We have Yhwh-tsidkenu, which means God, our righteousness or, our deliverer. It appears in Jeremiah 23:6. Yhwh-roi, God, our Shepherd - the one who guides. That appears in Psalm 23:1. There is Yhwh-mekaddishkem, God, who sanctifies you - the one who anoints. This appears in the Sabbath Covenant, in Exodus 31:13. Yhwh-jireh, God, our provider. It literally means, the one who sees - meaning that He is there in Genesis 22:14. Yhwh-ropheka, God, our healer, in Exodus 15:26. And Yhwh-shalom, God, our peace. He used that when He was with Gideon, in Judges 6:24.
Now, I have no doubt that the psalmist, David, was meditating on the names of God, and this is what came out. What he knew of the nature of God is this most beloved section in all of the Bible. And it is nothing more than a study of the names of God.
Hebrews 3:6 is key. It says that we are Christ's house, which is a great encouragement. But the verse also contains a conditional statement: We must hold fast. We often stop there, maybe envisioning white-knuckle endurance. And there are times that is needed. But notice what it is we must hang on to: the confidence - the boldness - and the rejoicing of the hope. That rejoicing of the hope can even indicate boasting - not a proud boasting, but the kind of confident assurance found in the sheep in Psalm 23:1, who proclaims, The LORD is my shepherd. He rejoices in being owned by Christ. Our hope in Christ gives confident assurance in life to the degree that we believe it.
Now turn with me to Psalm 23 - this psalm that is supposed to be the most beloved of all pieces of the Bible. Most of us are not familiar with the very interesting fact that Psalm 23 is really a brief expounding of eight names of God. The names do not actually appear here; but in each verse - sometimes twice in a verse - the implication of God's name appears.
Now, I have no doubt that the psalmist, David, was meditating on the names of God, and this is what came out. What he knew of the nature of God is this most beloved section in all of the Bible. And it is nothing more than a study of the names of God.
