The Reality of God
Part 2

The Names of God

       These are not all the names of God, just the prominent and important ones.  It should be noted that the word “Yahweh”, commonly pronounced ‘yah-way’, is not presented here.  This is a traditional pronunciation not found in the Hebrew or the Greek.  The definitions presented here are taken from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance.

Old Testament
·  Elohiym - Pronounced el-o-heem', plural of Elowahh; gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates; and sometimes as a superlative:·  Yhovah (Also Lord) - Pronounced yeh-ho-vaw', (the) self-Existent or Eternal;   ·  Jehovah, Jewish national name of God:
** Mistakenly or purposefully mistranslated to angels in; Psalms 8:5:
Psalms 8:4. What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? 5. For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
·  Elyown (Most High) - Pronounced el-yone'; an elevation, i.e. lofty; as title, the Supreme:
·  El - Pronounced ale, shortened from 'ayi (352 below); strength; as adjective, mighty; especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity)  
·  Yhovih - Pronounced yeh-ho-vee', a variation of Yhovah, in order to prevent the repetition of the same sound.
·  Adonay (Also Lord) - Pronounced ad-o-noy'; the Lord (used as a proper name of God only):
·  Adown (Lord) - Pronounced aw-done' , or adon ; sovereign, i.e. controller (human or divine):
·  Shadday  (The Almighty) - Pronounced shad-dah'-ee; the Almighty
·  Elowahh - Pronounced el-o'-ah; a deity or the Deity:
·  Elahh - Pronounced el-aw', (Aramaic) corresponding to HSN0433; God
·  Yahh - Pronounced yaw, contraction for Yhovah, and meaning the same; Jah, the sacred name:
·  Tsuwr - Pronounced tsoor, or tsur; properly, a cliff (or sharp rock, as compressed); generally, a rock or boulder; figuratively, a refuge; also an edge (as precipitous)
·  Mare (Lord) - Pronounced maw-ray', (Chaldee), in the sense of domineering; a master:
·  Eliyhuw - Pronounced el-ee-hoo'; God of him;

New Testament

·  Theos - Pronounced theh'-os; a deity, especially (with the) the supreme Divinity
·  Kurios - Pronounced koo'-ree-os; supreme in authority
·  Philotheos - Pronounced fil-oth'-eh-os; fond of God, i.e. pious:
·  Pater - Pronounced pat-ayr'; a "father" (literally or figuratively, near or more remote):

 How Real is God?

      Defining God, as presented from the pulpit, can be a very confusing issue. The supremacy, eternity, and omnipotence of God are all recognized, as well as God’s role as creator of all life. Vague generalities, void of meaningful specifics, permeate most doctrinal approaches to the nature of God, which effectively places the concept of God in a more mythical dimension than a solid presence in the real world. "Knowing God" is presented in an equally ethereal manner, often relegated to a matter of "personal understanding". Any concept that God may have a physical presence is rejected as heresy. It is this insistence by orthodox Christian dogma that God has no physical presence, or practical relevance, outside of a building with pews and collection plates, that is perhaps the saddest of all doctrinal realities.
      The pulpit will agree that the existence of God is something that must be accepted as a matter of “faith”, and certainly nothing could be more important in scripture than the reality of the main character. How this relates to the biblical edict to "Prove all things", as found in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 and Romans 12:2, is in direct relationship to the biblical definition of faith. As with the existence of God, the concept of faith is presented by the pulpit as some mysterious thing beyond the understanding of mere mortals in spite of the Bible’s clear definition of faith:
♦  “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) is not some vague, mysterious concept. The two defining words, “substance” and “evidence”, do not contradict the edict to “prove all things”, they reinforce it. The meaning of the word in the original Greek , pistis, pronounced pis'-tis, is persuasion, brings the “prove” in “prove all things” into sharp focus. The “substance” and the “evidence” of the presence of God is clearly presented in the Bible. You are persuaded by the substance and evidence you perceive, and there is a wealth of both in scripture.

God’s Association with the Physical

      One of the greatest travesties in biblical interpretation was the bizarre attempt by the King James translation group to completely alter a single verse, not that this was the only instance, just one of the strangest and most relevant. By changing the actual meaning of this verse, a master key to the true nature of God will not fit the lock hiding an amazing truth from humanity. Here is this obscure verse in the translated form:
♦  And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the Lord. (Exodus 19:9)
      In this form the focus of the statement is on Moses and seems to indicate that God is coming to the people in this way to give legitimacy to the words of Moses. What the translators are implying God is saying is “I come to you in this thick cloud so that the people will hear when I speak to you and believe you forever.” This makes the whole concept all about Moses.
      However, in this verse the words 'unto thee', in the phrase “I come unto thee", 'with thee', in the phrase "speak with thee", 'thee', in the phrase "believe thee forever", and the words “that” and “may”, in the phrase "that the people may hear”, were all added by the translators. This completely alters the meaning of the verse as can be seen with the added words removed:
♦  And the Lord said unto Moses, Lo, I come in a thick cloud, the people hear when I speak, and believe for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the Lord.
     This changes the whole concept, from giving Moses credibility, to a clear statement about the reality of God’s presence. He is saying that the thick cloud is associated with making the people listen to and believe him, not listen to and believe Moses. A simple view of this verse in a concordance will attest to these additions. This is verified by other biblical statements and gives a new meaning to the word ‘glory’, the relationship of glory of the “clouds” God appears with, and God’s actual physical presence:

The Glory of God

       The “glory” of God is not just something perceived in the mind; it is very real and refers to the sights, sounds, and actions “seen” and “heard” when God makes his presence known. Throughout the Bible certain aspects of God's presence are consistent. His appearances are big, they are bright, and they are loud. It is almost obvious that Yhovah is purposely presenting a light and sound extravaganza to impress the people. And that is what he says he is doing and why he explained this to Moses in Exodus 19:9, (Page 15)
♦  And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. (Exodus 16:10)
♦  And ye said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth. Now therefore why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, then we shall die. (Deuteronomy 5:24-25)
      This verse does not specifically refer to clouds, but the fire from which the voice of God is speaking is clearly associated with clouds Deuteronomy 1.
♦  “Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day”( Deuteronomy 1:33)
♦  And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the Lord, So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord. (1 Kings 8:10-11)
♦  And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence. (Isaiah 4:5)
♦  As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake. (Ezekiel 1:28)
♦  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:30)
♦  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven. (Mark 13:26 - 27)
♦  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. (Luke 21:27)

      From just these few verses it can be seen that God exhibits a dynamic, very real presence that is described as glory, and that he uses the “clouds” for a specific purpose, transportation, at least while on Earth, being the most logical need we can assume.