I Know a Name
Exodus 3:14–17 (NASB95)
14God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” 15God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations. 16“Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I am indeed concerned about you and what has been done to you in Egypt. 17“So I said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’
Commentary – I know a Name
Moses stood before the burning bush and asked two questions that have echoed through the centuries. First, he asked, “Who am I?” Maybe you feel this way sometimes. Who are we that God would invite us to have a place and a function in His plan? With God, through God, we are who He says we are. Moses’ second question was just as important. He asked God, “Who are you?” Can you say you know who God is? Not what is His name. Do you know who He is?
God’s answer is the heart of the story. He said, “I AM WHO I AM.” In Hebrew, this phrase comes from the verb hayah, meaning “to be.” God is not giving Moses a title. He is revealing His very essence. God IS. He has no beginning and no end. He is self-existent, dependent on nothing and no one. He is the One who always is, who always will be, and who is whatever is needed to accomplish His plan for His people. God IS good. God IS love. God IS mercy. God IS justice. The phrase can also mean “I will be who I will be,” pointing to God’s dynamic, active faithfulness. He is not static or distant. He is present and involved, always becoming what His people need in every moment. In the ancient world, to name someone was to have power over them. Here, God names Himself. No one has power over Him. He is the source of all being, of all things.
Jesus makes the connection to the burning bush unmistakable. Seven times in the Gospel of John, Jesus uses the words I Am, echoing the divine name revealed to Moses. He says, I Am the bread of life in John 6:35, I Am the light of the world in John 8:12, I Am the door in John 10:9, I Am the good shepherd in John 10:11, I Am the resurrection and the life in John 11:25, I Am the way, the truth, and the life in John 14:6, and I Am the true vine in John 15:1. Each statement reveals a different aspect of who Jesus is and what He offers. When Jesus says, Before Abraham was, I Am, in John 8:58, He claims the very name of God for Himself. The people understood this claim and saw it as blasphemy because Jesus was identifying Himself as the eternal God who spoke to Moses. Christ is not just a messenger or a prophet. He is the Great I Am, the eternal God who has come to save and redeem His people.
God then ties His name to His covenant. He tells Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’” God’s name is not just a theological concept. It is a personal promise. He is the God who made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He remembers His promises and will fulfill them. What God declares about Himself, He will do. His name is a guarantee that His word stands forever.
For us today, God’s name is still our anchor. The world changes. Leaders come and go. Circumstances shift. But God IS. He IS present, IS faithful, and IS unchanging. He is whatever we need—our strength, our hope, our peace, our righteousness. When we feel inadequate, we remember that God is enough. When we face spiritual confusion or darkness, we remember that God is not one among many. He is the only true God, and His promises never fail. Let us trust in the One who IS, who was, and who will be forever.
Amen!
Blessings,
Ryan Goodnight