In the Bible the change of names is not uncommon. For example, about 4,000 years ago, the names of Abram, the Hebrew patriarch, and of Sarai, his wife the matriarch, were divinely changed. Abram became Avraham (Genesis 17:5), and Sarai’s name was changed to Sara (Genesis 17:15). Later, about 2,500 years ago, during the captivity of the Judean people in Babylon, the captors gave new Gentile names to four young Jewish men:
And the chief of the officers gave names unto them: unto Daniel he gave the name of Belteshazzar; and to Hananiah, of Shadrach; and to Mishael, of Meshach; and to Azariah, of Abed-Nego. (Daniel 1:7)
Half a millennium later, in the first century AD, the names of two apostles, followers of the Lord Yeshua, were also changed: Simon (Shimon in Hebrew), Son of Jonah, received directly from the Messiah the name of Kepha (Rock in Aramaic), translated to Petros and Peter (John 1: 43). Several years later, the new apostle Saul (Shaul), the teacher of the Gentiles (2 Timothy 1:11),...
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This piece is very good and nicely written, Mr. Nerel.
Very interesting, thank you for writing!
But I hope that in another piece you will write about the name change for hiding, as you called it. Especially with the so-called “Jewish Emancipation” in Germany in the 19th century. In my opinion, the German, French and English Wikepedia are all wrong or too short on this issue.
But the surnames remain telltale, even if many don’t even know it. And very many of those, cannot or only compulsively believe in the teachings of the Christian churches. They have not yet been able to find and experience a relationship with YHW and his prophet Yoshua. But yet they seek it like Yoshua did in the desert, they thirst in despair, they betray their own being, their people, they suffer. And some even support their own murderers.