Bodie Hodge, AiG–U.S., examines many of the different names referring to God in the Old Testament.
I am sometimes surprised at how easy it is to answer some alleged Bible contradictions. And this one is rather easy. Imagine if someone came up to me and said, “What is your name? Is it Bodie or Mr. Hodge?” Well the answer is simple: it is both.
Should we assume that God has only one name and all others are contradictions in Scripture? That would be absurd. God often gave new names to people, such as Jacob becoming Israel or Abram becoming Abraham and so on. The names have meaning too. For example, Abram means “exalted father” and Abraham means “the father of a multitude.” The latter name obviously reflected the promise God made to Abraham about having countless offspring. So having more than one name is no contradiction at all.
God often revealed things by the name He gave for Himself. For example, Jehovah-Jireh means “the Lord provides.” In fact, the name Jehovah is derived from YHWH, the name God revealed to Moses. It is from a root word translated as “I AM” in the title “I AM WHO I AM
” (Exodus 3:14). This helps us understand that God is the ultimate authority in all matters at all times and existence is predicated upon Him. In fact, there are a number of names that God reveals to us in Scripture. Here are some from the Old Testament:
Name | Brief meaning | Reference |
---|---|---|
Elohim | God (Majestic plural yet used with singular verbs for God) | Genesis 1:1 |
El | God (singular) | Genesis 7:1 |
El Shaddai | God is sufficient/almighty | Genesis 17:1 |
El Elyon | God Most High | Deuteronomy 26:19 |
El Roi | God sees | Genesis 16:13 |
El Olam | God everlasting | Genesis 21:33 |
El Gibbor | Mighty God | Isaiah 9:6 |
Jehovah | “I AM WHO I AM” or Yahweh or “to be”; In English Bibles translated as “Lord” | Genesis 2:4 (Jehovah Elohim specifically here) |
Jehovah-Magen | The Lord my shield | Psalm 3:3 |
Jehovah-Tsaddiq | The Lord is righteous | 2 Chronicles 12:6 |
Jehovah-Jireh | The Lord provides or the Lord sees | Genesis 22:14 |
Jehovah-Rapha | The Lord heals | Exodus 15:26 |
Jehovah-Nissi | The Lord is our banner | Exodus 17:15 |
Jehovah-M’Kaddesh | The Lord sanctifies | Leviticus 20:7 |
Jehovah-Shalom | The Lord is our peace | Judges 6:24 |
Jehovah-Rohi | The Lord is our shepherd | Psalm 23:1 |
Jehovah-Shammah | The Lord is there | Ezekiel 48:35 |
Jehovah-Sabaoth | Lord of hosts | Isaiah 1:24 |
Jehovah-Tsidkenu | The Lord is our righteousness | Jeremiah 23:5 |
Jehovah-Hoseenu (Asah) | The Lord our Maker | Psalm 95:6 |
Judge (Shaphat) | The Judge | Genesis 18:25 |
Mighty One (Abir) | Mighty One | Genesis 49:24 |
Branch (Tsemach) | The Branch | Jeremiah 23:5 |
Holy One (Kadosh) | Holy One | 2 Kings 19:22 |
Jealous (Kanna) | Jealous | Exodus 34:14 |
Deliverer (Palet) or (Rhuomai Greek) | Deliverer | 2 Samuel 22:2 and Romans 11:26 |
Savior (Yeshua) | Savior | Isaiah 43:3 |
Redeemer (Ga’al) | Redeemer | Job 19:25 |
Shepherd (Ra’ah) | The Shepherd, overseer | Genesis 49:24 |
Stone (Eben) of Israel | Stone | Genesis 49:24 |
Strength (Eyaluwth) | Strength | Psalm 22:19 |
Adonai | Master or Lord (as plural); in English Bibles translated as “Lord” | Genesis 15:2 |
Rock (Tsur) of Israel | Rock | Isaiah 30:29 |
King (Melekh) | King | Isaiah 41:21 [of Israel]; Psalm 74:12 |
Father (Ab) or (Abba Greek) | Father | Malachi 1:6 and Galatians 4:6 |
First (Ri’shon) and Last (Acharon) or (Protos and Eschatos in Greek) | First and Last | Isaiah 48:12 and Revelation 1:17 |
Immanuel | God with us | Isaiah 7:14 |
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