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Genesis 22:14
“Abraham called the name of that place, ‘The Lord will provide’; as it is said to this day, ‘On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.’”
Scripture reveals God to us using metaphors, abstract concepts, and more. Particularly important, as theologians have recognized, are the names of God given to us in the Bible. In naming Himself or allowing others to name Him, the Lord gives us vital information about His character. A few days ago, for example, we considered God’s covenant name “I am” (Ex. 3:13–14), which highlights His aseity or self-existence and independence.
The Hebrew consonantal text behind “I am”—YHWH—is known as the tetragrammaton, and modern scholars believe that with vowels it is pronounced Yahweh. (Hebrew was originally written without vowels, and they were added later.) Older English translations render the tetragrammaton as Jehovah. Either way, in the original Hebrew, many of God’s names are formed by combining the tetragrammaton with another Hebrew term. One of the most well known of these names appears in today’s passage: “The Lord will provide” (Gen. 22:14). Many Christians recognize this name in the Hebrew (using the conventions of older English) as the name Jehovah-jireh.
Abraham called God by this name just after He spared Isaac. We remember that the Lord ordered Abraham to sacrifice Isaac as a test of Abraham’s faith. Just as Abraham was about to kill his son, the one at the center of God’s promises, the Lord stayed Abraham’s hand and substituted a ram for Isaac (vv. 1–14). The patriarch called the name of the place Jehovah-jireh, “The Lord will provide,” to remember how the Lord had indeed rescued Isaac. God vindicated Abraham’s trust that He would grant Isaac to survive the episode (vv. 7–8; see Heb. 11:17–19). John Calvin writes: “[Abraham] had fled for refuge to the providence of God; and he testifies that he had not done so in vain. He also acknowledges that not even the ram had wandered thither accidentally, but had been placed there by God.”
Had Isaac died without any offspring, God’s promise to bless the world through Abraham’s seed would have failed and there would be no salvation (Gen. 12:1–3; 17:15–21). Humanly speaking, it seemed impossible that Isaac would live and the Lord’s promise be fulfilled, but Abraham knew that God always keeps His covenant oaths and trusted Him to provide. That God provided for Abraham in that moment when it would have been easy for the patriarch to think God was abandoning His promise through Isaac gives us confidence that the Lord can provide for His people in any circumstance.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Paul tells us that God will supply every need of His people “according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:19). No need of ours is too big for the Lord to meet, and He provides for us always in line with His sovereign providence, working for our good and His everlasting glory. We can come before Him with the biggest problems we face, confident that He is able to provide what we need to deal with them.
For further study
- 2 Chronicles 32:22
- Psalm 111:5
- 1 Corinthians 10:13
- 1 Timothy 6:17
The bible in a year
- Deuteronomy 14–16
- Mark 13:14–37