Adonai

1Then Moses answered, “But behold, they will not believe me or listen to my voice, for they will say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you.’” 2 The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” 3 And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. 4 But the LORD said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand— 5 “that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.” 6 Again, the LORD said to him, “Put your hand inside your cloak.” And he put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous like snow. 7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your cloak.” So he put his hand back inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, it was restored like the rest of his flesh. 8 “If they will not believe you,” God said, “or listen to the first sign, they may believe the latter sign. 9 If they will not believe even these two signs or listen to your voice, you shall take some water from the Nile and pour it on the dry ground, and the water that you shall take from the Nile will become blood on the dry ground.”

10 But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” 11 Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” – Exodus 4:1-13 ESV

'ăḏōnāy – “The Lord.” This post will conclude our study of God’s names. I chose to end with this name because it communicates an essential characteristic of God that often gets overlooked. The term 'ăḏōnāy is actually a title of respect more than a name and is used more than 400 times in the Old Testament. What makes it confusing is that it is also used when referring to God and men. David referred to King Saul as his Adonai.

Saul recognized David's voice and said, “Is this your voice, my son David?” And David said, “It is my voice, my lord ['ăḏōnāy], O king.” – 1 Samuel 26:17 ESV

Abner also used this common title of respect when referring to David.

And Abner said to David, “I will arise and go and will gather all Israel to my lord ['ăḏōnāy] the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires.” So David sent Abner away, and he went in peace. – 2 Samuel 3:21 ESV

In Hebrew, adonai means “lord” or “master” and is typically used to convey deference and respect for someone of higher rank or order. When used of God, it communicates an awareness of His sovereignty as “the Lord ['ăḏōnāy] of all the earth” (Zechariah 6:5). He is the master over all He has created and rules with unsurpassed power and undeniable authority.

Exodus chapter 3 describes an unexpected and highly disturbing encounter between Moses and God. While shepherding his father-in-law’s sheep near Mount Horeb, Moses saw an incredible sight: a bush that appeared to be on fire but was not consumed by the flames. Curious, he stepped up to get a closer look and heard a voice from heaven.

“I am the God ['ĕlōhîm] of your father, the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Abraham, the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Isaac, and the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Jacob.” – Exodus 3:6 ESV

God introduces Himself by using the name that was most familiar to Abraham and his descendants. But the name Elohim was a somewhat generic appellation that was used of all gods, including the God of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In Hebrew, Elohim is the plural form of El and since Moses had grown up in Egypt, he knew that there were gods (Elohim) everywhere. So, God’s introduction of Himself as Elohim left Moses wondering which Elohim he was speaking to.

When Moses heard that this Elohim had a job for him to do, he was perplexed. This God was demanding that he return to Egypt and deliver the people of Israel out of their slavery and into the Promised Land. But Moses wasn’t sure about the message or the messenger and asked, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God ['ĕlōhîm] of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exodus 3:13 ESV).

Moses was looking for further clarification. He wanted to know which Elohim he was dealing with and God graciously responded to his question.

God ['ĕlōhîm] said to Moses, “I am [ʾehyeh] who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God ['ĕlōhîm] also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God ['ĕlōhîm] of your fathers, the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Abraham, the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Isaac, and the God ['ĕlōhîm] of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” – Exodus 3:14-15 ESV

That phrase, “I am who I am” contains the Hebrew word, ʾehyeh, which is the verb form of the word, hayah, which means, “to be.” God is essentially saying, “I am and I have always been.” In other words, He is the ever-existing One. This speaks to His eternality; He is unbound by time and space. He operates outside the temporal and time-oriented confines of His own creation. In response to Moses’ question, God essentially said, “I am and will always be.”

But while Moses had received the name of God, he was still wrestling with the calling of God. He continued to push back against the message he had received, questioning its authenticity and viability. Still reluctant to take this dangerous-sounding assignment from God, Moses countered, “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The LORD [Yᵊhōvâ] never appeared to you’?” (Exodus 4:1 NLT).  Here the text contains the name, Jehovah or Yahweh. God’s self-description of hayah later morphed into the name, Yahweh, the third-person masculine singular form of the same verb. So, whenever the people of Israel used the name Yahweh, they were saying, “He is.” Unlike the Elohim of Egypt, their God was real. He is and will always be. He is not the figment of someone’s overly active imagination. 

This adds another layer of confusion to this passage that needs clarification. God referred to Himself as Elohim. Then He added the designation “I am” (hayah), which later became Yahweh, and translates as Jehovah in English. That is the name Moses uses in verse 1 of chapter four. In our English Bible, the name Yahweh (Jehovah) is typically translated as LORD. Since the ancient Hebrews did not use vowels when writing their language, Yahweh appeared as YHWH. To this day, we are not sure which vowels were left out, which makes any assessment of the exact pronunciation virtually impossible.

In the Latin translation of the Bible, the letters became JHVH. Eventually, the English translators of the Bible changed JHVH to Lord. But because there was another Hebrew word that meant the same thing, the English translators of the Bible changed Yahweh to LORD using all caps.

So, whenever we see the word “Lord” using lowercase letters, it means Adonia. When it appears in all caps, it is Yahweh. This brings us back to Exodus 4, and particularly verses 10-11. Here Moses speaks to the LORD and uses the designation “Lord” (Adonai).

“O Lord [Adonai], I’m not very good with words. I never have been, and I’m not now, even though you have spoken to me. I get tongue-tied, and my words get tangled.” – Exodus 4:10 NLT

He refers to God as his lord or master. While he did not like the assignment the LORD had given him, Moses still treats the LORD with dignity, awe, and respect. He was arguing his case and attempting to persuade his superior that he was the wrong man for the job, yet he treated the Lord with appropriate awe and honor.

This is where many of us fail in our relationship with God. We will confess Him to the great “I am,” the ever-present, eternal God of the universe, but we neglect to treat Him as our Lord and Master. We love to think of God as the LORD Who Sanctifies, the LORD My Redeemer, the LORD My Deliverer, the LORD of Hosts, the LORD of Peace, and the LORD Who Provides. But are we willing to think of Him as our Lord and Master? We may use the words but do we live as if we believe them?

Jesus made an interesting statement concerning the use of the name Lord without the appropriate heart to match.

“So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say? I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it.” – Luke 6:46-47 NLT

He goes on to tell a parable that illustrates the futility of using lip service when speaking of His mastery over our lives as our Lord and King.

“It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built. But anyone who hears and doesn’t obey is like a person who builds a house right on the ground, without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will collapse into a heap of ruins.” – Luke 6:48-49 NLT

To call Him Lord but to fail to treat Him as such, is nothing short of blasphemy. It is submission to His Lordship that results in a “well-built” life. To hear the Lord speak and not obey is to guarantee a storm-tossed life with no foundation and no escape from the inevitable floods that come our way.

“When life is chaotic and things seem to be falling apart, those who worship God as Adonai and do what He says will remain steadfast.” – Rabbi Kurt A. Schneider, To Know Him By Name

The apostle Paul describes his own submission to the Lordship of Christ.

But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ. – Philippians 3:7-8 ESV

Paul used the Greek word, kyrios, which translates into “Lord” and means “the owner; one who has control of the person, the master.” Paul was willing to give Jesus complete mastery over his life, submitting to His will and suffering the loss of anything that might stand in the way of their relationship. He knew he belonged to Christ, but he also believed that he was the true beneficiary in the relationship. From his perspective, he had “gained” Christ. In submitting his life to Christ’s lordship, Paul had won because he now enjoyed Christ’s favor and fellowship.

Paul provides a powerful word of encouragement to all those who have placed their faith in Jesus as Savior and who recognize Him as the Lord over their lives.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. – Romans 8:38-39 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Gibbor Milchamah

1 The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof,
    the world and those who dwell therein,
2 for he has founded it upon the seas
    and established it upon the rivers.

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord?
    And who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
    who does not lift up his soul to what is false
    and does not swear deceitfully.
5 He will receive blessing from the Lord
    and righteousness from the God of his salvation.
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
    who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah

7 Lift up your heads, O gates!
    And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
    that the King of glory may come in.
8 Who is this King of glory?
    The Lord, strong and mighty,
    the Lord, mighty in battle!
9 Lift up your heads, O gates!
    And lift them up, O ancient doors,
    that the King of glory may come in.
10 Who is this King of glory?
    The Lord of hosts,
    he is the King of glory! – Psalm 24:1-10 ESV

YHWH-gibôr milḥāmâ – “The LORD Mighty in Battle.” It would be easy to view this name of God as less applicable to us because we don’t face physical battles that involve warfare and the genuine threat of loss of life. However, for David, this name held special meaning and significance. As the warrior-king, David had led and fought in many battles. He had faced well-armed enemies whose sole intent was to destroy him and the people of Israel.

David knew a thing or two about might and could recognize it when he saw it. In 2 Samuel 23, Samuel refers to “the mighty [gibôr] men whom David had” (2 Samuel 23:8 ESV and uses the same word found in Psalm 24: gibôr. These were proven warriors who fought alongside David and exhibited the characteristics of valor, strength, and bravery in battle. Samuel describes how these men exemplified their “might” in real terms.

…they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle… – 2 Samuel 23:9 ESV

Eleazer…rose and struck down the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clung to the sword. 2 Samuel 23:10 ESV

Shammah…took his stand in the midst of the plot and defended it and struck down the Philistines, and the Lord worked a great victory. – 2 Samuel 23:12 ESV

…three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and carried and brought it to David. – 2 Samuel 23:16 ESV

Abishai…wielded his spear against three hundred men[and killed them… – 2 Samuel 23:18 ESV

Benaiah…struck down two ariels of Moab. He also went down and struck down a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen. – 2 Samuel 23:20 ESV

These men had proven their bona fides. They weren’t posers or wannabes, they were certifiable, time-tested, sword-wielding men of might and valor. They had earned David’s full trust and support. He knew he could rely on them to come through in any and all situations. He never had to question their bravery or loyalty. They had his back and he knew it.

So, when David wrote this Psalm, he didn’t have to search very far to find a word to describe Yahweh. He describes Him as “the LORD, strong and mighty [gibôr], the LORD, mighty [gibôr] in battle!” (Psalm 24:8 ESV). And it’s interesting to note that David, a king himself, declared Yahweh to be “the King of glory” (Psalm 24:7 ESV). He considered Yahweh to be a warrior-king just like himself but with one glaring difference: Yahweh was glorious. He was the creator of heaven and earth. Only those with “clean hands and a pure heart” (Psalm 24:4 ESV) could enter His glorious presence. This King was powerful enough to have formed the universe out of nothing. His sovereignty had no bounds or limits. His throne room was a place of holiness and righteousness completely free from the vice and corruption that mar all earthly kingdoms. 

David’s God was a King worthy of glory because His power was unsurpassed and His authority was unequaled. His royal rule was not symbolic or ceremonial. His was not a faux monarchy marked by pomp and circumstance but void of any real influence. As far as David was concerned, His God was Jehovah-Gibbor Milchamah, the LORD Mighty in Battle. He wasn’t a puppet king. He wasn’t a roaring, toothless lion. He was the all-powerful King of Glory who used His unsurpassed might to wage war against all His enemies, including all those who stand opposed to His chosen people.

The prophet Isaiah uses the same language when describing the LORD.

Let them give glory to the LORD,
    and declare his praise in the coastlands.
The LORD goes out like a mighty [gibôr] man,
    like a man of war [milḥāmâ] he stirs up his zeal;
he cries out, he shouts aloud,
    he shows himself mighty against his foes. – Isaiah 42:12-13 ESV

What is interesting is how Isaiah uses both words associated with the name Jehovah-Gibbor Milchamah. He also refers to Yahweh as a “mighty [gibôr] man” but he adds a note that illustrates how His might is revealed. He describes Yahweh as “a man of war.” The Hebrew word used there is milḥāmâ and it carries the idea of someone who engages in battle as a “fighting man.” God doesn’t posture and pose. He didn’t just reveal His strength through the act of creation and His ongoing maintenance of all He made. God does battle. He wages war. He fights on behalf of His people. And He is always victorious.

The Psalmist describes Yahweh’s sovereign control over all He has made, including the kings of the earth.

Why are the nations so angry?
    Why do they waste their time with futile plans?
The kings of the earth prepare for battle;
    the rulers plot together
against the LORD
    and against his anointed one.
“Let us break their chains,” they cry,
“and free ourselves from slavery to God.” – Psalm 2:1-4

These earthly monarchs align themselves against Yahweh and fail to realize that their petty kingdoms are no match for the King of Glory. His might is unstoppable and their feeble attempts to overthrow His sovereign rule are doomed to futility and failure.

But the one who rules in heaven laughs.
    The LORD scoffs at them.
Then in anger he rebukes them,
    terrifying them with his fierce fury. - Psalm 2:4

David rested in the knowledge that the LORD Mighty in Battle was on his side and capably of delivering him from all his enemies. There was no situation David could face that would cause him to doubt God’s presence or power. The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle was in his corner and he had nothing to fear. The apostle Paul shared David’s confidence in Yahweh.

If God is for us, who can be against us? – Romans 8:31 ESV

Paul was echoing the sentiments of David found in Psalm 56.

…my enemies will turn back
    in the day when I call.
    This I know, that God is for me.
In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can man do to me? – Psalm 56:9-11 ESV

The author of Hebrews also drew inspiration from the Psalm of David.

…we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?” – Hebrews 13:6 ESV

But there is more to the name Jehovah-Gibbor Milchamah than meets the eye. The prophet Isaiah adds another level of significance when he describes the birth of a future child who will serve as a king over Israel.

For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God [el gibbor],
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. – Isaiah 9:6 ESV

This “son’s” many names will include “Mighty God” [el gibbor]. He will be a fighting man, a Warrior-King who will rule with justice and righteousness over an eternal kingdom. Isaiah goes on to describe this heir to the throne of David who will establish a perfect and permanent Kingdom that has no equal and ushers in a period of endless peace.

Of the increase of his government and of peace
    there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this. – Isaiah 9:7 ESV

The Book of Revelation reveals that this King, who will be the Son of David and the Son of God, will one day come to earth to conquer all the enemies of God and establish His matchless and glorious Kingdom on earth.

Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.  His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.  He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. – Revelation 19:11-16 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Bara

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
    and speak, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord,
    and my right is disregarded by my God”?
28 Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
    his understanding is unsearchable.
29 He gives power to the faint,
    and to him who has no might he increases strength.
30 Even youths shall faint and be weary,
    and young men shall fall exhausted;
31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
    they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
    they shall walk and not faint. – Isaiah 40:27-31 ESV

YHWH-bārā' – “The LORD the Creator.” This name of God paints a powerful image that is intended to provide the covenant people of Israel with comfort and security. Yahweh is the Creator God who “created the ends of the earth.” That phrase is a merism, a rhetorical term for a pair of contrasting words or phrases (such as near and far, body and soul, life and death) used to express totality or completeness. Isaiah is saying that God is the creator of the whole earth. He made it all. He also reminds them that their God “sits above the circle of the earth,” (Isaiah 40:22 NLT). He is above and beyond, the transcendent God who looks down on all He has made. From His lofty vantage point, God sees man, whom He made in His own image as little more than grasshoppers in His sight. This is not a statement meant to deny the value of humanity but to stress the immense difference between the Creator and the creation.

To further enhance his point, Isaiah cleverly reverses the vantage point and challenges the “grasshoppers” to look up at the night sky.

Look up into the heavens.
    Who created all the stars?
He brings them out like an army, one after another,
    calling each by its name.
Because of his great power and incomparable strength,
    not a single one is missing. – Isaiah 40:26 NLT

The stars in their vast numbers appear like a celestial army in the sky. There are too many to count and yet Yahweh made them all and knows them by name. He not only made them but He maintains them. Yahweh the Creator is powerful and incomparable in strength.

This entire chapter is meant to provide comfort and assurance to the people of God. It begins with the words, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God” (Isaiah 40:1 ESV). He has instructed Isaiah to bring good news to the people of Israel

“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem.
Tell her that her sad days are gone
    and her sins are pardoned.
Yes, the Lord has punished her twice over
    for all her sins.” – Isaiah 40:2 NLT

God had punished the nation of Israel for its sin and rebellion. The northern kingdom of Israel had already fallen to the Assyrians hundreds of years earlier and the southern kingdom of Israel was about to fall to the Babylonians, which would result in the deportment of tens of thousands of its citizens.

But before the inevitable happened, Yahweh assured them that His covenant love would continue; He would not abandon them. Things were going to get bad but there was good news on the horizon because “the word of our God stands forever.” (Isaiah 40:8 NLT). Yahweh is not only the Creator-God, He is the covenant-keeping God. He had made promises to Israel and He was going to keep them. That is why Isaiah is instructed to declare:

“Your God is coming!”
Yes, the Sovereign Lord is coming in power.
    He will rule with a powerful arm.
    See, he brings his reward with him as he comes.
He will feed his flock like a shepherd.
    He will carry the lambs in his arms,
holding them close to his heart.
    He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young. – Isaiah 40:9-11 NLT

What makes this promise so powerful is its basis in God’s creative nature. Not only were the Israelites descendants of Adam, whom God had formed from the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7) but they were the descendants of Abraham, the pagan, idol-worshiping Gentile from Ur of the Chaldeas. Yahweh had literally ”formed” the nation of Israel from an old man and his equally elderly wife who just happened to be barren. When Yahweh called Abraham, He promised to transform an elderly barren couple into a mighty nation.

“Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” – Genesis 12:1-3 ESV

Yahweh made a covenant with Abraham and He kept it. The descendants of Abraham became a mighty nation and filled the land of Canaan that God had promised to give Abraham as his inheritance (Genesis 17:1-8). For hundreds of years, they enjoyed the fruits of the Promised Land. But they had repeatedly rebelled against God, violating their covenant commitments and giving their affections to the false gods of the Canaanites. For this, God punished them. But now He was promising to restore them.

