THE LINE OF FIRE
REMEMBER THAT THE POWER OF THE NAME IS NOT IN ITS PRONUNCIATION BUT IN THE PERSON TO WHOM IT REFERS, OUR LORD AND REDEEMER AND KING
BY DR. MICHAEL BROWN, THE LINE OF FIRE (JUNE 14, 2013) —
Well, no sooner did I post a wonderful quote from Charles Spurgeon on Facebook tonight than someone decided to start a debate (claiming the quote was a great example of “hyper-grace” — whereas, in fact, Spurgeon stood firmly against what is taught in hyper-grace circles today; plus, I don’t post inspirational quotes to start debates!), SOMEONE ELSE QUESTIONED WHY I AN ARMINIAN, WOULD QUOTE A CALVINIST (LOUD SIGH FROM ME), and someone else got us sidetracked on the Hebrew names for God and Jesus. (Seriously!)I’ve already addressed those who feel that any inspirational quote is the place for them to introduce their doctrine and start a debate (see here), finally having to start blocking folks from posting when they just wouldn’t follow our simple posting guidelines. But I really didn’t expect to see tonight’s quote, which is as doctrinally generic as can be, to end up migrating over to a discussion about Hebrew names. (After all, this was the quote: “I THOUGHT I COULD HAVE LEAPED FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN AT ONE SPRING WHEN I FIRST SAW MY SINS DROWNED IN THE REDEEMER’S BLOOD.” I deleted all the comments that weren’t relevant to the post so we could get back to rejoicing in Jesus-Yeshua!)
So, for the record, once again, THERE IS NO SUCH NAME AS YAHSHUA. It didn’t exist in biblical times and it has not existed as a genuine Hebrew name in history — until people who really didn’t understand Hebrew made it up, thinking that it somehow restored the “Yah” element (from “Yahweh”) into the Savior’s name. If you want more details on this, you can read my article here. (While I’m at it, there’s no such either as Yahushua — Joshua was pronounced ye-ho-shu-ah — and God’s name was NEVER pronounced Yahua or the like. (Loud sigh again.)
Having said all that, I feel like quoting Spurgeon again: “I thought I could have leaped from earth to heaven at one spring when I first saw my sins drowned in the Redeemer’s blood.” It makes me want to shout!
RELATED ‘ASK DR. BROWN’ ARTICLE
» What Is The Original Hebrew Name For Jesus? And Is It True That The Name Jesus Is Really A Pagan Corruption Of The Name Zeus?
» What Is The Original Hebrew Name For Jesus? And Is It True That The Name Jesus Is Really A Pagan Corruption Of The Name Zeus?
“I am continually amazed by how many people write to our ministry and ask us questions like this one, which came in last week: “Some Christians say we have to use the Hebrew name, Yashua. They say calling on the name of Jesus is calling on Zeus. That Jesus is a disguise name for Satan. What answers do you have for this? Where can we prove the name of Jesus is correct to use in its English translation and pronunciation?”
DR. MICHAEL BROWN - BIOGRAPHY
DR. MICHAEL L. BROWN holds a Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Literatures from New York University. He has served as a visiting or adjunct professor at Southern Evangelical Seminary, Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary (Charlotte), Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Fuller Theological Seminary, Denver Theological Seminary, the King’s Seminary, and Regent University School of Divinity. He has contributed numerous articles to scholarly publications, including the Oxford Dictionary of Jewish Religion and the Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament.
CONNECT WITH DR. MICHAEL BROWN
Bookmark And Visit These Links!
» ASK Dr. Brown | Video Channel
» ASK Dr. Brown | Official Website
» Dr. Michael Brown | ‘In The Line Of Fire’ Article Archive
» Dr. Michael Brown | ‘In The Line Of Fire’ Radio (Weekdays 2PM-4PM ET)