Moses said to
God, "Suppose I go to the Israelites and say
to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What
is his name?' Then what shall I tell them?" 14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the
Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.'" 15 God
also said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites,
'The Lord, the God of your fathers — the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and
the God of Jacob — has sent me to you.' This is my name forever, the name by
which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.
I AM THAT I AM
YHVH is the
personal name of God and his most frequent designation, occurring over 6,800
times. This is the Ineffable Name or Unutterable Name of God. It is composed
from the four Hebrew letters Yod,
Hey,
Vav,
and Hey.
When Moses stood
before the burning bush and God spoke to him and told him to go to the Pharaoh
of Egypt to tell him to let God’s people go, Moses asked “what is your name or
who do I tell them has sent?” God simply
answered Moses, "ehyeh-asher-ehyeh": 
I AM THAT I AM. (Exodus 3:14; cp. John 8:58).
The phrase ehyeh
asher ehyeh (rendered as "I AM THAT I AM") derives from the imperfect
first person form of the verb hayah: "I will be," and therefore
indicates a connection between the Name YHVH and being itself. YHVH is the
Source of all being and has being inherent in Himself. Everything else is contingent being that
derives existence from Him. He is the Source and Foundation of all possibility
of utterance and is beyond all definite descriptions.
This special
Name of God (YHVH) was combined with "The God of your fathers, the God of
Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob" to be God's Name forever,
"my memorial to all generations" (see Exodus 3:15-16).
Elohim is the
Name given for God as the Creator of the universe (Gen 1:1-2:4a) and implies
strength, power, and justice. YHVH, on the other hand, expresses the idea of
God's closeness to humans. For example, YHVH "breathed into his (Adam's)
nostrils the breath of life" (Genesis 2:7).
Jehovah? the Masoretes ensured that the
Name of the LORD would not be taken in vain by substituting the vowel marks for
Adonai and putting them under the letters 
this has led to the obviously incorrect
pronunciation of the Name as "Jehovah". So
Jehovah, though used by Christians for centuries, and a combination of two names
for God is not a true biblical word.
Yahweh is the word yet cannot be pronounced. There were no vowels in the name. There is no “W” sound in the Hebrew
language. Therefore, we do not know how
to pronounce the name that can’t be pronounced, even though it was pronounced
once a year.
The sacred Name
for God was uttered aloud 10 times once per year (during Yom Kippur) by the High
Priest. When the people heard the Name, they prostrated themselves in deep
reverence. this has led to the obviously incorrect
pronunciation of the Name as "Jehovah". So
Jehovah, though used by Christians for centuries, and a combination of two names
for God is not a true biblical word.
Yahweh is the word yet cannot be pronounced. There were no vowels in the name. There is no “W” sound in the Hebrew
language. Therefore, we do not know how
to pronounce the name that can’t be pronounced, even though it was pronounced
once a year.
So the greatest
name we have for God cannot be pronounced. God is the great “I am” but we don’t
know how to say it, at least not until Jesus comes.
John 8:58 "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before
Abraham was born, I am!"
Notice the connection between what God
said to Moses and who Jesus is to us: God
said to Moses, say to the Israelites: 'I AM has
sent me to you.' The God of your fathers — the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob
— has sent me to you.'
John 8:58 "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" (Exodus 3:14 and John 8:58)
The OT points to Jesus, the NT reveals him. Let’s see how Jesus – the great “I am” is
revealed in the NT.
LIVING BREAD
John
6:51 "I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If
anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever;"
FROM ABOVE
John 8:23: And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I AM from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.
I AM
(again)
John 8:58 Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
THE DOOR
(combined with next one)
John 10:9: "I AM the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved,
and will go in and out and find pasture."
GOOD SHEPHERD
John 10:11:
"I AM the good shepherd. The
good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
SON OF GOD
John 10:36: "why do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent
into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'? (John 10:34-39 Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your Law, 'I have said you are
gods'? If he called them 'gods,' to whom the word of God came — and the
Scripture cannot be broken—what about the one whom the Father set apart as his
very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy
because I said, 'I am God's Son'? Do not believe me unless I do what my Father
does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles,
that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the
Father." Again they tried to
seize him, but he escaped their grasp.)
RESURRECTION AND
THE LIFE (to Martha)
John 11:25: Jesus said to her, "I AM the resurrection and the life.
He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
THE WAY, THE
TRUTH, THE LIFE
(at the last supper - Thomas: we don’t know where you are
going, how can we know the way)
John 14:6: Jesus said to him,
"I AM the way, the truth, and the
life. No one comes to the Father
except through Me.
TRUE VINE
(connected like branches to the vine)
John 15:1: "I AM the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
KING OF THE JEWS
John 19:2: Therefore the chief priests of the Jews
said to Pilate, "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews,' but, 'He said,
"I am the King of the Jews."'
Right
after the woman caught in the act of adultery:
John 8:12-32
When Jesus
spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never
walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." 13 The Pharisees challenged him, "Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your
testimony is not valid." Jesus answered, "Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid,
for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I
come from or where I am going. You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on
no one. But if I do judge, my decisions are right, because I am not alone. I
stand with the Father, who
sent me. In your own Law it is written that the
testimony of two men is valid. I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the
Father, who sent me." 19
Then they asked him, "Where is your father?" "You do not know
me or my Father," Jesus replied. "If
you knew me, you would know my Father also." He spoke these words while teaching in the
temple area near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized him,
because his time had not yet come. Once
more Jesus said to them, "I am going away, and you
will look for me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come." This made the Jews ask, "Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, 'Where I go,
you cannot come'?" 23
But he continued, "You are from below; I am from above. You
are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your
sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be], you will indeed die in your sins."
"Who are you?" they asked. "Just what I
have been claiming all along," Jesus replied. 26 "I have much
to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is reliable, and what I have
heard from him I tell the world." They did not understand that he was telling
them about his Father. 28 So Jesus
said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man,
then you will know that I am [the one I claim to be] and that I do nothing on my own but
speak just what the Father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me; he
has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him." Even as he spoke, many put their faith in
him. To the Jews who had believed him,
Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are
really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you
free."
The only truth that can set you free from sin is the
truth that the great “I AM”, who told Moses his name is YHWH-Jesus! And that – NO! And He…is the truth!
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