Yehovah vs. LORD
Throughout the text of this website, the name Yehovah is used rather than LORD. Although some may be unfamiliar with this name, it is the proper name for God as explained below.
At Mount Sinai, God told the Children of Israel in Exodus 20:7
7Thou 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.
The Rabbis take the 3rd commandment pretty serious, as we all should. As a matter of fact, the Rabbis took the 3rd Commandment so serious that they decided it was best not to even mention God’s name. The Rabbis believe that this would eliminate the chance of accidentally taking God’s name in vain. This thought process resulted in the Rabbis purposely altering their translation of Hebrew and the way they write and speak.
In Rabbinic translations of the Bible, the Hebrew word Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay (Yehovah H3068) is commonly translated LORD. A Rabbinic Jew would pronounce it ADONAY {ad-o-noy’}. ADONAY (H0136) in the Hebrew is spelt Aleph-Daled-Nun-Yod. It means lord. In reality, Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} is the Hebrew letters Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay. There are those that claim Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} (Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay) (H3068) is pronounced Yahweh. However, that is incorrect too. Because the vowels for the Hebrew words are known. This is based on the Masoretic text.
Not reciting the name of God occurs in the reciting of the Sh’ma, Deuteronomy 6:4.
4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
In Rabbinic tradition, the transliteration is Sh’mah Yisraw-ayl, Adonoi Ellohaynoo, Adonoi ehchawd. Twice the word Adonoi is substituted for Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} (Yod-Hay-Vav-Hay) (H3068). It should actually be:
4Hear, O Israel: YEHOVAH our God is one YEHOVAH:
Although the Hebrew word Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} is in the Hebrew Bible over 6500 times, in the Rabbinic translations of the Bible, Yehovah is not in the text. As for most Christian translations, they have followed the tradition of the Rabbis. Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} actually which means: the existing One, the proper name of the one true God. In the King James Version, Y^ehovah {yeh-ho-vaw’} (H3068) is translated LORD 6510, GOD 4, JEHOVAH 4 and a variant 1 time.
Another thing that Rabbinic Jews will do to prevent accidentally taking God’s name in vain is instead of writing “LORD”, they will spell it “L-RD. They leave the O out and replace it with a dash. Or for God, instead of “GOD” they will spell it “G-D”. Again, leaving the O out and replacing it with a dash. Do these people actually think that God will not know what they mean? God is much smarter than mankind gives Him credit for.
The sad thing is, most Christians and Messianic Jews mimic Rabbinic tradition. Although they claim to follow Yeshua, they follow the Rabbis in this and many other traditions.
We ought to follow Yeshua, we know the name. If this is an issue for you, look to Psalm 138:2
2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.
Knowing and living the word is more important than precisely knowing the name of God.
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