Yeshua vs Jesus
The Real Name
The Translation of the Name
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
PART #2
The Translation of the Name
As I stated there as those that feel that people like me put too much emphasis on this name Yeshua vs Jesus while other use Yahshua instead of Yeshua, believing that Yah more accurately reflects the divine nature of Yeshua and is the correct way to pronounce the name of Yeshua HaMashiach the Jewish Messiah holding to the scripture of John 5:43 “I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive” believing that Yah must be in His name in order for Him to come in His father’s name instead of understanding that He is coming and operating in the Power and the Authority of His father’s name indicating that His actions are not merely personal but are in accordance with God’s Divine Purpose and Will.
Understand that Jesus is the Anglicized, English version of Yeshua and as I will bring out it is NOT a conspiracy to keep hidden His identity but is a Divine Plan to spread His name throughout the entire world. The conspiracy was to keep us the original Hebrews, the descendants of Jacob from knowing and understanding our connection to Yeshua and the promises and purpose He has for us, but the changing of the name to Jesus from Yeshua is not.
Understand due to linguistic and cultural differences, it has been translated and adapted into different languages, including Jesus in English which is the most recognized version today.
The name Yeshua was translated into Greek as “Iesous,” and it was later anglicized to Jesus when Christianity spread to English-speaking countries.
Because not every language shares the same sounds, people have historically adopted their names to be able to pronounce them in various languages. Even in modern languages, there are differences in the pronunciation of Jesus. In English, the name is pronounced with a hard “J,” while in Spanish, even though the spelling is the same, the name is pronounced with what would be an “H” it is spelled Jesus but pronounced Hey-zeus.
It is precisely this type of transliteration that has caused “Yeshua” to evolve into the modern “Jesus.” The New Testament was originally written in Greek, which not only uses an entirely different alphabet than Hebrew but also lacks the “sh” sound found in “Yeshua.”
The New Testament authors decided to use the Greek “s” sound in place of the “sh” in Yeshua and then added a final “s” to the end of the name to make it masculine in the language. When, in turn, the Bible was translated into Latin from the original Greek, the translators rendered Jesus’ name as “Iesus” pronounced yee-zoos.
In John 19:20, the disciple writes that the Romans nailed to Jesus’ cross a sign stating, “The King of the Jews” and that “it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin.” This inscription has been a standard part of depictions of Jesus’ Crucifixion at Golgotha in Western Christianity for centuries as “INRI,” an abbreviation for the Latin Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum, or “Jesus the Nazarene King of the Jews.”
Since Latin was the preferred language of the Catholic Church and the Catholic Church has always had dominance in all areas spiritual, political, and cultural the Latin version of “Yeshua” was the name for Christ throughout Europe. Even the 1611 publication of the King James Bible used the “Iesus” spelling. From there, Jesus’ real name only evolved further.
The Evolution Of “Yeshua” Into “Jesus”
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly where the “Jesus” spelling came from, although some historians speculate that version of the name originated in Switzerland.
In Swiss German, the “J” is pronounced more like an English “Y”, or the Latin “Ie” as in “Iesus”. When the Catholic Queen, Bloody Mary I took the English throne in 1553, droves of English Protestant scholars fled, and many ultimately found refuge in Geneva. It was there that a team of English minds of the day produced the Geneva Bible that used the “Jesus” Swiss spelling.
The Geneva Bible was the first English Bible to be entirely translated from the Greek and Hebrew text and didn’t depend on the Latin Vulgate it helped to bring about the popularization of the “Jesus” spelling.
The Geneva Bible was an enormously popular translation and was the version of the Bible quoted by Shakespeare and was the Bible used during the Protestant Reformation. Eventually, it was brought over to the New World on the Mayflower. By 1769, most English translations of the Bible were using the “Jesus” spelling popularized by the Geneva Bible. Though this was far from Yeshua the real name and its original form, this version became accepted around the world as the standard that remains to this day thanks to the perpetration of white washed pictures, media, religion.
Thus, the name used by English speakers today is an English adaptation of a German transliteration of a Latin transliteration of a Greek transliteration of an originally Hebrew name.
