Gaza-Philistia coin that seems to depict Yahavah as "Yhv" (Fontanille et al., 2023, p. 130 Type 1):
Back in 2019, I began a journey to understand the god of my religion better. I am a huge fan of prehistory, so I thought that I could use the methods that I learned researching prehistory in my free time to learn about the god of Christianity better. I was put on a lot of twists and turns, but I finally came to a clearer understanding of who this entity was. Unfortunately, it didn't match with what my religion, Roman Catholicism, said it was. I want to make a thorough investigation into the god of the
Bible, which is why I created this post. This post contains a lot of information from my "The Demonic Deity Unveiled" post, but also more information that I find later on.
Part 1: Who is YHVH?1.1. YHVH (the Tetragrammaton):The Tetragrammaton (Ortlepp, 2010, p. 41), or YHVH (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3068. Yhvh [Yehovah]) (
Bible Hub, Strong’s Hebrew. 3069. Yhvh [Yehoveh]) comes in many forms: "Ya," "Yaw," "Yahu," and "Yah" (Langdon, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 43) (Biglino, 2013, p. 63). From what I've found, it's also spelled as YHWH. There are also two main spellings of it: "YHW" and "YHWH." The spelling of the name as "YHW" is found on a Judean coin from the 4th century BC (399-300 BC) (Langdon, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 43) (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, para. 3; Judean Coin). YHW is also found on a "folded lead tablet" that contained a curse proclaimed by the god. The tablet dates back to the "Late Bronze Age II" (Stripling et al., 2023, Abstract; Paleographic analysis of the "Inner B" inscription). The date given by the authors is the middle-late 13th century BC (1250-1200 BC) (The archaeological context, para. 1-2). Langdon (1931 [1964 reprint]) said that YHW means "Yaw," and that the translation of the name as "Yahweh" or "Jehovah" never existed (p. 43).
According to Ortlepp (2011), the spelling of the name as "YHWH" is the proper one because it has been written the most. YHW, and even YH, are not the proper spelling. As for archeological finds, the spelling of the name can be seen on the Mesha stele, which dates to the 9th century BC (p. 41) (Biblical Archeology Society, 2013, para. 3). The Mesha stele is also called the Moabite stone (Biblical Archeology Society, 2013, Biblical Artifacts Found Outside the Trench: The Moabite Stone, para. 3). The stele/stone helped the tetragrammaton to be known by Israel's and Judah's neighbors (Drummond, 2023, para. 6). Interestingly, the Mesha stele is later (9th century BC) than the Late Bronze Age 2 tablet's spelling of the god's name (13th century BC)...
An older spelling of the name, "YHW3," was found in Egypt from 1390-1352 BC. This form of the name is associated with a people called the Shasu (Fleming, 2020, Ch. 2 p. 23). It was found in a temple of Amun-Ra in Soleb (Kennedy, 2019, p. 175 and p. 176 Figure 1; pp. 183-184 Figures 5-6a). However, the spelling of the name could also be YHW (Najovits, 2003, p. 198) (Murdock, 2014, p. 186), or YHWA (Hen, 2021, p. 4). Kennedy (2019) said that YHWH was also spelled "I-H-W3-3," and Shasu was spelled "S3SW" (p. 177). Clarke (2005) spells YHWH as "IHUH" or "YHUH" (Ch. 2: Gods of the Individuation Process in Egypt). Massey (1907) also stated that the Tetragrammaton in Egyptian was IHUH (Vol. 1, pp. 498-499, and 519). "S3SW" and "YHW3" (IHW33) were also found at Amara from the early 13th century BC (1400 BC) (Kennedy, 2019, pp. 177 and 189). It seems that the tetragrammaton (YHVH, YHWH, YHW3, and IHW33) is older than YHW. The "3," or two commas, is Egyptian in origin (Hen, 2021, p. 4). It's unknown precisely what it sounded like, but comparing it to the Semitic dialect, it probably made an "R" and "J" sound (Peust, 1999, p. 127 [in Gottingen, 1999]).
As for trying to pronounce the name properly, nobody seems to know how to do that (Drummond, 2023, para. 4-5). However, given the fact that Israelites used this god's name in their own names (Ex.: Elijah, Jeremiah, etc.), then that might be a way of saying the name (para. 4). Using "Yaw" as inspiration, I'm assuming the pronunciation is "Jah/Iah." A very helpful tip comes from an Egyptian god named Iah (Hart, 2005, p. 77). Also spelled "Iu" in Egyptian, this god had the same name as YHWH as Iah (Massey, 1907 [2013 edition], Vol. 1, p. 501). Iah (pronounced "Yah") is also found in the Ars Goetia Corpus, a supposed magic book belonging to King Solomon (Karnas, 2020, Sayfa 5, Presentation). As for the "WH" in the name, or "W3," it seems that it was pronounced as "U" (Clarke, 2005, Ch. 2: Gods of the Individuation Process in Egypt):
Pic 1:
Pic 2:
Parke-Taylor (1975 [2006 edition]) said that several pronunciations have been put forth. YH was "IH," Egyptian for "moon," and WH was "one." The whole name in Egyptian was "Yah-We," but "Yah-Weh" in Semitic. This was put forth by Norman Walker. However, both Friedrich Delitzsch and John Allegro say that YHWH came from the Babylonian, and Akkadian, word "IA-U" (p. 49). Iah's name in Egyptian is also "IH" (Garcia-Fernandez, 2017, p. 222, Abstract). The Greek version of the name is IAO (Diodorus Sicullus,
The Library of History, Book 1, Ch. 94, Section 2) (Massey, 1907 [2013 edition], Vol. 1, p. 506).
