Why was “Yeshua” translated to “Jesus”?

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Aug 19, 2021
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#1
So I understand that Jesus was originally called Yeshua..and I was always a bit confused in general why names change so drastically in different translations? I know that the Hebrew language didn’t have a typical “J” sound..but so what? If that’s how Jesus was called then why wouldn’t he still be called that in a different language?

I’ve also heard that the name change to “Jesus” was part of the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to paganize Christianity to make it more palatable to their mostly Pagan citizens. The name “Jesus” was supposed to be a derivative of the name “Zues”...meaning Son of Zeus, or From Zeus. You can hear it more clearly in how Spanish speakers pronounce it (Hey-Zeus).

Is there any truth to this? I’d prefer there’d be a different explanation.
 

Magenta

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2015
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#2
Joshua is the original Hebrew form of the Greek name Jesus.
Meaning: Yah Saves, Yah Will Save, Yah Is Salvation


Etymology:
(1) יה (yah), the name of the Lord, and
(2) the verb ישע (yasha'), to save or deliver.


A shortened form of Joshua is the name Jeshua (ישוע). The New Testament
was written in ancient Greek, and Yeshua, an Aramaic short form of the
Hebrew name Yehoshua, was rendered as Iesous, which became Iesus
in Latin and Jesus in English. “God is deliverance.”
 

Gideon300

Well-known member
Mar 18, 2021
4,951
2,876
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#3
So I understand that Jesus was originally called Yeshua..and I was always a bit confused in general why names change so drastically in different translations? I know that the Hebrew language didn’t have a typical “J” sound..but so what? If that’s how Jesus was called then why wouldn’t he still be called that in a different language?

I’ve also heard that the name change to “Jesus” was part of the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to paganize Christianity to make it more palatable to their mostly Pagan citizens. The name “Jesus” was supposed to be a derivative of the name “Zues”...meaning Son of Zeus, or From Zeus. You can hear it more clearly in how Spanish speakers pronounce it (Hey-Zeus).

Is there any truth to this? I’d prefer there’d be a different explanation.
Lord Jesus would have spoken Aramaic, not Hebrew, in day to day speech. Greek was the normal written language. It's no different from different spellings of the same name now. Ivor is Welsh for John, Ivan is Russian for the same name and so on. Name spelling changes to suit the language but the meaning is the same. There is zero connection between the spelling of Jesus and the idea of some saying, "Hey, Zeus, how you doing today?"

For 2,000 years Christians have been praying and commanding in the name of Jesus. God has honoured that the whole time. If it was a paganised name, God would reject it. I detest a great deal that Catholicism has done and said. But paganising the name of Jesus? A ridiculous idea.
 
Aug 20, 2021
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#4
well yes in English speaking countrys but Spanish differnt and other countrys to.[ y got turned into i i into j] their r exception such as Isaac in this case yacob = pride of ya [most would say יַעֲקֹב Yaʻăqôb, yah-ak-obe'; from H6117; heel-catcher (i.e. supplanter); Jaakob, the Israelitish patriarch:—Jacob.]
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,248
6,540
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#5
Yeshua is the transliteration of the Hebrew. It is not a translation. The actual translations would be something like, perhaps exactly like, Yeshi, my Reedemer, Yah, God. My Reedemer God. Although many say they know exactly, they do not. Call this a paraphrse with understanding if you will.
 
Aug 20, 2021
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#6
[ya is salvation] semantics my friend.but your right about Yeshua is the transliteration of the Hebrew. It is not a translation.{Semanits in this case is how one defines a sound}
 
Aug 20, 2021
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#8
it's never been a language that has been in use somewhere but it has change a bit
 

Magenta

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2015
56,318
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#9
You have a 5 minute window during which you can edit your original post to correct
errors (spelling?) or make additions (or subtractions, whatever the case may be :)).
 
Jun 9, 2021
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#10
Phonetics!

The Greek alphabet had no Letters that made the sound of the Aramaic Letter Y. And they took what sounds they thought matched closest and from Yeshua came Jesus which literally has nothing in meaning to what Yeshua means in connection to Yahweh and the WORD.
 
Aug 20, 2021
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#11
modern yes {year-gos][ y sound] ancient no[Erasmus best guess from what i was told]Reconstucted
husbandman.
g1092
γεωργός γεωργόςgeōrgos pronouched [gi-or-gaas]
 

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2020
12,886
5,172
113
#12
So I understand that Jesus was originally called Yeshua..and I was always a bit confused in general why names change so drastically in different translations? I know that the Hebrew language didn’t have a typical “J” sound..but so what? If that’s how Jesus was called then why wouldn’t he still be called that in a different language?

