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  • From: Harold Holmyard <hholmyard AT ont.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [b-hebrew] Theophoric Name: Y:HOWYFQIYM
  • Date: Sat, 07 Jan 2006 14:18:43 -0600

Dear Karl,

Here is an idea Rolf mentioned in passing, but this is not Rolf writing the following:
http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/bb/viewtopic.php?p=1593&;

Recently I had been reading up on a lot of archaeological discovered letters and inscriptions found throughout the entire Levant to Egypt dating from the 9th-8th centuries BCE all the way to the end of the 5th century BCE (Persian Period). These letters were written in both the Hebrew and Aramaic tongue. . . .

I had stumbled upon letters dating throughout the Persian occupation period of Egypt that spoke of the Temple of YHWH at Yeb (the ancient name for Elephantine....an island in the Nile located in Upper Egypt [southern Egypt]). By the end of the 5th century the Egyptian had destroyed the temple and it is believed that the reason for this is because the Egyptian disliked the animal sacrifices (the Egyptian held much respect for animals and mummified them so it would be natural for them to see this with disgust). In these inscriptions, the temple of YHWH was said to have been built during the time of the Pharaoh Kings (before the Neo-Babylonian Empire). To this day scholars are baffled as to when this temple was built and how the Jews migrated there and when.

These inscriptions offered a clue to a possible PROPER pronunciation of YHWH. In all the Aramaic written inscriptions...the temple of YHWH was written as (imagine right-to-left) YHW and also YHH. I will explain the possible pronunciation below and whether this was the original or a corrupted form is still questionable.

You see...scholars believe that in YHW we have a clue that the waw served as a matres lectiones to show us a vowel like pronunciation. Such as a 'u' sound giving us Yahu. The YHH may be a possible confirmation to that. I am not able to do so currently for I am at work but if anybody wishes for me to post some of the inscriptions, I would be happy to do so.

HH: Here's a site he cross-references later:

http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/templeauth.html#2

HH: Here is more ancient data on the standard view of Yahweh that supports the Epiphanius, Samaritan, and Aramaic magical text pronunciations:
http://www.users.qwest.net/~zadok1/faq4.htm

New Bible Dictionary (1962) " The pronounciation Yahweh is indicated by transliterations of the name into Greek in early Christian literature, in the form iaoue (Clement of Alexandria) or iabe (Theodoret; by this time Gk. b had the pronunciation of v)"

HH: As far as an etymological fallacy by linking the divine name to the verb hwj, that seems an unnecessary charge, since the context in Exodus 3 makes the connection quite natural. The BDB lexicon says that hwh is the root behind the name hwhy.

HH: Here is what another Jewish source (not the Jewish Encyclopedia) says about that Exodus context in relation to hwhy:
http://www.hebrew-streams.org/works/hebrew/hashem.html

God's personal name--YHVH--can be "defined" etymologically or grammatically. Hebrew linguists believe yhvh is a form of the verb havah, meaning to be or become. Specifically, many linguists say yhvh is a Qal imperfect third masculine singular. Following normal Hebrew grammar patterns, the vowels "a" and "e" would be added to these consonants, giving us the word "YaHVeH." This pronunciation is supported by early Greek biblical texts that spell the name "Iaoue" (Ya-oo-eh) and "Iabe" (Yabe; there is no "v" sound in Greek).
What does "Yahveh" mean?

As he revealed it to Moses, God's full name is actually Ehyeh asher Ehyeh--"I will be what I will be." Ehyeh is the Qal imperfect first person form of the verb havah: "I will be." God thus says to Moses: "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'Ehyeh--I will be' has sent me to you" (Exodus 3:14-15). Ehyeh by itself is God's shortened name: when he speaks of himself in the first person.
In contrast, when people refer to God in the third person, he taught them to say "Yahveh--He will be" (not "I will be"). [Insights from Gerald H. Wilson, Psalms Volume 1 (Zondervan, 2002), p. 210.]

Yours,
Harold Holmyard







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