The Meaning and Origin of the Name Jehovah-jireh
From
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
According
to the Book of Genesis in
the Bible, Jehovah-jireh (or Yahweh-yireh, The Lord will
provide), was a place in the land of Moriah. It was the location of the binding of Isaac, where God told Abraham to offer his son Isaac
as a burnt offering.
Abraham named the place after the Lord
provided a ram to sacrifice in place of Isaac.
"And
Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day,
In the mount of the Lord it shall
be seen." – Genesis 22:14 (KJV)
Translations
The
early Septuagint translation into Greek gives the
meaning as "The Lord hath
seen." One Latin version of the Christian Bible rendered the name in Latin
as Dominus videt ("The Lord
sees"). The King James Version
follows this meaning, as quoted above.
Jewish
translations of the verse into English include,
And
Abraham called the name of that place Adonai-jireh; as it is said to
this day: 'In the mount where the LORD is seen.' – Genesis 22:14 (Mechon-Mamre)
However,
some modern translations including the NIV
render it "the Lord will
provide",amplifying the literal meaning along the lines of "the Lord will see to it", and referring
to Abraham's earlier words in 22:8, "God himself will provide the
lamb".
Interpretation
Some
Jewish commentators see the name as alluding to the future importance of the
place as the site of the Temple built by Solomon. The Targumim do not regard "Jehovah-jireh" as a proper
name.
Considering
the passive construction of Abraham's words in verse 14, "In the mount of
the Lord it shall be seen", Calvin comments that it teaches "that God not only looks
upon those who are his, but also makes his help manifest to them..." John Wesley and Matthew Henry go further,
suggesting that "perhaps it may refer to God manifest in
the flesh."
Other modern usage
Frank Ocean also uses the name "Jehovah Jireh" in his debut album
Nostalgia, Ultra, the song is titled 'We All Try". It is also the title of
an 1867 book by William Plumer.
Toa Maoni Hapa Chini
