Other "names" profaned? 28. Some say that all the "other" names for God have been "profaned" among the nations. They base this on Eze. 36:22-23.
However, in verse 20, God explains exactly how his name is "profaned".
"And when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the Lord, and are gone forth out of his land." (Eze. 36:20).In other words, Israel (verse 17) "profaned God's name" by claiming to be the "people of the Lord". They were "bearing" God's name in vain. (See "The Third Commandment" elsewhere in this article and Ex. 20:7.)
"But I had pity for mine holy name, which the house of Isra-el had profaned among the heathen, whither they went." (verse 21).
"Lord" in verse 20, is Strong's #3068, "yhwh", or according to pro-names individuals, "Yahweh". God says in Eze. 36:21-23, his "name" has been "profaned". Therefore, according to this "names" argument, we shouldn't use "Yahweh" either.On the other hand, if "name" in verse 20 is God's reference to the word "Isra-el" in verse 21, then "el" is a "name", according to God.
From a lengthy article titled, "Biblical Beginnings in Canaan, The Mighty Bronze Age Empire" which discusses the Canaanite god "El", we find the following quotations:
"The Canaanites evidently knew nothing of the elaborate pantheon and cosmogony of the Mesopotamians, which probably reflects the relative simplicity of their lives. Their interest was to correlate and explain the various forces of nature and society in all the complexity of harmony and tension, but to declare their dependence on the gods and to placate them" "Corresponding to Anu in Mesopotamia, the king paramount in the celestial court was El ('God'), who give his sanction to all decisions among the gods affecting nature and society.
He is father of the divine family and president of the divine assembly on the 'mount of assembly', the equivalent of Hebrew har mo'ed, which became through the Greek transliteration Armageddon. In Canaanite mythology he is known as 'the Bull', symbolizing his strength and creative force, and is probably represented in the elderly god who is blessing a worshipper on a limestone sculpture from Ras Shara. In the myths he is termed bny bnwt, which might mean 'Creator of Created Things', but which we take to mean 'Giver of Potency', according to his role in two royal legends from Ras Shamra, but he is generally depicted as sitting aloof and indeed remote, enthroned at 'the outflowing of the (two) streams'. This recalls the Biblical Garden of Eden, from which a river flowed to form the four rivers, Tigris, Euphrates, Gihon and Pishon." ---- John Gray, Near Eastern Mythology
El "was known as the Creator God, the Kindly One, the Compassionate One. He expressed the concept of ordered government and social justice. It is noteworthy that the Bible never stigmatizes the Canaanite worship of El, whose authority in social affairs was recognized by the Patriarchs. His consort was Asherah, the mother goddess, represented in Canaanite sanctuaries by a natural or stylized tree (Hebrew ashera)". - Magnus Magnusson, BC - The Archaeology of the Bible Lands
"In Canaan, the king "is described as 'the Servant of El', as King David was 'the Servant of God'. This describes the status of the king as the executive of the will of the divine king. This duty is understood to be a privilege as well as a burden." - John Gray, Near Eastern Mythology
"All names like Ishmael, Michael and Israel are theophoric in form - that is to say, the suffix element (-ilu or -el) represents a divine name, in this case the paramount god El. But during the reign of Ebrum, Dr Pettinato noted a change in the theophoric element, from -el to -ya(w), so that Mi-ka-ilu became Mi-ka-ya(w) and so on. It is quite clear that both of the endings are divine names, either names of gods or words simply meaning 'god'; so it looks as if Ebrum made some major alteration in the religion of Ebla at this time. Whether -ya(w) is related to the Biblical Yahweh, the one God of Israel whose name replace the earlier form of El, is a matter for debate..." - Magnus Magnusson, BC - The Archaeology of the Bible Lands
(Source: http://home.fireplug.net/~rshand/streams/thera/canaan.html)
Perhaps it was a case of the name of God, "el", being preserved by the people of Canaan from the time of Shem, while a substitution was made in the object of worship. In other words, they kept the name, but accepted an idol in place of the true God. A picture of an image of the Canaanite god "el" accompanies the article.
