Question:

Please tell me, director Ivanov - is “director” a name or title? And Mr. Ivanov - “master” is a title or a name? So how do you say that God and Lord is the name? God has a name, and you cite the Tetragrammaton YHWH, which occurs over 7,000 times in the Bible. All over the world, his reading is transmitted as Jehovah or Yahweh, so why do you not say this in your answer and quote Exodus 3:15? Let's honestly insert this Tetragrammaton in all the places in the Bible where it appears in the original texts. I do not hope for your answer, but I am glad that there are still people who read the Bible and meditate. Goodbye.

Boris

The priest Afanasy Gumerov, a resident of the Sretensky Monastery, answers:

The question of the names of God has been resolved in ancient and late patristics, as well as in biblical science. Both representatives of patristic theology and scholars in the field of biblical science are unanimous in the opinion that the Holy Scriptures reveal to us several divine names. Only representatives of some sects dispute this, in particular "Jehovah's Witnesses". They claim that there is only one hidden name (Jehovah) that they honor. Everything else, they say, titles. This statement is completely contrary to the sacred texts.

Sacred writers use the word shem (name). It applies not only to God, but also to people. It is also present in the book of Exodus (3: 13-15). The Prophet Moses asks: And they will say to me: What is His name? God told Moses: I am who I am. The Hebrew text contains a four-letter word: yod, g (x) e, vav, g (x) e (YHWH). This word was called tetragrammaton (tetra - four; gramma - letter). The Jews did not pronounce this name for some time. One of the Jewish traditions dates the beginning of this prohibition to the time of the high priest Simon the Righteous (3rd century BC), after whose death priests stopped using the tetragram even in divine services. Therefore, next to the tetragram they put another name, also consisting of four letters: Aleph, Dalet, Nun, Yod. It was pronounced instead of the tetragram - Adonai. Unlike the royal title adoni (lord, lord) Adonai (my Lord) in the Bible refers only to God. In a number of places this name as a reference is already found in ancient texts:; ; Deut 9:26; and others. The Hebrew alphabet consists of only 22 consonants. Around the 6th century A.D. a system of vocalizations (nekudot), mazorets (Hebrew mazara - legend) appeared, i.e. keepers of the tradition, deliberately transferred the vowel sounds from the name Adonai to the tetragram. Medieval European scholars did not notice this convention and took the spelling of these vowels for their own vowel sounds of the tetragram. Therefore, for several centuries the tetragram was pronounced incorrectly - Jehovah. However, already in the 16th - 17th centuries, a number of prominent Hebraic scholars (Buxtrophius, Druzii, Capella, Altingius) objected to such a reading. Since no exact pronunciation was offered in return, the same - Jehovah remained the same. In the first half of the 19th century, the German scientist Ewald suggested another reading - Jahvah (Yahva). This proposal was not immediately accepted, but only after the support of such prominent researchers as Genstenberg and Reinke. The reading suggested by Ewald is not the discovery of the real name. It was obtained by the philological method. Therefore, there are two options: Jahvah and Jahveh. Our eminent researcher, the Archbishop, based on historical data, considered the pronunciation Jahveh (Yahweh) the most plausible.

Despite the accurate data of biblical science, representatives of the sect "Jehovah's Witnesses" based on the erroneous reading of the tetragram built their "dogma". The author of the letter does not speak about his confessional affiliation, but his pathos is not accidental. "Throughout the world, his reading is transmitted as Jehovah or Yahweh ...". First of all, I must ask: what is the name? Jehovah or Yahweh? After all, they are completely different. Second, is the reading "transmitted as Jehovah" around the world or among the sect? I will cite the opinion not of an Orthodox theologian, but of a modern Hebraist professor at Harvard University Thomas O. Lambdin about the name enclosed in the tetragram: “Initially, it was pronounced most likely as Yahwe. Then, out of pious motives, they stopped pronouncing it, replacing it with Adonay (Lord) when reading aloud. This custom, which has arisen already several centuries BC. and reflected the Masoretes in their punctuation, transferring the vocalization of the word Adonay to the letters in the biblical text [the author's tetragram is given in the text in the Hebrew script - iodine, g (x) e, vav, g (x) e]. Thus was born a "hybrid" spelling that did not reflect any real pronunciation. Later, the conditional Masoretic spelling was read by European scholars literally - hence the incorrect form “Jehovah”, which does not correspond to either the ancient or the later traditional reading ”(Thomas O. Lambdin. Textbook of the Hebrew language, translated from English, M., 1998, p. 117). Regarding the pronunciation of Yahweh, the learned Hebraist writes only presumably: "It was most likely pronounced like Yahwe." In modern Western theological literature, Yahweh is encountered very often, but is it possible to prayerfully invoke a name if it is not revealed to us, but obtained through linguistic research. Can it be included in prayers if the scientists themselves are not completely sure of its accuracy?

How do Orthodox Christians pronounce the biblical outline of the tetragram? In full accord with the Old Testament temple tradition. Since Adonai (Lord) was read in the Temple, 72 Jewish interpreters, when translated into Greek in the 3rd century BC. in place of the tetragram, they put Curios (Lord). The holy apostles turned to the Greek Bible. This is proved by the analysis of the text of the Gospel. Following them, we say - the Lord.

Let us consider another fundamental question: is there one name of God or several? Let's turn to the Holy Scriptures.

1. The same word shem (name), as in Exodus (3: 13-15), also stands in those places where there is no tetragram: “You must not worship a god other than the Lord; because his name is jealous; He is a jealous God ”(). In the Hebrew Bible it stands: Shemo El-Kanna (the name is Jealous God).

2. In the book of Isaiah we read: “Our Redeemer is the Lord of hosts, His name is the Holy One of Israel” (). In Heb. text: Shemo Kedosh Israel. Should we trust our preconceived notions or the prophet Isaiah? In his book, the name of God the Holy One of Israel occurs 25 times (1: 4; 5:19, 24; 10:20; 12: 6; 17: 7; 29:19; 30: 11-12, 15; 31: 1; 37 : 23; 41:14, 16, 20; 43: 3, 14; 45:11; 47: 4; 48:17; 49: 7; 54: 5; 60: 9, 14). It is clear from the context that the Holy One of Israel is used as the name of God. It is enough to take those places where it is completely synonymous with the tetragram. For example, “they will put their trust in the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, sincerely” (10:20). The first part of this verse contains a tetragram.

3. “You alone are our Father; for Abraham does not recognize us, and Israel does not recognize us as their own; Thou, Lord, our Father, from time immemorial Thy name: "Our Redeemer" "(). Again, the Hebrew text contains the same word as in Exodus 3: 13-15) - shemo (name). Goel (Redeemer) as the name of God is found in other places of the Holy Scriptures.

4. The Lord of hosts is His name ”(). Another name is indicated here - Sabaoth (Heb. Tsevaot; from the creature. Tsava - army). We also meet other prophets testifying to this: “The Lord God of hosts is His name” (); "Your name is called on me, O Lord, God of hosts" ().

5. Other names were also used: El (Strong, Strong), Elohim (in the Greek Bible - Teos; in Slavic and Russian - God), El-Shaddai (in the Greek Bible - Pantokrator; in the Slav and Russian Bible - Almighty) and others. Prayer mention of any of them meant invoking the name of the Lord.

The opinion that there are several divine names in the Old Testament is not only the opinion of Orthodox theology, as the author of the letter claims. Again, I will quote the opinion of the non-Orthodox scholar Hebraist. Thomas O. Lambdin in the Hebrew Textbook highlighted a special paragraph "Excursion: the names of God in the Old Testament": "Most often, God in the Old Testament is called by the names Elohim and YHWH ... The addition of the prepositions be, le and ke to the names Elohim and Adonay has one peculiarity: the initial aleph in pronunciation is lost together with the following vowel ”(p. 117-18).

Our discussion is not an academic theological debate, but is of fundamental importance. The position stated in the letter is directed against the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. For this purpose, the deity of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit is denied. To avoid dangerous mistakes and delusions, it is necessary to get rid of the narrow, binding the mind and spiritual eyes, ideas. The revelation of the Holy Trinity is given in the New Testament. In the Gospel of Matthew, our Lord Jesus Christ, sending disciples, says: “Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (28:19). It is impossible to know the Father without believing in the Deity of the Son: “We also know that the Son of God came and gave us light and reason, that we may know the true God and may we be in His true Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life ”().

Who Wrote the Ten Commandments?

In modern culture, the Bible plays an increasingly prominent role, which many consider the universal basis of morality and legality. In particular, they note the special significance of the so-called Decalogue, the famous ten commandments, allegedly transmitted to the Jewish patriarch Moses by God himself on Mount Sinai (Bible, Exodus, Chapter 20). An opinion (created by church leaders) has been established in society that these commandments should at all times regulate relations between all people. However, upon closer examination, it turns out that the content of the Decalogue is closely related to antiquity and is hardly applicable in our time.

Already the first commandment indicates that its object is only the Jewish people: "I am the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery ...". This refers to the events described in the first book of the Old Testament, associated with the flight of the Jews from Egyptian captivity - a legendary event that occurred, as scientists say, in a very distant era. The commandment consolidates in the consciousness of this particular people the leading role of the main deity of its mythology (it gradually transformed into the only God). The second commandment requires Jews to faithfully serve this God, who threatens to punish "children for the guilt of fathers up to the third and fourth kind." In the old days, such a punishment for violators of the sacred will was considered normal. But the question arises: how justified is this demand for long revenge from the point of view of our modern concepts of justice? Are we ready today to bear responsibility for the actions of our grandfathers, whom we did not even know personally?

The third commandment prohibits the use of God's name in vain (in vain) and threatens punishment for those who do so. This is a strange requirement, since it does not explain specifically what should be considered a vain utterance of the sacred name. The interpretations of this subject can be very broad. Perhaps in Hebrew society the exact meaning of this prohibition was known, but over time it was forgotten. And now the name of God is pronounced to whom and how they please, without fear of violation of this incomprehensible commandment. He is called Jehovah, Yahweh, the Most High, etc. The fourth commandment refers to the observance of the Sabbath day as the time of rest for God after the creation of the world. According to her, no one should work on this day, including slaves and livestock. The author of this provision clearly did not foresee that slavery would be abolished in the future, and the Sabbath in Christian churches would be replaced by Sunday. Moreover, their leaders now no longer demand a complete rejection of any business on Sunday from believing Christians. At present, only Jews and some Christian sectarians honor Saturday as a holy day. This means that in the practice of most biblical confessions there is an actual refusal to fulfill this archaic commandment.

In the fifth commandment, where it is about honoring parents, the following reasoning is given: "so that your days on the earth, which the Lord your God gives you, may be prolonged." Consequently, this commandment also applies to some Jews, since the Old Testament tells how the country of Canaan (Palestine), by the will of God, was conquered by the Jewish tribes under the leadership of the commander Joshua. Moreover, the Jews living in the diaspora countries, apparently, also cannot attribute it to their own account.

6-8 commandments contain brief prohibitions on theft, murder and adultery (betrayal of a spouse). It is clear that in any society these unworthy acts are condemned and punished, regardless of whether the Bible is known there. These simple moral and legal norms are accepted in any country as a condition for a normal life order. It is not at all necessary to refer to the will of God. The same goes for the ninth commandment, which condemns false witnesses. Finally, the tenth commandment is actually a duplication of the eighth: it sets out in more detail the requirement to refrain from appropriating someone else's property. Moreover, this property includes slaves, wives, oxen and donkeys. And here it is obvious that this commandment appeared in a country where slavery was legalized, and oxen and donkeys were considered the most valuable property. Wives there also belonged to the number of objects of living property, along with slaves and donkeys. Such a country was ancient Judea, in which all ten commandments arose as primitive legislation. This happened shortly after the settlement of Canaan by the Jews. The new state needed laws to govern its entire life. To give authority and significance to their laws, their real authors - the leaders of the people and the priests of the temple cult - decreed that the source of law and morality was the God of the ancient Jews - Yahweh.

This was a general principle in the legal practice of all ancient countries. Social laws, as a rule, were proclaimed to come from the gods worshiped in a given society. This was the case in Egypt, Babylon, China, India and elsewhere.

Due to the confluence of historical circumstances, the Hebrew legislation from the book of Exodus, many centuries later, began to be used in its own interests by the Christian church. This was facilitated by the main idea of \u200b\u200bthe Decalogue - people must submit to the will of God, and the latter, of course, turned out to be aimed at protecting private property, social inequality and the privileges of clergy. Therefore, in the so-called Christian countries, for a long time, the church has educated the peoples in the spirit of recognizing the ten commandments as a manifestation of God's will. The priests of Christian and other biblical organizations are trying to do the same now.

In our enlightened era in civilized countries, legislation is based on the principle of protecting the rights of any person, regardless of his attitude to religion. This contradicts, of course, the notorious ten commandments, which, like the Bible as a whole, retain only historical interest for cultured people, as evidence of moral principles and worldview of the early periods of human society.

Arkady Tsoglin,
Saratov

http://ateism.ru/article.htm?no\u003d1864

Ten commandments of moses

The ten commandments of Moses (Decalogue, Decalogue) are set forth in the Bible in three versions: in Exodus, 20: 1-17; in Exodus 34: 1-26 and in Deuteronomy 5: 1-25. The first and third versions of the commandments are close to each other, and the second does not correspond in many respects to the first and third versions.

The Orthodox Church gives this interpretation of the biblical Decalogue:

Ten Commandments of the Law of God

1. I am the Lord thy God; Yes, you will not be bosie inii, unless Me.

2. Do not create for yourself an idol * and every likeness, a tree in heaven, a mountain, and a tree on the earth below, and an tree in the waters under the earth: do not bow to them, nor serve them.

* Note: In all Catholic textbooks and catechisms, the second commandment about "idols" is omitted so as not to confuse believers with the cult of worshiping icons, sculptures and other images of God, angels and saints - E.D.

3. They did not take * the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

* Note: Since in orthodox Church abuse the pronunciation of the name of the Lord God - during the divine service it is prescribed to pronounce the name of the Lord God three times in a row, and ten times in a row, and forty times in a row - then the clergy "do not pronounce" translate and interpret to believers as "do not receive." In Judaism, in accordance with the third commandment, believing Jews are not allowed not only to pronounce the word "God", but also to write it - E.D.

4. Remember the sabbath day *, to keep it holy: do six days, and do all your works in them, but on the seventh day, sabbath, to the Lord your God.

* Note: By order of the Emperor Theodosius, the Christian Church, in accordance with the tradition of the Roman Empire, from the end of the 4th century, declared Sunday (Day of the Sun) to be a day off and a public holiday instead of Saturday (Saturn's Day). Therefore, this commandment is presented to believers as "Remember Sunday." –E.D.

5. Honor your father and your mother, may it be good for you, and may you be long on earth.

6. Do not kill.

7. Do not make love.

8. Don't steal.

9. Do not obey your friend your testimony is false.

10. Do not covet your sincere wife, do not covet your neighbor's house, neither sit down, nor his servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor any of his cattle, nor everything, since the essence of your neighbor is. *

Note: In the Catholic Church, the 10th commandment is divided into two commandments: a) Do not covet your sincere wife and b) Do not covet your neighbor's house ... - E.D.

The Ten Commandments of the Law were placed on two tablets *, because they contain two types of love: love for God and love for neighbor.

Note: In the Orthodox Church, on the first tablet, 4 commandments are written, and on the second - 6. In the Catholic and Uniate: on the first tablet there are three (without the second) commandments, and on the second - 7 (two of the 10th commandment are made). Numbers are written in the iconographic image: “ IV "and" VI "among the Orthodox; " III "and" VII "among Catholics - E. D.

Pointing to these two types of love, the Lord Jesus Christ, when asked which commandment is the greatest in the law, said: " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is similar to it: Love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments all the law and the prophets are established"(Matt. 22: 37-40).

We must love God first and foremost and most of all, because He is our Creator, Provider and Savior, - " We live and move and exist with it"(Acts 17:28).

Next should be love for our neighbor, which is an expression of our love for God. He who does not love his neighbor does not love God either. St. Apostle John the Theologian explains: " Who says: "I love God", and the brother (i.e. neighbor ) he hates his own, that liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he sees, how he can love God whom he does not see"(1 John 4:20).

