Yada Yahweh Forum
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From Yahweh to Adonai to LORD
Joined: 10/3/2007(UTC) Posts: 1,191 Location: São Paulo, Brazil Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 2 post(s)
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How did the change occur, how did the path from one Name to the pagan titles occur? How did the Jews get Adonai from Adonis? When was Adonis first seen as a god, and when did the Jews first start using the word Adonai, what influenced to choose this specific word? Is Adonai linked to Baal in that apparently they both mean "lord" whereas Adonai means "my lord" with the "ai" ending?
Edit:
...what influenced the Jews to choose this specific (Adonai) word?
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Joined: 10/29/2008(UTC) Posts: 370 Location: Philadelphia
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I got this from Wiki: Quote:Jews also call God Adonai, Hebrew for "Lord" (Hebrew: אֲדֹנָי). Formally, this is plural ("my Lords"), but the plural is usually construed as a respectful, and not a syntactic plural. (The singular form is Adoni, "my lord". This was used by the Phoenicians for the god Tammuz and is the origin of the Greek name Adonis. Jews only use the singular to refer to a distinguished person: in the plural, "rabotai", lit. "my masters", is used in both Mishnaic and modern Hebrew.)
Since pronouncing YHWH is avoided out of reverence for the holiness of the name, Jews use Adonai instead in prayers, and colloquially would use Hashem ("the Name"). When the Masoretes added vowel pointings to the text of the Hebrew Bible around the eighth century CE, they gave the word YHWH the vowels of Adonai, to remind the reader to say Adonai instead. Later Biblical scholars mistook this vowel substitution for the actual spelling of YHWH and interpreted the name of God as Jehovah. More from Wiki regarding "A-D-N" Quote:The triliteral root `A-D-N is a Semitic form that has been in use from ancient to modern times. The basic meaning it expresses is that of "lord", "master", or "patron".
History
In Ugaritic texts, `adn in its meaning as "lord" appears a number of times. Used to refer to the lord and father over deceased kings, the term `adn `ilm rbm (meaning "the Lord of the Great Gods"),[1] is thought by some scholars to be a divine epiteph of Baal, while others think it refers to El, Mardikh, Yaqar or Yarikh. `Adn ilm (meaning "the Lord of Gods") also appears in the texts to refer to El, and when Yam is described in at being at the height of his power, he is proclaimed `adn or "lord (of the gods).
Ugarit family households were modelled after the structure of the divine world, each headed by an `adn (meaning in this context "master" or "patron"). Generally, this was the patriarch of the family and there may be some relation between `adn and the Ugarit word for "father", `ad.
Adonis is a "Semitic divine title equipped with a Greek ending" derived from `adn; by the time of Sappho, a cult worshipping Adonis had emerged in Ancient Greece. Sad, really... |
"You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." But first, it will piss you off! |
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Joined: 10/3/2007(UTC) Posts: 1,191 Location: São Paulo, Brazil Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 2 post(s)
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Thanks Ed!
I did read a bit on it as well and got similar answers.
So when did the change occur, when did they start using Adonai? I assume the sun-god name of Adoni came before the Jews were in Egypt during the time of Babylon and the Mystery Religion, so they probably had some knowledge of it before going into slavery, though it could also be once in the Promised Land and turning their backs on Yahweh that they followed after the pagan gods. Did they really swop God's Name out of reverence for the Name or did they willingly say Adonai because of Babylonian influence?
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Joined: 2/23/2009(UTC) Posts: 12
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I have read that Ezra the scribe removed the name because rabbis decided that uttering Yahuah's name was blasphemy. If that is true that would date the removal around 500 BC.
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Joined: 10/29/2008(UTC) Posts: 370 Location: Philadelphia
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YahuahisKing wrote:I have read that Ezra the scribe removed the name because rabbis decided that uttering Yahuah's name was blasphemy. If that is true that would date the removal around 500 BC. Had they taken the time to pull up the wikipedia article, this could have been avoided... |
"You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." But first, it will piss you off! |
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Joined: 2/23/2009(UTC) Posts: 12
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edStueart wrote:Had they taken the time to pull up the wikipedia article, this could have been avoided... "The Jews considered YHWH too sacred to speak, so they stopped pronouncing it after the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, when it was considered unlawful and blasphemous to vocalize it. " Bible tools websiteWiki isn't the only source available.
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Joined: 10/3/2007(UTC) Posts: 1,191 Location: São Paulo, Brazil Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 2 post(s)
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edStueart wrote:Had they taken the time to pull up the wikipedia article, this could have been avoided... LOL
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Yada Yahweh Forum
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