The Names of God E-Book

Dr. Brian J. Bailey

• Herausgeber: Zion Christian Publishers
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

God has revealed Himself to man in the Holy Scriptures by many different names. As we experience The Names of God, we gain a better understanding of His nature and character. Dr. Bailey will discuss many of The Names of God found in the Scriptures so that you might come to know God and progressively develop your relationship with the Name above all names.“… I will set him on high because he has known My name.” (Psalm 91:14)

Leseprobe

The Names of God

“The Names of God”

© 2001 Brian J. Bailey and Suzette M. Topper

Revised edition 2004

Design of Front Cover:

Copyright © 2010 Brian J. Bailey and his licensors

All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles or reviews.

All Scripture quotations in this book are taken from the

King James Version Bible unless otherwise stated.

Published as an e-book on July 2017

in the United States of America

E-book ISBN 1-59665-671-9

For more information, please contact:

Zion Christian Publishers

A Zion Fellowship ® Ministry

P.O. Box 70

Waverly, New York 14892

Acknowledgements

Editorial team:  Carla Borges, Barbara Fuller, Jason Gohl, Sarah Brogan,  Sarah Humphreys, Justin Kropf, Sarah Kropf, Hilary Marzolf, Leslie Sigsby, Caroline Tham, and Suzanne Ying.

We wish to extend our thanks to these dear ones for without their many hours of invaluable assistance, this book would not have been possible. We are truly grateful for their diligence, creativity, and excellence in the compilation of this book for the glory of God.

Preface

This book is presented with the purpose of developing in the reader, through personal experience and understanding of the names of God, a more intimate knowledge of the persons of the Godhead. It is written in a devotional manner so that, by His grace, we may know and appreciate Him in a much deeper and fuller way.

We wish to show not only the significance of the names of God in the Old Testament, but also their fulfilment in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. Through this, may we come to experience the fullness of each of these names through the person of Jesus Christ our Lord. This study goes forth with the hope and prayer that we may better know Him whose name is above every other name. Moreover, that some may find in Him salvation through the name of Jesus, apart from which “there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

The importance of the name of God is emphasized by the Lord Jesus in John 17:6,26, “I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word…And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.” However, Shakespeare asked in “Romeo and Juliet,” “What’s in a name?  That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”  In marked contrast to what Shakespeare wrote, Holy Scripture shows us there is a great deal in a name since names are often an expression of character. Thus, before we enter into our study of the Names of God let us consider the care with which names were given to a number of biblical characters.

In some cases their names were changed to denote spiritual growth and new heights that they had attained in God. Many times these men and women of God were given names prophetically, or by a direct command of God Himself. The following are examples of this:

Methuselah–“at his death will the going forth of the waters be.” Thus the patriarchs knew that the time of the flood would be at the death of Methuselah.

Noah–“rest or comfort.” This name showed that the preceding generations understood that all their hopes of eternal salvation depended upon Noah’s fulfilling the will of God for his life. Because Christ descended through Adam and all the Pre-diluvial patriarchs enumerated in Genesis chapter 5 and Luke chapter 3.

Abram– “high father.” However, he was renamed Abraham–“a father of a multitude” because he pleased God. This confirms God’s promise from Genesis 17:5-6, “…for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.”

Sarai (the wife of Abram)–“domineering.” However, she had her name changed to Sarah, the submissive princess who became the “mother of many nations.” Only after both Abraham and Sarah had received their new names did God name the promised son, even before he was born.

Isaac–“laughter,” or as some theologians interpret this, “the Laugh of Faith.” Abraham laughed the laugh of faith believing that what God said He would do. May we have the same joyful attitude as father Abraham.

John the Baptist–“Jehovah hath been gracious” or “grace.” In the New Testament, John the Baptist was used to bridge the gap between the harshness of the Law and the grace and truth that our Saviour would introduce.

Jesus–“Saviour.” “...for he shall save his people from their sins” (Mt. 1:21).

Joses (who was surnamed Barnabas)–“Son of Consolation.” This was because of his kind compassion and caring for his fellow Christians. His compassion can be seen particularly, in his taking the Apostle Paul under his wing when the Apostle was first converted (Acts 9:27; 11:24-25).

Saul (of the tribe of Benjamin)–One who had been the wolf, the destroyer (Gen. 49:27, Acts 9:1), had his name changed to Paul, the worker who laboured more than all the other apostles.

We who attain to become overcomers receive the promise of Revelation 2:17: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.” Praise the blessed Name of the Lord! It is evident that God Himself sets great importance upon His name from the Third Commandment, given in Exodus 20:7: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.”

Let us with reverence and godly thankfulness seek to immerse ourselves in the study of His blessed names so that we may become more like our beautiful Lord and come to know Him as He wishes to be known.

Introduction

As the names of God speak of His nature, no one can ever rightly understand their significance unless they partake of His nature. Mere intellect will never open the secret truths intrinsic in these names. This is clear from the Apostle Paul’s writings in 1 Corinthians 2:11: “For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.” It is by grace and grace alone that these truths are revealed to us. We receive this revelation as we humbly walk with our Lord.

It is the desire of the Father that all true believers may know Him. The prayer of the Lord Jesus for His disciples is recorded for us in John 17:3: “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” Speaking of this, Paul writes in Philippians 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death…” All of Scripture is profitable to us for instruction and edification, yet many people do not know much about the person of God as revealed in His names.

We read in Exodus 3:13, “And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall Isay unto them?” God responded by declaring, “I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you” (Ex. 3:14). The word “God” has the designation of “Supreme Being,” and “Sovereign of the Universe,” but it tells little of His character and ways. A name at times reveals the nature, character, and mission of that person; but how can one name describe the One whom the heavens cannot contain (1 Ki. 8:27)?

For example, we can hardly understand or appreciate Moses unless we see him in his many-faceted character. The Bible tells of Moses as an Egyptian Prince; a man of faith who fled from Pharaoh; a desert shepherd; a leader of men and the great Lawgiver; a saint unto whom the Lord appeared face to face; a prophet like unto the Lord Himself; a man filled with righteous anger, yet called the meekest of men.

We can know David, too, not only as the shepherd king, but also as a prophet and priest fulfilling the three ministries of the Lord. He was also called the sweet psalmist of Israel, and was so revered by his people as to be compared in his lifetime to an angel of God. To fully appreciate these two great men of God we would have to view them in all their above-mentioned facets and more. Therefore, to help us come to a deeper knowledge of God and who He is, we will study a number of names and compound names for God found in the Old Testament. These names reveal diverse facets of His character and His dealings with mankind.

ELOHIM - The Three in One

The first name by which God is revealed to us in Scripture is the Hebrew name of “Elohim.” This is the only name which is used for God in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, and it is repeated in almost every verse. “Elohim” is altogether used some 3,000 times in Holy Scriptures, and in over 2,300 of these references the term is applied to God Himself. In the other cases it is used of heathen or gentile gods and idols. We, however, are confining our study of this word to its application to the one and only true God, the Creator of the universe.

Plurality In Unity

This name is a plural noun, and refers to the plurality of the God Head, which we see illustrated in Genesis 1:26: “Let us make man in our image and after our likeness.” This “Elohim” though plural is but One God.

The creation was the work of the three members of the Godhead: the Father (Gen. 1:27), the Son (Col. 1:16), and the Holy Spirit (Job 26:13, Gen. 1:2). The Father gave the command, the Son proclaimed His words, and the Spirit performed His will. Thus, from the account of creation in Genesis, we have the understanding of how the Three in One work together.