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Chanukkah: the feast of dedication Sundown Friday December 15
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New Chanukkah CD Teaching
OUT SOON! Check your inbox for details!
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The Name of Salvation
By Brother Rabbi Dani’el Rendelman
ravemet@comcast.net
When it comes to naming a baby, many parents are
very picky. Sometimes a name is chosen in honor or
memory of a loved one. Other names are inspired by
movies, friends, our just the sound. A baby’s name
usually evokes a special meaning or memory. Each
year a list of the most popular names are compiled
and then compared to previous years. Recently, the
names Jacob, Joshua Abigail, Emily and Olivia were
named some of the most popular monikers in 2006.
Over two-thousand years ago a little boy was given a
special name by his parents. He wasn’t named after
a soap opera star, but in harmony with the directions
of angels. “She will give birth to a son, and you are
to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his
people from their sins,” Matthew 1:21. Of course,
this verse has been translated into English.
Originally, the angels spoke the language of Hebrew
to this Jewish couple. The baby was actually given a
Hebrew name. (English wasn’t spoken for thousands
of years later) The child was named “Y’shua,” which
is the exact Hebrew word for “salvation.” This baby
came to bring salvation. His name actually means
salvation. Every time someone used his name, they
were actually calling out the word “salvation.” This is
easy to miss as most people don’t read or write
Hebrew. Yet this proves that to gain the fullest
comprehension, one should study the Hebrew
language and learn about the Hebrew culture that
the surrounds the Bible. Using His true Hebrew name
puts Him back into the true context of His life, which
helps us understand His actions and words better.
Hebrew is an amazing language. It resembles
hieroglyphics more than it does English, in the sense
that each Hebrew letter is full of meaning and
symbolism. In English an “a” is an “a” and nothing
more. Yet in Hebrew each letter is assigned a
number and a word picture based upon ancient
scripts. A Hebrew word can be better understood by
examining each letter used and comparing how these
correspond and relate to each other. For example,
there’s nothing special about the English word “dog.”
But in Hebrew, a dog is “kelev.” This Hebrew term for
dog communicates depth and definition as to what
a “kelev” really is. Kelev is a compound word made
from two basic Hebrew terms. “Ke” in Hebrew
means “as or like.” While “lev” is the Hebrew word
for “heart.” Kelev is a Hebrew word picture showing
that a dog is “like the heart” of man. Or a dog is a
man’s best friend. Wow! (Or is it bow wow?)
It is no surprise then that the name of Savior is also
highly symbolic. At the most basic meaning, the
Messiah’s name is explained when it is given by the
angels. “She will give birth to a son, and you are to
give him the name Y’shua, because he will save his
people from their sins,” Matthew 1:21.
Clearly, “Y’shua” means salvation. This meaning is
further magnified by examining each letter of the
Savior’s name.
In Hebrew Y’shua is spelled with the letters yod-shin-
vav-ayin. Together, these letters powerfully exhibit
the Savior’s life and ministry. The first letter in the
Savior’s name is the “yod”. The yod is also the first
letter in the Divine name of the Father, spelled Yod –
Hey – Vav – Hay - YHWH.
YHWH is the name given to Moses at the burning
bush. This name is to be used by all Bible believers
as a “memorial forever,” Exodus 3:15. YHWH
means “to be.” YHWH is and YHWH is His name.
However, this name has been hidden behind the
English words “LORD” and “GOD” in modern Bibles.
Today, people all over the world are rejecting false
titles and accepting the true name of the Father.
The prophecy of Zephaniah 3:9 is coming true, “For I
shall turn unto the peoples a clean lip, so that they
all call on the name YHWH, to serve Him.” YHWH is
restoring the holy Hebrew tongue and the majesty of
his name, starting with the yod.
The modern script of the letter yod resembles a cama
suspended in the air. The actual Hebrew word “yod”
means “arm or hand.” The “arm or hand of YHWH” is
an idiom repeated time and time again in the
Scriptures. This phrase is a picture of strength and
power, pointing to Y’shua the Messiah. It was the
arm of YHWH that conquered Pharaoh and his army.
And the psalmist declared, “You scattered Your
enemies with Your mighty arm,” 89:10. The arm of
YHWH brings deliverance and victory. Whenever you
read about the hand or arm of YHWH in the Bible, this
is prophetically referring to person of Y’shua.
Another letter in both YHWH and Y’shua’s names is
the vav. This letter resembles a hook and
means “nail.” The vav is also the number 6, the
number of man. Y’shua came as the Son of Man. He
is YHWH in the flesh. What does the vav teach us
about Y’shua? Remember that Hebrew letters are
pictures and symbols. The connection in these
letters is apparent. Y’shua (the yod) came as the
son of man (the vav) to offer His life as a sacrifice.
His hands (yod) were pierced by a nail (vav) to bring
salvation. Y’shua was crucified through his hands
and feet, as prophesied in Psalm 22:16 – “The
assembly of the wicked have enclosed me. They have
pierced my hands and my feet.” The letters in
Y’shua’s name foretell His death. There is no other
name given unto man for salvation. But why did he
have to die such a cruel death? This question is also
answered in His name.
