Error?  In our Creator’s Identity?

The use and abuse or His Name

www.yahshuaservant.com

 

Dan Baxley

 

This article is a lot of re-hash of things found throughout this Web site but it seems to me the subject just cannot be discussed enough.  Some of the positions taken, by well meaning individuals and groups, concerning the Identity of our Savior and Creator have a way of turning people off from the truth.  Should you be so concerned about words and titles that have a pagan past?  Perhaps, in some cases, but not to the point we forget the real issue, not the burying of pagan languages, but of the revelation of the true Identity of the True God and out Creator.  His name, it cannot be denied, is above all others.  We must live in this world, like it or not, until the return of our Savior, YaHshua.  There is no pure language by which we can worship our Creator nor to communicate the message of our Savior to other.  When asked we should be prepared to give an answer in a language they can understand.  What about the Name?  It is the one constant it has never changed just as the Creator has never changed.  There have been attempts at covering it even eliminating it but without success.  The purity of the Creator’s Name is evident by the inability of anyone to lay a definition on the Name.  Some have applied the “identity’ of Creator and that would be correct but his is the second part of the Name as we see it in the Hebrew Scripture.  It is the first part of that Holy Name, a Name our Messiah was given -- a Name that is indefinable.  It cannot be transposed into anything else, it stands on its own, by itself, in a single referenced to the Creator of all things, the sustainer of all things and we know this only by the revelation of the second part of that divine name. 

 First it should be understood that there is only one that can be referred to as the Creator of all things, there is only one that can claim to be the originator of all that we see, hear, feel -- the unseen.  This Being is the same “one” that claims the people of Israel, the children of Jacob as his own, as his wife and He their husband and King -- at least that is the way it was supposed to be.  This Being purposely identified Himself with the history of this people, and revealed His personal Name to them -- this takes us straight to the written word, the writings we have come to know as the Holy Bible – The Old Testament, more properly called the Old Covenant.

 Testaments and Covenants (A brief understanding)

 A “Testament” is something a decease person might leave behind as a witness to their having been here and passing authority to another to distribute their earthly remains and possessions according to the deceased wishes.  Calling the Holy Bible the Old Testament and the New Testament might be fitting they are really “Covenants”, and while a Testament is a type of Covenant, the idea of an Old Covenant and then a New Covenant is more accurate a term.  YHWH made a covenant with the people of Israel, just as He had with Abraham.  A covenant is an agreement between parties, even Adam and Eve were involved in a covenant with their Creator, YHWH.  A testament may testify but a covenant is, for the most part, a signed agreement between individuals.  It is a “Covenant” the Creator presented to Israel from the Mountain of Laws.  The conditions were presented and the people accepted.  Once they had signed the agreement by this spiritual and physical action they commenced to break it. 

A covenant, however, is not so easily dissolved and YHWH had every intention of giving this people every opportunity to make their backsliding right.  In fact, it is within this “Covenant” He revealed His plan for the Salvation of man – in spite of himself.  The only way a covenant can be dissolved is by the death of one or the other involved in the covenant.  When the Messiah died on the cross He effectively dissolved the Covenant made with Israel – but not the Covenant made with Abraham.  You see there are types of “covenant”, the covenant with Israel is a “you do this and I’ll do that” agreement, but the agreement with Abraham was a “promise”. The Creator essentially told Abraham that because he believed Him, without question, He would favor Abraham and make him a father of many nations.  The Covenant of Abraham was repeated and past on – not so the covenant made with the people of Israel.  Their very existence does not center in the covenant made with them as a people but with the Covenant of Abraham, called the Father of the Faithful, by this we understand that anyone of the Faith of Abraham can come into this Covenant blessing.

 While the Old Covenant of Israel has been moved out of the way, the Covenant of “do this and do that” by the death of Yahshua the “promise” covenant remains.  It is for this reason Israel will be saved.  The condition and presence of Israel today is the direct result of this “Promise Covenant” and for prophetic connections it was necessary they have a representation of the people in the land Israel. Israel is a miracle brought about by their Creator.  No other people on the face of the Earth has endured what they have endure in their punishment as covenant breakers and still remained a separate and complete people.  No one has ever so thoroughly lost their homeland and continued as a recognized nation of people, a people without a nation.  Now, we see in modern times, a return of some of them to the land of Israel.  This, however, is not the fulfillment of the many prophetic revelations found in the Old Covenant, but for those prophecies to occur there had to be a people in the land of Israel –m that is the miracle and it is not finished.  The things to come will make it impossible for anyone to not see the hand of our Creator shaping and molding this people and the future of this planet.  

