YHWH, Not in Vain

Bulletin

Dan Peters
09/04/22 - God's Word

“Hieroglyphic inscriptions mentioning the “land of the nomads of YHWH” were discovered on the walls of two New Kingdom Egyptian temples and a temple pillar in Sudan” (Unearthing the Bible, p.60, Dr. Titus Kennedy, from Biola University). “The earliest evidence for the name Yahweh comes from the temple at Soleb in the Sudan and dates to the 14 century” BC (Biblical Archeology Review, p.32, Fall of 2022). This predates our earliest Old Testament manuscripts by about 1000 years! So the first written account of God’s name is found outside the Bible.
How Ironic! Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD (YHWH) that I should obey His voice…” (Exodus 5:2). Yet his predecessor will not only know God’s name, but will have it written in stone, later to be found by archeologists.
What about you my friend? Do you know the LORD? Have you obeyed his voice? Pharaoh paid a high price for his disobedience to the LORD for he not only lost his 1st born son in 10th plague, but lost his army in the Red Sea. You can harden your heart like Pharaoh, or you can soften your heart and return to God. Please harden your heart no longer, but yield to God. Seek him with all your heart.
“For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His…” (2Chonicles 16:9). Therefore take courage, and repent of all your sins. Confess the name of Jesus, “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.” (Mat. 10:32-22). Then be baptized, “in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38).
Notice the name, “in the name of Jesus Christ”. For the New Testament writers considered Jesus to be YHWH. Psalms 102:25-26 written in the Hebrew language, is about YHWH, but the Hebrew writer says this passage is about Jesus (Hebrews 1:10-12). Isaiah 40:3-4 is about preparing the way for YHWH, i.e. Jesus (per John the Baptist, Matthew, Mark, Luke). So the Old Testament LORD/YHWH is the New Testament LORD/Jesus. Jesus himself said, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9, 12:45, 10:30).
Pharaoh didn’t know the LORD, nor did he obey his voice. But what an honor and a privilege to not only know the Lord, but to obey his voice out of love and faith. Jesus took the death of the firstborn upon himself. He took the curse upon himself (Gal. 3:10). Let us magnify the name of Jesus, let us never take the name of the Lord in vain. Dan Peters