Apr 26 2006
Divine Name
***I am reposting this article in conjunction with the Exodus 6 passage below from the old DH domain***
There is much scholarly debate concerning when the divine name, or Tetragrammaton, was given to the people of God. Some contend that Exodus chapter three represents the inauguration of the self-revelation of God’s proper name; whereas, others argue that the name was revealed earlier in the history of mankind. Although the debate may not be solvable in this summary posting, a précis of the two main opinions is appropriately coordinated with the DH reading from Exodus chapter 3 (available here). The central text for both sides is Exodus 6:2-3, which reads:
God spoke with Moses, saying to him: “I am YHWH. I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but by my name, YHWH, I did not make myself known to them.” (Author’s translation)
The first hypothesis maintains that the divine name was made known first in the Book of Exodus when YHWH revealed himself to Moses. This argument asserts that the revealed name of God was El Shaddai before the Exodus and YHWH after the Exodus. This understanding easily explains why YHWH was unknown to Pharaoh in Exodus 5:2. The Hebrews could not make known the divine name to Pharaoh if it had not been revealed previously to them. Thus, one of the purposes of the Exodus event was to reveal the divine name not only to the Hebrews but to make it known to the Egyptians (Exodus 7:5).
Conversely, another claim is that the divine name was known by the people of God prior to the Exodus account. In favor of this acumen are several rationales ranging from direct references to Yahweh in the Book of Genesis to the Yahwistic element in Moses’ mother’s name, Jochebed (Exodus 6:20, Numbers 26:59). What then of the clear statement in Exodus 6:2-3? The favored interpretation of this text is not that YHWH did not let His name be known at all, but only that the significance of the divine name as a symbol of deliverance was not known by his people. This problem appears to be irreconcilable with the current information as both arguments have difficulties and advantages.
Any further thoughts? Evidence for one side or the other?
For further study see R.W. Moberly, The Old Testament of the Old Testament: Patriarchal Narratives and Mosaic Yahwehism (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1992) 5-78; or for a more specific overview of these arguments see B. S. Childs, Exodus (London: SCM, 1974). Also, U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis, 2 vols., translated by Israel Abrahams (Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1989).
The Revelation of the Divine Name
On Daily Hebrew, H.H. Hardy has a post that asks whether the divine name was first revealed to the Israelites in Exodus (as Exod. 6:2-3 suggests) or whether the name was known to the patriarchs. Although he says that this is a debate among scholars, t…
Those interested in a different approach than mine above are encouraged to see Kevin Wilson’s post. He gives an explanation for the divergence of names from a source criticism point of view.
YHVH