Why do christians say "God's name is not important" and then insist people call them by their correct name?
How many people are happy with being called "female" or "man" and never by their personal name? Would that mean our human name is more 'important' than the Divine name?
2010-05-06T11:38:41Z
Elohim etc is hebrew for LORD and as anyone with a dictionary can tell you "Lord" or "Father" is not a personal NAME but a TITLE
2010-05-06T11:43:05Z
The 'politcally correct way of saying "God's name isn't important is ... "It doesn't matter what we call God, he has many names ..."
a_measured_brush2010-05-06T12:20:43Z
Favorite Answer
God has ,any titles, but only one personal name. No one today knows for sure how it was originally pronounced in Hebrew, but the English word we have for it is Jehovah. Original all Hebrew was written in only consonants, and by the time that vowel signs began to be used the Jews had a superstition that God's name was not to be pronounced aloud and so used other vowel markings with it. The J here comes from Latin, which is one of the roots of the English language. People who argue against this pronunciation still use the word "Jesus" even though that is not what his name was originally either, and they use a host of other names too, like Jeremiah.
During any period of Bible history if you actually read the Bible you will see that God's servants used his name.
For example in the book of Ruth:
(Ruth 2:4) 4 And, look! Bo´az came from Beth´le·hem and proceeded to say to the harvesters: "Jehovah be with YOU." In turn they would say to him: "Jehovah bless you."
Even outside of the Bible his people in Bible times used his name. An example of this is the "Lachish letters" which are from one of the last fortresses to fall to the Babylonians.
Letter number IV contains the statement: "May YHWH [that is, Jehovah] let my lord hear even now tidings of good. . . . we are watching for the fire signals of Lachish, according to all the signs which my lord gives, because we do not see Azekah." This passage remarkably expresses the situation described at Jeremiah 34:7 and apparently indicates that Azekah had already fallen or at least was failing to send out the fire or smoke signals expected. Letter number III, written by "Hoshaiah," includes the following: "May YHWH [that is, Jehovah] cause my lord to hear tidings of peace! . . . And it has been reported to your servant saying, ‘The commander of the army, Coniah son of Elnathan, has come down in order to go into Egypt and to Hodaviah son of Ahijah and his men he has sent to obtain [supplies] from him.’"
Of special interest is the frequent use of the Tetragrammaton in these letters, thus manifesting that at that time the Jews had no aversion to the use of the divine name.
The very frequency of the appearance of the name attests its importance to the Bible’s author, whose name it is. The Tetragrammaton occurs 6,828 times in the Hebrew text (BHK and BHS). This is confirmed by the Theologisches Handwörterbuch zum Alten Testament, Vol. I, edited by E. Jenni and C. Westermann, 3rd ed., Munich and Zurich, 1978, cols. 703, 704.
Among God’s people of ancient Israel the Divine Name indeed held an honored place. The people expressed God’s name in their worship and Scripture readings, in their daily conversations, as well as in their contacts with other nations. Thus they became known far and wide as the people who worshiped Jehovah.
the Scriptures draw a contrast between Israel and "the kingdoms that have not called upon your own name."—Ps. 79:6; Jer. 10:25.
(Psalm 79:6) 6 Pour out your rage upon the nations that have not known you, And upon the kingdoms that have not called upon your own name.
(Jeremiah 10:25) 25 Pour out your rage upon the nations who have ignored you, and upon the families who have not called even upon your name. For they have eaten up Jacob. Yes, they have eaten him up, and they keep at exterminating him; and his abiding place they have desolated.
To know and use God's name is essential to salvation and that is why Jehovah has made his name known:
(Exodus 9:15-16) 15 For by now I could have thrust my hand out that I might strike you and your people with pestilence and that you might be effaced from the earth. 16 But, in fact, for this cause I have kept you in existence, for the sake of showing you my power and in order to have my name declared in all the earth.
Years later, the woman Rahab living in distant Jericho said: "We have heard how Jehovah dried up the waters of the Red Sea from before you when you came out of Egypt . . . Jehovah your God is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath." Rahab did not merely use a title such as ‘God,’ but also used God’s distinctive name.—Josh. 2:10, 11.
When the temple was built God's name, Jehovah, as we pronounce it in English, was of paramount importance:
(1 Kings 8:16) 16 ‘From the day that I brought my people Israel out from Egypt I have not chosen a city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house for my name to continue there; but I shall choose David to come to be over my people Israel.’
(1 Kings 8:41-43) 41 "And also to the foreigner, who is no part of your people Israel and who actually comes from a distant land by reason of your name 42 (for they shall hear of your great name and of your strong hand and of your stretched-out arm), and he actually comes and prays toward this house, 43 may you yourself listen from the heavens, your established place of dwelling, and you must do according to all that for which the foreigner calls to you; in order that all the peoples of the earth may get to know your name so as to fear you the same as your people Israel do, and so as to know that your name itself has been called upon this house that I have built.
