YHVH Viewed as a Dynamic Being
Jews should begin by exploring the theological concept of YHVH (יהוה) viewed as a dynamic being—often discussed in contrast to the Greek philosophical idea of an unchanging God. In 2008, the Catholic church reaffirmed its view that translations and liturgical texts should not attempt to transliterate the divine name YHVH because using ‘the Lord’ (or equivalent) has been the church’s tradition from the beginning and it preserves the mysterious holiness of God. The Jerusalem Bible (1966) and The New Jerusalem Bible (1985) both use ‘Yahweh’ consistently.
The God that Is vs. The God that Becomes: In Jewish theology, there is a classic tension between two views of the YHVH. The Immutable Essence (Maimonides): Traditional medieval rationalists like Rabbi Maimonides viewed YHVH as completely static. God does not change; only human perception or God’s actions relative to us change.
And the Dynamic Being (Nahmanides & Kabbalah): Mystics like Moses Nahmanides (Ramban) and later Kabbalistic traditions view YHVH as a dynamic, reactive, and evolving presence. Here, the Name itself represents various dimensions of God’s life that respond directly to human actions, history, and relationships. This dynamic interpretation is supported by the grammar of the Name itself.
When God reveals His name to Prophet Moses in Exodus 3:14 (Ehyeh asher ehyeh), it translates closely to “I will become what I will be”. This implies an active, ongoing, and relational presence (“I will be there with you”) rather than an abstract, frozen concept of existence. Understanding that YHVH. is dynamic should help strong believers to become more flexible in their relationships, and with people of other religious. For example, Islamic law forbids forcing individuals to convert to Islam, stating there is “no compulsion in religion” (la ikraha fi al-din).
Prof. James A. Diamond of the University of Waterloo points out that: “Essential to the development of all divine name theology is the name YHWH, which, occurs repeatedly throughout the book of Genesis, but is only introduced formally, in direct response to Moses’ request for it, in Exodus 3:13 at the burning bush theophany. Exodus 6:3 corroborates its unprecedented disclosure to Moses: Exodus 6:3 “I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as E-l Shad-dai, but I did not make Myself known to them by My name YHWH.”
Although its apparent meaning is “cause to be,” it remains unclear what precisely the name means. Cognate Semitic roots inventively render alternatives ranging from “blow” (thus a storm god), to “fall” (thus the one who destroys), to “roar” (thus the god of thunder), to “passionate,” to name but a few. Whatever the historical meaning of the name, the Torah’s first communication of it to Moses includes an etymological nod towards its meaning in the seemingly tautological and seductive play on the root “to be” of ehyeh asher ehyeh “I will be who I will be”. Exodus 3:14. And God said to Moses, “Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh.” He continued, “Thus shall you say to the Israelites, ‘Ehyeh sent me to you.’”
This enigmatic phrase, evasively formulated in the first person imperfect form of the root “to be,” rather than the third person of the name itself, has provoked an endless stream of translations, interpretations, and scholarship, from the Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation, to the twentieth century philosopher Martin Buber, and beyond. This contentiousness itself attests to what I believe is its deliberate ambiguity and openendedness.
Enigmatic as it may be, ehyeh asher ehyeh remains the sole overt exposition of the divine name YHWH in the entire Hebrew Bible. Thus, it is also of utmost importance to comprehend the narrative context from which it emerged to become a mainstay of any Jewish theology, or philosophical.