Translating the Divine Name

The meaning and the pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton has attracted much interest through the centuries. In the twentieth century, the historical interest of the Albright-Bright-Wright school and its disciples established the likely pronunciation of the divine name alongside much historical and linguistic speculation regarding its provenance and meaning. The publication of T.N.D. Mettinger’s In Search of God in the late 1980’s kindled interest in translation circles.
The present study shall (1) present the consensus position regarding the pronunciation of the divine name, (2) present a brief and selective history of the divine name in translation, (3) present a brief history of discussions regarding the translation of the divine name since 1985, (4) present exegetical considerations from Exodus 3:15–16 in relation to the argument for transliterating the divine name on the basis of the phrase “this is my name forever” (Exod 3:15), and (5) note the reception history of the divine name in the New Testament with implications for Bible translation. On the basis of these considerations, exegetical evidence supports the traditional Christian practice of translating the divine name with the equivalent of “Lord.”