KAVOD SERIES · PART ONE · ARTICLE 6
THE GLORY DUE HIS NAME · GOD MAKES HIMSELF KNOWN
In the previous article, we learned that Adonai means Lord or Master. God owns what He has made, possesses rightful authority over our lives, and deserves our willing obedience.
But readers of the Bible soon encounter a related question. Why do some Christians call God Yahweh while others say Jehovah? Why does the King James Version usually print LORD in capital letters, yet occasionally use JEHOVAH? Are these different names, competing pronunciations, or different ways of referring to the same God?
The answer takes us into the history of the Hebrew Bible, but the purpose of that history is not merely academic. It helps us read Scripture with greater understanding and worship God with greater reverence.
YHWH, Yahweh, Jehovah, and the small-capital word LORD do not identify different gods. They direct us to the covenant name of the one true God who made Himself known to His people.
This is Article 6 in KAVOD: The Glory Due His Name, a series devoted to knowing, worshiping, and proclaiming the God who has made Himself known.
The Name Written with Four Letters
When God spoke to Moses from the burning bush, He did not remain hidden behind a general idea of deity. He revealed His covenant name.
“And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” Exodus 3:15
The name translated LORD in this verse is written with four Hebrew consonants: YHWH. In Hebrew, the letters are יהוה. They are commonly identified as yod, he, waw, he.
These four letters are sometimes called the Tetragrammaton, a term meaning “four letters.”
YHWH is not merely another title like King, Shepherd, Creator, or Master. It is God’s revealed covenant name. It identifies the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God who hears the cries of His people, remembers His covenant, delivers them from bondage, and remains faithful to His promises.
God’s name is inseparable from who He is. When He reveals His name, He is making Himself known.
Why English Bibles Print LORD
Most English Bibles represent YHWH with the word LORD printed in small capital letters. This does not mean that the Hebrew text contains the ordinary word for “lord” at those places. It is a translation convention used to show the reader that the covenant name YHWH stands behind the English word.
That distinction helps us understand expressions such as Lord GOD in the King James Version. In many such passages, Lord represents Adonai, while GOD in capital letters represents YHWH.
Lord ordinarily represents Adonai, meaning Lord or Master.
LORD ordinarily represents YHWH, God’s covenant name.
Lord GOD can represent Adonai YHWH, meaning “Lord YHWH.”
The English word LORD is therefore not intended to erase God’s name. It signals that His covenant name appears in the Hebrew text.
Why the Pronunciation Became Uncertain
Ancient written Hebrew primarily recorded consonants. Readers learned the proper pronunciation through a living oral tradition.
Over time, Jewish readers became increasingly reluctant to speak the divine name aloud. This practice grew from a desire to treat God’s name with reverence and to avoid taking it in vain. When readers encountered YHWH in the biblical text, they commonly said Adonai, meaning “Lord,” instead.
Because the divine name was not ordinarily spoken, its original pronunciation was no longer preserved with complete certainty.
Centuries later, Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes developed a system of vowel markings to preserve the traditional reading of the Hebrew Scriptures. When they came to YHWH, they supplied vowel signs that reminded the reader to say Adonai rather than attempt to pronounce the written name. In certain settings, another reading substitute was used to avoid saying Adonai Adonai.
Those markings served as reading instructions. They were not intended to create a new divine name.
How the Form Jehovah Developed
The form Jehovah arose when the consonants of YHWH were read together with the vowel markings associated with the traditional substitute Adonai. As that combined form passed through Latin and European languages, changes in spelling and pronunciation eventually produced the English word Jehovah.
This means that Jehovah is probably not the way the ancient Israelites pronounced YHWH. But it does not follow that Jehovah is the name of a false god or a pagan corruption that Christians must reject.
Jehovah is a historic English form of the biblical covenant name. It appears in Christian Bibles, hymns, prayers, sermons, and theological writings extending back centuries.
The King James Version ordinarily translates YHWH as LORD, but it uses the standalone form JEHOVAH four times:
“That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.” Psalm 83:18
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The other three occurrences are Exodus 6:3, Isaiah 12:2, and Isaiah 26:4. The form also appears in familiar expressions such as Jehovah-jireh, Jehovah-nissi, and Jehovah-shalom.
When generations of Christians sang, “Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah,” they were not worshiping another god. They were addressing the LORD revealed in Scripture.
Why Many Scholars Use Yahweh
Most Hebrew scholars today regard Yahweh as the best-supported reconstruction of the ancient pronunciation of YHWH.
There are linguistic and historical reasons for that conclusion, including shortened forms of the divine name that appear in Hebrew personal names and expressions of praise. The familiar word Hallelujah, for example, contains the shortened form Yah and means “Praise the LORD.”
The King James Version preserves this shortened form in Psalm 68:
“Sing unto God, sing praises to his name: extol him that rideth upon the heavens by his name JAH, and rejoice before him.” Psalm 68:4
For these reasons, Yahweh probably comes closer to the ancient pronunciation than Jehovah. Yet responsible scholarship should also acknowledge that we do not possess an audio recording from the days of Moses. The precise pronunciation cannot be established with absolute certainty.
That limitation should produce humility, not anxiety.
Is Jehovah Wrong?
If the question is strictly historical, Yahweh is more likely to approximate the ancient Hebrew pronunciation.
If the question is whether Christians sin by using the traditional English form Jehovah, the answer is no.
Jehovah has an established place in English Christian usage. It appears in the King James Version and in many faithful hymns. A believer who says Jehovah is seeking to address the God identified by YHWH, not another deity.
Likewise, a believer who says Yahweh should not imagine that using a more historically probable pronunciation makes his worship purer or his faith superior.
Christians should pursue accuracy, but we must not turn pronunciation into spiritual pride. Scripture never teaches that salvation, answered prayer, or access to God depends upon correctly reproducing ancient Hebrew sounds.
We are saved through faith in Jesus Christ, not through mastery of Hebrew pronunciation.
His Name Is Not a Religious Formula
There is no magical power in arranging the right syllables or speaking them with a particular accent.
The names of God are not verbal charms. They do not give us control over Him. They reveal the God who exercises rightful authority over us.
To know God’s name is to know the God who has made Himself known. It is to trust His character, receive His Word, rest in His promises, obey His commands, and proclaim His glory.
Taking God’s name seriously involves far more than pronouncing it correctly. A person may speak the Hebrew syllables carefully while living as though God had never spoken. Another may reverently say “the LORD” and honor Him through faithful worship and obedience.
The danger is not simply that we might mispronounce God’s name. The greater danger is that we might speak His name while misrepresenting His character, disregarding His authority, or attaching His holiness to what is false.
God’s name must never become a tool for displaying our knowledge. His name calls us to humility, reverence, worship, and faithfulness.
The Name Revealed in Jesus Christ
The fullest revelation of God is not found in recovering a lost pronunciation. It is found in Jesus Christ.
Jesus prayed to the Father:
“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world.” John 17:6
Jesus did more than teach His disciples how to pronounce a Hebrew word. He manifested the Father’s name by revealing His person, character, truth, holiness, love, authority, and saving purpose.
The Son makes the Father known.
Jesus also declared:
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” John 8:58
His hearers understood that this was no ordinary claim. Jesus did not present Himself merely as a teacher who appeared after Abraham. He declared an eternal existence that reached beyond Abraham and identified Him with the divine reality revealed in the words, “I AM.”
The God who spoke to Moses has made Himself known through the Son. Jesus Christ is not a lesser being standing outside the identity of God. He is the eternal Word made flesh, one with the Father, worthy of the same faith, honor, and worship.
We do not honor YHWH by diminishing Jesus. We honor the Father by honoring the Son He sent.
Because This Is Who God Is
Because God has revealed His covenant name, we do not have the freedom to reinvent Him according to our preferences.
Because He is YHWH, He is eternally faithful to His character and His promises.
Because His name is holy, we must not use it carelessly, falsely, manipulatively, or for our own glory.
Because He has made Himself known, we can call upon Him with confidence rather than reaching toward an unknown god.
Because Yahweh and Jehovah refer to the same covenant name, Christians should pursue understanding without dividing over pronunciation.
Because the Father has revealed Himself through the Son, our knowledge of God must lead us to Jesus Christ.
And because His name is worthy of glory, our lives should declare that He is who He says He is.
A Prayer of Worship
YHWH, covenant-keeping God, You have not left us to imagine who You are. You have spoken, acted, and made Your name known. Forgive us for every careless use of Your holy name and for every way our lives have failed to represent You faithfully. Keep us from pride in our knowledge and from trusting in words rather than in You. Teach us to know You as You have revealed Yourself in Scripture and through Your Son, Jesus Christ. May our worship be reverent, our obedience sincere, and our witness true. Give unto Your name the glory that is already Yours. Amen.
Next in the journey: El Elyon, God Most High.
Scripture to Carry With You
“And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” Exodus 3:15
“That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.” Psalm 83:18
“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world.” John 17:6
For Further Study
Readers who want to examine the language and history more deeply may consult:
- Writing the Name of God in Greek, Tyndale House, Cambridge, an examination of how the divine name was written, translated, and treated in ancient Jewish and early Christian manuscripts. Tyndale House is an evangelical biblical research institute specializing in the original languages and textual history of Scripture.
- YHWH / LORD, BibleProject, a concise visual explanation of YHWH, Adonai, LORD, and Jehovah.
These resources are offered for historical and linguistic background. Lexicons and research institutes can illuminate the language and transmission of the biblical text, but Scripture remains the governing authority for Christian doctrine.
What Is KAVOD?
Kavod is the Hebrew word commonly translated glory, honor, or majesty. It carries the sense of weightiness and worth. When Scripture speaks of the kavod of God, it directs us to the overwhelming greatness, holiness, beauty, and splendor of who He is.
To give God glory is not to add something He lacks, but to recognize, proclaim, and live in the light of the glory that is already His.
“Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.” Psalm 96:8
Part One: God Has Made Himself Known
We began Part One by asking why the names of God matter. We then considered YHWH, the covenant name; I AM, the God who depends upon no one; Elohim, the mighty Creator; and Adonai, our Lord and Master. We have now examined why readers encounter the forms Yahweh, Jehovah, and LORD.
The central truth throughout these six articles has remained the same: God has not left us to imagine who He is. He has made Himself known through His names, His works, His written Word, and most fully through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Part Two will turn from the foundational names and designations of God to the character they reveal.
The God whose covenant name is YHWH is not one god among many. He is El Elyon, God Most High.
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