Moses’ Burning Bush theophany- as reported in the Torah Portion Shemot- is a transcendental moment narratively, theologically, and academically. Not only does this narrative supply the Children of Israel’s Egyptian Bondage story’s arc, it also reveals God’s eternal name. This particular name has both theological and academic importance.
One theological significance for the eternal name is the Ten Commandments. One particular commandment prohibits using the name for a falsehood. Exodus 20:7. (Note: The Commandment is commonly known as the prohibition of using the Lord’s name in vain.)
Academically, the eternal name’s significance applies to theories relating to the Torah’s construction- the Documentary Hypothesis- God’s regional identity, and the name’s meaning upon translation.
To understand why the name was revealed, a brief accounting of the Burning Bush exchange is necessary.
Moses’ Task
Before Moses’ Burning Bush theophany, the Torah tells of God hearing the Children of Israel’s moaning. It tells that he remembered his covenant. He both knew and saw that there was a problem. Exodus 2:24. He was prepared to act.
To address mission, God enlisted Moses to take on the task of being his representative to free the Children of Israel. In this recruitment effort conducted in front of the Burning Bush, Moses had questions.
Moses’ Queries
Moses, after being told that he is to be God’s representative to bring out the Children of Israel from Egyptian Bondage, questioned God: “And Moses said to God, ‘Here, I’m coming to the Children of Israel, and I’ll say to them, Your fathers’ God sent me to you.’ And they’ll say to me, ‘what is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” Exodus 3:13.
To these questions, God responded: “And God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ And He said, ‘You shall say this to the Children of Israel: ‘I am’ has sent me to you.’ And God said further to Moses, ‘You shall say this to the Children of Israel: The Lord, your fathers’ God, Abraham’s God, Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God sent me to you. This is my name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered for generation after generation.” Exodus 3:14-15. (Emphasis added.)
In this instance, the above provided English translation “The Lord” is a substitution for the four-letter Hebrew word for God. That Hebrew word is referred to as the Tetragrammaton. In Hebrew, the four letters are “yud, hay, vav, hay”; the Hebrew word commonly used to refer to Tetragrammaton is Ha-shem, which translates into English as the name.
The above-stated passage was not the only one revealed this message. After the Torah Portion Shemot, the next portion Va’era includes a similar passage: “And God spoke to Moses and said to him, ‘I am the Lord. And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, to Jacob as El Shadday, and I was not known to them by my name, the Lord. And I also established my covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their residences, in which they resided.” Exodus 6:2-4. In this instance as well, the Tetragrammaton is used as God’s newly introduced name.
The Name In Theology and Scholarship
Richard Elliott Friedman, in his Commentary on the Torah, notes that the Tetragrammaton’s introduction is contrary to Torah’s text. In the Book of Genesis, the Tetragrammaton was used within the narrative. The fact that this usage occurred earlier in the text suggests that the Torah was composed from multiple sources. Friedman also notes, however, that for each covenant, Noah, Abraham, and the Mt. Sinai covenant, that God uses different names. Commentary on the Torah, Friedman, See Page 189.
In essence, given that the Portion Shemot highlighted the name’s usage, and the fact that there are earlier references to the name, scholars have employed this event as a basis for investigating the Torah’s authorship. The question is: “if this was the moment of the name’s revelation, why was the Tetragrammaton used earlier?” This information, in part, led to the Documentary Hypothesis: a theory on the Torah’s authorship.
The name’s significance also inspired archeologists to find its historical references.
The Name in History
Scholars have found an Egyptian writing which evidenced the Tetragrammaton as perhaps its earliest mention in history. In that instance, the name was used to describe either a people or a region. An inscription during the reign of the Egyptian Pharaoh Amenhotep III employs the Tetragrammaton to describe a people called the Shasu.
The Name in Academia
The Tetragrammaton meaning has also been subject to scholarship. The name’s meaning is at controversy. Friedman opines that the Tetragrammaton’s translation may be “He causes to be.” See Commentary on the Torah at P. 178.
The name’s translation has bearing theologically with respect to understanding the Ten Commandments.
Swearing and Oaths
While one of the commandments prohibits using the Lord’s name for a falsehood, using the Lord’s name is permissible. Given the name’s definition of “He causes to be,” one can see the utility in evoking such a name when conducting one’s affairs. The name’s use figuratively places an exclamation point on the assurance.
Thus, in a time of limited writing surfaces- no papyrus, parchment or pottery shards around- one’s word, buttressed by the Lord’s name, brought value to oral representations.
Conclusion
God’s eternal name, the Tetragrammaton, as revealed in Shemot during Moses’ Burning Bush theophany, is essential for understanding the Torah both theologically and academically. Friedman notes that the Children of Israel’s covenant is ascribed with the eternal name while earlier covenants employed the names El Shadday and Elohim.
The Tetragrammaton’s importance also concerns the Ten Commandments’ prohibition of using the Lord’s name in vain.
Academically, the eternal name has been used to differentiate parts of scripture within the Documentary Hypothesis analysis.
Further, the eternal name’s significance is historical. Archeological exploration has found its first mention in history comes from Egypt in which it appears to be used to recognize either a people or a region. The eternal name gives rise to questions about God’s earlier names of Elohim and El Shadday.
Additionally, the Tetragrammaton’s translation gives a reason as to why the Lord’s name was employed in oaths and vows; it essentially meant that an action or inaction was to occur.
Be well!!
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