5 Reasons to Speak the Name Yahweh

Did you know that God has a name?

In Exodus 3, we come across the story where for the first time someone has the courage, the audacity, to ask God his name.  Moses asks God, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”

God replied to Moses, “I AM who I AM. Say this to the people of Israel: I AM has sent me to you.”  God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: Yahweh,the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.

This is my eternal name,
my name to remember for all generations.

The name Yahweh is the most used name of God in scripture.  It appears nearly 7000 times.  Yet you don’t often see the name Yahweh in your Bible. And we don’t often use the name Yahweh when referring to God, even though that is His name.

Why not?

A few hundred years before Jesus the Jews stopped speaking the name of God out loud. They stopped writing it down. They were afraid they were going to break one of the 10 Commandments. “Thou Shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.” In that command it literally says you shall not take the name Yahweh in vain. So they stopped speaking His name & writing His name. Instead, whenever they came to his name in scripture, they would use the word for lord in Hebrew – Adonai. And when our Bibles were translated into english, translators stuck with tradition & used the word lord. To show that that this was a substitution for the name of God, Yahweh, they would put the word LORD all in caps.

And personally, I think this is a shame. I think it’s a great loss for the people of God. Because God has a name. He revealed His name to us. I think He wants us to call him by name. Yahweh is the most used name for God in scripture, yet its a name we seldom speak.

5 Reasons Why We Should Call God by His Name, Yahweh:

1. God has a name.
   God is not a name, it’s a noun.  It’s a title.  I don’t walk around calling my wife, “Wife,” all the time.  And if I did you would think that would be strange.  And you would be right!  If I never called Alisha by name & always referred to her as wife that would imply distance in the relationship.
2. God revealed His name to us.
   The simple fact is, God has repeatedly reveled His name to us through scripture.  Yes, he asked us to hold His name high above every other name.  To hold it in awe & reverence.  But He has revealed His name to His sons & daughters.
3. Calling someone by name reveals there is a relationship. Intimacy.
   The fact that He has revealed His name to us means He can be known.  We can be in a relationship with Him & call Him by name.  I wonder how long Yahweh has longed to hear His sons & daughters call Him by name?
4. God calls Himself by name.
   Throughout scripture, God calls Himself by name.  It’s not a name He revealed once & then never spoke again.  In Exodus 34.6, in a beautiful passage, God calls His name out twice before Moses.  It was a sign of endearment.  Essentially God said to Moses, I AM Yahweh, your dear friend, Yahweh.”
5. If we don’t speak His name it’s hard to exalt His name.
   We can’t exalt a name we never speak.  But when we call out His name, Yahweh… When we sing His name, Yahweh… When we pray His name, Yahweh… we can exalt His name above every other name.

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We have a great God with a great name & a kind heart. God has a name. God wants you to call him by name because God wants to be in relationship with you. God wants intimacy with you. He knows your name. And HE wants you to know His name & call Him by name.  Yahweh.