Deep study
Knowing God by the names He reveals about Himself
In Scripture a name reveals character. God's names are windows into who He is - each one an invitation to trust Him more deeply.
The Bible opens, In the beginning, God (Elohim) created (Genesis 1:1). Elohim is the strong, sovereign Creator. The word is grammatically plural - a plural of majesty and fullness - yet it takes singular verbs, hinting from the first verse at a God of unfathomable greatness who is nonetheless one. (That same fullness will later make room for the Father, Son, and Spirit named together in Matthew 28:19.)
At the bush God gives His personal, covenant name: YHWH, from the verb to be (Exodus 3:14-15). It speaks of One who is self-existent and faithful across generations. The name was treated as so holy that readers said Adonai (Lord) in its place; most English Bibles render it LORD in small capitals. Elohim is God in His power; YHWH is God in His covenant nearness.
God reveals Himself to Abraham as El Shaddai, God Almighty, the all-sufficient One who keeps impossible promises (Genesis 17:1). He is Adonai, Lord and Master, the one to whom we belong. He is El Elyon, God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth (Genesis 14:18-22) - higher than every rival power.
God attaches His covenant name to His acts: YHWH-Yireh, the LORD will provide (Genesis 22:14); YHWH-Rapha, the LORD who heals (Exodus 15:26); YHWH-Nissi, the LORD my banner (Exodus 17:15); YHWH-Shalom, the LORD is peace (Judges 6:24); the LORD my Shepherd (Psalm 23:1); and YHWH-Tsidkenu, the LORD our righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6). Each name is a promise you can lean on by name.
All these names converge in Jesus. He takes the divine I AM on His own lips (John 8:58) and unfolds it: I am the bread, the light, the good shepherd, the resurrection. God has given Him the name that is above every name, before which every knee will bow (Philippians 2:9-11). To call on the name of the Lord and be saved (Joel 2:32; Romans 10:13) is now to call on Jesus.
In Revelation the risen Christ takes the most exclusive titles of all without apology: I am the Alpha and the Omega... who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Revelation 1:8); the first and the last (Revelation 1:17); the beginning and the end (Revelation 22:13). The names the LORD guarded so jealously throughout the Old Testament are spoken by the Lamb on the throne. To know the names of God is, in the end, to know Jesus.