<a href="https://biblicalmissiology.org/blog/author/benelchi/" target="_self">Mike Tisdell</a>

Mike Tisdell

Studied Biblical Studies (with an emphasis on OT) at San Jose Bible college (Now called William Jessup University) and Computer Science and Hebrew at San Jose State University. Currently works as a Network Consultant professionally.

6 Comments

  1. Steve jenkins

    You keep saying Allah is both an indefinite common noun and a proper name. That is inaccurate. اله is indefinite, الاله and الله are both definite. The indefinite common noun is اله.
    You cannot say something in Arabic like “there is an allah.” It would have to be ‘ilah’ to be indefinite. So I am not sure what your point is when you say that.

  2. Mindy B

    What’s up?

    I found this article very interesting…please read!

    Do you remember the blockbuster hit film The Matrix that was released in 1999? You may not know this, but it has deep spiritual implications concerning the times we are living in and Bible prophecy.

    It tells a story of how these “agents” are trying to turn us into machines. We are closer then ever before for this to become a reality when they cause us to receive an implantable microchip in our body during a time when physical money will be no more.

    You may have seen on NBC news concerning the implantable RFID microchip that some people are getting put in their hand to make purchases, but did you know this microchip matches perfectly with prophecy in the Bible?

    “He (the false prophet who deceives many by his miracles) causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name…

    You also may have heard of the legendary number “666” that people have been speculating for possibly thousands of years on what it actually means. This article shares something I haven’t seen before, and I don’t think there could be any better explanation for what it means to calculate 666. This is no hoax. Very fascinating stuff!

    …Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666″ (Revelation 13:16-18 NKJV).

    To see all the details showing why the Bible foretold of all these things, check out this article!

    Article: http://1.voicetruth.org

    GOD is sending out His end time warning:

    “Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name” (Revelation 14:9-11).

    Seek Jesus while He may be found…God bless!

  3. Mike Tisdell

    Msaydi, you said, “Allah is the proper name of the only God?” However, that is only half true. Allah in Arabic can be used as a proper name but it is also used as a common noun for ‘god.’ When we look at historical practices of Arabic bible translation we can see that ‘allah’ is the common word used to translate ‘theos’ (common noun in Greek for god), eloah/elohim/el (common nouns for god in Hebrew), and ‘elah’ (common noun in Aramaic). Traditionally in Arabic bible translations YHWH (OT) and Kurios (NT) are translated as ‘Rabb’ not ‘Allah.’

    The use of honorifics like Adonai (Hebrew), Kurios (Greek), Dominus (Latin), Mara (Syriac), Herr (German), Lord (English), Rabb (Arabic), etc… has a very long history that predates the time of Christ. Allah is a valid translation of theos, eloah, elohim, el, or elah in Arabic, it is not a valid choice for the translation of Yahweh.

    Consider the following from Deut. 5:6:

    أَنَا هُوَ الرَّبُّ إِلهُكَ الَّذِي أَخْرَجَكَ مِنْ أَرْضِ مِصْرَ

    אָנֹכִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִיךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם

  4. Ibrahim

    Allah is the Arabic proper name for the creator. If the scriptures had been revealed in Turks the name of God would have been Tanri. Would that mean that no dialect will have its proper name for God? Asking if YHWH changed his name to Allah is demeaning to the majesty of God as the God of all flesh. (Jer 32.27) Allah is the name of God in the Arabic tongue just as YHWH is the name of God in hebraic. This is a reality you are to live with.

  5. Mike Tisdell

    You are technically correct i.e. most do believe that Al-ilah is the source for Allah, but this is disputed. That being said, common usage dictates how it is understood and It is understood as a common noun in some contexts and a proper name in other contexts.

    In the Vandyke translation (a very conservative translation) Ge. 1:1 is translated as ‎فِي الْبَدْءِ خَلَقَ اللهُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضَ (Gen. 1:1 AVD); this is consistent with most Arabic translations. Additionally if I want to refer to the Hindu God, I would say: الله الهندوسي

    If it were in my control, I would not have allowed الله to have developed also into a proper name and an indefinite common noun, but language frequently evolves in ways that don’t make the best sense.

    I do strongly agree with you that the god known by the proper name Allah is not Yahweh, but at the same time we need to recognize that most Arabic Christians do understand اللهُ as a common noun referring to the divine being who is called Yahweh. This usage predates Islam.

  6. msaydi

    Nice article but it requires some clarification:

    The noun god translates to arabic as Ilah (the god = Al-ilah). According the Arabic language dictionary, Allah is the proper name of the only God (The Majestic Name of Allah) (ISM AL-JALALAH الإسم الْجَلالة) and it is not a noun as you mention.

    The proof is from the quoran itself: لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا ٱلله = la ilaha illa Allah = There is no god but Allah

    Does god changed his name from Yahweh to Allah? I do not think so.

    Thanks and God Bless!

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