The titles and names of our triune God number in the hundreds in holy Scripture. We worship one God in three Persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. He is the Creator, Redeemer and Saviour. When in need of shelter, we appreciate that He is our Rock, our Fortress and our Hiding Place. Looking into the skies, we give glory to the One who is the King of Heaven, the Father of Lights, the Bright and Morning Star, the Light of the World. Thinking in terms of horticulture, Christ is the Root of David, the Rose of Sharon, the Lily of the Valley, the True Vine, the Branch of the Lord who is beautiful and glorious (Isa 4:2). As He meets our every need, it is no wonder that Christ referred to Himself as the Bread of Life and the Living Water. As our Saviour was a Carpenter here on earth, how fitting that He is spoken of as a Nail fastened in a sure place and the Chief Cornerstone of the Church. Jesus is the Son of Abraham, Son of David, Son of Mary, Son of Man and Son of God. Prophet, Priest and King are just a few more of Christ’s glorious titles. God the Holy Spirit is our Comforter (or Helper), Earnest (or Pledge), Guide and Intercessor. He is the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of Life, the Spirit of Grace and the Spirit of the Living God. And on and on we could go about any of the Persons in the Godhead.
When we study His names, we might be impressed with how many pairs of them stand in sharp contrast to each other. The Lord Jesus is our Shepherd but also the Lamb of God. He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah but also the Lamb who was slain and has prevailed. He is our great High Priest but also our Sacrifice, thus, the Offerer and the Offering. He is the humble Servant but also the exalted King. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. Just when we feel we have come to understand God a little more, Scripture introduces another name and our wonder for His glorious Person expands yet again.
In this special edition of Truth & Tidings, our focus will be on the major names of God found in the Old Testament. Some of the names are given by God Himself, such as Elohim (Gen 1:1), El Shaddai (Gen 17:1), Jehovah [or Yahweh] (Exo 3:14), Jehovah Rophe (Exo 15:26) and Jehovah Tsidkenu (Jer 23:6), while others are attributed to Him, like El Roi (Gen 16:13), Jehovah Jireh (22:14), Jehovah Nissi (Exo 17:15), Jehovah Shalom (Jdg 6:24) and Jehovah Rohi (Psa 23:1). We will also learn that He is Adonai, El Elyon, Jehovah Mekadesh and Jehovah Shammah. And yet, after studying and pondering all these names, and many more which we could add to them, we are left feeling very much like an overwhelmed Isaac Watts, who wrote:
Join all the glorious names
Of wisdom, love, and power,
That mortals ever knew,
That angels ever bore;
All are too mean to speak His worth,
Too mean to set our Saviour forth.