For the Israelites facing the imminent fall of their nation and their own exile into captivity, Isaiah’s words sounded like empty promises. So, he backed them up with visual references to Yahweh’s creative power.

Who else has held the oceans in his hand?
    Who has measured off the heavens with his fingers?
Who else knows the weight of the earth
    or has weighed the mountains and hills on a scale? – Isaiah 40:12 NLT

But he also stressed Yahweh’s unparalleled wisdom.

Who is able to advise the Spirit of the Lord?
    Who knows enough to give him advice or teach him?
Has the Lord ever needed anyone’s advice?
    Does he need instruction about what is good?
Did someone teach him what is right
    or show him the path of justice? – Isaiah 40:13-14 NLT

Then, to top it all off, Isaiah emphasized Yahweh’s His sovereign control over all things, including the nations of the earth.

No, for all the nations of the world
    are but a drop in the bucket.
They are nothing more
    than dust on the scales.
He picks up the whole earth
    as though it were a grain of sand. – Isaiah 40:15 NLT

He judges the great people of the world
    and brings them all to nothing.
They hardly get started, barely taking root,
    when he blows on them and they wither.
    The wind carries them off like chaff. – Isaiah 40:23-24 NLT

Their God was beyond powerful and fully capable of caring for all their needs and remedying all their problems. He would show up and never give up until each of His promises for them was fulfilled. They could count on Yahweh because He is “the eternal God” who “never grows weak or weary” (Isaiah 40:28 NLT). They would go into exile but He would be around when it was time for them to return and He would make it happen – because He is Jehovah-Bara, the Lord the Creator.

Isaiah’s final word on the matter stresses Yahweh’s capacity to create what is needed for the moment. He created the universe out of nothing, so He could create power, strength, and resilience for His suffering people just when they needed it.

He gives power to the weak
    and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
    and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
    They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
    They will walk and not faint. – Isaiah 40:29-31 NLT

They could trust in Yahweh’s power to bārā' (create). They would not need to bring their own strength, He would provide it. They would not be required to muster up the energy, He would supply His own. Jehovah-bārā' is able to meet all their needs. He is the same God who “created [bārā'] the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1 ESV). He is the same God who “created [bārā'] the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind” (Genesis 1:21 ESV). And He is the same God who “created [bārā'] man in his own image, in the image of God he created [bārā'] him; male and female he created [bārā'] them” (Genesis 1:27 ESV).

Have you never heard?
    Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
    the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary. – Isaiah 40:28 NLT

Jehovah-Bara stands ready to create on behalf of His people; to shape, fashion, and form, just as He did heaven and earth – out of nothing. The same Jehovah-Bara who created man can also create new conditions and circumstances. He is also the creator of transformations, just as the apostle Paul reminds us.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

But Jehovah-Bara is not done. There is one more act of creation that will complete His redemptive plan for mankind and the entire universe. The apostle John describes it in the Book of Revelation. In the closing chapter of that book, he describes a vision he received from the Lord.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. – Revelation 21:1-2 NLT

Jehovah-Bara will recreate heaven and earth but He will also unveil the New Jerusalem, the city that will become the home of God’s chosen for all eternity. Then John records the following declaration from the throne of God in heaven:

“Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.” – Revelation 21:3 NLT

To wrap up this incredible vision, John reports Jehovah-Bara’s promise regarding His final act of creation.

And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children.” – Revelation 21:5-7 NLT

Jehovah-Bara lives among His people, using His vast creative powers to transform hearts, minds, and circumstances. He regularly renews our minds through the power of His Word. At salvation, He places a new heart within us. He turns the darkness of our lives into light. He produces life from death. He removes our sins as far as the East is from the West and replaces them with the righteousness of Christ. And one day, He will make all things new, replacing this temporal, sin-marred, and fading world with His eternal Kingdom.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Rapha

22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah. 24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 And he cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

There the Lord made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, your healer.”

27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water. – Exodus 15:22-27 ESV

YHWH-rāp̄ā' – “The LORD Who Heals.”The Hebrew word, rāp̄ā' has many connotations, including “rāp̄ā' “to cause to cure, heal, physician, repair, make whole” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance). Throughout the Old Testament, it is used in a variety of ways. In Genesis 20, Moses describes the occasion when the prayer of Abraham resulted in the healing of a pagan king named Abimelech.

Then Abraham prayed to God, and God healed [rāp̄ā'] Abimelech, and also healed [rāp̄ā'] his wife and female slaves so that they bore children. For the LORD had closed all the wombs of the house of Abimelech because of Sarah, Abraham's wife. – Genesis 20:17-18 ESV

The context is important because Abraham had “ journeyed toward the territory of the Negeb and lived between Kadesh and Shur, and he sojourned in Gerar” (Genesis 20:1 ESV). While in Gerar, Abraham convinced his wife Sarah to pass herself off as his sister. His reasoning was simple. He believed that if it was discovered Sarah was his wife, one of the polygamous Gerarites might kill him so he could claim her as his own. Abraham had tried this ploy before and it had failed miserably (Genesis 13:10-20).

This instance did not fair any better. Abimelech, the king of Gerar, believing Sarah to be a single, unmarried woman, took her to be his wife. But that night he had a dream in which God threatened him with death.

“Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is a man's wife.” – Genesis 20:3 ESV

The Gerarites, while polygamous, did respect the sanctity of marriage. So, Abimelech was appalled to hear that he had taken a married man’s wife into his harem. He was also petrified to hear a disembodied voice warn him of his pending death and that of all his people. Abimelech pleaded his innocence, claiming to have acted on the words of Abraham. He had been told that the woman was unmarried and, fortunately, had not yet touched her. God assured Abimelech that He was aware of the circumstances and had a way for the king to make things right.

“Yes, I know that you have done this in the integrity of your heart, and it was I who kept you from sinning against me. Therefore I did not let you touch her. Now then, return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, so that he will pray for you, and you shall live. But if you do not return her, know that you shall surely die, you and all who are yours.” – Genesis 20:6-7 ESV

There is no indication that Abimelech was suffering any malady. God did not strike him with a deadly disease or life-threatening illness. But he was facing the loss of his life and he would not be alone. The fate of his entire family and, possibly, that of his nation, was in the hands of the very man who had lied to him.

When Abimelech approached Abraham, he expressed his dismay at having been put in this predicament by Abraham's deceitfulness. He begged to know what had possessed Abraham to do such a thing. Faced with the blunt-force anger of Abimelech, Abraham didn’t sugarcoat his answer.

“I did it because I thought, ‘There is no fear of God at all in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife.’ Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father though not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife.” – Genesis 20:11-12 ESV

Abraham had been in the wrong. Not only was he guilty of deceitfulness but he had failed to trust the faithfulness of Yahweh. For the second time in his life, Abraham displayed his distrust of Yahweh’s protection and provision. But God was watching over His disobedient and distrustful servant. He protected Sarah and preserved the purity of the woman who would ultimately bear Abraham the son who would fulfill all the covenant promises (Genesis 12:1-3).  

There is so much going on in this story. In an effort to assuage God’s anger and persuade Abraham to pray for him, Abimelech showered Abraham with 1,000 pieces of silver, as well as sheep, oxen, and male and female servants. Abraham was going to walk away a rich man. But not only that. Abraham would leave the scene with his marriage and his wife’s purity intact. God had healed what was on the verge of being broken. He had graciously repaired what Abraham had damaged. Had God not intervened and interrupted Abimelech’s sleep with a dream, the king would have ultimately consummated his relationship with Sarah. It was just a matter of time. But Jehovah-Rapha stepped in and made whole that which was fractured and falling apart. God cleaned up the mess that Abraham had made.

But God also “healed” [rāp̄ā'] Abimelech and his family. God graciously called off His plan to take Abimelech’s life. Abimelech was not sick, but he was under a curse. His fate was sealed unless he obeyed the words of Yahweh. But because he did, he experienced wholeness instead of brokenness. He was given the gift of life rather than death. God had protected Sarah from being sexually violated by a pagan. He had protected Abraham from becoming a single man with no hope of seeing the promises of God fulfilled. He had protected Abimelech from touching Sarah and from having to suffer death for a sin he had committed in ignorance.

Throughout this story, God’s grace and mercy are on full display. None of the actors in this dark drama deserved what they received. But the LORD Who Heals stepped in and remedied the situation and preserved the integrity of His own plan and the lives of those who were integral to its fulfillment.

Back to the story in Exodus. Moses was attempting to lead the people of Israel from Egypt to the Promised Land. But along the way, they experienced various trials and difficulties. One of the first took place at Marah, an oasis in the desert that contained bitter, undrinkable water. The people had been walking for three days and the joy of their miraculous deliverance from the Egyptians and their inexplicable crossing of the Red Sea on dry ground had worn off. They were tired, thirsty, and in a far-from-happy mood. They complained to Moses and he took the issue to God, who quickly responded and gave Moses a solution.

