[Home] [Tetragrammaton] [Yahuweh or Yahuwah ?] [I AM that I AM] [A Conclusion?] [Contact]
 

Yahweh has become the most popular ‘name’ by which to address our Creator. Does this
necessarily make it correct? Let us look at the facts as briefly as possible.

Firstly as we discussed under The 4 Letters, Yahweh is a word with only two syllables.
If the Tetragram contains four vowels this is impossble, ^eYah-weh as highlighted, this is only
3 vowels, In order that we have four vowels “the Name” must have at least three syllables.

Some of course will argue, that when said fast, Yahuweh sounds as Yah’weh. This is true IF,
you put the emphasis on the first and last syllables, omitting to utter the middle syllable.
The question that arises is, should we omit the middle syllable? Could it be, that the
middle syllable is where the emphasis should be, in order to correctly utter the Name?
Let us recall that, in the days when Messiah was on earth, the death penalty for
saying the Name, was only incurred when the Name was pronounced in it’s full form.
To say “Yah” as in “Hallelu-Yah” was ok.
So stating the Name in it’s entirety, without any form of contraction, was the way
 Messiah must have spoken the NAME.

Secondly we have to consider the authenticity and reliability, of the source of
reference, for the rendition of “Yahweh.” 
The following is borrowed from a Samaritan website
  http://shomron0.tripod.com/2004/feb12.html
Originally the Samaritans or Shamerim (keepers, as they call themselves)were divided into two groups,
Dosithean and Sabbuai. The Sabbuai later became known as the Kushaniyya, the modern day Samaritans are
from this group. The Kushaniyya refused to pronounce the divine name and supplanted it with the term
Shema (Aramaic for "The Name"). The Dositheans on the other hand used the divine name, but as they no longer exist
it cannot be known how they pronounced the divine name. Many scholars claim that the pronunciation of the Divine Name
as "Yahweh" is accurate due to Samaritan inscriptions written in Greek which write the Divine Name as "Yabe."
The Samaritans in most instances pronounce beth, veth, waw, pe and fe as a "b". But what these scholars fell to realize
is that the Samaritans like the Rabbinates subsituted a the Name with another word when they came accross
the Name written in the Torah. The Samaritans unlike the Rabbinates did not read Adhonai when they came accross
the Divine Name, but "yabe" or innon-Samaritan pronunciation "yafe" (Beautiful). Therefore the pronunciation
of the divine name as Yahweh is inaccurate based upon the Samaritan/Kushaniyya desire 'not' to pronounce
the divine name. Thus, not even the Samaritans to our knowledge remained as one group, who were in
complete agreement with one another.

The word “yafe” is H3303 in Strong’s
yâpheh
pronounced yaw-feh'
From H3302; beautiful (literally of figuratively): -  + beautiful, beauty, comely,
fair (-est, one), + goodly, pleasant, well.

Well that kind of puts a damper on the idea that the Tetragram should be spoken as Yahweh.
However calling our Elohiym ‘beautiful’ is a bit nicer than calling Him “HaShem” The Name, don’t
you think! However when we consider Messiah’s words to the Samaritan woman at the well,
this shed’s even clearer doubt upon the rendition of Yahweh:)
John 4:22
Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Yahudim.

Todays Samaritans do not utter the Name they use “Shema” (their version of HaShem) believing
like the Rabbincal Yahudim that the Name must not be uttered.. The theory that is often
stated, to jusify believing the Samaritans had the correct pronunciation, is that, the Samaritans,
being in Samaria and not Judea were not influenced by the death penalty in force in Judea, for
uttering The Name. However it seems from what we have just read that this is just not so..

Now looking to the Greek as a source of the correct pronunciation. The question is can we??
From our research it seems unlikely that we can rely on the Greek for the correct pronunciation.
 To avoid writing long and convoluted passages, to examine this topic thoroughly, please look at:-
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahweh#Early_Greek_and_Latin_forms
From the above website we can see that there was a variety of Greek renditions of the Name.
Also from that site we read:-
The editors of New Bible Dictionary (1962 write:
The pronunciation Yahweh is indicated by transliterations of the name into Greek in early Christian literature, in the
form (Clement of Alexandria) or (Theodoret; by this time β had the pronunciation of v).
As already mentioned, Gesenius arrived at his form using the evidence of proper names, and following the Samaritan
pronunciation reported by Theodoret. [end quote]

Gesenius, mentioned above, is the reference that is used by many when, looking for a
definitive answer to Hebrew language questions. However in terms of The Name, can
we rely on Gesenius given that his reference, comes from the some what spurious Greek, based on
the Samaritan rendition of The Name. Or can we say that if, Gesenius is happy that it is Yahweh,
then Yahweh it must be? Let us look again at what our Messiah had to say about
Samaritan worship.
John 4:22
“You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know,
for salvation is of the Yahudim.”

Now that does not sound too promising. does it? We reference the Name, from a people, that the
Messiah Himself has said of them, that they do not know what they worship. If we are to believe the
words of Messiah, then logic has to say; that using them as a reference for the Name,
 is not a bright idea.

We need also to consider that, not only did the Yahudim have a prohibition on the use of
the Name; but Rome also came to have a prohibition on the Name and all else Judaic. This being so,
 can we imagine that Rome allowed, the writings of the early church fathers, to come down to us, with a
precise rendering of the Name still intact? We consider that highly unlikely. Furthermore should
we even be trying to come, to the correct pronunciation of a Semetic Name,from a Greek transliteration?
Surely we can come to a reading of the Name from the Semetic Language itself..


In conclusion then, what can we say about the probability of Yahweh being the true pronunciation?
All in all we would have to say that this seems highly unlikely.
Firstly Yahweh has only 2 syllables and for a 4 vowel word we need at least 3 syllables.
Secondly the sources of reference are highly suspect. Dealing with the first issue
we can conclude that we can eliminate Yahweh. That leaves us with the possibility
of Yahuweh. Let us continue this discussion on the page Yahuweh or Yahuwah?
As we have eliminated the rendition of Yahweh on basis that it only has 2 syllables
we will also eliminate Yahwah that leaves us with Yahuweh or Yahuwah?

[Home] [Tetragrammaton] [Yahuweh or Yahuwah ?] [I AM that I AM] [A Conclusion?] [Contact]
Return to Top                                       Return to Page Menu

[please be mindful that this is a new site and as such it is still largely under construction .
As time allows more details/ information will be added to each page and editing will
be an on going process]

YHWH His Great Name.               Page Last updated 23rd day - 6th month -2008 on Pagan Calendar