Perspectives and views on various biblical topics
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Faith is being sure and positive. Hope is expectation and anticipation. Belief is receiving and accepting. Knowledge is acquired information. Wisdom is the applied use of knowledge with understanding. Trust is having confidence in. Searching is seeking to find or discover. Diligence is not giving up, being persistent. Discernment is perceiving and analyzing. Judgment is a conclusion. Reward is an award given for being obedient and mindful in regards to the specific Laws of the Universe. Punishment is a penalty for being disobedient and ignorant for not regarding the specific Laws of the Universe. Truth is Truth and it is what it is. It is that simple and so it is.
The true name of The Messiah : From Eliyah.com
According to scripture, there is only one name that we should call on for salvation :
Acts 4 : 12 Neither is there salvation in any other:
for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Jesus is not His name. The name Jesus is a relatively modern
invention. His original name is Yahushua. You can look it up in the Strong's Concordance
( Greek #2424).
The true name of the Almighty Creator is YAHWEH. The meaning
of the name Yahushua is, "Yahweh is salvation."
Yahushua said :
John 5 : 43 "I am come in my Father's name, and ye
receive me not; if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive."
But why is it important ? Won't he know that we are talking to or about him
no matter what we call him ?
Let's start with the fact that Yahushua did not come to change
or destroy the Law. Yahushua said :
Matt 5 : 17 "Think not that I am come to destroy
the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill."
The word fulfill means to 'perform', and that is exactly what
Yahushua did! For a further study on the Law, see: "Why all believers in Yahushua
should be keeping the Law."
The Third Commandment says -
Exodus 20 : 7 "Thou shalt not
take the name of Yahweh thy Elohim in vain; for Yahweh will not hold him guiltless
that taketh his name in vain."
The word vain is Strong's Hebrew #7723, and it means to
desolate or to bring to nothing. In the English translations of the Old Testament,
where you see the term "The Lord", when it is applied to the Almighty, it should say YAHWEH.
Psalm 135 : 13 Thy name, O Yahweh,
[endureth] for ever; [and] thy memorial, O Yahweh, throughout all generations.
The question can be asked, "Did Yahushua use the name of the
Heavenly Father?" Yahushua said :
John 17 : 26 "And I have declared unto them
thy name, and will declare [it]: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may
be in them, and I in them."
When Yahushua gave instructions on how to pray, he started the prayer out as follows:
Matt 6 : 9 "After this manner therefore pray ye:
Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name."
I would like to show other scriptures that show the importance of the name of the
Messiah, the son of Yahweh :
John 1 : 12 But as many as received
him, to them gave he power to become the sons of Yahweh, [even] to them that believe on his name:
Matt 24 : 9 "Then shall they deliver you up to be
afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's
sake."
Matt 18 : 20 For where two or three are gathered
together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
John 14 : 13 "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that
will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son..14 If ye shall ask any thing
in my name, I will do [it]."
John 14 : 26 "But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and
bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."
John 15 : 16 "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen
you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and [that] your
fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may
give it you."
John 15 : 20 "Remember the word that I said unto
you, The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they
will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know
not him that sent me."
Others can be found here. Some will
still say that "Jesus is good enough". But that is not his name at all. It is like
calling Him "Larry" or "Billy". Neither Larry, Billy or Jesus are His name. So once
we know the truth, why continue in error?
Let us remember what the Apostle said:
Acts 2 : 38 Then Kepha (Peter)
said unto them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Yahushua
the Messiah for the forgiveness of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."
Yahushua's name foretold in Zechariah!
Here are some scriptures that show the "Branch" to be the future Messiah :
Jeremiah 33 : 15 - 16 In those
days, and at that time, will I cause the BRANCH of righteousness to grow up to David;
and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land. In those days
shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell in safety: and this [is the name]
by which she shall be called, Yahweh our righteousness.
Isaiah 11 : 1 - 5 And there shall come forth a rod
out of the stem of Jesse, and a BRANCH shall grow out of his roots. And the
spirit of Yahweh shall rest upon him, (see John 1:32) the spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Yahweh;
And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of Yahweh: and he shall not
judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears;
But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the
meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with
the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be
the belt of his loins,and faithfulness the belt of his reins.
Jeremiah 23 : 2 - 8 Therefore thus saith Yahweh Elohim
of Israel against the shepherds that feed my people; "Ye have scattered my flock,
and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the
evil of your doings", saith Yahweh. "And I will gather the remnant of my flock
from all countries where I have driven them, and will bring them again to their
folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. And I will set shepherds over
them who shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither
shall they be lacking", saith Yahweh. "Behold, the days come", saith Yahweh, "that
I will raise to David a righteous BRANCH, and a King shall reign and prosper, and
shall execute judgment and justice upon the earth. In his days Judah shall
be saved, and Israel shall dwell in safety: and this [is] his name by which he shall
be called, YAHWEH OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. Therefore, behold, the days come", saith Yahweh,
"that they shall no more say, Yahweh liveth, who brought the children of Israel
out of the land of Egypt; But, Yahweh liveth, who brought and who led the seed of
the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all countries where I have
driven them; and they shall dwell in their own land."
Zechariah 3 : 8 Hear now, O
Joshua the high priest, thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they [are]
men wondered at: for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
Here is Yahushua's name prophesied :
Zechariah 6 : 9 - 11 And the word of Yahweh came to me,
saying, "Take of [them of] the captivity, [even] ofHeldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah,
who are come from Babylon, and come thou the same day, and go into the house of
Josiah the son of Zephaniah; Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set
[them] upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest;"
Joshua is pronounced Yahushua in the original Hebrew because Hebrew has no "J" or "J" sound :
Zechariah 6 : 12 And speak to him, saying, "Thus speaketh
Yahweh of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name [is] The BRANCH; and he shall
grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of Yahweh :"
So the Scripture is saying: "Behold (or look) the man (Yahushua)
whose NAME is the BRANCH!" Therefore the current High Priest of Judah in the days
of Zechariah Joshua (Yahushua) has the name of the "BRANCH" or the coming Messiah.
Did the Messiah say the Heavenly Father's Name ?
There are some who believe that the Messiah only referred to
Yahweh as "The Father" or believe that Yahushua also followed the doctrine that
states Yahweh's name is too holy to pronounce. But this was one of many false
teachings coming out of that era. Yahushua flatly condemned those who would
rather do things according to the "tradition of the elders" rather than the way
Yahweh wanted them done. It should be obvious to anyone that when Yahweh does
something nearly 7,000 times.... that is the way He wants it to be done. He
doesn't want us to come in later and change the way He has done things. Yet
Yahweh placed His name in scripture nearly 7,000 times and the "tradition of the
elders" is to replace His name each one of those 7,000 times with a title of man's
own choosing (e.g. LORD, GOD, Adonai, HaShem, etc).
Before we look at Yahushua's example, let us first examine
the meaning of the word "name" in scripture. It comes from the Hebrew word "Shem".
Here is a definition of this word in the Strong's Lexicon :
Strong's # 8034 Shem; a primitive
word [perhaps rather from 7760 through the idea of definite and conspicuous position;
compare 8064]; an appellation, as a mark or memorial of individuality; by implication
honor, authority, character: - + base, [in-] fame[-ous], name[-d], renown, report.
As we can see from the above definition,
Yahweh's name is not only represents His "character" but the Name Yahweh is also
"His mark". Therefore the word "Shem"/Name refers to His literal written or
spoken name as well as His character. If it did not refer to His literal written
and spoken name then one could say that Yahweh does not have a written name at all.
But we know that is not true:
Isaiah 42 : 8 "I am Yahweh: that is my name: and
my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images."
According to the above definition, His Name is also is His "memorial of individuality".This definition goes hand in hand with scripture:
Exodus 3 : 15 And Elohim said moreover to Moses,
"Thus shalt thou say to the children of Israel, Yahweh Elohim of your fathers, the
Elohim of Abraham, the Elohim of Isaac, and the Elohim of Jacob, hath sent me to
you: this [is] my name for ever, and this [is] my memorial to all generations."
Man has set up many memorials for himself such as "The Wall"
in Washington DC. If one were to go and desecrate that memorial and replace
it with a bunch of different names, this person could expect to receive a great
punishment for his crime. Now if we wouldn't desecrate one of man's memorials,
then why would anyone want to desecrate Yahweh's Memorial - His Name ? Do
we have the authority to change scripture and replace His name with a title of our
own liking ? Surely the Messiah would not do this, especially when reading
the scriptures in the Synagogue: (Note from the Dark Knight, I made
an edit using the authorized in the following verse instead of placing the NKJV
that the website used. Both are quite similar in translation other than where
the name of Yahweh was omitted.)
Luke 4 : 17 - 21 And there was delivered unto him
the book of the prophet Esaias (Isaiah). And when he had opened the book,
he found the place where it was written, "The Spirit of Yahweh is upon me, because
he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the
brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to
the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised. To preach the acceptable
year of Yahweh." And he closed the book and he gave it again to the minister
and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened
on him. And he began to say unto them, "This day is this scripture fulfilled
in your ears."
Let's examine some of the things the Messiah said concerning His Father's name:
John 5 : 43 "I am come in my Father's name, and ye
receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive."
Again, we must recognize the dual meaning of the word "Name"
here. Not only did He come by His Father's authority, but He also came in His Father's
literal written and spoken name. This is proven when we understand the Messiah's
name as "Yahushua" or "Yahweh (is) Salvation".
Peter (in Acts 3) confirmed that the following scripture was speaking of Yahushua:
Deut 18 : 18 "I will raise them up a Prophet from
among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he
shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass,
[that] whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name,
I will require [it] of him."
This is a direct statement saying that Yahushua did 'speak'
in His Father's name. Surely then He did not hide it, substitute it, or change it.
He spoke in it. Also it was written of our Savior:
Psalm 118 : 26 Blessed [be] he that cometh in the name of Yahweh..
So here we have 3 witnesses that Yahushua did come in His
Father's name and speak in His Father's name. Nevertheless, lets examine more evidence.
In Yahushua's prayer in John 17 He says:
John 17 : 5 "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with
thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine
they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they
have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee."
And again:
John 17 : 26 "And I have declared unto them thy name,
and will declare [it]: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."
This was a fulfillment of scripture in the great Psalm 22:
Psalm 22 : 22 "I will declare thy name unto my brethren:
in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee."
Scripture does not lie. If it
says that Yahushua declared His name, He had to have done so. He not only
declared His Father's literal and spoken name, but also His true character to the
people. However, it is evident that not all had "ears to hear" concerning
His Father's true character. Not unlike today, they had much baggage (traditions)
left over from their Fathers. Yahushua clearly condemned the traditions that
were not in line with Yahweh's word. As He had said:
Mark 7 : 9 "And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of Elohim, that ye may keep your own tradition."
One of the traditions was that Yahweh's name was too holy to pronounce.
The question might be asked "Why did Yahushua refer to
Yahweh as "Father"? I believe that there are many scriptures that indicate the Messiah
was also called "Yahweh" in the old testament. For instance:
Isaiah 44 : 6 Thus saith Yahweh the
King of Israel, and His redeemer Yahweh of hosts; "I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no El."
Notice that there are two called "Yahweh"
in this verse. 1) Yahweh, King of Israel and 2) Yahweh's Redeemer, "Yahweh of Hosts".
This is one of many verses that refers to the Son by the name "Yahweh" (e.g. Jeremiah
23:5-6). It speaks to the fact that Yahweh's name is in Him.
Because He was called by His Father's name "Yahweh" in
some scriptures, it is possible that one reason Yahushua often called Him "Father"
was to show that He is to be distinguished from Yahweh the Father. This would
assist in disproving any teaching that may later creep in that Yahushua was the
Father (e.g. the "oneness" doctrine") rather than He being distinct from the Father.
Perhaps I cannot directly prove this. Nevertheless since He was the Son of
Yahweh, there would naturally be a greater frequency of Yahushua calling Yahweh
"Father". The fact that He often called Him Father doesn't mean that He never
called Him by His name, Yahweh. And of course it is not a wrong thing to call Yahweh
by a title that fitly describes Him. He is our Father, our Creator, our Master,
our King. The problem lies in replacing, changing and failing to praise, exalt,
bless, love, teach, preach, anoint, assemble, believe, give thanks, honor and call
on His name as scripture teaches us.
Now let's examine the trial in which Yahushua was sentenced to death.
Matt 26 : 64 - 66 Yahushua saith unto him, "Thou
hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting
on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Then the high
priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have
we of witnesses ? Behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. What think
ye ?", They answered and said, "He is guilty of death."
In light of these verses, it is fascinating
to study the historical context of what was going on. Based on the above scripture,
it is evident that the official charge against the Messiah was "blasphemy".
The word "Power" in verse 64 was a popular 'euphemism' or substitution for the divine
name Yahweh. Now according to the Mishna:
"He who blasphemes is liable only when he will have fully
pronounced the Divine Name", said R. Joshua ben Qorha, "on every day (of the trial)
they examine the witnesses with a substituted name. When sentence was to be given
they did not declare him guilty of death with the substituted name, but they put
everyone out and ask the most important of the witnesses, saying to him, "Say, what
exactly did you hear?" And he says what he heard. And the judges stand on their
feet and tear their clothing, and they may not mend them again. (m.San. 7:5)".
Therefore, it is evident that historically no man could
be sentenced for blasphemy unless he had actually spoken the Divine Name.
This is further proven when we see that the High Priest "rent his clothes" upon
hearing the name since Yahushua was his own witness (as he said "what further need
have we of witnesses?").
Finally, there is strong evidence that Yahushua spoke the
name aloud in Mt. 4:7; 4:10; 5:33; 21:42; 22:37 & 22:44. The Hebrew version
DuTillet has 3 yods in the place of the name "Yahweh" and the Shem Tob has a "Heh"
in those places. These all indicate He spoke the name since there is no Hebrew
word with a single Heh or 3 consecutive Yod's. This is one of the multitude
of attempts to falsify His name by those who believed in the ineffable name doctrine.
The ineffable name doctrine states that Yahweh's name is too holy to pronounce.
Clement of Alexandria did not hold to this doctrine, but others did like Jerome:
"For no one can utter the name of the ineffable deity;
and if any one dare to say that there is a name, he raves with a hopeless madness." (I Apol.,61)
"But to the father of all, who is unbegotten, there is
no name given. For by whatever name he be called, he has as his elder the person
who gives him the name. But these words, Father, and Deity, and Creator, and Lord,
and Master, are not names but appelations derived from good deeds and functions."
(II Apol., 6)
With this in mind, it is no wonder that the manuscripts
we have today do not contain the name. We know that the 'church fathers' quickly
departed from the true Sabbath. It shouldn't be difficult to believe that they also
quickly dropped the use of the true name of our Creator. It is very evident that
the "ineffable name" doctrine is totally unscriptural. It flies in the face of scriptures like:
Exodus 9 : 16 And in very
deed for this [cause] have I raised thee up, for to shew [in] thee my power; and
that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.
Isaiah 52 : 6 "My people shall know my name.."
Psalms 116 : 4 Then I called upon the name of Yahweh;
O Yahweh, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
Psalms 116 : 13 I will take the cup of salvation,
and call upon the name of Yahweh.
Psalms 116 : 17 I will offer to thee the sacrifice
of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of Yahweh.
Isaiah 12 : 4 And in that day shall ye say, Praise
Yahweh, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that
his name is exalted.
I think it is better to trust in what
the scriptures say concerning His name rather than trusting in the reasoning that
"since the Greek manuscripts which we have today (which are not original) do not
contain the name, it must not be important." The truth is that Greek copies
of the Old Testament prior to the mid 2nd century DO contain the sacred name IN
HEBREW within the text itself. Manuscripts found after that era replace the
sacred name with "Kyrios". No new testament manuscripts prior to the mid-2nd
century have ever been found with the possible exception of some fragments out of
the book of John. In those fragments, there are no instances where Yahweh's
name is replaced with "Kyrios".
In the end, Yahweh's word will be the determining factor
in what is right and what is wrong. Surely the scriptures declare the importance
of His name. I will close with one final scripture:
Psalms 105 : 1 O give thanks to Yahweh; call upon
his name: make known his deeds among the people.
This last scripture is one of many instances where we are told to call on His name.
We can be assured that the Perfect One, Yahushua the Messiah did just that.
This concludes the study of the True Name of The Messiah.