Jehovah

Psalm 83:18

• That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth. (King James Version)
• And they know that Thou -- (Thy name [is] Jehovah -- by Thyself,) [Art] the Most High over all the earth! (Young’s Literal Translation)
• That they may know that thou alone, whose name is Jehovah, art the Most High over all the earth. (Darby Translation)

The best known English pronunciation of the Divine Name, although many Hebrew scholars prefer “Yahweh”. The oldest Hebrew manuscripts represent the Divine Name by the four consonants יהוה (read left to right), also known as the Tetragrammaton (from Greek tetra-, meaning “four” and gram’ma, meaning “letter”). They have been transliterated into English as JHVH or YHWH.

Although the consonants are known, the vowels associated with the Divine Name are not thus rendering the original pronunciation uncertain. In most Bible translations the titles GOD or LORD (note both are in all capitals) are used whenever the Divine Name appears in the original Hebrew text.

The presence of the Divine Name, appearing over 6,000 times in the Hebrew-Aramaic portion of the Holy Scriptures, would indicate it was known and used by ordinary Jews during Bible times. Over time, the practice of substituting the title Adonai (Lord in English) became Rabbinic tradition.

References:

• Catholic Encyclopedia (1917 edition) - [1]

• The Divine Name That Will Endure Forever (1984) - [2]

External Links:

• Bible Online – [3]