Is the word “LORD” a modern-day version of baal?

When referring to the true God of the Old Testament, the term “Lord” is a translation of YHVH, meaning “the Eternal.” There is no connection between “YHVH” and “baal,” one of the many names given to the same pagan god. This pagan god and the many customs associated with it are discussed in detail in some of our booklets, including The True Origin of Christmas and The True Origin of Easter.

Also, the use of “Lord,” in the context of Christ as our “Master” (as in John 13:13-14), is unaffected by the fact that pagans call their gods “lord,” which is wrong, because there is only one Lord (I Cor. 8:6; Eph. 4:5-6).

Another example would be the word “amen,” a term also associated with a god in certain pagan cultures. Historical records do indicate that the ancient Egyptians had, among their many gods, a god called Amen (the presumed personification of air or breath, represented by a ram or goose). However, no evidence can be found, linking the word amen (Hebrew: “truth”, “so be it”) to this, or any other, pagan god.

The fact that the Bible’s writers were inspired to use the Hebrew word often certainly validates its correctness. What is the Bible’s definition of this word? Read Revelation 3:14. Here, Christ is referred to as “the Amen, the faithful and true witness.” It is used here in direct relation to the terms true and faithful, and emphasizes Christ and His message, the embodiment of TRUTH (John 14:6; 17:17). These verses conclusively show the word’s scriptural meaning.

In Matthew 6:13, Christ closed His prayer (the model prayer for all Christians) with “Amen.”

A third example is in the fact that in many of the world’s religions, ministers and priests assume the title of “Father” or “Reverend.” But in Matthew 23:9, Christ commanded, “Call no man your Father upon the earth: for One is your Father, which is in heaven.” Christ was specifically referring to the Pharisees of His day, who, because of pride and vanity, expected others to address them as “Father” or “Rabbi.” Christ condemned them for their self-righteous attitudes. His words were recorded for all mankind.

God is our only spiritual “Father.” It is blasphemy to bestow this word as a religious title upon any man. In Psalm 111:9, we read, “…holy and reverend is His [God’s] name.” “Reverend” means worthy of worship. No man is worthy of such high esteem. Paul, who was one of God’s great servants, was inspired to write, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwells no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not” (Rom. 7:18). Even Christ Himself stated, in Matthew 19:17, “There is none good but One, that is, God.” Even Christ, who was God in the flesh (John 1:14), did not exalt Himself. Any man who dares to take to himself a title belonging to God (thereby also violating the Eighth Commandment) will one day have to repent before God for this sin.

Obviously, it is not wrong to call God our Creator “Father.” Nor is it wrong to refer to one’s physical father as “father.” In the Fifth Commandment, God plainly tells us, “Honor your father and mother…”

A final example is in the fact that the first day of the week, Sunday, is referred to by many as the “Sabbath.” But that incorrect understanding does not make it wrong to properly refer to the seventh day as the Sabbath.

In each of the above examples, the error lies with men, not with God or His Word, the Bible. As with most things biblical, everything God commands to be done, the world does not do, and everything God commands not to be done, the world does. (Notice Romans 8:7; Luke 6:46.)