…the Lord showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. – Exodus 15:25 ESV

God “healed” the waters. He performed another miracle and transformed the bitter water into sweet, refreshing, life-giving water. But the water was not the only thing that was bitter. The Hebrew word is mar and it can also refer to discontentment. The people of Israel were bitter about their circumstances; they didn’t like the way things were turning out. Their miraculous crossing of the Red Sea had turned into an unpleasant and weariness-producing crossing of a trackless and waterless desert, and they were not in a good mood.

God’s solution to the problem was a simple one. He instructed Moses to take an ʿēṣ and throw it into the water. The Hebrew word is fascinating because it is the same word used in the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis.

…out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree [ʿēṣ] that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree [ʿēṣ] of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree [ʿēṣ] of the knowledge of good and evil. – Genesis 2:9 ESV

More than 162 times in the Old Testament, the word ʿēṣ is translated as “tree.” There is no reason not to translate it the same way here. The text doesn’t give the variety of tree that was used, but the outcome is quite clear. When Moses threw the tree in the water, it produced life. The bitter water was transformed. What had been undrinkable and incapable of sustaining life was divinely altered and imbued with life-giving properties. That which was unacceptable become acceptable.

There was more to this miraculous transformation than the Israelites realized. They were content to have their thirst quenched but God had so much more He wanted them to see. Moses writes, “It was there at Marah that the Lord set before them the following decree as a standard to test their faithfulness to him” (Exodus 15:25 NLT).

God wasn’t content to satisfy their craving for water. He wanted to teach them a lesson about faithfulness and trust. He knew they would get thirsty again. Temporary solutions to temporal problems never produce eternal results. As long as they focused their attention on their physical needs they would never learn the spiritual lessons God wanted them to learn. So, along with the water, God gave Moses a message to deliver to his bitterness-prone people.

“If you will listen carefully to the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the Lord who heals you.” – Exodus 15:26 NLT

It’s important to note that God threatens His people with disease if they fail to obey while referring to Himself as their healer. At this moment, they are healthy, whole, and no longer suffering from thirst. But He is warning them that a fate worse than thirst awaits them if they refuse to “do what is right in His sight.” This would not be the last time they complained about a lack of water. There would also be occasions when they grumbled about their less-than-satisfactory diet and their unhappiness with the manna that God provided for them.

What they failed to realize was that their complaining was a source of disobedience. They didn’t trust God. They allowed their circumstances to determine their view of God and dictate the degree of their adoration toward Him.

What’s important to note in this story is that there was water, but it was undrinkable. Their problem wasn’t a lack of something, but it was that the solution to their need was “bitter.” It was plentiful but undrinkable. It wasn’t that the water was non-existent but that it was worthless in its current condition. And this non-potable water contained a powerful lesson for the Israelites.

The Hebrew word translated as “bitter” is מַר (mar), which can also be translated as “angry” or “discontented.” Little did the Israelites know that the water was a symbol of their own spiritual condition. Despite all God had done to set them free from their bondage in Egypt, they were a bitter and discontented people. In a sense, they were unusable. Instead of displaying gratitude for all that God had done, they quickly resorted to anger and blame, and their blatant displays of dissatisfaction were evidence that their hearts were bitter and in need of change.

So, God took this opportunity to teach the Israelites a much-needed lesson on how He was going to transform the bitter condition of their hearts. Hundreds of years later, the prophet Ezekiel would record the following promise that God made to His people.

“I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” – Ezekiel 3626-27 NLT

From the very beginning, God revealed His desire to transform the hearts of His people. Their real problem had never been slavery; they suffered from a heart condition that left them bitter, angry, and discontented. Their 400-year separation from God had reduced them to a state of spiritual stagnation and impurity. They had become polluted by the culture and robbed of their ability to be a source of life to the nations around them. So, God was going to intervene and, over time, begin His miraculous plan of heart transformation.

God used a tree to transform bitter water into a life-giving source of sustenance. He had just proven, yet again, that He could meet all their needs. Thousands of years later, God would use another tree to heal the sins of mankind. The apostle Peter spoke of the life-transforming and spiritual-healing properties of this tree when he addressed the religious leaders of Israel.

“The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.” – Acts 5:30-31 ESV

Peter would later deliver the same message to a gathering of Gentiles.

“They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” – Acts 10:39-43 ESV

Jehovah-Rapha is The LORD Who Heals. But He wants to do far more than heal our temporal and physical problems. He can provide for all our needs and is more than willing to do so, but His greatest desire is heal our hearts and restore us to a relationship with Him so that will satisfy our thirst for true life and meaning.

“If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” – John 7:37-38 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Shalom

1 Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.” 16 And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” 17 And he said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. 18 Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”

19 So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the terebinth and presented them. 20 And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the broth over them.” And he did so. 21 Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. 22 Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord. And Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.” 23 But the Lord said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” 24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites. – Judges 6:1-24 ESV

YHWH-šālôm – “The LORD is Peace.” The only place in the Scriptures where this name of God is found is in the Book of Judges which chronicles the on-again-off-again relationship between the Israelites and Yahweh. During this period of Israel’s existence, they were living in the land promised to them by Yahweh, but they were having a difficult time living in submission to His will. The Book of Judges records their repeated unfaithfulness to God as they struggled with idolatry and spiritual adultery. Throughout the book, a seemingly endless cycle of sin, judgment, repentance, and restoration repeats itself. The judges were God-ordained delivers that He sent to rescue His people from their apostasy. These men and women would come to the rescue of Yahweh’s rebellious children whom He had allowed to suffer defeat under the hands of their enemies.

The first chapter of Judges records how the Israelites failed to finish the job that Joshua had begun. Just before his death, their former leader strongly encouraged them to complete their conquest of the land which included the elimination of all the nations that had taken up residence in Canaan while the Israelites were in captivity in Egypt. But the Israelites had proved less than successful in their assignment. The Canaanites and their false gods remained, and it wasn’t long before the Israelites adopted their idols and pagan ways. This brought the judgment of God in the form of military defeat and subjugation to their enemies. But when the people of Israel cried out to God, He graciously sent a judge to redeem and restore them. Yet, as the book reveals, no lessons were learned and the cycle would repeat itself.

In chapter six, the Israelites have been under oppression from the Midianites for seven years. They were experiencing regular invasions at the hands of the Midianites who pillaged their crops and livestock. With their land stripped bare, They were experiencing regular invasions at the hands of the Midianites and the loss of their crops and livestock. With their land stripped bare, they had been reduced to near starvation, which caused them to cry out to God once again.

In response to their cry, Yahweh sent a prophet to remind them of all He had done for them. He had brought them out of Egypt and kept His promise to bring them to the land He had set aside as their homeland, but they had proved faithless.

"I said to you, "I am the LORD your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live. But you have not obeyed Me." – Judges 6:10 NASB

The people had been worshipping Baal. Even Joash, the father of Gideon, had been worshipping Baal. So God came up with a plan of rescue and redemption, and He chose an unlikely hero to carry it off. When Gideon first appears on the scene, he is threshing grain in a wine press. He is hiding from the Midianites, trying to keep what little he has from being stolen. Yet when the angel of the Lord comes to Gideon, he addresses him, “O valiant warrior!" The New Living Translation renders this phrase, “Mighty hero!” What an unexpected greeting. He had done nothing to deserve this title. Yet God was actually revealing who Gideon would become, not who he was. It was a title of expectation.

The angel assured Gideon, “The LORD is with you,” but Gideon wasn’t convinced. He freely expressed his doubts and even questioned Yahweh’s integrity.

“Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” –  Judges 6:13 ESV

He blamed God for their predicament and portrayed himself as unqualified for the job.

“Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.” – Judges 6:15 ESV

But God would not give in to Gideon’s excuses.

“Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” – Judges 6:14 ESV

Gideon remained unconvinced and demanded further proof from Yahweh.

“If you are truly going to help me, show me a sign to prove that it is really the Lord speaking to me. Don’t go away until I come back and bring my offering to you.” – Judges 6:17-18 NLT

Gideon ran home and hastily cooked a young goat and baked bread. He returned with his offering and was instructed by the angel to place the meat and bread on a nearby rock and drench them with the broth from his pot.

Then the angel of the LORD touched the meat and bread with the tip of the staff in his hand, and fire flamed up from the rock and consumed all he had brought. And the angel of the LORD disappeared. – Judges 6:21 NLT

Gideon had all the proof he needed. Having witnessed this miracle, he recognized that he had been speaking to an angel of Yahweh. In fear, he cried out, “Oh, Sovereign LORD, I’m doomed! I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face!” (Judges 6:22 NLT). In his prayer, he acknowledged the sovereignty of Yahweh and recognized his own condemnation for treating Yahweh’s messenger with disrespect. But rather than punish Gideon, Yahweh graciously assured him that all was well and that his calling remained unchanged.

But the Lord said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” – Judges 6:23 ESV

Instead of punishing Gideon for his stubborn reluctance, Yahweh extended peace. The Hebrew word is šālôm (shalom) and it conveys the idea of “completeness, soundness, welfare, peace” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance). Peace is far more than the lack of conflict, it is the presence of God’s blessing. For the believer, peace is the presence of Yahweh, made possible by Jesus, the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

Isaiah 54 describes God’s “Eternal Covenant of Peace” and

“For the mountains may depart
    and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,
    and my covenant of peace [šālôm] shall not be removed,”
    says the LORD [Yahweh], who has compassion on you. – Isaiah 54:10 10 ESV

Yahweh brings peace because He is “the God of peace” (1 Thessalonians 5:23). He exudes peace because it is a facet of His nature. His peace is closely associated with His love and compassion. But it is only as we rest in His unfailing love that we experience the full weight of the peace that only He can provide. It is when we doubt Him that we experience inner turmoil and wrestle with His goodness. It is when we question His integrity or doubt His unfailing love that we find ourselves mired in debilitating doubt and despair.

But Yahweh’s plan for His chosen people always included the presence of His peace, even when they failed to live in keeping with His will. Paul provided the antidote to a life filled with stress, apprehension, doubt, and despair.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:6-7 NLT

When Gideon was first approached by the angel, he was in hiding, threshing wheat in secret so the enemy wouldn’t steal his harvest. He was a man filled with fear and reluctant to believe that his God cared or could protect him from his enemies. He lacked peace. But God showed up, and rather than pour out His wrath on His doubt-filled servant, He displayed His power and dispensed His peace. This led Gideon to build an altar to Yahweh, which he named Yahweh-Shalom (which means “the Lord is peace”).

But Gideon would learn that Yahweh’s peace wasn’t a vaccine that could innoculate him from trouble. The days ahead would be filled with conflict and confusion. In an attempt to carry out God’s assignment, Gideon would encounter opposition, even from within his own family. Peace is not the absence of conflict but the assurance of God’s presence and power. God had told Gideon that He would be with Him, and it was that promise that was to bring Gideon peace.

It’s interesting to note that the last words Jesus spoke to His disciples were intended to provide them with assurance of His presence even after He was gone.

“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20 NLT

They were going to face trials, but they could do so knowing they were not alone. The Prince of Peace would be with them. But John clarifies how Jesus could leave but still be present.

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. Remember what I told you: I am going away, but I will come back to you again. If you really loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, who is greater than I am. I have told you these things before they happen so that when they do happen, you will believe.” – John 14:27-29 NLT

The gift of peace was the indwelling Holy Spirit who would empower the disciples to face obstacles and opposition with a sense of God’s presence and the same divine power that raised Jesus back to life. Like Gideon, the disciples would face trials and difficulties, but they would know that Yahweh was with them every step of the way. That is why Paul could assure his readers, “let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace” (Colossians 3:15 NLT). We have the promise of peace from Jehovah-Shalom, the LORD is Peace.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

New English Translation (NET)NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Kenna

10 The Lord replied, “Listen, I am making a covenant with you in the presence of all your people. I will perform miracles that have never been performed anywhere in all the earth or in any nation. And all the people around you will see the power of the Lord—the awesome power I will display for you. 11 But listen carefully to everything I command you today.…12 Be very careful never to make a treaty with the people who live in the land where you are going. If you do, you will follow their evil ways and be trapped. 13 Instead, you must break down their pagan altars, smash their sacred pillars, and cut down their Asherah poles. 14 You must worship no other gods, for the Lord, whose very name is Jealous, is a God who is jealous about his relationship with you.”– Exodus 34:10-14 ESV

In Genesis 22, the story is recorded of Abraham preparing to offer up his own son as a sacrifice on a hastily constructed altar. This disconcerting tale makes for difficult reading, especially when you realize that Abraham was following the commands of Elohim, the God who had miraculously enabled his barren wife Sarah to give birth to Isaac years earlier. Yet, in obeying the command of God and trusting the future of his only son to the faithfulness of God, Abraham was given the privilege of seeing God work a miracle of redemption, delivering his son from certain death. Rather than requiring Abraham to go through with the sacrifice, God provided a ram to serve as Isaac’s substitute. This led Abraham to call the place upon which he built the altar, Jehovah-Jireh, which means something to the effect of “God sees and provides.”

Abraham had experienced this aspect of God’s character for the very first time and it led him to memorialize his newfound awareness of God’s foresight and gracious provision with an appellation worthy of God’s glory. In the Genesis account, Moses adds the note, “To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided” (Genesis 22:14 NLT). This indicates that Abraham shared this story and it was passed down from one generation to another. But, even more importantly, Moses’ aside also serves a prophetic role, foreshadowing another day when God the Father would offer up His sinless Son as the substitutionary atonement for the sins of mankind. That fateful event would take place on the very same mountain. God saw the helpless and hopeless state of humanity, enslaved and condemned by sin, and facing divine judgment, and He responded by providing a Savior. He sent His Son to serve as the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world (John 1:9). 

But how did humanity end up in such a sad and desperate state? It was the result of their own disobedience to God; their refusal to recognize Him as the one true God and worship Him alone. The apostle Paul describes humanity’s downward trajectory and its consequences.

…they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! – Romans 1:21-25 NLT

In today’s passage, we have another name of God that describes an aspect of His character that gets often overlooked. It may even come across as an ungodly and unacceptable way to refer to God; yet, the Exodus 34 passage reveals that this is God’s self-revelation; His way of describing His divine nature to fallen mankind.

He is “the LORD, whose name is Jealous…” (Exodus 34:14 ESV). He is YHWH-qannā'. But this is more than just a name; it expresses His character. This self-designation is an extension of the commandment God gave that prohibits the worship of anyone or anything other than Himself.

“You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods.” – Exodus 20:4-5 NLT

Yahweh is a jealous God. This thought may sound strange to us and leave us feeling uncomfortable. In part, this is a result of our own love-hate relationship with jealousy. We tend to view jealousy in a negative light, associating it with sin. Even the apostle Paul lumped jealousy in with a list of other egregious behaviors that are the byproducts of man’s sinful nature.

When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. – Galatians 5:19-21 NLT

It’s difficult to associate such an unflattering character quality with our Holy God. Yet, God refers to Himself as being jealous and even designates it as one of His names. It is not a reaction or a temporary trait; it is an expression of His very nature.

We tend to associate jealousy with envy and covetousness. When we read God’s command, “You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 17 NLT), we substitute jealousy for coveting. But jealousy and covetousness are two different things. To covet is to wrongly desire that which belongs to someone else. It doesn’t belong to you and you have no right to possess it. It is closely associated with stealing. When King David saw Bathsheba bathing on a nearby rooftop, he lusted after her. When he was informed that she was a married woman, his lust turned to covetousness. He knew she was off-limits but it did not stop him from sending for her so that he might commit adultery with her.

The Hebrew word, qannā', which is translated as “jealous” is only used of God in the Bible, and it almost always associated with His judgment against the worship of false gods.

“Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make a carved image, the form of anything that the Lord your God has forbidden you. For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” – Deuteronomy 4:23-24 ESV

“You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are around you— for the Lord your God in your midst is a jealous God—lest the anger of the Lord your God be kindled against you, and he destroy you from off the face of the earth.” – Deuteronomy 6:14-15 ESV

These passages are not inferring that God is jealous of us. This does not describe the jealousy of a husband whose wife shows affection to another man. God’s jealousy is not about His need for our affection or adoration; it is about the integrity of His name. The people of Israel were His chosen possession. He had created them and they bore the responsibility of living as the children of God. Their actions and behavior were to reflect their position as His earthly representatives.

When Joshua was nearing the end of his life, he pleaded with the people of Israel to swear allegiance to Yahweh, stating, “as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15 NLT). The Israelites, eager to complete their conquest and occupation of the land of Canaan, declared their willingness to serve Yahweh only.

“We would never abandon the Lord and serve other gods. For the Lord our God is the one who rescued us and our ancestors from slavery in the land of Egypt. He performed mighty miracles before our very eyes. As we traveled through the wilderness among our enemies, he preserved us. It was the Lord who drove out the Amorites and the other nations living here in the land. So we, too, will serve the Lord, for he alone is our God.” – Joshua 24:16-18 NLT

But Joshua wasn’t buying what they were selling. He knew them all too well and voiced doubt in their sincerity. After having served as their leader for years, he was convinced they would continue to rebel against God and face future judgment as a result

“You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy and jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you abandon the Lord and serve other gods, he will turn against you and destroy you, even though he has been so good to you.” – Joshua 24:19-20 NLT

When the people assured Joshua of their sincerity, he demanded proof, instructing them to, “destroy the idols among you, and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel” (Joshua 24:23 NLT). He was not suggesting that God needed their undivided attention and affection. Yahweh is not desperate for our attention. He isn’t jealous that we share our affection with other gods. He is jealous and protective of the holiness of His name.

“Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord…” – Ezekiel 36:22-23 NLT

Our spiritual infidelity is not about unrequited love but about the unacceptable dishonoring of God’s name and character.  In the Exodus 34 passage, Noses reminds the Israelites that Yahweh is “a God who is jealous about his relationship with you” (Exodus 34:14 ESV). That relationship was to reflect their awareness of His glory, holiness, and worthiness of their undivided worship and attention. When they devoted their time and attention to false gods, it did nothing to diminish God’s self-esteem or worthiness; it dishonored His name among the nations.

