( POSSIBLE ) ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE FOR THE EARLIEST EXTANT CHRISTIAN REFERENCE TO BELIEF IN THE RESURRECTION & THE USE OF THE ( TETRAGRAMMATON ) BY CHRISTIANS

A tomb in Jerusalem was discovered in 1973 when some apartment blocks were being prepared to be built. It was briefly (but not thoroughly) excavated in 1981, then resealed because of protests by Ultra-Orthodox Jews. It is dated as being typical of a Jewish tomb from somewhere between 20-70 C.E. Between 2009-2011 it was reexamined by means of a robotic camera and it was discovered that it is most likely to be a VERY EARLY CHRISTIAN TOMB.

What is so remarkable about that?

They found inscriptions (one possible, the other definite) with:


 GREEK TRANSLITERATIONS OF 
THE [Heb., ( יהוה )] TETRAGRAMMATON
 

  1. Gk., ( ΠΙΠΙ ) = possible
  2. Gk., ( ΙΑΙΟ ) = definite

 



FULL ESSAY AVAILABLE ON PDF:


JAMES D. TABOR: “...2. Ossuary 2:2=Kloner 2:1. This ossuary is highly decorated on its front side with deeply carved rosettes and frieze border. The sides and back of the ossuary are plain. It has an odd incised marking in the upper right corner of the decorated front: a stick- like “animal” figure with four legs, head, and tail, though we were not certain of that identification (Fig. 17). WE ALSO CONSIDERED IT MIGHT BE A REPRESENTATION OF THE DIVINE NAME, Yod, Heh, Vav, Heh ( YAHWEH ) [ JEHOVAH ] WRITTEN IN EITHER STYLIZED HEBREW OR GREEK: ( יהוה ) = ΠΙΠΙ.{26} IF SUCH IS THE CASE IT MIGHT SHED LIGHT ON THE GREEK INSCRIPTION ON OSSUARY 5:3, LINE 2, THAT WE THINK HAS THE DIVINE NAME WRITTEN IN THE GREEK LETTERS ( ΙΑΙΟ ). IF SO WE HAVE SOMETHING UNIQUE AND HIGHLY IRREGULAR AS THERE ARE NO EXAMPLES OF JEWISH INSCRIPTIONS FROM THIS PERIOD IN JERUSALEM THAT WRITE OUT THE DIVINE NAME YAHWEH [ JEHOVAH ].{27} We have to assume that such a practice, particularly in a tomb, which was considered tum’a—that is, ritually unclean —is heterodox, reflecting a sectarian perspective (Numbers 19:16).{28}...” - (Pages 12-13; Sub-Section: 2. Ossuary 2:2=Kloner 2:1; Subheading: The Ossuaries and their Inscriptions ; “A Preliminary Report of a Robotic Camera, Exploration of a Sealed 1st Century Tomb in East Talpiot, Jerusalem,” By James D. Tabor, University of North Carolina at Charlotte jdtabor@uncc.edu.)
[FOOTNOTE 26]: Certain ancient versions of the Greek Old Testament (e.g., Origen's Hexapla, the Greek versions of Aquila, Symmachus, and some manuscripts of the LXX represented the Hebrew divine name, Yod Heh Vav Heh in Hebrew letters which were read by the uninitiated to look like the Greek letters Pi, Iota, Pi, Iota —thus ( ΠΙΠΙ or PIPI ).
[FOOTNOTE 27]: Cotton, et al., CIIP is the latest published survey of 692 known inscriptions.
[FOOTNOTE 28]: See Sanhedrin 10:1; Tosefta Sanhedrin 12:9: “...All Israel are worthy of the world to come. [...] and those are not: he who argues that the resurrection in not in the Torah and that the Torah is not from heaven and the Epikores. [...] Aba Shaul says: and he who pronounces the Name by its letters...”

