A name of God
Yahweh, I AM That I AM
At the burning bush Moses asked God His name, and God answered with words that ring across all Scripture, I AM THAT I AM. From this the covenant name Yahweh is drawn, the personal name of the God who simply and eternally is. It tells us He depends on nothing and no one, yet freely binds Himself to His people.
“And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”Exodus 3:14
What the name means
Yahweh comes from the Hebrew consonants often written YHWH, connected to the verb to be. When God says I AM THAT I AM, He reveals a self existent Being, One who was not made and never began, who is the source of all other existence. Ancient scribes revered this name so deeply that they stopped pronouncing it aloud, reading Lord in its place, which is why Bibles print LORD in capitals. The later form Jehovah arose from combining these consonants with the vowels of another word for Lord. Whatever the pronunciation, the meaning stands: God is the ever living, unchanging One, present and faithful, whose very name is a promise that He will be with His people.
Where it appears
The name is unveiled when God speaks from the burning bush, commissioning Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt. God ties the name to His covenant, calling Himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and promising to be with Moses. From Exodus onward Yahweh becomes the most frequent name for God in the Old Testament, appearing thousands of times as the personal name of Israel's covenant Lord. It stands behind the word LORD in most English Bibles. Wherever Yahweh appears, it recalls the God who redeemed a people from slavery and pledged His unfailing presence to keep every word He had spoken.
How you see it in Christ
Jesus reached back to this name in a way His hearers could not miss. He said that before Abraham was, I AM, and they took up stones, for they knew He was claiming the name of God. In John's Gospel He gathers I AM sayings around Himself: the bread of life, the light of the world, the good shepherd, the resurrection and the life. The eternal, self existent One had entered time and taken a human name, Jesus, which means the LORD saves. So the God who told Moses I AM is the same who says to the weary, come unto me. In Christ the unchanging God draws near, and His presence becomes a Person you can know.
Questions people ask
Is Yahweh the same as Jehovah?
Yes, they point to the same name. Yahweh reflects the Hebrew consonants YHWH and a likely pronunciation. Jehovah is a later form made by combining those consonants with the vowels of another Hebrew word for Lord. Jewish tradition avoided saying the name aloud, reading Lord instead, which is why English Bibles usually print LORD in capital letters.
What does I AM THAT I AM mean?
It reveals God as self existent and eternal, the One who simply is, who was never made and never changes. He depends on nothing outside Himself and is the source of all being. Yet the name is also a promise of presence, assuring Moses and Israel that this ever living God would be with them to redeem and keep them.