God is . . .

 

 

The year-end draws closer as does my alphabet of word studies. Today’s word is the name of God that was so sacred to OT believers that they substituted it with Lord. It is the name that God used when He identified Himself to Moses at the burning bush:

Exodus 3:13–15. “Then Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ And he said, ‘Say this to the people of Israel: “I am has sent me to you.” God also said to Moses, ‘Say this to the people of Israel: “The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.” This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.’ ”

In the Bible, LORD spelled with capital letters stands for YHWH, connected with the verb “to be.” There are no vowels in this word. It is usually spelled YAHWEH and its pronunciation is uncertain. In this passage, God gives the meaning: “I Am who I Am” indicating He is the self-existing One, neither created nor having an ending.

English translations usually signify Yahweh as “Lord” by placing the letters “ord” in small caps: “Lord.” Our spelling and pronunciation represents our best, educated guess about the original Hebrew without vowels. The pronunciation of this name ceased in order to avoid taking God’s name in vain. When reading yhwh, they said “Adonai” which means “Lord.” The commandment not to take the Lord’s name in vain, however, does not necessarily prohibit its pronunciation as Scripture is read, nor does the command against blaspheming this name prevent any and every use of it.

Exodus 6:2–3. “God spoke to Moses and said to him, ‘I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the Lord I did not make myself known to them.’ ”

These verses and their context connects the fulfillment God’s promises with His deliverance of His people from Egypt and concludes with “I am Yahweh.” The following verses show His steadfast determination to maintain the covenant relationship with his people.

Exodus 34:5–7. “The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.’ ”

Deuteronomy also speaks of worship and warnings regarding this Name: “If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the Lord your God, then the Lord will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting.”

In the NT, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” clearly identifying Jesus as the self-existing God, the God who identifies Himself with the same words in Exodus. Later, Peter declares Him both Lord and Christ, and Romans 10:9 makes this confession vital to salvation: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” As a result of Jesus’ sovereignty, one day every created being will acknowledge that “Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.”

GAZE INTO HIS GLORY. The Lord who revealed Himself as Yahweh also revealed Himself incarnate in human flesh in the Person of Jesus Christ. He, the Creator of all things “was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made . . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth . . . . In him was life, and the life was the light of men . . . . He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

And every year, even every day, I think of this reality and am in awe that such a great God who is Lord over all should do such a thing as come to us as a baby, grow up like we grow, and then die for us as a man — a man who is Emmanuel, God with us, the One who is Yahweh.