What Happened to Yahweh?
By Jonathan Mitchell
Why does the NT not speak about Yahweh (aka Jehovah; aka YHVH, etc.)? The main reason is that the NT manuscripts (at least those preserved, and which are extant) are written in Koine Greek, and the majority of the quotes from the OT were taken from the Septuagint (LXX), a Koine Greek translation of the Hebrew manuscripts which was apparently done by Jews of Alexandria, in the third century BC. It was in this early translation that the name Yahweh in the Hebrew text was rendered by the Greek word Kurios (Lord; Master; Owner). So the name Yahweh became lost to the non-Hebrew speaking world. The LXX (the Greek translation) has been called the Bible of the Apostles. Nobody was using the name Yahweh (supposedly to keep from using His Name in vain). This is a generalization of the Name's history.
The translators of the KJV, the ESV, the NIV, and other modern versions adopted this tradition, and have commonly rendered this Name as LORD, using capital letters. Bullinger's The Companion Bible, is a KJV translation with sidebars that footnote where this Name is Yahweh (etc.) in the Heb. text. Young's Literal Translation uses the word Jehovah, as does The New World Translation. The Emphasized Bible, by J.B. Rotherham, uses the name Yahweh. My translation of the NT inserts "[= Yahweh]" into quotes of the OT, where the Greek, from the LXX, has Kurios. This is to inform the modern reader that the original OT text had that Name in the passage being quoted. Yahweh is found throughout the NT, via His Words, in OT quotes. Can we simply assume that the Jews of NT times were unaware of this, or had abandoned the idea that Yahweh was the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (cf Gen. 12:1-4)?
Consider what Jesus said about those three men, who's God was Yahweh:
"Now I further say to you that many people from eastern lands, as well as western regions, will continue arriving. And they will one-after-another be made to recline [and dine] with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, within the reign and sovereign rule of the heavens (or: the kingdom of the atmospheres)" (Mat. 8:11).
Would these men suddenly switch Gods, and abandon the Yahweh they had known? There are voices, today, which claim that Yahweh of the OT is not the same God of Whom Jesus speaks as being His, and our, Father.
However, even though the NT texts do not use the Name, Yahweh, investigation of the texts seems to clearly indicate, give evidence for, a continuity from the old covenant to the new covenant, and that the God of the OT is the same God of the NT. In this short study, we will present just a few such indicators. For starters, consider what Marge White has pointed out in the incident of the resurrected Jesus joining the two disciples on the road to Emmaus:
"And so, beginning from Moses, and then from all the prophets, He continued to fully interpret and explain to (or: for) them the things pertaining to (or: the references about) Himself within all the Scriptures" (Lu. 24:27; [cf 1QpHab 7:1-5])
Add to that the facts of the genealogies of both Matthew and Luke which tie Jesus to the two ancestral lines: one all the way to Adam (Lu.), the other back to Abraham (Mat.). The stories of both the OT and the NT are of one cloth. And now let us look to the witness from the Gospel of John, chapter 5:
45. "Stop thinking (supposing; presuming; having opinions) that I, Myself, will publicly speak down against (or: accuse) you folks to the Father; the one constantly accusing (publicly speaking down against) you people is (or: exists being) Moses, into whom you folks have put your expectation, and on whom you now rely.
46. "For if you folks had been trusting by, adhering to, having loyalty for, and believing in, Moses, you would have been trusting by, adhering to, and believing in, Me: for THAT one [i.e.: Moses] wrote about Me!
47. "Yet if you are not habitually trusting by, adhering to, having loyalty for and believing in THAT one's Writings, how will [other MSS: do] you folks continue to trust by, have loyalty for, adhere to and believe in My sayings (or: My declarations; My gush-effects; the results from flows in Me)?"
Next, let us look into Paul's "olive tree theology," in Rom. 11:
17. Now since some (or: if, as is the case, certain ones) of the branches are broken off (or: were at one point broken out of [the Tree]), yet you yourself, being a wild olive tree of the field or forest, you are (or: were) grafted in within (or: among) them, you also came to be (are birthed; are become) a joint-participant of (a partner and partaker taking in common together with; a sharer-in-common-being from) the Root and of the Fatness of The Olive Tree (or: = of the sap; or: = of the oil from the olive). [cf Jn. 15:1-10]
18. Stop boasting against (or: Do not be constantly vaunting or exulting over) the branches! Now since you are habitually boasting and exulting (priding yourself), you yourself are not bearing (supporting; sustaining; carrying) The Root, but rather, The Root [supports] you! ....
23. Now those, also, if they would not persistently remain on with (or: stay longer in, or by) the lack of faith and absence of trust (or: continue to embrace this unbelief), they will proceed in being (or: one-after-another be) grafted in, for God is able (continues being capable; is constantly powerful) to graft them back in again! [i.e., by Grace]
24. For since (or: if, as is the case,) you yourself were cut out of the olive tree [which is] wild (of the field or forest) by nature, and then to the side of nature (perhaps: = outside of, or contrary to, nature) you are (or: were at one point) grafted in - into a fine (beautiful; cultivated, ideal, garden) olive tree - to how much greater an extent (or: so how much rather) will these, the ones in accord with nature, proceed in being engrafted into their own olive tree! ....
26. So then, thus, in this manner and with this result: all Israel will progressively be delivered (or: one-after-another be rescued, saved, made whole and restored to their original position [in the olive tree]), according as it has been written, "The One continuously dragging out of danger and drawing to Himself (The Rescuer; The Deliverer) will repeatedly arrive and be present from out of Zion; He will continue turning irreverence away from Jacob. [cf Zech. 13:1; Heb. 12:22ff]
27."And this [is] the arrangement for them, from beside Me (or: So this [will be] My covenant in, to, for, and with, them), when I take away their failures (deviations; sins; mistakes; misses of the target; shootings amiss of the goal)." [Isa. 59:20-21; 27:9]
28. Corresponding to (With respect to; In accord with; Down from; In the sphere of; or: From the domination of; In the realm of the suppression of) the Good News (the message of goodness, ease, and well-being), on the one hand, [they were; they became] enemies (hostile ones; ones regarded as enemies) because of (or: through; with a view to; on account of; for the sake of) you folks; but on the other hand, according to (with respect to; in accord with; down from; corresponding to; along the line of; or: from the dominion of) the selection (the choosing out; the election) [they are] loved ones, because of (with a view to; on account of; for the sake of) the fathers (= ancestors).
Observe the contrast, and yet the continuity, in Paul's metaphors, especially between the Root, and the Branches. Different aspects of the same tree with different purposes for each aspect, but without both of them there would be no tree.
In Stephen's speech to the Judeans, he rehearsed Israel's history. When he came to the time where Moses met God, on Mt. Sinai, Stephen reminds his audience that,
"a Voice of [the] LORD occurred (or: a Sound of [Yahweh] was heard)," saying,"I Myself [am] the God of your fathers (= ancestors): the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.' So Moses, coming to be in a tremble was not continuing to have courage to be focusing [his] mind or taking notice, or considering [what was happening]! And the LORD [= Yahweh] further said to him..." (Acts 7:32, 33a)
Can you see the continuity of thought concerning the identity of the first century Judean's God? Stephen continues with his sermon to these folks. We read further on in Acts 7:
55. Yet he, continuing in being inherently full of set-apart Breath-effect (or: of [the] Holy Spirit; or: filled with a consecrated attitude), gazing intently into the atmosphere and sky (or: heaven) saw God's glory (or: assumed Appearance), and Jesus [D adds: the Master (or: Lord)], standing at God's right [hand, or, side](or: fixing his eyes into the heaven, sees a manifestation of God which called forth praise - even Jesus, having taken a stand from out of the midst of God's place of honor and power),
56. And so he said, "Look! I am presently watching the atmosphere and skies (or: the heavens) having been fully opened up... and the Son of the Man (the Human Being; = Adam's Son; [p74 reads: God's Son]) standing at God's right [hand, or, side] (or: having taken a stand from out of the midst of the right [parts] of God)!" [Ps. 110:1]
So in these Scriptures, we can observe Yahweh being referenced as "God," in the culture and religion of the Jews of Jesus' day, and in the day of His first followers. But let us look for further evidence.
In Isa. 44, Yahweh is addressing Israel, and in vs. 6, we read:
"Thus says Yahweh - King of Israel, even his Redeemer - Yahweh of hosts:'I am FIRST, and I am LAST, and, BESIDES ME, there is no God.'" (Rotherham, emphasis his)
Yahweh again tells Israel the He is the First and the Last, in Isa. 48:12.
Now, let us turn to the Unveiling. In. Rev. 1:8, we observe the risen Christ saying to John,
"I am continuously (or: repeatedly) the Alpha and the Omega... the Almighty." Then, in 1:17, He tells John, "As for Me, I am the First and the Last."
Next, in 22:13, we read:
"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning (Origin; Source; Headship) and the End (Goal; Finished Product; Purposed Destiny)."
It seems quite clear to us that our risen Lord has appropriated divine expressions, or titles, which Yahweh had applied to Himself. For those who have eyes to see, we have Yahweh from the book of Genesis to the book of Revelation.
The Name, Yahweh, was so revered by Israel that, we are told, when reading a Scripture were YHVH was in the text, they would say "Adonai," which means "Lord." This was probably the reason for the LXX translators to write Kurios (Lord) where the Heb. text had Yahweh.
In. Ps. 110:1, David wrote:
"The declaration of Yahweh to my Lord: You sit at My right hand, until I make Your foes your footstool" (Rotherham, updated).
Jesus cited this verse in Mat. 22:41-45, after asking the Pharisees whose son is the Christ. He concluded to them that the Christ was not David's son... intimating the Christ was God's Son. Elsewhere, He called God His Father (cf Jn. 5:17-18). So Jesus associates Himself with Yahweh, and also claims that this One is His Father. Let us consider two verses in Jn. 8:
56. "Abraham, your father, was exceedingly glad (or: exulted) to the end that he could see My day, and he saw (caught sight of; beheld; observed; perceived) [it] and then was graced (or: favored; or: rejoiced; was made glad)."
58. Jesus says to them, "It is certainly so (Amen, amen; Count on it)! I am telling you, before Abraham comes (or: was to come) into being, I, Myself, am (or: I continuously exist; or: I repeatedly had being; or: I am Being; I am continuous Existence; I AM)."
Here, again, Jesus is associating Himself with the OT, and by extension, Yahweh, the God of the OT.
In Isa. 45:17 we read,
"Israel has been saved and delivered by Yahweh."
Isa. 45:21b-23, He proclaims,
"Was it not I, Yahweh? And there is none else that is God, besides Me, a God righteous and ready to save... Turn unto Me and be saved, all you ends of the earth... By Myself I have sworn... that to Me every knee will bow; [and] every tongue will swear [allegiance]."
Now let us compare Phil. 2:
9. For this reason, God also lifts Him up above (or: highly exalted Him; elevates Him over) and by grace gives to Him (or: joyously favors on Him) The Name - the one over and above every name! - [cf Jn. 17:5; Rev. 3:12; note: bearing a name signifies the authority of that name]
10. to the end that within The Name: Jesus! (or: in union with the name of Jesus; in the midst of this Name belonging to [Yahweh-the-Savior]), every knee (= person) - of the folks upon the heaven (of those belonging to an imposed heaven, or [situated] upon the atmosphere) and of the people existing upon the earth and of the folks dwelling down under the ground (or: on the level of, or pertaining to, subterranean ones; [comment: note the ancient science of the day - a three-tiered universe]) - may bend (or: would bow) in prayer, submission and allegiance,
11. and then every tongue (= person) may speak out the same thing (or: would openly, and joyfully agree; can confess, avow and with praise acclaim) that Jesus Christ [is] Lord (Master; Owner) - [leading] into [the] glory of Father God (or: unto Father God's good reputation; into the midst of a praise-inducing manifestation and assumed appearance which is God: a Father)! [cf Rev. 5:13]
Therefore, we are led to conclude that Yahweh is the Father of Jesus, and Yahweh is the God of the NT.
The book of the Unveiling, from Jesus, gives us further evidence of continuity between the OT and the NT. The visionary connection between the four horsemen/horses of Rev. 6:2-8, and those of Zech. 6:1-8, can easily be seen. The entire Unveiling is filled with allusions to the OT. Take note of the symbolic use of the name Balaam, in Rev. 2:14, and Jezebel, in Rev. 2:20. We have the enigmatic phrase,
"the key of David,"
in Rev. 3:7, and then the
"four living beings"
in Rev. 4:6-8 - echoes of Ezk. 1:5-14, and 10:14.
Rev. 7 presents us with the sealing of 12 thousand from each of 12 tribes of Israel - although in this list one tribe (Dan) is left out, and is replace by Manasses, a son of Joseph. See my commentary on Rev., The End of the Old and the Beginning of the New, for a discussion about the symbolic meaning of this altered list of the traditional tribes of Israel. We could go on with more details, but will end with the Bride of the Lamb being symbolically represented by the New Jerusalem (cf Gal. 4:26,
"the Jerusalem above, which is the mother of us all,"
and even the references to Sarah and Hagar in that same chapter), descending from the atmosphere (heaven), having a Tree of Life and River of Life (allusions to the Garden of Eden), its 12 gates representing the 12 tribes of Israel, and its 12 foundations inscribed with the names of the 12 "apostles" of the Lamb.
There is one more statement that sheds a clear Light on our topic:
Please read this once again, then stop and think about what it has said. It is the SAME God who spoke,
"in the old days of ancient times,"
Who now speaks to us in a Son. That God was, and is, Yahweh.
So what happened to Yahweh? Like most fathers, who desire the success and renown of their children, it seems that Yahweh wanted to "take the back seat" to His Son, and crowned Him with honor and glory. Yahweh was a Savior for Israel, and now Yeshua (Yah is the Savior), aka Jesus, is the Savior of the world. Paul informed us that God (Yahweh) was IN the Christ, reconciling the world to Himself (2 Cor. 5:19).
Yahweh is
"a God who hides Himself" (Isa. 45:15).
But we can see Him is Christ. Yahweh so loved the aggregate of humanity - the world (Jn. 3:16) - that He sent the Son of His love (Col. 1:13) to us, and Jesus said,
"The person having discerned and seen Me has seen, and now perceives, the Father!" (Jn. 14:9).
Jonathan
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