The Names of God

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                                                  The Names of God.

When I was naming my children, most often I thought of someone I liked or admired.   Perhaps some particular personality trait that made their name meaningful to me.  The middle name was usually after a family member.  It might same in your family.   If Uncle Charlie was an old grouch, he wasn’t included in our list. 

When Moses received a commission from God to go to His oppressed people in Egypt and deliver them from slavery…..Moses asked God….”When I come  unto the children of Israel and shall say unto them,  the God of your fathers sent me unto you; and they shall say to me….what is his name”  What shall I say to them?”  (Ex. 3:13)  God told Moses to tell them that the “I Am who I Am has sent me to you.”  God tells Moses that He is the God of their ancestors and that His name is forever and remembered throughout all generations. 

When Moses received the Ten Commandments number one was.  “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord in vain. (Ex. 20:6).  Because of those words the Jews today will not use the name of God for fear of handling His name carelessly.  The Jewish custom to avoid saying the Divine Name meant that the four consonants of YHWH came to be spelled Adonai, or sometimes Ha Shem (the name). 

In the 1500s, a Friar name Galatinus (at least he is blamed) took the name of Yahweh (another name for God) and by scrambling things up a bit and came up with Jehovah.  This is actually not the correct way of pronouncing YHWH.  Unfortunately even the King James Bible (c.1611) uses it as well as the ASV version.   The Jehovah Witnesses use this erroneously in their name and have their own Bible (The New World Translation) which uses Jehovah at least 7000 times!   We never find it in the New Testament. The Latin Vulgate (4th c.) translates Yahweh as Dominus.  

So how do we say God’s name?  We often say “God” or perhaps “Holy One. “  But there is so much more to His name. 

Our English language is very limited in our names for God.  Not so with Hebrew. There are more than 30 names for God in the Hebrew Scriptures and the New Testament, which reveal some aspect of His character and dealings with mankind.    Hebrew is colorful language built on various root words and syllables with a variety of meanings.

 Here are a few of God’s names:

Elohim……… God, the Creator (has a meaning of more than one…this would be the       multiple personalities of God such as Holy Spirit, and Jesus (Jeshua) (Gen 1:1)
Yahweh………  I Am, The Self-Existent One (YHWH)  (Ex 3:14-15)
El Shaddai…… The All-Sufficient One, God Almighty (Gen 17:1-2)
Adoni…………… Lord and Master (Psalm 16:2)
Yahweh Nessi…….The Lord is My Banner (Exodus 17:15)
Yahweh Roi………..The Lord is My Shepherd (Ps. 23:1-4)
Yatsar ………………..The Potter (Isa. 64:8)
Abba…………………..Father (2 Cor. 6:18)
Immanuel……………God With Us (Matt. 1:22-23)
Alpha and Omega……The Beginning and the End (Rev. 22:13)

This is just a short list of the Divine Name.  When you mediate on these names think of what Scripture says about God and how this affects your worship.  These names become very meaningful and will bless you as you learn more about God’s attributes.

Now that I have argued that the Jehovah’s name should not appear in Bible translations, I still happily sing hymns that include it (Guide me, Oh though great Jehovah……”)   Jehovah has become a word in many languages, a word that probably is here to stay.  I don’t mind people using it.  There are just so many more words for Him.  Add them to your thinking and begin your journey to a more meaningful relationship.

 Blessings to all of you.