Ex 6:3 and I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty; but by my name Yahweh I was not known to them. WEB
Was the name Yahweh known to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob?
Exodus 6:3 seems to indicate that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob did not know the name of Almighty God. The reason for this is because of how most versions of the Bible translate this verse.
Ex 6:3 and I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty; but by my name Yahweh I was not known to them. WEB
The problem with this common translation is that it seems to contradict other scriptures that seem to indicate other wise.
Gen 12:8 He left from there to the mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Ai on the east. There he built an altar to Yahweh and called on the name of Yahweh. WEB
Gen 15:7-8 He said to him, “I am Yahweh who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.” 8 He said, “Lord Yahweh, how will I know that I will inherit it?” WEB
Gen 26:24-25 Yahweh appeared to him the same night, and said, “I am the God of Abraham your father. Don’t be afraid, for I am with you, and will bless you, and multiply your seed for my servant Abraham’s sake.” 25 He built an altar there, and called on the name of Yahweh, and pitched his tent there. WEB
- In Genesis alone the name Yahweh is mentioned over 160 times.
We know that scripture does not contradict itself, so let us see if we can make sense of this by taking a closer look at Ex 6:3.
First let us look at a couple of commentaries to see if we can shed any light on this scripture
Adam Clarke’s Commentary
[But by my name JEHOVAH was I not known to them.] This passage has been a sort of crux criticorum and has been variously explained. It is certain that the name Jehovah (Yahweh) was in use long before the days of Abraham, see Gen 2:4, where the words Yahweh °Elohiym occur, as they do frequently afterward; and see Gen 15:2, where Abraham expressly addresses him by the name °Adonay YAHWEH (JEHOVAH); and see v. 7, where God reveals himself to Abraham by this very name: And he said unto him, I am JEHOVAH, that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees.
Gen 2:4 This is the history of the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Yahweh God made the earth and the heavens. WEB
Gen 15:2 Abram said, “Lord Yahweh, what will you give me, seeing I go childless, and he who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?”
Verse 7 He said to him, “I am Yahweh who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.” WEB
The words should be read interrogatively, for the negative particle lo°, “not,” has this power often in Hebrew. “I appeared unto Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by the name of God Almighty, and by my name Yahweh (Jehovah) was I not also made known unto them?“
- Interrogatively means that it should be read as a question demanding a yes or no answer
Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary
But by my name …rather, interrogatively, by my name Yahweh was I not known to them?
It is alleged by many that the occurrence of the name Yahweh, in the earlier portions of the history, is proleptical; and it has been thought to intimate that, as the name Yahweh was not known to the patriarchs, at least in the full bearing or practical experience of it, the honour of the disclosure was reserved to Moses, who was the first sent with a message in the name of Yahweh, and enabled to attest it by a series of public miracles. But this view is opposed to Ex 3:14, 16; 5:1, from which it appears that the name Yahweh was already in common use.
Questions are usually formed in the text by using such words as “what,” “where,” “if,” etc but, the Hebrew language can also form the text into a question by using the “interrogative hey” (in the Hebrew this is represented by the letter h h as a prefix and will be translated in the MT as “?~”). For instance, the phrase “Not He he~did~say” would be translated in the RMT as “he did not say” but in 20:5 this phrase is written as “?~Not He he~did~say” and is translated as “did he not say” in the RMT.
Gen 20:5 “Did he not himself say to me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘He is my brother.’ NASB
Gen 20:5 Didn’t he tell me, ‘She is my sister?’ She, even she herself, said, ‘He is my brother.’ WEB
Another example of this is seen in 2 Sam 11:20.
2 Sam 11:20 and if it happens that the king’s wrath rises and he says to you, ‘Why did you go so near to the city to fight? Did you not know that they would shoot from the wall? NASU
2 Sam 11:20 it shall be that, if the king’s wrath arise, and he tells you, ‘Why did you go so near to the city to fight? Didn’t you know that they would shoot from the wall? WEB
We can also see examples of this in the New Testament.
Luke 2:49 And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that I had to be in My Father’s house?” NASU
Luke 2:49 He said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” WEB
Finally let us look at a couple of translations that actually word Ex 6:3 in this way.
Ex 6:3 §And I appeared (wcs,nimf7200) unto (pr413) Abraham, (nn85) unto (pr413) Isaac, (nn3327) and unto (wcj,pr413) Jacob, (nn3290) by the name of God (pp,nn410) Almighty, (nn7706) but by my name (wcj,nn,pnx8034) JEHOVAH (nn3068) was I not (ptn3808) known (nipf3045) to*them(pp,pnx). The Complete Word Study Bible
- Words in italic are not in the Hebrew text.
Ex 6:3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as God Almighty, and did I not reveal to them my name ‘LORD’ (Yahweh)? ISV
If this scripture was meant to be understood interrogatively and the answer to the question was a resounding ‘Yes’ then the problem of scriptures conflicting with each other goes away. I feel that this is a plausible solution but that is up to you to decide. Feel free to let me know what your views are on this verse that we can learn and grow together.
Exodus 6:3