Throughout our journey at Cepher Publishing Group, we have encountered many proposed names for the Messiah. In this discussion, we are initially confronted with the name of Jesus.

Here is what we know:

  • The Messiah lived from the period of 3 B.C. to approximately 31 A.D. He did not live after the dark ages, nor did he live at the time of the creation of the Textus Receptus in the early 1500s, or during the publishing of the 1611 KJV. Paul also died in the first century A.D.
  • According to GrammarHow.com, the Letter J was invented for the Italian language by a man called “Gian Giorgio Trissino” in the year 1524. This letter first appeared some 1500 years after the time of the Messiah.
  • The name of Jesus did not appear in any modern bible until after the Glorious Revolution in Great Britain in 1689.
  • Therefore, the name of Jesus is a modern construct and is likely mispronounced (as even the Germanic pronunciation would be Yay-soos).

Next, we have the name that did appear in the early English texts, which represented a transliteration of the Greek name used in the Greek scriptures to identify the Messiah, namely, Iesus.

Here is what we know:

  • The Greek text of the New Testament used the name Ἰησοῦς Iēsoûs, (ee-ay-sooce'), Strong’s concordance tells us that this name was “of Hebrew origin (H3091)”.  
  • The name appears in this form in the Greek texts and the modern Russian texts.
  • This may be his actual name, if you believe he was given a Greek name, rather than a Hebrew name, the Hebrew being the sacred language.
  • Another person having this name is the person identified in the scriptures as Joshua, whose name in the Greek was also Ἰησοῦς Iēsoûs.
  • According to BibleArcheology.com, “The very first translation [bold added] of the Hebrew Bible was made into Greek, probably as early as the third century BC. This, the so-called Septuagint translation of the Hebrew Bible into Greek, is traditionally dated to the reign of Ptolemy II Philadelphus of Egypt (285-246 BC).
  • The original text was in a form of ancient Ivriyt (Hebrew).
  • The Hebrew name of the person called Joshua was not Iesous.

Next, we have the claim made by Strong’s and others that the true Hebrew name of Joshua was Yahushua.

Here is what we know:

  • The name that is translated as Joshua appears in the text 177 times as יְהוֹשֻׁעַ.
  • This name without the 7th Century A.D. add-ons of vowel sounds by the Masorites is pronounce Yahusha (ee ah oo shuh).
  • The name appears in this form in the following verses: Ex 17:9-10,13-14; Ex 32:17; Ex 33:11; Nu 11:28; Nu 13:16; Nu 27:18,22; Nu 32:28; De 1:38; De 3:28; De 31:3,14,23; Jos 1:1,10,12,16; Jos 2:1,23-24; Jos 3:1,5-7,9-10; Jos 4:1,4-5,8-10,14-15,17,20; Jos 5:2-4,7,9,13-15; Jos 6:2,6,8,10,12,16,22,25-27; Jos 7:2-3,6-7,10,16,19-20,22-25; Jos 8:1,3,9-10,13,15-16,18,23,27-30,35; Jos 9:2-3,6,8,15,22,24,27; Jos 10:1,4,6-9,12,15,18,20-22,24-29,31,33-34,36,38,40-43; Jos 11:6-7,9-10,12-13,15-16,18,21,23; Jos 12:7; Jos 14:6,13; Jos 17:4,14-15,17; Jos 18:3,8-10; Jos 20:1; Jos 21:1; Jos 22:1,6-7; Jos 23:2; Jos 24:1-2,19,21-22,24-29,31; Jg 1:1; Jg 2:6-8,21,23; 1Sa 6:14,18; 1Ki 16:34; 2Ki 23:8; 1Ch 7:27; Hag 1:1,14; Hag 2:2,4; Zec 3:1,8-9; Zec 6:11.
  • The Masorites added an “oo” sound to the end of the word by placing an otherwise nonexistent vowel between the shin (ש) and the ayin (ע). This vowel sound is called the shurig, and it otherwise does not exist in the word.
  • Strong’s claims the true pronunciation is Yahushua, spelled in the Ivriyt as (יְהוֹשׁוּעַ). This name appears in this form in the following verses: Deut 3:21; Judges 2:7, and the first case is more likely a typo, and in the second instance, referring to someone else.

The last name with which we are often confronted is the name Yeshua. This name has almost never been challenged, and many Christians, believing they are paying homage to the Hebrew Roots community, will praise “Jesus” and then correct themselves to say “Yeshua”.

Here is what we know:

  • The primitive root for the word “salvation” in the Ivriyt is the word (יָשַׁע) yâshaʻ, (yaw-shah') H3467, meaning properly, to be open, wide or free, i.e. (by implication) to be safe; causatively, to free or succor:—× at all, avenging, defend, deliver(-er), help, preserve, rescue, be safe, bring (having) salvation, save(-iour), get victory.
  • The name Yeshua (יֵשׁוּעַ) H3442, is a word meaning he will save. This name appears in the following verses: 1Ch 24:11; 2Ch 31:15; Ezr 2:2,6,36,40; Ezr 3:2,8-9; Ezr 4:3; Ezr 8:33; Ezr 10:18; Ne 3:19; Ne 7:7,11,39,43; Ne 8:7,17; Ne 9:4-5; Ne 10:9; Ne 11:26; Ne 12:1,7-8,10,24,26. As you can see, virtually of these references concern a secondary person who accompanied Ezra in the rebuilding effort of the second temple.
  • Which name do you believe Gavri’el gave to Miryam, the mother? The name of the leader of Yashar’el who brought the whole of Yashar’el into the Promised Land, or a secondary character who assisted in the construction of Nechemyahu’s wall?
  • According to JewsForJesus.org, Yeshu is an acronym in Hebrew, ימח שמו וזכרו (Yimach Shemo V’Zichro), meaning “May his name and memory be obliterated.” Therefore, some insist on adding the “shua” portion to the name.

The Ivriyt term “shua” presents a particular difficulty:

You shall not lift the name of Yahuah Elohayka to naught; for Yahuah will not make clean whosoever את lifts his name to naught.
Shemoth (Exodus) 20:7

In the Ivriyt, this reads like this:

לֹא תִשָּׂא אֶת־שֵׁם־יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לַשָּׁוְא כִּי לֹא יְנַקֶּה יְהוָֹה אֵת אֲשֶׁר־יִשָּׂא אֶת־שְׁמוֹ לַשָּׁוְא׃

Lo t’nasah eth-shem-Yahuah El’aycha l’shua kee lo i’naqah Yahuah eth asher i’nasah eth-shemu l’shua.

The key word there is the word shua:

Shua (שָׁוְא) H7723 (Note: While Strong’s tries to tell us that the pronunciation is shav, that is exactly backward as to the actual spelling. Shav would be (שאן).

What does this word mean?

It is a word which is the same as H7722 [שׁוֹא shoo or (feminine) שׁוֹאָה shooʼâh;] in the sense of desolating; evil (as destructive), literally (ruin) or morally (especially guile); figuratively idolatry (as false, subjective), uselessness (as deceptive, objective; also adverbially,) in vain.

Do you see the problem with Yeshua?