In any case, the name "el" was used for purposes of idolatry. It was "El" himself who commanded the Isra-el-ites, to kill all the inhabitants of the land of Canaan, because of their idolatry. However, He did not tell Israel to change their name and He continued to use it to refer to Israel and to Himself (Josh. 7:13, "God" = "elohyim").
One of the few opinions which most pro-names groups do agree on, is the claim that the name "Jesus" is unacceptable, although some do disagree over the reasoning. Some say it's because the English word didn't exist in the first century. Other say it's because the letter "J" didn't exist then. Still others say that the word comes from the names of pagan gods. Some say it's because of all of the above reasons, but there is some contradiction between these opinions. Did the name not exist, or did it come from a pagan source?"Scholars have demonstrated that there is no etymological connection between the names 'Jesus' and 'Zeus.' Jesus is the Anglicized form of the Latin word 'Iesus'; Iesus is the Latin form of the Greek word 'Iesous.' Iesous is the Greek form of the Hebrew word 'Yeshua.' Zeus and Iesous are not cognates (related in origin). Moreover, there is no connection between the name Jesus and the god called 'Yes'. 'Yes', one of the names of Bacchus, is not connected to the name Jesus by adding the Latin termination 'sus'. Bacchus was one of the names of Nimrod; therefore, there is no etymological connection between the name of the god 'Yes' and Jesus.
A point to consider is that when Paul preached to Greeks at Athens, he preached about Jesus (Acts 17:18,31). The Greeks accused Paul of being a 'setter forth of strange gods'. They did not connect the name Jesus with the Greek god Zeus. This simply points out that there is not a single historical or scholarly source that etymologically connects Jesus with the god Zeus. All authorities state that Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew word 'Joshua' or Aramaic word 'Jeshua'. The idea that Iesous is the Ionic masculine form of Iaso, the Greek goddess of healing cannot be substantiated. In the abridged and unabridged editions of Greek-English Lexicon by Liddell and Scott there is no such word connected with Iaso. Iesous is listed as the name of Jesus, which this Lexicon says is the Greek form of the Hebrew name 'Joshua'. Iesous is in no way related to Iaso, the Greek goddess of healing.
Now what about the title 'Christ'? Sacred Names advocates admit that they have been ridiculed in times past for suggesting that the word Christ is derived from the Indian deity 'Chrishna' or 'Krishna.' Their answer to this criticism is that, in the book The Two Babylons, p. 60, by Alexander Hislop, there is an illustration of the serpent Calyia slain by Vishnu in the reincarnated form of Chrishna. They say that this portrayal of Genesis 3:15 depicts Chrishna as the serpent-crusher of India, and that Dr. Ignaz Goldhier who wrote the book Mythology Among the Hebrews, links the deities of India and Greece together. Therefore, the Sacred Names advocates believe that the name 'Christ' is closely associated with pagan worship.
It is admitted by both sides of the Sacred Names issue that the word 'Christ' ceased to be a title and became a part of the proper name 'Jesus Christ'. "
(Source: http://www.bibleresearch.org/law/sacredname.html).(See also, "The 'Family Tree' of the word, 'salvation'." below. See also, "Appendix 3: The Names of the Son".)
If "profaned" names could not be used (as per the pro-names arguments), then we could not use "Isra-el" either, even in the Hebrew language, "Yisra-el". But as we saw above, the "profaning" is accomplished in the actions done, not in the words used.
"Yhwh" Profaned? What about the word, "yhwh" or it many variations? Has it ever been "profaned" (according to the definition used by some names groups)? Consider the following quotes:
" Yw, Yawu, Yah, Iahu, IeuoYw or Yawu is given as the original name of Yam in the Myth of Ba`al from Ugarit, and is probably the same as Ieuo in Philo of Byblos' Phoenician History. He is possibly to be identified with Yahweh. Coincidentally, a likely pronunciation of Yod-Heh-Vau-Heh really is Yahuh (Yahoo!)."
