The Names of God
8:27; Ps. 96:4–6; 97:9; 99:2, 3, 147:5; Isa. 57:15; Jer. 23:24. Some modern scholars, such as William James and H. G. Wells, deny the infinity of God. They conceive of God as "finite, developing, struggling, suffering, sharing with man his defeats and victories."
4. GOD AND HIS PERFECTIONS ARE ONE. Simplicity is one of the fundamental characteristics of God. This means not only that, as a spirit, He is not composed of different parts, but also that His essence and properties are one. The being of God is not something existing by itself, to which His attributes are added; the whole of His essence is in each one of the attributes. It is generally said that God's perfections are God Himself as He has revealed Himself to man.
They serve but to give a more detailed description of His divine essence. Hence the Bible says that God is truth, life, light, love, etc.
Questions for Review:
In what sense is God knowable, and in what sense unknowable?
What is innate knowledge of God? What is acquired knowledge? Is it possible to know something of the very being of God? Is it possible to define God? What is involved in God's spirituality? What do we mean when we ascribe personality to God? How can His personality be proved? What is the divine infinity? How are the being of God and His perfections related?
References for Further Study:
Berkhof, Reformed Dogmatics, I, pp. 22–27; McPherson, Christian Dogmatics, pp. 104–123; Shedd, Dogmatic Theology, I, pp. 151–194;
Snowden, The Personality of God.
THE NAMES OF GOD
A. The Name of God in General. The Bible often speaks of the name of God in the singular, as, for instance in Ex. 20:7 and Ps. 8:1. When it does this, it does not refer to any special designation of God, but uses the term in a very general sense to denote His self-revelation.
The one general name of God is split up into many special names, which are expressive of His many-sided being. It is only because God has revealed Himself in His name, that is, in His self-revelation in nature and in Scripture, and also in the special names by which He is designated in the Bible, that we can now ascribe these names to Him.
These names are of divine origin and not of human invention, though they are derived from human language. From what was said about the name of God in general it follows that not only the proper names of God, but also his attributes and the personal designations of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit may be included under the general heading, "The Names of God." In the present chapter we limit ourselves, however, to a discussion of the personal names of God.
B. The Old Testament Names of God. Of the Old Testament names the following are the most important:
1. There are certain names which direct attention to the fact that God is the high and exalted One, the transcendent God. 'El and 'Elohim stress the fact that He is strong and mighty, and therefore to be feared, while 'Elyon directs attention to His exalted nature as the Most High, the object of reverence and worship. Another name belonging to this class is 'Adonai, which is usually rendered "Lord." It was frequently used in addressing God and was an explicit recognition of the fact that He is the owner and ruler of all men.
Among Israel, the ancient covenant people, it was largely supplanted by the name Jehovah.
2. There are other names which point to the fact that this exalted being condescended to enter into relations of friendship with His creatures. In patriarchal times it was especially the name Shaddai or El-Shaddai that served this purpose, Ex. 6:3. This name also stresses the divine greatness, but primarily as a source of blessing and comfort for the people of God. It indicates the fact that God controls all the powers of nature and makes them subservient to his gracious purposes. It is especially in the name Jehovah (Yahweh), however, that God reveals Himself as the God of grace. This name has always been regarded as His most sacred and most distinctive name. On the basis of Ex. 3:14 it may be said that the name is derived from the Hebrew verb "to be," and that it serves to designate the unchangeableness of God. It implies the immutability of the divine being, but points more directly to the fact that God is unchangeable in His covenant relationship, that He is mindful of His promises and faithful in keeping His word, Mal. 3:6. The name often appears in the strengthened form "Jehovah of hosts." The hosts referred to are nor the stars, but rather the angelic hosts. Jehovah of hosts is God as the King of glory, who is surrounded by angelic hosts, who rules heaven and earth in behalf of his people, and receives glory from all His creatures.
C. The New Testament Names of God. The New Testament simply uses the Greek equivalents for the Hebrew names of the Old
Testament. The following should be noted particularly:
1. THEOS. This is simply the word for "God," and is the most common name employed in the New Testament. It is the common rendering of 'El, 'Elohim, and 'Elyon, though the latter is sometimes rendered "the Most High" or "the Most High God." The names
Shaddai and El-Shaddai are simply rendered by their Greek equivalents, meaning "the Almighty" or "the Almighty God." The
simple Theos is frequently found with a genitive of possession, as "my God," "thy God," "our God," "your God," because in Christ God may be regarded as the God of all and of each one of His children.
The national idea has made place for the individual in religion.
2. KURIOS. This is the word for "Lord," a name that is applied not only to God but also to Christ. It takes the place of both 'Adonai and Jehovah, though it does not have exactly the same meaning as the latter, but designates God as the possessor and the ruler of all things but particularly of His people, as the one who has regal power and authority. The fundamental idea of Jehovah is sometimes reproduced in such descriptions as "the Alpha and the Omega," "who is and who was and who is to come," "the beginning and the end,"
"the first and the last."
3. PATER. It is often said that the New Testament introduced a new name in Pater (Father). But this is hardly correct, for it is also found in the Old Testament as expressive of the special relation in which God stands to Israel. God is the Father of Israel, Deut. 32:6, Isa.
63:16, and Israel is the son of God, Ex. 4:22, Deut. 14:1; Isa. 1:2. The name is not always used in the same sense in the New Testament.
Occasionally it serves to designate God simply as originator and creator, 1 Cor. 8:6; Eph. 3:14; Heb. 12:9; James 1:17. In all other places it is expressive either of the special relation in which the first person of the Trinity stands to Christ, or of the ethical relation of God to believers as his spiritual children.
Questions for Review:
What does Scripture mean when it speaks of the name of God in the singular? Are the special names of God of human origin? What is the general difference between the names 'El, 'Elohim, 'Elyon, 'Adonai, on the one hand, and Shaddai, 'El-Shaddai, and Jehovah, on the