Yeshua is the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is “Joshua.” Iesous is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name, and its English spelling is “Jesus.” Thus, the names “Joshua” and “Jesus” are essentially the same; both are English pronunciations of the Hebrew and Greek names for our Lord.
Changing the language of a word does not affect the meaning of the word. This is where the people that hold the saying “A rose by any other name would smell just as sweet” have some ground to stand on. In the same way, we can refer to Jesus as “Jesus,”(Spanish) “Yeshua,(Hebrew) ” or “YehSou” (Cantonese) without changing His nature. In any language, His name means “The Lord Is Salvation.”
As for the controversy over the letter J, it is much ado about nothing. It is true that the languages in which the Bible was written had no letter J. But that doesn’t mean the Bible never refers to “Jerusalem” or “Judah.” And it doesn’t mean we cannot use the spelling “Jesus.” If a person speaks and reads English, it is acceptable for him to spell things in an English fashion. Spellings can change even within a language: Americans write “Savior,” while the British write “Saviour.” The addition of a u (or its subtraction, depending on your point of view) has nothing to do with whom we’re talking about. Jesus is the Savior, and He is the Saviour. Jesus and Yeshuah and Iesus are all referring to the same Person.
The Bible nowhere commands us to only speak or write His name in Hebrew or Greek. Instead, when the message of the gospel was being proclaimed on the Day of Pentecost, the apostles spoke in the languages of the “Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene” Acts 2:9-10. In the power of the Holy Spirit – the true meaning of speaking in tongues as the spirit gives utterance, Jesus was made known to every language group in a way they could readily understand it and receive it. That again is AMAZING GRACE!!!!
We refer to Him as “Jesus” because, as English-speaking people, we know of Him through English translations of the Greek New Testament. Scripture does not value one language over another, and it gives no indication that we must resort to Hebrew when addressing the Lord. The command is to “call on the name of the Lord,” with the promise that we “shall be saved” Acts 2:21 & Joel 2:32. Whether we call on Him in English, Korean, Hindi, or Hebrew, the result is the same: the Lord is Salvation.
The Bible doesn't give instruction to favor one language or translation over another. We are not commanded to call upon the name of the Lord in Hebrew only. Acts 2:21 says, “But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”. God knows who calls upon His name, whether they do so in English, Portuguese, Spanish, Hebrew or any other language. He is still the same Lord and Savior.
Here is a list of just some of the languages: -
1. Hebrew = Yeshua
2. Arabic = Issa
3. Chinese (Cantonese) = YeshSou
4. Greek = Yezoos
5. Chinese (Han) =?? = Ye Su Ay Wo
6. Dutch = Jezus
7. French = Jésus
8. Latin = Iesus
9. German = Jesus
10. Hindi = yisu
11. Italian = Gesu
12. Zulu = uJesu
13. Swahili = Yesu
14. Hausa (Nigeria) = yesuwa
The way the name traveled from Yeshua to Iesous to Jesus shows God’s incredible heart for all people, making sure His message of hope could reach every corner of the earth.
Learning about the name Yeshua isn’t just a history lesson, it isn’t to try to prove you know more than someone else or have a different revelation, it can truly enrich your walk with God, deepen your understanding, and bring a closer connection in your relationship. It should bring wonderful spiritual blessings in your life and your walk with Him.
Knowing the name Yeshua connects you with His real, human life as a first-century Jew. It causes us to understand that He stepped into our world, into a specific point in time fulfilling perfectly the ancient prophecies and promises connecting sinful mankind back to a Holy God.
Rather Yeshua or Jesus it is absolutely right and good. It’s the name that has come down to us through history, through the Greek New Testament and the Latin tradition. Never feel ashamed or worried about using the precious name Yeshua or Jesus in your prayers, your worship, or when you share your faith. If you find that using Yeshua helps you feel closer to the Lord, connects you more deeply to your Hebrew heritage and culture, or helps you share your faith with others than GLORY HALELUJAH. All that truly matters is the faith deep down in your heart is directed toward the One Person these names represent.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
