When did belief in, the Jewish and Christian God, YHWH, begin?

• In the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible, also called the 'Torah') there is an attempt to harmonise two different traditions about the origin of Yhwhism, the one which saw its beginning in the call of Abraham, the other which regarded the Exodus as the start.
  
  
• It has been argued that the God who revealed himself to Moses at the Bush was a new God, the God of the Kenite clan of the Midianites to which Jethro belonged. However, each of the principal patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob) had a patron deity (who had revealed himself to each of them), worshipped by himself and his son to whom the deity was known as 'the God of my father'. Yahweh is spoken of three times as the God of Moses' father (Exodus 3:6;15:2;18:4). It seems possible then that Yahweh was the God of one of the ancestors of Moses. In fact his mother's name, Jochebed, is a compound of 'Yo..' the shortened form of YHWH. The scholar Hyatt has argued that YHWH was initially the patron deity of one of the ancestors of Moses. Then he became the deity of the clan or tribe of Moses and finally, through Moses' mediation, the deity of the Hebrews whom Moses led out of Egypt.
  
  
• To conclude, whereas this narrative in Exodus represents Yahweh as instructing Moses to tell his people in Egypt that the God who had revealed himself in the Burning Bush was the God of the Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, nevertheless it has to be accepted that it is not easy to distinguish the precise nature of the object of the Patriarch's worship.

God's Name

• The revelation of the divine name is the highpoint of the revelation to Moses.
  
  
• A name indicated the nature and character of its bearer. In the Bible, to 'call a name' was sometimes equivalent to 'create'.
  
  
• In ancient times, the name of the deity was greatly respected as a means of invoking the deity. Knowledge of the name revealed a very privileged relationship with him (Is 45:3-4).
  
  
• Early in Israel's history, the test for being a true prophet was linked to prophesying in the name of YHWH (Deuteronomy 13:1;18:20;1 Kings 18:19f.)
  
  
• The new name revealed to Moses in v.14a goes beyond that of the God of the Patriarchs. However, as 3:6 wants to emphasise, the new revealed name does not imply a new God but emphasises continuity. (See above for views on when belief in Yahweh began.)
  
  
• This is the only attempt anywhere in the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible to explain the divine name. This explanation is not alluded to elsewhere except perhaps in Hosea 1:9.
  
  
• In Hebrew the name 'Yahweh' (translated 'Lord' and written as LORD in English Bibles) is written without vowels, as YHWH. The verb can be taken as either in the present or future tense.
  
  
• After the Exile, because of reverence based on Exodus 20:7 and Leviticus 24:16, the Jews ceased to pronounce the Tetragrammaton, YHWH. When it occurred they read, 'Adonai', Greek for 'Lord'. Later the Massoretes attached the vowels of this word to the consonants of the unpronounceable Name. This gave rise to the medieval form Jehovah and the true pronunciation was lost. Scholars are now agreed generally that the original form was Yahweh but Jews would still not pronounce this and in English might write G-d.
  
  
• The sentence 'I am who I am' is ambiguous as the Hebrew can have several different meanings. These views are held:
  
  
  1. The original meaning of the root letters is 'to fall' or 'to blow'. So YHWH is 'he who falls' or 'he who causes to fall' or 'he who blows' or 'he who causes to blow'.
     But while it is true that YHWH is associated with natural phenomena, he is no nature god; he is the Lord of nature.
     
     
  2. 'I am because I am' implies there is no cause for God's existence outside himself. He is the ultimate fact, and is not to be explained with reference to anything other than himself. But scholars believe the emphasis is not meant to be on an abstract being but an active being.
     'He who causes to be' that is, the 'Creator'. But some scholars argue that this is too advanced a concept for this early time.
     
     
  3. 'I am the one who is'. This deity is the only one with true existence: there is no other beside him.
     But this would mean it came from a much later date, 7th or 6th century BCE, when monotheism became important.
     
     
  4. Some hold the name developed from an exclamation used in the cult. It could be an extension of the word 'hu' meaning 'he', the one, the un-nameable. It is the God himself who unfolds his name as the one who is and will be present, not merely some time and somewhere but in every now and every here. God is the eternally existent one.
     But scholars see this as too abstract as with suggestion 3 above.
     
     
  5. This may be intended as an evasive answer because:
     1. God does not wish to reveal his name and nature to humanity.
     2. Humanity should not know God's name and therefore get power over him as God is not the slave of human beings.
     3. God's nature cannot be fully expressed in a name. Humans cannot comprehend his nature which must remain a mystery.
     But it is unlikely God is evading the question, although Israelite theology does stress the mystery of God. But 'I am who I am' does not imply 'It is not your concern'.
     
     
  6. 'I/He who will be what I/he will be' the 'living' God who will guide history and who will reveal himself to his people continuously in their changing experience by his actions. He will be there in all situations to meet their needs.
     Most scholars favour this interpretation because its emphasis is on an active God, present with Israel. This leaves open a large number of possibilities within which God may express himself. God's freedom is not limited.

Theophany - the Appearance and Presence of God

• Theophany is rare in the Bible. However, a lively sense of God's presence on earth runs through the Bible. There are several other appearances of God often at holy places in the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible where God reveals himself by name e.g. Gen 17:1; 26:23; 28:13; Ex 3:6 etc..
  
  
• In contrast, there are other passages where God appears but the person does not know it is God and asks who the 'visitor' is e.g. Gen 32:30; Jdg 13:17. The initial encounter leads to a divine promise or blessing.
  
  
• God does appear in overwhelming majesty as 'wholly' other but more often he enters into dialogue with individuals at their own level, as one of them.
  
  
• For the ancient Hebrew there was no problem as to what form God took to appear on earth. God was thought of in human terms for man was made in God's image. He was spoken of as having bodily parts and a bodily presence. Such features as God is given, limbs or organs were those necessary to describe experiences which came to people through the senses of sight or hearing and very rarely, touch.
  
  
• As time went on anthropomorphic descriptions of God's presence fade as the prophets become the spokesmen for God's word. God operates more at a distance. The New Testament presents the Christian belief in the incarnation of God in the person of Jesus.

Revelation

• Judaism, Christianity and Islam are 'revealed' religions. It is believed that all human knowledge of God is dependent on God's revelation of himself. This is because God is believed to be transcendent and is not an object accessible to our observation in the world. Revelation cannot be procured from God by any technique (lots, dreams, auspices) but it is a living encounter with God himself.
  
  
• God reveals himself as the living and personal God. His revelation is steeped in mystery for his ways are beyond human ways so even in his self-disclosure he remains a hidden God. The personal character of God's revelation is expressed in the Old Testament / Hebrew Bible by the name of God. (See above on 'God's Name'). This resembles more than simple information, it conveys the concept of personality. Those to whom the name is revealed have access to God's presence. Through imparting his name to people, God establishes a personal relationship with them.
  
  
• God reveals himself in his acts in history. The fundamental fact of Old Testament / Hebrew Bible faith is God's revelation in the liberation of Israel from slavery (Ex 19:4; 20:2). But God's mighty and gracious acts often failed to achieve their revealing purpose because of the blindness and obtuseness of his people (Is 1:2 ).
  
  
• The prophets became the agents of God's revelation of himself through their proclaiming his word and for God word and work are one (Gen 1:3).
  
  
• The problem in the Bible with revelation was determining whether it was true or false revelation. The Bible comes up with no infallible criterion. Lots of tests were applied e.g. whether what was revealed actually happened or not or whether the person who received the revelation was sincere which was evident by the overwhelming compulsion with which he spoke or whether what was revealed dealt with moral realities and included the judgment of God on human sin, but God did not only reveal his judgment but also comfort, hope and healing. There is no external test by which revelation can be authenticated. It cannot be explained or proved, only received according to biblical understanding.
  
  
• The concept of revelation is a problem to the modern mind. The occurrence of revelation is 'taken for granted' in the Bible whereas the non-occurrence of revelation is taken for granted today.

The Call Visions

• The Bible records the 'calling' of the people Israel, as well as individuals. God always takes the initiative in summoning them. Their part is to respond, though all too often, nationally and individually they fail to do so.
  
  
• This 'calling' can be said to begin with Abram called to move to Haran and here Moses is 'called' to the burning bush and charged with delivering the Israelites out of Egypt. Later, he is 'called' to the top of Sinai to receive the book of the Covenant.
  
  
• In the New Testament, Jesus 'calls' men to follow him. The method of 'calling' varies. Abram has a direct 'verbal' call from God (Gen 12:1-3). Here Moses has a 'call vision' as Samuel did later (1 Sam 3:1-14).

The call visions are generally concerned with four themes:

• The God who calls. (Usually there is no need to identify God by name, it is assumed that it is known.)
• The person who is called.
• The task given.
• The people to whom the person is sent.

Holy Places

• These were places where there had been an encounter with God, a revelation from God. It would remain a place of worship, set apart for the service of God. Often an altar would be built on the spot. Later on the Temple would be regarded as holy because God's presence was there in the Holy of Holies which housed the Ark of the Covenant containing the tablets of stone of the Ten Commandments.
  
  
• 'Holy' in Hebrew means 'set apart', 'separated to God', 'taboo' (no entry). Holy is that which is to do with God and everything that belongs to God is holy. Holiness had that quality which inspires awe and separates people from God. Holiness includes ritual cleanness. Holiness was considered to be contagious. If an unauthorised person, for example, touched the altar they became 'holy' which means they were at the disposal of God even to the extent of losing their life. 2 Sam 6:6. God's holiness denotes the absolute authority with which he confronts people. God is holy and requires his people should be holy too.
  
  
• Later on holiness came to be seen as 'separated from' things and other people. YHWH's holiness, that is his majesty and incomparable power, set him apart from other gods. God is known as 'the Holy One of Israel'.
  
  
• With the prophet Isaiah holiness came to be understood as a moral quality, moral purity. God's holiness is his absolute moral purity combined with his transcendent exaltation.
  
  
• With Haggai the Temple cult was seen as the channel for holiness. The source was Yahweh himself who in pre-exilic times had dwelt in the Holy of Holies. So the Temple had to be rebuilt.

Fire, a Symbol of God

Fire is a visible force but it cannot be grasped as such. It is illusive and mysterious in its operation. Fire symbolised different aspects of God:

• The fire used in sacrifices and the burning of incense takes the offerings up to God and links earth and heaven.
• The destructive power of God is symbolised in the flame that consumes things. The fire of judgment illustrates this.
• The cleansing power of God is seen in the sterilising effects of fire.
• Fire provides for human needs - warmth and light.
• In the New Testament the Holy Spirit is symbolised by tongues of fire.

Justice and Hatred of Oppression

• In the Old Testament God is presented as a just God who demands justice from his people. This justice however is tempered with his compassion and mercy. So here, God looks with compassion on the Israelites because they are unjustly treated and oppressed by the Egyptians. He comes to their aid through Moses.
  
  
• Throughout the Bible God is concerned with the oppressed, the vulnerable, the exploited and the underdog. God is presented as on their side.
  
  
• The Bible highlights in particular the oppression of sin which weighs everyone down. God can deliver repentant human beings from this captivity with forgiveness.
  
  
• Along with justice is the theme of judgment. Everyone is responsible for the way they live their life and will ultimately be accountable before God to face his judgment and then mercy.