I AM AND I APPROVE THIS MESSAGE

THESIS STATEMENT: The four letter self-designation which God revealed to his shepherd Moses was less a name than a mystery wrapped in Gods own sovereignty; it provided an enigma which, despite the efforts of many great men, remained unsolvable till the coming of the One who would reveal God Himself and finally cast light on the divine name.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 01 Burning Bushes and Other Mysteries -------------------------------------------------------------------- 02 The Interview (03) The Name (04) The Third Commandment (05) Hashem (06) God by Any Other Name ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 08 Yahweh-jireh (09) Yahweh-tsidkenu (11) What Came First: the Puzzle or the Solution? ---------------------------------------------------------- 13 Conclusion -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 14 Bibliography ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 16

INTRODUCTION A man went for a short jog in which he took three left turns and returned home. When he got there two masked men were waiting for him! Who were they and what had happened? Oh, no looking up the answer either, since that would be cheating. The point is that everybody loves a riddle; the very idea of code breaking is in our blood Whether it is Dan Brown discovering that a disciple in Da Vincis Last Supper is actually a woman, or Michael Drosnin finding 9/11 in the so-called Bible code, or even Claire Asquith arguing that the masterful plays of William Shakespeare masked hidden messages from a truly Catholic writer to others of a like-mind, there is a basic human desire to be on the in, to know a secret that nobody else knows, to have figured it out.1 Aspiring writers, for example, should consider crafting the next great who-dun-it since 48% of fiction-book buyers choose from the Mystery, Thriller, and Crime shelf.2 Perhaps the human preoccupation with enigma is even tied to the imago dei making it of divine origin. That God has impregnated the very cosmos with mystery was no secret to Solomon. It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, the wise man sang, and it is the glory of a king to search out a matter.3 The New Testament itself is filled with long hidden secrets. There is the mystery of election (Rom. 11:25), the mystery of marriage (Eph. 5:32), the mystery
1

Alan Jacobs, The Code Breakers, First Things no. 165 (August 1, 2006): 14-17, http://www.proquest.com/ (accessed July 4, 2012). Mr. Jacobs, a professing Christian, puts little stock into such claims. He tells anecdotally of receiving two very different responses to his commendation of the Harry Potter series, the first accusing the series of providing a secret initiation into alchemy based paganism, while the second claimed that it to be nothing less than a retelling of the Gospel narrative. Jacobs determines that supposed code-breaking often amounts to laziness: The interpretation of literary texts is actually hard work. You have to know a great deal about the history of culture and about the various forms and genres and techniques of literary writing to have a shot at really figuring out a major work of literary art.
2

http://bubblecow.co/what-is-the-best-genre-to-write-if-you-want-to-get-published/. This short article was written for Bubblecow.co/ which is a resource site for writers who dream of being published. The source for the cited percentage actually stems from a survey by Harris interactive , the results of which can be seen at http://www.harrisinteractive.com/NewsRoom/HarrisPolls/tabid/447/mid/1508/articleId/578/ctl/ReadCustom%20Def ault/Default.aspx
3

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture citations are taken from the New English Translation, https://net.bible.org/ .

of the future resurrection (1 Cor. 15:51), and, of course, the great mystery of godliness in Christ Jesus which the Apostle Paul spent his life revealing (1 Ti. 3:16). There is also, of course, the profound mystery housed in the Old Testament - the one intimately connected with Gods own personal name. In Exodus 3:13, Moses desperately tries to figure out if the divine presence commissioning him for an impossible mission to the heart of Egypt has the goods to wring success out of what must have felt like a suicide mission: If I go to the Israelites and tell them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? what should I say to them? Moses asked God for his name. Why then, did God respond with a linking verb?4 It is the contention of this study that the four letter selfdesignation which God revealed to his shepherd Moses was less a name than a mystery wrapped in Gods own sovereignty; it provided an enigma which, despite the efforts of many great men, remained unsolvable till the coming of the One who would reveal God Himself and finally cast light on the divine name. BURNING BUSHES AND OTHER MYSTERIES When Moses arrived at the bush that would not burn5, he was but the keeper of possibly a few dozen desert sheep; when he left from there he was the shepherd of two million needy souls.6 Again, when he arrived at the thoroughly stubborn foliage, his life had bled into an old

