Why is the term Immanuel/Emmanuel considered to be a title rather than a proper name?
score:5
There are certainly many names and titles by which the Messiah is called. As well as "Emmanuel", Isaiah has in 9:6 (ESV):
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Aquinas says (Summa Theologica 3.37.2 ad 1):
All these names in some way mean the same as Jesus, which means "salvation." For the name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is "God with us," designates the cause of salvation, which is the union of the Divine and human natures in the Person of the Son of God, the result of which union was that "God is with us." 1
He therefore sees no real contradiction, since both names/titles are apt ways to speak about the same person. (He does not distinguish here between a name and a title, though he of course acknowledges that "Jesus" is the proper name of Jesus.)
John Calvin (Commentariorium in Isaiam prophetam) investigates the meaning of "and (she) shall call" (וְקָרָ֥את) in the Hebrew text of Isaiah. He asserts that the giving of a name, in Hebrew custom, was reserved to the father, and so since it is the mother who is doing the calling here, she must be doing something other than giving the child its regular everyday name. Calvin says she is announcing it like a herald (in hoc nomine promulgando, virginem fore instar praeconis), and it is a designation which is far more splendid than any mere man could have. This all points to it being something other than an ordinary personal name. He further notices (Commentarius in harmoniam evangelicam) that in Matthew, the verb is "they shall call", indicating the shared faith of all believers in the fact and purpose of the Incarnation. If we are all doing the calling together, then it sounds a lot less like the bestowing of a personal name, and a lot more like the recognition of the nature of Jesus, in the form of calling him by a particular special title.
1. in omnibus illis nominibus quodammodo significatur hoc nomen Iesus, quod est significativum salutis. Nam in hoc quod dicitur Emmanuel, quod interpretatur, nobiscum Deus, designatur causa salutis, quae est unio divinae et humanae naturae in persona filii Dei, per quam factum est ut Deus esset nobiscum.
Upvote:0
God Bless everyone I have little to say but what I have to say is meaningful. When Moses ask God "Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them? What was God answer to Moses? God said tell him "I am what I am", meaning that even though we Call Jesus or "Yeshua" God those not have an exact name instead he is everything and everything is in him. He is the healer, he is property he is salvation. The name Immanuel is another tittle giving to him because it was custom for Hebrews give their children meaningful names, and in the title was his purpose for example Christ means anointed, Yeshua means "God is salvation" and Immanuel means "God is with us" so you see that even in the names God speaks to his people. Even though we have an exact name that we call him he does not only goes by a single name because he is an all powerful all knowing God. Hope this helps, God bless.
Upvote:0
The Hebrew for Isaiah 7:14
לכן יתן אדני הוא לכם אות הנה העלמה הרה וילדת בן וקראת שמו עמנו אל
The last two words are "Amnou"(עמנו) + "Al"(אל). You can see these way on the left.
(אל) means "God"
(עמנו) means "with us"
So the end reads: his name will be with us "God"
I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. (John 5:43 NKJV)
For some reason it is transliterated as one word, so it ends up as Amnoual, and in the newer pronunciation as Emmanuel.
Upvote:0
Simply because it is not a proper name. It is a title or epithet. The word 'name' is, however, often used in the sense of 'title'.
The translation in Mt 1:23 that is phrased as 'named his name Immanuel' is a literal rendering, but is not English idiom. The NIV rendering 'call him' is simple, clear, and in proper English.
Cf. G-Mt in a new translation of N.T. (IRENT) in http://tiny.cc/bostonreaders .
More post
- 📝 From a Fundamentalist viewpoint, what does it mean to "take the Bible literally"?
- 📝 What is the history of the "Sunday School publishing industry"?
- 📝 Why does the Fifth Ode (Prayer of Isaiah) begin at verse 9 and end at verse 20?
- 📝 Does "Mere Christianity" represent the core of Christian belief?
- 📝 What is meant by the Jehovah's Witness statement "Jesus was dead, forever dead."?
- 📝 Why are Christian books not Public Domain?
- 📝 Mere Christianity Book I Chapters 1 and 2: How would Lewis explain morality being inherently known but also taught?
- 📝 The Messiah and Joseph's genealogy
- 📝 What is the will of the (Catholic) Church when she baptizes?
- 📝 Can you find scholarly support that Behemoth is an example of humble submission?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, if one, faced with the threat of being burned alive, denied Christ, would his sin be mortal?
- 📝 What are the most striking disagreements (if any) between the early Church Fathers of the second century?
- 📝 What is the origin of the story of the penitent thief as a young boy?
- 📝 According to Calvinism does God both issue commands AND withhold the ability to obey?
- 📝 What epistemology was used to determine the canon of scripture in the Councils?
- 📝 Does Christ explicitly say that this was his first time on Earth?
- 📝 Why did heaven need to be purified by Christ's blood?
- 📝 What does the Bible say Christians should or should not do on the Sabbath?
- 📝 Why is rejection of the Trinity heresy, and not just wrong? (Protestant perspective)
- 📝 Why would people make themselves eunuchs "for the Kingdom of heavens sake"?
- 📝 Why don't Protestants engage in monasticism?
- 📝 Where does the OT predict the Son of man?
- 📝 Is there a difference between prayer and petition?
- 📝 Which book of the law is Joshua 1:8 referring to?
- 📝 Why was Jesus condemned for blasphemy by the Jews?
- 📝 God | The Shepherd That "Breaks Legs"?
- 📝 Did Christians actually debate how many angels can dance on the head of a pin?
- 📝 Who (or what) died on the cross?
- 📝 Can a non-christian be trusted to translate the Bible?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for specifically associating armageddon with fire from heaven?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Why is the term Immanuel/Emmanuel considered to be a title rather than a proper name?
- 📝 Why did the KJV translators translate יהוה on the extremely rare occasion as IEHOVAH rather than LORD?
- 📝 Why did Pope Francis say, "When we encounter the Cross, do we turn to Mary," rather than to Christ?
- 📝 Why do some adherents to the Westminster Standards sing hymns, rather than just psalms?
- 📝 Why is the Latin New Testament authoritative for the Catholic Church rather than the original Greek?
- 📝 Why did the Apostles say to obey God rather than men?
- 📝 Why isn't the cross considered an idol?
- 📝 Why is the number 666 considered evil?
- 📝 Why do Mormons use the term "elder" for their missionaries?
- 📝 Why is the Gospel of Thomas considered heretical by Nicene Christians?
- 📝 Why are wives considered the "weaker partner"? (1 Peter 3:7)
- 📝 What are the reasons for calling oneself a "follower of Jesus" rather than a Christian?
- 📝 Why is Adam considered the original sinner?
- 📝 Why do Protestants not refer to Mary by the title "Mother of God"?
- 📝 Why does the LDS church (Mormon) put so much more emphasis on the family than most other denominations do?
- 📝 Why does God often permit his children to suffer in this world more than the wicked?
- 📝 Why was the epistle of Clement to Corinth not considered canonical?
- 📝 What is the theological justification for the British monarch worshipping in the Church of Scotland, rather than the Scottish Episcopal Church?
- 📝 What biblical reasons are there for using the Lord's Prayer as a pattern for prayer rather than a prayer to repeat verbatim?
- 📝 Why isn't the Eucharist of protestant churches considered valid by non-protestants?
- 📝 Why is denial of the primacy of the bishop of Rome considered a Schism, not a Heresy?
- 📝 Why isn’t the soul (ψυχή) considered to be a “person” (ὑπόστασις)?
- 📝 How do Trinitarians explain the Athanasian Creed saying that the "one God" is the Trinity rather than the Father as in the Nicene Creed?
- 📝 Why do most Christians call Jesus "Son of God" rather than simply "God"?
- 📝 Why is it common to refer to Jacob as Jacob, rather than calling him Israel?
- 📝 Why do Mormons/LDS refer to God as "Heavenly Father" rather than "Our Heavenly Father"?
- 📝 Why did Jesus favor Peter, James and John more than the other disciples?
- 📝 Why did John the Baptist preach repentance through water baptism and specifically how is that different than repentance through ashes and sackcloth?
- 📝 What is the proper title for someone who was a pope and is now canonized as a saint?
- 📝 Why did the Bishop of Rome accept (and retains until today) the title "Pontifex Maximus" and how were the rights and duties transferred/transformed?
