NAMES OF GOD--YHWH (JEHOVAH)

NAMES OF GOD-YHWH (JEHOVAH) Spring Valley Mennonite; October 10, 2021; Exodus 3:1-6, 13-14; 17:7-16; Judges 6:22-24; Jeremiah 23:5-6 The past several weeks we have been exploring the various names by which God has self-revealed Himself in His Word. Last week we looked into the name Elohim. In one sense, that name is more of a general and generic reference to God, and most translations use the word "God" (Capital 'G' lower case "o" and "d") when Elohim appears in the original Hebrew manuscripts; Elohim and its four compound names of El-Shaddai, El-Elyon, El-Olem, and El-Ro'I tell of God's character. This would be like referring to someone by their title, like "Chairman of the Board", or "Senator so-and-so." But when you need to get more intimate than a title, we use their personal name. God has a personal name and that name is Yahweh. I. THE HOLY NAME AND ORIGIN OF "JEHOVAH" The name YHWH is the most common term by which God speaks or is mentioned, appearing 6,823 times. This name of God, according to Ryrie, "is especially associated with God's holiness, His hatred of sin, and His gracious provision of redemption."1 The holiness of the name, coupled with the Commandment to not misuse the name of God resulted in the Jewish practice of never pronounsing this name when speaking or reading Scripture. They would substitute "Adonai" when the text would read "YHWH." In English, when YHWH was first translated "Jehovah," the vowels of Adonai were merged with the consonants of Yahweh. YHWH is the most significant name for God in the Old Testament. In most of our Bible translations, the name appears as "LORD" with all capital letters. It first appears in Genesis 2:4 as "YHWH Elohim," LORD God. We might ask "Why does the name change from chapter one's exclusive use of Elohim to YHWH in chapter two?" The answer lies in the content of chapter 2: Chapter two describes the creation of the first man and woman. With the creation of man, there begins a special relationship which is distinct and separate from all of God's lower creation. God enters into communion with the man whom He has made in His own image. In the book Titles of Jehovah, the authors state, "The Creator called man into existence as the one being on earth who should have capacity for the enjoyment of God; and the attributes which appear in the name 'Jehovah,' and which were not wanted for the creation of material world, were only made visible when man came forth from God's hand."2 YHWH is a God of relationships, a personal God. He is not a God who created things, then withdrew to let things develop as they will. This, by the way, is the God of the Theist, at worst, and Theistic Evolution at best. Both of those approaches to God are wrong and unbiblical. The One True God is a personal God who is intimately involved with all His creation. But only mankind, created in His image, was made to have an intimate relation with God, thus the change from Elohim in chapter 1 to YHWH in chapter 2. When God first spoke to Adam, giving him the command regard the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, it was as YHWH. After our first parents fell into sin, "YHWH called to the man, where are you?" While the name of Yahweh appears often in the Book of Genesis, especially when God addresses the Patriarchs regarding the Abrahamic Covenant, it is in the book of Exodus as God first speaks to Moses that the meaning of the name is made known. Turn to the account of Moses and the Burning Bush in Exodus 3. Follow along as I read vv. 1-6. Note that "Elohim" is used in verse 6, "the Elohim of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob." Now look at verses 13 and 14 (Read). God reveals the meaning of His Holy name: "I AM WHO I AM"-I am the God who is. YHWH is self-existent, not "I Was" or "I will be" but "I AM." God exists in the eternal present, not restricted by time or anything else. He has existed eternally no matter how difficult it is to wrap our minds around that idea! The gods of Egypt all had names with which the children of Israel were familiar. They would naturally ask "What is the name of this God of whom you speak?" God's personal name for relations with His people is "YHWH." He came to the children in Israel as their Savior and deliverer. Remember how God delivered them from the last plague, when the angel of death passed through the land? It was with the blood of a lamb, a type of the Lord Jesus, our Savior. When God spoke to His people, especially His prophets, it was as YHWH: "Thus says YHWH," thus saith the LORD, never as Elohim or other names. When God reveals Himself to man, it is with this name. It was as YHWH that God gave the Law to Israel through Moses, revealing Himself as a moral being, and having moral requirements. Man relates to God on a moral and spiritual basis. As with Elohim, YHWH often is used in compound forms which further reveal how God personally relates to mankind. To stay with the familiar, I will substitute Jehovah for YHWH. The first of these compound uses of Jehovah is: II. JEHOVAH-JIREH We find this name in Genesis 22 with the familiar account where God tells Abraham to take his son Isaac to Mt. Moriah and sacrifice him. God's intention was to test Abraham's faith regarding the promise of making Him a great nation through Isaac. The test was one of obedience: did Abraham trust God, Who had miraculously given Isaac as His son? This test is difficult to understand until we read Hebrews 11:17-19: "By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promise was offering up his only begotten son; it was he to whom it was said, "IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED. He considered that God is able to raise men even from the dead; from which he also received him back as a type." Abraham's faith is also seen in the word to his servants in Gen. 22:5, "Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go yonder; and we will worship and return to you." He expected to return with Isaac. As Abraham tied Isaac to an altar and lifted his knife to slay him, God intervened, providing a ram caught by its horns in a thicket. Abraham took the ram and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place THE LORD WILL PROVIDE..." Jehovah-Jireh. Abraham was asked to give up his most precious possession, and He "laid it on the altar-here it is, Lord." And God gave it back. God asks us the same question: Is there anything you value more than Me? Are we willing to give it to God? What things might that be? Our family? Our job? Some pursuit or possession? How about a dream? God often wants to replace these things with something even more precious. Jehovah-Jireh-God will provide. Philippians 4:19 "And my God shall supply all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus." Abraham didn't know how God would supply, but he had faith that God would keep His promise. A second compound name with YHWH or Jehovah is: III. JEHOVAH-NISSI-The LORD OUR BANNER It was not long after the Jews crossed through the Red Sea that they were attacked by the Amalekites, a tribe descended from Esau's grandson. In the first mention in the Bible of Joshua, Moses told him to choose some warriors to fight against Amalek. The Israelites were not warriors, but Joshua gathered his men to defend the people. We find the account in Exodus 17. When armies go out to battle, they march under a flag representing their country, and often there is a regimental flag as well. Our national anthem speaks of such a flag flying: "Oh say does that star spangled banner yet wave?" A banner is the standard, a visible symbol of the country or cause for which an army fights. In the battle against the Amalekites, Moses raised the Rod of God overhead as a symbol that they were fighting on God's side. Moses stationed himself on a hill overlooking the battle, raising the rod of God, the rod which represented God's miracle-working power in Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, and drawing water from the rock. But as the battle raged on and the hours passed, Moses' arms grew weary and began to sag. When his arms were extended overhead, Israel prevailed; when they sagged, Amalek gained advantage. So, they brought a rock for Moses to sit on, and two men-Aaron and Hur-held his arms up. God used the means of Joshua, his warriors, Moses, Aaron and Hur to prevail in the battle against the Amalekites. But it was God who gave the victory. After the battle was won, Moses built an altar and named it "The LORD IS MY BANNER, YHWH-NISSI. Moses and the people learned that it was not battle strategy, certainly not strong seasoned warriors, but God gave strength for victory. This name associates Jehovah with victory in the battles and struggles of life. It was an important reminder to Israel that although many battles awaited them in the Promised Land, God would give victory. This battle against the Amalekites can be a picture of the battles we fight against our flesh, the world, and Satan. As we keep our eyes on the Lord, God will be our banner of victory. We fight against evil in His name, under His banner. A third compound name of Jehovah is: IV. JEHOVAH-SHALOM: THE LORD OUR PEACE This name is found in the book of sixth chapter of Judges within the account of Gideon. It is not by mistake that this name is found also found in the context of conflict. We first find Gideon down inside a winepress, threshing wheat. What was he doing there? Well, Israel was in a state of spiritual decline; they fell into the worship of idols, and God was afflicting them through