Biblical Hebrew Forum

[George Athas <George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>]

Actually, the Masoretes DID place the vowels of Adonai on the Tetragrammaton. 
The initial vowel is a shewa. In the word Adonai, this has to be a composite 
shewa (with patah), but it is still grammatically a shewa. The holem vowel 
was usually not written, perhaps for reasons of piety (nothing above the name 
of God), though there are a handful of instances where it is written, 
seemingly offering the proof that the Mosoretes were indeed thinking of the 
vowels of Adonai.

Occasionally, when the actual word Adonai precedes the Tetragrammaton, the 
vowels of Elohim were inserted instead.


GEORGE ATHAS
Moore Theological College (Sydney, Australia)
www.moore.edu.au