In studying the importance (or lack?) of the name of the church, we have been working through the Old Testament. In essence, we are considering the question, “Is there a ‘name’ theology in the Bible?” Or, “Is there theology behind a name?” So far, we’ve seen there is theology behind God’s name; most everyone understands that. We’ve also learned that God was going to choose a place where His name would “dwell,” which turned out to be Jerusalem (in one sense) and the temple in Jerusalem (in another sense).
In the reign of Manasseh, we read in 2 Kings 21:4, 7: “He built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem I will put My name. …In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever.”
Because Israel acted like the temple was theirs to do with it as they pleased, rather than the Lord’s, they had profaned it. And God could not dwell in a profaned temple: “The Lord said, “I will remove Judah also from My sight, as I have removed Israel. And I will cast off Jerusalem, this city which I have chosen, and the temple of which I said, ‘My name shall be there.’” (2 Kings 23:27).
The Chronicler records David having told Solomon, in building the temple: “Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise, therefore, and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord” (1 Chronicles 22:19).
Thus we read in 2 Chronicles of Solomon: “Now Solomon decided to build a house for the name of the Lord and a royal palace for himself. …”Behold, I am about to build a house for the name of the Lord my God, dedicating it to Him, to burn fragrant incense before Him and to set out the showbread continually, and to offer burnt offerings morning and evening, on sabbaths and on new moons and on the appointed feasts of the Lord our God, this being required forever in Israel” (2:1, 4). See also 6:5-10.
Once Solomon had built the temple, God appeared to him, saying, “For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that My name may be there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually” (2 Chronicles 7:16).
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King Darius of the Medes recognized that the temple in Jerusalem, the house of God, bore the name of the God of the Israelites (Ezra 6:12).
Through their lives and their worship in the temple of God, the Jews were to see that God’s name was glorified in all ways: “I will cause Your name to be remembered in all generations; