COMBINATION OF [1]   THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2]  MORE ON THE PERSONAL NAME OF ALMIGHTY GOD (YHWH).   With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1]   SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [VOL. 294B]

Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;  Deuteronomy 19:17, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

But Deuteronomy goes on to show how a false witness should be dealt with at Deuteronomy 19:18 – 20, [AV] “And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother;  19  Then shall ye do unto him, as he had thought to have done unto his brother: so shalt thou put the evil away from among you.  20  And those which remain shall hear, and fear, and shall henceforth commit no more any such evil among you.”  And Psalms 1:1 – 3, [AV] says, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.  2  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.  3  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”   


[2]   MORE ON THE PERSONAL NAME OF ALMIGHTY GOD (YHWH),

PART A - <<<" ...Yahweh (YHWH): Comes from a verb which means "to exist, be." This, plus its usage, shows that this name stresses God as the independent and self-existent God of revelation and redemption (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.; Ex. 6:3 (cf. 3:14); 3:12).
Compounds of Yahweh: Strictly speaking, these compounds are designations or titles which reveal additional facts about God's character.
* Yahweh Jireh (Yireh): "The Lord will provide." Stresses God's provision for His people (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.).
* Yahweh Nissi: "The Lord is my Banner." Stresses that God is our rallying point and our means of victory; the one who fights for His people (Ex. 17:15).
* Yahweh Shalom: "The Lord is Peace." Points to the Lord as the means of our peace and rest (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.).
* Yahweh Sabbaoth: "The Lord of Hosts." A military figure portraying the Lord as the commander of the armies of heaven (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.; 17:45).
* Yahweh Maccaddeshcem: "The Lord your Sanctifier." Portrays the Lord as our means of sanctification or as the one who sets believers apart for His purposes (Ex. 31:13).
* Yahweh Ro'i: "The Lord my Shepherd." Portrays the Lord as the Shepherd who cares for His people as a shepherd cares for the sheep of his pasture (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.).
* Yahweh Tsidkenu: "The Lord our Righteousness." Portrays the Lord as the means of our righteousness (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.).
* Yahweh Shammah: "The Lord is there." Portrays the Lord's personal presence in the millennial kingdom (Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.).
Yahweh Elohim Israel: "The Lord, the God of Israel." Identifies Yahweh as the God of Israel in contrast to the false gods of the...[source - The Names of God, By: J. Hampton Keathley, III , Th.M. (Bio)] ">>>

PART B -  Yet still more on the personal name of Almighty God (YHWH) from an encyclopedia coverage of the ten commandments:
<<<"
The Ten Commandments, or Decalogue, are a list of religious and moral imperatives that according to religious tradition, were written by God and given to Moses on the mountain referred to as "Mount Sinai" (Exodus 19:23) or "Mount Horeb" (Deuteronomy 5:2) in the form of two stone tablets. They feature prominently in Judaism and Christianity. In Biblical Hebrew language, the commandments are termed ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dvarîm) and in Rabbinical Hebrew ???? ?????? (translit. Aseret ha-Dibrot), both translatable as "the ten statements." The name "Decalogue" is derived from the Greek name de??????? or "dekalogos" ("ten statements") found in the Septuagint (Exodus 34:28, Deuteronomy 10:4), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name.[2]
The phrase "Ten Commandments" generally refers to the very similar passages in Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Some distinguish between this "Ethical Decalogue" and a series of ten commandments in Exodus 34 that are labeled the "Ritual Decalogue".
The commandments passage in Exodus contains more than ten imperative statements, totalling fourteen or fifteen in all. However, the Bible itself assigns the count of "ten" to the list, using the Hebrew phrase aseret had'varim.[3] Various religions divide these statements among the Commandments in different ways, and may also translate the Commandments differently.[source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia] ">>>

PART C -- Yet still more on the personal name of Almighty God (YHWH) from Wiki:

<<<"
What is the real name of God in the Bible Jehovah Yahweh Shaddai El.. etc?

Answer
The name of God originally appeared in the Hebrew language as ???? which many feel was pronounced Yahweh. The English or anglicised form is Jehovah. There is nothing wrong with using the pronunciation Yahweh or Jehovah. There are some languages that use Yahweh in their language. In Spanish the name Jehová is pronounced Hay-Oh-VAH. Names are often pronounced differently in different languages. For example, the name Jesus is thought to have been pronounced Yeshua in Hebrew, and in Spanish it is pronounced Hay-SOOS.
Here is a list of how different bible translations handle the name of God:
The Holy Bible translated by Ronald A. Knox: The name Yahweh is found in footnotes at Exodus 3:14 and 6:3.
The New American Bible: A footnote on Exodus 3:14 favors the form ?Yahweh,? but the name does not appear in the main text of the translation. In the Saint Joseph Edition, see also the appendix Bible Dictionary under ?Lord? and ?Yahweh.?
The Jerusalem Bible: The Tetragrammaton is translated Yahweh, starting with its first occurrence, at Genesis 2:4.
New World Translation: The name Jehovah is used in both the Hebrew and the Christian Greek Scriptures in this translation, appearing 7,210 times.
An American Translation: At Exodus 3:15 and 6:3 the name Yahweh is used, followed by ?the LORD? in brackets.
The Bible in Living English, S. T. Byington: The name Jehovah is used throughout the Hebrew Scriptures.
The ?Holy Scriptures? translated by J. N. Darby: The name Jehovah appears throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, also in many footnotes on Christian Greek Scripture texts, beginning with Matthew 1:20.
The Emphatic Diaglott, Benjamin Wilson: The name Jehovah is found at Matthew 21:9 and in 17 other places in this translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures.
The Holy Scriptures According to the Masoretic Text?A New Translation, Jewish Publication Society of America, Max Margolis editor-in-chief: At Exodus 6:3 the Hebrew Tetragrammaton appears in the English text.
The Holy Bible translated by Robert Young: The name Jehovah is found throughout the Hebrew Scriptures in this literal translation.
The name Jehovah or Yahweh, whichever form you prefer, actually means, "he causes to become." This is certainly an appropriate designation for the one who caused all things to become.
Interestingly, the name in Hebrew ???? appears over 7000 times. It was substituted for the titles LORD and GOD in translations of the Bible. There was a superstition that arose amoung the Jews and later adopted by others that the name was too sacred to be uttered or even written. Because of this, early translators stopped translating the divine name and opted to use the impersonal designations LORD and GOD.
Resulting consensus
Reland agreed with the opponents of "Jehovah", and since his days the majority opinion has been roughly what is expressed in the article JEHOVAH of the Jewish Encyclopedia of 1901-1906 [8], that the pronunciation was "Yahweh". See also:-
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1911_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Jehovah http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/1911_Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica/Tetragrammaton
Yahweh
The name YHVH or YHWH is written with four consonants only; it is the holy Tetragrammaton, or in Hebrew, Shem Hameforash. Hebrew has no vowels. In ancient times, it didn't even have vowel points. These were added much later, and at that time pronouncing the name was already forbidden for generations. So no one knows how the most ancient name of God was pronounced. The vowel points make it sound like Yehova, and later it was anglicized to Jehovah. The reader may not say it. He or she must say instead the name Adonai, which means "My Lord." The name occurs about seven thousand times in the Bible.
Yahweh
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Because the name was no longer pronounced and its own vowels were not written, its own pronunciation was forgotten. When Christians, unaware of the Jewish tradition, started to read the Hebrew Bible, they read ??????? as written with YHWH's consonants with Adonai's vowels, and thus said or transcribed Iehovah. Today this transcription is generally recognized as mistaken, however many religious groups continue to use the form Jehovah, because it is familiar and because the correct pronunciation of ???? is unknown. (See Jehovah.) [source - http://wiki.answers.com/] ">>>

PART  D -- Yet more evidence on the personal name of Almighty God (YHWH) from very reliable and credible sources:

A. American Heritage Dictionary: "Yahweh_A name for God assumed by modern scholars to be a rendering of the pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton."

B. The Oxford Cyclopedic Concordance: "Jehovah_ the name revealed to Moses at Horeb. Its real pronunciation is approximately Yahweh."

C. The International Bible Encyclopedia of King James Version: "Jehovah - It is believed that the correct pronunciation of this word is 'Yahweh.'"

D. Davis Dictionary of the Bible: "Jehovah - The Tetragrammaton is generally believed to have been pronounced Jahweh, Yahweh..." (Source: http://www.yaim.org/missing_j.htm)

E.  "The Jehovah's Witness' 1984 booklet, "The Divine Name That Will Endure Forever", writes on page 7 that, "The truth is, nobody knows for sure how the name of God was originally pronounced.""
(Source: http://www.logon.org/english/s/p240.html).

F. "(26) The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1967, vol. 14, page 1065, after discussing the usual meanings given to God's name, states: "All these explanations, however, overlook the fact that in Ex 3:14 a merely folk etymology of the name, based on the qal form of the verb `to be,' is given. Grammatically, because of its vocalization, yahweh can only be a hi`phil or causative form of this verb, with the meaning `He causes to be, He brings into being.' Probably, therefore, yahweh is an abbreviated form of the longer, yahweh aser yihweh, `He brings into being whatever exists.' The name, therefore, describes the God of Israel as the Creator of the universe."

