Revelation 2:17 – What is our new name?

Revelation 2:17, He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

In spite of the many criticisms I've heard about the Bible, for the most part, reading it is fairly straightforward and it's not too difficult to understand. However, books like Revelation are admittedly a little tougher. Certainly, Revelation is full of symbolism and while it may not be difficult to understand the words, the meanings of the symbols aren't always clear. Revelation 2:17 is an example of difficult symbolism. What does it mean to eat the hidden manna? What is represented by the white stone? What is the new name given to us? I've read many commentaries that talk about these things but, as for the “new name,” I also have a few ideas of my own.

There are some family names that carry a certain impact. Think of the name, Kennedy, for example. Anyone who is called, “a Kennedy” is immediately identified as a person of wealth, power, and influence. The name, Trump, has come to have a similar ring. Anyone born into these families inherit a certain reputation simply because of their name. Furthermore, it's not always the names of wealthy families that are commonly recognized, names like the Hatfields and McCoys have their own infamy.

In Isaiah 56:5, God said, “Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.” Names like Vanderbilt or Rockefeller might impress people in this world. However, the name Jehovah surpasses them all. In eternity, we will be called His people. That's a family name worth having.

Besides family names, the names of certain individuals carry their own baggage. A person's name is often the equivalent of his character. Abraham Lincoln was renown for his honesty; “Honest Abe” they called him. Other names are notorious. Benedict Arnold was a brilliant general who led his troop to many victories over the British yet now his name is synonymous with traitor. John Wilkes Booth was a handsome man and acclaimed actor. Even though he was the Brad Pitt of his day, when people hear his name, they only remember him as an assassin.

God is the perfect Judge. When we stand before Him, our earthly reputations mean nothing. No matter how many good things I may have tried to do here on earth, when I stand in judgment, I will be known only by my sins. I will be called a liar, thief, adulterer, blasphemer, sluggard, and murderer. In Christ, though, I am justified. I won't be remembered forever as the person I am now. I will be called righteous, redeemed, ransomed, reconciled, and loved. I will be called a child of God.

Your sins don't necessarily define you. What's more important is your relationship with Jesus. No matter what your past, you can be called forgiven. We can rejoice that Revelation promises us a new name!

How did John the Baptist ‘prepare the way’ for Jesus?

Matthew 3:1-8, In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

Every gospel attests to the fiery character, John the Baptist.  Isaiah 40:3 prophesied that this greatest of prophets would come to “prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”  Obviously, John was the herald who identified Jesus as the Lamb of God (John 1:29), but is that all he did?  How exactly did John “prepare the way” for Jesus?  I’ve thought about this and have a few ideas.

THE ROLE OF THE MESSIAH

The Jews who came to hear John the Baptist, were longing for the Messiah.  Because of the prophecies of Daniel’s “Seventy Weeks” (Daniel 9), the Jews were expecting His arrival in that very generation.  Every radical preacher, including John himself, was seen as a possible candidate for the Messiah.  

They expected the Messiah to break the yoke of Roman tyranny and reestablish the throne of David.  John announced that Jesus had come to be the Lamb, not the Lion they were expecting.  Mark 1:5 says, “And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.” 

Yes, John also warned of judgment, but at the heart of his messages there was always the gospel.  He told them to repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand!

THE SCOPE OF THE MESSIAH

The Jews had thought that the Messiah would overthrow the Romans because they thought He would be the Messiah to the Jews.  The Baptizer made it clear that Christ came for the whole world.  Forgiveness was available to all who believed, not just to the Jews.

In Luke 3:6, John said, “And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.”  He went on to warn the Pharisees, “Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham” (Luke 3:8).

John 1:6-9 tells us, “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.”

 Salvation is not for the Jews alone but for every one who accepts Christ.  Amen!

THE DIVINITY OF THE MESSIAH

When you read the prophecy in Isaiah 40:3, you will notice that “Lord” is spelled with all capital letters - LORD.  In the King James Bible, when the word “Lord” is spelled with all capital letters, it is actually the name of God, given to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14).  It is the four letters transliterated, YHWH, (pronounced Jehovah or Yahweh) and means, “I AM.”   