W.A. Van Gemeren, Tetragrammaton, in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Edition, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001), 1177. The Hebrew root for the name God provided, hyh, is largely believed to translate as be.
5

NET Bible, translators note (tn) on Exodus 3:2, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/Exodus+3:2 (accessed July 04, 2012). Regarding a Hebrew construction, expressing amazement earlier in the verse, the translators point out, This was the amazing thing, for nothing would burn faster in the desert than a thornbush on fire.
6

NET Bible, study notes (sn) on Exodus 12:37 and Numbers 1:21, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/Exodus+12:37 , https://net.bible.org/#!bible/Numbers+1:21 (accessed July 04, 2012). There is great no scholarly consensus regarding the best interpretation of the numbers listed. It hardly seems plausible that the Red Sea crossing or the harsh desert environment could accommodate 600,000 fighting men, which when added to the remainder of the population may have reached above 2,000,000 thirsty travelers. As the NET disclaims, this is not a limiter upon God, but a discussion of likelihood. The Hebrew masculine noun 'eleph is generally translated thousand,

age of overqualified stagnation; when he left he was marching towards the greatest leadership challenge of history to that day. When Moses arrived at the well-lit interview he was one man; when he left the interview he was another. So just what happened at the interview? The Interview. Gerald Janzen commentates on the verbal sparring bout that took place that day between God and Moses. In the wake of Gods commission, the short-lived freedom fighter turned long-time desert dweller is dubious at best about the prospects of success. Writes Janzen, But Moses has already tried to intervene on behalf of the Israelites. He knows the actual situation: He knows himself, he knows the Israelites, and he knows the power of Egypt (you can't fight city hall).7 Moses attempts to dodge the divine commission with the insecurity-based question, Who am I? God, however, responds that it no longer matters. Neither Moses identity, nor his skillset, nor his education, nor his personality, nor any other such thing holds ultimate relevance anymore. Instead God promises himself, Surely I will be with you... Again hear Janzen, It appears that Moses' question is answered by way of God's implicit re-definition of who Moses is. Who he is can no longer be defined merely in terms of who he had hitherto taken himself to be, or in terms merely of the actual situation from which he is in flight. By virtue of God's answer, who Moses is can henceforth be measured adequately only by including a reference to this God henceforth present with him.8 In Gods words there is also a hint of the divine name to be revealed. Already it is on the tip of his tongue.9

however its usage also allows for such renderings as troop, or family, or tent group. Currently, however, there is not enough information to justify actually reinterpreting the numbers. Any attempt to do would amount to guesswork.
7

Janzen, J Gerald. What's in a Name? 'Yahweh' in Exodus 3 and the Wider Biblical Context. Interpretation 33, no. 3 (July 1, 1979): 227-39. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost, p. 234).
8

Ibid.

NET Bible, translators note (tn) and study note (sn) of Exodus 3:12, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/Exodus+3:12 (accessed July 04, 2012).

At this point one can almost read Moses mind: Its great that you promise to be with me, but after all these centuries who are you? Janzen implies that stories of Gods participation in the lives of the patriarchs may not be enough for Moses.10 He is being asked to again and much more formally undertake a mission in which he was thoroughly trounced as a youth. He needs more than allusions to the distant past; who is God today? When Moses asked God that very thing it is impossible to know just what the shepherd expected to hear; it is certain, however, that Gods answer was greater. The Name. The name which God supplied was the first person, common singular form of the Hebrew be verb -ehyeh, i.e. I AM.11, 12 Once again: Moses asked for a name, and

God responded with a linking verb; though, the particularly powerful nature of this verb has to do with the One to whom it links. The full Hebrew phrase from verse 3:14, ehyeh aser ehyeh, which is usually rendered I Am who [or that] I am, can also be translated I will be who I will be, a wording which contains promise for the future.13 Janzen sees in the revealed name, the breaking of all situational limitations. From now on, "Yahweh" is that name which identifies Israel's God purely in intrinsic terms, as that divine power of existing which is defined or qualified or limited by no
10

Janzen, Name, p. 234.