(Joel 2:32) 32 And it must occur that everyone who calls on the name of Jehovah will get away safe; for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will prove to be the escaped ones, just as Jehovah has said, and in among the survivors, whom Jehovah is calling."
If you consider the scriptures at Exodus T quoted earlier, and Joel I just quoted, Paul also referred to these same two scriptures in his letter to the Romans at 9:17 and 10:13. So it is on the basis of god's name and how individuals respond to it that has to do with whether they receive the free gift of life.
(Malachi 3:16) 16 At that time those in fear of Jehovah spoke with one another, each one with his companion, and Jehovah kept paying attention and listening. And a book of remembrance began to be written up before him for those in fear of Jehovah and for those thinking upon his name.
Again, this is a gift, but it is not unconditional: a person has to come to know both God and his son that he sent as a ransom.
The nation of Israel was to have a prominent part in the proclamation of God’s name. Jehovah said to them: "You are my witnesses . . . and I am God." (Isa. 43:12) Yes, they were to serve as Jehovah’s witnesses. And God meant that his name Jehovah should always have a prominent place in true worship, saying: "This is my name to time indefinite, and this is the memorial of me to generation after generation."—Ex. 3:15. Thus it has been called "the memorial name".
God's name continued to be viewed as important to Christians of the first century:
(Matthew 6:9) 9 "YOU must pray, then, this way: "‘Our Father in the heavens, let your name be sanctified.
(John 17:3) 3 This means everlasting life, their taking in knowledge of you, the only true God, and of the one whom you sent forth, Jesus Christ.
(John 17:6) 6 "I have made your name manifest to the men you gave me out of the world. . . .
(Acts 15:14-19) 14 Sym´e·on has related thoroughly how God for the first time turned his attention to the nations to take out of them a people for his name. 15 And with this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written, 16 ‘After these things I shall return and rebuild the booth of David that is fallen down; and I shall rebuild its ruins and erect it again, 17 in order that those who remain of the men may earnestly seek Jehovah, together with people of all the nations, people who are called by my name, says Jehovah, who is doing these things, 18 known from of old.’ 19 . . .
What about Muslims, and why don't they use God's name? "Allah" is not a personal name. "Allah" is a shortened form of the Arabic term meaning "the god."
Allah 1702, Muslim name of the Supreme Being, from Arabic Allahu, contr. of al-Ilahu, from al "the" + Ilah "God," rel. to Heb. Elohim. Practically without exception Jews have accepted the view expressed in their Mishnah, which proclaims: "And these are they that have no share in the world to come: he that says there is no resurrection of the dead . . . and that the Law is not from heaven . . . Also he that pronounces the Name in its proper letters."—Sanhedrin 10:1, translation by Herbert Danby, Oxford University Press, 1933.
The American Standard Version of 1901, explains in its preface: "The change first proposed in the Appendix [of the English Revised Version]—that which substitutes ‘Jehovah’ for ‘LORD’ and ‘GOD’ (printed in small capitals)—is one which will be unwelcome to many, because of the frequency and familiarity of the terms displaced. But the American Revisers, after a careful consideration, were brought to the unanimous conviction that a Jewish superstition, which regarded the Divine Name as too sacred to be uttered, ought no longer to dominate in the English or any other version of the Old Testament . . . This personal name, with its wealth of sacred associations, is now restored to the place in the sacred text to which it has an unquestionable claim."
The "short" answer is that God's people use his name, and so if people do not, then they are not.
Think of the word God as a title. A CEO wouldn't like for her name to be used lightly. God is a curse word in most western civilizations. I say bloody in America and no one thinks twice but I say it in front of someone from England and I have said an extremely bad curse word. No offense intended to those over the pond. You're talking modern language and intention of a heart. If I say Oh God and I'm really talking to Him because I want that bus to not ram my car then I'm golden. If I'm ticked and say the same then I'm using it emptily (vainly) not to entreat Him and not for His purposes. This has nothing to do with how English should be used according to Hebrew convention. It's use is situational and not open to interpretation except to those that don't see the obvious. I'm not insulting you, it can be fun to do mental gymnastics but I have a hard time believing this is a genuine question.
I do think God's name is important, and I don't know any other Christians who claim his name is not important.
Their is a commandment about God's name. (Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in Vain) Moses desired to know God's name. (I am) The Gospels are full of Beautiful and insightful names for God and for Christ.
I would like to meet Christians (which uses the name of Christ as it's very root) who don't think these names are important. Sounds like you are dealing with people who are basically saying that all names for all gods are equal, but this isn't the case.
You haven't been around many Christians praying have you. I hear titles, Lord God, Father, Heavenly Father most often. Using a title is acceptable. I call my doctor Doctor. I call my mother, Mom. There was a time when I called my sister Sissy. Titles are ok. I have never called my father or mother by their first names.
God's name wouldn't be important because God, if he exists, is a completely different kind of being from us, and names are a very human thing to have. We name God because it helps US identify, not because he cares.