A few weeks ago, I started writing about the last name of God, Jehovah-shammah, that was included in Kay Arthur’s book, Lord, I Want to Know You.
That post was more of an inspirational post and less of an educational post. With all the craziness going on right now, we have to remember, God is Here! He is with us. He will win in the end. We need not fear.
Today’s post is more of an educational post — but it should be inspiring as well.
First, we want to look at the meaning of this name of God.
- We discussed what Jehovah means in this post. The name Jehovah expresses His self-existence and the unchangeableness of His character. He transcends the past, the present, and the future.
- Shammah means “there”.
Thus, “The LORD is there” is the literal meaning. It also could be translated “The Lord My Companion.” Isn’t that a wonderful thought? God is our companion. Our friend! He is by our sides! He is for us. He is loyal.
Secondly, we want to know what the background of the name.
This name is the climax in the Old Testament’s revelation of God. This name is the promise and pledge of the completion of that purpose in man’s final rest and glory, for man’s end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
The key Scripture is Ezekiel 48:35. It is where we see this name of God.
It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there. Ezekiel 48:35
Now this prophecy is mostly for a future Jerusalem that the people of that time did not experience in their lifetime. No one has seen this prophecy fulfilled yet. The Jews who had been taken captive and were living in a foreign land were given encouragement that one day there would be a new heaven and new earth “wherein dwelleth righteousness, a home eternal in the heavens.” 2 Peter 3:13
Yet in one sense, this prophecy was partially fulfilled when the people of Israel came back to their homeland under Ezra, Nehemiah, and Zerubbabel,
When this name was said, Israel was at its lowest point in history. This prophecy gave then hope that one day they would go back to Jerusalem where the temple of God had been and rebuild the temple. The temple is where God dwelled, thus the name: Jehovah-shammah, The Lord is there.
“Ezekiel had prophesied 25 years earlier to the early captives in Babylon the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. Now he brings this prophecy of hope and consolation that predicts the restoration of land and people in a measure far beyond anything they had ever experienced in the past or could have imagined. The pledge of all this is the name Jehovah-shammah, Jehovah is there.” Nathan Stone
“The people had loved Jerusalem and the temple. They were in captivity, the temple had been destroyed, and they were very sad. This prophecy by Ezekiel brought them great hope for the restoration of their land. This was Jehovah’s pledge of His presence in a glorious way they could not imagine.” Marilyn Hickey
Now, we see why this name of God was such an encouragement to the Jews who were in captivity. Even though they had been taken captive, even though the temple had been destroyed, God was promising them that He was still there. That all had not been lost. He is telling them, “Don’t despair! Return to me, for I am still Here.”
Kay Arthur said that this name assured them of a hope and a future. She goes on to say,
We need a future and a hope! For the most part, our world lives for today. “Give it to me now!” The future seems so uncertain, so hopeless to most people that they have lost their vision. Most live for only their immediate happiness. . .
Most Christians live this way. They have lost sight of the blessed hope, the glory of being absent from the body and at home with the Lord. They do not look to the time when they will reign with Jesus on earth (Daniel 7:27). They have lost their will to fight because they have forgotten that their citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:20).
They have sat down at the world’s banquet table and glutted themselves with the things of this life. They have little interest in the glories of heaven. They can see and touch and taste and experience “now,” but they cant fathom the glories that are yet to come. Many Christians have become prisoners who will not try to escape. Thus, they are no threat to the world which holds them captive.
How can a Christian keep from being imprisoned by the world? How can we keep our vision and not lose hope?
Kay Arthur, LORD, I Want to Know You
We have at least one more post to share about this name of God. We’ll answer that last question that Kay Arthur asked right above and we’ll share how we can apply this name of God to our lives today.
Here are all of the Names of God posts:
- Names of God (List of books I used to study for this series)
- Elohim, The Creator God (free printables)
- El Elyon, The God Most High (free printables)
- El-Roi, The God Who Sees (free printables)
- El-Shaddai, The All-Sufficient One (free printables)
- Adonai, The Lord (free printables)
- Jehovah, The Self-Existent One, Part 1
- Jehovah, The Self-Existent One, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Will Provide, Part 1
- Jehovah Jireh, The Lord Will Provide, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah-Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 1
- Jehovah Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 2
- Jehovah Rapha: The Lord Who Heals, Part 3 (free printables)
- Jehovah Nissi: The Lord My Banner, Part 1
- Jehovah Nissi: The Lord My Banner, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah-mekoddishkem: The Lord Who Sanctifies You, Part 1
- Jehovah-mekoddishkem: The Lord Who Sanctifies You, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah-Shalom: The Lord Is Peace, Part 1
- Jehovah-Shalom: The Lord is Peace, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah-Sabaoth: The Lord of Hosts, Part 1
- Jehovah-Sabaoth: The Lord of Hosts, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah Raah: The Lord is My Shepherd, Part 1
- Jehovah Raah: The Lord is My Shepherd, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah-Tsidkenu: The Lord our Righteousness, Part 1
- Jehovah-Tsidkenu: The Lord our Righteousness, Part 2 (free printables)
- Jehovah Shammah
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