Psalm 9:10    All in the name
     It is important to know that God’s name is synonymous with who He is. His name is His character and His character is His name – He is God Almighty, Jehovah, Lord of all. To invoke His name is to invoke Him because He is God, supreme above any other living being. The greatest insult to God is to use His name casually or without discernment or a as a swear word. Blasphemy, as a word, does not have an equivalent in Hebrew but in Exodus 22:28 the Israelites are told not to revile (blaspheme) God or His chosen leaders, to do so was punishable by death. Reviling God’s name was to call into question His holiness and integrity, to show a complete lack of understanding of who He is or worse to have no respect for Him even if we do know who He is! 

So, those who know His name trust in Him. Those who know His name, know that He will never forsake them for that is contrary to who He is. The name of the Lord protects us, like ambassadors who enter a hostile country with a message from their sovereign. The name of the Lord saves us and so we sing the praises of His name. There is identity in a name, there is a sense of intimacy too, we know who we are talking about, we are more than just commentators, we are friends. Let’s take it one step further – we are children! God the Father is our Father. Jesus Christ is our brother. We are dearly loved and especially chosen and we KNOW the name of our God. If we know it and what it implies then there is no reason not to trust the One who bears that name. 

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