If IH (YH) is "Iah" (Garcia-Fernandez, 2017, p. 222, Abstract) (Massey, 1907, p. 498) and WH is "U" (Clarke, 2005) (Parke-Taylor, 1975 [2006 edition], p. 49 [Akkadian form of YHWH]). Therefore, the name could be spelled, and pronounced, as "Iahu." This was stated in Massey (1907) (Vol. 1, pp. 498-499). Another form of this is "Yahu" (Biglino, 2013, p. 63) (Romer, 2015, pp. 30 and 32) or Yaho (Romer, 2015, pp. 30-32). "Yah[u]" is in Isaiah's name, based on a bulla discovered with his name on it (Shuster, 2018, para. 6). It seems that the Egyptian form of the Tetragrammaton is IHW33, while the Hebrew version of the name is YHW3/YHWH.
However, after looking at the Soleb inscription of the Tetragrammaton myself, and after spending weeks trying to read Egyptian hieroglyphs and learn Hebrew, it seems that the Egyptian Tetragrammaton is actually "YH3U," "YH3W," or "YH3O."
Egyptian Tetragrammaton inscription from the Amon-Ra temple in Soleb (Kennedy, 2019, p. 183 Figure 5):
Using Figure 5 from Kennedy (2019), the hieroglyphs are two reeds, a house, a vulture (although Titus said this was a hawk [p. 184]), and a rope that looks like a noose. The two reeds are either "i" or "y," the house is an "h," the vulture is a "3" (two commas) or an "a," and the lasso (noose) is either "ua" or "o" (Budge, 1920 [2010 edition], Vol. 1, pp. xi, xiii, xxvi, xliv, 1ix-lxi, cxxii, 144, 438, and 592) (Frazer, 2012, pp. 64, 69-70, and 81) (
University of Memphis, Institute of Egyptian Art and Archeology: Events: Write Your Name in Hieroglyphs) (
Australian Museum, Documents: Egyptian Hieroglyphs). Based on most of my sources, it seems that the lasso is an "o."
Egyptian lasso hieroglyph (Frazer, 2012, p. 81):
Rope (lasso) hieroglyph (
Australian Museum, Documents: Egyptian Hieroglyphs):
Egyptian alphabet hieroglyphs (
University of Memphis, Institute of Egyptian Art and Archeology: Events: Write Your Name in Hieroglyphs):
We read hieroglyphs from top-to-bottom. The hieroglyph figures are also facing the right in the Soleb inscription, so we need to read from right-to-left. So it's top-to-bottom, left-to-right (
Glassgolife, How to read Egyptian hieroglyphs) (
Egyptian Hieroglyphs, Lesson 1). That's how I got "YH3O," or "YHAO." Now, the vulture hieroglyph ("3"/"a") is a glottal stop in ancient Egyptian. A modern example is saying "thro'le" in English instead of "throttle" (don't say the "t" sound) (Zauzich and Roth, 1992, p. 10) (McDermott, 2001 [2016 edition], p. 22). Therefore, pronouncing the Egyptian Tetragrammaton would be something like "YH'O." The "y" in the Egyptian language sounded like "ee" (Frazer, 2012, p. 69), so the sound would've been "EEH'O" or "EEHAO."
As for the Hebrew Tetragrammaton, the ancient Jewish writer Josephus said that the Tetragrammaton consisted of "four vowels" (
Josephus, Jewish War, Book 5, Ch. 5, Section 7). I've read various ways to try and pronounced the Tetragrammaton, but I think I've found my own way to pronounce it. Hebrew is read from left-to-right (Clarke, 2005, Ch. 2: Gods of the Individuation Process in Egypt). First, I using the words "Jews" and "Judah" for help. The hei (H) in both words are either silent, or help the yod (Y). In Hebrew, the word "Jewish" or "Jews" is "Yehudi." However, the "Ye-" (yod with a vowel underneath it) is "Je-," and the "-u" is the hei plus the vav with a vowel on the left side of it. However, the word in English is "Jews" (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew. 3064. Yehudi). In Hebrew, the word "Judah" is Yehudah. The "Yehu-" part is the same as in Yehudi/Jews, but comes out as "Ju-" in English for Judah. The last hei is connected to a letter with a vowel underneath it in Yehudah (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew. 3063. Yehudah), so the hei would probably show in the Hebrew Tetragrammaton.
Tetragrammaton (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3068. Yhvh ["Yehovah"]):
Yehudi (Jewish/Jews) (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3064. Yehudi):Yehudah (Judah) (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3063. Yehudah):Notice how Yehudi and Yehudah have the Hebrew letters yod, hei, and vav, in them. These are the first three words in the Tetragrammaton (Yhvh).
Just when I thought that the pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton was "Yehuh," the name Ea throws a monkey wrench into this idea. Margoliouth (1868) said that Ea, Sin/Nannar, and the god Aa/Ya, are El Elyon and Yahweh (in The Contemporary Review, Vol. 74, pp. 586-589). In fact, "The name Yahweh" was "lengthened, as archaeologists rightfully think, from Aa or Ya," (p. 587). Jensen (1890) said that Ea was also spelled as "Ia" (p. 271 [German]). Cook (1914) said that the name Iao comes from the name Ea/Eau, also spelled Iau, and is Ea (Vol. 1, p. 188 note 2; p. 228). Iao "corresponds to the Ju in Jupiter, and the Iac in Iacchus (Dionysus)," (Bennett, 1880, p. 523). Clay (1923) said that "the pronunciation of" Ea "is certainly very close to Jah," (p. 102). In Exodus 3:14, Yhvh told Moses "Ehyeh asher ehyeh" (Bible Hub, Exodus 3:14 [Interlinear]). The Jewish letters yod and hei for "yeh," which are the first two letters of Yhvh (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3068. Yhvh), are in Ehyeh (Bible Hub, Exodus 3:14 [Interlinear]). Kitz (2018) said that Yhwh and Enki/Ea got their names from the root words "hwy" and "hyy," pronounced "haya and/or haway." "Hwy" for Yhwh means "to be," and "hyy" for Ea means "to live" (Abstract). Kitz also said that Ea's name is "a Stative third person masculine singular verb." It can be spelled as haya, hayay, hawa, haway, yahwa, yahayya, among others (p. 212). The spelling of the name as yahway is "attested in the Egyptian Shasu texts, the earliest form which dates to ca. 1388-1351 (B.C.)." It's also in the later "epithet yahwe sebaot," (p. 214). Ehyeh is actually the word hayah (Bible Hub, Exodus 3:14 [Interlinear]) (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1961. hayah), and the letters yod and hei are in hayah too (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1961. hayah).
Espak (2006) said that the "'e" in Ea originated in the proto-Akkadian language as "ha." Then, it turned into "'a." Finally, "'a" turned into '''e." In total, Ea would've been pronounced as "ha-a" in Akkadian originally, and then the name turned into "Ea" (2.2.1 [pp. 1-2]). Ha-a looks like the word hayah. Espak also said that the root word for Ea is, at best, "*hyy" (2.2.1 [p. 3]). Deitrich and Loretz (1999) said that the name Ea, according to E. Lipinski, is written as "Hyn" in Ugaritic literature. This would render the name as "Hayan or Heyan." Lipinski also said that the "sound 'e" was turned into "'a for a |ha|." This would turn the original spelling of the name "'E-a-an (or similar) to Hyn," (in Dietrich and Loretz, 1999 [2000 edition], Vol. 31 pp. 165 and 168). Dietrich and Loretz said that, outside of Ugaritic poetry, the name Ea has "the initial vocal sound of the name with the laryngeal stop (Alif)," (p. 169). This brings us back to Exodus 3:14. For the word Ehyeh, there is an alef (the letter "a") (Jewish Virtual Library, The Hebrew Alphabet [Aleph-Bet]) in front of the word hayah. This would translate into "'Ahayah" (or "Aahayah") (Exodus 3:14 [Interlinear]):
This would make 'Ahayah the Israelite spelling of the name Ea.
It's inescapable to me now that Yhvh is actually the name of Ea. Ea was the original "supreme god" of the first "primeval form of faith." He was later split into different deities. The monotheistic faith of Ea-Ya-Yahweh survived though, mainly through the Hebrews (Margoliouth, 1868; in The Contemporary Review, Vol. 74, p. 592).
The root word for Yhvh is havah
(Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3068. Yhvh, NAS Exhaustive Concordance):
Havah means "to become," (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1933b. havah):
Havah is actually spelled "hava'" (or havaa) (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1933. hava'):
The alef is silent (Jewish Virtual Library, The Hebrew Alphabet [Aleph-Bet]) (Jewfaq, The Hebrew Alphabet), so that seems to be why there's an apostrophe in place of it.
With hayah, the yod and hei spell "yah" (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1961. hayah):
Both hayah, and havah, mean "to become" (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1961. hayah) (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 1933b. havah). It seems that "hwy" from Kitz (2018) could be havah, while hyy is hayah.
As for yod and hei in the Tetragrammaton, it spelled out "Yah," (
Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3050. Yah):
Yah is the "contrasted form of" the Tetragrammaton (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3050. Yah, Strong's Lexicon: Word Origin).
Taking everything together, the Tetragrammaton comes out as "Yahavah."
The final "h" in Yhvh could be a "'matres lectionis'" for the final vowel, and it might've been silent. Its purpose would be to make the vowel that was before it short (Ortlepp, 2010, pp. 146-147):
According to Garrett and DeRouchie (2009 [2019 edition]), the mater (matres) lectionis "does not count as a consonant or close a syllable," but "is simply a vowel," (Ch. 2: Pointed Vowel Letters and the Silent Shewa, E. The Basics of Syllable Division):
Joshua, spelled Yehoshua (or Yehoshua') in Hebrew, has yod, hei, and vav, in it. The name originated "from Yhvh and yasha" (Bible Hub, Strong's Hebrew, 3091. Yehoshua [Yehoshua'], Strong's Concordance; NAS Exhaustive Concordance):With our new spelling of Yhvh, it seems that Joshua could've been spelled as Yahavashua' (or Yahavashuaa).
The Jews would've named themselves after their god, leading to the creation of the name "Jew." Clarke (2005) stated this as well (Ch. 2: Gods of the Individuation Process in Egypt). Interestingly, there is no letter for w in the Hebrew language. The vav is a "v," or an "o" or "u."
Hebrew alphabet (
Jewish Virtual Library, The Hebrew Alphabet [Aleph-Bet]):
Hebrew alphabet (
Jewfaq, The Hebrew Alphabet):
This also helps to support hwy being havah instead of "haway."
Rev. Taylor (1833) said that "JEUE" means Jew when "pronounced as one syllable," and when the word "Pater, or father," is added, we get Jupiter. The name Jehovah comes from Jupiter, but Rev. Taylor says that Jehovah is an incorrect pronunciation. Jeue is also spelled as Jeve, and eventually became Jove. The name Jove is replaced with Dominus ("Lord") in the "liturgical Latin of the Psalms" and "the Latin Bibles of Dathe and Castalio," (pp. 340-341):
The full name of the Hebrew god would be Yahavah Pater, also called Jove Pater-Jupiter! Interestingly, according to Drummond and Walpole (1810), the spelling of the name as "Jao-pater, or Jeu-pater" was "corrupted into Jupiter." They also stated that "Ion, Io, Iao, and O" were "the root of the Latin Janus, Jovis, and Jupiter," and they "are all taken from the name of Jehovah," (p. 62):
However, the Jews just called him by the first part of his name (Yahavah). Rev. Taylor said that Pater is sometimes dropped from the name (p. 341). Massey (1907) said that the "Jews of Cornwall" were "the prehistoric Jews who are to be known by the name of the god they worshipped," (Vol. 1, p. 501). The Jews named themselves after their god, which means that the Tetragrammaton was pronounced similarly to the word "Jew." I'm going with Yahavah (Yahavah Pater).
YHWH is typically spelled as "Yahweh", and "Jehovah" (Langdon, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 43) (Tice, 1997 [2007 edition], pp. 5 and 7) (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, para. 3; Judean Coin). However, Yahweh and Jehovah "never existed," according to Langston (1931 [1964 reprint]). Yaw/Yah was extended to be "Yahweh." The vowels from the word "Adonai" were put on the name, and that's how we get "Jehovah" (pp. 42-43). Romer (2015) said that Yahweh has a "more recent origin than 'Yaho' or 'Yahu'," (p. 32). In the Tanakh ("Old Testament"), Yahavah's name is usually translated as "I am who I am" (Exodus 3:14 [NASB]), or "ehyeh asher ehyeh" in Hebrew (Bible Hub, Exodus 3:14 [Interlinear]). As stated before, ehyeh means "I am" and ehyeh is Ea. He is also called "The LORD" and "The Lord God" (Jeremiah 1 footnote a [NASB]). However, Paul Tice says that Jehovah was an angel called Sabaoth (Tice, 1997 [2007 edition], p. 15). Sabaoth means "Lord of Hosts" (1 Samuel 4:4 [BSB]), or "Lord of Armies" (1 Samuel 4:4 [NASB]) (Zechariah 13:2 and 7 [NASB]). Jehovah was a cherubim, also known as "shining ones," and they were led by the angel Gabriel. Jehovah had the same power, or status, as Gabriel, due to being in the middle/above the cherubim (Tice, 1997 [2007 edition], p. 15) (1 Samuel 4:4 [BSB and NASB]). Another name for Jehovah is Samael, which means "blind god" (Tice, 1997 [2007 edition], p. 51). Samael is a particularly dangerous equation because he is Satan in Judaism (Jewish Virtual Library, Samael)! Samael is also the name of Yaldabaoth in the Gnostic text The Apocryphon of John. What's also scary about this is that Yaldabaoth, in the text, does everything that Yahavah does in the Tanakh. However, Yaldabaoth is also the bad guy in the text!
Here's the creation story according to The Apocryphon of John:
God the Father, the Invisible Spirit and first aeon, created the goddess/second aeon Barbelo, who was His first thought/deed and the image of the Father. Barbelo is the "womb of the everything," "the Mother-Father," "the thrice powerful" and "thrice-named androgynous one," etc. Together, the Father and Barbelo create Christ, "an only-begotten child of the Mother-Father which had come forth" and the "Autogenes." Christ was put in charge of overseeing everything. That's the best way that I can describe this story so far!
As for Sophia, also called "Sophia of Epinoia," she is an aeon and created Yaldabaoth without the help of the Father or her male consort. Yaltabaoth is an archon (I'm guessing that archons are bad guys), and he stole power from Sophia. Yaltabaoth is also called Saklas, and Samael. Yaltabaoth used Sophia's powers to create a bunch of beings: angels, demons, etc. In order to get her powers back, Sophia went to the Father. He told Yaltabaoth to create something, which turns out to be man (Adam), and Yaltabaoth lost Sophia's powers as a result. The Father sent Epinoia, also called Life (Eve!), to be Adam's helper. Eve is Sophia! She became Adam's helper, since her power is now in Adam. She also took on the bodily form of a woman (I think the Father did this). Sophia is mankind's helper in this text.
As stated before, Cook (1914) said that the name Iao comes from the name Ea/Eau, also spelled Iau. Iao is also spelled "Iaw," and it is the Greek translation of the Tetragrammaton (The New International Encyclopaedia [Second Edition], 1915, Vol. 12 p. 625) (Vasileiades and Gordon, 2021, Figures 5-6). This is confirmed by Iao being in "The Aramaic papyri from the Jews at Elephantine," and the Septuagint
translation "of Leviticus among the Dead Sea scrolls, 4Q120, dating probably from the first century AD," (pp. 115-116). The fragment 4Q120 can be seen in Vasileiades and Gordon (2021) (Figure 6). The Greek "w," called omega, was pronounced "o" with a line above it (Encyclopaedia Britannica, Greek Alphabet). Sophocles (1854) said that omega was pronounced "oh, or French eau in beau," (pp. 50 and 60). Professor Muntz from the University of Arkhansas said that omega was "pronounced like the o in ode." Omega was also "always long" (University of Arkansas, The Bibliotheke, Greek Alphabet and Pronunciation, 2011). The name Ea was also spelled as "Aos" (Langdon, 1918, p. 434) (Coulter and Turner, 2000 [2021 edition], p. 161), which looks similar to Iao. Iao, or Iau according to Clemens, is "a God of the Sun and Fire, there seems to be no doubt." Other spellings of the name are "the Sumerian Iabe," Iahveh, Iaau which is also Iahav and Iahaveh (Bunsen, 1860, Vol. 4 p. 193 note 23; p. 194). "Iahav" is Yahav (Yhv), and "Iahaveh" is very close to Yahavah. Zeus was called Iw/Io, Kouros the son of Kronos, and was the leader of daimones (Kershaw, 1997, pp. 160-161). Cook (1914) stated that, in 168 B.C., Antiochus IV Epiphanes "transformed the temple of Jerusalem into a temple of Zeus Olympios." The name Iao/Iaw was also associated with Zeus. An Egyptian incantation, associates Zeus with Iao as "Zeus Iao," (Vol. 1, p. 233). The oracle of Apollon Klarios described Iao (Yahavah-Ea) as "the greatest of all gods." It said that Iao was Zeus in the Spring, Helios in the summer, Iao in the autumn, and Hades in the winter (p. 234).
Litwa (2019) said that the Phibionite Christian sect listed Iao as the moon, and Sabaoth (who represents the Jewish Sabbath) was Saturn. Jupiter is the sixth planet, which is ruled by Yaldabaoth. This would make Zeus and Yaldabaoth the same deity (p. 34; Figure 1.4):
Epiphaneus is the source of this chart, but said that Yaldabaoth and Sabaoth are interchangeable in their positions (
Panarion, Book 1 Section 2 Number 26, 10.1-10.3 [Williams, 2009 translation, p. 98]). This would make Iao (Yahavah) the moon god, and Yaldabaoth and/or Sabaoth the god of Saturn.
Phibionite demons (Epiphanaeus,
Panarion. Book 1 Section 2 Number 26. 10.1-10.3 [Williams, 2009 translation, p. 98]):
Yahweh (Yahavah) was equated to Iao. According to the scholar Dr. David H. Kelley, Iao was a "'syncretism of Hebrew Yahweh with Egyptian ideas of a supreme creator, himself a syncretism of ancient Egyptian concepts with Hellenized Greek ideas,'" (Murdock, 2014, p. 433).
In summation, YHVH (the Tetragrammaton) should be translated as Yahavah at best. The short form is Yah. Another version of the name is 'Ahayah (Aahayah).
Links:
Fontanille et al., (2023) (P. 130 Type 1; pp. 131, 145, and 148 for Yhv, Gaza, and Philistine info.):
https://books.google.com/books?id=QOrxEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA136&dq=Zeus+Iao&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwivyMufodaKAxWsj4kEHeGGMSQ4ChDoAXoECAgQAw#v=onepage&q=Zeus%20Iao&f=false
Ortlepp (2010) (P. 41):
https://books.google.com/books?id=k9JEAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA41&dq=mesha+stele+tetragrammaton&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwia8sTZtI-BAxWbMlkFHbL9ANkQ6AF6BAgHEAI#v=onepage&q=mesha%20stele%20tetragrammaton&f=false
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 3068. Yhvh ("Yehovah"):
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3068.htm
Bible Hub. Strong’s Hebrew. 3069. Yhvh (“Yehoveh”):
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3069.htm
Langdon (1931 [1964 reprint]) (P. 43):
https://archive.org/details/MythologyOfAllRacesVolume5/page/n59/mode/2up?q=Yahweh
Biglino (2013) (P. 63):
https://archive.org/details/MauroBiglinoTheBookThatWillForeverChangeOurIdeasAboutTheBible2013/page/n61/mode/1up?view=theater&q=Yahu
Hulster. n.d. What Did Yahweh Look Like? Bible Odyssey:
https://www.bibleodyssey.org/passages/related-articles/what-did-yahweh-look-like/
Stripling et al., (2023):
https://heritagesciencejournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40494-023-00920-9
Biblical Archeological Society. 2013. Biblical Artifacts Found Outside the Trench: The Moabite Stone:
https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-artifacts/artifacts-and-the-bible/moabite-stone-mesha-stele/
Drummond (2023):
https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-artifacts/inscriptions/the-history-of-the-tetragrammaton/
Hart (2005) (P. 77):
https://books.google.com/books?id=0L83uBijeZwC&pg=PA77&dq=iah+egyptian+god&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiZkIjt97v9AhX9LFkFHV1zBRQQ6AF6BAgIEAM#v=onepage&q=iah%20egyptian%20god&f=false
Karnas (2020):
https://books.google.com/books?id=ELUOEAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=72+demons+of+YHWH&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ov2=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjnvaatlLz_AhUYFlkFHXiZD_IQ6AF6BAgDEAM#v=onepage&q&f=false
Parke-Taylor (1975 [2006 edition]) (P. 49):
https://books.google.com/books?id=XZhkDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA49&dq=yah+egyptian+god&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj9oo726rCBAxUhGFkFHcnOCEYQ6AF6BAgJEAM#v=onepage&q=yah%20egyptian%20god&f=false
Garcia-Fernandez (2017):
https://www.academia.edu/40760080/The_Moon_god_Iah_in_ancient_Egyptian_religion
Diodorus Siculus. The Library of History. Book 1 Ch. 94 Section 2:
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/e/roman/texts/diodorus_siculus/1d*.html
Fleming (2020):
https://books.google.com/books?id=cfwAEAAAQBAJ&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gbs_navlinks_s
-Ch. 2 (First para.):
https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/yahweh-before-israel/yhw-of-shasuland/119116DC7806AE299828B5D58EA06539
Kennedy (2019):
https://escholarship.org/content/qt07x6659z/qt07x6659z_noSplash_b41d2cc59a80dd132c3838e7ec75c0f8.pdf?t=q2zg3k
Najovits (2003) (P. 198):
https://books.google.com/books?id=UrR848g3gp8C&pg=PA198&dq=shasu+of+yhw&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi576v8xI-BAxXNlYkEHcOEDfgQ6AF6BAgLEAI#v=onepage&q=shasu%20of%20yhw&f=false
Murdock (2014) (PP. 186 and 433):
https://books.google.com/books?id=8ZWPAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA430&dq=Iah+Yah+moon+god&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjRxej9spmKAxUfK1kFHfykJIYQ6AF6BAgIEAM#v=onepage&q=Iah%20Yah%20moon%20god&f=false
Hen (2021):
https://d-nb.info/1258383969/34
Clarke (2005) (Ch. 2: Gods of the Individuation Process in Egypt):
https://books.google.com/books?id=99l_P7uGCiQC&pg=PT433&dq=how+to+pronounce+WH+in+egyptian&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj7l-jV7bCBAxWqGVkFHUE0BK4Q6AF6BAgMEAM#v=onepage&q=how%20to%20pronounce%20WH%20in%20egyptian&f=false
Massey (1907 [2013 edition]) (Vol. 1, p. 501):
https://books.google.com/books?id=QcBYAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA501&dq=iah+egyptian+god&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiZkIjt97v9AhX9LFkFHV1zBRQQ6AF6BAgCEAM#v=onepage&q=iah%20egyptian%20god&f=false
