The Names “Jesus” and Joshua”

Many people ask whether or not the names “Jesus” and “Joshua” are really the same.  This is a bit confusing, and it gets somewhat technical.  “Yeshua” is the contracted form of the Hebrew name “Yehoshua.”  Both are used in the Old Testament, and the English spelling for both is “Joshua.”  The specific use for this name in the Old Testament was for the man who succeeded Moses–not specifically for the Messiah, because the Old Testament does not refer to the Messiah by this name. 

Now, in about 200 B.C., the Old Testament was translated from Hebrew to Greek in a work known as the Septuagint, for the benefit of those Jews who spoke Greek.  So, we can learn a lot from the way the Hebrew words were translated into Greek at that time.  

In the Septuagint, in Numbers 13;16, the Hebrew name “Yehoshua” was transliterated into the Greek name “Iesou;” i.e., another form of “Iesous,” with a different case ending because of the way it’s used in the Greek grammar.  (Note that “transliteration” just means changing each letter in the Hebrew name Yeshua into Greek, letter by letter, since names often cannot be specifically “translated.”)  In Nehemiah 8:17, the Hebrew name “Yeshua” was also transliterated into the Greek name “Iesou.”  

Since “Iesous” is the exact English transliteration of the Greek name “Iesou,” we can conclude that the Greek name “Iesous” equates to the Hebrew name “Yeshua,” and its English spelling is “Jesus.”  Furthermore, the name “Joshua” is the English form of the Hebrew word “Yeshua,” and the name “Jesus” is the English form of the Greek word “Iesous.” So, the names “Joshua” and “Jesus” are essentially the same.  It could be said that each one is an English pronunciations for the name of the Lord; one from the Hebrew and one from the Greek.

2 Responses to “The Names “Jesus” and Joshua””

  1. Tamara Glass says:

    I cannot find your blog for Drinking a Sin..so I’m just going to add some scripture here.. Deuteronomy 14:22-26 Tithing Principles NKJ

    22 “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. 23 And you shall eat before the LORD your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always. 24 But if the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or if the place where the LORD your God chooses to put His name is too far from you, when the LORD your God has blessed you, 25 then you shall exchange it for money, take the money in your hand, and go to the place which the LORD your God chooses. 26 And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the LORD your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household.

    KJV
    22Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.

    23And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always.

    24And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee:

    25Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose:

    26And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,

  2. Mehdi says:

    I stopped using NIV in my teens when I bemcae aware that it was becoming so ubiquitous that people were beginning to depend on it’s translation as heavily as the proponents of the KJV. I moved across to the Jerusalem bible for a while, but when I was studying NT Greek at Uni I was recommended to use the NRSV, as the translation tended to follow the Greek better, and I’m still using that (and the Message too). I really dislike the inclusive language in it, but otherwise I find it a nice mix between readability and accuracy.

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