Asked to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, Moses asks, “Who shall I say sent me?” God responds, “I AM WHO I AM. Tell them ‘I AM has sent me to you.” (Exodus 3:13-15). God continues, “This is My name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” Thus, God would always refer to Himself as “I AM”.
“I AM” comes from a Hebrew word “hayah” meaning to exist, to be, to happen. The Hebrew letters comprising the word (yod-he-haw-he) would be transliterated into English as YHWH (pronounced Yahweh). In the Hebrew Scriptures, we have several instances of the term Yahweh combined with other words to describe specific aspects of God’s nature and attributes, most often in commemorating God’s specific blessings. Our English rendering of YHWH is Jehovah, combining the Latinized version, JHVH, with the vowels from Adonai, another name for God meaning master or lord. continue reading…
