Name

The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.

Proverbs 18:10

Shem is name — not a label but an identity: character, reputation and authority summed up in a word.

In the Bible

In the Old Testament a name declares what someone is, and God's name declares what He is like — revealed to Moses, put on His people by the priests, and made the place where He chooses to dwell. To act “in the name” of someone is to act with their authority.

Where the word comes from

Shem is an ancient Semitic word whose derivation is uncertain; Strong's suggests a connection with the idea of a definite, conspicuous position — a mark or memorial of individuality. Its usage bears that out: a name in Hebrew marks out who someone actually is.

What the original language adds

Modern names are mostly arbitrary sounds, so “hallowed be your name” can sound like reverence for a word. In Hebrew it is reverence for the person the name discloses — which is why to profane God's name is to misrepresent His character, not merely to mispronounce it.

Did you know

Shem (H8034) appears 788 times in the Hebrew Bible, and Jewish reverence for God's name is so strong that it is still commonly referred to simply as HaShem — “the Name.”

Why it matters

God's self-naming at the burning bush is the foundation of Israel's knowledge of Him: He is not anonymous power but a named person who can be addressed. The New Testament's confession that God has given Jesus “the name that is above every name” is therefore a claim about identity, not honorifics.

Apply it

Consider what your own name means to those who know you, since Scripture treats reputation as a form of testimony. And when you pray, say God's name slowly enough to remember whose it is.

Strong's definition

an appellation, as amark or memorial of individuality; by implication honor, authority, character

Where it appears

• The name of the first river is the Pishon; it winds through the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold.

  Genesis 2:11

• These are the names of the sons of Israel who went to Egypt with Jacob, each with his family:

  Exodus 1:1

• You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the LORD.

  Leviticus 18:21

• “Take a census of the whole congregation of Israel by their clans and families, listing every man by name, one by one.

  Numbers 1:2

• Jair, a descendant of Manasseh, took the whole region of Argob as far as the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites. He renamed Bashan after himself, Havvoth-jair, by which it is called to this day.

  Deuteronomy 3:14

• Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim, saying, “Go, inspect the land, especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.

  Joshua 2:1