 The Israel of the World has yet to accept the Savior, they still wait His coming and in this condition they, as a people, are most miserable.  They attempt to remain in a “covenant” that has been broken.  The covenant they cling to is of no use as a tool of salvation.  For one thing the covenant made with them and their fathers centers around their possession of the land of Israel, and we see a small percentage of them in the land today, but this is not enough, the covenant demands a Temple for sacrificing animals to take away the sins of the people.  They have not had this for nearly 2000 years – for 2000 years they have been cut off and remain in their sin.  This could all change in a moment is all Israel would suddenly wake up and accept YaHshua as their Savior – the time, however, is not yet – Their Creator lets them remain blind but for a few but the day is coming with their hearts will be softened and the blinders removed and they will see Him whom they crucified and weep in total repentance.  Their salvation is on the way and not by anything they will have done.  Temple or no Temple the Messiah is coming and He will be coming in force and He will finish the “promise’ made with Abraham and the promises He made to any that would believe and accept Him as Savior, as King of Kings.

 The Kings Identity

 After much study into this matter, listening to the scholars of the past and the present, taking from here and there, piecing together thoughts and understandings from various sources it is not difficult to ascertain a personal identity for this Being, as some suppose, or would like you to believe -- it is easily understood the Creator of all Earth and of the people Israel is YHWH (Yahweh). This knowledge is not hidden it is ignored.  Anyone with a modern day translation of the Holy Bible can look into the Forward, or the Preface, and find the identity and its use, or lack thereof, explained.  The KJV, however, is silent on this subject but many of the Study Bibles, and many of the modern translations are not, pointing at the KJV, however, as their standard for ignoring the Identity of the most important Being ever.  You have the NIV for one, and especially the Emphasized Bible.

 They call it the Tetragrammaton represented by the letters Y-H-W-H -- accepted by close to 95% of scholars to be pronounced “YaHWeH” -- the name is still pronounceable without the vowels, as you can see.  Yes, there are those that attempt to cloud the issue, for their own conscience sake, claiming the name cannot be know and give the example of the many diverse spellings.  This, however, is a level of ignorance difficult to overcome.  The Sacred Name of our Creator is self-pronounceable, it need no vowels, try it and you will see that it is spoken as you see it.  Adding vowels to this name is only as an aid and there are those that have, again for their own purposes, added vowels to either confuse or claim some revelation.  One thing is nearly 100% evident when you take all of the examples of the various presentations and that is the first two letters of the name are retained, YH.  Let the arguments flow, leave those with special revelation continue on their way as we continue in the self-pronounceable Name of our Creator, YHWH. These four letters are the modern alphabetical representation of the ancient four letters as delivered to Moses.  To repeat these letters is to repeat what Moses heard while standing on the Mountain of Laws in the land of Midian – located West of the Gulf of Aqaba.

 By this Name, YHWH, our Creator identified himself to Moses and to the people of Israel.  This is not hard to prove, again, as some would have you believe.  Pick up practically any Bible and turn to the Forward, look for any reference made of the Tetragrammaton and you will see confirmation of this.  Now turn to Exodus 3:15 and read, “God said to Moses, Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD (YHWH), the God of your fathers – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob – has sent me to you.  This is my Name forever, the Name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.”  Do I or anyone else need to interpret that for you?  It is not that complicated, only when those you trust lie to you does it become confusing.  Listen to the written word, it should be your guide by which you measure everything.  Some things have been lost and it is to our benefit to rediscover what has been covered.

 The best definition for this most important Identity seems “to be” -- He That Causes To Be, or more simply put, The Creator.  Not just the Creator but THE Creator of everything, the air, time, space, spirit, everything.  First part: YH (YaH) is his personal name and connection with the Father.  Second part: WH (WeH) is the identifier “To Be”, or Cause To Be.  “… who makes the dead live, and calls the things which do not exist as though they do exist” (Romans 4:17).  YH – Cause to be – the Creator God, calling things into being by His very Word, so we have, YH-WH.

 Some, not convinced that the pronunciation of the Creator’s name is YaHWeH, prefer YaHveh, it is virtually unanimous that YH, pronounced YaH is correct.   For those who wish to stand upon firm ground, that being the written word itself, being reassured that the Creator’s personal name is YaH, read it in Psalms 68:4 of any King James Version Bible, where the Old English Translators neglected to cover it up in this one instant.  This short form is not unlike a person named Daniel, being called by his more personal and intimate name, Dan.  The name as a whole gives the definition, Beloved of El, or, Dan beloved of El.  Notice, there is no definition for the less formal but more personal part of this name. Dan, apart from the formal presentation, Dan-iel.  The same is true of our Creator.  His Name as a total gives us a definition, as Creator, but the short form, YH, being more personal, is not definable other than it belongs and makes reference to our Creator, and our Heavenly Father.  His personal Name actually appears in the Old Testament some 6,800 times, but is covered up in translation.  If you were to include personal names of the various characters in the Bible, separating the name of the Creator from those names I am sure you would number His “hidden” name closer to 7,000.  As an example, look at some of the names of the prophets, Isa-iah and Jerem-iah.  The Greeks used the letter “i” as the transliteration for the Hebrew first letter of the Sacred Name, thus we would have Isa – YaH and Jerem-YaH.  This is also a good example of the influence the Greek had on even the Old Testament writings in the process of translation – even to this day.

 

The Forward of your bible will tell you, “… rather than restoring the personal name of the Creator we have opted to use the term LORD in capital letters, as that is the more popular, accepted way” (traditions of their fathers).  They, the translators, are their own witness to this lame excuse for not restoring the Creator’s Name.  It is truly amazing how much more alive the Scriptures become when you get in the habit of reading the Creator’s Name every time you come to the term LORD, and this holds true of our Savior’s birth name, YaHshua, YaH-Savior.

 Diversity – Agreement and Disagreement

 Other things must be cleared up before going any further.  There are other terms, names, titles and the like that are used in reference to YaHWeH and his people Israel.  Of those that are building works around the Creator's name there is agreement as well as diversity and disagreement.  These different groups are recognized as part of the Sacred Names Movement.  An example of this diversity is seen by the refusal of some to use titles such as God, god, or even Lord. -- teaching these terms as of pagan origin. At the same time other teachers of the Sacred Name do use these terms, seeing the necessity of communication with the world, but drop the vowels appearing as, G-d, g-d, or L-rd.  Still some others think that if you write the term using the capital letter ‘G’ that somehow turns this “term” into a name, a pagan name, of course, and substitute a Hebrew term, Elohim.  Those of the latter opinion do error twice. 

 First, thinking that by dropping the vowels from any reference used to communicate you are speaking of a deity, somehow nurtures it making it acceptable as mind food.  Second, reasoning the word “God” is a name of a pagan idol, as is Lord, and even other terms.  The reasoning and the proofs given for this are very weak and disconnected. The error they make in the dropping of the vowels is that in fact this improves the word or term so despised. The vowels dropped from our Creator’s name make it more perfect as YHWH – as opposed to imperfect, YaHWeH. When someone says Yahweh is not his name they are technically correct, as His name is YHWH, the vowels are an addition as a help in the pronunciation.

Virtually all languages are connected with ancient, pagan societies and sources. What I have found in my own research is that the word ‘god’ in English and American dialects is connected more with the word, ‘good’.  Now if you want to go to other languages to chase down the origin of this word most will turn to the German language and some dictionaries suggest that it is from the German, “got”, gut, or gt, and some want to say that this is a name of a pagan god, Because the Germans used this word in reference to one or all of their deities, even as they do today.  A similar thing is found in the English bibles where “god” is used in reference to the Deity of the Israelites.  Elohim is not a “name” as some suppose but a title not unlike the title of “god”.  As an example, let me ask you a question, which elohim is your elohim?  Mine is YHWH.  The term God is used in this same manner.

 Languages of today and yesterday have influences from a past covering so many centuries it would be impossible to find a language not associated at some point with pagan gods of the past.  And you did understand what I just said, right?  You were not confused by my use of the term “god”, mistaking it for the name of a god but of many, by reference, right?  I hope so.  Read, Zephaniah 3:9, you will see the context of the surrounding verses seem to be speaking of the end days when we will all be given a pure language with which we will worship our Father in Heaven, YaH.  This would not be necessary if had this pure language today – we do not.  This should suggest to the inquiring mind that there is no language on this earth that is worthy of true worship.  If this is not the case then why the mention of a pure language at all? 

Believe it or not, some have tried to say that this verse is talking about the ancient, not the modern, Hebrew language.  Read it again, what does it say?  There are further suggestions in the Scriptures that at a future date, when YaH decides to establish his rule he will cause a pure use of His Name and the elimination of any impure words used in reference to him.  See Hosea 2:16-17 -- This suggests that terms like “lord” or even “master” – the definition of the term Baal, and notice the plurality used in the use of this term -- terms we use today will not be used when the “pure lip” is delivered.  This si a prophetic word of what is to come it is not for today but for a future time, a time when Israel lives safely under His protection, something we do not see today.  He is going to do this, not some institute, or religious organization.  The modern Hebrew of today is not a fulfilling of Zephaniah and the attempts at learning the paleo Hebrew, and attempts at reconstructing this ancient language, a Hebrew Abraham spoke, is not the “pure lip” that is going to be given to the people.  

 Sacred Names Movement

 There is a segment of the Sacred Name’s movement that say the term ‘Gawd’ is the original English term for “god”.  This idea that the word ‘god’ is ‘Gawd’, the deity of fortune and good luck, is very vague, certainly the sound is similar (or is it?) but where is the connection?  (See Isaiah 65:11) The KJV bible uses two terms, “Troop” and “Number” that apparently have a deeper meaning than presented by the KJV version of the bible.  Most, if not all, modern translations have corrected these two words to "Fortune", and “Fate”, or something similar, but not Gawd, or Gad. 

Some in the Sacred Names movement chose the word Gawd to support their claim that that is the original term for ‘god’.  It is a misapplication of the name “Gad”, not only of themselves but of the original translators having placed “Gad” as the meaning for “troop” in the margin.  Apparently the translators mistook the god of “Fortune” to be identified as Gad and certain of the Sacred Names people, and not only them, have gone out on a limb and claimed this as one of the proofs the term “God” is derived from this thing YHWH hates.  Looking at the context one should be able to determine it is all about “idol” worship.  This Babylonian god found special favor with the Israelites, the god of Fortune, or Good Luck (whatever the name).  The other god mentioned is “number”, again the KJV falling short in its translation.  The other term for “number” in the Hebrew is "Meni", and some have made attempts to connect this god to the Moon, others  to the "Queen of Heaven" -- some say it refers to both.  The preferred understanding of this “number” or "Meni", is a god of “destiny”, having a connection with numbering seasons and months for planting and such.  By this you can see the connection with the “moon” and the “moon” being seen as a “queen of heaven”, so the thinking take on a circular pattern of numbers and times all seen in a heavenly body.  Commentators have gone on and on about this one verse, all because the KJV translators could not stick with the Hebrew understanding not being able to see the teaching of this verse.  

 Gad, not the tribe of Israel, is the god of "Fortune" and good luck.  This then would apply to any god set up for fortune, or good luck -- a god of greed.  The same holds true for the god of “destiny”, the “meni”, or “number” as the KJV puts it.  Both of these gods, of fortune and distiny are refered to in the New Testament as "Mammon" and it is made plain by the scritpures you cannot serve our Creator and Savior while seeking riches or setting you life on celsetial bodies dictating to you a course to follow opposed to the Word of God.

 What we should be looking for in this piece of scripture is what modern translators have tried to do, and that is, give the meaning of what is being said.  Read the verse, what does it say, what does it mean.  It is speaking of those that go around relying on the god of good fortune to bring them prosperity instead of the God YHWH, and they count it as good lu`ck when good fortune comes their way, as opposed to giving the God of the bible credit.  And the same holds true for those that rely on the god of “destiny” to guide and direct their lives as they look on celestial bodies having an influence in their lives. This could also be in the form of seeking out wizards and witches to help you in this life, seeking fortune, seeking riches, seeking your destiny, etc.  The second term is more properly translated “destiny” or “fate”, and it rides on the back of the god of fortune -- this we see in the Eastern teachings of Karma – this was meant to be, it has been written in the stars, as though there is some force beyond our control that guides our life – bad Karma, good Karma –  do bad things receive bad results, but is that always the case?  No, and the teaching of Karma is much deeper than that, it is the true drug of the underprivileged -- you were meant to be poor or oppressed, it is your Karma.  This Karma actually tears at the god of fortune, as do most doctrines of Satan, being divided but working together.  By the doctrine of “destiny” or of “fate” we exclude the true God from our lives and this is what the Israelites were doing.  By serving the god of "fortune" our pursuit of wealth turns our heart cold to His generosity in supplying us with all we need. 