11

NET Bible, translators note (tn) on Exodus 3:14, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/Exodus+3:12 (accessed July 04, 2012). It is interesting to note that the name Yahweh actually refers to the third person masculine singular form of the be verb. In other words, it is Gods name from the perspective of those who are not him he is.
12

Van Gemeren, Tetragrammaton, p. 1177. The word tetragrammaton refers to the four Hebrew letters associated with the revealed divine name: yhwh. This is the character sequence found wherever the name appears in the Hebrew Bible. By itself of course this sequence of consonants remains unpronounceable. However, the association of the tetragrammaton with Adonai, eventually led to a somewhat hybrid term. The three vowels of Adonai were inserted into the divine name, creating a new name altogether, a derivative called Y@howah, or as it is more commonly known, Jehov@h. In modern usage, the rendering Y@hweh is generally preferred since it more accurately reflects the traditional understanding of Gods name to be a derivative of the Hebrew be verb.
13

T. E. McComiskey, God, Names of, in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Second Edition, ed. Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001), 507.

principle except the divine existential intention itself It is as this living fount of all possibility that God may be envisioned as the creator of all finite and creatural actuality. There is the most intimate connection between the divine mystery expressed in this "I will be . . .," and the world-creating efficacy of the utterance "let there be . . . .14 As Janzen himself indicates above, along with such a tremendous expression of possibility, there comes an implied sense of mystery. He is, but who is he? He will be, but he will be who? It almost feels as though God has not only revealed his name, but that he has given a clue to a far larger engma: I AM.now wait for it, wait for it That particular discussion will occupy the remainder of the Old Testament and reach into the new. Before launching into it here, however, it seems advantageous to study a bit more closely the nature and history of Gods revealed name. There is an intimacy complicit with extending ones given (or in Gods case, taken) name. As Van Gemeren suggests, In reading the text of the Old Testament, one should develop a feeling for the usage of the name itself over against such usages as God or Lord [A] blessing is lost when no attention is paid to the difference in usage of a title and the actual name of the God of Israel.15 Gods name is a treasure to be valued. The Third Commandment. In this regard many have erred, somewhat, in their understanding of the third commandment of the Decalogue, which reads, You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold guiltless anyone who takes his name in vain (Ex. 20:7). This is not, in fact, a strong imperative to be careful with handling a generic word for divinity such as god, nor is it even an injunction against wrongfully using a specific title for the God of Israel, such as Lord. Though these are certainly not unworthy goals, the third commandment itself is a very specific charge to rever the revealed name of God.
14

Janzen, Name, 235. Van Gemeren, Tetragrammaton, p. 1177.

15

F. J. Coffins study of the third commandment reports that historically there have been three basic interpretations as to what is prohibited. The early understanding suggested that the name was not to be used in conjunction with wickedness, while a later interpretation taught that it should not be spoken idly or for profanity. A very specific alternate interpretation suggested that Gods name was not to be a vehicle for spreading falsehood.16 It is, of course, probable that all three usages were forbidden with the single Hebrew word shav', which carries the lexical idea of worthlessness. That the prohibition was accompanied by a stern warning is significant. The commandments banning theft, adultery, and even murder, for instance, do not carry any equivalent stipulation linked directly alongside the restrictions themselves. Pay attention to the Jerusalem Targums ominous rendering of that warning, for the LORD in the day of his great judgment will not acquit anyone who shall swear by his name in vain.17 God was certainly not playing games with his great name. By way of the third commandment, he seemed to be saying, Ive trusted you with something precious; now make sure that you treat it preciously. Hashem. Most especially the Jewish people of the post-exilic period made a superb effort esteem the name, though they probably went much further in their aim than God ever actually intended. First, instead of speaking the name with love, reverence, and care, they stopped speaking it altogether. So much so, that its true pronunciation is lost to history.18 Then, on the literary level they actually avoided most occurrences of the name in their own Scriptures, replacing it with the generic Adonai, or Lord when read aloud. Eventually the Septuagint
16

F. J. Coffin, The Third Commandment, Journal of Biblical Literature 19, no. 2 (June 10, 2012): 166-88, http://www.jstor.org/stable/3268945 (accessed July 4, 2012) p. 188.
17

Coffin, Third, p. 166. Van Gemeren, Tetragrammaton, p. 1177.

18

cemented this practice by translating the name as kyrios which is the Greek word for Lord.19 Even today many translations of Scripture, including the modern NET, choose to use the uncial laden LORD (so as to distinguish it from Lord, which would be a translation of Adonai) rather than scribing the name itself repeatedly throughout the Old Testament. The basic attitude of respect implied here really ought to be emulated throughout the Christian community. Instead of dismissing the third commandment as an outmoded regulation of an obsolete covenant, the believer would do well to remind himself that he stands before the awesome God who fashioned the universe out of nothing, that in Gods presence sinless angels cry holy, and that God has lent unto his children his most precious name. Berel Dov Lerner, a Jew raised in the United States, but immigrated to Israel, has penned a passionate yet humble request of Christendom to avoid pronouncing the Tetragrammaton when observant Jews are within ear-shot, if not from theological concern, then simply from the desire to be a good neighbor, tak[ing] Jewish sensibilities to heart.20 Within his heart-felt appeal, Dov Lerner clarifies, As a child I was taught that no one really knows how to pronounce Gods personal name, and that no mortal should dare try. In ancient times, the Name was legitimately pronounced only by special people in special circumstances, most famously by the High Priest at the climax of the Temple service in Jerusalem on the Day of Atonement. Today, Jewish law rules that no one under any circumstances may pronounce the Tetragrammaton.21 Additionally, he recalls the well-meaning advice he gave individually to a pair of Christian scholars, whose teaching on the Hebrew Bible he appreciated, but whose usage of the divine name he did not. I do have a rather wild suggestion for you. If you want to refer specifically to
19

Ibid.

20

Berel Dov Lerner, Please Consider Not Taking the Lord's Name in Vain, The Expository Times 121, no. 7 (March 09, 2010): 339-41,http://ext.sagepub.com/content/121/7/339 (accessed July 05, 2012), p 341.
21

Ibid., 339.

the God of the Hebrew Scriptures, why not really go native and adopt the Jewish ploy of referring to Him as Hashem - the Name?22 Utilizing Hashem is not a bad idea where the possibility of offense is immenently; neither, of course, is loving ones neighbor, which is just what Dov Lerner is requesting. GOD BY ANY OTHER NAME Ripples from the bush radiated down through Hebrew history. God extended his name and that changed everything, not least because along with the name came the truth it represented. Namely, the LORD was forever present with his children, becoming for them just what they most needed him to be. Therefore out of great need, the name of God multiplied and became a kind of sub-genre all its own. Hashem connected with various suffixes to form new realities of Gods being. Martyn Lloyd-Jones notes that we can regard these names of God as defining the attributes of God still more specifically. The name always stands for the character.23 According to Lloyd-Jones, Hashem itself is significant of a very particular attribute of Gods character. The theologian elucidates, you can describe this name Jehovah as the great covenant name of God. You find the Bible saying that God has entered into covenants with His people. He made a covenant with Adam. He made a covenant with Noah. He made a covenant with His own Son. God is a God who makes covenants - He promises, he covenants, to do certain things. Now when He does that you generally find that He describes Himself by that great name Jehovah.24

22

Ibid., 340.

23

D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, God the Father, God the Son: God the Holy Spirit; The Church and the Last Things (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2003, Kindle Edition), Kindle Location 1236.
24

Ibid., Kindle Locations 1265-1268.

Nathan Stone adds that Hashem, reveals God as the eternal, self-existent One, the God of revelation, the God of moral and spiritual attributesof righteousness, holiness, love, and therefore of redemption, the God who stands in special covenant relation to Israel25 That the Tetragrammaton was revealed just prior to Gods great venture of the Old Covenant seems to point to the actuality of the argument. This means that the the addendums to Hashem must reveal something of what covenant with God is like. They also bring the child of God one step closer to solving the riddle God suggested at the bush: He is, but who is he? Lets examine two representative examples of these suffixed derivatives to discover what they teach about God. Yahweh-jireh. Abraham and Isaaac hike ponderously up a hilly slope in the land of Moriah. The boy is aware that they have come to sacrifice, but he is quite unaware of how dear the cost. They have with them everything they need except for one very important ingredient. My Father, calls Isaac, and then hearing Abrahams loving acknowledgement he continues, Here is the fire and the wood but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?26 For his part Abraham refuses to believe that Gods command would ever violate his covenant; therefore, despite the explicit order to offer up his dearly loved son, he fully expects the story to have a happy ending. He answers honestly, if somewhat perplexedly, God will provide for himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son. (Gen. 22:8) A short time later, as Isaac lies helpless upon the altar and Abraham prepares, despite his fervent faith, to land the killing blow, an angel appears and commands the drama to cease. Behind him Abraham hears bleating in the bushes; God has provided a lamb after all. Abraham names the site of these events yhvah yireh, or the LORD provides, and thus begins the famous adage, In the mountain of the LORD provision will be made. (Gen. 22:14).
25