G.  This would mean that "yhwh" is also a appellative, a descriptive term, as well as a title, and not just a "personal" name. This contradicts the names argument that "yhwh" is only a personal name. (Source: http://www.reslight.addr.com/divine.html).

Now, One reason for the approximately 200 name variations above is the assumption that the exact pronunciation of the names of the Father and the Son can be (and must be) reproduced by English speaking people. To accomplish this requires that the exact pronunciation must have been preserved at least since Moses, and according to some, from the time of Abraham, or perhaps even from the time of Adam. Even a cursory study of the history of languages and writing reveals how remote that possibility is.
Some might appeal to the scripture that says "with God, all things are possible" (Mat. 19:26), and we know that is true. We know, for instance, that God can and did create more than one human language, specifically at the Tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9). One aspect of our "God-given" languages is the difference in speech sounds. Different languages use different sounds even though they may use identical symbols. To fully comprehend this, we need to consider sounds which are universally consistent, regardless of the national or local language. To find such sounds we must use something other than human language.
Animals make the same sounds regardless of the nation in which they are born or raised. Cows do not need translators. Cows do not have French, Russian or Chinese accents. A Dutch bull and a French cow would have no trouble communicating, to the extent bovines do communicate. Anyone who is familiar with livestock will confirm that animals do communicate with sounds. But when the Dutch farmer tries to communicate with the French farmer there is a difficulty, even in expressing the sounds of livestock. Although the vocalization may sound similar, the written form is not. When the Dutch farmer writes the word "boeh", the French farmer needs to understand the word "meuh", or as we would write in English, "moo". Some languages can be even more difficult. In Afrikaans the cow says "moe-moe"; in Bengali "hamba"; in Finnish "ammuu"; in Hindi "mo-mo"; in Hungarian "bu"; in Thai "maw maw" (with mid tone).[source - http://www.geocities.com/changes1611//name32.html on 02/15/2008]

I hope this clarifies what Almighty God (YHWH) personal name is.

PART  E -- Here, believe it or not, is more on the personal name of Almighty God (YHWH):
<<<" The Mistaken J
Often heard in the churches of our land is the refrain sung about the Savior, "There's something about that name..." In our English-speaking world we have been taught that the saving name of the Redeemer of Israel is "Jesus." So accepted is this name that few stop to consider its authenticity.
But the truth is, there is indeed "something about that Name." That "something" is the inescapable fact that the Savior's name is not Jesus, and never was. What's more, the Name of the Heavenly Father is not Jehovah, a designation that is only five centuries old.
Churchianity has so thoroughly immersed the world in the error of this tradition for the past 500 years that few even think to research the matter or to consider the consequences of calling on the wrong name. As a result, most continue believing that the Hebrew Savior is called by a Latinized Greek name that could not possibly have existed at the time He walked the earth. It's a name that would have been completely foreign to Him.
Eminent French historian, scholar, and archaeologist Ernest Renan acknowledges that the Savior was never in His lifetime called "Jesus." In his book, The Life of Jesus, Renan doubts that the Savior even spoke Greek (p.90). Greek was mostly the language of business and commerce in cosmopolitan circles.
As for the Father's Name, the hybrid "Jehovah" came into existence through the ignorance of Christian writers who did not understand the Old Testament Hebrew. Credit for the error is given to Petrus Galatinus, confessor to Pope Leo X in the 16th century.
Modern scholarship recognizes "Yahshua" as the best rendition for the Name of the Savior, while "Yahweh" is the closest transliteration for the Name of the Creator as found in ancient Scriptural manuscripts. In returning as nearly as we can to the Bibles' original language and meaning, we come to a deeper and more accurate understanding of the truths contained within it.
As we will learn, the Father and Son's revealed, personal Names are the foundation on which other vital, salvation truths rest. It was not without reason that Yahweh established the foundation of the Ten Commandments with the clear declaration of His sacred Name: "I, Yahweh, am your Elohim..." Exodus 20:2. Our Savior, as well, opened His Model Prayer with the words, "hallowed be Thy Name."
Yahweh devoted the Third Commandment to warn of the sin of taking His Name in vain (a meaning that includes bringing His Name to uselessness, as has been done for centuries), Exodus 20:2, 7. Our Redeemer's Name is critically important as well, or else our Creator would not have inspired the writer of Acts to proclaim, "Neither is there salvation in any other. For there is none other name under heaven, given among men whereby we must be saved," Acts 4:12.
Back to the Basic Truths of the Bible
It should be evident to anyone that through time and tradition, observances change, are added to, and also lose some of what they first had. This is especially true of the worship originally practiced in the Bible. Our primary goal as True Worshipers should be to return to fundamental truths, like His true Name, once known and taught by the early Assembly but that have been neglected or ignored through the centuries. Shouldn't this be the desire of every sincere Bible believer-to worship in ALL truth? Why go only halfway, or put another way, why continue worshiping partly in error?
Jude 3 speaks directly to us: "Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." This original faith as practiced in the early New Testament Assembly is being restored now, just before the Savior Yahshua returns to earth. Acts 3:21 say the heaven must receive the Savior until the time of restitution of all things. "Restitution" is the Greek apokatastasis and means re-establish from a state of ruin (Write for the explanatory ministudy, This Is the EliYah Message.)
Foundational to this original truth being restored by Yahweh's New Covenant Assembly is the identity of the One we worship. Nothing in existence is more holy than the Father and His personal, revealed Name Yahweh. Paul wrote that Yahweh has given His Son a Name that is above every name, Philippians 2:9. The prophet Malachi tells us that if we will not give glory unto Yahweh's Name that He would send a curse upon us (2:2).
With a sense of gravity of the sacred Name, let's examine why any substitute name employing the letter J is erroneous on its face. We will look at the facts and the overwhelming evidence and carefully evaluate our findings, using numerous sources revealing the truth. Much of the information we cite here is readily available in your public library, or found in references you may even have at home. We urge you to look into this important issue and prove it for yourself.
The 'J': A Letter Come Lately

Among the many reasons that both "Jesus" and "Jehovah" are erroneous is the simple fact that they begin with the letter J, the most recent letter added to our English alphabet. The Savior's name could not begin with the letter J because it did not exist when He was born -not even a thousand years later! All good dictionaries and encyclopedias show that the letter J and its sound are of late origin.
A chart on both the Hebrew and Greek alphabet is found on page 48 in this booklet. Take special note that there is no letter equivalent to J in either Hebrew or Greek even today. Here are what major references tell us about the J and its development:

The Encyclopedia Americana contains the following on the J:
"The form of J was unknown in any alphabet until the 14th century. Either symbol (J, I) used initially generally had the consonantal sound of Y as in year. Gradually, the two symbols (J, I) were differentiated, the J usually acquiring consonantal force and thus becoming regarded as a consonant, and the I becoming a vowel. It was not until 1630 that the differentiation became general in England."

The New Book of Knowledge reads:
"J, the tenth letter of the English alphabet, is the youngest of the 26 letters. It is a descendant of the letter I and was not generally considered a separate letter until the 17th century. The early history of the letter J is the same as the history of the letter I. I is a descendant of the ancient Phoenician and Hebrew letter yod and the Greek letter iota" (Vol. 10, 1992 ed.).

The Random House Dictionary of the English Language says about the J:
"The tenth letter of the English alphabet developed as a variant form of I in Medieval Latin, and except for the preference for the J as an initial letter, the two were used interchangeably, both serving to represent the vowel (i) and the consonant (y). Later, through specialization, it came to be distinguished as a separate sign, acquiring its present phonetic value under the influence of the French."

The Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition, under "J," offers additional information:
"J, a letter of the alphabet which, as far as form is concerned, is only a modification of the Latin I and dates back with a separate value only to the 15th century. It was first used as a special form of initial I, the ordinary form being kept for use in other positions. As, however, in many cases initial i had the consonantal value of the English y in iugum (yoke), &c., the symbol came to be used for the value of y, a value which it still retains in German: Ja! Jung, & c. Initially it is pronounced in English as an affricate dzh. The great majority of English words beginning with j are of foreign (mostly French) origin, as 'jaundice,' 'judge'"...(p.103).