JAMES D. TABOR: “...5. Ossuary 5:3=Kloner 5:2. This ossuary is has a highly ornamented f ront façade with twin rosettes and an elaborate frieze border. In the narrow curved blank space between the rosettes there is a four line Greek inscription written in uncial letters ( Fig. 1 9 ). The final two letters of line 4 are uncertain, both in their formation and due to the limitations of remote autopsy by camera. […] ΔΙΟΣ is an adjective (masc. nom/voc. sing.) likely modifying what we take to be the proper noun in line 2. It can be variously translated as “heavenly,” “divine ” “wondrous”– but here in this context it seems to clearly refer to God.{31} ( ΙΑΙΟ ) WE TAKE AS A GREEK REPRESENTATION OR TRANSLITERATION OF THE TETRAGRAMMATON: ( יהוה ) (Yod, Heh, Vav, Heh) —THAT IS YAHWEH [ JEHOVAH ]. It is unusual in that it has four letters rather than the common three -letter form ( ΙΑΩ ).{32} Josephus says the divine name is represented by four “vowels.”{33} It is possible that this writer intended it as a precise transliteration —since the Hebrew name of God also has four letters.{34} Accordingly, the inscription, though written in Greek letters, is purposely bilingual—first a Greek representation of God—the “Divine one,” followed by a Hebrew presentation —YAHWEH [ JEHOVAH ]—but represented in Greek letters. ( ΥΨΩ ) is the present indic. act. 1st person singular of the contract verb ΥΨΟΩ, to “raise,” “lift up” or “exalt.” As literally written it could then be translated “I DIVINE JEHOVAH RAISE UP” or “I EXALT [YOU] O DIVINE JEHOVAH” (taking ΔΙΟΣ as a vocative). […] IN THE NEW TESTAMENT T HERE ARE MANY PASSAGES IN WHICH JESUS KNOWS, BEARS, AND REVEALS GOD BY HIS “NAME” YAHWEH [ JEHOVAH ]—THAT IS THE FOUR - LETTER TETRAGRAMMATON. […] If so this inscription would be a plea to “God/Yahweh ,” called upon in bilingual fashion, to raise someone up: “O DIVINE/GOD JEHOVAH, RAISE UP!{*} [...] Much depends on the transcription of the last line with its three letters since the final two are difficult to read. If we take the final line as ΑΠΟ, that is, the preposition “from,” it is possible that it might be an abbreviated plea for resurrection “from [the dead]...” - (Pages 14-17; Sub-Section: 5. Ossuary 2:2=Kloner 2:1; Subheading: The Ossuaries and their Inscriptions ; “A Preliminary Report of a Robotic Camera, Exploration of a Sealed 1st Century Tomb in East Talpiot, Jerusalem,” By James D. Tabor, University of North Carolina at Charlotte jdtabor@uncc.edu.)
[FOOTNOTE 31]: Liddel Scott, sv. Dios.
[FOOTNOTE 32]: There is an example ΙΑΙΟΩ ref erring to “Baal” in a papyrus published by David R . Jordan, “Notes from Carthage,” Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik 111 (1996) 115 – 123. Other examples are: Diodorus Siculus Ἰαῶ (Iao); Irenaeus says certain gnostics formed a compound Ἰαωθ (Iaoth=related to Sabaoth?); Valentinians use Ἰαῶ (Iao); Clement of Alexandria: Ἰαοὺ (Iaou) or Ἰαουέ (Iaoue) and Origen of Alexandria, Ἰαῶ (Iao), see: Diodorus Siculus, Histories. I, 94.; Irenaeus, Against Heresies II, xxxv, 3, in P.G., VII, col. 840 and I, iv, 1, in P.G., VII, col. 481; Clement, "Stromata", V, 6, in P.G., IX, col. 60; and
Origen, "In John.", II, 1, in P .G., XIV, col. 105.
[FOOTNOTE 33]: Josephus, Wars 5.235.
[FOOTNOTE 34]: I thank R ichard Bauckham f or t his point. He suggests that the first iota and the second one are purposely written in a different style to represent the two Hebrew letters Yod and Vav.
[PERSONAL FOOTNOTE *]: In the context he proposes the theory that JHVH/YHWH could refer to Jesus as JHVH/YHWH or Jesus as JHVH/YHWH's representative. He also proposes that a carved image of a square box with cross beams in it could be the earliest image of a “cross” although, when one sees the entire carving, in it's full picture context, it is highly obvious, and most likely just a picture of some sort of building or hut structure with a window in it.

JAMES D. TABOR: “...That, along with THE UNPRECEDENTED EXAMPLE OF WRITING THE DIVINE NAME YAHWEH [ JEHOVAH ] IN GREEK LETTERS IN A JEWISH TOMB—a place of tum’a or ritual defilement —argues for a heterodox or sectarian context. The family buried in this tomb are Jews to be sure, and the style of the tomb, the ornamentation's of the ossuaries, and everything else about it is nothing out of the ordinary —other than these semi- informal inscriptions of both epitaph and icon...” - (Page 23, Subheading: Brief Concluding Observations ; “A Preliminary Report of a Robotic Camera, Exploration of a Sealed 1st Century Tomb in East Talpiot, Jerusalem,” By James D. Tabor, University of North Carolina at Charlotte jdtabor@uncc.edu.)

NOTE: Emphasis is added to the text above by myself.

Counterfeit (or Tri{3}nitarian) Christianity, which is the prevailing form in the world today, which also consists of the majority of those who profess to believe in Jesus and the God of the Bible, have claimed that the earliest Christians didn't use the Divine Name or Tetragrammaton JEHOVAH.

Slowly but surely, archaeology, is ( perhaps ) proving this claim false.

SEE ALSO THE LINKS BELOW: