Creator, Father, King #70

Let them all praise the name of the LORD. For his name is very great; his glory towers over the earth and heaven!

ENOCH, WHAT WERE YOU thinking?

Yes, yes—we know you were a godly man who, incredibly, never experienced physical death (Genesis 5:24). But did you have to name your firstborn son Methuselah? The name doesn’t really roll off the tongue, you know. What’s worse, Methuselah means “to bring death.”

Imagine poor Methuselah’s response as a teenager: Wow, thanks a million, Dad. Now I’m really gonna be popular with all the other antediluvian kids at school.

Were you trying to be ironic, Enoch? Because your son’s biggest claim to fame, of course, is that he lived 969 years, longer than anyone else in history. So perhaps his name should mean “to bring death . . . after nine centuries.”

Anyway, Methuselah is just one of many fascinating names in the Bible. Names were a big deal in ancient times. They not only identified you, but they also described what you were like as a person.

For the last three days, we’ve been learning about God’s special name in Scripture, Yahweh. But the Bible uses many other beautiful names to describe God. Today, we will briefly look at some of these.

What’s It Mean?

Here are seven more names that reveal God’s awesome, holy character:

1. Elohim. The standard word for “God” in the Old Testament. Elohim is used more than two thousand times, including in Genesis 1:1.
2. Adonai. A reverential title meaning “Lord” or “Master,” found more than four hundred times in the Old Testament.
3. El Elyon. This name means “The Most High God,” found often in Genesis and the Psalms. It speaks of God’s sovereignty over his creation.
4. El Shaddai. This means “God Almighty,” speaking to his power to do everything he wants to accomplish in his perfect will.
5. El Olam. This means “The Everlasting God,” alluding to his infinite nature. Daniel 7 describes him similarly as “the Ancient of Days” (ESV).
6. Yahweh-Yireh. This name, meaning “The LORD Will Provide,” is used only once in Scripture—Genesis 22:14—when God provided Abraham a sacrificial ram in Isaac’s place on Mount Moriah.
7. Yahweh-Sabaoth. This name means “The Lord of Hosts.” God sovereignly rules over all spiritual and earthly forces. He controls the fate of all battles.

As today’s verse says, the name of the Lord is very great indeed. Praise the name of the Lord!

Now What?

Look up the following verses to learn more names of the Lord: Judges 6:24; Psalm 23:1; and Jeremiah 23:6.

Did You Know?

Other than Enoch, the Bible records only one other human whom God brought straight to heaven without dying: Elijah (2 Kings 2:11).