When John said, “Lord,” he didn’t mean it in the sense that Jesus was just a person of nobility or some earthly importance.  Instead, he was welcoming the Word made flesh, the one who is God with us!  John the Baptist was preparing the way for Jehovah!

THE END OF SACRIFICES

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit, they were ashamed and tried to hide themselves.  They tried to cover their nakedness with fig leaves (Genesis 3:7) but the Bible says God killed an animal and covered them with the skin of the animal.  What a sobering realization must have set in for the first couple when they looked upon that dead animal and saw the terrible consequence of their disobedience. 

That act ushered in an era of sacrifices where the shedding of blood was made to cover our sins (Hebrews 9:22).  God’s covenant with Abraham was also sealed with blood, the sign of the circumcision.  

The sacrifices continued until the appearance of Christ.  When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he told his disciples, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.  This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me” (John 1:29-30).  His was the final sacrifice and now our sins are covered by His blood and righteousness.  Praise God!!

John the Baptist had to move believers away from the Old Testament system of sacrifices.  Those were only types and shadows of The Sacrifice that was to come.  Also, the Abrahamic covenant of circumcision was passed.  Believers now identify with the death, burial, and resurrection represented by baptism. 

Are we taking God's name in vain? Probably!

Exodus 20:7, Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

Like a parent who gives his child a curfew, God has given us rules to follow.  Also, like a parent, these rules aren’t meant to be abusive or arbitrary, nor are they “suggestions.”  They are given so that we might live happy, healthy, and productive lives.  God, being perfect, knows best what is important for us.  It’s not a coincidence that the first four of the Ten Commandments focus on our relationship with Him.  The 3rd commandment, the prohibition of taking His name in vain, should be of great importance to us.  

The Scribes and Pharisees prided themselves on their strict adherence to the letter of the Law.  Concerning this commandment, they were so obsessed with the letter of the Law that they would not even speak God’s name aloud.  While reading Scripture, whenever they came across the name of God (the Tetragrammaton, YHWH), they would say, “Adonai” (meaning Lord), instead.  We see a legacy of this practice in many of our translations of the Bible.  Whenever the word LORD appears in all capital letters, the original word being translated is the Tetragrammaton, the name God gave to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-14).

Now, I don’t claim to be a Bible scholar but I just don’t believe that God intended us to never speak His name.  But if the command is not against speaking His name in general, then what does the commandment mean?  When I was teaching my children about this commandment, I explained it this way: don’t say the word God unless you’re talking about God.  Never use it as a curse nor speak it in exclamation.  Never! I felt that was appropriate advice for a child but, at that time, even my own understanding of this verse was somewhat child-like.

I used to think this was an easy commandment to keep.  I know I get angry sometimes and there have been times I’ve said things I later regret.  But I have long since disciplined myself that no matter how angry I get and no matter what I might say, I will NOT say “G*d” - certainly not G.D. I will not even say, “OMG.”  So I’m innocent of breaking this command, right?  Wrong!!

2 Chronicles 7:14, If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

Have you ever noticed in this passage who God is speaking to?  He’s not talking to the heathens.  He’s not talking to the unbelievers.  He’s not talking to the lost people of this world.  He’s talking to His people - those who are called by His name!  God isn’t saying He will heal our nation when the wicked repent.  He’s saying He will heal the land when the people who call themselves believers repent!

We call ourselves Christians.  The word Christian literally means “like Christ.”  So how are you doing being like Christ?  For good or bad, when we call ourselves Christians, we are calling ourselves by His name.  What we do and how we act directly impacts our testimony.  If you’re going to call yourself a Christian, you need to act like a Christian.  You need to act like Christ.  Do you love like Christ?  Do you pray like Christ?  Do you preach repentance like Christ?  

I know that as long as we live in our bodies of flesh, we will struggle with sin.  Even so, Christ has told us to keep His commandments.  When we say we are Christians, yet continuously engage in unrepentant sin, we are certainly not being like Christ.  In that case, I very much believe that we are using His name in vain!

A Christian not being Christ-like