On October 8, Tefe posted a message about God's name.  Please allow me to add to that important subject from Chapter 5 of my book, "The World's Greatest Truths," available to be read on line at http://www.choicesforliving.com/truth/

Jim
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The World's Greatest Name
 There is only one name in all of history so revered and so feared that millions of people would not even utter it, and still don't.  Because of that, it has been called "the Incommunicable Name" and "the Great and Terrible Name."

This "unutterable word," as it is also called, is the Creator's actual name as He revealed it to Moses some 1,500 years before Christ.  No wonder it has been feared-the warning against profaning it occupies a full ten percent of the Decalogue, or Ten Commandments:

"You shall not take the name of _____  your God in vain; for _____ will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain."¹

That stern command and the consequence of disobedience is enough to make any rational person nervous!

What awesome name goes into the above blank spaces?  Strangely, most Christians today do not know what it is, and Jews generally still will not pronounce it, instead substituting another word.  It is undoubtedly the greatest mystery of name and word usage in history.

The Creator's name is not "God" (from the Hebrew "El" or "Elohim").  God is really a generic word used also in the Bible for pagan deities.  His name is not "Lord."  This is also a generic word meaning "master," the same word that is also used to refer to human masters.  In both cases, distinction is attempted by capitalization.  But the Creator did not give Himself a name to be shared with pagan deities or humans, even with capitalization.  Actually, God and Lord are more titles and not names.

Neither is His name "Jehovah," a word invention of late medieval origin.  Strangely, Jehovah is still popularly but mistakenly used as the Creator's name even though scholars and seminary graduates have known for years that it is incorrect.

The Creator's actual name is unique and exclusive, not shared with any other being.  Its origin is from the beginning of time, and its meaning, as we shall see, is descriptive of the nature of its owner.  And it is a fascinating fact that the mystery surrounding the name was apparently anticipated by early Hebrew Scripture itself.  Hundreds of years before Christ, the mystery of the name was referred to in the Proverbs.  After describing the Creator's mighty power, it teasingly asks: "What is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?^2"

Other translations say, "Tell me if you know!" or "Surely you know!"  This amazing verse not only infers a riddle associated with the Creator's name but prophetically refers to the name of the Son who, although existent in heaven, was not even born on the earth yet!  And the Son's name, too, is somewhat of a mystery.
 

What Is His Name?
 Well, what is it?  What is the name that has struck fear in the hearts of millions of people for thousands of years, and still does?

The Creator revealed His name in the Hebrew language; it appears more than 6,000 times in the Old Testament.  Here it is:
 

Reading from right to left, as is done in Hebrew, it contains the four consonants, Y H W H.  Scholars call these famous four letters the "Tetragrammaton" (tetra for four).  Though its pronunciation was long obscure, there is now almost general agreement among scholars that the correct vowel insertions should be YaHWeH, making the actual and original name Yahweh.  The short form, Yah, appears in "Hallelujah" (meaning "praise you, Yah" -- the j strangely inserted about three centuries ago), a universal praise word spoken by people of many languages all over the world.  Sometimes people use Hallelujah carelessly and without knowledge of its meaning or profound implications.  I once heard it in a TV soft drink commercial.  Humanity's ignorance and disregard of sacred truth is sad and frightening.

On one occasion God spoke through the prophet, Isaiah, and said very pointedly:

"I am 'Yahweh,' that is my name!"³
 And after He had revealed His name to Moses, God said:
  "This is my name forever, the name by which I am to
be remembered from generation to generation."⁴
 Has humanity complied with that command to remember?  Apparently not.  That's the purpose of this chapter.  After you read it you will know something of great spiritual and historical significance, and hopefully of great personal value and blessing.

(For remainder, see Chapter 5 at http://www.choicesforliving.com/truth/)