What's In A Name
I will reveal My Name to My people, and they will come to know its power.
(Isaiah 52:6 NLT)
God places enormous emphasis on names. He regards them as so important He often changed a person’s name when He called them.
Abraham, meaning “father of a multitude,” was originally Abram or “exalted father.” Sarah, meaning “princess,” was originally Sarai. Jacob’s name meant “grabber of the heel” or “deceitful.” His new name, Israel, meant “one who prevails.” Joshua, which means “Jehovah saves” or “the Lord is salvation,” was originally named Hosea. Saul, after his experience with the risen Lord on the road to Damascus, became Paul. And Jesus renamed Simon, Cephas, which means Peter.
Thinking about this, it dawned on me that I do not go by any of my birth names. I did not revert to my maiden name after my divorce, and I shorten my first name from Patricia to Pat. Patricia comes from the Latin and means “noble one.” Pat is a description of a spread, as in a “pat of butter,” or the word for a demonstrative gesture, as in a “pat on the back.” Less appealing is “cow pat.” I think I need to start going by Patricia. My exceptionally talented webmaster goes by the name of Lisa, which means “the Lord is bountiful.”
A name represents the character of the person behind it, and through His names (over eighty-five are listed in the Bible) God reveals His nature to us. Each name is related to His ability to meet our needs, and by giving us His different names, He shows us He is our All in All. No matter what our situation or need, He is able to meet it.
In the beginning God (Elohim) created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1 NKJV).
We meet Elohim, our all-powerful, creator God in the first verse of Genesis. God opened His Word, revealing Himself in majesty and power. Mountainous peaks sprang into being at His word and the waters rolled back to their allotted boundaries at His command. Elohim is also plural reminding us it was the Triune God who created all things, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. When you need an all-powerful God, one who can move mountains with a word, call on Elohim.
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the Lord God made earth and heaven (Genesis 2:4 NASB).
In Genesis 2, we meet Jehovah God (Yahweh), our personal, relational, interactive, and covenantal God. Yahweh (YHWH) was the name the Jews regarded too sacred to be spoken. When God wants to emphasize His relationship with man, He always uses the name Jehovah, and whenever you see the word LORD in capitals in your Bible, it is a translation of Yahweh.
The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake (Psalm 23:1-3 NKJV).
When you are walking through a dark valley, call on Jehovah Rohi, the Lord your Shepherd. He will take your hand and lead you safely out.
I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you (Exodus 15:26 NKJV).
If you need physical or emotional healing, call on Jehovah Rapha, the Lord your Healer.
And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide (Genesis 22:14 NKJV).
Abraham met the Lord Who Provides at the altar when the Lord gave him a ram as a sacrificial replacement for Isaac. When you need provision, call on Jehovah Jireh, the Lord your Provider.
So, Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it The-Lord-Is-Peace (Judges 6:24 NKJV).
When the storms rage and the waves crash over your head, that is when you call on Jehovah Shalom, the Lord Your Peace, and He will calm your heart. He may even come to you, like He did for Peter, walking on the water.
And Moses built an altar and called its name, The-Lord-Is-My-Banner (Exodus 17:15 NKJV).
In the time of Moses, banners weren’t like the banners we see today. They were the insignias at the top of the poles carried by the Israelites to identify the tribes. Joshua met the “Lord Our Banner” when the pre-incarnate Jesus appeared to him as the Commander of Angel Armies (Joshua 5:14). When we go into battle, He goes ahead of us. Call on Jehovah Nissi when you are marching into the battle.
Now this is His name by which He will be called: The-Lord-Our-Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6 NKJV).
This name occurs only twice in the Old Testament (Jeremiah 23:6 and Jeremiah 33:16). When you have slipped and fallen, and are in need of forgiveness, run to Jehovah Tsidkenu, the Lord your Righteousness.
For he made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV).
Jesus is our righteousness. We don’t stand clothed in our own, but in His, purchased at the cross through the shedding of His blood.
Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-The-God-Who-Sees; for she said, “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?” (Genesis 16:13 NKJV).
When Hagar fled into the wilderness to escape Sarah’s cruelty, alone and frightened, seemingly abandoned, the Angel of the Lord came to her, the God Who Sees saw her. He sees you in your pain and abandonment and will come to you when you call on Jehovah Roi, the God Who Sees.
The final name I include is Immanuel, meaning God With Us. This is His incarnational name, the name that embodies and fulfils all the other names. It is “The Name above all Names,” Jesus.
Whatever your need, God has a name that speaks directly to that need. Whatever your situation, call on His name and He will answer. He is there for you in every way—perfectly.