Nathan Stone, Names of God (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2010), Kindle Locations 811-813. The dialogue portion is taken directly from Genesis 22:7.

26

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But is that the entire story? That the name Moriah means seen by the LORD, indicates that this is a site God sat his eye upon in a special way. Did he do so just for the sake of this single test of the patriarch Abraham, or is more going on than meets the eye? Some have suggested, particularly based upon evidence from 2 Chronicle 3:1, that this site became the place where Solomon built the temple, the house for God to dwell in, and the location of ritual sacrifice and of Shekinah glory.27 The full story, though, goes much, much deeper. First, a meta-note on the narrative in general is in order. Thematically the entire tale centers around the idea of Gods provision. The word translated provide is in Hebrew see.28 The idea is that God foresees the need and arranges for its fulfillment. He sees to it, as it were. Therefore in John 8:56, when Jesus informs the unbelieving Jews that Your father Abraham was overjoyed to see my day, and he saw it and was glad (John 8:56, emphasis mine) there may be a linguistic connection to the events of Genesis 22. There is almost certainly a referential one.29 It would seem that somewhere amidst the jubilation of Isaacs deliverance from death, the patriarch experienced a glorious vision of the future of salvation history. He saw a mountain much like the one he himself stood upon, perhaps even the very same hill.30 He saw another beloved Son, and another act of sacrifice, this one un-stayed by the hand of God. God would provide a Lamb indeed. Nathan Stone, waxes eloquent when considering this possibility:
27

Stone, Names, Kindle Locations 924-29. Ibid., 846. NET Bible, translators note (tn) on John 8:53, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/John+8:53 (accessed July 06, 2012).

28

29

30

Gods instruction that Abraham go to the land of Moriah even to one of the mountains which I will indicate to you (Gen. 22:2, emphasis mine) indicates that there was more than one place of elevation in Moriah. Furthermore that 2 Chronicles 3:1 references the site of the temple as the place, where the Lord had appeared to his father David but contains no similar reference to the event of Genesis 22 could possibly indicate that the temple was built on a different hill of Moriah. Either way the ultimate point of the story is the same, anyhow.

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The thing that Abraham foreshadowed on Mount Moriah was realized, accomplished, when Gods Son upon the cross cried, It is finished. Isaac asks, Where is the lamb? Abraham answers, God will provide himself a lamb. John the Baptist announces, Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29). This was the Lamb provided and slain from the foundation of the world but manifested on Mount Moriah for us; through whose precious blood, even the blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, we are redeemed (1 Peter 1:1819).31 What wonderful things, indeed, would be seen in the mountain of the LORD, by the hand of yhvah yireh! Yahweh-tsidkenu. Jeremiah surveyed the morally bankrupt leadership of Judah and felt compelled to prophecy. Corrupt shepherds led Gods flock into the pasturelands of folly. The people were diseased with blackness of heart and for their particular malady there was no cure because Judah had rejected her God. Stone notes, They despised His provision of redemption as Jehovah-jireh. Consequently He could not be to them Jehovah-rophe, who heals. They were a people, as Isaiah says, without soundness from the sole of the foot to the crown of the head, full of open wounds, bruises, and putrefying sores (Isaiah 1:6). Without Jehovah-nissi, their banner, they were defeated at every turn. Refusing to sanctify themselves to Jehovah-MKaddesh, their sanctifier, they became corrupt and degenerate.32 Nebuchadnezzar must have enjoyed the irony of changing the name of Mattaniah (the LORDs gift) into Zedekiah (the LORDs righteousness).33 That final historical king of Judah proved no more competent in doing good than had his predecessors. 2 Chronicles 36:12, 13, lists these specific charges: (1) He did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, the Lords spokesman. (2) He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him vow allegiance in the name of God, (3) and worst of all, He was stubborn and obstinate, and refused to return to the Lord God of Israel.
31

Stone, Names, Kindle Locations, 947-51. Ibid., Kindle Locations 1634-37. Ibid., Kindle Locations 1629-30.

32

33

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Whatever Nebuchadnezzars reasons for changing the kings name, the LORD God used the occasion as an opportunity to produce some irony of his own.34 The prophet Jeremiah, moved by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, spoke in time with some inner divine rhythm, I, the Lord, promise that a new time will certainly come when I will raise up for them a righteous branch, a descendant of David. He will rule over them with wisdom and understanding and will do what is just and right in the land. Under his rule Judah will enjoy safety and Israel will live in security. This is the name he will go by: The Lord has provided us with justice (Jer. 23:5, 6). So then, this divine name, - Yhovah tsidqenuw35, is tied to a coming

individual, a human ruler who would not be like the present brood, despite the similarity of name. Instead his reign would be characterized by true righteousness, justification, and acquittal.36 Such would be the transformative power of his rule that even Jerusalem would be known for its extreme righteousness and would be granted to share in his divine name (Jer. 33:16). Of course, this coming ruler is the Messiah and Son of God, Jesus called Christ. He is the descendant of David whose reign will reverse the wickedness of the wayward kings of Judah. He will not only rule in righteousness, but who through the virtuous surplus of his own sacrifice at Calvary, he is able to make righteous even the most unrighteous of persons. Space will not permit a comprehensive study of the derivatives of Hashem which a fuller treatment of this thesis would require. Nor will it permit a discussion of the two Joshua(s), one a
34

Ibid., Kindle Locations 11639-41. Mr. Stone surmises, probably precisely because of the irony of the name, that the reign of Zedekiah marked the occasion of the prophecy of Jeremiah 23:5, 6. He seems even surer that the prophecy of Jeremiah 33:16 came from that time.
35

Blue Letter Bible. "Dictionary and Word Search for Yhovah tsidqenuw (Strong's 3072)". Blue Letter Bible. 1996-2012. 6 Jul 2012. < http:// www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm? Strongs=H3072&t=KJV >
36

Stone, Names, Kindle Location 1649. Divine righteousness can be pictures as a set of balanced scales, such that there is no dishonest attempt to get ahead. Stone writes, Among the ancient Romans justice was represented by a person with a pair of balanced scales in her hand. Thus Job pleads: Let God weigh me in honest scales, or balance of righteousness, and he will know that I am blameless (31:6). The psalmist pictures all men, both high and low, as going up when laid on the balances (62:9). (Kindle Locations 1654-1656).

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military general, the other a high priest, both significant since they bear together a key derivative of the divine name as well as typological significance. Even so, in the light of New Testament understanding, already the mystery must be coming clear. Already the hint which God gave to Moses at the bush and which was explored further by good men like Abraham and Jeremiah must be blossoming into full awareness in the readers heart. Moses asked for a name; God offered him a clue in the form of a linking verb. He will be, but who will he be? WHAT CAME FIRST: THE PUZZLE OR THE SOLUTION Old Testament heroes attempted to solve Gods puzzle. They offered solutions like Yahweh Shalom - the LORD is Peace (Jud. 6:24), or Yahweh Nissi the LORD is my banner (Ex. 17:15). These were certainly valid arguments, but the fullness of God was too vast, his purposes too insurmountable for these alone to be the true lasting solution. In the end, the answer was not to be found within the pages of the OT era at all. Centuries later Jesus stood in the temple courts of Jerusalem, holding his ground, debating with Jews who were not quite able to understand the kinds of claims he was making. He called himself the light of the world (John 8:12), insisted that he was not even from this world (John 8:23), and even proclaimed that the truth of his message could release men from slavery (John 8:32).37 Furthermore, he claimed to come directly as an envoy from God (John 8:42), and that obedience to his teaching would somehow deliver the adherent from the full power of death (John 8:51). Somehow in the midst of such magnificent meta-physical declarations, it was his claim of personal knowledge concerning their great patriarch that really gave the crowd pause. You
are not yet fifty years old! they exclaimed, before asking incredulously, Have you seen Abraham?
37

NET Bible, translators note (tn) on John 8:32, https://net.bible.org/#!bible/John+8:32 (accessed July 06, 2012). The liberating truth here refers to the Gospel message, that the person and work of Jesus Christ is able to accomplish for humanity what no other movement ever could.

14
Jesus answer was quite more than they bargained for. It changed everything: I tell you the solemn truth, before Abraham came into existence, I am! (John 8:58).

The mystery of the divine name was finally solved; the fullness of the identity was settled! With that single sweeping Greek phrase, - ego eimi, I AM Jesus asserted complicity with the divine being from the bush. Writes D.A. Carson, If he had wanted to claim only that he existed before Abraham, it would have been simpler to say, Before Abraham was, I was. Instead bringing forward the use of ego eimi found in vv. 24, 28, Jesus says, Before Abraham was born, I am. Whatever doubts may attach themselves to whether or not ego eimi should be taken absolutely in vv. 24, 28, here there can be none.38 Matthew Henry concurs, I am, is the name of God (Exod. 3:14); it denotes his self-existence; he does not say, I was, but I am, for he is the first and the last, immutably the same (Rev. 1:8); thus he was not only before Abraham, but before all worlds, ch. 1:1; Prov. 8:23.39 CONCLUSION A man went for a short jog in which he took three left turns and returned home. When he got there two masked men were waiting for him! Who were they and what had happened? In this simple riddle the clues are all there for the person with sufficient knowledge about their world. The man in question hit a home run while playing baseball (or perhaps softball). The three lefts are taken at first, second, and third base, respectively, while the two masked men who he meets upon the completion of his trip are the catcher of the opposing team and the home-plate umpire.

38

D.A. Carson, The Gospel According to John (Leicester, England.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1991), p. 358.
39

Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary On the Whole Bible, 5th Edition (Osnova, Kindle Edition, 2010), Kindle Locations 244404-407.

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The riddle of Exodus 3, the first person linking verb God gave to Moses in lieu of a conventional name, was quite more complicated than the one above. Still, the NT believer, in light of progressive revelation, should be quick to recognize Jesus as the ultimate fulfillment of all the vast potential I AM has to offer. In his person and work is accomplished each of the suffixed derivatives. He is our great provision, our righteousness, our peace, our banner, our healer, and so forth. His own name, Yeshua, is actually itself a prefixed derivative of the divine name, meaning The LORD saves, and therefore a fulfillment of Gods ultimate objective ever since sin entered the world. Jesus said to Philip, The person who has seen me has seen the Father! Yes, in every possible way.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Blue Letter Bible, http://www.blueletterbible.org/index.cfm (accessed July 06, 2012). Carson, D.A. The Gospel According to John. Leicester, England.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1991. Coffin, F. J. Ph.D. The Third Commandment. Journal of Biblical Literature 19, no. 2 (1900): 166-88. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3268945 (accessed June 10, 2012). Dov Lerner, Berel. Please Consider Not Taking the Lord's Name in Vain. The Expository Times121, no. 7 (March 09, 2010): 339-41. (accessed June 10, 2012). Gemeren, W.A. Van. Tetragrammaton. . In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, edited by Walter E. Elwell, 1177. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001. Henry, Matthew. Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary On the Whole Bible, 5th Edition. Osnova, Kindle Edition, 2010. Jacobs, Alan. The Code Breakers. First Things no. 165 (August 1, 2006): 14-17. http://www.proquest.com/ (accessed July 4, 2012). Janzen, J Gerald. What's in a Name? 'Yahweh' in Exodus 3 and the Wider Biblical Context. Interpretation 33, no. 3 (July 1, 1979): 227-39. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed July 04, 2012). Lloyd-Jones, D. Martyn. God the Father, God the Son: God the Holy Spirit; The Church and the Last Things. Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 2003. McCommiskey, T.E. God, Names of. In Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, edited by Walter E. Elwell, 504-08. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001. NET Bible. https://net.bible.org/ (accessed July 04, 2012). Stone, Nathan. Names of God. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2010.