world's religions. To reject the triune nature of G-d is to reject the G-d of the Bible - and to come, ultimately, under the delusion that will cause the world to obey and worship the Antichrist when he comes.
It is a mystery that G-d can exist in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and yet be one G-d; but, both Scripture and logic demand this fact. It is also a mystery how G-d could have no beginning and create everything out of nothing, yet it must be so. There is much else that we cannot explain - love, beauty, truth, or what a human soul or spirit is - but we don't reject it on that basis. G-d has revealed with the Godhead the diversity of His nature to us so that we can believe in and know Him. We dare not reject what He says or lower Him to the level of our finite minds.
The G-d of the Bible is the Creator of the universe, separate and distinct from it and not subject to the laws He made to govern it. And this truth is the only hope for mankind. For the G-d of the Bible can, in fact, reach into the dying universe and re-create it and restore it to be totally new. Reincarnation can only recycle that which is steadily sinking into oblivion. Resurrection, on the other hand, represents an influx of G-d's power from outside bringing immortality to that which otherwise would be eternally dead.
Such is the G-d whom we must know personally in order to be saved. And such is the G-d whom the Antichrist denies. It is this One G-d, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Who made man in His image and Who alone could come as a man and still remain G-d. He alone could rescue mankind from sin, and self, and from eternal separation from His love and presence. To deny the diverstity in the revelation of the Godhead is to deny the majority of the price which G-d paid at Calvary to save the redeemed. Yeshua, by separation from an infinate closeness with the Father from all eternity past, albeit for a finate time of three days and three nights, literally suffered hell for all the redeemed. However the reason to believe the doctrine of the diversity of the Godhead is that the Father also suffered in this separation and also the Holy Spirit suffered that hell of separation from Yeshua. To reject the Biblical doctrine of the Godhead's diversity is to trash the majority of the great price, beyond our understanding, which was paid at Calvary. G-d redeemed those who would come to really KNOW Him and according to 2 Pet 1:11, provided that an entrance unto the redeemed abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our L-rd and Saviour Yeshua Messiah, Jesus Christ. 2 Pet 2:20 ... they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Yeshua Messiah... The only way to escape the pollutions of the world is through the knowledge, and relationship to the REAL Yeshua. The Messiah, Yeshua, is G-d come in the flesh, the Creator. He is the only way of access and relationship to the One True G-d of Israel.
If you KNOW the real Yeshua as G-d, the Creator come in the flesh as our redeemer, we are brothers. None of our peanut brains can understand the Godhead or trinity this side of glory anyhow.
However, if you think you know the Father, YHVH, Yahweh, without knowing the REAL Yeshua, G-d the Creator come in the flesh to accomplish redemption, you have received the most deadly deception, which will not permit you to be among the redeemed. REPENT! Become a United Pentecostal if you must, but get to KNOW the real Yeshua, who is G-d come in the flesh to redeem you, and Who provides the ONLY Way, you can in TRUTH, know Yahweh. There is no other Way for the redeemed. Any other Yeshua, who is not equal with G-d, Who is not G-d the Creator, is not capable of redeeming you. Unless you believe that Yeshua is ONE with the Father, Yahweh, you will die in your sins. Give up the idolatry of such religious knowledge that prevents you from KNOWING the One True G-d and Yeshua Messiah that He has sent.
Give up your intellectual idol yeshua. The Jews killed the real historic Yeshua, because He told the truth that He was equal with His Father, Yahweh. John 5:18. The real Yeshua will not conform to the religious knowledge and idolatry of our finite human understanding. REPENT! No man can come to the real Yeshua, except by the Father and the Holy Spirit drawing him. Don't make the real Yeshua a liar by idolatrous religious knowledge. The real Yeshua, Who redeems those who KNOW Him, said "Before Abraham was, I AM." The Jews knew what He meant because they took up stones to cast at Him. The real Yeshua told Moses, to tell the people of Israel that His name was I AM. In John 8:24 Yeshua said in no uncertain terms, that you shall die in your sins: for if you believe not that Yeshua is I AM, you shall die in your sins. The most deadly form of idolatry is that religious knowledge that rejects the real, true, Yeshua, the I AM, Who is beyond the capacity of human knowledge without the help of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, The Spirit of HOLINESS, helping you overcome the pride and idolatry of human religious intellect, you can not know the real Yeshua.
Only the real Yeshua will redeem you, forgive your sins, and let you know and worship, the Father, Yahweh, in spirit and in truth. Yeshua is the Judge. When the real Yeshua opened the eyes of the man who was born blind, he worshipped Him. What about you? We are all born blind spiritually. We must be born again, by the Spirit of Truth, that we may worship the real Yeshua, and through Him come to KNOW, our Father Yahweh. When Yeshua said, "I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him." (John 10:30-31) They made their Messiah, Redeemer, and L-rd, a liar and a blasphemer, in order to keep the idol of their religious knowledge.
IF YOU LOSE YESHUA, YOU LOSE GOD, and win the lake of fire.
If you have a faith which is not built on Who the historical Yeshua is, G-d who has come in the flesh, not as an appearance, not as a spirit or angel, not as a teacher or prophet, not as an anointed man, but THE ONE who truly has come as G-d, Almighty Yahweh Creator, in the FLESH..., you lose everything. The genuine incarnation of the divine person becoming humanity is Who Yeshua IS. That is the REAL YESHUA. Many deceivers were already in the world who did not acknowledge that Almighty G-d, Creator, Yahweh, has come in the flesh were in the world in John's time and that is the reason for his second epistle. No one can fully understand the Godhead, with the greatest human intelligence. However, if you allow the idol of your religion, or your intellect, keep you from, by the Spirit of Truth, knowing the Real Yeshua, you can not and will not be redeemed. Any spirit that denies that Yeshua Messiah, is The One True Almighty G-d, come in the flesh, is antimessiah. There can be no compromise, tolerance, or fellowship with those following this antichrist spirit of religious intellectualism.
2 John 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Yeshua Messiah is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
2 John 1:8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.
2 John 1:9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Messiah, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Messiah, he hath both the Father and the Son.
2 John 1:10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
2 John 1:11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
Isaiah 53
Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the L-RD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of G-d, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the L-RD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the L-RD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the L-RD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Faith, Summary: The essence of faith consists in believing and receiving what G-d has revealed, and may be defined as that trust in the G-d of the Scriptures and in Messiah Yeshua Whom He has sent. Saving FAITH, receives Him as L-rd and Savior and impels to loving obedience and good works. Faith is belief plus the Holy Spirit.
It is time that we REPENT of our religion to allow the Spirit of Truth, to let us KNOW our redeemer, and by Him really KNOW our Father, Yahweh?
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MESSIANIC JEWISH TERMS, and Their Meanings
Abba - Dad/ Daddy
Adonai - the L-rd
Adonai Echad - the L-rd is one
Adonai haElyon - the L-rd Most High
Adonai Shalom - the L-rd of Peace
Adonai Tzidkeynu - the L-rd our Righteousness
Adonai Tzvaot - the L-rd of Hosts
Adonai Yeshuateynu - The L-rd our Salvation
Adonai Yeera - the L-rd our Provider
Alaykhim shalom - and unto you be peace (response to greeting)
Am Yisrael Chai - The people of Israel live *
Amha aretz - ordinary people
Amidah - Prayer
Av - Father
Avinu Malkeynu - Our Father and Our King *
AVraham - Abraham
Avraham avinu - father Abraham
Bar - son (Aramaic)
Baruch haShem - Bless the Name (of G-d)
Barucha - Blessing (often of the meal, i.e. after the meal)
Bat - daughter
bat kol - voice from heaven
Beit LEchem - Bethlehem (house of bread)
Ben - son (Hebrew)
Brit Chadashah - New Covenant
Brit Milah - circumcision
Bubbemeises - old wives' tales
Challah - bread set aside for priests, today for fellowship
Chametz - leaven/ yeast
Chavah - Eve
Cohan/ Cohen - priest
Cohanim - priests
Cohen haGadol - high priest
Davvening - praying
Drashot - sermons/ teachings
EliSHEva - Elizabeth
Eliyahu - Elijah
Eretz - Land
Eretz Mitzrayim - the land of Egypt
Eretz Yisrael - the land of Israel
Erev - Evening
Gan Eden - Paradise
Gey Hinnom - Hell
Goy - a gentile
Goyim - gentiles (literally nations)
Goyishe - gentile (adjective)
halakhah - Jewish customs
Halel - psalms of praise
Hallelujah - Praise G-d
Hava N'Gilah - let us rejoice
haShem - the Name (G-d's personal name - Yod Vav Heh Vav) *
Hatikvah - Hope (The Israeli national anthem)
Jacob - James
Judah - Jude
Judah from Kiriot - Judas Iscariot
K'ruvim - Cherubim
Kadosh - holy
Kadoshim - Holy ones (can refer to angels or saints)
Kehilah - Congregation/ church
Kinneret - the Sea of Galilee
Kol - Voice
Korban - sacrifice
Kvetching - complaining
L'Chaim - To life (often used as a toast)
L'Shana Tova - Happy New Year *
Leviim - Levites
Magdalit - Magdalene
Magen Avraham - Shield of Abraham *
Magen David - Shield of David (often rendered Star of David) *
Mamzer - bastard (born of unmarried parents)
Marana ta - our L-rd come
Marta - Martha
Mashiach/Moshiach - Messiah/ Christ
Matzah - unleavened bread
Mayim - water
Mazel-tov - congratulations
Melchi-Tzedek - Melchizedek/ king of righteousness
Melech - King
Menorah - lampstand
Mentsh - a real person, moral, energetic
Meshugga - crazy
Messianic Jews - Hebrews (letter to the...)
Midrash - paraphrase of a book *
Mikveh - Baptism
Minyan - quorum of ten or more men for Jewish worship
Miriam/ Miryam - Mary
Mitzryim - Egypt
Mitzvah - commandments/ good deeds
Mitzvot - commandments/ good deeds
Moshe - Moses
Motzaei Shabbat - end of the Sabbath (Saturday night)
New Covenant - New Testament
Nudnik - pest/ nuisance
Olam - universe/ world
Olam haba - the world to come
Olam hazeh - this world
Old Covenant - Old Testament
Oyveh - boy are we in trouble (woe is me)
Parokhet - curtain
Pesach - passover
Prushim - Pharises
Rabbi - teacher
Ramatayim - Arimathea
Rivkah - Rebecca
Rosh Hashana - New year's day (Litereally 'head of the Year') *
Ruach haKodesh - Holy Spirit
SaTAN - the devil
Seder - dinner, usually a special festival dinner
Sekhel - common sense
Shabbat - Sabbath (Friday Evening to Saturday Afternoon)
Shabbat Shalom - Peace of the Sabbath (a Sabbath greeting) *
Shalom - peace
Shalom alaykhim - peace be unto you (greeting) see
Alaykhim shalom
Shammash - servant/ deacon
Shaul - Saul/ Paul
Shavuot - Pentecost
Shem - Name
Shimon - Simon (Often used of Peter)/ Simeon
Shivah - mourning
Shlomo - Solomon
Shmai - the call to prayer
Shmoose - talk at ease/ unguardedly
Shofar - ram's horn (frequently translated 'trumpet')
Shomron - Samaria
Shoshanah - Susanna
Shoshi - short for Shoshanah
SmiKHAH - ordination
Sukkot - Tabernacles (Jewish Thanksgiving festival)
T'fil-lin - Phylacteries
T'shuvah - repent
Tallis - prayer shawl
Tallit - prayer shawl
Talmid - disciple
Talmindim - disciples
Tanakh - Hebrew Scriptures/ Old Testament
Toma - Thomas
Torah - Books of the Law/ Pentateuch
Treif - non-kosher
Tsuris - troubles
Tzdukim - Sadducees
TzeDAkah - give to charity
Tzedek - righteousness
Tzion - Zion
Tzitzit - fringes of the prayer shawl
YA'a-kov - James
Yehudah - Jude/ Judah/ Joda/ Judea
Yerushalayim - Jerusalem
YeshaYAhu - Isaiah
Yeshivah - religious school
YeSHUa - Jesus
YESHua - Joshua
Yishai - Jesse
YITZ-chak - Isaac
Yochanah - Joanna
Yochanan - John
Yochanan the Immerser - John the Baptist
Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement
Yosef - Joseph
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Shmai Yisrael Adonai Eloheynu Adonai Echad
- Hear O Israel, the L-rd our G-d, the L-rd is One (the call to prayer)
Hiney lo yanum v'lo yishan Shomer Yisrael
- He that keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps
Hiney ma tov oomah nay im shevet achim gam yachad
- Behold how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity
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Reverse list
Baptism - Mikveh
Christ - Messiah
Church - congregation/ shul/ kehilah
James - Jacob
Jehovah - never used: reckoned as in poor taste, or even blasphemy *
Jesus - Yeshua
Jesus Christ - Yeshua haMashiach
L-rd Jesus Christ - Yeshua haMashiach hu Adonai
Jude - Judah
Law - Torah
L-rd - Adonai
Mary - Miriam
New Testament - Brit Chadashah (literally New Covenant)
Old Testament - Tanakh/ Hebrew Scriptures
Trumpet - Shofar (the ram's horn)
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Technical Section
(For those who like to dig)
There are blessings in the technical knowledge; however, knowledge can be the enemy of faith.
Old Testament (Tenach)
Revelation of God through His names
Primary names of God.
English: God. Hebrew: <El, Elah, or Elohim>, Gen 1:1- "In the beginning God..."
<Elohim> (English form "God"), is the first of the primary names of God. Elohim is a plural noun in form but is singular in meaning when it refers to the true God. The emphasis in Gen 1:26 is on the diversity in God. Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
The emphasis in v. 27 is on the harmony and unity of God.. Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
In Gen 3:22 we again see the plural form of the word suggesting the unity and diversity of God. Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: ...
English: LORD. Hebrew: <YHWH (Yahweh)>, Gen 2:4 - "...in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,"
LORD (Heb <YHWH> ) is the second of the primary names of God.
(1) The original meaning of the name "LORD" (perhaps pronounced Yahweh, in English <Jehovah>) is the <self-existent One;> literally (as in Exo 3:14), <He that is who He is,> therefore, <the eternal I AM.> .
(2) It is meaningful that the first appearance of the name <Yahweh> in Scripture follows the creation of man. It was God <(Elohim)> who said, "Let us make man in our image" (Gen 1:26); but when man, as in Gen 2, is to become dominant over creation, it is the LORD God <( Yahweh Elohim)> who acts. This clearly indicates a special relation of God, in His <Yahweh> character, to man, and all Scripture emphasizes this.
(3) <Yahweh> is distinctly the redemption name of God. When sin entered the world and man's redemption became necessary, it was <Yahweh Elohim> who sought the sinning ones (Gen 3:9 - 13) and clothed them with coats of skins (Gen 3:21), a clear picture of the righteousness provided by the LORD God through sacrifice. The first revelation of Himself by His name <Yahweh> was in connection with the redemption of the covenant people out of Egypt (Exo 3:13 - 17).
As Redeemer, emphasis is laid upon those attributes of <Yahweh> which the sin and salvation of man bring into application. These are (a) His holiness (Lev 11:44 - 45; 19:1 - 2; 20:26; Hab 1:12 - 13); (b) His hatred and judgment of sin (Deu 32:35 - 42; cp. Gen 6:5 - 7; Exo 34:6 - 7; Ps 11:4 - 6; 66:18); and (c) His love for and redemption of sinners, which he always carries out righteously. (Gen 3:21; 8:20 - 21; Exo 12:12 -13; Lev 16:2 - 3; Isa 53:5 - 6,10). Salvation by <Yahweh> apart from sacrifice is unknown in Scripture.
(4) LORD is also the distinctive name of God as in covenant with Israel (Exo 19:3; 20:1 - 2; Jer 31:31 -34).
English: Lord. Hebrew: <Adon or Adonai>, Gen 15:2 - And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
"Lord" (Heb <Adon, Adonai> ).
(1) The primary meaning of <"Adon," "Adonai,"> is <Master,> and it is applied in the O.T. (Tenach) Scriptures both to God and to man. The latter instances are distinguished by the omission of the capital. As applied to man, the word is used of two relationships: master and husband. Both these relationships exist between Messiah and the believer.
(2) Two principles belong in the relation of master and servant: (a) the master's right to implicit obedience; (b) the servant's right to direction in service (Isa 6:8 - 11). Clear distinction in the use of the divine names is illustrated in Exo 4:10 - 12. Moses feels his weakness and incompetency, and "Moses said to the LORD [Yahweh] , O my Lord, <[Adonai] ,> I am not eloquent," Since service is in question, Moses appropriately addresses Yahweh as Lord. But now power is in question, and it is not the Lord <(Adonai)> but Yahweh (LORD) who answers (referring to creation power) -"The LORD said to him, Who gave man his mouth? . . . Now go, and I will help you speak." The same distinction appears in Josh 7:8 - 11.
Compound names of God with <El>
English: God Almighty. Hebrew: <El Shaddai>, Gen 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
"Almighty God." (Heb. <Shaddai>) is the name of God characteristically used by the patriarchs prior to the giving of the law at Sinai. Its most frequent occurrence is in the Book of Job, where <Shaddai> occurs thirty-one times. The name <Yahweh> largely replaces it from Exo 6 onward, where attention is centered more particularly on Israel as God's covenant people.
(1) <El Shaddai> is the name of God which sets Him forth primarily as the strengthener and satisfier of His people. It is sad that <Shaddai> was translated "Almighty." The primary name, <El> or <Elohim,> sufficiently signifies almightiness. "All-sufficient" would be better to express this characteristic use of the name in Scripture.
(2) Almighty God <(El Shaddai)> not only enriches but makes fruitful. The first occurrence of the name is (Gen 17:1 - 8). To a man ninety-nine years of age, and "as good as dead", He said: "I am the Almighty God <[El Shaddai] > . . . I will make my covenant between me and thee and will multiply thee exceedingly."
(3) As bestower of fruitfulness, Almighty God <(El Shaddai)> chastens His people. The moral connection of chastening with fruit-bearing, while being made quite clear in the (Brith Hadasha) is much more difficult to see in the O.T. (Tenach). The best O.T. example may be Ruth 1:20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. Hence, Almighty is the characteristic name of God in Job. The hand of <Shaddai> falls upon Job, the best man of his time, not in judgment but in purifying unto greater fruitfulness (Job 5:17 - 25).
English: Most High, or Most High God. Hebrew: <El Elyon>, Gen 14:18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
"Most high," or "most high God " (Heb <El Elyon>). <"Elyon"> means simply <highest; El Elyon> is "God the highest."
(1) The first revelation of this name (v. 18) indicates its distinctive meanings. Abram, returning from his victory over the confederated kings (Gen 14:1 - 17), is met by Melchizedek, king of Salem . . . the "priest of the most high God " <(El Elyon),> who blesses Abram in the name of <El Elyon,> "possessor of heaven and earth." This revelation produced a remarkable impression upon the patriarch. Not only did he at once give Melchizedek "tithes of all" the spoil of the battle, but when the king of Sodom offered of that spoil to Abram, his answer was: "I have lifted up mine hand unto the LORD [Yahweh] , the most high God <[El Elyon] ,> the possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet," etc. (Gen 14:22 - 23).
(a) The LORD (Yahweh) is known to a Gentile king (Melchizedek) by the name "most high God " <(El Elyon);> (b) a Gentile is the priest of <El Elyon> and (c) His distinctive character as most high God is "possessor of heaven and earth."
Appropriately to this Gentile knowledge of God by His name "Most High," it is written that "the Most High divided to the nations [Gentiles] their inheritance when he separated the sons of Adam," etc. (Deu 32:8). As "possessor of heaven and earth," it was the prerogative of the Most High to distribute the earth among the nations according to whatever principle He chose. That principle is declared in Deu 32:8. The same thing is taught by the use of the name in Daniel, (Dan 3:26; 4:17,24,25,32,34; 5:18,21).
(2) As "possessor of heaven and earth," the most high God has and exercises authority in both spheres: (a) the heavenly authority of <El Elyon> ( Dan 4:35,37; Isa 14:13 - 14; ); (b) the earthly authority of <El Elyon> (Deu 32:8; 2 Sam 22:14 - 15; Ps 9:2 - 5; 21:7; 47:2 - 4; 56:2 - 3; 82:6,8; 83:16 - 18; 91:9 - 12; Dan 5:18).
English: Everlasting God. Hebrew: <El Olam>,
Gen 21:33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.
"Everlasting God" (Heb <El Olam>).
(1) The Hebrew <Olam> is used in Scripture: (a) of secret or hidden things (e.g. Lev. 5:2, "hidden"; 2 ki. 4:27, "hid"; Ps 10:1, "hidest"); (b) of
Technical (In Depth) Study of The Names of God
Yeshua is the given Hebrew name of Jesus of Nazareth, the one and only Messiah, and creator and redeemer of the whole world. Yeshua is the name of G-d come in the flesh. Yeshua is the name that He was known by all the apostles and first century saints. Every time you see the word salvation in the scriptures it is Yeshua. There are 2 situations in which you should KNOW to use His real given Hebrew name. #1 Whenever speaking of Messiah to a Jew. #2 Whenever you are in spiritual warfare to overcome demonic principalities.
To meditate on God's names is a source of peace, joy and powerful prayer life. What can we tell God that He does not already know? We need to know Him better. His names tell us about who He is. They show His Majesty, His Power, His Glory, and His Infinite Love for His people.
The revelation of God to man is one of authority and of redemption. He requires righteousness from man, but saves the unrighteous through sacrifice; and in His redemptive dealings with man all the divine persons and attributes are brought into manifestation. The Tenach reveals the justice of God as fully as His mercy, but never in opposition to His mercy. The flood, may be seen as an unspeakable mercy to unborn generations. From Genesis to Malachi He is revealed as the seeking God who has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, and who heaps up before the sinner every possible motive to persuade him to faith and obedience. In the Brith Hadasha we see the sacrifice perfected in the Blood of Yeshua Messiah. As Abraham said, and as history has recorded, and as the redeemed KNOW, indeed G-d has provided Himself a Lamb. Yeshua Messiah will soon return as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE NAMES OF GOD
Hebrew: ----------- English Meaning
Elohim ------------ God - The One and Only True God
Yahweh:----------- LORD - He that is who He is, The eternal I AM
Adonai:------------ Lord - Master
El Shaddai -------- God Almighty - The All-sufficient One
El Elyon ---------- Most High - Possessor of heaven and earth
El Olam ----------- Everlasting God - God over eternal things
El Gibbor --------- Mighty God - The Only All Powerful God
Yahweh Jireh ----- The LORD will provide
Yahweh Rapha ---- The LORD who healeth
Yahweh Nissi ---- The LORD is my banner, The LORD is my victory
Yahweh Shalom --- The LORD our peace, The LORD gives peace
Yahweh Tsidkenu - The LORD Our Righteousness
Yahweh Shammah - The LORD is present
Yahweh Sabaoth - The LORD of Hosts, LORD Almighty, King of Glory
This is by no means an exhaustive list. It is just a starting point for what some have said are over 800 different names of God in the scriptures. It is a starting point.
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Note: We write G-d and L-rd without vowels as a sign of respect.
In the original Hebrew there were no vowels, and no difference between upper and lower case (capital and small letters). Hellenistic Christians choose to mark the respect by inserting the vowel, and capitalizing the first letter, neither of which are in the original. Jewish people mark the respect by capitalizing the first letter (which is not in the original), and indicating the vowel is not there in the original. One extra thing about this method is that if G-d is never written in full, no-one can deface the word!
G-d's personal name is spelt Yod Heh Vav Heh in the Hebrew. This approximates to Y H V H. The vowels were not written until about the thirteenth century C.E. G-d's personal name was only spoken in the temple on Yom Kippur after the High Priest had entered the Holy of Holies, and resulted in those hearing falling prone and reciting the second phrase of the Shema, "Blessed be His name (HaShem) whose glorious kingdom shall be for ever and ever." During the Babylonian captivity His personal Name was never spoken of at all, there was no access to the temple. Upon return to Jerusalem 70 years later, no-one was sure how to pronounce His name, so the word Adonai was substituted, which means 'L-rd'. Alternatively haShem was used which means 'the Name', especially when the word Adonai immediately preceded G-d's personal name.
When the vowel points were added, over a thousand years later, the vowels were not actually known. The vowels for Adonai were used instead. In England at about that time, and for some time later, there was a great persecution of the Jews, and they were driven out of the country, killed, or forced to abandon Judaism. When the English versions of the Bible were becoming popular (Wycliffe, Tyndale et al.) there was no significant Jewish presence to speak of in England. So the gentiles, in ignorance, assumed that G-d's personal Name had the vowels of Adonai in it. It would be like taking the consonants of your first name and using the vowels of your last name.
Some people still believe these were the correct consonants. However it is likely that they are not the right consonants, and no-one can be sure. To avoid being disrespectful by using a nonsense word to refer to G-d, most Jewish people will not refer to Him as Jehovah or Yahweh, the English equivalents of this nonsense word. Some regard the idea of referring to the Almighty One by a nonsense word as blasphemous, and there is a good case for viewing things this way.
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Thanks to Monte Judah for the Next Section
Some believers, particularly in the Messianic Movement, have taught that a failure to pronounce God’s name in THEIR specified Hebrew sounding way constitutes everything from a flaw in one’s spiritual walk to a failure to know God and His salvation.
God’s name is important. He has made it important. Knowing the name of God and honoring His name are extremely important spiritual matters for all believers. God, Himself, has given commandment not to take His name in vain. Therefore, we should do that which brings honor and glory to His name.
What name of God are we talking about? The name Y-H-V-H is the four-letter name given to Moses at the burning bush. The four letters in question are Yod, Hey, Vav, Hey. Each letter means something special. God is not hiding Himself, but for many, His name is full of secrets.
Exo 3:13-15 And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. 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.
The King James Version bible pronounced the name "Jehovah." Most bible scholars prefer "Yahweh." The exact pronunciation is in question. Consequently, most English bibles print "LORD" (all caps) for "Yahweh" and "Lord" (upper and lowercase) for the word Adonai.
What do Rabbis and the sages of Israel say? They won’t pronounce it.
Exo 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
In keeping with the commandment of not taking His name in vain (to make common), most Rabbis follow a tradition of rendering the greatest respect possible by avoiding the pronunciation. Instead, they will say HaShem (the name). In traditional blessings, Hebrews say the word "Adonai" (Lord) in place of it. This is because Moses used "Adonai" when addressing God directly at the burning bush. Many go to the length of removing the vowels from the words "God" and "Lord" by writing G-d or L-rd. It is not that Jews don’t know the name; it is a matter of not making God’s name common in language, or in vain. When the temple was operational, the name was spoken, especially when the priest would bless all of Israel. However, anyone hearing the name would fall on their face and say, "Blessed be His name, whose glorious kingdom is forever and ever." This is where we get the second line of the Shema in the "watchword" of our faith.
Christian scholars throughout the years have speculated on the pronunciation and have generally agreed that Yahweh is the most probable. It should be emphasized that the knowledge of God is through His Son, Jesus Christ. Most Christian scholars have placed no special significance in the name. All attention is directed toward the Christ.
The modern Messianic Movement, led by believing Jews, knows full well that referring to the Jewish Messiah as Jesus Christ will get you nowhere in the Jewish community. They have used the name Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus) and referred to Him strictly as Messiah from the Hebrew "Meshiach" to avoid Christ from the Greek derivation "Christos." With all this attention of getting back to our Hebrew roots, it was inevitable that the actual name God gave to Moses for the sons of Israel would also take on greater attention.
Some Messianic believers in their zeal have abandoned the name Jesus, despising the Greek transliteration, and prefer a strictly Hebrew pronunciation. However, there is even some debate over whether His name is "Yeshua" or "Yahshua." More so, some have rejected the substitutions of the Hebrew "Adonai" in blessings and the word "Lord" in the common English expressions. Sometimes their zeal knows no bounds. Some of our brethren assert that failure to pronounce the name "Yahweh" means your heart is not circumcised nor the Spirit of God is present. They assert that the name referred to in John 1:12 must be "Yahweh" or "Yahshua."
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
This whole argument seems like an effort to spiritually Judaize brethren and smacks of ancient gnosticism (I am spiritually superior because of my knowledge).
The assertion of "Yahshua" for "Yeshua" has a bit of a humorous twist. There is no question that "Yah" is an expression of God. Yeshua was the fullness of God and therefore deity in every sense of the definition. According to Yeshua, He was present with Abraham and gave the commandment at Mount Sinai. I am convinced that Yeshua was in the burning bush. Therefore, there is no issue as to whether Yeshua is God; the question is the Hebrew pronunciation of His name.
Let’s first explain the difference between a transliteration and a translation. A transliteration is a spelling to make you sound the word. A translation is the use of another word in another language that means the same thing. The King James Bible wanted to give the phonetic sound to the name of Jesus, so in the story of Luke’s Gospel they transliterated the name that the angel is heard to say to Mary...
Luke 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.(transliterated Joshua)
Joshua! What does Joshua have to do with all this? In Old English, the "J" sound was a "Y" sound. In an attempt to get English readers to say "Yeshua," they transliterated it as Joshua. However, Joshua is actually another Hebrew name. Remember Joshua led the children of Israel across the Jordan and took the land of Israel.
Then Christian scholars learned of their transliteration mistake and went back to use the Greek transliteration which was even worse than Joshua. The Greek text had tried to do the same thing and tried to phonetically sound the name with "Iesous."
Then Christian scholars translated the Greek Iesous into Jesus.
Now days we have some other brethren striving for the Hebrew roots in all this found the name Joshua in the KJV and translated it back to the Hebrew Yehoshua. The name Yehoshua (Joshua) means God is Salvation; whereas, Yeshua is just Salvation.
Mary was told to name her son "Salvation" for He would save His people. Simeon, the old man in the temple waiting for the Messiah, held up Yeshua and said, "Mine eyes have seen the Salvation of Israel."
However, these other brethren have done the translating of Joshua and are convinced that Yeshua is really Yahshua (a western dialect of Yehoshua). The Strong’s word number from the King James Bible clearly shows it is a name for Joshua and Jesus. It is amazing what a simple mix-up in transliterations and translations can do. There is no secret in this.
God is smart enough to know when someone is attempting to say His name and speak with or about Him. He also knows our heart and INTENT in how we speak His name, whether it be honorable or profane. God hears and answers His people even if they pronounce a Greek transliteration that was then translated into to English to make "Jesus." God even understands Hebrew, Spanish, and all the languages of the world. Calling upon the name of God is what God wants all people to do. He has ears to hear and a heart that understands. Furthermore, He most likely is watching the controversy of the name pronunciation shaking His head in wonder at how we can waste so much energy on this matter and cause so much discord among brethren.
Some of our brethren flaunt the use of Yahweh as though it is the very standard of the faithful. This is wrong. I take issue with my New Covenant Church brethren who act like Sadducees. I also take issue with my Messianic brethren who behave like Gnostic Greeks.
There is something wonderful and glorious about God’s name that Moses received. The name that most are struggling with to pronounce illustrates the great manifestations of God. These revelations always involve multiple persons and God’s voice is heard. Abraham became the father of us all spiritually, by his faith being counted for righteousness. What Moses learned of God’s name at the burning bush took precedence on the name issue. Abraham didn’t know the name (YHVH) and yet his faith was counted for rigtheousness. Clearly, you don’t need to know the name given to Moses for salvation. Instead, it is an example of God progressively manifesting and revealing Himself to us.
Exo 6:2 -3 And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the LORD[Yahweh]: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty [El Shaddai], but by my name JEHOVAH [Yahweh], was I not known to them.
At the burning bush, God stated His name in response to the questions of Moses. Moses knew that he was incapable of convincing either Pharaoh or the children of Israel. God explained to Moses and later showed all that by God’s hand the children of Israel were brought out. The first letter of God’s name is the Yod. It means hand. In fact, the very shape of the letter is in the shape of a hand.
The second letter of God’s name is Hey. It is the shape of a slightly open door and it means "what comes forth." There are actually two Hey’s in God’s name. Moses and the children of Israel learned that "salvation" and "deliverance" were to come from the "hand" of God.
When Yeshua came to Israel teaching His disciples, there came a moment as He was entering Jerusalem the final time that He made reference to God’s name and the voice of God from heaven responded.
John 12:28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
This is very intriguing conversation. Yeshua later said that the voice was given for our sakes. What is it that we are to know and understand in the words, "I have glorified it, and will glorify it again?"
Remember Abraham? His name used to be Abram and God added a letter Hey to it just before he received the rite of circumcision and his promised son Isaac. The letter Hey added glory and honor to Abram. He would now become the father of many nations, not just a son. In an effort to honor the name of Joseph, Hebrews after the life of Joseph refer to him as Yehoseph. They add the letter Hey to his name to honor him.
There are two Hey’s in God’s name. They represent the coming forth of God’s Son. First, He comes to do the work of God's Salvation. Secondly, He will return to deliver the whole world and establish His earthly kingdom.But what about the letter Vav, the third letter in God’s name? The Vav is the shape of a nail. When Yeshua died on the cross, He was lifted up like Moses’ staff and we saw the picture of God’s name. Salvation and deliverance comes from the nailed hand of God. The sign above Yeshua at the crucifixion read, "Yeshua of Nazareth, King of the Jews." This was written in four Hebrew words – Yeshua Hanetzeret V’melech Hayehudim. The first letters of the four words are YHVH (Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey). No wonder the religious Jews wanted the sign changed. It was as Yeshua had said that they would see I AM when the Son of Man is lifted up (John 8:28).
But there is more to the letter Vav. The meaning of the nail is to make secure, to attach, to hold together. On the day of Pentecost (Hebrew Shavuot), the Holy Spirit was poured out on the same day the voice of God was heard from the mountain. The disciples began to preach and Peter explained that what was happening was like what the Prophet Joel spoke of. Joel said that God would some day pour out His Spirit on all mankind, causing many to prophesy and see visions. He also said it would precede the day of the Lord.
The two houses were still separated at the time of Yeshua. The Apostle Paul spoke of a time at the end of the age of the Gentiles when all Israel would be saved. This is like what Ezekiel (chapters 37-39) spoke of at the end of the age when Israel would become a nation out of dry bones. He said God’s Spirit would begin to move in us and that He would cause the House of Israel (Ephraim) to be rejoined to the House of Judah. The modern Messianic Movement matches these prophecies. He went on to say that there would be a war in the land of Israel with the enemy Gog and Magog. The aftermath would be a great victory and God would show Himself to the nations. All peoples are to then know that there is a God in the midst of Israel. With that, two incredible events take place: the exile is over and God pours out His Spirit on us.
Ezek 39:21-29 And I will set my glory among the heathen, and all the heathen shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid upon them. So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God from that day and forward. And the heathen shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity: because they trespassed against me, therefore hid I my face from them, and gave them into the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions have I done unto them, and hid my face from them. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; After that they have borne their shame, and all their trespasses whereby they have trespassed against me, when they dwelt safely in their land, and none made them afraid. When I have brought them again from the people, and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations; Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there. Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.
The restoring of the two houses of Israel comes after the nation of Israel is re-established after a great exile. This was not fulfilled after the Babylonian exile. History and our generation has seen the modern nation of Israel born out of the ashes and dry bones of the Holocaust. Ezekiel 37-39 chapters speak of the modern nation of Israel, not ancient Israel.
The great outpouring of the Holy Spirit comes AFTER a great battle and the name of Israel is never put to shame again ( Joel 2:37-38). This is yet to happen.
So, how does this take us back to the letter Vav and the name of God? The next step in the pattern of God’s name is the outpouring of God’s Spirit after the exile is ended. The Vav is the manifestation of God’s Spirit binding and securing the House of Judah and Ephraim together into one stick. Look at the letter. It is like the Yod, a hand but something is being poured out. It also looks like a stick. It also looks like a nail.
God’s name, therefore, reveals to us a pattern of first the Yod, the Father’s hand delivering the children of Israel out of Egypt. The first Hey shows us the Son of God bringing us Salvation and being our Redemption. The Vav is the Spirit of God, poured out to bind us together again. The final Hey is the Messiah returning on the clouds of Heaven with power and great glory. This is not a secret to us. All of these events share one thing in common – to glorify God’s name.
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Some "Messianic or Christian" groups claim that G-d is a single Personage and that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are G-d's three "titles" or "offices." That G-d must have both unity and diversity is clear. The Allah of Islam, or the Jehovah of Jehovah's Witnesses, or the G-d of some aberrant "Messianic or Christian" groups would be incomplete in Himself. He would be unable to love or communicating before creating other beings capable of interacting with Him in these ways. (For G-d to be just, true, holy, and pure would not require the existence of other beings in order for these qualities to be expressed, as would be the case for G-d to express, let alone, be love.)
The quality of love and the capacities for fellowship and communion, by their very nature, require another personal being with whom to share them. The Bible says that "G-d is love." This could only be true if within the Godhead there is diversity as well as unity. The actual word "trinity" does not occur in the Bible. The concept of the diversity of G-d is clearly expressed there, providing the unity and diversity that makes possible the love, fellowship, and communion within the Godhead.
The Bible presents a G-d who did not need to create any beings to express love, communion, and fellowship. This G-d is complete in Himself, existing eternally in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, distinguishable from each other, yet at the same time eternally one G-d. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit loved, communed, and fellowshiped together and took counsel together before the universe, angels, or man were brought into existence. Truly the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, love. The One "G-d is love" (1 John 4:8, 16) - and He alone.
Love is G-d's principal weapon in His battle with Satan for the souls and destiny of mankind. For the battle rages not only for man's mind but above all for his love. Every sin, therefore, has its root in man's failure to respond to G-d's love in the fullness of the capacity of love which He has given us. As the first and greatest commandment declares: (Mark 12:30) And thou shalt love the L-rd thy G-d with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this [is] the first commandment. (Deuteronomy 6:5)
We don't have the ability within ourselves to keep this commandment, for "love is of G-d." It is G-d's love to us that woos and wins our hearts and awakens in us a love for Him: "We love him because he first loved us." The great act (and thus the proof) of G-d's love is that G-d became a man in order to personally pay the penalty demanded by His justice against our sin. He could only do this because He is a personal and triune Being.
The idea that G-d is a single Personage (Unitarianism), and not Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, existing eternally in one G-d, invaded the church around 220 A.D. Though the idea is condemned by the vast majority of Christians, this idea survives to this day in some groups.
Yeshua said, "The Father loveth the Son and hath given all things into his hand"(John 3:35). G-d's love is not just toward mankind but first of all within the Godhead. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit can't be mere offices, titles, or modes in which G-d manifests Himself, for such cannot love, consult, and fellowship together. Not only is the Son presented as a the Only Savior, but the Father and the Holy Spirit are presented as well. The Bible presents each as having His own personality: each wills, acts, loves, and cares, and can also be grieved or become angry. Unitarianism robs the Godhead of the essential qualities of self-existent and self-sufficient deity.
Godhead? Is that a biblical term? Yes, indeed. It occurs three times in the b'rit chadashah, (New Testament): in Acts 17:29, Romans 1:20, and Colossians 2:9. In contrast to theos, which is used consistently throughout the New Testament for G-d, in these verses (theios, theiotes, theotes), which the KJV, in contrast to other versions, carefully designates by the special word Godhead. That very term indicates a plurality of being.
Paul wrote, "In him dwelleth all the fulness if the Godhead bodily"(Colossians 2:9). This statement makes no sense if, as the "Yeshua only or Yahweh only" advocates teach, Messiah is the only G-d, and the Father and Holy Spirit are merely "offices" or "titles." Paul would then be making the meaningless statement that in Messiah dwelt all the fullness of Messiah.
Did Paul mean that in Messiah dwells all the fullness of deity, as non-KJV translations render it? That would detract from the deity of Messiah. For if Messiah is intrinsically G-d, then what is the point of saying that "in Him dwells all the fullness of deity"? But if Messiah is the Son and there are also the Father and the Holy Spirit in the Godhead, then it does mean something: that when the Son became man He brought that fullness of the Godhead with Him into flesh.
The Antichrist comes in the place of the true Messiah. Lacking the marks of crucifixion, he must therefore promote another view of Messiah that denies that Yeshua is the one and only Messiah. He must therefore deny that G-d has literally become a man and that this union between G-d and man continues eternally in the Person of Yeshua of Nazareth, who died for our sins and is now resurrected. This common "antichrist" doctrine takes many forms and is found in many religions. Such delusions have all been part of a centuries-long preparation for the time when Antichrist will be accepted by the world as its savior.
Like Jews, Muslims find the trinity particularly objectionable. One of Islam's most important teachings concerns the "absolute oneness of Allah." Yet the Koran repeats the Genesis statement: "Let us make man in our image." Islam has no explanation for this contradiction.
The very first verse in the Bible presents G-d's diversity as a plural being. It declares: "In the beginning G-d created the heaven and the earth." Yet instead of the singular Eloah for G-d in the Hebrew, the plural Elohim, is used. It literally means "In the beginning, G-ds created...." It is also Elohim (G-ds) who say later in the chapter, "Let us make man in our image...."
This plural noun (Elohim) is found over 2500 times in the Old Testament. Yet a singular verb, bara, is used in Genesis 1:1 and in almost every other place that Elohim is found. So we have both singularity (in the verb) and plurality (in the noun). The same is true all through the entire Tanakh (Old Testament). If G-d was a single Personage, then the single form, Eloah, would have been used, not Elohim. That fact is inescapable.
At the burning bush incident we read: "And G-d (Elohim) said unto Moses, I am that I am..."(Exodus 3:14). Here G-ds speak, but they don't say "We are" but "I am." Again that peculiar singularity and plurality at the same time in the same Being! So it is in Exodus 20:2 - "I am the L-rd thy G-d (Elohim)...." And Leviticus 11:44- "I am the l-rd your G-d (Elohim)...." Each time G-d uses Elohim (G-ds) of Himself (90 percent of the time) instead of Eloah (G-d)(10 percent), He reveals to us the plurality of His Being. And when He uses a singular verb and pronoun along with Elohim, He is clearly telling us that He is a unity.
Nor is the word Elohim the only way in which G-d's plurality is presented. Consider, for example, Psalm 149:2 "Let Israel rejoice in their Maker" (literally "makers"); Ecclesiastes 12:1; "Remember now thy Creator" (literally "creators"); and Isaiah 54:5 "For thy Maker is thine husband" (literally "makers, husbands"). Unitarianism has no explanation for this consistent presentation of G-d's plurality all through the Tanakh (Old Testament).
Most Jewish people are not aware that the plural noun G-ds is found in the very center of Israel's famous confession of the oneness of G-d. It reads in Hebrew: "Shema yisroel adonai elohenu adonai echad" (Deutronomy 6:4). From this scripture Rabbi Maimonides taught Jews to recite daily, "I believe with a perfect faith that the Creator, blessed be His name, is ONE."
Maimonides, however, perverted the Scripture, apparently deliberately. To express "ONE" he used the Hebrew word yachid, which means single and absolute one. Yet Moses used echad, which could mean a unity of several into one. For example, it is used in Genesis 2:24, where man and woman become "one flesh"; in Exodus 36:13, when the various parts become one tabernacle"; in 2 Samuel 2:25, when many soldiers "became one troop"; and elsewhere.
G-d is telling us something important about Himself by His choice of Hebrew words. Had G-d wanted to show that He is an absolute one; He would have chosen yachid, but instead He chose echad. Maimonides made a serious mistake in changing G-d's Word. As a result, millions of Jews have been led astray and still are to this day.
The rabbis surely knew that Adonai had repeatedly declared, "I am the L-rd thy G-d, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior...and besides me there is no savior." Then who else, if He was to save His people, could the Messiah be except the L-rd G-d of Israel come down as a man? The full wonder of this fact, so essential to our salvation, shattered the skepticism of doubting Thomas and caused him to exclaim, when confronted by the resurrected Messiah, "My L-rd and my G-d"(John 20:28).
Yet the rabbis accused Yeshua of blasphemy because He said "that G-d was his Father, making himself equal with G-d"(John 5:18). They knew that He was claiming to be "the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," even though many today deny that Yeshua ever made such a claim. This "blasphemy" became the charge with which the Sanhedrin condemned Him to death: "For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy...thou being a man, makest thyself G-d"(John10:33; Mark 14:64)
They were blind to the prophecy of Zechariah that Israel would pierce Adonai - and they fulfilled that prophecy, for Yeshua is G-d, a conclusion one cannot escape. When Messiah returns visibly in power and glory at His second coming, the surviving Jews (whom He rescues from the Antichrist at Armageddon), will recognize Him by the marks of Calvary: "They shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him"(Zechariah 12:10). Adonai, the G-d of Israel, is speaking. When was He pierced? The Hebrew word means the piercing to death as when King Saul begged his armor bearer, "Draw thy sword, and thrust me through"(1 Samuel 31:4). Zechariah's prophecy is both remarkable and clear; G-d Himself will come as a man to rescue Israel when, in the last days, they will be surrounded by the armies of the world and will stand on the brink of destruction. Nor does he come as an ordinary man, but as One who was thrust through to death and has come back to life.
When Israel sees Him, they will know Yeshua by the marks of crucifixion that His resurrected body still bears. In that moment all Israel will be convinced at last that Yeshua of Nazareth, whom they crucified and have rejected for so long, is the Messiah long promised by their own prophets. They will repent and believe in Him (Zechariah 12:10-14:9).
Just as Israel's misunderstanding of G-d's diverse nature in the Godhead caused her to reject her Messiah, so that same misunderstanding will allow her to be deceived into accepting the Antichrist. He comes not as a member of the Godhead - in the name of the Father and under the anointing of the Holy Spirit - but "in his own name."
The New Testament presents the Godhead, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who are distinct, yet One G-d. At the same time we repeatedly have the clear statement that there is only one true G-d. Messiah prays to the Father. Is He praying to Himself? "The Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world"(1 John 4:14). Did He send Himself? Worse yet, did one "office" pray and send a "title"? Messiah said, "I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter...even the Spirit of truth" (John 14:16,17).
Throughout the New Testament, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are each separately honored and act as G-d, yet only in perfect unity with one another. G-d is one in purpose, power, and divine attributes - yet He is manifest as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, proving His diversity as well. The Old Testament also presents the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the Godhead. Take for example the following: Isaiah 48:12,13 &16 Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I [am] he; I [am] the first, I also [am] the last. Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens... from the time that it was, there [am] I: and now the L-rd G-D, and his Spirit, hath sent me.
The one speaking refers to Himself as "the first and the last" and the Creator of all, so He must be G-d. But he speaks of two others in the same passage who must also be G-d: "the L-rd G-d, and his Spirit, hath sent me." By whom could G-d be "sent" on some mission - and where? This can be none other than the Father and the Holy Spirit, sending the Son into the world to be our Savior.
One cannot escape the fact that all through the Bible G-d is presented as a plurality and yet as one, as having both diversity and unity. This concept of G-d is unique among all the world's religions. To reject the triune nature of G-d is to reject the G-d of the Bible - and to come, ultimately, under the delusion that will cause the world to obey and worship the Antichrist when he comes.
It is a mystery that G-d can exist in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and yet be one G-d; but, both Scripture and logic demand this fact. It is also a mystery how G-d could have no beginning and create everything out of nothing, yet it must be so. There is much else that we cannot explain - love, beauty, truth, or what a human soul or spirit is - but we don't reject it on that basis. G-d has revealed with the Godhead the diversity of His nature to us so that we can believe in and know Him. We dare not reject what He says or lower Him to the level of our finite minds.
The G-d of the Bible is the Creator of the universe, separate and distinct from it and not subject to the laws He made to govern it. And this truth is the only hope for mankind. For the G-d of the Bible can, in fact, reach into the dying universe and re-create it and restore it to be totally new. Reincarnation can only recycle that which is steadily sinking into oblivion. Resurrection, on the other hand, represents an influx of G-d's power from outside bringing immortality to that which otherwise would be eternally dead.
Such is the G-d whom we must know personally in order to be saved. And such is the G-d whom the Antichrist denies. It is this One G-d, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Who made man in His image and Who alone could come as a man and still remain G-d. He alone could rescue mankind from sin, and self, and from eternal separation from His love and presence. To deny the diverstity in the revelation of the Godhead is to deny the majority of the price which G-d paid at Calvary to save the redeemed. Yeshua, by separation from an infinate closeness with the Father from all eternity past, albeit for a finate time of three days and three nights, literally suffered hell for all the redeemed. However the reason to believe the doctrine of the diversity of the Godhead is that the Father also suffered in this separation and also the Holy Spirit suffered that hell of separation from Yeshua. To reject the Biblical doctrine of the Godhead's diversity is to trash the majority of the great price, beyond our understanding, which was paid at Calvary. G-d redeemed those who would come to really KNOW Him and according to 2 Pet 1:11, provided that an entrance unto the redeemed abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our L-rd and Saviour Yeshua Messiah, Jesus Christ. 2 Pet 2:20 ... they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Yeshua Messiah... The only way to escape the pollutions of the world is through the knowledge, and relationship to the REAL Yeshua. The Messiah, Yeshua, is G-d come in the flesh, the Creator. He is the only way of access and relationship to the One True G-d of Israel.
If you KNOW the real Yeshua as G-d, the Creator come in the flesh as our redeemer, we are brothers. None of our peanut brains can understand the Godhead or trinity this side of glory anyhow.
However, if you think you know the Father, YHVH, Yahweh, without knowing the REAL Yeshua, G-d the Creator come in the flesh to accomplish redemption, you have received the most deadly deception, which will not permit you to be among the redeemed. REPENT! Become a United Pentecostal if you must, but get to KNOW the real Yeshua, who is G-d come in the flesh to redeem you, and Who provides the ONLY Way, you can in TRUTH, know Yahweh. There is no other Way for the redeemed. Any other Yeshua, who is not equal with G-d, Who is not G-d the Creator, is not capable of redeeming you. Unless you believe that Yeshua is ONE with the Father, Yahweh, you will die in your sins. Give up the idolatry of such religious knowledge that prevents you from KNOWING the One True G-d and Yeshua Messiah that He has sent.
Give up your intellectual idol yeshua. The Jews killed the real historic Yeshua, because He told the truth that He was equal with His Father, Yahweh. John 5:18. The real Yeshua will not conform to the religious knowledge and idolatry of our finite human understanding. REPENT! No man can come to the real Yeshua, except by the Father and the Holy Spirit drawing him. Don't make the real Yeshua a liar by idolatrous religious knowledge. The real Yeshua, Who redeems those who KNOW Him, said "Before Abraham was, I AM." The Jews knew what He meant because they took up stones to cast at Him. The real Yeshua told Moses, to tell the people of Israel that His name was I AM. In John 8:24 Yeshua said in no uncertain terms, that you shall die in your sins: for if you believe not that Yeshua is I AM, you shall die in your sins. The most deadly form of idolatry is that religious knowledge that rejects the real, true, Yeshua, the I AM, Who is beyond the capacity of human knowledge without the help of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, The Spirit of HOLINESS, helping you overcome the pride and idolatry of human religious intellect, you can not know the real Yeshua.
Only the real Yeshua will redeem you, forgive your sins, and let you know and worship, the Father, Yahweh, in spirit and in truth. Yeshua is the Judge. When the real Yeshua opened the eyes of the man who was born blind, he worshipped Him. What about you? We are all born blind spiritually. We must be born again, by the Spirit of Truth, that we may worship the real Yeshua, and through Him come to KNOW, our Father Yahweh. When Yeshua said, "I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him." (John 10:30-31) They made their Messiah, Redeemer, and L-rd, a liar and a blasphemer, in order to keep the idol of their religious knowledge.
IF YOU LOSE YESHUA, YOU LOSE GOD, and win the lake of fire.
If you have a faith which is not built on Who the historical Yeshua is, G-d who has come in the flesh, not as an appearance, not as a spirit or angel, not as a teacher or prophet, not as an anointed man, but THE ONE who truly has come as G-d, Almighty Yahweh Creator, in the FLESH..., you lose everything. The genuine incarnation of the divine person becoming humanity is Who Yeshua IS. That is the REAL YESHUA. Many deceivers were already in the world who did not acknowledge that Almighty G-d, Creator, Yahweh, has come in the flesh were in the world in John's time and that is the reason for his second epistle. No one can fully understand the Godhead, with the greatest human intelligence. However, if you allow the idol of your religion, or your intellect, keep you from, by the Spirit of Truth, knowing the Real Yeshua, you can not and will not be redeemed. Any spirit that denies that Yeshua Messiah, is The One True Almighty G-d, come in the flesh, is antimessiah. There can be no compromise, tolerance, or fellowship with those following this antichrist spirit of religious intellectualism.
2 John 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Yeshua Messiah is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
2 John 1:8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward.
2 John 1:9 Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Messiah, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Messiah, he hath both the Father and the Son.
2 John 1:10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed:
2 John 1:11 For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
Isaiah 53
Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the L-RD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of G-d, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the L-RD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Yet it pleased the L-RD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the L-RD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Faith, Summary: The essence of faith consists in believing and receiving what G-d has revealed, and may be defined as that trust in the G-d of the Scriptures and in Messiah Yeshua Whom He has sent. Saving FAITH, receives Him as L-rd and Savior and impels to loving obedience and good works. Faith is belief plus the Holy Spirit.
It is time that we REPENT of our religion to allow the Spirit of Truth, to let us KNOW our redeemer, and by Him really KNOW our Father, Yahweh?
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MESSIANIC JEWISH TERMS, and Their Meanings
Abba - Dad/ Daddy
Adonai - the L-rd
Adonai Echad - the L-rd is one
Adonai haElyon - the L-rd Most High
Adonai Shalom - the L-rd of Peace
Adonai Tzidkeynu - the L-rd our Righteousness
Adonai Tzvaot - the L-rd of Hosts
Adonai Yeshuateynu - The L-rd our Salvation
Adonai Yeera - the L-rd our Provider
Alaykhim shalom - and unto you be peace (response to greeting)
Am Yisrael Chai - The people of Israel live *
Amha aretz - ordinary people
Amidah - Prayer
Av - Father
Avinu Malkeynu - Our Father and Our King *
AVraham - Abraham
Avraham avinu - father Abraham
Bar - son (Aramaic)
Baruch haShem - Bless the Name (of G-d)
Barucha - Blessing (often of the meal, i.e. after the meal)
Bat - daughter
bat kol - voice from heaven
Beit LEchem - Bethlehem (house of bread)
Ben - son (Hebrew)
Brit Chadashah - New Covenant
Brit Milah - circumcision
Bubbemeises - old wives' tales
Challah - bread set aside for priests, today for fellowship
Chametz - leaven/ yeast
Chavah - Eve
Cohan/ Cohen - priest
Cohanim - priests
Cohen haGadol - high priest
Davvening - praying
Drashot - sermons/ teachings
EliSHEva - Elizabeth
Eliyahu - Elijah
Eretz - Land
Eretz Mitzrayim - the land of Egypt
Eretz Yisrael - the land of Israel
Erev - Evening
Gan Eden - Paradise
Gey Hinnom - Hell
Goy - a gentile
Goyim - gentiles (literally nations)
Goyishe - gentile (adjective)
halakhah - Jewish customs
Halel - psalms of praise
Hallelujah - Praise G-d
Hava N'Gilah - let us rejoice
haShem - the Name (G-d's personal name - Yod Vav Heh Vav) *
Hatikvah - Hope (The Israeli national anthem)
Jacob - James
Judah - Jude
Judah from Kiriot - Judas Iscariot
K'ruvim - Cherubim
Kadosh - holy
Kadoshim - Holy ones (can refer to angels or saints)
Kehilah - Congregation/ church
Kinneret - the Sea of Galilee
Kol - Voice
Korban - sacrifice
Kvetching - complaining
L'Chaim - To life (often used as a toast)
L'Shana Tova - Happy New Year *
Leviim - Levites
Magdalit - Magdalene
Magen Avraham - Shield of Abraham *
Magen David - Shield of David (often rendered Star of David) *
Mamzer - bastard (born of unmarried parents)
Marana ta - our L-rd come
Marta - Martha
Mashiach/Moshiach - Messiah/ Christ
Matzah - unleavened bread
Mayim - water
Mazel-tov - congratulations
Melchi-Tzedek - Melchizedek/ king of righteousness
Melech - King
Menorah - lampstand
Mentsh - a real person, moral, energetic
Meshugga - crazy
Messianic Jews - Hebrews (letter to the...)
Midrash - paraphrase of a book *
Mikveh - Baptism
Minyan - quorum of ten or more men for Jewish worship
Miriam/ Miryam - Mary
Mitzryim - Egypt
Mitzvah - commandments/ good deeds
Mitzvot - commandments/ good deeds
Moshe - Moses
Motzaei Shabbat - end of the Sabbath (Saturday night)
New Covenant - New Testament
Nudnik - pest/ nuisance
Olam - universe/ world
Olam haba - the world to come
Olam hazeh - this world
Old Covenant - Old Testament
Oyveh - boy are we in trouble (woe is me)
Parokhet - curtain
Pesach - passover
Prushim - Pharises
Rabbi - teacher
Ramatayim - Arimathea
Rivkah - Rebecca
Rosh Hashana - New year's day (Litereally 'head of the Year') *
Ruach haKodesh - Holy Spirit
SaTAN - the devil
Seder - dinner, usually a special festival dinner
Sekhel - common sense
Shabbat - Sabbath (Friday Evening to Saturday Afternoon)
Shabbat Shalom - Peace of the Sabbath (a Sabbath greeting) *
Shalom - peace
Shalom alaykhim - peace be unto you (greeting) see
Alaykhim shalom
Shammash - servant/ deacon
Shaul - Saul/ Paul
Shavuot - Pentecost
Shem - Name
Shimon - Simon (Often used of Peter)/ Simeon
Shivah - mourning
Shlomo - Solomon
Shmai - the call to prayer
Shmoose - talk at ease/ unguardedly
Shofar - ram's horn (frequently translated 'trumpet')
Shomron - Samaria
Shoshanah - Susanna
Shoshi - short for Shoshanah
SmiKHAH - ordination
Sukkot - Tabernacles (Jewish Thanksgiving festival)
T'fil-lin - Phylacteries
T'shuvah - repent
Tallis - prayer shawl
Tallit - prayer shawl
Talmid - disciple
Talmindim - disciples
Tanakh - Hebrew Scriptures/ Old Testament
Toma - Thomas
Torah - Books of the Law/ Pentateuch
Treif - non-kosher
Tsuris - troubles
Tzdukim - Sadducees
TzeDAkah - give to charity
Tzedek - righteousness
Tzion - Zion
Tzitzit - fringes of the prayer shawl
YA'a-kov - James
Yehudah - Jude/ Judah/ Joda/ Judea
Yerushalayim - Jerusalem
YeshaYAhu - Isaiah
Yeshivah - religious school
YeSHUa - Jesus
YESHua - Joshua
Yishai - Jesse
YITZ-chak - Isaac
Yochanah - Joanna
Yochanan - John
Yochanan the Immerser - John the Baptist
Yom Kippur - Day of Atonement
Yosef - Joseph
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Shmai Yisrael Adonai Eloheynu Adonai Echad
- Hear O Israel, the L-rd our G-d, the L-rd is One (the call to prayer)
Hiney lo yanum v'lo yishan Shomer Yisrael
- He that keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps
Hiney ma tov oomah nay im shevet achim gam yachad
- Behold how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity
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Reverse list
Baptism - Mikveh
Christ - Messiah
Church - congregation/ shul/ kehilah
James - Jacob
Jehovah - never used: reckoned as in poor taste, or even blasphemy *
Jesus - Yeshua
Jesus Christ - Yeshua haMashiach
L-rd Jesus Christ - Yeshua haMashiach hu Adonai
Jude - Judah
Law - Torah
L-rd - Adonai
Mary - Miriam
New Testament - Brit Chadashah (literally New Covenant)
Old Testament - Tanakh/ Hebrew Scriptures
Trumpet - Shofar (the ram's horn)
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Technical Section
(For those who like to dig)
There are blessings in the technical knowledge; however, knowledge can be the enemy of faith.
Old Testament (Tenach)
Revelation of God through His names
Primary names of God.
English: God. Hebrew: <El, Elah, or Elohim>, Gen 1:1- "In the beginning God..."
<Elohim> (English form "God"), is the first of the primary names of God. Elohim is a plural noun in form but is singular in meaning when it refers to the true God. The emphasis in Gen 1:26 is on the diversity in God. Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
The emphasis in v. 27 is on the harmony and unity of God.. Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
In Gen 3:22 we again see the plural form of the word suggesting the unity and diversity of God. Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: ...
English: LORD. Hebrew: <YHWH (Yahweh)>, Gen 2:4 - "...in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,"
LORD (Heb <YHWH> ) is the second of the primary names of God.
(1) The original meaning of the name "LORD" (perhaps pronounced Yahweh, in English <Jehovah>) is the <self-existent One;> literally (as in Exo 3:14), <He that is who He is,> therefore, <the eternal I AM.> .
(2) It is meaningful that the first appearance of the name <Yahweh> in Scripture follows the creation of man. It was God <(Elohim)> who said, "Let us make man in our image" (Gen 1:26); but when man, as in Gen 2, is to become dominant over creation, it is the LORD God <( Yahweh Elohim)> who acts. This clearly indicates a special relation of God, in His <Yahweh> character, to man, and all Scripture emphasizes this.
(3) <Yahweh> is distinctly the redemption name of God. When sin entered the world and man's redemption became necessary, it was <Yahweh Elohim> who sought the sinning ones (Gen 3:9 - 13) and clothed them with coats of skins (Gen 3:21), a clear picture of the righteousness provided by the LORD God through sacrifice. The first revelation of Himself by His name <Yahweh> was in connection with the redemption of the covenant people out of Egypt (Exo 3:13 - 17).
As Redeemer, emphasis is laid upon those attributes of <Yahweh> which the sin and salvation of man bring into application. These are (a) His holiness (Lev 11:44 - 45; 19:1 - 2; 20:26; Hab 1:12 - 13); (b) His hatred and judgment of sin (Deu 32:35 - 42; cp. Gen 6:5 - 7; Exo 34:6 - 7; Ps 11:4 - 6; 66:18); and (c) His love for and redemption of sinners, which he always carries out righteously. (Gen 3:21; 8:20 - 21; Exo 12:12 -13; Lev 16:2 - 3; Isa 53:5 - 6,10). Salvation by <Yahweh> apart from sacrifice is unknown in Scripture.
(4) LORD is also the distinctive name of God as in covenant with Israel (Exo 19:3; 20:1 - 2; Jer 31:31 -34).
English: Lord. Hebrew: <Adon or Adonai>, Gen 15:2 - And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?
"Lord" (Heb <Adon, Adonai> ).
(1) The primary meaning of <"Adon," "Adonai,"> is <Master,> and it is applied in the O.T. (Tenach) Scriptures both to God and to man. The latter instances are distinguished by the omission of the capital. As applied to man, the word is used of two relationships: master and husband. Both these relationships exist between Messiah and the believer.
(2) Two principles belong in the relation of master and servant: (a) the master's right to implicit obedience; (b) the servant's right to direction in service (Isa 6:8 - 11). Clear distinction in the use of the divine names is illustrated in Exo 4:10 - 12. Moses feels his weakness and incompetency, and "Moses said to the LORD [Yahweh] , O my Lord, <[Adonai] ,> I am not eloquent," Since service is in question, Moses appropriately addresses Yahweh as Lord. But now power is in question, and it is not the Lord <(Adonai)> but Yahweh (LORD) who answers (referring to creation power) -"The LORD said to him, Who gave man his mouth? . . . Now go, and I will help you speak." The same distinction appears in Josh 7:8 - 11.
Compound names of God with <El>
English: God Almighty. Hebrew: <El Shaddai>, Gen 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
"Almighty God." (Heb. <Shaddai>) is the name of God characteristically used by the patriarchs prior to the giving of the law at Sinai. Its most frequent occurrence is in the Book of Job, where <Shaddai> occurs thirty-one times. The name <Yahweh> largely replaces it from Exo 6 onward, where attention is centered more particularly on Israel as God's covenant people.
(1) <El Shaddai> is the name of God which sets Him forth primarily as the strengthener and satisfier of His people. It is sad that <Shaddai> was translated "Almighty." The primary name, <El> or <Elohim,> sufficiently signifies almightiness. "All-sufficient" would be better to express this characteristic use of the name in Scripture.
(2) Almighty God <(El Shaddai)> not only enriches but makes fruitful. The first occurrence of the name is (Gen 17:1 - 8). To a man ninety-nine years of age, and "as good as dead", He said: "I am the Almighty God <[El Shaddai] > . . . I will make my covenant between me and thee and will multiply thee exceedingly."
(3) As bestower of fruitfulness, Almighty God <(El Shaddai)> chastens His people. The moral connection of chastening with fruit-bearing, while being made quite clear in the (Brith Hadasha) is much more difficult to see in the O.T. (Tenach). The best O.T. example may be Ruth 1:20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. Hence, Almighty is the characteristic name of God in Job. The hand of <Shaddai> falls upon Job, the best man of his time, not in judgment but in purifying unto greater fruitfulness (Job 5:17 - 25).
English: Most High, or Most High God. Hebrew: <El Elyon>, Gen 14:18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
"Most high," or "most high God " (Heb <El Elyon>). <"Elyon"> means simply <highest; El Elyon> is "God the highest."
(1) The first revelation of this name (v. 18) indicates its distinctive meanings. Abram, returning from his victory over the confederated kings (Gen 14:1 - 17), is met by Melchizedek, king of Salem . . . the "priest of the most high God " <(El Elyon),> who blesses Abram in the name of <El Elyon,> "possessor of heaven and earth." This revelation produced a remarkable impression upon the patriarch. Not only did he at once give Melchizedek "tithes of all" the spoil of the battle, but when the king of Sodom offered of that spoil to Abram, his answer was: "I have lifted up mine hand unto the LORD [Yahweh] , the most high God <[El Elyon] ,> the possessor of heaven and earth, that I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet," etc. (Gen 14:22 - 23).
(a) The LORD (Yahweh) is known to a Gentile king (Melchizedek) by the name "most high God " <(El Elyon);> (b) a Gentile is the priest of <El Elyon> and (c) His distinctive character as most high God is "possessor of heaven and earth."
Appropriately to this Gentile knowledge of God by His name "Most High," it is written that "the Most High divided to the nations [Gentiles] their inheritance when he separated the sons of Adam," etc. (Deu 32:8). As "possessor of heaven and earth," it was the prerogative of the Most High to distribute the earth among the nations according to whatever principle He chose. That principle is declared in Deu 32:8. The same thing is taught by the use of the name in Daniel, (Dan 3:26; 4:17,24,25,32,34; 5:18,21).
(2) As "possessor of heaven and earth," the most high God has and exercises authority in both spheres: (a) the heavenly authority of <El Elyon> ( Dan 4:35,37; Isa 14:13 - 14; ); (b) the earthly authority of <El Elyon> (Deu 32:8; 2 Sam 22:14 - 15; Ps 9:2 - 5; 21:7; 47:2 - 4; 56:2 - 3; 82:6,8; 83:16 - 18; 91:9 - 12; Dan 5:18).
English: Everlasting God. Hebrew: <El Olam>,
Gen 21:33 And Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the LORD, the everlasting God.
"Everlasting God" (Heb <El Olam>).
(1) The Hebrew <Olam> is used in Scripture: (a) of secret or hidden things (e.g. Lev. 5:2, "hidden"; 2 ki. 4:27, "hid"; Ps 10:1, "hidest"); (b) of
