Hallelujah!

Hallelujah!  It's a word those of us among the church know well.  We say it when a prayer has been answered; when we hear good news; when singing; when praising God.  It is a praise word, and we know that, but it is also something else.  Chase a squirrel with me for a moment.  We will get right back to this.

Let me tell you a bit about me.  My name is Deborah.  My family and friends call me Debbie.  Sometimes, people call me Deb.  All of these are my name.  There are other words that can describe me:  woman, she, human, sister, wife, person etc (be kind when thinking of the etc 😉).  These words point to me in a generic way...a way that they may point to many people.  They can be helpful in describing me, but they are not my name.  If my husband stopped calling me Deb and only called me "Wife" for the rest of my life, I would feel a bit forgotten.  How about you?  Would you want to be called by a generic title like "Person" rather than by your name by those who are closest to you?  Probably not.

So what has this to do with "hallelujah?"  You may already know this, but the word Hallelujah in Hebrew actually contains the name of God.  It's the "Yah" sound at the end.  The word literally means "Praise Yah."  Now "Yah" is like the "Deb" version of my name.  It's not the formal long name of God, but it is His name and not a generic title.

As I have been studying Hebrew, I have learned that throughout our English translated bibles the name of God has been removed.  Let. That. Sink. In. For. A. Moment.

So...let me get this straight, Deb...the bible is God's Word...and you're telling me that His Name has been systematically cleansed from my English bible?

Yep.  That's exactly what I am saying.

And because of that, most of us have grown up believing that "God" and "Lord" are His Name.  But I'm here to tell you that they are not.  Calling Him by those titles is a good way to describe Him, but they are not His Name.

Can you hear Sandi Patti singing "O Lord, our Lord how majestic is Your Name in all the earth?"  (from Psalm 8:1)  That's how the verse reads in my NASB, but guess how the Hebrew reads...You guessed it...it actually states The Name of God, then refers to "Our Lord."  So what is The Name of God?  Glad you asked!  Here is it in Hebrew:

יהוה

...And that translates to the English letters YHVH.  Ever heard of "Jehovah?"  Well, I'm not sure where the J came from, as there is no "J" sound in Hebrew, but that is the English attempt at His Name.  I prefer to use the "Y" sound, as that is true to the Hebrew sound..."Yehovah."  That is His Name!  (Like the formal "Deborah" version of my name).

Yehovah**

Yehovah is His Name!  HalleluYAH!  Praise Yehovah!

Remember I told you that His Name, Yehovah, had been systematically cleansed from our English bibles?  Take a tour of your bible, Friends.  When you find the words, "Lord," "LORD," or "Adoni" you might be missing the real word for Yehovah.  Now I'm not suggesting that EVERY time these words are used that they represent Yehovah, but I am telling you that MANY times they do.

Just a Few Examples:

• Psalm 8:1 -- "Yehovah, our Lord" is how this verse reads in Hebrew, as opposed to "O Lord, our Lord."
• Isaiah 33:22 -- "For Yehovah is our judge," as opposed to "For The LORD is our judge." 
• Micah 7:9 -- "I will bear the indignation of Yehovah," as opposed to "I will bear the indignation of The LORD."  
• Getting the picture?  It's EVERYWHERE!

It matters to me that I am called by my name.  It matters to Yehovah as well.  He tells us not to take His Name in vain...so He assumes we will be "taking His Name."  His Name is not hidden from us within the Hebrew text.  He wants us to know His Name and use it wisely.   Here is proof:

• Psalm 9:11-- Those who know Your Name trust You - for You Yehovah never forsake those who seek You.  
• Psalm 20:1-- May The Name of the God of Jacob set you up securely on high.  
• Isaiah 42:8-- I am Yehovah, that is My Name.  

In all three of these examples, Yehovah tells us that His Name, Yehovah, holds power for those who seek Him.  Do you seek Him?  I do!  We need to know His Name.  

In my search for The Name of Yehovah in English bible translations, I have found that Young's Literal Translation (YLT) and the American Standard Version (ASV) do use "Jehovah."  Check them out for free using the Blue Letter Bible, and get to know The Name of The God of Jacob and how He is woven throughout Yehovah's Word.  HalleluYAH!

**Please note that there are different opinions on the way to pronounce God's Name based on some very valid reasons having to do with the original Hebrew letters and the later invention of vowels.  The other most common way to translate His Name is YHWH or Yahweh.  It is not my intent to delve too deeply into that here or to cast a negative light on those who translate His Name differently than I do.  In The Body, we LOVE one another...and we are all seeking!  I think the important thing we need to know is that Our God has a real name.  His Word tells us that He wants us to know that.  So...Come Seek With Me!