He had set His name upon the people of Israel. In the Book of Isaiah, He refers to them as His children and promises to “bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name, whom I created” (Isaiah 43:6-7 ESV). Their identity was based on their identification as children of God who bore the name of God. When they showered their affections on false gods, it was not their lack of love that brought down God’s anger and judgment; it was their lack of respect for His name. That’s why God demands that their affection be accompanied by allegiance to His glory and greatness.

“…if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.” – 2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT

As the bearers of God’s name, the Israelites bore the responsibility of loving and living in keeping with their status as the sons and daughters of God. And God makes it clear that their obedience and obeisance would demonstrate to the world that they belonged to Him.

“The Lord will establish you as a people holy to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God and walk in his ways. And all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are called by the name of the Lord…” – Deuteronomy 28:9-10 ESV

God is YHWH-qannā' – Jehovah-Kanna. He is jealous and protective of His name and, as His name-bearers, we have a non-negotiable responsibility to preserve the integrity of His name as we dedicate the entirety of our lives to His glory alone.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Jehovah-Jireh

13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”– Genesis  22:13-14 ESV

Genesis 22 contains the familiar and somewhat unsettling story of Abraham’s attempted sacrifice of his son Isaac. Moses records every excruciating detail surrounding this God-sanctioned event that required a loving father to offer up the life of his one-and-only son as a sacrifice. Abraham had received clear and non-negotiable instructions from 'ĕlōhîm.

“Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.” – Genesis 22:2 ESV

Amazingly, the text contains no pushback from Abraham. There is no record of him arguing with or questioning God’s command. It simply states, “So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac” (Genesis 22:3 ESV).

Three days into their journey to the region of Moriah, Abraham saw their final destination in the distance and decided to leave his servants behind. He and Isaac would travel alone to the place of sacrifice. Abraham, perhaps hoping to hide his true intentions from his unwitting son, told his servants, “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back” (Genesis 22:5 NLT). Some have determined this to be a statement of faith on Abraham’s part, suggesting that he was confident that God would spare his son. But it seems more likely that Abraham was waiting until the last minute to let Isaac in on the true nature of their journey. His son had no way of knowing the fate that lay in store for him.

Moses describes how Abraham took all the elements he would need for the sacrifice, including a knife, a blazing torch, and wood. Then he adds the heartwrenching notation: “And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son” (Genesis 22:6 ESV). Isaac was carrying the very wood upon which his young life would be consumed.

For those of us living on this side of the crucifixion, it should be easy to recognize the similarities between Isaac and Jesus. Both entered the world through miraculous, God-ordained births. Isaac was born to an elderly and barren woman. Jesus was born to a young virgin girl. Each of them was deeply adored by their respective fathers. And just as Abraham was facing the prospect of sacrificing his son, centuries later, God would offer up His one and only Son as the Lamb who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). There is even a striking similarity between Isaac bearing the wood for his own sacrifice and Jesus carrying the cross upon which He would be crucified.

But for the Jews for whom Moses recorded this story, none of these links to the future death of the Messiah would have been apparent. For them, this story would have had significance because it involved Isaac, who would later become the father of Jacob, the man whom God later renamed, Israel. And it was from this one man that they owed their very existence. To hear the story of how Jacob’s father was almost put to death by order of Yahweh must have left them appalled and confused. How could their God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, order such a thing? And, of course, they would have been viewing this entire scene through the lens of the Mosaic Law. They had been given clear instructions to avoid the religious rituals and customs of their pagan neighbors.

You must not worship the Lord your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. – Leviticus 12:31 NLT

And yet, Abraham had no written law to guide his actions. He was operating according to the spoken word of God Almighty, and His instructions had been clear.

“Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.” – Genesis 22:2 NLT

The disturbing nature of this divine command must have left Abraham filled with questions. Why would God require the sacrifice of the very son whom He had miraculously provided? What possible good could come from something so seemingly wicked? But the key is found in three words in the opening verse of this chapter: God tested Abraham.

The people of Israel were very familiar with the concept of divine testing. In fact, their ancestors had spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness, enduring ongoing tests from Yahweh that were designed to increase their dependence upon Him. The Book of Deuteronomy records Moses’ powerful words spoken to the people of Israel as they prepared to enter the land of Canaan for the first time.

“Remember how the LORD your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands. Yes, he humbled you by letting you go hungry and then feeding you with manna, a food previously unknown to you and your ancestors. He did it to teach you that people do not live by bread alone; rather, we live by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. For all these forty years your clothes didn’t wear out, and your feet didn’t blister or swell. Think about it: Just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you for your own good.” – Deuteronomy 8:2-5 NLT

So, it seems highly likely that the original readers of this book would have understood the nature of the test that Abraham was having to face. They knew that Yahweh expected obedience from His people because obedience was a sign of dependence and faith. They knew what disobedience looked like because they had grumbled and whined about their dislike for manna. During their years wandering in the wilderness, they spent more time complaining to Moses than they spent worshiping and expressing gratitude to God.

As Abraham and Isaac made their way to the site of the sacrifice, Isaac couldn’t help but notice that something was missing.

He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” – Genesis 22:7 ESV

To the young Isaac, this was a glaring oversight. Why had his father failed to select an unblemished lamb before they left home? How were they going to find a suitable animal out in the wilderness? But Abraham calmly answered, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son” (Genesis 22:8 ESV). Once again, some believe this was an expression of Abraham’s faith. They suggest that Abraham somehow knew that God would provide a substitute. However, according to the Hebrew author, Abraham declared his belief that Isaac was the lamb that God had provided. The sacrifice would take place. But Abraham still believed that God would fulfill His covenant promise, even if it meant raising Isaac from the dead.

It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead. – Hebrews 11:17-19 NLT

Abraham fully intended to go through with God’s command. He did not delay, hoping for a last-minute reprieve. He did not scan the horizon, hoping for a lamb to miraculously appear. No, Moses records that “Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice” (Genesis 22:0-10 NLT).

One can only imagine the turmoil going on in Abraham’s mind and heart. Every fiber of his being must have been conflicted as his fatherly instincts waged war against his desire to walk before God and be blameless (Genesis 17:1). Interestingly enough, Moses provides no insight into Isaac’s reactions. The young boy appears to have remained eerily silent throughout this ordeal. He asked no further questions. He refused to put up a struggle. But just as Abraham prepared to shed the blood of his own innocent son, God intervened.

“Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” – Genesis 22:21 ESV

Abraham clearly loved Isaac. But he reverenced God. The Hebrew word for “fear” is יָרֵא (yārē') and, in this context, it refers to reverent awe for God that is expressed through obedience. Abraham did not do what he did out of fear of God’s wrath, but out of reverence for God’s holiness and power. His obedience was an expression of his faith in an all-powerful and perfectly righteous God.

As the author of Hebrews suggests, “Abraham did receive his son back from the dead” (Hebrews 11:17 NLT). In Abraham’s mind, Isaac’s death was a foregone conclusion. But, at the very last second, his son’s life was spared. God provided a substitute.

Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. – Genesis 22:17 ESV

This verse foreshadows another sacrifice that would take place centuries later. It too would involve a loving Father and His precious Son. But this time, there would be no last-minute reprieve. There would be no substitute. In fact, the Son would serve as the substitute for sinful mankind. The apostle Paul reminds us of the tremendous cost that our Heavenly Father paid so that we might live to see another day.

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? – Romans 8:32 ESV

Abraham had his son returned to him, and out of gratitude and a growing reverence for this gracious and compassionate God, he named the place Jehovah-Jireh (YHWH-Yireh), which is most commonly translated as “the Lord will provide.” Isaac had been spared, not because he deserved it, but because God had plans to offer a far more significant and superior sacrifice. The apostle Paul declares the glory of this future gift the Lamb who would take away the sins of the world.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. – Romans 3:23-26 NLT

There seems to be far more going on in this story than simply God’s provision of a substitute sacrifice. As important as that was, it paints an incomplete picture of 'ĕlōhîm’s actions. Moses named the location YHWH yirʾe. The second half of that name is a transliteration of the Hebrew word rā'â which means “to see,” “look,” or “foresee.”  

The Amplified Bible translates verse 14 as follows:

So Abraham named that place The LORD Will Provide. And it is said to this day, “On the mountain of the LORD it will be seen and provided.”

The Aramaic Bible in Plain English also weaves in the idea of seeing, adding the aspect of appearance.

And Abraham called the name of that place “LORD JEHOVAH will appear” of which it is said today, “In this mountain LORD JEHOVAH will appear.”

The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, gives the meaning of the name as “The LORD hath seen.”

The 1917 Jewish Publication Society translation renders verse 14 this way:

And Abraham called the name of that place Adonai-jireh; as it is said to this day: “In the mount where the LORD is seen.

There seems to be far more going on here than the provision of a ram to take the place of Isaac. God saw Abraham’s faith and responded by providing a substitute. In that gracious act of mercy, Abraham saw the hand of God. And in the entire sequence of events, we can see God’s plan to send His Son as “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). The same Hebrew word that is transliterated as jireh is used in verse 13 where it states, “Then Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. So he took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering in place of his son.”

Throughout this entire scenario, sight plays a significant role. God was watching. Abraham was waiting to see what God would do. As Hebrews makes clear, he was counting on the fact that God could raise his son back to life. But then he saw the ram and experienced the grace of God. For modern-day Christians reading this account of Abraham and Isaac, we get to see that Mount Moriah was the eventual site of the Temple built by Solomon. It would also be the same area in which the sinless Son of God sacrificed His life on behalf of sinful humanity. Jehovah-Jireh sees and provides, not only a ram for the son of Abraham but His own Son for the sins of the world. He saw the need for His Son to be a Savior long before the world was made, Adam and Eve were created, or the fall took place. And we are the beneficiaries of God’s foresight and faithfulness, just as Isaac was.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

What’s In a Name?

10 Now an Israelite woman’s son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the people of Israel. And the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought in the camp, 11 and the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the Name, and cursed. Then they brought him to Moses. His mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. 12 And they put him in custody, till the will of the Lord should be clear to them.

13 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring out of the camp the one who cursed, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him. 15 And speak to the people of Israel, saying, Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. 16 Whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. The sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

17 “Whoever takes a human life shall surely be put to death. 18 Whoever takes an animal’s life shall make it good, life for life. 19 If anyone injures his neighbor, as he has done it shall be done to him, 20 fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; whatever injury he has given a person shall be given to him. 21 Whoever kills an animal shall make it good, and whoever kills a person shall be put to death. 22 You shall have the same rule for the sojourner and for the native, for I am the Lord your God.” 23 So Moses spoke to the people of Israel, and they brought out of the camp the one who had cursed and stoned him with stones. Thus the people of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses. – Leviticus 24:10-23 ESV

The entire book of Leviticus stresses the holiness of God and promotes a lifestyle of holiness among His chosen people. As His treasured possession, they were to emulate His divine nature by faithfully observing all the rules for holy living He had decreed and that were intended to set them apart from the rest of the nations. In obeying His commands, observing His holy days, and offering the ritual sacrifices He required, they would be honoring Him as the one true God. Their obedience was to be a sign of obeisance or homage. It was the primary means by which they could prove their submission to His will and reverence for His name.

Throughout the book of Leviticus, God is referred to by His name Jehovah, which means “the existing one.” In the Hebrew Scriptures, God’s name is recorded as YHWH because the vowels were not included in written form. This is what’s known as the tetragrammaton, which simply means “four letters.” Some versions of the Bible translate the tetragrammaton as “Yahweh” by adding in the missing vowels. Others choose to translate it as “LORD” using all capital letters. Others still, choose to replace YHWH with Jehovah.

“Any number of vowel sounds can be inserted within YHWH, and Jewish scholars are as uncertain of the real pronunciation as Christian scholars are. Jehovah is actually a much later (probably 16th-century) variant. The word Jehovah comes from a three-syllable version of YHWH, YeHoWeH. The Y was replaced with a J (although Hebrew does not even have a J sound) and the W with a V, plus the extra vowel in the middle, resulting in JeHoVaH. These vowels are the abbreviated forms of the imperfect tense, the participial form, and the perfect tense of the Hebrew being verb (English is)—thus the meaning of Jehovah could be understood as ‘He who will be, is, and has been.’” – www.gotquestions.org

The Jews developed such a reverence for the name of God, that they eventually stopped trying to say it aloud. Instead, they replaced YHWH with the word Adonai, which means “Lord.” While it is almost impossible to know the exact pronunciation of YHWH because we don’t know the identity of the missing vowels, we do know that the Jews treated the name of God with great reverence.

As we saw earlier, the book of Leviticus repeatedly identifies God speaking to His people by using the phrase, “The LORD spoke to Moses…” (Leviticus 24:1 ESV). This is the name YHWH or Jehovah and it is meant to accentuate the unique relationship between God and His people. This is not just any god, but the one true God, the self-existing one, and the people were expected to listen to what He had to say and do exactly what He commanded them to do. Their obedience would prove their reverence for His name.

That brings us to this section of Leviticus 24, where Moses includes a narrative involving a real-life situation that was meant to illustrate the sanctity and holiness of God’s name. In all the talk of feasts, holy days, celebrations, sacrifices, and sabbath rest, the people were never to allow themselves to treat God’s name with disrespect. What made the Tabernacle holy was the One who dwelled within it. What made the people of Israel holy was the One whose name they bore. And they were to treat that name with reverence and awe at all times.

So, at his point in the narrative, Moses includes an example of a young man who chose to take God’s name in vain, in direct violation of the third commandment: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain” (Exodus 20:7 ESV). God’s name was a representation of His divine nature. It embodied all of His attributes and was meant to convey the totality of His being, especially His glory. This led the psalmists to write:

O LORD, our LORD, how majestic is your name in all the earth! – Psalm 8:1 ESV

Holy and awesome is his name! – Psalm 111:9 ESV

In providing His disciples with what has become known as The Lord’s Prayer, Jesus opened with the words, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name…” (Matthew 6;9 ESV). This might better be translated, “Let your name be kept holy” or “Let your name be treated with reverence.”

Yet, Moses describes a real-life scenario where a young man chose a different tact. The son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father, this young man got into an altercation with another Hebrew. Moses provides no details regarding the cause of their fight but it would be easy to assume that it had something to do with the young man’s mixed-race background. But whatever happened between these two men, Moses did not include the cause because there was no justification for the young man’s actions. Moses simply states, “the Israelite woman's son blasphemed the Name, and cursed” (Leviticus 24:11 ESV).

In the heat of their argument, the young man “blasphemed” God’s name. The Hebrew word, nāqaḇ, can mean “to bore a hole, pierce” or “to declare distinct by specifying the name.” It seems that this young man used God’s name in an unholy and derogatory manner. He treated it with contempt. And not only that, he “cursed.” The Hebrew word is qālal, and it means “to curse, treat lightly, treat with contempt, consider unimportant.” In his anger, this young man denigrated the holy name of God. He used it as a weapon against His Israelite opponent. And for his actions, the young man was condemned to death.

“Bring out of the camp the one who cursed, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him.” – Leviticus 24:14 ESV

Evidently, this altercation took place before witnesses and these individuals were not only expected to testify against the guilty party but to take part in his execution. They were to stand before the entire congregation and lay their hands on the young man, signifying his guilt and justifying his death. While this story may offend our modern sensibilities, it should provide us with a powerful lesson on the holiness of God. Even the misuse of His name is grounds for judgment because everything about Him is to be treated with appropriate reverence and awe. In God’s economy, the punishment fit the crime. This young man had chosen to treat God’s name in a disrespectful manner and he paid dearly for it. And his death served as a stark reminder to the rest of the nation of Israel that YHWH demanded that He be treated with the reverence He so rightly deserved. And anyone who chose to disregard this command was to suffer the consequences.

Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin… – Leviticus 24:15 ESV

This story provided a natural segue to the next section, in which God outlines the law of retribution, also called the law of retaliation or lex talionis. It is sometimes referred to by the phrase, “an eye for an eye.” These verses outline God’s divine principle concerning justice: The punishment should fit the crime. 

When it came to the unlawful taking of life, God prescribed a just punishment for such a crime.

“Whoever takes a human life shall surely be put to death. Whoever takes an animal's life shall make it good, life for life.” – Leviticus 24:17-18 ESV

Anyone who willfully took the life of another human was to pay with their own life. If they caused the death of another individual’s livestock, they were to make restitution by providing a substitute animal. When it came to other crimes or abuses, God outlined a principle of equitable recompense.

“If anyone injures his neighbor, as he has done it shall be done to him, fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; whatever injury he has given a person shall be given to him.” – Leviticus 24:19-20 ESV

These verses seem to be teaching a need for balance in all things. In truth, they were designed to prohibit unlawful and unbalanced vengeance. Capital punishment would be an unjust punishment for bodily injury. Anger over an injustice suffered could easily result in payback that was way out of proportion and a sin in its own right. These regulations were meant to control unjust vendettas and police vigilantism. Back in chapter 19, Moses records God’s admonition concerning improperly motivated revenge or retribution.

“Do not nurse hatred in your heart for any of your relatives. Confront people directly so you will not be held guilty for their sin. Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” – Leviticus 19:17-18 NLT

After the rather strange aside involving the young man who blasphemed and cursed God’s name, Moses concludes chapter 24 with the stark summary: “and they brought out of the camp the one who had cursed and stoned him with stones. Thus the people of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses” (Leviticus 23:23 ESV). The guilty party was dealt with according to God’s command. The people obeyed and gave the young man what he justly deserved. And this difficult assignment must have made an indelible impact on the entire Hebrew community. It would have been impossible to walk away unmoved or unimpressed by the severity of the judgment and the seriousness with which God took the holiness of His name. All the laws, rules, regulations, and religious rituals they had received from God would mean nothing if they failed to honor and revere His name. Without a proper respect for His character, as displayed by His very name, the peoples’ obedience would be meaningless and their observance of His feasts and holy days would be in vain. One of the greatest demonstrations of obedience is a reverence for the character of God as illustrated by His very name.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Glory of God’s Grace

1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord. – Jonah 1:1-3 ESV

When most of us hear the name, Jonah, we immediately think of his encounter with the big fish. But long before Jonah found himself in the “belly of the whale,” he had a divine encounter with God Almighty. The opening line of the book describes Jonah receiving “the word of the Lord.” In this verse, the Hebrew name used of God is Yᵊhōvâ, which is sometimes translated as Jehovah. In the Hebrew Scriptures, it was written as YHWH. This is because, in its written form, ancient Hebrew did not include the vowels. Also known as the tetragrammaton, this abbreviated name of God has been the center of much debate regarding its exact pronunciation. Some argue that it should be pronounced, “Yahweh” (YAH-way), while others prefer “Yehowah,” which, in its more modernized form, became “Jehovah.” But regardless of how the word is pronounced, it’s important that we understand that YHWH is the central character of this story, not Jonah. Within the context of 48 verses, the author will mention God 39 times, using three different names in the process. And these varying names of God are directly associated with the different characters and circumstances found in the story.

For instance, YHWH (Yahweh) is used 22 times and almost exclusively in those instances when God is dealing directly with Jonah, who happens to be a Hebrew. Yet when God interacts with Gentiles in the story, the author uses the more generic name Elohim or El. He does this 13 times. Finally, there are four occasions when God is referred to as YHWH Elohim or Lord God. We see this in verse 9 of the opening chapter when Jonah tells the sailors the name of the God he worships.

For the author, these varying designations for God serve an important purpose. They help to establish the difference between God’s relationship with His chosen people and the rest of the Gentile world. As was stated in yesterday’s post, Jonah is intended to represent the Jewish people. But as the story unfolds, we will be introduced to Gentile sailors and an entire city comprised of evil Gentile Assyrians. As a Hebrew, Jonah would have had an intimate understanding of YHWH, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But the Gentile captain of the boat on which Jonah attempted to flee from God would have had little knowledge of the God of Israel. So, in verse 9, when he begs Jonah to “call out to your god!” he uses the more generic term, “Elohim.”

The entire story found in the book of Jonah is about God’s relationship with mankind. It begins with YHWH commissioning Jonah, a privileged member of the Hebrew nation. But the task Jonah is given reveals that, while YHWH is the God of Israel, He has a vested interest in all of humanity. He is YHWH, the God of Israel, and Elohim, the God of all the nations of the earth. And this small book presents a stark contrast between God’s interactions with His chosen people and the non-Israelites who share planet earth with them.

God had set the descendants of Abraham apart for a reason. He had chosen them so that they might be a light to the nations. Their unique relationship with Him was to have been a living witness to the rest of the world, illustrating how sinful, undeserving humanity might be restored to a right relationship with their creator. And throughout the book, we will see how Jonah, as the representative of Israel, interacts and interfaces with the Gentile world. He will receive a clear call that requires him to deliver a message from God to “to Nineveh, that great city” (Jonah 1:2 ESV). And when the author describes Nineveh as “evil,” his Hebrew audience would have viewed this as a flagrant understatement.

The Assyrians were known for the cruelty. In fact, they actively advertised their brutality, using it as a form of psychological warfare. Detailed descriptions of their atrocities have been found in their own records and carved into the walls of their palaces and administrative buildings. It was not uncommon for the Assyrians to practice torture on their victims that ranged from the gouging out of eyes to the cutting off of limbs. These non-lethal disfigurements were intended to strike fear into their conquered foes, eliminating any threat of insurrection. But the Assyrians were also known for their mass executions, which included the impalement of victims on large stakes. Once again, these gruesome public displays were meant to be a powerful deterrent to rebellion.

With these images in mind, consider how the original Jewish audience who heard the words of this book must have felt. Better yet, consider how Jonah, the one who received the commission to go to Nineveh must have felt. He was being sent into the belly of the beast – right into the heart of darkness. FromJonah’s perspective, there was no more wicked place on planet earth than Nineveh. And God was commanding Jonah to travel all the way to this pagan kingdom with a message of doom and gloom.

“…call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” – Jonah 1:2 ESV

Jonah seemed to know exactly what God was saying. According to 2 Kings 14:25, Jonah was a prophet of YHWH. And as a prophet, he would have been familiar with God’s views on Nineveh. Another prophet, Nahum, who happened to be Jonah’s contemporary, had issued some strong words against the Assyrian capital city. He accused them of plotting against God (Nahum 1:9, 11). He described them as vile or despicable (Nahum 1:14). He used highly inflammatory and unflattering terms to describe their insatiable desire for global domination:

What sorrow awaits Nineveh,
    the city of murder and lies!
She is crammed with wealth
    and is never without victims.
Hear the crack of whips,
    the rumble of wheels!
Horses’ hooves pound,
    and chariots clatter wildly.
See the flashing swords and glittering spears
    as the charioteers charge past!
There are countless casualties,
    heaps of bodies—
so many bodies that
    people stumble over them.
All this because Nineveh,
    the beautiful and faithless city,
mistress of deadly charms,
    enticed the nations with her beauty.
She taught them all her magic,
    enchanting people everywhere. – Nahum 3:1-4 NLT

Just imagine the fear that filled Jonah’s heart at the prospect of delivering God’s news of judgment to a city filled with idol-worshiping pagans who made a habit out of torturing their enemies. Everything in Jonah stood opposed to this divine assignment. He had no desire to travel into enemy territory and deliver a message that would most likely result in his death. But there is more to Jonah’s reticence than meets the eye. He is not just afraid of death. He is petrified that his message of coming judgment might produce repentance among the people of Nineveh. How do we know that? Just fast-forward to chapter four of the book. There we find Jonah expressing his displeasure to God for having spared the people of Nineveh because they had repented.

“Didn’t I say before I left home that you would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people.” – Jonah 4:2 NLT

As much as Jonah may have feared the Assyrians, he had a greater fear of God showing them mercy. He knew enough about YHWH to understand that there was always the possibility of the Assyrians escaping judgment and receiving forgiveness instead. And that prospect was unacceptable to him. So, when God said, “Get up and go to the great city of Nineveh” (Jonah 1:2 NLT), Jonah “got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord” (Jonah 1:3 NLT).

In essence, Jonah did what the people of Israel had been doing for generations. By running away from God’s presence, Jonah became an apostate. The Greek word apostasia, means “a defiance of an established system or authority; a rebellion; an abandonment or breach of faith.” Jonah’s determination to reject the revealed will of God was a blatant act of apostasy or rebellion. But in this story, his action is meant to reflect the heart of the people of Israel. He was acting out what the people of God had been doing for generations. They had repeatedly turned their backs on God, refusing to obey His commands and abandoning their commitment to the covenant they had ratified with Him. Jonah was a Hebrew, but also a prophet of God. As such, he had a double commission. He was a chosen member of God’s set-apart people and a divinely commissioned messenger of God’s word. But like his fellow Jews, Jonah chose to reject his calling and place his own will over that of God. He got up and went in the opposite direction. And the narrative will repeatedly describe Jonah as “going down.” He will go down to Joppa (1:3). He will go down into the boat (1:3). He will go down into the inner part of the ship (1:5). Eventually, he ends up in the belly of the fish, where he goes down to the depths of the sea. He describes himself as going “down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever” (2:6). The trajectory of Jonah’s life mirrors that of the people of Israel. Once they chose to turn away from God’s presence, their descent into immorality, idolatry, and apostasy was steadily downward.

The book of Jonah is not meant to be a moral lesson on obedience. It is a picture of the unstoppable plan of God for the redemption of the world. Despite the disobedience of Jonah, God would bring salvation to the people of Nineveh. And despite disobedient Israel, God would bring salvation to the nations of the world through His Son, Jesus Christ. This entire story is a summary of God’s grand redemptive plan for bringing the light to the nations. Israel had been commissioned by God to do just that but had failed. Jonah is being commissioned to bring light to the Ninevites, but he will do everything in his power to resist that call. And he too will fail. But God will be victorious.

Back in the book of Exodus, we have recorded the story where Moses begged God to allow him to see His glory. And in response to Moses’ request, God responded:

“I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.” – Exodus 33:19 ESV

Notice closely what God said. He was going to allow Moses to see His glory, but it would be accompanied by the declaration of His name: YHWH. And the greatest lesson Moses was to learn from this experience was that YHWH, the God of Israel, was free to extend His grace and mercy to whomever He chose. Moses had not earned the right to see YHWH’s glory. Neither had the people of Israel. And Jonah, the reluctant prophet, would ultimately learn the invaluable lesson that he too was undeserving of God’s grace, mercy, and love.

 English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson