Jehovah All the titles by which the living and true God was made known to Israel have now been brought under consideration with the exception of one, namely, Jehovah (יהוה), which occurs about 5500 times in the O.T. this name has been preserved by our translators in a few passages, but the word Lord, spelt in small capitals, has usually been substituted for it. The LXX set a precedent for this course by almost invariably adopting the word Κύριος, Lord, as a rendering, the only exception being Proverbs 29:26, where δεσπότης, Ruler or Master, is found.
The shorter form, Jah, occurs in Exodus 15:6, Exodus 17:16, in each of which passages our translators have rendered it Lord; it is also found a few times in Isaiah, and in thirty-five passages in the Psalms, the earliest instances being Psalms 77:11, Psalms 89:8 . We are familiar with it in the expression Hallelujah, i.e. Praise Jah, also in compound names suc has Elijah and Jehoshua.
It is a strange fact, with respect to the word Jehovah , that critics should differ as to its pronunciation, its origin, and its meaning. The first difficulty has arisen from the mystery with which the Jews have always surrounded this sacred and (as they hold) incommunicable name; but we may rest content with the traditional pronunciation of the word until there is stronger re as on than appears at present for the substitution of Jahveh, or of some other form. The Assyrians represent it in Israelitish names by the forms Yahu and Yahava (Sayce). The doubt about the signification of the name is owing probably rather to the finiteness of the human understanding than to any uncertainty as to the revelation of Jehovah contained in Scripture. [ in some foreign translations of the Bible the name Jehovah is rendered The Eternal . Perhaps there is no word which, on the whole, conveys the meaning of the name so well; but, after all, the truth which it represents is too many-sided to be rendered by any one word.]
Whatever may be the opinion about Elohim , it is generally agreed that Jehovah is not a generic or class name, but a personal or proper name. Maimonides says that all the names of God which occur in Scripture are derived from his works except one, and that is Jehovah ; and this is called 'the plain name,' because it teaches plainly and unequivocally of the substance of God. A Scotch divine has said, ' in the name Jehovah the Personality of the Supreme is distinctly expressed. It is everywhere a proper name, denoting the person of God, and Him only; whence Elohim partakes more of the character of a common noun, denoting usually, indeed, but not necessarily or uniformly, the Supreme. The Hebrew may say the Elohim , the true God, in opposition to all false Gods; but he never says the Jehovah , for Jehovah is the name of the true God only. He says again and again my god, but never my Jehovah , for when he says "my God" he means Jehovah . He speaks of the God of Israel, but never of the Jehovah of Israel, for there is no other Jehovah . He speaks of the living God, but never of the living Jehovah , for he cannot conceive of Jehova has other than living.' [See Fairbairn's Dict. of the Bible, art. Jehovah .]
The meaning, and, in all probability, the etymology [There has been much difference of opinion as to the formation of the word; but it may be noted that the v introduced into the name may be illustrated by the in the name of Eve .] of this name, is to be looked for in Exodus 3:14, where, in answer to the question of Moses as to the name of the Elohim who was addressing him, the Lord said to Moses, 'I Am That I Am' [The words above rendered 'I am that I am' are almost unapproachable, after all. Owing to the vagueness of the Hebrew tense (which is the same in both parts of the sentence) we might render them in various ways, but none are better than our own, denoting as they do a Personal, Continuous, Absolute, Self-determining Existence. It ought to be observed that the Hebrew word rendered I AM occurs in several important prophetic passages, in which it has generally been rendered ' I will be ,' Thus, in this same chapter of Exodus, and the 12th verse, we read, 'Certainly I will be with thee;' so in Genesis 26:3 . ' I will be with thee and will bless thee;' and in Genesis 31:3, ' I will be with thee.' in these and similar passages we might render the words 'I am with thee.' They mark an eternal, unchanging Presence. Compare the identical words used by the Lord (Jesus Christ?) in Acts 18:10 . 'I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee;' also John 8:58, 'Before Abraham came into being I am.'] --'Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you ... Jehovah , the Elohim of your fathers-- of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, hath sent me unto you; this is my Name for ever, and this is my Memorial [Compare Hosea 12:5, ' Jehovah is his memorial, i.e. the name by which his attributes were always to be brought to mind.] unto all generations.' Again, in the sixth chapter (verses 2, 3), we read, 'I am Jehovah , and I appeared unto Abraham, and unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by (the name of) El-Shaddai, and, as regards my name Jehovah , I was not fully known by them; yet, verily, I have established (or rather, taking the tense as a prophetic future,--I will establish) my covenant with them to give them the l and of Canaan.' These two passages taken together elucidate the following points: first, that though the name Jehovah was in frequent use as the title of the Elohim of the Patriarchs, yet its full significance was not revealed to them; secondly, that it was to be viewed in connection with the fulfilment of God's covenant and promise that now, after the lapse of some hundred years, the true import of the name was to be unfolded by the manifestation of a personal living Being, working in behalf of Israel, so as to fulfil the promises made to the Fathers. Thus the sublime idea of an unchanging, ever-living God, remaining faithful to his word through many generations, began to dawn up on the mind of Israel, and that which was hoped for, and sealed up in the Name during the Patriarchal age, began to work itself out into a substantial reality. God's personal existence, the continuity of his dealings with man, the unchangeableness of his promises, and the whole revelation of his redeeming mercy, gather round the name Jehovah . 'Thus saith Jehovah ,' not 'thus saith Elohim ,' is the general introduction to the prophetic messages. It is as Jehovah that God became the Saviour of Israel, and as Jehovah He saves the world; and this is the truth embodied in the name of Jesus, which is literally Jehovah - Saviour.
It is supposed by some critics that the contributors to the early Books of the Bible were of different schools of thought, some believing in Elohim , some in Jehovah , and some in both. this is no place for discussing such a theory. Undoubtedly some writers preferred to use one name and some another. this is demonstrated by a comparison of parallel texts in Kings and Chronicles. [See Deuterographs .] Taking the Books as they stand, the important point to notice is that the various names of God are used by the sacred writers advisedly, so as to bring out the various aspects of his character and dealings. Thus, the first chapter of Genes is sets forth Creation as an act of power; hence Elohim is always used. The second chapter, which properly begins at the fourth verse, brings Elohim into communion with man; hence He is called Jehovah Elohim in the third chapter it may be observed that the Serpent avoids the use of the name Jehovah in the fourth chapter the offerings of Cain and Abel are made to Jehovah , and this is the case with the whole sacrificial system, both under the Patriarchal and the Levitical dispensation in many cases the offerings to Jehovah are accompanied by the calling on his name (see Genesis 12:8, Genesis 13:4); and probably from the earliest days the Name of Jehovah was taken as the embodiment of that hope for the human race which found its expression in sacrifice and in prayer (see Genesis 4:26).
Although man had fallen, Jehovah had not forsaken him; his Spirit still strove with man (Genesis 6:3), but the judicial aspect of his nature had to be exercised in punishment, as we see from the history of the Deluge, the confusion of tongues, and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrha in Genesis 9:26, Jehovah is called the God of Shem; and in 14:22, He is identified by Abram with El-Elion, 'the Most High God,' who is 'the Possess or of heaven and earth.'
In Genesis 15:1, we are introduced to the expression which afterwards became so familiar, 'the Word of Jehovah ;' and throughout that remarkable chapter the name Elohim does not occur, because it is the name Jehovah which God adopts when making his communications and covenants with man in chap. 16 'the angel of Jehovah ' is spoken of for the first time, and appears to be identical with Jehovah Himself; He is also described by Abraham as 'the Judge of all the earth' (chap. 18:25).
The Patriarchs are frequently represented as worshipping and holding spiritual communication with Jehovah , who seems to have revealed Himself in a human form to these privileged children of Adam, whether through visions or otherwise (see Genesis 1:18-2, Genesis 1:28-17, Genesis 1:32-30).
In Exodus 24:10, we are told of the Elders that 'they saw the God of Israel ... and did eat and drink.' What a marvellous sight, and what a mysterious feast is here recorded! but this God of Israel must have been Jehovah , whom Jacob or Israel worshipped, and who was now revealing Himself to fulfil the promises made to the fathers. [The LXX had not the courage to translate this literally, but rendered it, 'They saw the place where the God of Israel stood.']
Jehovah is represented as in constant communication with Moses; and when He threatened that He would not go up to the l and of Canaan with the people because of their idolatry, the law-giver took the sacred tent which already existed (for there must have been worship from the beginning), and pitched it without the camp, and 'the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the do or of the tabernacle, and talked with Moses. and Jehovah spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend' (Exodus 1:33-11). Then it was that Moses besought this august Being to show him his glory, and his merciful answer was given and the revelation made: ' Jehovah , the merciful and gracious El, long-suffering, and abounding in loving-kindness and truth. Keeping loving-kindness for thousands, pardoning iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means hold men guiltless; visiting the iniquity of the fathers up on the children, and up on the children's children, unto the third and fourth generation' (Exodus 1:34-7).
Here, then, we have the full meaning of the name Jehovah , and we find that it sums up both the merciful and the judicial aspects of the Divine character, so that while the title Elohim sets forth God's creative and sustaining Power, Shaddal his Bounty, and Elion his Sublimity, the name Jehovah sets forth his essential and unswerving principles of mercy and judgment, and presents Him as a Father, a Friend, and a Moral Governor.