Bearing God's Name: Why Sinai Still Mattersنموونە

The Lord’s Prayer

Are the Sinai covenant and the theme of “bearing Yahweh’s name” just Old Testament things? Are they relevant to Christians today? Or are they merely of historical interest? To answer these questions, we need to look carefully at how the New Testament interacts with these questions. Is it “out with the old, in with the new”? Or is the Sinai covenant still in effect? 

Looking at how Jesus interacts with God’s name is illuminating. During His earthly ministry, Jesus prays for the sanctification of His Father’s name, and He makes that name known. But after His death, the name “Jesus” comes to the forefront of the church’s expression of faith, becoming the only name “by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12 NIV). In some way, the divine name is transferred to Jesus. 

The Greek name Jesus (Iesou) is a translation of the Hebrew Yeshua—Yahweh saves. Jesus’ own name announces that Yahweh has come to save His people. His birth signifies the return of Yahweh to His people, recalling the name prophesied by Isaiah: “Immanuel,” God with us (Matthew 1:23). As R. T. France explains in his commentary on Matthew, the name “Immanuel” implies not only that God’s presence is evident in the events surrounding Jesus’ birth, but that Jesus is Yahweh Himself, come to be with His people. 

That’s what makes it all the more striking that Jesus does not focus on His own name. Instead, He magnifies the name of His Father. When He teaches His disciples to pray, He prays that the Father’s name would be sanctified, reversing centuries of its desecration through Israel’s unfaithfulness to the covenant (Matthew 6:9; Luke 11:2).

Jesus’ prayer, “hallowed be your name,” is not just wishful thinking, as though Jesus is hoping that Yahweh is feeling secure. His prayer implies a personal commitment to honoring that name through a life of faithful obedience. He fulfills Israel’s vocation to bear Yahweh’s name with honor. 

Those who fail to carry out God’s will bear his name in vain. Jesus has no patience for those whose verbal proclamations do not match their agenda. He condemns the Pharisees and scribes for having lips and hearts that contradict each other, saying that they “worship [God] in vain” (Mark 7:5-7 NIV). By bearing God’s name, Jesus lives out Israel’s vocation, showing us how it ought to be done