raiding tribes which invaded Israel at harvest time, stealing all the crops. Gideon was hiding, trying to thresh out some wheat in secret. God appeared to him saying, "YHWH is with you, O valiant warrior!" That sounds odd, considering Gideon was hiding in a winepress from the Midianites! I'm glad God sees our potential instead of our times of fearful retreat. Gideon was told, "Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?" We remember Gideon as famous for asking for a sign before he would move forward, most famously in putting out a fleece, but he also asked for a sign at this earlier time: verse 17 of Judges chapter 6: "If now I have found favor in Thy sight, then show me a sign that it is Thou who speakest with me. Please do not depart from here, Until I come back to Thee, and bring out my offering and lay it before Thee." When Gideon returned with his offering of a young goat and unleavened bread and laid it on a rock, the angel of the Lord (understood to be the pre-incarnate Christ) touched the end of his staff to the offering and fire exploded from the rock, consuming the meat and bread! Then he vanished, but a voice remained. Verses 22-24: When Gideon saw that he was the angel of the LORD, he said, "Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of YHWH face to face." And YHWH said to him, 'Peace to you, do not fear; you shall not die." Then Gideon built an altar there to the LORD and named it THE LORD IS PEACE (YHWH-SHALOM). We find our peace within the stress and conflicts of life through our relationship with God. Jesus said, "My peace I give unto you, not as the world gives, give I unto you." Peace is not absence of conflict; peace is calmness and trust in the midst of conflict. Gideon had battles to fight, but he had God's peace and confidence in those battles. God gives strength to endure and prevail, not always to escape the battle. There are numerous other compound uses of Jehovah, YHWH, but one which we cannot overlook is: V. JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU-THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS God is a righteous God Who hates sin, for He knows it destroys all things; it not only destroys people, but all creation groans with the effects of sin. All natural disaster, all sickness, all infirmity, all wickedness of man, all of man's inhumanity to man is a result of sin. God clearly states that His standard of righteousness is complete and absolute obedience to His Law. Our obvious problem is that we cannot achieve this standard, "for all have sinned and fallen short of the standard of God's perfection." So, God's wrath is upon the sinner; this is God's Justice. Sin must be punished. But God is also a God of love. He has compassion for His fallen children, so He provided a means to cover their sin through a system of sacrifice. For the Israelite living under the Law, sin was expensive. When you sinned, your best animal was forfeited as a sacrifice. Instead of your life being forfeited, the life of an animal was substituted. The sacrificial system of the Law pictured what the Lord Jesus would do as He gave His life on the cross. Jeremiah prophesied of this, recorded in Jeremiah 23:5-6: "Behold, the days are coming declared the LORD, When I shall raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, "The Lord our righteousness"-Jehovah-tsidkenu. Jesus is the righteous branch of the Tribe of Judah, the family of David. 2 Corinthians 5:21: "He made Him Who knew no sin to become sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." We have been purchased with the price of Jesus' blood, and we are not our own. We are of infinite value, for the price of something indicates its value. The Lord has placed His name upon us, we are Christ-ians. When we place our name on something, it comes under our influence and protection. There is a story of a young boy who built a toy sailboat. He carefully sanded down the hull, painted it bright red, and fashioned a mast with a sail. Proudly he took it out to a lake and put it in the water. But a strong wind came up and blew the boat out into the lake, and it was lost. The young boy was so sad, and he grieved the loss of his sailboat. Time went by, and one day he walked by the window of a second-hand store and there in the window was his red sailboat! He went into the store, and it took all the money he had to buy his sailboat back. He spoke to the boat as he carried it home, "You are twice mine; I made you, then when you were lost, I found you and bought you." That's what Christ, our righteousness did. He made us, then He redeemed us. We are twice His. 1 Charles Ryrie, The Ryrie Study Bible, end note comment on Genesis 2:4 2 Webb-Peploe, Titles of Jehovah, p. 12 --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ 2