Holy Names of God

Most Holy Books share a common denominator when it comes to a Most High Supreme Being that rules over the entire planet (and the universe, for that matter), yet there are thousands of names ascribed to this Supreme Being. The names of  God (an English word used by multiple religions) are terms used to describe a form of addressing the Supreme Being in a worship service or prayer, which have become a part of both Eastern and Western spiritual practices. Many of these names enumerate various qualitites of the Supreme Being.

A diagram of the names of God in Athanasius Kircher's Oedipus Aegyptiacus (1652–54).

 



During the ancient era when God was making covenants with mankind, this Supreme Being revealed himself by name to leaders such as Noah, Abraham and Moses, yet each name was different (Elohim with Noah, El Shaddai with Abraham, Yahweh with Moses). In many cultures, the name Yahweh is also known simply as YHWH. Not long after revealing His name to Moses, He clearly became known as I AM.

 

"And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, 'What is his name?', what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations." - Exodus 3:13-15

 

In Scripture, a person's name identified them and stood for something specific. The same can be said of the Supreme Being. This is evident in the fact that God revealed His names to certain people instead of allowing the mere human to choose a name for Him. In doing so, this Supreme Being asserted His authority and power, as well.

 

There are a number of instances where no name is employed, but the term was used as a point of focus, such as:

 

1- Abraham called on the "name" of the Lord (Genesis 12:8)

2- The Lord proclaimed His own "name" before Moses (Exodus 33:19)

3- The "name" of God is called 'wonderful' (Judges 13:18)

4- How excellent is Your "name" in all the earth (Psalms 8:1)

 

According to the religion of Islam, the earliest mention of the name of God (Allah) can be found in the Qu'ran, Sura 2:

 

"When your Lord said to the angels: I am placing on the earth one that shall rule as My deputy, they replied: Will You put there one that will do evil and shed blood, when we have for so long sung Your praises and sanctified Your Name?" 

 

There are 99 Names of Allah by which the Muslims regard God and which are described in the Qu'ran and Sunnah, among other places. According to the hadith, this is a special group of names, but has no exact enumeration, which has caused some contention among the Islamic scholars. Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, a narrator of one of the hadiths, believe that some of the names of Allah have been hiddened from mankind and therefore there are more than 99 names.

 

The name Jehovah (commonly suggested as another spelling for Yahweh)  is also mentioned in the Holy Books:

 

"And God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name Jehovah was I not known to them." - Exodus 6:2-3

 

Other names associated with the Supreme Being is:

• El Elyon - "The Most High God" ... stresses God's strength, sovereignty and supremacy. (Genesis 14:19; Psalms 9:2; Daniel 7:18)
• El Olam - "The Everlasting God" ... emphasizes God's unchangeableness and His inexhaustibleness (Genesis 16:3)
• Adonai - "Master/Owner" ... stresses man's relationship to God as his master, authority and provider (Genesis 18:2; Exodus 21:1-6; Joshua 5:14; Samuel 1:15)
• Yahweh Jireh (Yireh) - “The Lord will provide.” ... stresses God’s provision for His people (Genesis 22:14)
• 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 (Judges 6:24)
• Yahweh Sabbaoth - “The Lord of Hosts.”... a military figure portraying the Lord as the commander of the armies of heaven (1 Samuel 1:3; 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 (Exodus 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 (Psalms. 23:1)
• Yahweh Tsidkenu - “The Lord our Righteousness.” ... portrays the Lord as the means of our righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6)
• Yahweh Shammah - “The Lord is there.”... portrays the Lord’s personal presence in the millennial kingdom (Ezekiel 48:35)
• Yahweh Elohim Israel - “The Lord, the God of Israel.” ... identifies Yahweh as the God of Israel in contrast to the false gods of the nations (Judges 5:3.; Isaiah. 17:6)

 



 



While these are just a few names associated with the Supreme Being, one can see as they read through the Scriptures of the Holy Books the importance assigned to each and every name. During biblical times a person's name was said to reveal their character. If this was the case, then the Supreme Being, who goes by many names, definitely has many characters which describes Him in many different ways. Therefore God's names not only revealed his endless attributes, but shares with mankind the eternal nature of who He really is.

Religion of the Hindu

Hinduism is basically an ancient religion known as “Brahmanism”. It is best defined as a complexity of all religious ideas of India. The original polytheistic religious philosophy of the Brahman was founded about 2500 B.C. and Hinduism surfaced in the latter portion of the B. C. era. 

