If a person’s name is the least bit out of the ordinary it’s a struggle for us to remember it and, sometimes, an even greater struggle to pronounce it properly. So a major part of almost every memory improvement program is likely to be a segment on remembering people’s names, one of the keys being to pronounce the name as soon after you first hear it as possible. Check with the person to make sure you are pronouncing his name correctly, and it will help you remember it. As we study the Bible we encounter an enormous number of Hebrew and Greek names along with less frequent references to Canaanite, Persian, and other ethnic names. These are difficult for us to pronounce because of the unfamiliar sounds of their original languages.

Biblical names, specially in the Old Testament, usually have a meaning indicating something about the person’s character and attributes. Though usually flattering, the names can sometime be derogatory such as, for instance, the name “Jacob,” given to one of the twin brothers born to Rebekah, which means, literally, “Heel Holder” and which came to mean “Supplanter.” Sometimes people have been renamed to indicate a change in status, which is what God did with Abram when he changed his name to Abraham. Abram means “Exalted Father” whereas Abraham means “Father of a Multitude” indicating his changed status under the protection and blessing of God.

The name for our Lord in the English translation of the Bible is Jesus, “The name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:9). It was bestowed upon the Lord by God Himself when He commanded through the angel that this name be give to Mary’s soon to be born son. The original and full form of our Savior’s name is Jehoshuah which means “YHWH our Salvation,” but we are left with a Greek impression of the name transliterated into the English form: Jesus. Jehoshuah is at times shortened to Joshua or Yeshuah and you can find references to other famous men who bore these names in Old Testament times.

Paul reminds us that God “highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:8-9)because Jesus “humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Paul encourages us to follow the example of Jesus’ attitudes of self-sacrifice and obedience by showing our fellow Christians affection, being at unity with them, and exhibiting lowliness and helpfulness toward them. So the name should spur us to show Christ-like attitudes toward our brethren.

Since Jesus means Salvation, not only in name but because of His sacrifice for us, we must revere His name above every name. May His name not only remind us of His sacrifice but also of the allegiance we have pledged to Him by being buried with Him in baptism so that we could have the hope of eternal life (Romans 6:3-5). May we defend His name against all attacks and may we live according to the pattern He left us so that no cause will be found in us to bring dishonor upon it.

Mel