TETRAGRAMMATON (rerrapa, four; ypciµµa,

See also:

• LETTER (through Fr. lettre from Lat. littera or litera, letter of the alphabet; the origin of the Latin word is obscure; it has probably no connexion with the root of linere, to smear, i.e. with wax, for an inscription with a stilus)

letter)  , a Greek compound, found in Philo and Josephus, which designates the divine name composed of the four Hebrew letters J H V H (iwe) . The derivation and pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton is still doubtful . The form " Jehovah " (q.v.) used in some of the English Versions is an error which arosein the 16th century . It is now generally assumed that the word is the causative form (hiph'il) and should be pronounced Yahveh or Yahweh (accent on second syllable) . The Jews quite early ceased to pronounce the Tetragrammaton, substituting (as the Books of Chronicles and the LXX translation already indicate) the word Lord ('Adonai) . The priests continued to use the name in the Benediction of the People (Numbers vi . 22-27), and on the Day of Atonement the High Priest pronounced it (Leviticus xvi . 30) amidst the prostrations of the assembled multitude . It is recorded in the Talmud that Rabbis communicated the true pronunciation to their disciples once in seven years (Qiddushin, 71a) . The Jews called the Tetragrammaton by a Hebrew denomination, Shem Hammephorash OPT= Dv), i.e. the distinctive excellent name . It was considered an act of blasphemy for a layman to pronounce the Tetragrammaton . This avoidance of the original name was due on the one hand to reverence and on the other to fear lest the name be desecrated by heathens .

Partly in consequence of this

mystery and partly in accord with widespread superstitions, the Tetragrammaton figures in magical formulae from the time of the Gnostics, and on amulets . Many a medieval miracle-worker was supposed to derive his competence from his knowledge of the secret of the Name .