(Source: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Lofts/2938/mindei.html)" The Protoindo European god Yayash, Yaë or Yave, a protective god whose symbol was a tree, signifying possibly '"walking", "going", "a pilgrim", has been dated back to the Indus River valley, circa 2900 B.C.E. He has been identified with the Turko Syrian Yahveh, a "sacred animal or organization".
"Yahweh appears to have been originally a sky god - a god of thunder and lightning. He was associated with mountains and was called by the enemies of Israel 'a god of the hills'. His manifestation was often as fire, as at Mount Sinai and in the burning bush." "A shorter form, 'Yah', was also used (Exodus 15:2) and some scholars believe that this is the older form, originating in an exclamation to God -'Yah!' - which came to be accepted as the divine name. Others claim that it is from the root 'hayah', 'to be' or 'to become', and that it meant 'I am that I am' or I will be that I will be'. According to one tradition of the call of Moses, the divine name Yahweh was revealed to him in Egypt: - Great Events of Bible Times
"Originally, these four consonants [in YHWH] represented the four members of the Heavenly Family: Y represented El the Father; H was Asherah the Mother; W corresponded to He the Son; and H was the Daughter Anath. In accordance with the royal traditions of the time and region, God's mysterious bride, the Matronit, was also reckoned to be his sister. In the Jewish cult of the Cabbala God's dual male-female image was perpetuated. Meanwhile other sects perceived the Shekinah or Matronit as the female presence of God on Earth. The divine marital chamber was the sanctuary of the Jerusalem Temple, but from the moment the Temple was destroyed, the Matronit was destined to roam the Earth while the male aspect of Jehovah was left to rule the heavens alone." - Laurence Gardner, Bloodline of the Holy Grail, p. 18
(Source: Biblical Beginnings in Canaan, Op. Cit.)
By some pro-names standards, "yhwh" has also been "profaned". What about "yah"?
THE NAME YAH A letter found in a mound northwest of the modern town of Ta'annek written in the fifth century B.C. proves that 'Yah' was a deity of the Canaanites. Yah is associated with the Canaanitish Mother-goddess, Ashtart-Anat as seen by the Father-Mother titles of the deity of the Jews at Elephantine. There, the title of Anat-Yaw is seen as well as Ashim-Bethel and Afat-Bethel where the titles of Astarte are combined with the Sun-god, Bethel. At Gaza, Yah appears as a Sun-god on a coin and coins were frequently inscribed with the figure of Ashtart-Yaw, Anat-Yaw, and Anat-Bethel, which corresponds to the Phoenician Melk-Ashtart and Eshmun-Ashtart (The Mythology Of All Races, Vol. 5, p. 44).
Yah was identified with the Aramaic Thunder-god, Adad. A coin from of the fourth century B.C. in southern Philisti (when the Jews were in subjection to the Persian kings) has the only known representation of the Hebrew Deity. The letters YHW were inscribed just above a bird which the god held on his arm. The most likely identification of the god Yah of Gaza is the Hebrew, Phoenician, and Aramaic Sun-god El or Elohim whom the Hebrews had long since identified with Yah (ibid., pp. 42-43).
The collection of ancient manuscripts found at the Jewish colony of Elephantine demonstrates the use of Canaanite religious terminology in conjunction with the name of Israel's God_Yahu. Such compound names as Anath-Yahu, Anath-Bethel, Ishum-Bethel, and Herem-Bethel are found there. These names all represent the attempt to combine differing philosophies and religious beliefs that were prevalent in the centuries following the Israelite conquest of Canaan. For example, Anath was the ancient Canaanite goddess, the sister of Baal (Bruce, p. 53), and Baal was one of the ancient names for Nimrod (Hislop, p. 232).
It was from the divine name Yah that the Greeks took 'Ie' in the invocations of the gods, especially the god Apollo. The name 'Ie' was written from right to left and inscribed over the great door of the temple of Apollo at Delphi (Taylor, p. 183). Iao, a variant of the Tetragrammaton, was applied to the Graeco-Egyptian god Harpocrates or Horus. Horus was called Harpocrates by the Greeks. The ancient Greeks had an acclamation similar to Hallelujah (Praise you Yah). They used Hallulujee in the beginning and ending of their hymns in honor of Apollo (Taylor, p. 183).
(Source: http://www.bibleresearch.org/law/sacredname.html)
[Note that ?halleujah? has also been ?profaned?, by some pro-names standards.]"A Jewish community who wanted to rebuild the temple wrote the Elephantine Papers dated 495-400 B.C. They refer to Yah's temple. Yah is a shortened form of Yahweh. "After 70 CE (Common Era) and the fall of Jerusalem, the liturgical use of `Yahweh' ceased, but the tradition was perpetuated in rabbinical schools and was used by healers, exorcists, and magicians (p. 198)." Also see "The Divine Names Through the Ages," http://www.watchtower.org/library/na/ages.htm."
(Source: http://www.plim.org/Sacred%20Names%20Article.html)So we see that even the Jews themselves, those who were, or are followers of Cabbalism (Jewish Mysticism), made an idol of the word "yhwh", using it to worship a false god or gods.
Therefore, by this pro-names argument, "yhwh" and its many variations cannot be used to address God either!There is considerable information available on pagan religions. It is not difficult to see that, by the pro-names definition of "profaned", the words "yah", "ya", and "yah-hu", have also been "profaned" by application to pagan gods.
"The Sacred Name of God
The Whirling Dervishes of Sufism chant the zikr (holy chant), "Yah-Hu" as they ceremonially spin in rapture, while the world of Islam praises, "Allah." Christians and Jews sing hymns of praise using, "Alleluyah and Amen."Interestingly, if the word "Alle-lu-yah," (meaning, "praise to Yah" and often misinterpreted in the West as being, "praise the Lord") is sounded-out, you will hear the "Allah," the "U" and the "Yah" in the same word.
Similarly, many Vedic chants of praise also contain Yah, e.g. Rama-yah, Isha-ya (Yah my Divine Husband), Jai-ya (Yah as joy); Shiva-ya (Yah is purity, holiness, truth); Krishna ya (Yah is the transcendental loving Witness); Vishnu yah (Yah is all pervasive Light); Kali ya (Yah is the creative manifesting force or energy) etc. etc.
(Source: http://www.corplink.com.au/~roman/Sacred.html)"Pagan leaders used the name Yahweh. The name was inscribed on the Moabite Stone in Jordan about 830 B.C. exactly as it appeared in the Old Testament. The Lachish Letters, written between 589-587 B.C. and discovered in 1935 in the ancient town of Lachish near Jerusalem, frequently used the name Yahweh. "
(Source: http://www.plim.org/Sacred%20Names%20Article.html)
What about the word "Father"? If the argument about "being profaned" applies to names, wouldn't it also apply to other words used to address God?
"In the Greek mythology, Zeus is called the "father (pater) of the . . . (Olympian ) gods" and, "he was often called `Father Zeus'" (Elizabeth Burr, translator, The Chiron Dictionary of Greek and Roman Mythology, pp. 311-312, 1993). In the Roman mythology, the equivalent of Zeus was Jupiter, whose name is derived from the Latin Diespater, meaning the "father of light" (Burr, Chiron, p. 159)."
(Source: Sacred Names: A Critical Analysis of C.J. Koster's Come Out of Her, My People, by Charles M. Knight, http://www.mindspring.com/~icga/sn1.htm)If the argument about "being profaned" were correct, then we couldn't use the term "Father", either. God inspired Jeremiah to speak against Judah for idolatry in their, "Saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth:..." (Jer. 2:27). Yet, we have Christ's own example in frequently using the term "Father".
