Editing Yahweh (section)

===Late Bronze Age origins (1550–1200{{nbsp}}BCE)===
There is almost no agreement on the deity's origins.{{sfn|Fleming|2020|p=3}} Yahweh is not attested other than among the Israelites, and there is no consensus on its etymology, with {{tlit|hbo|ehyeh ašer ehyeh}} ('[[I Am that I Am]]'), the explanation presented in [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]] 3:14,<ref>{{bibleverse||Exodus|3:14|HE}}</ref> appearing to be a late theological [[Gloss (annotation)|gloss]] invented at a time when the original meaning had been forgotten,{{sfn|Parke-Taylor|1975|p=51}} although some scholars dispute this.{{sfn|Lewis|2020|page=214}}{{sfn|Miller II|2021|p=18}} Lewis connects the name to the [[Amorite language|Amorite]] element {{tlit|mis|yahwi-}} (''ia-wi''), found in personal names in [[Mari, Syria|Mari]] texts,{{sfn|Kitz|2019|pp=42, 57}} meaning 'brings to life'{{\}}'causes to exist' (e.g., ''yahwi-dagan'' = "[[Dagon]] causes to exist"), commonly denoted as the semantic equivalent of the [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] {{tlit|akk|ibašši-DN}};{{sfn|Lewis|2020|pp=211, 215}} though [[Frank Moore Cross]] emphasized that the Amorite verbal form is of interest only in attempting to reconstruct the verbal root of the name "Yahweh", and that attempts to take ''yahwi-'' as a divine epithet should be "vigorously" argued against.{{sfn|Cross|1973|pp=61-63}}<ref>{{harvnb|Fleming|2020|p=176}}: "There has been one key objection, by Michael Streck, who reevaluated Amorite personal names as a whole in 2000 and as part of this work published the separate conclusion (1999) that all the ''Ya-wi-'' and ''Ya-aḫ-wi-'' elements in these names must be understood to reflect the same root ''ḥwy'', "to live"....If Streck is correct that these are all forms of the verb "to live", then the Amorite personal names must be set aside as useful to any interpretation of the name [Yahweh]." But see {{harvnb|Fleming|2020b|p=425}}: "While the identification of the verbal root in the Amorite names with and without the -''ḫ''- remains impossible to prove with certainty, the parallels with contemporary Old Babylonian Ibašši-DN and the later second-millennium parallels from the verb ''kwn'' show the viability of a West Semitic root ''hwy'', "to be, be evident", for at least some portion of these Amorite names."</ref> In addition, J. Philip Hyatt believes it is more likely that {{tlit|mis|yahwi-}} refers to a god creating and sustaining the life of a newborn child rather than the universe. This conception of God was more popular among ancient Near Easterners but eventually, the Israelites removed the association of {{tlit|mis|yahwi-}} to any human ancestor and combined it with other elements (e.g., {{tlit|hbo|Yahweh ṣəḇāʾōṯ}}).<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hyatt |first=J. Philip |date=1967 |title=Was Yahweh Originally a Creator Deity? |journal=Journal of Biblical Literature |volume=86 |issue=4 |pages=369–377 |jstor=3262791}}</ref>{{Update inline|date=April 2024|reason=The source is literally almost 60 years old.}} Hillel Ben-Sasson states there is insufficient evidence for Amorites using ''yahwi-'' for gods, but he argues that it mirrors other theophoric names and that ''yahwi-'', or more accurately ''yawi'', derives from the root ''hwy'' in ''pa'al,'' which means "he will be".{{sfn|Ben-Sasson|2019|pp=55–56}}

One scholarly theory is that "Yahweh" originated in a shortened form of {{tlit|hbo|ˀel ḏū yahwī ṣabaˀôt}}, '[[El (deity)|El]] who creates the hosts',{{sfn|Miller|2000|p=2}} which Cross considered to be one of the cultic names of El.{{sfn|Cross|1973|p=71}} However, this phrase is nowhere attested either inside or outside the Bible, and the two gods are in any case quite dissimilar, with El being elderly and paternal and lacking Yahweh's association with the storm and battles.{{sfn|Day|2002|pp=13–14}} Even if the above issues are resolved, Yahweh is generally agreed to have a non-causative etymology because otherwise, YHWH would be translated as YHYH.{{sfn|Lewis|2020|p=222}} It also raises the question of why the Israelites would want to shorten the epithet. One possible reason includes the co-existence of religious modernism and conservatism being the norm in all religions.{{sfn|Lewis|2020|p=222}}

The oldest plausible occurrence of Yahweh's name is in the [[Egyptian language|Egyptian]] [[demonym]] {{tlit|egy|[[wikt:tꜣ-šꜣsw-yhwꜣ|tꜣ šꜣsw Yhwꜣ]]}}, 'YHWA [in] the Land of the [[Shasu]]' ([[Egyptian language|Egyptian]]: {{Script/Egyp|{{lang|egy|𓇌𓉔𓍯𓄿}}}} {{tlit|egy|Yhwꜣ}}) in an inscription from the time of [[Amenhotep III]] (1390–1352{{nbsp}}BCE),{{sfn|Shalomi Hen|2021}}{{sfn|Anderson|2015|p=100}} the [[Shasu]] being nomads from [[Midian]] and [[Edom]] in northern Arabia.{{sfn|Grabbe|2007|p=151}} Although it is still uncertain whether a relationship exists between the toponym ''yhwꜣ'' and theonym ''YHWH'',<ref>{{harvnb|Shalomi Hen|2021}}: "Unfortunately, albeit the interesting analogies, the learned discussions, and the broad perspective, the evidence is too scanty to allow any conclusions concerning the exact meaning of the term YHWA/YHA/YH as it appears in Ancient Egyptian records."</ref> the dominant view is that Yahweh was from the southern region associated with [[Mount Seir|Seir]], Edom, [[Desert of Paran|Paran]] and [[Teman (Edom)|Teman]].{{sfn|Smith|2017|p=42}} There is considerable although not universal support for this view,{{sfn|Grabbe|2007|p=153}} but it raises the question of how Yahweh made his way to the north.{{sfn|Van der Toorn|1999|p=912}} An answer many scholars consider plausible is the [[Kenite hypothesis]], which holds that traders brought Yahweh to Israel along the [[Caravan (travellers)|caravan]] routes between [[Ancient Egypt|Egypt]] and [[Canaan]].{{sfn|Van der Toorn|1999|pp=912–913}} This ties together various points of data, such as the absence of Yahweh from Canaan, his links with Edom and Midian in the biblical stories, and the [[Kenite]] or Midianite ties of [[Moses]],{{sfn|Van der Toorn|1999|p=912}} but its major weaknesses are that the majority of Israelites were firmly rooted in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]], while the historical role of Moses is problematic.{{sfn|Van der Toorn|1995|pp=247–248}} It follows that if the Kenite hypothesis is to be maintained, then it must be assumed that the Israelites encountered Yahweh (and the Midianites/Kenites) inside Israel and through their association with the earliest political leaders of Israel.{{sfn|Van der Toorn|1995|p=248}} Christian Frevel argues that inscriptions allegedly suggesting Yahweh's southern origins (e.g., "YHWH of Teman") may simply denote his presence there at later times, and that Teman can refer to any southern territory, including Judah.<ref name=":0" />

Alternatively, some scholars argue that YHWH worship was rooted in the indigenous culture of the [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|Kingdom of Israel]] and was promoted in the [[Kingdom of Judah]] by the [[Omrides]].<ref name=":0">{{cite journal |last=Frevel |first=Christian |date=2021 |title=When and from Where did YHWH Emerge? Some Reflections on Early Yahwism in Israel and Judah |journal=Entangled Religions |volume=12 |issue=2 |doi=10.46586/er.12.2021.8776 |issn=2363-6696 |doi-access=free |hdl=2263/84039 |hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{cite journal |title=God's Best 'Frenemy': A New Perspective on YHWH and Baal in Ancient Israel and Judah |journal=Semitica |url=https://www.academia.edu/45062733 |last=Stahl |first=Michael J. |volume=63 |pages=45–94 |doi=10.2143/SE.63.0.3289896 |year=2021 |issn=2466-6815}}</ref> Frevel suggests that [[Hazael]]'s conquests in the Kingdom of Israel forced the two kingdoms to cooperate, which spread YHWH worship among Judean commoners. Previously, YHWH was viewed as the patron god of the Judean <em>state</em>.<ref name=":0" />