-(V2) Vol. 1, pp. 498-499):
https://books.google.com/books?id=3k4XAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA498&dq=Atum+IHUH&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwim_pXZ54mCAxXwD1kFHUR9AuQQ6AF6BAgMEAM#v=onepage&q=Atum%20IHUH&f=false
Peust (1999) (p. 127) (in Gottingen, 1999):
https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/peust1999/0127/image,info
Romer (2015):
-V1:
https://books.google.com/books?id=Z59XCwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=thomas+romer+religion&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjskaukiN2BAxVKKlkFHUp6BfYQ6AF6BAgOEAM#v=onepage&q&f=false
-V2:
https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Invention_of_God.html?id=XmsuCwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_entity&hl=en&gl=US&ovdme=1#v=onepage&q&f=false
Glassgolife. How to read Egyptian hieroglyphs
https://www.glasgowlife.org.uk/media/jsddgccz/translating-hieroglyphs.pdf
Egyptian Hieroglyphs. Lesson 1:
https://www.egyptianhieroglyphs.net/egyptian-hieroglyphs/lesson-1/
Zauzich and Roth (2010) (P. 10):
https://books.google.com/books?id=g1XY9SRP29YC&pg=PA10&dq=how+to+pronounce+3+glottal+stop+in+egyptian&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwilj9D7-MaCAxW8EVkFHesaDawQ6AF6BAgLEAM#v=onepage&q=how%20to%20pronounce%203%20glottal%20stop%20in%20egyptian&f=fals
McDermott (2001 [2016 edition]) (PP. 22 [Ch. 1]):
https://books.google.com/books?id=O66TDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA22&dq=letter+y+in+egyptian+hieroglyphics&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwilkrDCwMaCAxWCMlkFHQk9DAAQ6AF6BAgIEAM#v=onepage&q=letter%20y%20in%20egyptian%20hieroglyphics&f=false
Josephus. Jewish War. Book 5, Ch. 5, Section 7):
https://penelope.uchicago.edu/josephus/war-5.html
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 3064. Yehudi:
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3064.htm
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 3063. Yehudah:
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3063.htm
Espek (2006):
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/28581203_Ancient_Near_Eastern_Gods_Enki_and_Ea_Diachronical_Analysis_of_Texts_and_Images_from_the_Earliest_Sources_to_the_Neo-Sumerian_Period
Deitrich and Loretz (1999; in Deitrich and Loretz [2000 edition]) (Starts on p. 165):
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 1933b. havah:
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1933b.htm
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 1933. hava'
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1933.htm
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 3050. Yah:
Garrett and DeRouchie (2009 [2019 edition]) (Ch. 2: Pointed Vowel Letters and the Silent Shewa, E. The Basics of Syllable Division):
https://books.google.com/books?id=X6bODwAAQBAJ&pg=PT42&dq=are+mater+lectionis+silent&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi6we3ZspyDAxXoEFkFHRuiCJkQ6AF6BAgMEAI#v=onepage&q=are%20mater%20lectionis%20silent&f=false
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 3091. Yehoshua [Yehoshua']):
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3091.htm
Jewfaq. The Hebrew Alphabet:
https://www.jewfaq.org/hebrew_alphabet
Rev. Taylor (1833) (PP. 340-341):
https://books.google.com/books?id=QbARAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA340&dq=baal+samen&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjy36qOiPj6AhW3MlkFHfxtC9AQ6AF6BAgHEAM#v=onepage&q=baal%20samen&f=false
Drummond and Walpole (1810) (P. 62):
https://books.google.com/books?id=rDMGAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA62&dq=Jupiter+Iao+Jeu&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&ovdme=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiis9rxh8eEAxW_FmIAHSNEBJMQ6AF6BAgMEAM#v=onepage&q=Jupiter%20Iao%20Jeu&f=false
Tice (1997 [2007 edition]):
https://books.google.com/books?id=GYmubiLkrncC&printsec=frontcover&dq=jehovah+the+devil&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjNzLXQxaz1AhV0onIEHRMrD4w4ChDoAXoECAMQAw
-V2:
https://books.google.com.mx/books?id=GYmubiLkrncC&printsec=frontcover&lr=&num=20&source=gbs_book_other_versions_r&cad=2#v=snippet&q=Jesus&f=false
1 Samuel 4:
-BSB:
https://biblehub.com/bsb/1_samuel/4.htm
-NASB:
https://biblehub.com/nasb_/1_samuel/4.htm
Zechariah 13 (NASB):
https://biblehub.com/nasb_/zechariah/13.htm
Jeremiah 1 footnote a (NASB):
https://biblehub.com/nasb_/jeremiah/1.htm#fn
The Apocryphon of John:
https://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/nag_hammadi/apocjn.htm
Litwa (2019):
https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Evil_Creator/hXU-EAAAQBAJ?hl=en
Epiphaneus. Panarion. Book 1 Section 2 Number 26. 10.1-10.3 (Williams, 2009 translation) P. 98):
https://gnosis.study/library/%D0%9A%D1%80%D0%B8%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%B0/ENG/Epiphanius%20of%20Salamis%20-%20The%20Panarion,%20Book%20I%20(Sects%201-46).pdf
1.2. What did Yahavah look like?
Now that we have an idea as to what the name YHVH is, we should now as the question: what did Yahavah look like? At best, I've found at least five images of Yahavah that tell us what he looked like. When we discuss the god Ea (Yahavah's Akkadian name), we will have a definite profile of what this entity looked like.
The first piece of evidence is a silver Judean coin from the 4th century B.C. It depicts the deity with the name "Yehud"/"yhd" (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, para. 3; Judean Coin). Langdon (1931 [1964 reprint]) said that the name is "YHW," which means "Yaw" (p. 43). Cook (1914) also says the three words are "YHW" (Vol. 1 p. 232). It would be "YHV," using the modern spelling of the name. This would be "Yahav." Interestingly, Yahav is depicted as a man with a beard and a robe, and is seated on a wheel. Either Yahav has wings, or the wheel has wings (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, para. 3; Judean Coin). Both Langdon and Cook say that it's a winged wheel (Langdton, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 43) (Cook, 1914, Vol. 1 p. 232). There is also a falcon, (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, para. 3), or a hawk (Langdton, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 43), or an eagle/hawk (Cook, 1914, Vol. 1, p. 232), sitting on Yahav's arm.
Fontanille et al., (2023) gives a very descriptive history of the interpretation of the inscription on the coin. The coin was "reportedly found in Gaza," (p. 148). Originally, it was confirmed to have been "YHW." However, scholarship has tried to prove that the letters are "YHD" instead. The most recent decision on the lettering declares that the letters could've been either YHW, or YHD (pp. 130-131). As for where it was made, Fontanille et al. said that it was made in Philistia. However, other authors state that it was made in Judah (pp. 131, 140, and 148). Fontanille et al. said that the bird was a "hawk or a falcon," (pp. 143 and 145). The dating of the coin seems to be anywhere from the "late fifth century BCE," to 361 B.C. (pp. 136-137). Finally, the authors say that, although the deity on the coin could be "other celestial gods," the deity is "consistent with the nature of Yahweh," (pp. 145-146). The Philistian authors of the coin probably based their design of the deity on their own god Baal Shamen. Both Yahweh (Yahavah), and Baal Shamen, shared "celestial and solar attributes, so that they were essentially indistinguishable as implied by their similar epithets." Zeus Olympios was also "identified with Baal Shamen." Yahweh (Yahavah) was equated to Baal Shamen in Samaria during "the time of King Ahab," and "by the Yahwists in Elephantine." Baal Shamen is also in the "Aramaic Ahiqar" version of Proverb 13 (p. 148).
Yehud (yhd) Judean Coin (Hulster, n.d., What Did Yahweh Look Like?, Judean Coin):
Description of coin (para. 3):
Description of coin (Judean Coin):
Langston (1931 [1964 reprint])'s description of the coin (p. 43):
Gaza-Philistia coin that seems to depict Yahavah as "Yhv" (Fontanille et al., 2023, p. 130 Type 1):
Cook (1914) says that the winged wheel is associated with Dionysus (Vol. 1 p. 216), and "a bearded god enthroned with an eagle on his hand is a common art-type of Zeus." The winged wheel is a symbol of the sun as well, which would make the Judean coin depicting Yahavah as a "solar Zeus," (p. 232). Langdon said that the coin depicts Yahavah as a sun god (Langdon, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 44).
Dionysus on a winged wheel (Cook, 1914, Vol. 1, p. 216, Figure 159):
Fontanille et al., (2023) said that the Gaza-Philistia coin doesn't equate Yahavah to Dionysus (pp. 135-136). They did state that the whinged wheel was similar to the "winged car of the "Eleusinian grain god Triptolemus as depicted on Attic red-figure vases of the fifth century BCE and in other media," (p. 133).
Triptolemos in his "winged car" (500-480 B.C.) (Fontanille et al., 2023, p. 133 Figure 4.4a): They authors also said that the deity on the Gaza-Philistia coin better relates to "Zeus aetophoros and his counterparts," (pp. 136 and 146).
Zeus aetophoros coin from Mazaeus, Tarsus (361-334 B.C.) (Fontanille et al., 2023, p. 136 Figure 4.6): The second image of Yahavah is an "onyx" (coin) depicting a beardless Zeus with a thunderbolt in his outstretched hand, and an eagle near his feet, has the names "Iao Sabao[th]" (Iaw Cabaw) on the back of it (p. 235).
Iao Sabao(th) (Iaw Cabaw) onyx/coin (Cook, 1914, Vol. 1, p. 235 Figure 172):
As noted before, one of Yahavah's names in the
Tanakh/Old Testament is Sabaoth. We can also see this in Jeremiah 46:10.
Tsebaoth (Sabaoth) as one of Yahavah's names (Jeremiah 46:10 [NOG]):
Sabaoth is actually the word "Tsaba" (
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 6635. Tsaba):
The third depiction of Yahavah comes from a coin from "the Persian period" of Gaza. It depicts Yaw (Yav-Yahavah) and the goddess "'Ashtart-'Anat" (Astarte-Anat) together (called "'Ashtart-Yaw'" by Langdon) (Langdon, 1931 [1964 reprint], p. 44 Figure 24):
Yahavah here looks similar to the Gaza-Philistia coin depiction of him. Interestingly, Langdon said that the coin depicts a deity that is both male and female (p. 44).
