Who Is Jehovah? — Watchtower ONLINE LIBRARY

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</div> </div> </div> <div id="documentCitationInformation"> <div>Bible Questions Answered</div> <div><strong>ijwbq article 103</strong></div> </div> <div id="content" class="content"> <div class="articlePositioner" lang="en" data-lang="E" dir="ltr"> <div id="banner" class="documentBanner showRuby ml-E ms-ROMAN dir-ltr" lang="en" data-lang="E" dir="ltr"> </div> <article id="article" class="article document html5 pub- docId-502016128 pub-ijwbq pub- pub-ijwbq docClass-133 jwac showRuby ml-E ms-ROMAN dir-ltr includeSecondaryNav" lang="en" data-lang="E" dir="ltr" role="article"> <div class="scalableui"> <div id="f1" class="north_center"> <figure> <img src="/en/wol/mp/r1/lp-e/ijwbq/2023/987" data-img-small-src="/en/wol/mp/r1/lp-e/ijwbq/2023/993" alt="The Tetragrammaton in an ancient manuscript is viewed under a magnifying glass" width="1200" height="600" class="north_center" /> </figure> </div> <header> <h1 id="p1" data-pid="1"><span id="page103" class="pageNum" aria-hidden="true" data-no="103" data-before-text="103"></span><strong>Who Is Jehovah?</strong></h1> </header> <div class="bodyTxt"> <div id="section1" class="section"> <h2 id="p2" data-pid="2"><strong>The Bible’s answer</strong></h2> <div class="pGroup"> <p id="p3" data-pid="3"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="1"></span>Jehovah is the true God of the Bible, the Creator of all things. (<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/0/0" data-bid="1-1" class="b">Revelation 4:11</a>) The prophets Abraham and Moses worshipped him, as did Jesus. (<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/1/0" data-bid="2-1" class="b">Genesis 24:27;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/1/1" data-bid="2-2" class="b"> Exodus 15:1, 2;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/1/2" data-bid="2-3" class="b"> John 20:17</a>) He is the God, not just of one people, but of “all the earth.”—<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/2/0" data-bid="3-1" class="b">Psalm 47:2</a>.</p> <p id="p4" data-pid="4"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="2"></span>Jehovah is God’s unique name as revealed in the Bible. (<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/3/0" data-bid="4-1" class="b">Exodus 3:15;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/3/1" data-bid="4-2" class="b"> Psalm 83:18</a>) It comes from a Hebrew verb that means “to become,” and a number of scholars suggest that the name means “He Causes to Become.” This definition well fits Jehovah’s role as the Creator and the Fulfiller of his purpose. (<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/4/0" data-bid="5-1" class="b">Isaiah 55:10, 11</a>) The Bible also helps us to know the Person behind the name Jehovah, especially his dominant quality of love.—<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/5/0" data-bid="6-1" class="b">Exodus 34:5-7;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/5/1" data-bid="6-2" class="b"> Luke 6:35;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/5/2" data-bid="6-3" class="b"> 1 John 4:8</a>.</p> <p id="p5" data-pid="5"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="3"></span>The name Jehovah is an English translation of the Hebrew name for God—the four letters יהוה (YHWH), known as the Tetragrammaton. The exact pronunciation of the divine name in ancient Hebrew is not known. However, the form “Jehovah” has a long history in the English language, first appearing in William Tyndale’s Bible translation of 1530.<a id="footnotesource1" data-fnid="1" class="fn" href="/en/wol/fn/r1/lp-e/502016128/0">a</a></p> <h3 id="p6" data-pid="6"><strong>Why is the pronunciation of God’s name in ancient Hebrew unknown?</strong></h3> <p id="p7" data-pid="7"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="4"></span>Ancient Hebrew was written without vowels, using only consonants. The Hebrew-speaking reader could easily provide the appropriate vowels. However, after the Hebrew Scriptures (“Old Testament”) were completed, some Jews adopted the superstitious belief that it was wrong to utter God’s personal name. When they read aloud a scripture that contained God’s name, they substituted expressions such as “Lord” or “God.” As centuries passed, this superstition spread and the ancient pronunciation was eventually lost.<a id="footnotesource2" data-fnid="2" class="fn" href="/en/wol/fn/r1/lp-e/502016128/1">b</a></p> <p id="p8" data-pid="8"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="5"></span>Some feel that the divine name was pronounced “Yahweh,” while others suggest different possibilities. A Dead Sea Scroll containing a portion of Leviticus in Greek transliterates the name <em>Iao.</em> Early Greek writers also suggest the pronunciations <em>Iae, I·a·beʹ,</em> and <em>I·a·ou·eʹ,</em> but none of these can be proved to be the pronunciation used in ancient Hebrew.<a id="footnotesource3" data-fnid="3" class="fn" href="/en/wol/fn/r1/lp-e/502016128/2">c</a></p> <h3 id="p9" data-pid="9"><strong>Misconceptions about God’s name in the Bible</strong></h3> <div class="grpItems borderSolid--bottom"><p id="p10" data-pid="10"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="6"></span><strong>Misconception:</strong> Translations that use “Jehovah” have added this name.</p> <p id="p11" data-pid="11"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="7"></span><strong>Fact:</strong> The Hebrew word for God’s name in the form of the Tetragrammaton appears some 7,000 times in the Bible.<a id="footnotesource4" data-fnid="4" class="fn" href="/en/wol/fn/r1/lp-e/502016128/3">d</a> Most translations arbitrarily <em>remove</em> God’s name and replace it with a title such as “Lord.”</p> </div><div class="grpItems borderSolid--bottom"><p id="p12" data-pid="12"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="8"></span><strong>Misconception:</strong> Almighty God does not need a unique name.</p> <p id="p13" data-pid="13"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="9"></span><strong>Fact:</strong> God himself inspired Bible writers to use his name thousands of times, and he directs those who worship him to use his name. (<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/6/0" data-bid="7-1" class="b">Isaiah 42:8;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/6/1" data-bid="7-2" class="b"> Joel 2:32;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/6/2" data-bid="7-3" class="b"> Malachi 3:16;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/6/3" data-bid="7-4" class="b"> Romans 10:13</a>) In fact, God condemned false prophets who tried to make people forget his name.—<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/7/0" data-bid="8-1" class="b">Jeremiah 23:27</a>.</p> </div><div class="grpItems borderSolid--bottom"><p id="p14" data-pid="14"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="10"></span><strong>Misconception:</strong> Following the tradition of the Jews, God’s name should be removed from the Bible.</p> <p id="p15" data-pid="15"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="11"></span><strong>Fact:</strong> It is true that some Jewish scribes refused to pronounce the divine name. However, they did not remove it from their copies of the Bible. In any case, God does not want us to follow human traditions that deviate from his commandments.—<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/8/0" data-bid="9-1" class="b">Matthew 15:1-3</a>.</p> </div><p id="p16" data-pid="16"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="12"></span><strong>Misconception:</strong> The divine name should not be used in the Bible because it is not known exactly how to pronounce it in Hebrew.</p> <p id="p17" data-pid="17"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="13"></span><strong>Fact:</strong> This line of reasoning assumes that God expects people who speak different languages to pronounce his name identically. However, the Bible indicates that God’s worshippers in the past who spoke different languages pronounced proper names differently.</p> <p id="p18" data-pid="18"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="14"></span>Consider, for example, the Israelite judge Joshua. First-century Christians who spoke Hebrew would have pronounced his name <em>Yehoh·shuʹaʽ,</em> while those who spoke Greek would have said <em>I·e·sousʹ.</em> The Bible records the Greek translation of Joshua’s Hebrew name, showing that Christians followed the sensible course of using the form of proper names common in their language.—<a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/9/0" data-bid="10-1" class="b">Acts 7:45;</a><a href="/en/wol/bc/r1/lp-e/502016128/9/1" data-bid="10-2" class="b"> Hebrews 4:8</a>.</p> <p id="p19" data-pid="19"><span class="parNum" data-pnum="15"></span>The same principle can be applied to translating the divine name. Far more important than the exact pronunciation chosen is that God’s name be given its rightful place in the Bible.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="groupFootnote"><div id="footnote1" data-fnid="1" class="fn-ref"><p id="p21" data-pid="21"><a href="#footnotesource1" class="fn-symbol">a</a> Tyndale used the form “Iehouah” in his translation of the first five books of the Bible. Over time, the English language changed, and the spelling of the divine name was modernized. For example, in 1612, Henry Ainsworth used the form “Iehovah” throughout his translation of the book of Psalms. When he revised that translation in 1639, he used the form “Jehovah.” Likewise, the translators of the <em>American Standard Version</em> of the Bible, published in 1901, used the form “Jehovah” where the divine name appeared in the Hebrew text.</p></div> <div id="footnote2" data-fnid="2" class="fn-ref"><p id="p22" data-pid="22"><a href="#footnotesource2" class="fn-symbol">b</a> The <em>New Catholic Encyclopedia,</em> Second Edition, Volume 14, pages 883-884, says: “Sometime after the end of the Exile, the name Yahweh began to be considered with special reverence, and the practice arose of substituting for it the word ADONAI or ELOHIM.”</p></div> <div id="footnote3" data-fnid="3" class="fn-ref"><p id="p23" data-pid="23"><a href="#footnotesource3" class="fn-symbol">c</a> For more information, see appendix A4, “<a href="/en/wol/pc/r1/lp-e/502016128/0/0">The Divine Name in the Hebrew Scriptures</a>,” in the <em>New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.</em></p></div> <div id="footnote4" data-fnid="4" class="fn-ref"><p id="p24" data-pid="24"><a href="#footnotesource4" class="fn-symbol">d</a> See the <em>Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament,</em> Volume 2, pages 523-524.</p></div> </div>  <div class="pswp" tabindex="-1" role="dialog" aria-hidden="true"> <div class="pswp__bg"></div> <div class="pswp__scroll-wrap">  <div class="pswp__container"> <div class="pswp__item"></div> <div class="pswp__item"></div> <div class="pswp__item"></div> </div> <div class="pswp__ui pswp__ui--hidden"> <div class="pswp__top-bar"> <div class="pswp__counter"></div> <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--close" title="Close (Esc)"></button> <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--fs" title="Toggle fullscreen"></button> <button class="pswp__button pswp__button--zoom" title="Zoom in/out"></button> <div class="pswp__preloader"> <div class="pswp__preloader__icn"> <div class="pswp__preloader__cut"> <div class="pswp__preloader__donut"></div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div 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