Matthew's Gospel

Theophoric names utilize a divine name in a personal name. I examine the personal names that show evidence of being derived from the names YHWH (Yahuah) and YaH in the first book of the New Testament. I choose "Matthew's Gospel" because it was evidently written in Hebrew (Howard, George, 1995. Hebrew Gospel of Matthew. Mercer University Press, Macon, Georgia). I transliterated the Hebrew names into English using The Scriptures (1998, Institute for Scripture Research, South Africa). An on-line version is available at http://www.eliyah.com/thescriptures/). Names from the King James Version (KJV) are added in parentheses to illustrate the extent to which the evidence of the name YHWH is evident in the English version. The original meanings of the names are taken from Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, unless otherwise noted.

The first name in the Gospel, that of Messiah, is sometimes thought to be a theophoric name, which shows evidence of being changed by the Scribes¹, but it may not be. Rather than Messiah's name being a form of Joshua, I understand that it is more likely the Hebrew word for deliverance. The name of the Messiah is YHWH, and he is called Y'shuah. He is YHWH in that he is the only begotten Son and thus came in his Father's name (John 5:43). I see that in full, Messiah is YHWH Yeshuah or YHWH Salvation.

H3444
ישׁוּעה
yeshû‛âh
yesh-oo'-aw
Feminine passive participle of H3467; something saved, that is, (abstractly) deliverance; hence aid, victory, prosperity: - deliverance, health, help (-ing), salvation, save, saving (health), welfare.

Isa 43:11 I,595 even I,595 am the LORD;3068 and beside4480, 1107 me there is no369 savior.3467

H3467
ישׁע
yâsha‛
yaw-shah'
A primitive root; properly to be open, wide or free, that is, (by implication) to be safe; causatively to free or succor: - X at all, avenging, defend, deliver (-er), help, preserve, rescue, be safe, bring (having) salvation, save (-iour), get victory.

The first name clearly derived from YHWH, introduced in the second verse, is Yahudah (Judas or Judah), the patriarch of Messiah's tribe. Leah said "'Now I praise YHWH.' So she called his name Yahudah" (Genesis 29:35). Although the Hebrew letters of Yahudah can simply spell "praise" (Nehemiah 11: 17), this name contains the letters of the Tetragrammaton (The Scriptures, p. 1224). YHWH's name is shown to be contained in the name of His people, the Yahudim (Jews) (If my people who are called by my name...2 Chr. 7:14). It would be fitting that the derivation of the name of His people would be more than just praise, but would also contain the name of the One being praised!

The genealogy of Yeshuah listed in Matthew 1:2-16 contains a total of 11 out of 39 ancestors with names derived from YHWH or Yah. These names include Yahudah (Judas), Uriyah (Urias, husband of Bathsheba), Abiyah (Abia), Yahushaphat (Josaphat), Yahuram (Joram), Uzziyah (Ozias), Yotham (Joatham), Hizqiyahu (Ezekias), Yoshiyahu (Josias), Yekonyah (Jechonias), and Yoseph (Joseph). The meanings of the second through tenth names are Flame of YHWH, father (worshipper) of YHWH, YHWH judged, YHWH will rise, strength of YHWH, YHWH is perfect, strengthened of YHWH, founded of YHWH, and YHWH will establish, respectively.

The origin of the name of the eleventh ancestor of YHWH Savior, his father, has special significance. Davidson states that "Yoseph" was once "Yehuseph" (He shall add, sc. [scilicet, or to wit] the Lord [YHWH], comp. Ge. 30:24) (p. 327, The Analytical Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon, reprinted by Zondervan, 1981)." Genesis 30:24 reads, "So she called his name Yoseph, and said YHWH has added to me another son.'' What a fitting name for the final person in the lineage of Messiah.

The name of YHWH is first used in Matthew 1:20 and is used a total of 18 times in this Gospel in The Scriptures (as cited above). Ten of these references are direct quotations from the Old Testament containing the Tetragrammaton. The Scriptures quoted (Chapter and verse of the reference in Matthew) are as follows: Isaiah (Yeshayahu) 40:3 (Matt. 3:3), Deut. 8:3 (4:4), Deut. 6:16 (4:7), Deut. 6:13 (4:10), Psalms 118:26 (21:9 and 23:39), Psalms 118:23 (21:42), Deut. 10:12 (22:37), Psalms 110:1 (22:44), and Jeremiah (Yirmeyahu) 32:8 and Zechariah (Zekaryah) 11:13 (27:10).

Kurios is used in place of the Tetragrammaton in many Greek texts, and is translated as Lord in English. Psalms 110:1 is quoted in the King James Version as "The LORD said to my Lord." The use of upper case LORD (indicating YHWH) in this passage attempts to restore the meaning lost in the Greek of "Kurios" said to my "kurios," but still loses the meaning of "Yehowah said to my Lord." The other references in the KJV, however, substitute Lord or God (Matthew 4:4) for YHWH, further hiding the theophoric name.

The Messiah was announced by prophets, many of whom proclaimed YHWH's name in theirs. These include Yiremeyahu (Jeremy), Yeshayahu (Esaias), Eliyahu (Elias), and finally Yohanon (John) the Immerser. Yohanon is a shortened form of Yahuhanon. The meanings of these names are respectively YHWH will rise, YHWH has saved, El (God) of YHWH (my El is YHWH), and YHWH has favored.

YHWH Yeshuah gathered twelve apostles, three of whom had names derived from YHWH. The Hebrew name of the author of the first Gospel is Mattithyahu, meaning gift of YHWH. The name of the apostle Yeshuah loved, Yohanon, fittingly carries the meaning YHWH has favored. The third apostle with a name containing that of YHWHh, Yahudah (Judas), became the betrayer and was replaced with a second Mattithyahu (Acts 1:26).

The final two theophoric names are Zekaryah (Zacharias) and Berekyah (Barachias), meaning YHWH has remembered and bless, or kneel to, YHWH, respectively (Mat. 23:35). These were two priest martyrs. Two other names besides Yohanon have more than one person with that name. There are two other Yosephs, a brother of Yeshuah (Matt. 13:55) and the disciple who provided the tomb for Yeshuah (Matt. 27:55). Finally, there is another Yahudah, also a brother of Yeshuah (Matt. 13:55).

All together, nineteen names derived from YHWH or YaH are found among the eighty-eight names counted in the first Gospel. Thus, 1 in 5 names in the book carries the name of YHWH. The total percentage of names used is actually higher because overall use of the theophoric names is much more frequent than the other names. This study shows that YHWH is praised through His name and the names of His people both individually and collectively (Yahudim for "Jews").

The Hebrew origin of names containing the Father's name is often not evident in the common English translations. Two of the most hidden names are YHWH becoming LORD, Lord, or God, and YHWH becoming Judus. These differences should not be taken lightly. Peter (Kepha) cried out at Pentecost quoting Yoel (Joel) "And it shall be that everyone who calls on the name of YHWH shall be saved (Acts 2:21 from Yoel 2:32). When we call on the name YHWH Yeshuah, we call out YHWH Deliverance! The same is not necessarily evident with Jesus.

¹In the Hebrew Gospel of Matthew (1995, Mercer University Press), George Howard addresses the name of the Son on p. 207.

"According to the Tol'doth Yeshu, Jesus' original name was Yehoshua. Later, when he became a heretic, his name was changed to Yeshu. The explanation given for this change is that Yeshu stands for [in Hebrew] "may his name and memory be blotted out [See Krauss, Das Leben Jesu, 68; Berlin: Calvary, 1902]." Whatever can be made of this story, the spelling Yeshu for the name of Jesus became common in medieval Jewish polemics and can be found even in the Talmud (cf. b.Sanh. 43)."

"A similar linguistic phenomenon occurs in Shem-Tob's Hebrew Matthew. In the birth narrative at 1:21 and 25, the text refers to Jesus as Yeshua, an alternate form of Yehoshua. Elsewhere, the text refers to him as Yeshu. Though never clearly stated, the implication is that Jesus' name was changed."

Mat 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his846 name3686 JESUS:2424 for1063 he846 shall save4982 his848 people2992 from575 their846 sins.266

G2424
Iēsous
ee-ay-sooce'
Of Hebrew origin [H3091]; Jesus (that is, Jehoshua), the name of our Lord and two (three) other Israelites: - Jesus.