Hebrew Voices #14 – The Name Yeshua in Ancient Babylon

In this episode of Hebrew Voices, The Name Yeshua in Ancient Babylon, Nehemia Gordon heads to Mt. Scopus for a chat with Dr. Uri Gabbay, a professor at The Hebrew University. Their dialog concerns the history, languages and cultures of ancient Mesopotamia … Continue reading →

In this episode of Hebrew VoicesThe Name Yeshua in Ancient Babylon, Nehemia Gordon heads to Mt. Scopus for a chat with Dr. Uri Gabbay, a professor at The Hebrew University. Their dialog concerns the history, languages and cultures of ancient Mesopotamia and culminates in a newly discovered cuneiform tablet bearing the name of a Judean exile by the name of Yeshua.

Their dialog yields rich insight into the multilingual society that birthed the world’s first written language. Ancient Mesopotamians spoke to their kids in Aramaic and later in Greek, but they sang prayers in Sumerian and their legal affairs were recorded by scribes in Akkadian—which, like English today, served as an international language.

Before parsing the spelling of Yeshua in Akkadian, Gabbay begins with the basics: why the writing system is called cuneiform, why the Tigris and Euphrates valley provided the perfect medium for writing, and why most of the hundreds of thousands of extant cuneiform tablets are not great literary works (think Epic of Gilgamesh) but rather financial transactions or legal documents from ordinary lives.

“Ordinary” lives such as “Yeshua’s”—a Judean man living in Babylon past the time when most exiles had returned, and who shared an inheritance with four brothers in the autumn of 504 BCE. While Mesopotamian scribes had very standard spellings for Akkadian names, the Yeshua tablet provides case-in-point for how they dealt with a foreign theophoric name such as Yeshua’s that contained sounds the Akkadian language had no letters for. Tune in to learn more about the complex connections between languages and some of the interesting things that happen when cultures collide.

I look forward to reading your comments!

Audio TranscriptRead more

Transcript

Hebrew Voices #14 – The Name Yeshua in Ancient Babylon

You are listening to Hebrew Voices with Nehemia Gordon. Thank you for supporting Nehemia Gordon's Makor Hebrew Foundation. Learn more at NehemiasWall.com.

Benjamin Netanyahu: Le ma’an Zion lo ekhesheh, u’l’ma’an Yerushalayim lo eshkot. (For Zion’s sake I will not be silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest. Isaiah 62:1)

Nehemia: Shalom, this is Nehemia Gordon with Hebrew Voices, and I’m here at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the Mount Scopus campus, and I am speaking with Dr. Uri Gabbay, who has a PhD in Assyriology. Shalom, Uri.

Uri: Shalom.

Nehemia: Uri, what is Assyriology?

Uri: Assyriology is the study of ancient Mesopotamia, usually from about 3,000 BC to about the 1st century AD, and basically it deals with reading cuneiform tablets in Sumarian and Akkadian.

Nehemia: Wow. That’s a lot of stuff. So Mesopotamia, which today is southern Iraq, or part of Iraq?

Uri: Southern and also northern Iraq.

Comments

Hannah L WilkinsonJune 18, 2022 at 12:24 AM

Some here the almighty speak ❤️ i believe a lot of people know of God/Jesus but they don’t actually know God.

SharonMarch 16, 2020 at 10:51 AM

This is wrong
first, is not written in hebrew but in old Akkadian

Second: is not yachu- a
But yahoshu because in Akkadian doesn’t exist the áyin ע

The specialist in in Akkadian says that the jewish didn’t understand the Akkadian language but aramaic this is the reason why is found aramaic translations in the Akkadian tablets

Isaac TorresOctober 25, 2019 at 11:55 AM

Thanks so much for your Time and research it’s a Gift for those like my self looking for Answers

QueruvimSeptember 6, 2019 at 7:53 PM

Hebrew is the most ancient alphabet and idiom. Douglas Petrovich has proved this already!

jehovajahDecember 20, 2018 at 12:08 AM

Where do I begin!
Firstly the mimation. Is it a part of speech like a dative or accusative or is it a diminutive plural? So ilu, plural ilui or ili, sometimes not clearly distinct from ilium,ilim.
Maybe I have my answer but spell it out, please.

danielJune 11, 2018 at 9:22 PM

‘Yahu’ goes at the end (Netanyahu, Yermiyahu). ‘Yeho’ goes as a prefix (Yehoshephat, Yehoshua).

1more2013June 2, 2018 at 8:30 PM

I’ve always wanted to know that too, along with it transliterated and written in Hebrew 🙂

George MichealsJune 1, 2018 at 11:25 PM

Very Interesting Nehemia Thank you for sharing this.

JaniceMay 31, 2018 at 8:00 PM

At the beginning of your program; PM Netanyahu is speaking in Hebrew. Please tel us what is he saying.

Rita BojorquezMay 31, 2018 at 12:57 PM

My heart keeps doing somersaults when I hear this info, Thank You. (I downloaded the Podcast and keep hearing it. I get the same reaction from the heart).

Karen PowellMay 30, 2018 at 12:59 PM

So this would explain why people say that Daniel was a eunach.But,he may not have actually been a physical eunach.Which leaves open he is a higher position,he could be a physical eunach or could be like Jeremiah he doesn’t have offspring because he is in captivity.Since YHVH does not make it as an issue to point it out.It’s left open. You can have a personal name or title.I don’t have a problem with it being Jesus/Yeshua. Because,would he be THE SEED,The Prophet. The son.Yah Saves and confirms his promise to mankind.

danielMay 16, 2018 at 2:08 AM

Fascinating – and you never cease to amaze me with who you bring and what is discussed. The ‘Lamenting’ form of music or prayer being assimilated made me think of Jazz and how it migrated north – and then from the aftermath of two world wars had a huge influence on British rock, Rhythm and Blues and “Blue-eyed Soul”, all which turned around and influenced another generation of American musicians.

Ari'elApril 3, 2017 at 7:50 AM

So the name of Ha’Mashiach could be Yahushua, seeing the Akkadian had all names containing Elohims name beginning or ending as Yahu.

Yosie schmidtJanuary 22, 2016 at 11:57 PM

Thank you so much

JoostJanuary 10, 2016 at 3:20 PM

DICTIONARY of the TARGUMIM….(and some more)

By Marcus Jastrow

Old but good.

Mary YehJanuary 3, 2016 at 11:59 PM

I am in great awe at this very wonderful interview! Thank you, Nehemia, for exposing Strong ‘s. I will be searching the other titles you mentioned for my personal study of Biblical Hebrew and Akkadian to keep learning. Dr Uri is a fount of knowledge! Babylonology. I would love you to interview him again on the Judean names found on the cunniforms and their beautiful meaning of belonging to the Blessed One: YHVH. I listened to this program 5 times I loved it so much! It is permanent in my phone to hear over and over and over. I can’t thank you enough!

JDJanuary 3, 2016 at 11:11 AM

He does speak to people still. I kept asking how one might I know the difference between His voice and The still Small voice that could be our own thoughts. One day I heard His voice loud and clear. It was a Warning That came to pass Within minutesYou will know if you hear his voice

JaniceJanuary 1, 2016 at 4:47 PM

Very interesting. To think people killed each other over they gods, maybe just didn’t understand each other language.

Roger FarrahJanuary 1, 2016 at 5:20 PM

Help me with the word Muthlabben in Psalm 9.

MaryAnneJanuary 1, 2016 at 12:49 PM

Yes, I wonder! And know we are told “not to add or take away” but do we really think our adversary cares about rules?! He has definitely had his hand in the translations I believe. There is a certain amount that YH_H would not LET him mess with, but do I believe every word is from him… no (and I ask for forgiveness
if I’m wrong).

Erin HunterDecember 31, 2015 at 10:31 PM

I have to wonder is anyone else here’s that we have not truly been handed down the true interpretation or Scripture’s to date. It seems that too many diverse idea’s has come to us from a secret submission. Doesn’t anyone wonder why we do not hear the Almighty speak today???
Something very strange is happening here on earth.
Interested in others feedback too.

I really want answers because I am definitely interested in getting facts.

MaryAnneDecember 31, 2015 at 12:52 PM

I always learn so much from your discussions, and I appreciate you! Can you tell me where this painting above comes from, it’s very interesting, I’ve been studying old art because I think we can learn a lot from them too 🙂 I wonder what the scene is telling us, and it always fascinates me how artists paint baby Yeshua with blonde hair!

Leaves HealDecember 31, 2015 at 12:46 PM

I’m wondering whether this could have been the same Yehoshua from Haggai 2:2 ?

Leaves HealDecember 31, 2015 at 12:37 PM

Thank you!
Found this one on Amazon:
http://amzn.to/1MJH8tz

Nehemia GordonDecember 30, 2015 at 7:52 PM
Elizabeth ManginDecember 30, 2015 at 7:33 PM

Hi Nehemia could you please tell me which are dictionaries for Biblical Hebrew

thanks!!

Shoshannah CongdonDecember 28, 2015 at 2:45 AM

Fascinating! Thank you.

Rick WinklerDecember 26, 2015 at 9:53 PM

Thank you, Nehemia. This broadcast is another gem.

Please sign in or sign up to add a comment.

Stay Connected

Subscribe to receive new teachings, event updates, and special announcements.