Funk and Wagnall's Encyclopedia (1979 edition), volume 14, page 94 under "J," states:
"J, the tenth letter and seventh consonant in the English alphabet. It is the latest addition to the English script and has been inserted in the alphabet after I, from which it was developed, just as V and W follow U, the letter from which they arose. In form, J was originally merely a variation of I; J appeared first in Roman times, when it was used sometimes to indicate the long i vowel sound, but was often used interchangeably with I. The Romans pronounced I as a vowel in some words, such as iter, and as a semi-vowel in others, for example, iuvenis, spelled presently juvenis. The only difference in spelling, however, was the occasional use of double i for the y sound for example, in maiior, spelled presently major. In the Middle Ages the elongated form (j) was used as an ornamental device, most often initially and in numeral series; many old French manuscripts indicate the numeral 4 by the letter sequence iiij. The use of j as an initial led ultimately to its specialized use to indicate both the old semi-vowel sound y, found in German, and the new palatal consonant sounds (z) and (dz), found in French, Spanish and English. Not until the middle of the 17th century did this usage become universal in English books; in the King James Bible of 1611, for example, the words Jesus and judge are invariably Iesus and iudge. Long after the invention of printing, j thus became more than a mere calligraphic variation of i (which in Latin could be either vowel or semi-vowel), and, j became restricted to a consonantal function.
"In English, j has the composite sound of d + zh, as in journal. In French, on the other hand, the zh sound alone is given the letter, as in jour; German has retained the original y sound of the Latin i consonant, as in jahr; and Spanish has introduced a new sound resembling a guttural ch, as in Jerez. In Middle English, before the differentiation of i and j, the combination gi was sometimes used to represent the dzh sounds, such as in Giew for Jew, and in modern times the soft g is used for the same sound, as in general..."

Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary confirms how the J developed from the I and became a consonant only a few centuries ago:
"J, j (ja), n. 1. The tenth letter of the English alphabet: formerly a variant of I, i, in the seventeenth century it became established as a consonant only, as in Julius, originally spelled Iulius."

The letter J was often used instead of the letter I, especially at the beginning of a word. This became common in the 1600s (World Book Encyclopedia, Vol. 2, 1995 ed). Medieval scribes added a tail to the second I when two I's appeared together. Because a beginning I almost always has a consonant sound, the long form, J, came to be used generally for the consonant sound of the letter (New Book of Knowledge).

It became necessary to distinguish between the J and the I when the dictionary came into being. In the seventeenth century, the dictionary's appearance forced a consistent spelling. Using either I or J became mandatory to ensure proper alphabetical positioning. Owing to this close kinship with I, J was inserted immediately following I in our English alphabet.

Note the substantiating comments on the J from the Encyclopedia Americana:
"It is one of the few permanent additions to those alphabets, made in medieval or modern times. More exactly, it was not an addition, but a differentiation from an existing letter, I, which in Latin, besides being a vowel (as in index), had also the consonantal value of 'Y' (as in maior, pronounced 'mayor').
"At a later state, the symbol 'J' was used for the distinctive purposes, particularly when the 'I' had to be written initially (or in conjunction with another 'I'). Either symbol used initially generally had the consonantal sound of 'Y' (as in Year) so that the Latin pronunciation of either Ianuarius or Januarius was as though the spelling was 'Yanuarius.' While in some words of Hebrew and other origin (such as Hallelujah or Junker), 'J' has the phonetic value of 'Y.'"
We discover, then, that the letter J derived from the vowel letter I and originally had the same sound as the vowel I. That is why the lower case j still has a dot over it. The letter I represents the Greek iota (I), which usually corresponds to the Hebrew yothe (Y as in yes). The letter J has a Y sound (as in "hallelujah") in Latin, German, and Scandinavian languages. In Spanish, J is an aspirate, having the sound of H.
The J was first pronounced as the I at the time of the introduction of the printing press. Dutch printers fostered utilizing the J, especially at the beginning of a word. The letter J eventually acquired its own sound. It was the French who gave the letter J the present sound of the soft letter g as in "large" or "purge." In Latin, German, and other languages the J is pronounced more like Y with an "ee" sound. The Spanish J is more like an aspirant as in San Jose. Some old European maps still show the spelling of countries like Jugoslavia (Yugoslavia) or Sowjet (Soviet) Russia. It is only in the last century that the letter J has firmly taken on the French pronunciation as in joy or journal.

Webster's Universal Dictionary (1936) reinforces the fact of the early relationship of the letter J to I:
"As a character it was formerly used interchangeably with 'I,' both letters having originally the same sound and after the 'J' sound came to be common in English, it was often written where this sound must have been pronounced. The separation of these two letters is of comparatively recent date, being brought about through the influence of the Dutch printers."
First Letter of the Sacred Name is Y
As we have shown, the J came from the letter I. The New Book of Knowledge shows the letter I (hence the J as well) derived from the Hebrew yothe (y), which is the first letter of Yahweh's Name (hwhy, YHWH, known as the Tetragrammaton or "four letters"; Hebrew is read from right to left). It is also the first letter of Yahshua's Name. The letter I (yothe or yod) in Hebrew carries the sound of "ee" as in "police."

The King James Version and other Bibles employ the Latinized-Greek "Jesus." But the facts of etymology prove that this cannot be His true name. If the King James and other Bibles are in error in calling the Savior "Jesus," how did the error come about? And how can we determine exactly what that precious Name is?
The fact is, the first copies of the 1611 King James Bible did not use the letter J (see production at top). And no evidence is found to show that the letter I had the consonantal sound of J. This has been shown in the New Funk and Wagnall's Encyclopedia: "Not until the middle of the 17th century did this usage become universal in English books; in the King James Bible of 1611 for example, the words Jesus and judge are invariably Iesus and iudge."
Oscar Ogg's books, The 26 Letters, which gives a history of each letter of the English alphabet, explains how the J, along with the U and W, were the last to be added to the alphabet:
"The three missing letters, J, U and W, were not used by the Romans at all. U and W developed from V about a thousand years ago, and J developed from the letter I about five hundred years ago," p. 106.
As already confirmed, most of our American vocabulary employing the letter J stems from the French. Nearly all words containing the letter J in English are pronounced as in French, such as journal or major, although French has a considerably softer pronunciation of J than English. In Spanish the J is more of an h aspirate as in "San Jose."
After development of the letter J, the Savior's Name was changed by the translators to Jesus, but continued to be pronounced much like the letter Y. However, the pronunciation of the J soon changed completely from its former "yee" sound to our present "juh" through French influence.

In Latin the J was pronounced as a Y. Even today, the German tongue, among others, pronounces the J like a Y (July - Yulee; Ja = Ya; Major in German is pronounced as "mayor;" June is "Yunee"). Note the comments of author F.F. Bruce in his The Books and the Parchments: "In the English Bible, Hebrew proper names with yod are represented with j, which in modern English has quite a different sound from y. Thus 'Jehovah-jireh' would have been pronounced in Hebrew something like Yahweh yeereh" (footnote, p. 40).

In his book, Story of the Letters and Figures, Hubert M. Skinner provides an excellent summation of the discordant transformation inflicted on the Savior's Name:
"In some way, various modern peoples who received the J from the Romans have lost the original sound, and have substituted something very different. We retain the former sound in our word 'hallelujah,' but we generally give the letter the disagreeable soft sound of G. Yod is the initial of the name Jesus. It is unfortunate that a name so dear and so sacred is pronounced in a manner so different from that of the original word. The latter sounded very much as if it were Yashoo-ah, and was agreeable to the ear. Our sounds of J and hard S are the most disagreeable in our language, and they are both found in our pronunciation of this short name, although they did not exist in its original," pp. 122-123.
[source - http://www.ynca.com/Mini%20Studies/mistaken_j.htm on 02/15/2008]

Your Friend in Christ Iris89
'Jesus': A Word Out of Place and Time
The Bible clearly reveals that salvation is available in only one name: "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other Name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). The name the angel gave to Hebrew-speaking Mary and Joseph was Yahshua, meaning "Salvation of Yah."
This original Name has been made a hybrid by translators and changed to the Latinized, Grecianized name Jesus - a name that came into our language about the time of Christopher Columbus. (For a detailed explanation, request the revealing ministudy, How the Savior's Name Was Changed.)
The following Biblical study references clearly explain that "Jesus," used in place of the Savior's true Name Yahshua, is erroneous. (Some of these references correctly show the Y or I superior to the Mistaken J.)
Þ Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature: "Import of the Name. -There can be no doubt that Jesus is the Greek form of a Hebrew name...Its original and full form is Jehoshua (Num. 13:16). By contraction it became Joshua, or Jeshua; and when transferred into Greek, by taking the termination characteristics of that language, it assumed the form Jesus" (vol. 4, pp. 873-874).
Þ The Anchor Bible Dictionary: "Jesus [Gk. Iesous]. Several persons mentioned in the Bible bear this name, which is a Greek form of Joshua (Heb. Yehosua; cf. the Gk of Luke 3:29; Acts 7:45; Heb. 4:8)...'Jesus Christ' is a composite name made up of the personal name 'Jesus' (from the Gk Iesous, which transliterates Heb/Aram yesu(a), a late form of Hebrew yehosua, the meaning of which is 'YHWH is salvation' or 'YHWH saves/has saved')..." (III, p. 773).
Þ The Anchor Bible (note on Matthew 1:1): "Jesus. The word is the Greek rendering of a well-known Hebrew name. It was Yahoshu first, then by inner Hebrew phonetic change it became Yoshua, and by a still northern dialectal shift, Yeshua. The first element, Yahu (=Yahweh) means 'the Lord,' while the second comes from shua 'To help, save.' The most probable meaning is 'O Lord, save.'" (Vol. 26, p.2)
Þ The New International Dictionary of The Christian Church: "Jesus Christ, The Founder of Christianity bore 'Jesus' (the Greek form of Joshua or Jeshua) as His personal name; 'Christ' (Gk. Christos, 'anointed') is the title given Him by His followers..." (p.531).
Þ Mercer Dictionary of the Bible: "Jeshua: An Aramaic form of the name Joshua, meaning 'Yahweh is salvation.' It occurs only in postexilic biblical literature, which supports the later origin of the name. Joshua, the son of Nun, is referred to in one passage as Jeshua (Neh. 8:17)" (p.444).
Þ Newberry Reference Bible (on Matt. 1:24): "Jesus, Heb. Joshua, or Jehoshua. Compare Num. 13:8, 16, where 'Oshea,' verse 8, signifying 'Salivation,' is altered in v.16 to 'Jehoshua,' 'the Salvation of Jehovah,' or 'Jehovah the Savior.'"
Þ The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia: "Jesus (Iesous) is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew 'Joshua' (ucwhy, Yehoshua) meaning 'Jehovah is salvation.' It stands therefore in the LXX and Apoc for 'Joshua,' and in Acts 7:45 and Heb. 4:8 likewise represents the OT 'Joshua.' In Mt. 1:21 the name is commanded by the angel to be given to the son of Mary, 'for it is he that shall save his people from their sins...It is the personal name of the L-rd in the Gospels and in the Acts...'" (Vol. 3, p.1626).
Þ The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary: "The given name Jesus means 'savior,' it is the Greek equivalent of Jeshua (Heb. Yesua, from yehosua 'Yahweh saves' [=Joshua]. Christ is the title, indicating that he is the 'anointed one,' the Messiah from Hebrew masiah)." ..."Jeshua (Heb. Yesua 'Yahweh is salvation')" (p.573).
Þ The Bible Almanac: "The name Jesus (which is identical with Joshua and means 'God is Savior') emphasizes His role as the Savior of His people (Mat. 1:21). Christ is the New Testament equivalent of Messiah, a Hebrew word meaning 'anointed one'..." (p.522).
Þ Holman Bible Dictionary: "Jesus Christ: Greek form of Joshua and of title meaning 'Yahweh is salvation' and 'the anointed one' or 'Messiah.'" (p.775).

Þ New International Dictionary of the New Testament Theology, "OT Iesous is the Gk. Form of the OT Jewish name Yesua, arrived at by transcribing the Heb. And adding an -s to the nominative to facilitate declension. Yesua (Joshua) seems to have come into general use about the time of the Babylonian exile in place of the older Yehosua. The LXX rendered both the ancient and more recent forms of the name uniformly as Iesous. Joshua the son of Nun, who according to the tradition was Moses' successor and completed his work in the occupation of the promised land by the tribes of Israel, appears under this name...It is the oldest name containing the divine name Yahweh, and means 'Yahweh is help' or 'Yahweh is salvation' (cf. the verb yasa, help save). Joshua also appears in one post-exilic passage in the Heb. OT (Neh. 8:17) as Yesua the son of Nun, and not as in the older texts, Yehosua" (Vol. 2, pp.330-331).
Þ The Classic Bible Dictionary (Jay P. Green), page 633, under Jesus: "Jesus is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew 'Joshua,' meaning 'Jehovah is salvation.' It stands therefore in the LXX and Apocrypha for 'Joshua,' and in Acts 7:45 and Heb. 4:8 likewise represents the OT Joshua."
Author Green also comments on the Greek word "Christ:" "Christ (Christos) is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew Messiah, meaning anointed."
Thus we see that the Savior's name as well as the descriptive title "Messiah" have been undermined and appear in Greek in changed form. Our Savior has been stripped of His Israelite roots.
Þ The SDA Bible Dictionary, page 565: "Jesus Christ [Gr. Iesous] (a transliteration of the Aramaic Yeshua, from the Heb. Yehoshua, 'Joshua,' meaning 'Yahweh is Salvation'), Christos (a translation of the Heb. Mashiach, 'Messiah,' meaning anointed or anointed One).] The English form 'Jesus' comes from the Latin."
Þ In Strange Facts About the Bible, author Garrison notes on page 81: "In its English form, 'Jesus' goes back to church Latin Iesus which is a transliteration of the Greek Iesous. But in its original Hebrew form it was Y'hoshua ('Yahweh saves'), frequently abbreviated to Joshua..."
Þ Ian Wilson's Jesus: The Evidence, says on page 66; "'Yeshua', as Jesus would actually have been addressed, means 'God saves', and is merely a shortened form of the more old fashioned 'Yehoshua ('Joshua' of the Old Testament)."
Þ New Bible Dictionary (edited by J.D. Douglas) reads under Jesus: "The name Jesus is not strictly a title for the person who bore it. It is, however, a name with a meaning, being a Greek form of 'Joshua', i.e. 'Yahweh is salvation'. The NT writers were well aware of this meaning (Mt. 1:21). The name thus indicated the function which was ascribed to Jesus, and this later found expression in the title Saviour..." (p.584).
Þ Alford's Greek Testament, An Exegetical and Critical Commentary: "Jesus -The same name as Joshua, the former deliverer of Israel."
Þ Encyclopedic Dictionary of Religion: "Jesus (The Name) -Matthew's Gospel explains it as symbolic of His mission, 'For He will save His people from their sins.' This agrees with its popular meaning as 'Yahweh saves...'" p. 1886.
Þ A Dictionary of the Bible, by James Hastings: "Jesus -the Greek form (Ihsous) of the name Joshua (ucwhy) or Jeshua. Jeshua - Yahweh is salvation or Yahweh is opulence" (pp.603-602).
Þ New International Dictionary of the Christian Church: "Jesus Christ, The Founder of Christianity bore 'Jesus' (the Greek form of Joshua or Jeshua) as His personal name; 'Christ' (Gk. christos, 'anointed') is the title given Him by His followers..." (p. 531).
All of these authorities and scholars agree. His name is not the Latinized Grecianized name "Jesus," but reflects His Hebrew heritage and the mission He was given to save His people through the Name of the Heavenly Father Yahweh.
So how did He end up with the name so many erroneously call on today?
Greek Not the Original New Testament Language