I’ve also heard that the name change to “Jesus” was part of the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to paganize Christianity to make it more palatable to their mostly Pagan citizens. The name “Jesus” was supposed to be a derivative of the name “Zues”...meaning Son of Zeus, or From Zeus. You can hear it more clearly in how Spanish speakers pronounce it (Hey-Zeus).

Is there any truth to this? I’d prefer there’d be a different explanation.
Hebrew language v Greek language

God speaks them all And hears the cry from any language even from the deaf calling his name
 

Pilgrimshope

Well-known member
Sep 2, 2020
12,886
5,172
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#13
It’s also interesting that when Jesus called to God on the cross he spoke in Aramaic and wasn’t calling for “ yawhey” however we spell it not sure lol

but it’s odd that he wasn’t calling out for the ot “ name “ we recognize but called out in Aramaic

“And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭15:34‬ ‭KJV‬‬


It seems like God transcends language barriers or pronounciations and it’s on a level just above the intellectual abilities we lift up to importance

if we’re calling out for the Jesus or yeshua in scripture the one who looks and sounds like Jesus in the gospel it’s not going to be a technicality on the language his name is pronounced in

if we have it wrong it’s going to be for rejecting the gospel truth not misunderstanding how his name is pronounced
 

Magenta

Senior Member
Jul 3, 2015
56,318
26,343
113
#14
It’s also interesting that when Jesus called to God on the cross he spoke in Aramaic and wasn’t calling for “ yawhey” however we spell it not sure lol

but it’s odd that he wasn’t calling out for the ot “ name “ we recognize but called out in Aramaic

“And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭15:34‬ ‭KJV‬‬
Jesus was quoting Psalm 22 as He was dying on the cross :)
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,248
6,540
113
#15
It’s also interesting that when Jesus called to God on the cross he spoke in Aramaic and wasn’t calling for “ yawhey” however we spell it not sure lol

but it’s odd that he wasn’t calling out for the ot “ name “ we recognize but called out in Aramaic

“And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭15:34‬ ‭KJV‬‬


It seems like God transcends language barriers or pronounciations and it’s on a level just above the intellectual abilities we lift up to importance

if we’re calling out for the Jesus or yeshua in scripture the one who looks and sounds like Jesus in the gospel it’s not going to be a technicality on the language his name is pronounced in

if we have it wrong it’s going to be for rejecting the gospel truth not misunderstanding how his name is pronounced
Ali, Eli is My God to the English, El coupled with the suffix, i, is the first person possessive. El is the singular form of Elohim, which may be tranlated as Stron or Mighty Ones.
This term was used to refer to gods . I our language Elohim is a reference to Yahweh, Ruach Chodesh, and Yeshua., or the Father, the Son and dthe Holy Spirit, as demonstrated by Isaiah 9:6.

This demonstrates that God Will Be what He will Be..

As for Yeshua, as mentione previously it is from Yeshi *jesse( meaning My Redeemer, and Yahhweh. Like the overlooked prophecy in the King David translation, Beloved King... ... Melech David. King David of this age was the son of Jesse, Yeshi, or, my Redeemer. There are so many prophecies and reelations in the Word. Praise God, He s worthy, now we.
 
E

eternally-gratefull

Guest
#16
In the Greek
iesus Christos is how it was written

Switch the i out and replace it with a J and remove the “os”

And you have Jesus Christ
 

ResidentAlien

Well-known member
Apr 21, 2021
7,623
3,199
113
#17
So I understand that Jesus was originally called Yeshua..and I was always a bit confused in general why names change so drastically in different translations? I know that the Hebrew language didn’t have a typical “J” sound..but so what? If that’s how Jesus was called then why wouldn’t he still be called that in a different language?

I’ve also heard that the name change to “Jesus” was part of the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to paganize Christianity to make it more palatable to their mostly Pagan citizens. The name “Jesus” was supposed to be a derivative of the name “Zues”...meaning Son of Zeus, or From Zeus. You can hear it more clearly in how Spanish speakers pronounce it (Hey-Zeus).

Is there any truth to this? I’d prefer there’d be a different explanation.
There are some good YouTube videos that debunk the idea that Jesus = Zeus.

One of my own observations is simply this: Zeus was a Greek deity; the Roman equivalent was Jupiter. If the RCC wanted to transform Jesus into a pagan deity, wouldn't they have chosen a Roman deity, one the people would more easily understand?
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,248
6,540
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#18
A few years before the Internet, 1969, I was graced to use actual books in my studies. In t several encyclopedias, Britanica, Collier's, Judaica, and more, I was surprised to learn from them that the nam, Jesus, is actually from ZeusWhat SeekerInCrisis said: has related is closely if not exactly in line with what I learned then.

Since the arrival of Internet, one may find t his ver personallly preferred argument for just about anything. Yeah, it is true.
 

presidente

Senior Member
May 29, 2013
9,092
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#19
So I understand that Jesus was originally called Yeshua..and I was always a bit confused in general why names change so drastically in different translations? I know that the Hebrew language didn’t have a typical “J” sound..but so what? If that’s how Jesus was called then why wouldn’t he still be called that in a different language?

The English language went through a number of changes. If I understand it right, certain words that started with an 'I' or 'Y' sound started to be pronounced with a 'J' sound. So we end up with words like 'judge' and the name of Jesus is pronounced with an initial J sound.

The Greek version of the name had a masculine ending on it, hence the added 's' sound added at the end, but with a different letter to represent the S sound that visually looks more like the final letter in the Hebrew Yeshua. Latin retained the 's' sound from Greek, and I think English got the name through Old French, initially without an initial J sound. English speakers eventually added the J sound through a regular shift in the language that put j's on initial I's and Y's as stated above. Vowels have also shifted in English, and English puts dipthongs on a lot of words. So the first syllable of 'Jesus' has a 'long e' sound which is rendered /ij/or/iy/. The latter syllable ended up with /ʌ/ over time instead of an /u/ sound.

Think about other names that end with an 's' in Greek. Judah came to be called Judas. We end up with a different name for Judah in the Old Testament and Judas in the New Testament. Then there is a third variation we have in English, Jude. James name got transliterated weird over time. The name is Jacob or Yakov. Greek puts an s sound on the end, Iakobos. In English that became James. In Spanish Saint Iacabus from Latin becomes San Diego or Santiago.

I’ve also heard that the name change to “Jesus” was part of the Roman Catholic Church’s attempt to paganize Christianity to make it more palatable to their mostly Pagan citizens. The name “Jesus” was supposed to be a derivative of the name “Zues”...meaning Son of Zeus, or From Zeus. You can hear it more clearly in how Spanish speakers pronounce it (Hey-Zeus).
I've heard some silly and strange things before, too. Beware of folk etymologies which aren't documented. Scholars can look at how words evolved in pronunciation over time and find documentation for it. A word in one language can sound like a word in another without the two having any relationship. I learned Indonesian. 'Mine' in English sounds like 'main' in Indonesian. The Indonesian word means to play.. The word 'baik' in Indonesian sounds like 'bike' in English. It means 'well' or 'good' in Indonesian.

An English-speaking expat got a job in Indonesia and hired a maid. The maid did not speak English, and the expat did not speak Indonesian. One day, the expat tried to teach the maid an English word. He patted the seat on his bicycle and said, "bike. bike.' The maid patted the bike and said, 'baik, baik.' She agreed that the bicycle (speda) was a good thing.

'Mie' in Indonesian sounds like 'me' in English. A group of Indonesians went out to eat with their expatriate boss who did not know Indonesian. They ate noodles. A female employee asked him, "Do you like mie?" When she caught what she had said, she was embarrassed.

There is a whole movement that seems to specialize in junk etymologies. A friend of mine who spent years in Israel said that Messianic Jews who speak Hebrew think the sacred name movement is weird. A friend had a Bible study. I visited a few times. I went back to visit after a long time, and it had been taken over by sacred name movement people. They argued that 'Jesus' came from 'Isis'-- which I could tell was utter linguistic nonsense. Supposedly 'Lord' came from some pagan word. They sent me a digital copy of this long book that made all these claims. It was full of junk folk etymologies. The author would find some word that remotely resembled an English word in some ancient Germanic language and assume the two words were related, without any evidence from literature showing the word change over time like real language scholars use. I studied Linguistics for my undergraduate degree with a bit of emphasis on historical linguistics. Word derivations are either documented in literary texts or else they are theoretically derived based on established patterns of sound changes based on study of other languages. This book did neither.
 

ResidentAlien

Well-known member
Apr 21, 2021
7,623
3,199
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#20
There are some good YouTube videos that debunk the idea that Jesus = Zeus.

One of my own observations is simply this: Zeus was a Greek deity; the Roman equivalent was Jupiter. If the RCC wanted to transform Jesus into a pagan deity, wouldn't they have chosen a Roman deity, one the people would more easily understand?
Actually, there's plenty of evidence to show that what Constantine did do was transform Christ into the Roman sun god, Sol.