Y’shua came to offer His life as the remedy to sin and
death. Whenever you read the term “salvation” in an
English Bible, it is almost certainly the name of the
Messiah translated from the Hebrew. His name is
actually found all throughout the Older Testament. .
When the Patriarch Jacob (Ya’acov in Hebrew)
prayed in Genesis 49:18, he actually used the name
of the coming Savior. He said, “I have waited for thy
salvation / Y’shua.” Jacob trusted in Y’shua even
before Y’shua was born into this world! In Psalm
62:6, David too proclaims his faith in Y’shua, “He
alone is my rock and my Y’shua / salvation, I will not
be moved.” People living during Older Testament
times were redeemed by putting their faith in Y’shua.
The sacrificial system did not save anyone. In
Hebrews 10:4 we read, “for it is not possible that the
blood of bulls and goats could take away sins.”
Salvation has always been by grace through faith in
the salvation of the Almighty.
His very name doesn’t just mean salvation, it is
salvation! “Neither is there salvation / Y’shua in any
other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved," Act
4:12. Y’shua came to save us from our sins and to
redeem man from the curse of the law. He did NOT
come to remove the Law, or “Torah” in Hebrew. The
Torah is the first five books of the Bible. These
books explain how a believer is to walk out their
faith. Instructions are given in the Torah for every
part of life, including how to get along with fellow
man and how to properly worship YHWH.
Disobedience to the commands in the Torah is
called “sin.” The Torah explains what sin is. But the
Torah is not sin. Romans 7:12, "So then, the Torah
is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and
good." Y’shua didn’t come to save us from the Law
but from our breaking of the law. He said, “think not
that I have come to abolish the Torah or the
Prophets,” in Matthew Chapter 5. Y’shua paid the
price for mankind’s Torah breaking. He suffered the
curses of our disobedience. The last remaining
letters in Y’shua’s name show how He conquered the
curse of sin.
These last two letters in the Messiah’s wonderful
name are the “ayin” and the “shin.” These letters
have a special connection, so they will be discussed
together. The shin resembles a “w” and is one of the
most widely used Hebrew letters. In paleo-Hebrew,
the shin was a picture of a tooth. Today the Hebrew
word “shin” means “tooth or chewing.”
The final letter in the name of Y’shua is the “ayin.”
In ancient times, this letter was drawn as an eye. In
modern Hebrew, the word ayin means “eye.” The
eye and the tooth, the ayin and the shin, show us
the power of sin. Combined, the yod, vav, shin, and
ayin show us the power of YHWH.
In the legal world there is a principal called “lex
talionis.” This form of law says that the punishment
must fit the crime. In the Law of Moses, the Torah,
punishments are given for different offenses against
YHWH or man. The Torah explains in exact terms
how a person is to treat their neighbor and worship
YHWH. Sin comes when a person one doesn’t follow
the Torah. “Sin is lawlessness,” says 1 John. The
punishment for sins, big or small, is separation from
YHWH. This is the curse of the Torah. “The wages
of sin is death,” Romans 6:23. All have sinned and
fallen short of the requirements of the Torah. All,
that is, except one – Messiah Y’shua. The sinless
son of YHWH paid the price for sin and died a sinner’s
death. The Torah required justice for all of
humanity’s sin. The Torah mandated an “eye for an
eye and a tooth for a tooth.”
“If there is serious injury, you are to take life for life,
eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for
foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for
bruise,” Exodus 21:23-25. The torah requires an eye
for an eye – an ayin for an ayin, and a tooth for a
tooth – a shin for a shin. Here the Torah called
for “lex talionis,” or exact punishment for the crime.
The crime is sin. The punishment is death. We are
the accused. Y’shua willingly took our punishment
and died in our place. Torah justice required by the
ayin (eye) and the tooth (shin) was met by the
nailed (vav) hand (yod) of Y’shua. Mercy answered
justice’s call. Y’shua offered His life for us, meeting
the demand for an “eye for an eye and a tooth for a
tooth.” Colossians 2:14 says, that “He Blotted out
the handwriting of ordinances that was against us,
which was contrary to us, and took it out of the
way, nailing it to his cross.”
We are told in John 1:17 that the “word was made
flesh and dwelt among us.” This verse isn’t kidding.
The word spoken of in this verse must be the Older
Testament books. Of course, these books were
written in Hebrew. So to paraphrase, “the Hebrew
alphabet was made flesh and dwelt among us.” The
Living Word came and gave His life as His Name
foretells. “But now in Y’shua, you who were once far
off have been brought near by His blood,” Ephesians
2:13.
The baby born over two-thousand years ago was
named appropriately. The world is guilty of sin and
therefore deserves justice and wrath. Yet a person
can be saved from judgment and wrath by trusting in
YHWH Y’shua. His life is a living example for us to
follow. Have you trusted Y’shua for your salvation?
Obedience to the Torah does not save you. Good
works do not save you. Jewish lineage does not save
you. Church membership does not save you. We are
saved by the person and the name of Y’shua!
Blessed be His wonderful name!
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Contact Information
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Daniel Rendelman | |
803-603-7852 | |
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