The Brahman is considered to be the Supreme Being  that is the origin and support of the phenomenal solar system. He is also referred to as the Absolute or Godhead of everything in the entire Universe. The sages of the Upanishads teach that Brahman is the ultimate Creator that cannot be seen or heard, but whose nature can be known through the development of self-knowledge. The Brahman is an infinite being and is mankind's consciousness.

The Hindu believes in the transmigration of souls and their final union with the Absolute Spirit. It is believed that the Brahma (one of the Hindu gods) is the original existence of all individual souls. The Brahman can be divided into creating, preserving and destroying principles, as personified in the Hindu gods: Brahmā, Shiva and Vishu.

Brahmā is the god of Creation and one of the Trimūrti (Hindu Trinity). He is the father of Manu, and from Manu all human beings are descended. He is not to be confused with the Great Spirit known as Brahman, which is genderless.

Shiva is the Destroyer or Transformer of the Trimurti. He is a yogi that takes notice of everything that happens in the world and is the main aspect of life. In the Smarta tradition, he is regarded as one of the five primary forms of God.   

Vishnu is the Preserver of the Trimurti. He is also venerated as one of the five primary forms of God.  He is noted for being the master of [and beyond] the past, present and future. He also supports, sustains and governs the Universe and originates, as well as developes, all the elements within.

Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva

While Hinduism has no organized common creed, there are two sacred Hindu texts which are divided into two books known as Śruti ("revealed") and Smriti ("remembered"). These commentaries discuss theology, philosophy, mythology, rituals and temple building [among other topics]. Major scriptures include the Vedas, Upanishads, Purāṇas, Mahābhārata, Rāmāyaṇa, Bhagavad Gītā and Āgamas.   

In the 19th century A.D., Christianity began to affect Hinduism and many religious sects were founded which reflected this. The most well-known sect which emerged was the Rama-Krishna movement of the late 1800’s. Gadadhar Chattopadhyay was a mystic in the latter part of the 1800's who founded a religious school of thought which led to the formation of the Ramakrishna Mission.

Between the most primitive and the most advanced versions, Hinduism has survived for thousands of years and is still a stronghold of a religion. Hinduism has about one billion followers worldwide and is the third largest religion, after Christianity and Islam.  Today, the majority of Hindu adherents can be found in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.



The Prophet Joel

Joel was one of the minor prophets of ancient Israel and his story can be found in the Old Testament/Tanakh (in the Book of Joel) . While the dates of his lifetime are unknown, theologians speculate that he lived somewhere between the 9th and 5th centuries BC. However, the mention of Judah's suffering and the 'standing temple' [in the Holy Book] have led some scholars to believe he lived during the post-exilic period and after the completion of the Second Temple. Joel, the son of Pethuel, was originally from the southern kingdom of  Judah (also known as Judea) and quite possibly associated with the rituals of the Jerusalem temple (such as: offerings, holidays, reading of Psalms, etc.).



The Prophet Joel by Michelangelo (Sistine Chapel Ceiling, 1508-1512).



The Prophet Joel was considered to be one of earliest writing prophets of the Hebrew/Christian Bible and was a contemporary with the prophets Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Habakkuk. He was also quoted by Amos, Isaiah, Malachi, Micah, Nahum, Obadiah and Zephaniah [confirming his early prophethood] and the first prophet to mention the "Day of the Lord". (Joel 2:31)

The Day of the Lord:

Is a special term in the Bible used to refer to a period of time when God directly intervenes in human affairs---in judgment or in blessing. The phrase identifies events that will take place at the end of history (Isaiah 7:18-25) and often is associated with the term "that day". Some scholars believe that the "day of the Lord" will be longer than a single day and will be a period of time when God will cleanse heaven and earth in preparation for the eternal state of all mankind throughout the world. Other theologians believe this day will be an instantaneous event when some will be redeemed and others will be sentenced to eternal damnation.  

The table below represents some of the more explicit quotes and allusions between specific passages in Joel and passages from the Old and New Testaments:

________________________________________________________________

       

                   Joel                    Old Testament                New Testament     

                                 1:6/2:2-10                                                   Revelation 9:3, 7-9

                                 1:15                     Isaiah 13:6

                                                              Ezekiel 30:2-3

                                 2:1                       Zephaniah 1:14-16

                                 2:1-2                   Amos 5:18, 20

                                 2:11                     Malachi 3:2

                                                              Isaiah 45:5

                                 2:27                     Ezekiel 36:11

                                 2:28-32                                                       Acts 2:16-21

                                 2:31                     Malachi 4:5

                                 2:32                     Obadiah 17                    Romans 10:13

                                 3:10                     Isaiah 2:4

                                                              Micah 4:3

                                 3:16                     Amos 1:2

                                 3:17                     Obadiah 17

                                 3:18                     Amos 9:13

            ____________________________________________________________________

Joel's message to the Israelites was simple and precise... God's people will win; God's enemies will lose. His chief purpose was to call God's people to repentance and to show the great judgment that would come upon the nations who oppressed the people of God.  Consequently, the prophet explained that the natural disasters [swarm of locusts, a horrid drought and the great famine that followed] were divine judgments against the nation because of their wayward sins.  (Joel 1:1-2 & 27)  In addition to the call of repentance, Joel prophesied of two blessings that were to be fulfilled in the distant future [from the prophet's era of time]. (1) prophetic gifts to all God's people and the safety of His people in the face of apocalyptic cosmic disasters - a correlation made by the apostle Peter in Acts 2:16-21. (2) the coming judgment on God's enemies and the vindication of Israel.

While the Holy Book does not go into detail about Joel or his life, tradition states that he was from the city of Bethom and from the tribe of Reuben. It has also been suggested that the prophet was buried in Gush Halav. The prophecy of Joel is one which will extend from Joel's own lifetime to the time of Israel's restoration (which many scholars proclaim is our own modern time).

                                           

The Garden of Eden

What is the Garden of Eden?
  

The Garden of Eden was a biblical "garden of God" described in the Book of Genesis, and also mentioned in the biblical books of Ezekiel and Isaiah, and discussed indirectly in other sections of the Old Testament. The name "Eden" is in some dispute of its original origin. Some believe the word is derived from a Sumerian word meaning "plain", while others believe the word has Aramaic roots meaning "fruitful and well-watered". For many centuries the derivation of the name Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty.

Where was the Garden of Eden located? 
 

There have been various locations associated with the Garden of Eden, most notably at the headwaters of the Tigris and Euphrates in northern Iraq. Other scholars have laid claim that the biblical garden was located in Africa, while others say the heavenly land was in [what is now under] the Persian Gulf. According to some theologians, Eden in Ezekiel is unequivocally located in Lebanon. Another favorite locale for the garden is Turkey, because both the Tigris and the Euphrates rise in the mountains there, and because Mount Ararat, where Noah's Ark came to rest, is there.  For many centuries the location of Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty.

How does the Bible describe Eden's locale?

In Genesis 2, Moses described the site of the Garden of Eden with precise words, yet today its location still remains a mystery. The rivers  Pishon and Gihon no longer exist and only speculation of the experts gives mankind a theory as to its original locale.

"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed" (Genesis 2:8). Then the majestic words become quite specific: "And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. The name of the first is Pishon: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. And the name of the third river is Hiddekel [Tigris]: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates" (Genesis 2:10-14).

The area thought to be the Garden of Eden, which was flooded when Gulf waters arose, is shown in green.
Yellow areas of Bahrain and Arabian coast represent Dilmun, paradise land of Ubaidians and Sumerians

The ancient land of Mesopotamia has been identified as the original vicinity of Eden, but for many centuries the actual locale of Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty. 

What was the purpose of the Garden of Eden?

According to the Bible, the garden was created for Adam and Eve (the world's common ancestors) to live in and take care of. In Genesis 2, the creation narrative opens with God creating the first human and placing him in Eden. God instructs Adam to tend the garden, but forbids him to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Then God forms a woman (Eve) from Adam's rib. When the man and woman disobey the commandment of God and eats from the forbidden tree, the Creator evicted them from the Garden of Eden to prevent them from eating from a second sacred tree known as the Tree of Life. The expelling from the garden was permanent for these first humans. For many centuries the reason for their eviction from Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty. 

An artist's depiction of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden

What other uncertainties surround the Garden of Eden?

Besides the original derivation of the name 'Eden' and its actual location, other mysteries surround the Genesis garden story, such as (1) whether the garden was in the east of Eden, or if Eden itself was located in the East, or whether "east" is even the correct term. According to Hebrew, the word "east" is associated with the term "of old"; (2) whether the river mentioned in Genesis 2:10 [perhaps a fifth river] "flows from" or "rises in" Eden, and the relationship [if any] of the four rivers to each other; and, (3) whether the land of Cush, where one of the four rivers flows, means Ethiopia (in Africa) or Elam (east of Mesopotamia). For many centuries the mystery of the Garden of Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty.

Why are there so many theories surrounding the Garden of Eden?

As with any unsolved mystery many theories will surface in search of answers. Some are based on scientific deductions while other hypothesis are based on folklore and ancient summations. There have been a number of claims as to the actual geographic location of the Garden of Eden, though some of these have little or no connection to the text of Genesis. Most put God's garden somewhere in the Middle East, but this list shows a few more locations you might not have considered:

> Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe the Garden of Eden to have been located in Jackson County Missouri. Founder of the Mormon church, Joseph Smith, discovered a stone slab that he claimed was an alter built by Adam after being expelled from the Garden. The garden itself was located 40 miles south, near present-day city, Independence. As for its location in the western hemisphere, some Latter-day Saints have presumed the continents were not yet separate before the Great Flood and that this approach would be consistent with the configuration of the super-continent Pangaea.

> In the nineteenth century, a theory was developed that a continent, Lumeria, occupied what is now the Indian Ocean The wide range of the animals inspired the name Lemuria, which was coined in 1864 by the zoologist Philip Sclater  in an article “The Mammals of Madagascar” in The Quarterly Journal of Science. Puzzled by the presence of fossil lemurs in both Madagascar and India, but not in Africa nor the Middle East, Sclater proposed that Madagascar and India had once been part of a larger continent. Other scientists have suggested Lumeria was the cradle of the human race and therefore must have been the site of the garden.

> General Charles Gordon supported the theory that Africa and India were part of the same continent. During an expedition he found the Praslin Island in the Seychelles group. He became convinced this was the location of the Garden of Eden, particularly the Valle de Mai. His reasoning was based on the coco-de-mer, a rare tree, which is only found on one other island of the Seychelles. Gordon concluded this was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

> Some people believe that Garden of Eden was somewhere in Northeast Africa. Evidence given in support of this includes the fact that the oldest human remains have been found in Africa, and that the Gihon is usually thought to be a name for the Nile.

> Many believe that the Garden must have been in the Holy Land and the original river that flowed into the garden before it split into four separate rivers must have been the Jordan. The Gihon would be the Nile and the Havilah would be the Arabian Peninsulas. Eden is also tied with Jerusalem by the prophet Ezekiel. In Ezekiel 28:13-14, he recorded, “You were in Eden, the garden of God;” … “You were on the holy mount of God.” In most Jewish and Christian traditions, “the holy mount of God” is Mt. Moriah, the Temple Mount in Jerusalem (see Isaiah 2:2-2:3, Psalm 48:1-2 e.g.).

> Another possibility was proposed by archaeologist David Rohl, based on archaeological evidence, putting the Garden of Eden in northern Iran. According to him, the garden was located in a vast plain referred to in ancient Sumerian texts as Edin east of the Sahand Mountain, near Tabriz. He cites several geological similarities with Biblical descriptions, and multiple linguistic parallels as evidence. The region today is bound by a large mountain range to the North, East and South, and marshlands to the west. The eastern mountain region has a pass leading in and out of the Edin region. This fits with the Biblical geography of Eden containing marshlands to the west, and the Land of Nod to the east, outside the Garden.

> Dr. Juris Zarins, of Southwest Missouri State University, believes that the Garden of Eden vanished long before Genesis was written by Moses and presently lies under the waters of the Persian Gulf. This theory is based on the Flandrian Transgression, also known as the last glacial period, which caused a sudden rise in sea level around 5000 BC.

> According to the website, Evidence for God, Rich Deem states, "Although it is possible that the garden of Eden was in Africa, it would have to be at the very boundary of potential locations. In addition, such a location would contradict the Genesis 2 narrative that says God planted the garden "toward the east" (presumably east of Israel). Ethiopia is to the southwest. Therefore, the Persian Gulf region matches the description of the biblical narrative the best." godandscience.org/out of africa

> In the rabbinic literatures of the Talmud and the Jewish Kabbalah, the scholars agree that there are two types of spiritual places called Garden in Eden. The first is rather terrestrial, of abundant fertility and luxuriant vegetation, known as the "lower Gan Eden". The second is envisioned as being celestial, the habitation of righteous, Jewish and non-Jewish, immortal souls, known as the "higher Gan Eden". The Rabbanim differentiate between Gan and Eden. Adam is said to have dwelt only in the Gan. Whereas Eden is said never to be witnessed by any mortal eye. However, these sources do not go into detail about the garden's location.

Conclusion of the Garden of Eden's location.

There are many stories, myths, epics and poems attributed to the Garden of Eden, but none have satisfied the curiosity of mankind as to its actual location. The quest for pinpointing the exact location of the  biblical Garden of Eden and the four rivers almost rivals the quest for the location of fabled Atlantis. And the theories that abound are almost as numerous as the interpretations of the seven days of Genesis. Most likely the ancient land of plenty will continue to remain a hidden mystery from the curious seekers determined to unlock its enigmatic location. 

For many centuries the mysterious Garden of Eden has been surrounded by uncertainty.