By loving God and our neighbors, we thereby discover the true self-lovebecause true love for oneself consists in fulfilling our duties to God and our neighbors. It is expressed in taking care of one's soul, in cleansing oneself from sins, in subordinating the body to the spirit, in limiting personal needs. We must take care of our health and take care of the development of our spiritual strength and abilities in order to better show our love for God and our neighbors.

Thus, self-love should not be shown at the expense of love for one's neighbor. On the contrary. We must sacrifice love for ourselves to love our neighbors. " There is no more that love, as if someone lay down his soul (that is, sacrifice his life) for his friends (his neighbors) (John 15, 13). And love for oneself and love for one's neighbors should be sacrificed for love for God. The Lord Jesus Christ says about it this way: " Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me; and who does not take up his cross (that is, who refuses all life's hardships, deprivations, sufferings and trials that the Lord sends, but follows an easy, lawless path) and follows me, he is not worthy of me"(Matt. 10, 37-38).

If a person loves God first of all, then naturally he cannot but love his father, mother, children, and all his neighbors; and this love will be sanctified by divine grace. If a person loves one of them, without love for God, then such a love of his may even be criminal, for example, such a person for the well-being of a beloved friend can deprive others of the welfare, be unjust, cruel to them, etc.

So, although the entire Law of God is contained in two commandments of love, in order to better understand our responsibilities to God and our neighbor, they are divided into 10 commandments. Our obligations to God are prescribed in the first four commandments, and our obligations to our neighbors are prescribed in the last six commandments.

From the site: http://sotref.com/religija/religija_i_moral/300-10_zapovedejj_moiseja.html

The origin of the name Yahweh.

Yahweh is the name of God in Judaism and Christianity, used in the Old Testament (Tanach). According to the Bible, it was revealed to the Jewish people through Moses. In modern Russian, pronunciation with an emphasis on the first syllable is accepted, but for Hebrew, the emphasis on the last syllable is typical.
Tetragrammaton (YHVH) transliteration into Russian of God's name, four consonant letters - יהוה. Yahweh is the now accepted probable pronunciation of the name of the God of the Bible. Pronouncing the name of God in Judaism is taboo, which, in particular, is based on the biblical commandment "Do not pronounce the name of the Lord your God in vain" (Ex. 20: 7), therefore, only the high priest of the Jerusalem temple knew the true (secret) pronunciation of the name, and in prayers use the address Adonai (Hebrew, "Lord", "Lord", "Almighty"), in everyday life - A-shem (Hebrew "Name").
Since vowels are not indicated in ancient writing (Hebrew), the true pronunciation of the name of God remains the subject of hypotheses, only the letters Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey (in the Latin transcription YHWH) are reliably known. The literal designation of this Hebrew name is Tetragrammaton. The Samaritans retain the Yahwe or Yahwa pronunciation to this day. The pronunciation of Yahweh with variants Yahwoh, Yehwoh is also reconstructed according to independent ancient Semitic sources.

The vowel of the tetragrammaton “Jehowah” (in the Russian tradition - Jehovah) is widespread and entered into a number of European languages. The well-known antique and orientalist Ilya Shifman wrote about the use of the word Jehovah: When the keepers of the Jewish Old Testament tradition invented special signs to designate vowels, they added vowels from the word Adonai to the consonants of the name Yahweh. The result is the never really existed and never read Jehovah (in the traditional spelling: Jehovah). That is, Jehovah is not the name of God, it is a derivative from other words that appeared relatively recently.

Here it is. The alleged Yahweh (right).

Yahweh in West Semitic mythology

Spouse of Yahweh. Some sources say that Yahweh had a spouse, and even two spouses at once. Anat and Ashera. According to some researchers, during the period of transition to monotheism among the ancient Jews, Yahweh was considered the only god, however, having a spouse. According to some sources (for example, the Elephantine papyri), it was Anat, according to others - Ashera. The Old Testament mentions the worship of the ancient Jews to the "Queen of Heaven", against which the prophet Jeremiah fought. Archaeological data (the frequent find of figurines of Asherah) also indicate the widespread distribution of her cult in Palestine, at least until the 6th century BC. e. However, among researchers there is a confusion between the names of the goddesses Ashera (the wife of the god El) and Ashtoret (Ishtar-Astarte), which differ in Ugaritic mythology; just as Yahweh in ancient times could be identified with El or the son of El.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, documents were found in Egypt written on papyrus in Aramaic. It turned out that in Elephantine, a small island settlement opposite Aswan, there was a colony of Jewish mercenaries living there from the beginning of the Persian rule (525 BC) until the beginning of our era. The settlers had their own temple, they realized their involvement in the Jewish people, and their priests corresponded with the Jerusalem priests. Whom did the Jews of Elephantine worship? The Jewish god, of course, whom they called YHW (short for YHWH). But along with him in the same temple, they worshiped two goddesses - Asham of Bethel (Bethel is the main city in the Northern Israelite kingdom; the goddess herself may be related to Ashmat from Samaria, mentioned by Amos, 8:14) and Anat Bethel (known Semitic goddess of love and war).

It turned out to be quite easy to identify YHW Elephantine and the common Jewish Yahweh, although the former has two divine spouses. Scientists consider the religion of this area to be Jewish, although not normative. Several explanations have been proposed for these deviations from the monotheistic canon. The first is due to the fact that the religion of Elephantine, according to Shalit, was of a folk character. The Elephantine Jews brought with them to Egypt a popular religion, which the early prophets and Jeremiah fought against shortly before the destruction of the first Temple. Of course, the popular religion also put in the first place the god of the Jews - Yahweh.

Other scholars see the reason for the distance from the normative Judaism of the Second Temple period and / or the influence of the pagan environment. However, recent finds on the territory of Israel proper explain this phenomenon in a new way. Drawings on a broken vessel found at Kuntillet Ajrud in the northeast of Sinai and dated to the early 18th century. BC e., depict three figures: a man standing in the foreground, a woman directly behind him, and a seated musician in the background. The caption reads "I bless you with the name of Yahweh of Samaria and his Asherah." Funeral inscription from a tomb in El-Kom (Judea), dating back to the 18th century. BC, also ends with the names of Yahweh and Ashera. Ashera, like Anat, is a well-known goddess of the northwestern Semitic pantheon according to many documents. We remember that the Bible itself says about its official veneration in Israel in the 9th century. BC.; her cult was approved by Jehabel and Athalia, who probably borrowed it from the Phoenicians. In other biblical references, authors either lament her veneration (2 Kings 14:13, for example, referring to another lady), or reduce her to the role of a tree or a pole at the altar (2 Kings 13: 6, 17:16; Deuteronomy 16 -21 ff). The condemnation and bitter controversy directed against her are a sign of Ashera's popularity and veneration. Margalit claims that this name means "going behind" - this name indicates her role as the wife of the supreme god, which is very suitable for the drawing on the vessel from Kuntillet-Ajrud. Thus, by taking into account both the biblical indications and the archaeological finds, one can make next output: the cult of the goddess, the supposed wife of Yahweh, was widespread throughout the country in the era of the first Temple, as well as among the Jewish population of Elephantine. "

Associations with other deities

Apparently, the worship of Yahweh was widespread not only among the ancient Jews, but also among other West Semitic tribes. Among the Phoenicians, he was known under the name Yevo and in the Bible under the name Yehi (Yihavi). He was responsible for the sea element and was considered the patron saint of Beirut, where texts dedicated to Yevo were discovered, undoubtedly created under the influence of myths about Baal Haddad, the god of thunder, the son of the Ugaritic Ilu. The name of the latter passed into Hebrew in a common noun, meaning "god", and the functions of Ilu (Ela) were taken over by Yahweh. In Palestine, he was considered the patron saint of the ancient Israeli union of tribes and, probably, the patron saint of Edom. He fights with Yammu (sea) and the leviathan and wins. In Ugarit and Canaan, Yahweh (Yava) was called Yammu - the god of the sea, defeated in the struggle with Baal. In addition, in the Ugaritic ritual prayers, Yahweh is identified with El or he is called the son of El. It is believed that in the common Western Semitic pantheon Yahweh / Yevo was the lord of the water element, possibly corresponding in the Sumerian-Akkadian mythology to the god Ea (which, however, is doubtful, since Ea was the enemy of the formidable Enlil (later in the Bible possibly called Yahweh), who sent the Flood. However, such confusion is typical for related, but not coinciding mythologies, compare Uranus / Zeus among the Greeks and Dyaus / Indra among the Indo-Aryans).

Yahweh in the Old Testament

In the Old Testament, Yahweh (in the synodal translation is usually rendered as "Lord" or "Lord God") is the personal monotheistic God of the people of Israel, who brought the Jews out of Egypt and gave Moses the divine Law. The cult of Yahweh is contrasted in the Old Testament with sharply negatively assessed cults of other Semitic deities. The history of the relationship of the people of Israel with Yahweh is the central plot of the Old Testament. Yahweh in the Bible actively participates in the fate of Israel and other nations, opens up to the prophets, gives commandments, punishes for disobedience. The perception of the personality of the Old Testament God was different in different religious and philosophical teachings. Thus, from a Christian point of view, both his continuity in comparison with the New Testament concept of God and the differences between them were emphasized.

Christianity

In Orthodox Christianity, the name Yahweh befits all three persons of the Divine. Under the name Yahweh, the Son of God (Jesus before the incarnation) appeared to Moses and the prophets. Yahweh He is the Creator, the Lawgiver, the Protector, the Deity, the supreme and powerful Lord. The synodal translation, as a rule, renders the tetragram (YHWH) with the word "Lord". The pronunciation "Jehovah" has been used in the Christian world for over 200 years, but in most translations of the Bible into Russian it is very rare (Ex. 6: 3, footnote, Ex. 15: 3) and is replaced by other names (mainly Lord) ...

Who is this Yahweh if not God? If we put aside the version about his divine origin, then we have several versions: Yahweh or a fictional character (such as Santa Claus), Yahweh is an alien, Yahweh is a representative of dark forces. Let's analyze these versions in more detail.

