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How is it even remotely possible that the covenant God made with Abraham, and thereafter promised to Isaac and Jacob, was done so without “revealing” His name? In a strange but certain revelation, shortly after Moses’ burning bush encounter, at which Yahweh revealed His name, He informs Moses that He appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as “God Almighty.” Curiously, He tells Moses that “by His name Yahweh He was NOT known to them!” How can this be? Throughout the Genesis narrative, from the birth of E’nosh in Genesis 4, ”When men began to call on the name of Yahweh,” to God’s interaction with Noah before and after the flood, and even after the incident at Babel 100 years later, when He confused the languages of the earth, we see His name Yahweh appear.

It’s understandable why Moses, at the burning bush, would ask His name. Moses lived in pagan Egypt for the first forty years of his life, and pagan Midian for the next forty years. He only had exposure to paganism. So, his concern about what he should say, if the children of Israel ask the name of who sent him, makes sense. And the reality that Moses did not know God’s name already, makes sense.

What does not make sense is that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob only knew Him as God Almighty, not as Yahweh. And quite frankly, if that is the case, how then would the children of Israel who just spent the past 215 years in Egypt, 430 years removed from Abraham’s calling, even know if Moses was right?

What also does not make sense is that the name Yahweh appears 6828 times in the Old Testament, and that even when indicated in critical verses in the New Testament, such as, “Whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved,” many Christians remain ignorant that the word “LORD” has replaced Yahweh thousands of times in their Bibles. As such, the famous quote is verified; “Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it.“ In other words, “by His name Yahweh He is NOT known to them!” In the end, what does make sense is that when God Almighty tells you that His Name is Yahweh forever, and that it is His memorial to all generations, you’d better pay attention!