Very early in history, even before the Messiah, Greek had become a world language. Alexander the Great conquered the lands east and south of Greece, establishing Hellenistic culture and society as far as the Indus River and south into Egypt.
The koine or common Greek dialect prevailed, becoming dominant in the wake of Alexander's exploits. Greek survived the ravages of Roman persecution, as well as the crusades, and continued to be spoken up to the time of the Muslim conquest of the Mediterranean area.
Following the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 C.E., Rome crushed the Bar Kochba rebellion in 135 C.E. The Roman army destroyed anything Jewish, especially religious scrolls and books, including their Torah. This was followed by the Catholic inquisitions in Europe, eradicating anything Jewish. The crusaders made fair game of the Jews, ruthlessly destroying any vestiges of Hebrew writings.
Thus, between the suppression carried out by the Romans and the later Crusades, any Hebrew copies of both Old and New Testament writings were lost. Only Greek copies survived. Neither are there any original Hebrew Old Testaments manuscripts, only copies of copies of copies.
An increasing number of competent Bible scholars now agree with scholar Charles Cutler Torrey (Documents of the Primitive Church) that the New Testament in whole or part was first written in Hebrew and only later translated into Greek. (Write us for a list of renowned Bible scholars who uphold an original Hebrew New Testament, as well as the ministudy, Was the New Testament Originally Greek?)
In the September 12, 1986 issue of The Washington Times, David Bivin notes that
Savior's Name Explained in Bible Versions
Inspired Scripture calls attention to a singular Name wherein rests our eternal salvation.
The following Bible versions have these footnote explanations on Matthew 1:21, the verse where the angel tells Joseph (Yowceph) what to name the Redeemer of mankind:
· "'Jesus' (Hebr. Jehoshua) means 'Yahweh saves'"-The Jerusalem Bible.
· "'Jesus' is the Greek form of Joshua, which means 'the Lord saves'" -New International Version.
· "'Jesus,' from the Greek form of a common Hebrew name (Joshua) derived from yasha, 'he saves'" -Harper Collins Study Bible
· "She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Yeshua, [which means 'Adonai saves'], because he will save his people from their sins" -Jewish New Testament, David Stern, translator.
· "Heb. Yoshia, reflected in the name Yeshua (Gr. Jesus)" -The Original New Testament, Hugh J. Schonfield.
· "Jesus: The Greek form of 'Jeshua'....The full significance of the name 'Jesus' is seen in the original 'Yehoshua,' which means 'Jehovah the Savior,' and not merely 'Savior,' as the word in often explained" -Weymouth's New Testament in Modern Speech.
· "Jesus Christ. The name 'Jesus' is from the Greek (and Latin) for the Hebrew 'Jeshua' (Joshua), which means 'the Lord is salvation.' 'Christ' is from the Greek for the Hebrew 'Meshiah' (Messiah), meaning 'anointed one'"-Ryrie Study Bible
· "Jesus, Yeshua, meaning 'Jehovah Is Salvation'" -The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures.
The following commentaries add their observations on the Savior's Name:
¨ Matthew Henry's Commentary (on Matthew 1:21): "Jesus is the same name with Joshua, the termination only being changed, for the sake of conforming it to the Greek."
¨ Interpreter's Bible (Note on Matthew 1:21): "Jesus for He shall save: The play on words (Yeshua, Jesus; yoshia, shall save) is possible in Hebrew but not in Aramaic. The name Joshua means "Yahweh is salvation."
¨ Barnes' Notes (Note on Matthew 1:21): "His name Jesus: The name Jesus is the same as Saviour. It is derived from the verb signifying to save. In Hebrew it is the same as Joshua. In two places [Acts 7:45 and Hebrews 4:8] in the New Testament it is used where it means Joshua, the leader of the Jews [Israel] into Canaan, and in our translation the name Joshua should not have been retained."
The prefix Yah is the short or poetic form of YAH-weh the Heavenly Father's Name as found in HalleluYAH and in names of many Biblical personalities, as we will see. Thus, the Savior's Name begins with the prefix "Yah" that begins Yahweh's Name, as revealed in Psalm 68:4: "Sing unto Elohim, sing praises to his name: extol him that rides upon the heavens by his name JAH [YAH], and rejoice before him." "Shua," the last part of the Savior's Name, carries the primary meaning of "salvation." Thus, Yahshua means "the salvation of Yah."
When Israel crossed over the Red Sea, Moses sang a song of thanks to Yahweh in Exodus 15. The saving name appears in verse 2, "Yah is become my salvation," which was to be Yahshua!
The following reasons clearly show why the name Jesus could never have been the Savior's Name:
Þ There is no letter J or equivalent in Hebrew.
Þ There is no letter J or equivalent in Greek.
Þ There was no letter J in English until about 500 years ago.
Þ "Jesus," an etymological hybrid from Greek and Latin, has no inherent, etymological meaning in Greek or Latin, not to mention Hebrew or English.
Þ Joseph ("Yowceph" in Hebrew), a Hebrew and a Jew, was told by the angel Gabriel that Mary (Miriam), a Jewess, would give birth to One Who would "save His people Israel from their sins," Matthew 1:21. Only the Hebrew name "Yahshua" means "Salvation of Yah" ("Yah"shua). He Himself said that He is come in His Father's Name ("Yah"weh/"Yah"shua) and "you receive me not," John 5:43.
Þ Mary, a Hebrew, was told the same thing that Joseph was, Luke 1:31.
Þ Would a celestial being announce the coming Savior to Jews who spoke Hebrew (or Aramaic), proclaiming a Romanized, Grecian name beginning with a letter J that did not exist, but would originate in a European tongue 1500 years later? Remember it was to Israel, a Semitic people who spoke and understood Hebrew, that His saving Name was first revealed.
Þ Would HEBREW parents give their baby a hybridized GREEK name devoid of any meaning - especially such an important name that would identify the very Savior of the world?
How Did 'Yahshua' Become 'Jesus'?
It is necessary that we understand the prefix "YAH" has come to us in the form "YEH" (a type of which is found in "Yeshua" commonly used for Yahshua). It is also manifest in the names JEHovah and Jesus.
Almost any scholarly reference work will acknowledge that Rabbinic tradition has suppressed the true Name Yahweh centuries before the Messiah came at Bethlehem. Writing Yahweh's Name in the Hebrew, Jewish scribes inserted a shewa ( instead of the proper qamets (T), thus changing the vowel sound "ah" in "Yah" to "eh." This was done to conceal the sacred Name, thus yielding the improper Yehovah and Yeshua.
This is practiced even today by such groups as the Jews for Jesus, who contend that "Y'shua' is the Jewish way to say "Jesus." This may have been done to avoid offending the Jews and their proscription against even the short form YAH.
Strong's Hebrew Dictionary clearly shows the erroneous vowel pointing of YAH to YEH in the first column of page 48 where the resulting "YEH" is obvious. In every name in this column, a shewa ( appears under the Hebrew letter yod (y, and the pronunciation given following the Hebrew spelling begins with the prefix "YEH."
Using the "e" instead of the proper "a" is another ploy of the Adversary to do away with the family Name YAH, the first syllable of both Yahweh's and Yahshua's Name.
This explains how the "e" came about in the name Jesus. The next letter in Jesus, s, results from the fact that Greek has no "sh" sound, only "s" (sigma) sound. This was incorporated into the Latin text. The "u" in Jesus comes from the u in Yahshua. The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology explains, "Iesous is the Greek form of the Old Testament Jewish name Yesua [Yahshua], arrived at by transcribing the Hebrew and adding an s to the nom. to facilitate declension."
The final "s" in "Jesus" is the Greek nominative masculine singular ending. Matthew 1:8-11 contains the genealogy of Joseph's line, where we can find similar examples of "s" added to produce Greek-inflected Hebrew names: Uzziah becomes Ozias; Hezekiah becomes Ezekias; Jonah becomes Jonas, etc. The errors that we find among names in most versions can be traced to translators. The early Christian translators relied upon the Greek translation called the Septuagint as their source of the Hebrew Scriptures.
Is it not significant that even though these Hebrew names were Grecianized, that they still are recognizable? Why then in English versions does Yahweh's Name become changed to a completely foreign "God," while "Yahshua" mutates into "Jesus," a substitute that is not even close to the original?
Why the change, when even the name of the Adversary - Satan - retains its original Hebrew form and close pronunciation? (Saw-tawn, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary No. 7854).
Adam Clarke's respected comments on the inferior early translations are informative: "Through the ignorance and carelessness of transcribers innumerable mistakes have been made in ancient names. These also have suffered very greatly in their transfusion from one language to another, till at last the original name is almost totally lost...Besides, neither the Greeks nor Romans could pronounce either the Hebrew or Persian names; and when engaged in the task of transcribing, they did it according to their own manner of pronunciation," Clarke's Commentary, vol. 3, pp. 393-394. Clearly, some over-zealous scribe tampered with the text of the King James Bible and what we have is a New Testament in which the Name of Yahshua has been adulterated and almost obscured.
For an example of this, look at Acts 7:45 in the King James Version. The sentence reads, "Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles whom [Elohim] drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David." But the account is actually speaking of the Old Testament Joshua, the son of Nun!
Another example is found in Hebrews 4:8, "For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day." Many study Bibles will have notes on these two verses pointing out that the more correct name is JOSHUA the son of Nun.
Certain translations other than the King James have corrected this error and inserted "Joshua" in the text. Thus, we can see that this name is the same as that given by Moses to his successor in Numbers 13:16. It is also the name of the Savior (corrected with the "Yah"). This shows how the translators overzealously changed all the "Yahshua's" to "Jesus"-even when it referred to someone in the Old Testament not the Savior.
Go to Strong's Hebrew Dictionary and peruse page 47, taking special note of the second name from the top of the right column, No. 3050, YAHH. Notice this is the correct spelling and pronunciation of the short form YAH and includes the qametes under the yod: (3050. Yahh, yaw).
Although author James Strong is noted for his classic concordance, his understanding of the Name was lacking and he used the erroneous Jehovah. However, his is correct in listing No. 3050 YAHH, spelling it with the vowel a instead of e and the double hh to bring out the "ahh" sound.
The importance of the short form YAHH takes on additional significance when we read John 5:43, "I am come in my Father's name...." We understand this to mean that He came in the authority and power of the Heavenly Father. Yet, we must understand that His Name Yahshua also included His Father's Name, YAH. It is the short form, the prefix of the Name Yahshua! (Followers of Yahshua will be carrying that Name in the Kingdom, Eph. 3:14-15; Dan. 9:19).
The custom of reading a substitute name when the Tetragrammaton was encountered in the Hebrew Scriptures was carried over into the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the LXX (Septuagint). The translation was said to have been made by seventy Hebrew translators for the King of Egypt who wanted a copy of this great book of the Hebrews for the grand library of Alexandria in Egypt. The letters LXX (meaning "70") are often used as an abbreviation for the Greek Septuagint translation of the Old Testament.
In making the Greek translation, the copyists inserted the four characters of the Tetragrammaton in gold letters of the Hebrew, namely hwhy, wherever the name Yahweh was to appear. However, the pronunciation was pointed with the vowels of Adonai. After the death and resurrection of the Messiah, there arose a demand for a Latin version of the Hebrew Old Testament by the expanding church. These early translators were not skilled in the Hebrew language, and actually detested the Jews and refused to learn the Aramaic or Hebrew tongue. They were ignorant of Hebrew and were often ridiculed by the Jews for their ludicrous pronunciation of Hebrew. (See this booklet's section, "Why the Terms 'God' and 'Lord'?" on page 26).
And What About 'Jehovah'?

;EARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION, BOTH TRUE AND FALSE, AT WWW.JW.ORG

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COMBINATION OF [1]  THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2]  DISCOURSE ON TELLING THE FACTS IS NOT JUDGMENT OF INDIVIDUALS.   With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1]   SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [VOL. 296B]

Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:  Matthew 5:38,  [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yet, Jesus (Yeshua) clearly showed this not to be the way of love at Matthew 5:39 – 45, [AV] “But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.  40  And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also.  41  And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.  42  Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.  43 Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.  44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;  45  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.”  Yes, Jesus (Yeshua) when asked which is the greatest commandment said at Matthew 22:36 – 40, [AV] “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  38  This is the first and great commandment.  39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”  Yes, he considered love to be the greatest attribute of his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), as shown by his recorded statement at John 12:34 – 35, [AV] “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  35  By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”   


[2]   DISCOURSE ON TELLING THE FACTS IS NOT JUDGMENT OF INDIVIDUALS

FIRST FACT, No individual is being judged, but only the facts about organizations is being stated and shown. The facts with respect religious groups NOT INDIVIDUALS are being dealt with. The fact is the actions of these groups verify whether they are footstep followers of Christ, the Prince of Peace. As we all know, the groups that claim to be Christian make up a large portion of the world's population, over two (2) billion. However, Jesus (Yeshua) Christ himself said his followers and/or flock would be quite small in number, and we all know that he always told the truth so let's look at exactly what he said. First let's consider both Luke 13:24 and Matthew 7:13-14, it is in both of these that the road followed by true believers would be narrow and cramped, Luke 13:24, "Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able." (Authorized King James Bible: AV); And Matthew 7:13-14, "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, abroad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it." (AV); thereby, clearly showing few would be entering the narrow gate "which leadeth unto life." In reality, it will be difficult for even true Christians to enter as testified to at 1 Peter 4:18, "And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear." (AV). In order to enter, we must have the right sort of guide, Luke 1:79, "To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace." (AV). Now, if one picks the wrong group, just because it is popular or the so called 'one to belong to in a community' and not because of Bible Truths, there is an important warning given at Matthew 15:14, "Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch." (AV). In fact, being with the wrong group can mean you are NOT having fellowship with the Son of God, Jesus (Yeshua) as testified to at 1 John 1:6, "If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not [have] the truth." (AV). This danger is made abundantly clear at Luke 12:32 when Jesus (Yeshua) spoke of his true followers as a little flock and not a large one, "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." (AV). Simply stated, his true followers will be relatively few in number which should cause all sincere individuals to question whether mainstream religion with its vast membership is heading for the narrow gate!

So based on what Jesus (Yeshua) himself said, we can see that most who claim to be Christian are NOT really footstep followers of Jesus (Yeshua) as they claim as shown by their acts which I am sure you are aware of. In fact, Caliph Saladan an ancestor of mine said at the time of the Crusaders that he fought against, "these Crusaders committed more wrongs than I can imagine." The acts of these so called Christians; to wit, rape (including that of one of the sisters of Caliph Saladan), murder, torture, etc. were definitely does not speak of acts that would be sanctioned by the Prince of Peace, Christ, who gave this command at Matthew 22:37-40, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (AV). So their actions, contrary to the words of Jesus (Yeshua) clearly show they are NOT true/genuine followers of Christ. To state that groups committing atrocities are apostate (counterfeit) Christian is only testifying to the obvious facts, NOT condemning anyone.

All individuals belonging to these groups that falsely claim to be his followers as shown by their action are not necessarily condemned as they as individuals have an opportunity to get out of these groups. The Apostle Paul is an excellent example, before he became a follower of Christ, he had been a persecutor of Jesus' (Yeshua's) true followers. Let's look at that account in Acts 9:2-8 & 8-10 & 19 & 22 & 27, "And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. 3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven:" (AV) and "8 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. 10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord." (AV) and "19 And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus." (AV) & "22 But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ." (AV) and "27 But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus." (AV).

SECOND FACT, Most religions of the world take a two part single path as they have some good and some bad. However, so called Christianity did NOT follow in the mold of other religions such as the Hindus, Islam, Buddhists, Zoroastrians, etc. Instead, so called Christianity took two different paths. These two paths are as follows:

[1] In 325 AD the greater part of the so called Christian faith went apostate to when the good favor of a pagan emperor, a worshipper of the Unconquered Sun. And this branch of apostate Christians went on to commit many atrocities such as the rape of Goa, the Crusades, the Inquisitions, the burning of individuals at the stake for disagreeing with them including one Bruno for simply saying that the earth revolved around the sun; whereas, they said the sun revolved around the earth.

[2] A second and much smaller group of Christians that remained genuine Christians and did NOT go apostate, but followed in the footsteps of Christ their leader and savior. These did NOT commit any atrocities.

The first path which all thinking and open minded individuals would agree was incorrect or bad was going apostate by the greater majority of Christians, i.e., the apostate counterfeit group, which now encompasses most of Christendom. This path or group committed many atrocities, were/are intolerant, and nations belonging to and controlled by this group started two World Wars, i.e., Germany and the Austra-Hungarian Empire. Whereas, the second group, the genuine (true) Christians, the footstep followers of Jesus (Yeshua) Christ preaches only Truth per the commandment of Jesus (Yeshua) at Matthew 24:14, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Authorized King James Bible; AV), And have never committed atrocities nor started wars, Crusades, Inquisitions or similar things against their neighbors. But seek to follow Jesus' (Yeshua's) guidance given at Matthew 22:37-40, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (AV).

THIRD FACT, Contrary to what many say, such as the following actual quote of one such individual.
Quote:

you have categorically declared the christian who do not accept your beliefs to be deviants


I do NOT categorically declared any belief deviant based on my own opinion and no one should. But have only stated they are deviant because they claim to be Christ followers, but they are NOT following in his footsteps; therefore, their acts are declaring them to be deviant and NOT I.

I do NOT MAKE declarations, but only provided the facts. Their actions, which declare their beliefs and have departed from that of following in the footsteps of Christ. Now, let's look at some of these acts that clearly show this fact, i.e., that they have become deviant:

[1] Two World Wars were started by nations that are controlled by those who claim to be Christian. Now obviously this claim can NOT be true since Jesus (Yeshua) is the Prince of Peace and said that we should love our neighbor, not seek to commit atrocities against him.

[2] Some groups who claim to be Christian have burnt people at the stake for disagreeing with them or being of another belief, i.e., Muslim, genuine (true) Christian, Jew, etc. Let's look at some examples: One, Bruno Giordano championed the Copernican system of astronomy which placed the Sun, not the Earth, at the centre of the Solar System. He opposed the stultifying authority of the church and refused to recant his philosophical beliefs throughout his eight years of imprisonment by the Venetian and Roman Catholic Inquisitions and finally was burnt at the stake for saying the earth went around the sun. [source - Giordano Bruno: The Forgotten Philosopher
by John J. Kessler, Ph.D., Ch.E]

Two, Michael Servitus In 1546 he wrote a book on spiritual regeneration. He attacked the doctrine of the Trinity. He thought the Nicene Creed dishonored the idea of redemption. For this John Calvin's group roasted him alive in an oven.[source - No. 689: MICHAEL SERVITUS by John H. Lienhard ]

Three, Empress Theodora when she came to the throne convened a council of bishops at Nicaea, to restore idolatrous pictures in the churches, and then turned her whole energies to the destruction of the Paulicians (Boglmils). She in conjunction to the Greek Orthodox church hierarchy issued her decree that all her subjects should conform to the Greek Church, and tried to put all the Paulicians to death.[sources - Manichaeism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and Theodora - biography by James Allan Evans, at De Imperatoribus Romanis and Empress Theodora: A Journey to the Past - Article by Christine Kiraz and Theodora - Melissa Snell]


Fourth, In 1215, the Council of Lateran established the dread Inquisition. In the ensuing 50 the Catholic church murdered over one million in their crusade against all they considered heresies under the Canon spewed out at the Council of Lateran. The Catholic church launched an inquisition against these peaceful people under Pope Innocent the Third in which he called Simon de Montford to slaughter and extinguish their religion which included the annihilation even of women and children. [sources - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05]

[3] The Crusades were launched by so called Christians, but violated every principle put forth by Christ thus branding the groups supporting them as false or counterfeit Christians. Let's look in brief on one of the generals of the other side and what history says about him, the Caliph Saladin.
"Saladin (1137 or 1138-1193; Kurdish: Selahaddin Eyyübi; Arabic: Salah ad-Din Yusuf Ibn Ayyub; Salah ad-Din is an honorific that means The Righteousness of the Faith in Arabic) was a 12th century Kurdish Muslim military general who founded the Ayyubid dynasty of Egypt and Syria. He was also renowned in both the Christian and Muslim worlds for his leadership and military prowess tempered by his chivalry and merciful nature during the Crusades.

The Crusaders repeatedly provoked him. Raynald of Chatillon, in particular, harassed Muslim trading and pilgrimage routes [[This was definitely NOT an action for footstep followers of Christ, the Prince of Peace.]]with a fleet on the Red Sea, a water route that Saladin needed to keep open. Worse, and what made him a legendary monster in the Muslim world, Raynald threatened to attack the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. In retaliation, Saladin besieged Kerak, Raynald's fortress in Oultrejordain, in 1183 and 1184. Then Raynald looted a caravan of pilgrims on the Hajj in 1185, forcing Saladin's response [[Saladin's own sister was among them and reportedly raped by those claiming to be Christian, but they could NOT have been genuine (true) Christians as those do not pillage and rape others.]].

On July 4, 1187 they were faced at the Battle of Hattin by the combined forces Guy of Lusignan, King consort of Jerusalem, and Raymond III of Tripoli. The Crusader army was largely annihilated in what was a major disaster for the Crusaders and a turning point in the history of the Crusades. Saladin captured Raynald and was personally responsible for his decapitation. Guy of Lusignan was also captured but his life was spared." [[Showing Saladin a worshipper of the 'Moon god' more noble than those FALSELY claiming to be followers of the Prince of Peace, Christ.]][source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia].


FOURTH FACT, As can be readily seen from the foregoing, the opening statement, "No individual is being judged, but only the facts about organizations is being stated and shown. The facts with respect religious groups NOT INDIVIDUALS are being dealt with." Is indeed the fact. Actions of groups either put them in the apostate (counterfeit) Christian class or put them in the genuine (true) Christian group.

This clearly shows the accuracy of the statement made in the SECOND part,

So called Christianity took two different paths. These two paths are as follows:

[1] In 325 AD the greater part of the so called Christian faith went apostate to when the good favor of a pagan emperor, a worshipper of the Unconquered Sun. And this branch of apostate Christians went on to commit many atrocities such as the rape of Goa, the Crusades, the Inquisitions, the burning of individuals at the stake for disagreeing with them including one Bruno for simply saying that the earth revolved around the sun; whereas, they said the sun revolved around the earth.

[2] A second and much smaller group of Christians that remained genuine Christians and did NOT go apostate, but followed in the footsteps of Christ their leader and savior. These did NOT commit any atrocities.

Always bear in mind the truth, the real facts, must be told as per John 8:32, "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (AV). No favor is done to anyone by covering up reality, but telling the truth gives your neighbor the loving opportunity of changing his or her course as did the Apostle Paul, formerly the persecutor Saul of the genuine (true) followers of Christ.

;EARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION, BOTH TRUE AND FALSE, AT WWW.JW.ORG

COMBINATION OF [1]  THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON MATTHEW 16:18

[1]   SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [VOL. 298B]

Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;  2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.   1 Peter 4:1 – 2, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

We must be careful NOT to depart from the faith as made clear by the Apostle Peter iN 2 Peter 3:4 – 10, [AV] “And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.  5  For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:  6  Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:  7  But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.  8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.  9   The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us–ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.  10  But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”   


[2]   DISCOURSE ON MATTHEW 16:18:

THE SCRIPTURE - MATTHEW 16:18:

Let's first look at the scripture in several different translations:

" And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18 AV - Authorized King James Version)

"And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18 ASV - American Standard Version)

"And, I also, unto thee, say-Thou, art Peter,-and, upon this rock, will I build my assembly, and, the gates of hades, shall not prevail against it." (Matthew 16:18 Rotherham Bible)

"'And I also say to thee, that thou art a rock, and upon this rock I will build my assembly, and gates of Hades shall not prevail against it;" (Matthew 16:18 Youngs Literal Bible)

As clearly can be seen here some translations say "I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" and others say "upon this rock, I will [will I] build my assembly, and [the] gates of hades, shall not prevail against it."   Two different renderings, but of the same basic significance.  Now what is that significance?

TWO DIFFERENT ROCKS - 'PETROS' AND 'PETRA', DEFINED:

Let's see how one renown Bible Scholar, Theodore Baez, differentiated the two different rock entities and who they apply to as this is very important in understanding what Jesus is saying as English word 'rock' leaves a lot of the meaning out:

16:18 5 And I say also unto thee, That thou art l Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the m gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
(5) That is true faith, which confesses Christ, the virtue of which is invincible.
(l) Christ spoke in the Syrian tongue, and therefore did not use this discourse to distinguish between Petros, which signifies Peter, and Petra, which signifies a rock, but in both places used the word Cephas: but his meaning is what is written in Greek, in which the different word endings distinguish between Peter, who is a piece of the building, and Christ the Petra, that is, the rock and foundation: or else he named him Peter because of the confession of his faith, which is the Church's as well as his, as the old fathers witness, for so says Theophylact. That confession which you have made, shall be the foundation of the believers.
(m) The enemies of the Church are compared to a strong kingdom, and therefore by "gates" are meant cities which are made strong with wise preparation and fortifications, and this is the meaning: whatever Satan can do by cunning or strength. So does Paul, calling them strongholds; (2 Corinthians 10:4).  [Beza, Theodore. "Commentary on Matthew 16". "The 1599 Geneva Study Bible". 1600-1645].
Another, renown Bible scholar, Barton W Johnson, stated it evem more clearly:
18. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church. This is the first time Jesus speaks of his church, and here, as not yet founded. Three terms are to be noted: (1) Peter, in the Greek, Petros, meaning a single stone; (2) Rock, in the Greek, Petra, which means the solid, immovable bed-rock, a great mass like a cliff, and (3) church, Greek, ecclesia, those "called out," the fellowship of believers, the organized society of Christ, the kingdom of heaven on earth. There is probably no passage in the word of God that has called forth more discussion. The Papal church insists that Peter is the rock upon which Christ founded his church. The Catholic position is based upon the fact that Peter means a stone (see John 1:42), and the Savior's language might be rendered, "Thou art a stone, and upon this rock I will build my church." The Catholic view is untenable, for 1. The Savior does not say, "Thou art a stone, and upon thee I will build," etc., or "Thou art a rock, and upon this rock I will build." He changes the word in the Greek from Petros (Peter, a stone) to Petra, a rock, or ledge of rock--a solid bed-rock. 2. Every saint is a stone (see 1 Peter 2:5). The Lord declares that Peter is one these living stones, made such by his confession of faith, and ready to be built into the church, the spiritual temple, formed of living stones, and built upon the rock. So is every confessor of Christ. In order to settle what the Savior does mean by the rock, we must consider the 18 and 19th. verses together, and keep in mind the entire figure. This figure portrays (1) a Builder, Christ; (2) a temple to be built, composed of lively stones, the church; (3) a foundation for that temple, the rock; (4) the gates of an unfriendly city or power which shall seek its destruction, hell, or more correctly, Hades, the unseen abode of the dead, the grave; (5) a door-keeper of the church, or spiritual temple, with his keys, Peter. Peter's place in the figure is not that of the foundation, but that of the key-holder, or turnkey. The only difficulty is in settling what the Lord means by the rock. Since this rock is the foundation of the church, the central principle, the fundamental idea, we are aided to a correct decision by the teachings of the Word elsewhere. We learn from 1 Corinthians 3:11, "That other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." This excludes Peter or any human platform. Christ is often called a stone: "the stone that the builders rejected," "the chief corner stone," "the stone that is the head of the corner," "the spiritual rock which is Christ." Faith in Christ held in the heart, and confessed with the lips is the very foundation of the spiritual life and of the church. This constituted the fundamental difference in apostolic days between Christians and unbelievers, the church and the world. It does still. It is the essence of the teaching of the New Testament that the platform or foundation of the Christian society, the church, is this belief that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. It is then Peter's grand confession, faith in the Spiritual Rock, the faith that lays hold of Christ, belief that he is the Anointed of God, the Divine Savior, that the Lord pronounces the rock upon which he will found his church. That this view is correct is shown by a correct understanding of the declaration, The gates of hades shall not prevail against it. From the gates of the city always marched forth its armies. The powers of hades are represented by its gates. Hades is not hell (Gehenna), but the unseen abode of the dead that holds the departed within its gates. Just after these words the Lord talks of his death, or entering hades. Six months later the Sanhedrim sent him to death for making the same confession Peter had just made. See Matthew 26:64-67. They expected to demonstrate that the confession of his divinity which he had made was false by sending him to hades, which they supposed would hold him and prevail against the confession of the ROCK. He was sent there from the cross, but the gates of hades did not prevail, for they could not hold him, and the living Savior, rising triumphant from the tomb, was the unanswerable argument that his own and Peter's confession was a rock that could never be moved. His resurrection demonstrated that he is the Rock. Hades did not prevail.
[Johnson, Barton W. "Commentary on Matthew 16". "People's New Testament". 1891].

CONCLUSION:
It is clear that in the original language that Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) spoke in there are two different words with entirely different meanings that are commonly, but wrongly, translated as 'rock' which causes them to lose their true meaning and significance.  This is quite unfortunate for genuine followers of Christ as whole religions base their doctrine and existence on translations that do not correctly differentiate the very significant difference between the two words translated by one word in many languages that does NOT carry in any way the meanings of the original two words, 'petros' -  stones and 'petra' - rock mass.

Jesus Christ (Yeshua or YHWH saves) was clearly saying in the original language,
"And, also I say to you, you are Peter [the stone or 'petros'], and on this rock mass [Jesus Christ (Yeshua or YHWH saves) or 'petra'] I will build my assembly [congregation] and, the gates of Hades will not overpower it" clearly showing that he was the rock mass ['petra'] upon which the assembly or congregation of his would be built.  This is important to understand as our salvation depends on becoming and remaining a faithful follower of Jesus Christ (Yeshua or YHWH saves) the only mediator between God Almighty (YHWH) saves and mankind, " For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;" (1 Timothy 2:5 AV)

He, is the mediator of a new covenant that makes our salvation possible, " And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance." (Hebrews 9:15 AV).  He initiated this covenant by permitting his execution as a human [flesh and blood] ; thereby, giving up his life to provide a ransom sacrifice that made our salvation possible  " Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:28 AV) and  " For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45 AV) and  " Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time." (1 Timothy 2:6 AV).

After his execution, he  " What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?" (John 6:62 AV), and takes his rightful place at the right hand of his Father, Almighty God (YHWH) " Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;" (Hebrews 8:1 AV).  Here is is able to make intercessions on our behalf directly to his Father (YHWH) on our behalf in his role as the ONLY mediator between mankind and Almighty God (YHWH).  This fact is vitally important as our [genuine Christian] salvation depends on it.

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COMBINATION OF [1]  THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] GOD'S (YHWH'S) NEW COVENANT

[1]  SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [VOL. 300B]

Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself; and the wife see that she reverence her husband.   Ephesians 5:33,  [authorized King James Bible; AV]

In fact husbands should not honor just their wife, but this is expanded to others in the faith at Romans 12:1, [AV] “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;”  This includes also, Ephesians 6:2, [AV] “Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)”   And wives should likewise honor their husband as shown at 1 Peter 5:5 – 7, [AV] “For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:  6  Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.  7  Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.”   

[2]    GOD'S (YHWH'S) NEW COVENANT

INTRODUCTION:

Our God (YHWH) is a god of covenants.   Many covenants are mentioned in the Bible such as the old Law Covenant that God (YHWH) made specifically with the ancient nation of Israel which only applied to that nation and individuals living within that nation.

He also made a covenant with Noah promising to never to destroy the earth again with a deluge as recorded at Genesis 9:8-15, " And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying,  9
And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you;  10  And with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth.  11  And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth.  12  And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations:  13  I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.  14  And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud:  15  And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh." (Authorized King James Bible; AV).

Now just what is the new covenant or contract?   If it is the new covenant, does that mean that there is an old covenant? Are any other covenants related to it? These are important questions because Jesus said that the blood of the covenant would be poured out "for forgiveness of sins."   We all need forgiveness of sins, and as recorded at Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;' (AV).    This brief paragraph raises many questions that will shortly be answered.

OLD LAW COVENANT:

The Law Covenant was NOT made with all tribes and nations, but only with the nation of Israel as shown at Exodus 24:3-8, "And Moses came and told the people all the words of Jehovah, and all the ordinances: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which Jehovah hath spoken will we do. 4 And Moses wrote all the words of Jehovah, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the mount, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. 5 And he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt-offerings, and sacrificed peace-offerings of oxen unto Jehovah. 6 And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. 7 And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that Jehovah hath spoken will we do, and be obedient. 8 And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which Jehovah hath made with you concerning all these words." (American Standard Version; ASV).  God's (YHWH's) specific words with respect the covenant are, Exodus 34:27-29, "And Jehovah said unto Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. 28 And he was there with Jehovah forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten commandments. 29 And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of the testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses knew not that the skin of his face shone by reason of his speaking with him." (ASV).  And God (YHWH) by means of his Holy Spirit, his active force or power spoke to the people of Israel out of a fire as recorded at Deuternonmy 4:12-13, "And Jehovah spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of words, but ye saw no form; only `ye heard' a voice. 13 And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even the ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone." (ASV).

The Law Covenant was NOT made with any nation, but Israel.  This fact is testified to at many places in the Bible such as at Psalms 147:19-20, "He showeth his word to Jacob, his statutes and his judgments to Israel. 20 He hath not dealt so with any nation: and as for his judgments, they have not known them. Praise ye the LORD." (the Webster Bible; WB); And at Deuteronomy 4:7-8, "`For which `is' the great nation that hath God near unto it, as Jehovah our God, in all we have called unto him? 8 and which `is' the great nation which hath righteous statutes and judgments according to all this law which I am setting before you to-day?" (Young's Literal Translation; YLT); And at Exodus 31:15-17, "Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, holy to Jehovah: whosoever doeth any work on the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. 16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. 17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed."; And at Deuteronomy 5:2-3, "Jehovah our God made with us a covenant in Horeb; 3 not with our fathers hath Jehovah made this covenant, but with us; we -- these -- here to-day -- all of us alive." (YLT).

The Law Covenant was NOT intended to be permanent, but to point the need for a better covenant with forgiveness of sins in view.   In fact, no one proved able to keep all the provisions of the Law Covenant and God's (YHWH's) intention to replace it a better covenant, a New Covenant, and this was made clear at Jeremiah 31:31-33, " Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  32  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:  33  But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people." (AV).

THE NEW COVENANT WITH GREATER BLESSINGS:

Shortly before his death, Jesus told his followers that his shed blood was the initalizing of a New Covenant per Matthew 26:26-28, " And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.  27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;  28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." (AV) and Luke 22:20, " For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.
19  And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.  20  Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you." (AV).

Ten days after he ascended to heaven, the new covenant was seen to be in operation when Holy Spirit was poured out on approximately 120 disciples gathered in an upper room in Jerusalem per Acts 1:15-16, " And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)  16  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus." (AV); and at Acts 2:1-4, " And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2  And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.  3  And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.  4  And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." (AV).   This bringing of approximately 120 disciples into the New Covenant clearly showed that the old Law Covenant, even for the nation of Israel, was now obsolete and replaced by the New Covenant per Hebrews 8:6-13, " But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.
7  For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.
8  For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:  9  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.  10  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
11  And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.  12  For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.  13  In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away." (AV).

Now some may wonder if the old Law Covenant had been a failure.   Let's examine the facts and see what the case really is.    No this was not the case at all.   True, since it was now replaced, fleshly Israel was no longer God's special people per Matthew 23:37-39, " O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!  38  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.   39  For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord." (AV).   This outcome was due to Israel's disobedience and rejection of God's (YHWH's) Anointed One as recorded at Exodus 19:5, " Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:" (AV). Acts 2:21-36, "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.  22  Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:  23  Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:  24  Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.  25  For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved:  26  Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope:  27  Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.  28  Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.  29  Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.  30  Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;  31  He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.  32  This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.  33  Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.  34  For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
Until I make thy foes thy footstool.  36  Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ." (AV).

However, before the Law Covenant was replaced, it had accomplished much.   For many centuries, it had provided a way of approaching God (YHWH), and served as protection against false religion.   It contained kernels of the New Covenant, and its requirements for repeated sacrifices drew attention and/or demonstrated man's urgent need of redemption or forgiveness from sin and death.   It was the path or 'tutor' that lead up to Christ per Galatians 3:17-29, " Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.  17  And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.  18  For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.  19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.  20  Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.  21  Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.  22  But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.  23  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.  24  Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  25  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.  26  For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.  27  For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.  28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.  29  And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." (AV); and Romans 3:20-21 makes it clear that no flesh was justified by the Old Law Covenant, " Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.  21  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; and Romans 4:15-16 states, " Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.  16  Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all," (AV); and Romans 5:12 says, " Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:" (AV).

It is made clear at Hebrews 10:1-5 that sacrifices of animals do NOT take away sin, but were intended to remind those under the Law Covenant that they should look forward per Jeremiah 31:31 to something better, the New Covenant, " For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.  2  For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.  3  But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.  4  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.  5  Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:  6  In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure." (AV).   Yet, it was only through the New Covenant that the blessing promised to Abraham would be realized.

NEW COVENANT DETAILS:

Per Psalm 19:7 the old Law Covenant was perfect, " The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple." (AV).   Yet, inspite of this God (YHWH) promised something better per Jeremiah 31:31-34, " Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  32  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:  33  But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.  34  And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (AV).   Now who would be part of or taken into this new covenant?   Let's look at Hebrews 9:15-18 which showed it would not be the nation of Israel and also shows what would be required to put it into force, " And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.  16  For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.  17  For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.  18  Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood.

Galatians 6:16, " And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God."; and Jesus (Yeshua) showed at Matthew 22:37-40, that the New Covenant was based on love and forgiveness, " Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  38  This is the first and great commandment.  39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (AV).   In fact, of the New Covenant, God (YHWH) said it would not be a covenant of do and do nots since it would be based on love and would be written on the hearts of obedient ones per Romans 2:2829, " For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:  29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God." (AV).   Thus the obedient ones would prove to be a new 'Israel' or spiritual 'Israel" and not a literal Israel per Revelation 7:9-10, " After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;  10  And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb." (AV); which harmonizes with what Zechariah 8:23 foretells, " Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you." (AV).

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