(See also, # 20, "Father", above.)29. Some say that Rev. 3:8 shows that the world has "denied" the "Hebrew names".
"I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name." (Rev. 3:8).One pro-names group says that the use of the "Hebrew names" is an identifying mark of the Philadelphia church era. Their website contains the following statements.
"All aspiring religious groups strive to be the Philadelphia assembly mentioned in Revelation chapter 3. But they overlook one of its important attributes: "I know you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name," Revelation 3:8, NIV. By using substitute names, churchianity has denied the sacred Name. Webster's New World Dictionary says of the word "deny": "To declare untrue; contradict; refuse to accept as true or right; reject as unfounded, unreal, etc.; to refuse to acknowledge as one's own; refuse to grant or give; to refuse the use of or access to; to refuse the request of (a person)."
We notice that the definition of "deny" does not include the word "substitution".
It's also interesting that this group quotes only Rev. 3:8, since a similar phrase also occurs in Rev.2:13, which is addressed to the Pergamos church (verse 2). If one believes that Revelation is describing consecutive church eras, then there is a problem with this "names" argument. The Pergamos era is identified as existing from 650 AD to 1000 AD. The "names" movement is recognized to have begun with a book published in 1857.
From a website on the history of the "names" movement, we see the following credit. "It seems only just, that, for the wide acceptance of THE NAME during the 30's until now (1966), honor should go to Alexander MacWhorter of Yale University who published a book, THE MEMORIAL NAME, or YAVEH CHRIST, more than a HUNDRED YEARS ago, in 1857, ..."The message to Pergamos includes the following. "I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth." (Rev. 2:13).
While we have some details of groups and individuals during the Pergamos "era" (or 650-1000AD), there is no indication that any of them used "Hebrew names". This is about 1,200 years before the earliest record of the "names" movement, yet Pergamos is credited by God as 'holding fast (God's) name'.Actually, we can see how God defines "denial" by looking at God said. In Rev. 3:8, he says, "... thou...hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name."
In Rev. 2:13, he says, "...thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith,"In 1 Tim. 5:8 we see, "But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."
According to God, "not denying his name" is equated with "keeping his word", and with "keeping his faith". "Keeping his faith is equated with "providing for the widows within one's own family". The Greek word for "denied" in Rev. 3:8 is Strong's # 720, "arneomai, to contradict, disavow, reject, abnegate". This same word is used in the following:"...he that denieth me before men..." (Lk. 12:9).
"...he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ?" (1 Jn. 2:22).
"...that denieth the Father and the Son." (1 Jn. 2:22).
"Whosoever denieth the Son, the same..." (1 Jn. 2:23).
"...whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Mat. 10:33).A derivation of this word, Strong's # 533, aparneomai, to deny utterly, to disown, abstain", is used in the following:
"...If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Mat. 16:24).
"...I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.
Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. ..." (Mat. 26:34-35).We know that Peter did not argue over the name of Christ, he argued whether or not he was "with" him, in other words, a disciple (Mat. 26:69-75). "Denying" our self (Mat. 16:24) does not mean translating our names into Hebrew, although some do that. If our actions "contradict" God's way of life, then we have "denied" him. We "deny" his name by claiming to be a "Christian" or "follower of God/yhwh or Christ/Messiah" but do not do the things he commanded. If we "bear" (wear) his name in vain, we break the Third Commandment.
(See, "The Third Commandment" above.)30. One pro-names authors suggests that failure to understand and accept the names arguments indicates a failure to break free of paradigms forced upon us by our church organizations. This is less of an argument and more of an accusation.
The existence of so many who accept that the Hebrew names, are in fact names, while rejecting the arguments about the use of the names being obligatory and salvation-related, disputes this idea.Names Index / Next
