"My Name Is In Him"
Can This Explain Exodus 6:3?
God was talking to Moses about what He was going to do to Pharaoh to make him let Israel go in Exodus 6:1-2. Then He says this:
"...I am YHWH: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El Shaddai, but by my name YHWH was I not known to them." Exodus 6:2-3
But what's with YHWH? That is the most Holy name in the Bible. It appears over 6,000 times in the old testament. You'll find YHWH as the Creator in Genesis 2:1-5 and in the 4th Commandment. You'll find YHWH forbidding any other god other than Him in the 1st Commandment. That's who YHWH is.
But, to make the name "YHWH" more English-friendly, I'll use what seems to be the most accurate - "Yahweh". See my study "What's In A Name?" for the reasons why, see https://www.facebook.com/sid.nash/posts/pfbid02bo4XLhthNERXRMKUdPya6gmDu3mRhqgPMjG3P8BQYtfWFqGmtDvRpaacSSsw5GMJl
But why did I say there is confusion with this Ex 6:3?
Genesis is full of the name Yahweh — spoken by the patriarchs, spoken to the patriarchs, and spoken by Yahweh himself. Abraham named the place of Isaac's near-sacrifice "Yahweh will provide." So what does it mean that Yahweh was not known by that name?
One theory was that the Masoretes, in 1008 AD, added the word "Yahweh" into the text of Genesis(~140 times) and early Exodus. However, historical records dose not support this. My study linked above explains what they really did.
The traditional answers — that the name was simply not yet revealed, or that this reflects two different source documents stitched together — have never fully satisfied careful readers. The first collapses under the weight of Genesis itself. The second sidesteps the theological question entirely. If you wish more information on these theories, comment below. I have access to the details, but have not published them.
Over the last couple months I've studied this matter in depth. And now, I have a theory. The purpose of this study is to determine if it is in agreement with scripture, or not.
My theory is that Jesus is speaking to Moses, saying:
"...I am Yahweh: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El Shaddai, but by my name Yahweh was I not known to them."* Exodus 6:2-3
Question: Is Yahweh God the Father of the new testament?
Now, notice that word appeared and let me ask you another question: Has anyone ever seen God the Father - "the only true God"(Jn17:3) - the Father of Jesus? Has He ever appeared to any human?
I did that study => https://www.facebook.com/sid.nash/posts/pfbid0qwffCmsQa5DU49BHrSE3ChR2CbMRnksKr6sNS22VpTdqhCzqpDQ2DPZZSZVqVmJ6l
If you read through that study, you'll find that:
- God the Father = Yahweh
- God the Father has never been seen by humans, other than Jesus.
I may know what you're thinking right now: "But Sid! Your theory is that Jesus is Yahweh, but now you say that His Father is Yahweh. Why are you contradicting yourself?!" That's an excellent question! And, the Bible has an excellent answer. See my study "The Angel Who Carried the Name" => https://www.facebook.com/sid.nash/posts/pfbid0DnWFmi49FRTfJed3hDtNoVU5dsXF5tjTy9c9xaGmeoaQgTLJ97JPr5FUQ8dJwQcjl
If you read that study, you have seen documentation that Father Yahweh said that His name is in His "Angel"(Messenger) - "The angel of Yahweh." You will also see that this Messenger is Jesus.
If you're not convinced yet, I don't blame you. Remember my claim that Jesus "appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El Shaddai"? We've already established this can't be Father Yahweh speaking because He never appeared to anyone. So, am I claiming that El Shaddai is actually Jesus? Well who else could it be if it wasn't His Father.
But wait... I have better answers than that in my study, "Who Was El Shaddai?" => https://www.facebook.com/sid.nash/posts/pfbid0E7wjunQ2VqQ6gm1tUJLC55LuyDyJZFPenDFyHvjzvAPzWYtsDFhGjMTnaUDnXQiDl
The texts in that study point to one conclusion - El Shaddai must be the Son of Yahweh - our Messiah - Jesus.
Still not convinced? There's just one more study and you really should read this one: "One Name, Two Persons" => https://www.facebook.com/sid.nash/posts/pfbid0tu1yPXQhLg7iMdC2TDtTY7tcRERZp8qogfYNNgrgJ7eEz9T8Mm7CrjTLgw8CQW8wl
Spoiler Alert: How could the name "Yahweh" be used by 2 persons? Inheritance. -- yeah it is that simple. My surname is Nash because I inherited it from my Dad -- Same way for Jesus and His Dad - YHWH - Yahweh - "God the Father".
But please read that last study(linked above) - its the best in the whole series! And, it shows that my theories of Exodus 6:2-3 are not contradicted by any scripture that I could find.
Conclusion
It was Jesus who said to Moses:
"...I am Yahweh: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El Shaddai, but by my name Yahweh was I not known to them."* Exodus 6:2-3
- It was Jesus who "appeared", because Father never appeared to anyone.
- The patriarchs knew Jesus by the name of El Shaddai.
- In Ex 6:3, Moses was the first to be told that Yahweh is also the name the person he already knew as El Shaddai.