*fascinating* origin of jehovah

[Gothic_J]

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/y/yahweh.html

[Doctor X]

Gothicj:

According to Cross, YHWH is the "causitive imperfect of the verb 'to be.'"

Now that that is clear. . . .

I had thought someone else would comment on this. Whilst looking for information on how to "transliterate" Hebrew, I stumbl'd upon:

Some people render the four-letter Name as "Jehovah," but this pronunciation is particularly unlikely. The word "Jehovah" comes from the fact that ancient Jewish texts used to put the vowels of the Name "Adonai" (the usual substitute for YHVH) under the consonants of YHVH to remind people not to pronounce YHVH as written. A sixteenth century German Christian scribe, while transliterating the Bible into Latin for the Pope, wrote the Name out as it appeared in his texts, with the consonants of YHVH and the vowels of Adonai, and came up with the word JeHoVaH, and the name stuck.

from
Jewish 101 (http://www.jewfaq.org/name.htm)

--J.D.

Reference:

Frank Moore Cross. Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic: Essays in the History of Religion of Israel Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1973.

[andy_d]

"Adonai" just means "lord" doesn't it?