 GAWD? Or God?

 The only proof that seems to really stand out in regards to the use of the term ‘god’ seems to be that both ‘god’ and ‘gawd’, or Gad, begin and end with the same letters and this is pretty weak, also, nearly every commentator, dictionary, and encyclopedia concerning the terms used in the translation of Isaiah is not “gawd” but “gad”.  A better comparison by association would be to drop the vowels, as previously discussed.  Dropping the vowel of ‘gawd’ we have, “gwd” , now drop the vowel in “gad” and you have “gd”, and now drop the vowel in “god” and you have, “gd” – do you see?  A much better demonstration, but still there is nothing other than this to show the term “god” has any real connection with the name Gad.  Remember, a tribe of Israel is named Gad, certainly other tribes did not go around calling their brothers of the tribe of Gad, “god”?  Remember the story of Joseph, imagine what they might have done to poor Gad had they associated his name with anything suggesting he is “god”.  If, however, your conscience should bother you about this then play it safe and do not used the word “god” as a name, but as a title, or avoid using it all together until your mind is settled on the subject.  Be advised, however, If you use the term “deity”, then you should know that the Dali Lama, the high priest of a pagan religion connected with the Buddha, has a god he refers to as Deity Yoga.  Yes, “deity” can be seen as a name, at least the Dali Lama thinks so.  Others may want to use the term “Elohim”, a Hebrew term for the Creator, or is it?  More on this later, but for now a simple argument against this is the fact that the Hebrews religion is monotheistic, “one god” and only “one god”.  The term “Elohim”, used as a name and found in the Hebrew Scriptures is plural, like saying, gods, meaning more than one.  This should be the first clue that the term Elohim, while used by the Hebrews was not of Hebrew origin.  The Canaanites, like the Babylonians, honored a variety of gods which the Israelites grew fond of and one of them had been the god “EL”, and Elohim is plural meaning many Els, or many gods.  So, which El is your El?  There is some evidence among the Canaanite of a god called El as the father of all mankind.  According to the story they tell, this god was a soughful drunk but his progeny went out on their own becoming gods in their own right.  Does any of this sound familiar?  Who would be the father of all mankind?  Adam, of course.

 GOD?  EL? 

A simple example of using the term ‘god’: I am a man, my name is Dan and I am perishable – as opposed to -- I am a god, my name is YaH and I am eternal.  The big separation of the god, Yah, from pagan idols is the declaration of our Heavenly Father that He is THE god YaH!   Who says that the word “god” is the name of our Creator?  Where is the proof that the word GOD is a name?  Just because the translators have substituted the term “god’ for the actual name of our Creator does not change His Identity, nor does it change His Name to something else.  “God” is not a name anymore than the title “Lord”.  These two terms the translators have used (following man's “tradition” of substitution) as names in place of the real, true, Names of our Heavenly Father and our Savior.  Is the address of President a name? Of course not, it is a title.  I am “man” and that is not my name anymore than my god’s name if God, no, He is my God and His name is known to me – He is YaH and my Savior is called Savior but His name is YaHshua, and there is “no other name by which we must be save” (Acts 4:12).  The name YaHshua means Savior but that is only half of it, and that is only a definition, an interpretation, if you will, of whom He is and where He is from. 

The error of the past has led to the false notion the Messiah is named Jesus Chirst.  This should be expressed as Jesus the Christ.  Of course the truth is, Yahshua the Messiah, or the very least, YaHshua the Christ.  The Savior's nameis complete as given Him at His birth, YaHshua, and literally means, YH is salvation. 

El is a term used of an ancient Canaanite god and later became a term used for any god.  We have all heard there are many gods, which is to say there are many els.  El is not a name, any more than god is a name.  Elohim is to mean more than one El, or more than one god.  Tell me who you El is and I will tell you who my  god is.

 God, as a term in the English languages and dialects, can be used to refer to other gods besides the Creator god.  Satan is a god the god of this World (2Corintihians 4:4) and his possessed cultures have many gods, worshiping demons and devils as gods – you would not say they are worshiping your God, would you?  Well, they would, and in fact, they, these recognized pagan religions, have “names” for their many gods.  This idea that the term "god" is a name has led many Christians into the erro of thinking we, as bible believers, and the rest of the pagan world are all seeking "god", only in different ways.  This opens the door for religions of demons to penetrate the Christian community even more than it already has -- this concept we are all god and never asking which god?  The Christian ignorance in this area of their faith is mind bending, but consider, Satan has had the last two thousand years to work his plan of deception.

 Some professing Christians, professing the Holy bible as the Word of God, worship a variety of gods, and idols, shrines and statues.  Praying to stone beings that have ears but cannot hear, mouths but cannot speak, eyes but cannot see.  They, professing Christians, worshiped and adore images they have given Christian names – some even pray to the dead for help and advice all in the “name” of this or that dead saint. Many pray to Mary, known as "Queen of Heaven" by the Roman Church and it is a wonder when you read Jeremiah 44:19.  Of course they say these saints are not dead but alive in heaven.  Mary sitting next to our Heavenly Father and our Savior sitting at His right as son -- this, of course ignores the mystery of what our Heavenly Father did through our Savior -- making Mary equal with the Messiah, and how do you suppose our Savior sees this (Matthew 12:46-48)?  The act of our Savior becoming human did not occur as humans would have it, as depicted in the mythology of pagans, in that there is no mystery, the pagan gods are made to be like humans while humans dream of becoming gods.  Our God and Savior, the Creator God, became flesh and blood but not in the natural way, not as humans understand, born of woman, indeed but unlike anything before (John 8:42).  Mary is dead and buried, as is King David and all the prophets.  YaHushua only has been raised from the dead and returned to Heaven to be with His Father the origniator of all things -- Mary is not and advocate to be patitioned before our Savior.  The Queen of Heaven, indeed, a pagan concept without merit -- a blaspheme against the Heavenly realm.  I know, I know, some of the Roman Catholic religion will argue against what I have just stated as fact but this only shows their igronance concerning the workings and base beliefs of the Church Fathers (Matthew 23:9) and the doctrine put forth in their Catechism.  Forget that our Savior said Himself that only that which is from Heaven can go there (John 3:13). They have a double sin by their own doctrine in vilation of the Cammandments – not only are they calling on the name of someone other than our Savior (The First Commandment) but they are making images of things they believe are in heaven, an express breaking of the SECOND COMMANDMENT.  Now here is a twist, according to the Messiah, the things they pray to in heaven are not in heaven and the images they pray to are not there either, so, is there really a sin?

 This fact is denied by many, however, with the excuse they are not actually worshiping the statue but using it to help visualize, etc., etc., on and on it goes but the plain truth is it is an act of idolatry – it is a breaking of the express desire by our Creator we worship Him and only Him.  It is the worship of idols, the worship of stone, wood, water, wind and evil spirits – devils and demons, even angels, and dead saints.  The veneration of anything other than our Creator and our Heavenloy Father, no matter tghe excuse, is a sin.  The Christians of today are deep into this type of idolatry, paying heed to seducing spirits and of fallen angels, and teachings of demons – oh yes, demons have teachings (1 Timothy 4:1). The Canaanites were deeply involved in Nature worship.  They had many Baals, many Lords and Masters, many gods.  YaHweh is but one God, and over all others.  He is the Creator of all things (John 1:1-3) were created by Him. 

*** 

Another Type of Christian

 Among those attempting to follow the god of Israel, YHWH, we see this aversion to using anything that may be connected of pagan idols such as names, covered in the first part of this writing.  Please understand, even though I disagree with much of the reasoning used and of the positions taken I must say there is nothing wrong with this, in fact it is very biblical, very honorable – seeking to honor the Creator. This approach, however, is that of the Jews, in many cases.   I say Jew as opposed to Israelite as that is the particular people the Messiah was primarily dealing with while on earth, he being a Jew in the flesh himself.  All Jews are Israelites but not all Israelites are Jews.  The Jews comprised three tribes of the unified Israel.  The northern tribes, clans, became known as the Lost Ten Tribes, having been dispersed.  The southern tribes comprised Levi, Benjamin , and Judah.  Also, there is a warning from the Savior himself, a threat really, to those who say they are Jews but are not.  Revelations 2:9, 3:9

 

At any rate, the Jews had gone to extremes in building laws around the laws of their Creator, Yahweh.  They had become so good at this game that The Messiah had several occasions to explain to them and the people how they were missing the point.  They saw themselves as good Law keepers, as Keepers of the Covenant and this Covenant was still in force for the people of Israel so long as the Messiah, their Creator, still lived. This brings us back to those that are trying to reestablish the worship of YaHWeH. 

 

It is my fear these brothers and sister in the faith once delivered are attempting to resurrect the Old Covenant and thus come under the disgust of the Jew having refused the Messiah.  They, of course, have accepted the Messiah but in a way lay claim to being a Jew or an Israelite in their attempts at restoring the Old Covenant in their personal lives and as a group.  This is, in my opinion, is tantamount to crucifying our Savior over again.  Like I said earlier, they can do as they please if it is in honor of the Creator but if it is a “restoration” of the Old Covenant they seek, as a type of righteousness, then they do error and come close to the warning of Revelation 3:9 – “Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie …” (KJV).  It is a strange Christian indeed that is both Jew and Christian.  My Bible says that the true Christian is neither Jew nor Greek and if this is the case then we are something different.  Make no mistake, when this was written it was not Paul’s intention that you would mistake what he is saying other than there is neither Jew Christian nor Greek Christian within the body of the Messiah (Colossians 3:11, Galatians 3:28).  

 

What I Think Does Not Matter

 

This isn’t for me to say but is part of a fair warning that not everyone that calls on His name is going to be accepted by our Savior (Matthew 24:4).  A pure language is coming, Israel is going to be ‘restored” and the Israelite system of “civil” government is going to established under the ruler-ship of the “resurrected” King David.  It is the Messiah during this time that will be the King of Kings, not just of Israel but of all Earth and this will not be done by the hand of man but or our Father and our Savior when He returns.

 

 It is not given to us to accomplish this “restoration” of Law but to the coming Messiah, our Savior, Yahshua.  Until this day we are to exercise patients, as strangers upon this earth, our true citizenship in Heaven. We endure the rule of man looking toward the hope of the coming of our Messiah to establish the Kingdom of God upon this Earth.  It is not for men to be so presumptuous to think we can influence the return of the Messiah by reconstructing the Temple or the Laws that govern Israel and Temple worship. 

 

It is this I fear -- the various groups of the Sacred Names Movement may be involved in – attempting a type of “restoration”.  I know of at least one Teacher (Prophet?) that goes to the nation Israel to measure the Temple area each year as some kind of sign or fulfillment of scripture.  This apparently has something to do with Revelation 11:1-2; 21:15-17.  The point being not to take on something that is in His hands not yours for there are also those claiming to be Two Prophets or even the Elijah – the problem is that there is more than one individuals of the Sacred Names Movement claiming these positions of authority and they are in error – they are, in my opinion, false – Okay, I will say it, “false prophets”, everyone.  Certainly the Christian community is filled with false teachers and preacher and prophets.  Well, so is the Sacred Names Movement, and any that think not do deceive themselves.  Be aware, once again, it is those that come to the Messiah and shout, “look what I have done in your Name”, and He says He never knew them (Matthew 24:4) 

 

We must live in this World, like it or not, and most like it, but those looking forward to the coming Kingdom as the solution to this war ravaged Earth do not like it and in their zeal, seeing the better way of life and of living in honor to our Creator have chosen to emulate a system of worship only the restoration of the Old Covenant can possibly make whole. 

 

English, God or Hebrew, Elohim?

 

By refusing to use the English term god, they must find the substitute and reeducate people into the new terms in order to make sense of their message.  They usually turn to the Hebrew term El, or Elohim, which in fact is not of Hebrew origin at all but of Canaanite origin.  Because this term Elohim is found in ancient Hebrew manuscripts, it is assumed that the term is Hebrew. The Hebrews, Israelites, borrowed this term from the people in the region they were to displace. 

 

Remember the Lost Ten Tribes?  These Northern tribes, or clans had split away from the lower clans encircling Jerusalem (Yah-sholom, the spelling can be found in various forms but always means, YaH of Peace, or the Peace of YaH).  The Israelites began to worship the gods of Canaan, El, Baal, Bel, and other nature gods, gods of stone, statues that can neither talk, hear or see.  El was a primary god in the beginning of Canaan’s culture being disposed later in favor of his son.  He gave birth to Baal, or Bel, or Ab-El, or A-Bel – see the connection?  You should, it is not that the Canaanites introduced Israel to these deities, not at all, as the names were all familiar, the “Great Flood” and the accounts of the son’s of god from the previous, pre-flood age.  

Yes, these gods fit in nicely with what the Israelites already knew, especially after being delivered from Egypt. This son-of-god, Baal, or Bel, as the Babylonians called him (A-Bel), displaced the father god El (Adam) as the primary focus of their worship.  We see this type of family worship in the records of Egypt and even the Romans -- the royal families seen as gods, literally being worshiped as gods.  How else do you get masses of people to build pyramids, and towers and great walled cities? 

 

These names became titles used in everyday language.  By title I mean by definition, Baal meant Lord.  You could say that those that refuse the Identity of your Savior are practicing Lord Worship, in other words, Baal worship, and this is just what the Sacred Names Movements accuses the Christians of.  El, on the other hand came to be used as a term equivalent to the modern use of the tern, “god”.   Does it matter?  It does to them but if you can see the progressive deflating of these names into forms of titles then for clarity, until the pure language is delivered, it seems as proper to use these emasculated terms, lesser terms, not as names, but as titles as being appropriate.  We must communicate in the language of this World, as did our Savior, He did not speak ancient Hebrew but a dialect of Hebrew known as Aramaic.  The groups that insist it is a sin to use these “pagan” names will have to invent their own language as all language has been corrupted and bears the marks of paganism.

 

Israel and Bel

 

The Northern clans headed by the two sons of Moses as High Priest abandoned going to Jerusalem to worship YaHWeH opting for an easier location out of fear of losing there power.  Yes, I said the son’s of Moses.  The High Priests were to be from the line of Aaron and the service to the temple from the clan of Levi.  So, politics enters the picture, it appears a disagreement as to who should be in charge, the sons of Aaron, or the sons of Moses.  Yes, of course it was more complicated, to be sure, and certain individuals wanted to maintain their own power structure so they set up their own priesthood and built their own temple on their own mountain and encouraged the people to stay in the north when observing the Feast days, after all, why travel all that distance to Jerusalem.

 

El is the father of Bel, or Baal.  The term Baal as a name has a meaning by definition as  “master”, or lord, as mentioned earlier.  For this reason many refuse to use the English term “lord” as this is a definition for the word, and name “Baal” and Baal worship was forbidden.  I suppose if we take this example on out we would look even deeper into the definition of the name and stop using the terms such as, master, lord, or boss.  You get the point.  It should be noted that the name Baal became a “term” used in reference to any deity other than the Creator, as did the name El and Elohim (Elohim being the plural form of EL).  Again, let me repeat, El is the father of Baal, or Bel.  El, as a god or name of a god had originated with the Canaanites and El was seen as the “father” of all mankind. Baal and Bel are the same deity.  The other meaning, not by definition but by meaning, is B-El, or Son of El.  Father and Son, get it?  Let’s recall that the Messiah told us that the Gospel had been preached to the sons of Adam.  Yes, way back then the plan of YaHWeH to save man was laid out and Satan has had a lot of years to corrupt and distort and cause misapplication the mystery of Yahweh. 

Lesser gods

 Lesser gods have names and are given titles that don’t really belong to them.  For example, if a god is no god but people call it a god and give it a title like “Lord” does this title belong to this god that is not god?  Of course not -- then to who does this title of “Lord”, or Master, rightfully belong?  Of course, it belongs to the true God, the rightful possessor of all grand titles.  Still, we see Satan called the god of this World but is he really?  Of course he is and at the same time he is not.  Keep smiling if you understand this – The GOD of every thing is the Living GOD, the Creator of all things, the owner of all things – Satan is a usurper of that title because ignorant men give him power to rule over them and he has used his misplaced authority to misdirect the leaders of this world in their own sin and desires.  By this he is this World’s god but the title can only truly belong to the original being of worship and the originator of everything – the possessor and giver of life itself, the only true God, YaH.

HalleluYaH !

 Final Note:  It has been said that the expression, Halleluyah, is the same in all languages.  This being true it is little wonder that we hear every religion, good, bad, poor, and the false that sing and shout this expression are, in their ignorance, shouting praise to the one true God of everything. 

email:   servant@yahshuaservant.com