The fourth depiction of Yahavah shows him as a winged sun disk. Taylor (1993) said that solar worship was conducted by the Israelites (Synopsis; Ch. 1, Introduction, p. 19). Archaeological evidence includes sun emblems with "lmlk" on Judean jar handles. The emblems are a sun disk with two wings, and a "four-winged scarab." In the Tanakh, Yahavah is called "semes," which means "sun." This is in Psalm 84 (p. 20). Taylor believes that there is a close relationship between Yahavah and the sun, even so that Yahavah might even have been the sun itself (p. 22). Fontanille et al., (2023) shows one of the Judean jar handles with "lmlk" on it. It dates to the "late eighth century BCE." The double winged disk "probably represented Yahweh as the patron god of the ruling dynasty." Judah "was subject to the Assyrian empire," so the Assyrians were more-than-likely the source of the winged disk (p. 138).
Judean jar handle depicting Yahavah as a winged solar disk with "lmlk" inscribed on it (8th century B.C.) (
Fontanille et al., 2023, p. 138 Figure 4.9):"LMLK" means "to Molech" in 2 Kings 23:10 (Interlinear):
Psalm 84:11 states that "the LORD God (Yahavah Elohim) is a sun and a shield," (Interlinear):
The bullae/seals of Isaiah and the Judahite King Hezekiah were discovered at the Temple Mount (old Jewish 2nd temple) (Ngo, 2018, para. 1-3) (Shuster, 2018, para. 2). On Hezekiah's bulla/seal, the symbol of "a two-winged sun disk flanked by ankh symbols" are shown (Ngo, 2018, para. 3) (Shuster, 2018).
King Hezekiah's (left) and Isaiah's (right) bullae/seals (Ngo, 2018):
On the "magical gem; intaglio" gem from the British Museum, it depicts Seth with the name "Iaw" underneath his left arm. Seth is holding an ankh in his right hand, and a "staff and flail" in his left hand. There are also two "six-ray" stars, and a "crescent" moon, surrounding Seth. There are also four archangels inscribed on the gem as well: Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Suriel (British Museum, magical gem; intaglio, Description; Inscriptions) (Litwa, 2019, pp. 31-32; p. 32 Figure 1.2). Litwa (2019) said that the gem depicts "Seth-Yahweh," (p. 32 Figure 1.2). This gem dates to the third century A.D. (British Museum, magical gem; intaglio, Production date).
Seth on magical gem; intaglio (
British Museum, magical gem; intaglio):
Gem from Litwa (2019) (P. 32 Figure 1.2):
From what we have, we can see that Yahavah was depicted as Zeus (and probably Dionysus), as Seth, and as a winged sun disk. As I said previously, Ea will give us a clearer picture as to what Yahavah looked like. We're going to talk about him right now.
Links:
Cook (1914) (Vol. 1):
https://books.google.com/books/about/Zeus.html?id=9e9gpRpZWCYC&printsec=frontcover&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_entity&hl=en&gl=US&ovdme=1#v=onepage&q&f=false
Langdon (1931 [1964 reprint]) (P. 43):
https://archive.org/details/MythologyOfAllRacesVolume5/page/n59/mode/2up?q=Yahweh
Hulster. n.d. What Did Yahweh Look Like? Bible Odyssey:
https://www.bibleodyssey.org/passages/related-articles/what-did-yahweh-look-like/
Fontanille et al., (2023) (P. 130 Type 1; pp. 131, 145, and 148 for Yhv, Gaza, and Philistine info.):
https://books.google.com/books?id=QOrxEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA136&dq=Zeus+Iao&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&source=gb_mobile_search&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwivyMufodaKAxWsj4kEHeGGMSQ4ChDoAXoECAgQAw#v=onepage&q=Zeus%20Iao&f=false
Jeremiah 46:10 (NOG):
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah%2046%3A10&version=NOG
Bible Hub. Strong's Hebrew. 6635. Tsaba:
https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6635.htm
1.3. Ea.
Ea on the Adda Seal (The British Museum, cylinder seal [the Adda seal]):
The full seal:
Ea is the second male deity from the right with the eagle/Zu bird on his right arm, the bull in between his legs, and the streams of water with fish coming out of his body (The British Museum, cylinder seal [the Adda seal], Description).
Ea, also called Enki (which means "lord of the earth"), is the "lord of the earth," and the "god of water" or "fresh waters beneath the earth," (Encyclopaedia Britannica, Ea). Ea was also spelled "Hea" (Smith, 1876, pp. 52-53), and Eau-l'Eau (Cook, 1914, Vol. 1 p. 188 note 2) (Espak, 2006, 2.2.1 [p. 1], note 136 [translated from French]). Enki is his Sumerian name (Kramer and Maier, 1989 [2020 edition], p. 10) (Espak, 2006, 2.1) (Darshan, 2023, p. 104), and Ea is his Semitic or Semitic Akkadian name (Kramer and Maier, 1989 [2020 edition], pp. 4 and 10) (Espak, 2006, 2.2, 2.2.3 [p. 2], and 2.3 [pp. 2-3]) (Darshan, 2023, p. 104). On the An=Anum list, a list of Sumerian deities, Enki and Ea are equated to Ea (Litke, 1998; from Hallo, 1998, Vol. 3 pp. 83 and 87). I'm going to call him Ea for now on.
As stated previously, both Yahavah and Ea have the same etymological root word in their names: hayah or havah. Ea's Israelite name is 'Ahayah (Aahayah), while his Jewish name is Yahavah.
As to what Ea looked like, we have the Adda seal (The British Museum, cylinder seal [the Adda seal]). This is definitive proof of what the biblical god looked like.
Links:
The British Museum. Cylinder seal (the Adda seal):
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