The Original Names

Story of the Greek influence

When the Greeks took over Israel in the Maccabean period, they attempted to force Greek culture and religion on the Jewish people. The Greek ruler Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who came to power in 175 BCE, was particularly harsh in his treatment of the Jews.

Antiochus outlawed Jewish religious practices, including circumcision, the observance of the Sabbath, and the study of the Torah. He erected a statue of Zeus in the Temple in Jerusalem and forced the Jewish people to worship it. He also instituted Hellenistic cultural practices, such as Greek-style athletic contests, and encouraged the Jewish people to adopt Greek language and customs.

The atrocities committed by the Greeks against the Jews during this period were numerous and severe. Jewish resistance to the Greek occupation led to the Maccabean Revolt, in which the Jews fought against the Greeks to regain control of their land and religious freedom.

One particularly brutal incident occurred in the town of Modin, where a Jewish priest named Mattathias and his sons refused to worship the Greek gods. When a Greek official ordered Mattathias to sacrifice a pig on an altar, Mattathias refused and killed the official. This sparked a rebellion against the Greeks, and the Maccabean Revolt began.

The revolt ultimately succeeded, and the Jewish people regained control of their land and religious freedom. The holiday of Hanukkah commemorates the Maccabean Revolt and the miracle of the oil, which is said to have burned for eight days in the Temple in Jerusalem after it was rededicated to Jewish worship.

Overall, the Greek attempt to force their culture and religion on the Jewish people during the Maccabean period resulted in numerous atrocities and led to a period of resistance and rebellion.

The Changed Names

Here a the list of the main prophets and other prominent figures in the Hebrew Bible, along with their original Hebrew names in Hebrew letters and the ways in which those names have been translated or changed in various English translations:

These changes reflect the ongoing process of translating and interpreting sacred texts across different cultures and time periods.

The Altered Name of God

Hebrew Bible, the name of God is written with four consonants, known as the tetragrammaton, which is usually transliterated as YHWH (יהוה) or Yahweh. The exact pronunciation of this name is uncertain, as the ancient Hebrew language did not use vowels in writing. The name Jehovah is a hybrid form that was created by combining the consonants of the tetragrammaton with the vowels of the Hebrew word for Lord, which is Adonai. This hybrid form was first introduced in the 16th century, and became popular in English translations of the Bible in the 18th century. Pietro Colonna Galatino, an Italian Dominican friar, theologian, and linguist, advocated for the use of the name Jehovah as a replacement for the traditional Latin translation of the divine name, which was "Dominus" (Lord). Galatino believed that Jehovah more accurately reflected the Hebrew tetragrammaton and should therefore be used in translations of the Bible. However, it is unclear whether his advocacy for the name Jehovah had any direct influence on later translations, as the name was not widely used in English translations until several centuries later.