Yhwh

In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title. It represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relation of God to the Jewish people.The various names of God in Judaism represent God as he is known, as well as the divine aspects which are attributed to him. The numerous names of God have been a source of debate amongst biblical scholars. Some have advanced the variety as proof that the Torah has many authors (see documentary hypothesis). It is also held that the only "name of God" in the Tanakh is Yahweh (the English rendering of YHWH), whereas words such as Elohim (God), El (mighty one), El Shaddai (almighty God), Adonai (master), El Elyon (most high God), Avinu (our Father), etc. are not names, but titles, highlighting different aspects of YHWH, and the various roles which He has. The most important and most often written name of God in Judaism is the Tetragrammaton, the four-letter name of God, AKA ‫יהוה‬, or YHWH. "Tetragrammaton" derives from the prefix tetra- ("four") and gramma ("letter", "grapheme"). The Tetragrammaton appears 6,828 times (see 'Counts' in the Yahweh article) in the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia edition of the Hebrew Masoretic text. This name is first mentioned in the Book of Genesis (2.4) and in English language bibles is traditionally translated as "The LORD". The Tetragrammaton in Phoenician (1100 BC to AD 300), Aramaic (10th Century BC to 0) and modern Hebrew scripts. (The epithet, "The Eternal One," may increasingly be found instead, particularly in Progressive Jewish communities seeking to use gender-neutral language). Because Judaism forbids pronouncing the name outside the Temple in Jerusalem, the correct pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton is Yod-Hah-Vov-HAh YAHO-VAH, as the original Hebrew texts only included consonants. Some scholars conjecture that it was pronounced "Yahweh", but some suggest that it never had a pronunciation (which is extremely unlikely given that it is found as an element in numerous Hebrew names). Gen 4:26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of ‫יהוה‬. Exo 3:14 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. Exo 3:15 And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. Jer 12:16 And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, The LORD liveth; as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built in the midst of my people. In appearance, YHWH is an archaic third person singular imperfect of the verb "to be", meaning, therefore, "He is". This explanation agrees with the meaning of the name given in Exodus 3:14, where God is represented as speaking, and hence as using the first person — "I am". It stems from the Hebrew conception of monotheism that God exists by himself for himself, and is the uncreated Creator who is independent of any concept, force, or entity; therefore "I am that I am".Most scholars believe YHWH is related to a root word meaning "to be present" or "to exist" and probably meant either "He creates or causes" or simply "I AM", meaning that God did not depend on anyone or anything for His existence. This comes from Exodus 3:13-14, where Moses asks God what His name is, and God says "I AM WHO I AM." Lesser used names of God are as follows. Adir — "Strong One". Adon Olam — "Master of the World" Aibishter — "The Most High" (Yiddish) Aleim — sometimes seen as an alternative transliteration of Elohim Avinu Malkeinu — "Our Father, our King" Boreh — "the Creator" Ehiyeh sh'Ehiyeh — "I Am That I Am": a modern Hebrew version of "Ehyeh asher Ehyeh" Elohei Avraham, Elohei Yitzchak ve Elohei Ya`aqov — "God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob" Elohei Sara, Elohei Rivka, Elohei Leah ve Elohei Rakhel — "God of Sarah, God of Rebecca, God of Leah, God of Rachel" El ha-Gibbor — "God the hero" or "God the strong one" or "God the warrior"

Emet — "Truth" E'in Sof — "endless, infinite", Kabbalistic name of God HaKadosh, Baruch Hu — "The Holy One, Blessed be He" Kadosh Israel — "Holy One of Israel" Melech HaMelachim — "The King of kings" or Melech Malchei HaMelachim "The King, King of kings", to express superiority to the earthly rulers title Makom or HaMakom — literally "the place", meaning "The Omnipresent"; see Tzimtzum Magen Avraham — "Shield of Abraham" Ribbono shel `Olam — "Master of the World" Ro'eh Yisra'el — "Shepherd of Israel" YHWH-Yireh (Jehovah-jireh) — "The LORD will provide" (Genesis 22:13-14) YHWH-Rapha — "The LORD that healeth" (Exodus 15:26) YHWH-Niss"i (Yahweh-Nissi) — "The LORD our Banner" (Exodus 17:8-15) YHWH-Shalom — "The LORD our Peace" (Judges 6:24) YHWH-Ra-ah — "The LORD my Shepherd" (Psalm 23:1) YHWH-Tsidkenu — "The LORD our Righteousness" (Jeremiah 23:6) YHWH-Shammah (Jehovah-shammah) — "The LORD is present" (Ezekiel 48:35) Tzur Israel — "Rock of Israel" Sources Wikipedia, Judaism