The well-known figure of the "new atheism" ethologist Richard Dawkins believes that Yahweh is "the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; petty, unjust, vindictive despot; vengeful, bloodthirsty chauvinistic killer; intolerant of homosexuals, misogynist, racist, murderer of children, peoples, brothers, cruel megalomaniac, sadomasochist, capricious, vicious offender. " Yahweh, who was worshiped by the Jews - none other than the Ancient Egyptian Set, the dark god of the desert, castrated by the son of Osiris Horus in revenge for the death of his father - is a prototype of the devil. By the way, in the New Testament, Christ says to the Jews: “Your father is the devil; and you want to do the desires of your father ”(Jn 8:44). In Christianity, as in Judaism, the devil was identified with the serpent (a reptilian entity). But how could this be. Yahweh - he is the Creator of Jehovah, is he a dark god? He himself forbade eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, he himself seduced Eve into this, and himself punished them? Why not? In the first, we will find out that the Yahweh cannot be the One Creator of Heaven and Earth. He is too personal, has his own addictions, jealous, angry and similar qualities. In the Bible, after all, this is not attributed to him. Yahweh - is named in any way, except for the Lord, the Lord God of Abraham and his descendants. It was already Judas that Christian priests began to ascribe to this essence what the Creator had created, because they identified them. Plutarch, an ancient Greek historian, wrote: “Those who say that Typhon (Set) fled on a donkey for seven days after the battle, escaped and became the father of Jerusalem and Judea, they are quite obviously and clearly attracted to the myth of the Jewish tradition” “About Isis and Osiris ". This confirms that the Jewish god Yahwe is an eerie, bloodthirsty demon that comes out only at night, avoiding the day, that is, the dark god Set. Why does Christ say to the Jews: “For when they rise from the dead, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be like angels in heaven” (Mark 12:25)? Why were these angels in Christianity portrayed not as asexual creatures (amoeba), but as emasculated men, without genitals? After all, as Set, the dark god, was emasculated, so the Yahweh could not stand anything reminding that people are inherent in pleasures that are inaccessible to him. This is the only "god" who shuns carnal joys. He is strict and sad. Any joys contradict him. Night - the time at which all Jude Christian holidays are held, such as Passover (Jewish Passover) - also speaks of the dark essence of the god Yahweh (Set). And Moses was angry with the captains of war, captains of thousands and captains of hundreds who came from the war, 31:15 and Moses said to them: Why did you leave all the women alive? 31:17 So KILL ALL the male CHILDREN, and all the women who know the husband on the male bed, kill; 31:18 and all the FEMALE CHILDREN who did not know the man's bed, let them live FOR YOURSELF. 31:28 And from the soldiers who went to war, take tribute to the Yahweh, one soul out of five hundred, from men and from cattle, and from donkeys and from flocks; 31:29 Take this from half of them and give it to Eleazar the priest in the RISE of yahweh. 31:31 And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as the yahweh commanded Moses. 31:40 There are sixteen thousand people, and the tribute to Yahweh is thirty-two souls. 31:41 And Moses gave a tribute, ASCENT to Yahweh, to Eleazar the priest, as Yahweh commanded Moses. " Did you think, after listening to the benevolent speeches of the priest, that “the god of Yahwe does not demand bloody human sacrifices, and this compares favorably with the pagan” gods? And what did this quote tell us?

After reading the Old Testament, in fact, one might get the opinion that the Old Testament god Yahweh is not a figment of the imagination of the ancient Jews. Indeed, about three thousand years ago, a very extraordinary type appeared in the Middle East. And not alone, but with a team like him, but subordinate to him. I want to warn the reader right away - do not look at my research through the prism of religiosity or something like that. I am impartial in the sense of faith in God. I do a dry, unbiased analysis of the text and the psychological component of the scripture. So the first is the god Yahweh and his team, perhaps not earthlings. That is, they are aliens from another world. Don't be surprised at these findings. Pay attention to the manner in which both Yahweh himself and his team members address people. The expression "Son of man", which they use, in the language of psychologists, is a certain distancing. Neither Yahweh, nor any of his comrades, and they are described, correlates himself with people. That is, they themselves are not human sons... Second, it doesn't seem strange to you that Yahweh in those distant times possessed the knowledge and abilities of the modern level. Anyone who is familiar with the text of the Old Testament should know about it. Yahweh is familiar with virology, bacteriology, medicine, gene research. Knows about the influence of nutrition on the human body. He is also strong in sociology and military affairs. Requires compliance with the norms of behavior inherent in modern society, with some nuances. But more on that later…

Moreover, he has at his disposal a rather impressive aircraft and several smaller ones. Moreover, he does not fly in a balloon, but on a disc-like apparatus made of metal the size of a cinema, and even with a beam weapon on board. The device can fly independently, using the jet principle. So to move with the help of four carriers equipped with screws like a helicopter, moreover, folding. The carriers have landing supports like those of modern spacecraft and are equipped with original sector wheels. Equipped with manipulators under the screws, which in the covenant the prophet Ezekiel called the likeness of a human hand. Read the book of the prophet Ezekiel in the Old Testament, just carefully. You will be surprised by the plot. The book describes a certain "Glory of the Lord", which is found earlier in the scriptures. For the first time in the chapter Exodus. However, only after reading Ezekiel can you figure out what it is.

The glory of the Lord. A real aircraft.

Few people know that the leading specialist, NASA engineer Jozsef Blumrich, was engaged in the Old Testament "glory of the Lord". He fairly accurately reproduced the "glory of the Lord" on the drawing. And he figured out the structure of the sector wheels of this flying glory of the Lord. He also patented the invention. Although you do not need to be a NASA specialist to see in the glory of the Lord a disco with weapons. Just read the Bible text carefully and imagine what the prophet is describing. The modern reader has one advantage over the reader of the past - knowledge and the ability to compare with modern aerospace technologies. It is clear that for the ancient Jews such a phenomenon as a spaceship and the one who controls it is no other than God arrived. An unprecedented weapon with which Yahweh kills tens of thousands of people in a matter of minutes. With a noise and a roar, it flies in and out, raising at the same time a cloud filled with the light of a flame. Sometimes, reading, you are amazed - how can such a thing be described in the Bible at all. But the theme of the disco runs through Old Testament... It is for this reason that Yahweh terrifies all the peoples of the Middle East. And the Jews are afraid of everyone they attack. He burns sacrifices with fire from nowhere. Splits the rock and opens the ground. It affects people with ulcers and other diseases - all this was unknown to people of that time. Of course in their eyes he is God. But what surprised me was his "earthly nature." Moreover, he has a nasty character. For all his difference from people, he behaves like something earthly, humanly. Aliens speak in a language understandable to people. They look like people, which is also beautifully described in the covenant. They eat and drink humanly. They wear clothes, although not the same as those of ancient people. The Prophet Ezekiel was met by a man who looked like shiny brass near the entrance to the disc-plane hangar. (Ezekiel ch. 40) It is hard to think of a reason for this difference from other people. Apparently a metallic jumpsuit. In his hands was a measuring stick and a rope. He long and thoroughly introduces Ezekiel to the structure of the hangar and the whole complex of buildings around it. The Prophet was ordered to document everything in detail and pass it on to the people. However, the city's punishers with destructive weapons in their hands are distinguished by their dress. They were sent by Yahweh to destroy the inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem for worshiping other gods. But here we see the exclusion method in the description. There were six of them, but one was in linen clothes with a scribe's apparatus. The clothes of the rest with weapons are not described. But they were clearly not wrapped in linen if they silently and effectively destroyed most of the inhabitants of Jerusalem. After the completion of the operation, the man in linen clothes reported to Yahweh himself. Who are they? The weapon is clearly small in size, since it is said that everyone has it in their hand. The inhabitants did not run away from the noise and shouts. It is believed that Yahweh is a certain military rank of aliens who hid on Earth from more powerful forces. Perhaps after the war of the gods, which is described in the annals and legends of antiquity. The place is well known to him. People of the Earth too. And apparently in expectation of help from his own, he and the crew were waiting for a ship that would pick them up. And in order not to waste time, he "tamed" a few people for personal gain.

An interesting fact is that some of Yahweh's requirements are primitive. For example, the rite of sacrifice is obligatory for the Jews. High technology and sacrifice somehow do not fit with each other. Yahweh burns the sacrificial meat with a laser, causing awe in people. But here it is clear - you need to surprise and force the great to believe in yourself. But why should he even mess with such a primitive at his level? Did the needs of the team and the entire complex require the participation of the whole people? Yahweh is very greedy for robbing the Jews. The best food, hides and textiles, oil and precious metals. Lead was also required, which is very interesting. Apparently Yahweh did not save up all this for profit. Most likely there was a need to exchange gold and silver for consumables for aircraft maintenance. But with whom did he change? It can be assumed that the necessary equipment was at the base. Then Yahweh bought only raw materials from someone for gold and silver. For example metal. But fuel production, steel smelting, and other high-tech work is already a whole enterprise. And apparently all this was at the base. And the workers must be trained and fed. Provide housing. This explains his greed. The staff at the base was very numerous. Apparently they were Levites trained by aliens. We see a similar teaching in the building of the ark of the covenant. Yahweh himself tells Moses that he put wisdom and skill in the Jewish masters. The area around the complex covered tens of square kilometers. And on the Easter holiday, the Jews brought fifty carcasses of calves to the base, not counting smaller livestock for slaughter. Wine, bread, etc. In general, all this is best described in the book of the prophet Ezekiel. Rather, Yahweh contacted a primitive and generally small people solely for utilitarian reasons. They provided it. And since there were relatively few Jews, and there was no escape in the desert, Yahweh could easily control his slaves and punish them in the event of a riot. Which he periodically did with the help of weapons on his disk. Fifteen thousand Jews cut with a laser in a matter of minutes. They rebelled and began to put pressure on Moses. In addition, Yahweh freed the Jewish people from Egyptian slavery. They now kind of owe him.

But where did Yahweh and his retinue come from at all? Who are they? They live for centuries without dying, at least Yahweh himself. His words "I took an oath to your forefathers - Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, in faithfulness to you." But this is at least three generations. There were no such highly developed civilizations on Earth during this period. And judging by the text of the Old Testament, Yahweh has been spinning around the Earth for a long time. And they look like people. How to link together high technology with a time of two to three thousand years ago? Only one version remains - aliens from space who know the Earth and its inhabitants well. And they are not like us, but we are like them. Apparently not so far from the solar system is more advanced civilization... The flight from it to Earth takes several hundred years. Its representatives periodically fly to us and behave like hosts. Most likely these are our creators. Only sometimes good and kind, and sometimes like Yahweh. And the earthlings then play religion for thousands of years. It's good that now you can sort things out so calmly. It's time for conclusions without God.

What else is interesting in the sense of Yahweh's psychology? He is capable of friendship, real human friendship. With Moses for example. Moses was so loved by God that Yahweh listened to the opinion of Moses and often made concessions at the request of the latter. Because of Moses, Yahweh killed fifteen thousand of the Jewish people. That is, the life of Moses was valued above the life of the Jewish people. The entire Jewish camp saw Moses go to the tabernacle, away from all the people, and there he talked with God as a friend. At the same time, a pillar of cloud necessarily descended from the sky. Sometimes it is written that the glory of the Lord fell. Although the closest relatives of Moses were also close to Yahweh. Brother Aaron, Sister Miriam and their children. That is, again there are purely human signs in behavior. I hate it when believers make a kind of heavenly chimera out of Yahweh. An abstract creature that is not accessible to anyone, who controls everything on Earth, and cannot be touched. But their motives are clear to me. But the Old Testament book is very true and there is nothing like it. Yahweh constantly communicates with people. Only exclusively through intermediaries. They see him, hear him and suffer from him in the case of a fault, for real. And nowhere in the Covenant does it say that Yahweh is somewhere out there in the clouds. Moreover, his subordinates from the team. How did they come down to Earth. And even faces like Yahweh do not hide. And of course the most unique contactee is Moses. In the book of Numbers in chapter 12 we see that the glory of the Lord has descended from heaven and Yahweh himself, sorting out the scandal of Moses with his brother Aaron and sister Miriamyu, says: “If I appear to someone in visions or in a dream, then it is not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. From mouth to mouth I speak to him, and clearly, and not in fortune-telling, and he sees the image of the Lord. And how are you not afraid to reproach my servant Moses? " And he struck Miriam with leprosy like snow. And the glory of the Lord departed from the tabernacle of the meeting - the disc flew away. Moses then asked Yahweh to heal his sister. Yahweh calmed down and fulfilled Moses' request. Well, what does the heavenly chimera have to do with it?

And now I spoke about the nuance about the antagonism a little earlier. Surprisingly, such an interesting fact - Yahweh forces you to fulfill the Ten Commandments and many other good rules, which in general are not bad. Quite decent by human standards of morality. But this is when it comes to the Jews themselves. Inside the Jewish community. But in relation to other peoples who are not his, you can do whatever you want. Jews are allowed to kill, rob, and rape. Direct hatred for the representatives of humanity who do not worship him, and are not subject to him. In the book of the number of ch. 31 interestingly describes the behavior of the Jews in relation to the defeated Midianites. All were killed, burned and plundered cities. They captured the women and children of Midian. But Moses and Eliazar came out to meet them and shouted - kill all the male children and women. And all the female children who have not known the male bed, keep alive for yourself. And why? After all, Yahweh ordered this, but Moses only did it. What right do you have to divide the people of the Earth into yours and not yours? Where does such a thirst for war and murder come from? Likely out of the military. Imbalance in character, hot temper, vindictiveness. And this is God who created everything ?! So primitive. He made a rustle in the Middle East, quarreled the Arabs with the Jews and left nothing worthy after him. Compare with the pyramids of Egypt. Compare with Theo Tihuacan in Mexico, with the Baalbek Platform in Lebanon. This is where the "gods" worked! That's where the wonders of technology are. World historians are still in a stupor. Who could have done this? What machines and tools were used to cut the rocks into pieces of hundreds of thousands of tons. Yes, how they cut it - flat. They were mounted anywhere on a steep rock. All continents have inherited. Those were the Gods! And they did not kill tens of thousands of people. And they didn't force them to worship themselves. They taught sciences, medicine, agriculture. And Yahweh hated those other gods for some reason. I was probably afraid, since Egypt did not ruin. So he cheated, and hid in the desert. And yet Yahweh is a stranger. If he were truly omnipotent, he would not have limited himself to the Arabian desert and the Jews. All over the Earth there are already quite developed peoples and cultures. He didn't even touch them with a finger! I would not have pulled such a burden. Limited to the Middle East. Although he boasted to Moses - All the Earth is mine! It would be better to say the whole Arabian Desert - it would be more honest.

His behavior gave him a low rank among the truly omnipotent gods. But finding himself on Earth and without competition, he pulled himself off to the fullest. Apparently cosmic distances and the relativistic effects of time during space flights allowed him to somehow fall out of the company of the omnipotent who visited our planet. And while they were flying home, he returned to Earth. Or he was "returned". An interesting fact is his disappearance. Where did he go with the team? Periodically, he appears. Yahweh appeared quite openly and symbolically after the completion of the construction of the house of the Lord by King Solomon. That is, according to the period of Solomon's reign, one can calculate the appearance of Yahweh in a given area. “When Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven and devoured the burnt offering and the sacrifices. And the glory of the Lord filled the whole house. And the priests could not enter the house because the house was filled with the radiance of the Lord's glory. And all the children of Israel, seeing how fire came down from heaven and the glory of the Lord on the house, fell face down on the ground, on the platform and bowed down. And King Solomon sacrificed twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. " Nothing so-so Jews were delighted. We walked wonderfully. Interesting - this expression was born from the text of the Testament? So I am not strong in chronology, but the fact is obvious - in the end there came a moment in the history of Israel when Yahweh no longer appears. And why? There may be several reasons for this. He could go home. The aliens flew away. But Yahweh did not tell this to any of the prophets - intermediaries. He could finally grow old and die. After all, nothing lasts forever. He could have died in a disk crash - also a version. Flying vehicles sometimes crash. So the question of his disappearance generally remains open. His base on the mountain has not yet been found. Although they don't look for her at all. But time has passed not so much. And the building was prominent. Terrace-like. 250 by 250 meters in size. Moreover, it is very cleverly arranged. And on the south side, as it were, city buildings (Ezekiel ch. 40). Maybe flying away ruined everything. I covered my tracks just in case. All that is left of Yahweh to us is the Old Testament story. But it was written not by Yahweh himself, but by eyewitnesses of those events. Therefore, you have to seriously filter the text. Make allowances for the ignorance of the ancient Jews. On their specific attitude to what was happening to them. On the imagery of the description. Although they are great. The accuracy of the description is sufficient for text analysis.

In general, many do not even suspect how interesting it is to parse the Old Testament. This is a very interesting activity. Analyzing the texts, you understand that whoever Yahweh was, he certainly was not the Almighty Creator.