Jesus' Hebrew name (his given name) is Joshua ben Joseph
Imagine a baby boy born to a typical American family in Iowa being given a Russian name like Vladimir. It just wouldn’t happen! But think about this: Your Savior was born a Hebrew of Hebrew parents. Yet the Hebrew Name they gave Him was eventually stolen away and replaced with a Greek name (Jesus) that He never knew the whole time He walked this earth.
Look up the letter “J” in a comprehensive dictionary or encyclopedia and you will discover that the J is only 500 years old. It was the newest letter to join the alphabet – any alphabet. We must conclude that with no J in existence the name “Jesus” did not exist either – not in any language – prior to the time of Christopher Columbus.
The Book of Matthew tells us that an angel told the Hebrew Miriam (Mary) and Yowceph (Joseph) what to call their newborn son. “And she shall bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Yahshua: for He shall save His people from their sins,” 1:21. This Hebrew Name, Yahshua, means “Yah Is Salvation” (Yah-shua). In spite of this fact most Bible translations continued to promote a Greek name He never knew, which has led millions to believe it is genuine. But scholars everywhere know better, as do most ministers from their seminary training.
In Hebrew all names have meaning. Recall that the angel said that the Son would be given a specific Name because He would “save His people from their sins.” The last part of His Name in Hebrew means just that – “salvation.” But that is not all.
The Bible also quotes the Savior Himself saying that He came in His Heavenly Father’s Name. “I am come in my Father’s name, and you receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him you will receive,” John 5:43. The prefix “Yah” in His Name Yahshua comes directly from the Father’s Name Yahweh. He literally and truly came in His Father’s Name!
You will find the Father’s Name in the complete form YHWH (Yahweh) no fewer than 6,823 times in the original Hebrew manuscripts that produced the Old Testament. The Teutonic term “God” does not appear in the Hebrew Old Testament. Nor does it appear in the ancient Greek of the New Testament from which most all modern versions are derived. You can confirm this fact for yourself in any concordance. In the ancient Greek New Testament the term used is the Greek theos or a close variant thereof.
To whom are you really praying if the two most popular names used for the Father and Son are not even in the original Scriptures? Some may be saying, “Well, it doesn’t really matter. He knows who I mean.” How can the worshiper say to the One he or she worships, “I’ll decide what I will call you”? Especially when the Father is so adamant that we call on His Name! Does He need to reveal His Name more than 6,823 times before we will grasp its importance?
It is not an option for us to call our Creator whatever may be traditional or popular – but incorrect.
Isaiah 52:6 equates being a child of His by this specific characteristic: “Therefore my people shall know my name.” That is how important His Name is to Him, just as your name is dear to you. How annoying when someone mispronounces or otherwise misuses your name, especially when they know what your name is. Imagine how the Father in heaven feels when you substitute His Name with something else entirely. especially if that substitute name relates to a heathen deity.
Open a Bible concordance like Strong’s or Young’s to the heading “name” and note how many times the Scriptures command us to honor and glorify His Name. Names show identity. You cannot change names without altering an individual’s identity and person.
In Isaiah 42:8 the Father clearly says, “I am Yahweh [“YHWH” in the Hebrew]: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.”