The Divine Names: YHWH, Elohim & Covenant Titles
The Tetragrammaton, Adonai, El Shaddai, and Sacred Inscriptional Evidence
The divine names in Scripture reveal God's redemptive identity: YHWH (the covenant redeemer), Elohim (the transcendent Creator), El Shaddai (the almighty provider), and Adonai (the sovereign Lord).
The Tetragrammaton (YHWH): Meaning and Pronunciation
The four sacred consonants Y-H-W-H derive from the archaic West Semitic root hawah ('to be' or 'to cause to be'). In Exodus 3:14 and 6:3, YHWH is unveiled as the covenant Redeemer who remains faithful to His promises across generations.
Elohim, El Elyon, and El Shaddai: Patriarchal Designations
Elohim, a plural of majesty with singular verbs, proclaims God's supreme power over all creation ( Genesis 1:1 ). El Elyon ('God Most High', Genesis 14:18 ) and El Shaddai ('God Almighty', Genesis 17:1 ) characterized the patriarchal stage of covenant revelation.
Textual Reverence in Dead Sea Scrolls and Ketef Hinnom
Second Temple scribes treated the Tetragrammaton with immense veneration: Qumran scrolls consistently employed paleo-Hebrew script for YHWH, while the Ketef Hinnom silver scrolls prove that the name was invoked in the priestly blessing in First Temple Jerusalem .
Ancient Historical & Primary Sources
Dead Sea Scrolls — *1QpHab col. xi 10-12*
In the Habakkuk Pesher from Cave 1, scribes wrote the Tetragrammaton (YHWH) in archaic paleo-Hebrew script amidst square Aramaic characters to denote extraordinary sanctity.
Theological Relevance: Primary scribal evidence for the sacred status of the divine name in Second Temple Judaism.
Ancient Inscriptions — *Ketef Hinnom Silver Scrolls*
Dating to the late 7th century BC (First Temple Jerusalem), these silver amulets preserve the Priestly Blessing (Num 6:24-26) with the Tetragrammaton YHWH, the oldest surviving biblical text.
Theological Relevance: Archaeological epigraphy confirming the antiquity of the divine name.
Ancient Inscriptions — *Tel Dan Stele & Mesha Stele*
The Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone, line 18) mentions the 'vessels of YHWH' taken from Nebo; the Tel Dan Stele (9th century BC) references the 'House of David' serving YHWH.
Theological Relevance: External epigraphic confirmation of Israel's national covenant God.
Philo of Alexandria — *De Vita Mosis 2.114-115*
Describes the golden plate on the High Priest's turban engraved with the four sacred letters of the Tetragrammaton, which only the sanctified could pronounce.
Theological Relevance: Hellenistic Jewish reverential treatment of the divine name.
Flavius Josephus — *Antiquities of the Jews 2.12.4*
Records that God declared His holy name to Moses at the burning bush, 'which was not lawful for me to speak'—reflecting the 1st-century taboo on uttering the Tetragrammaton.
Theological Relevance: Historical documentation of Second Temple reverence and substitution of Adonai/Kyrios.
Manuscripts, Charts & Media (1)
Documentary CorpusScholarly manuscript facsimiles, theological diagrams, archaeological records, and multimedia connected to The Divine Names: YHWH, Elohim & Covenant Titles:
