The Lord Jehovah

August 20, 2011

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.” (Isaiah 12:2)

The English name, usually written “Lord” in the English Bibles, stems from the Hebrew word Yahweh, the meaning of which cannot be fully put into words. Although scholars differ (some even claiming there is no real meaning to the word at all), the consensus is that it seems to be a compound of the three tenses of the Hebrew verb “to be,” implying the ever living nature of God to which Christ was referring when He said, “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8). Revelation 1:8

1:8 Alpha and Omega. There are the first words actually spoken to John by the Lord on this great occasion. Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, the Lord thereby claiming that He embodies all language and, in fact, all reality. He is "the Word" (John 1:1), embodying "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" (Colossians 2:3). He also claims to be the Eternal One and the Omnipotent One. A more definitive claim to absolute deity, made by the glorified Lord Jesus in reference to Himself, could hardly be imagined.

Note also the similar implications in God’s announcement of Himself to Moses: “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM” (Exodus 3:14). Exodus 3:14

And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.

Exodus 3:14 I AM. This distinctive name of God identifies Him as the one who is eternally self-existent. All created entities had a beginning, including even time itself (Genesis 1:1). As creatures, we must reckon in terms of the past and future, but to the Creator of time, all is present. He is transcendent to time as well as space. The centuries that had passed since the promises had been made to "the fathers" had not caused God to forget them, for they were still as new as ever to Him.

On forty-nine special occasions (seven times seven), the name Jehovah is contracted to Jah. Many consider this to be an abbreviation of Jehovah, but no satisfactory explanation as to why it is so used has been offered. Perhaps a better suggestion is that this name is the present tense of the verb “to be,” and therefore the name Jah emphasizes the present activity of the Lord. In nearly all occurrences, the passages are strengthened by noting the present work of God. The first usage of the term Jah is found in Miriam’s Song upon deliverance from Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea. “The LORD [Jah] is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation” (Exodus 15:2). Exodus 15:2

The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

On several occasions, such as in our text, we see that the two names are combined, celebrating both the present and future deliveries of Jah Jehovah. “Trust ye in the LORD [Jehovah] for ever: for in the LORD [Jah] JEHOVAH is everlasting strength” (Isaiah 26:4). Isaiah 26:4

Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength: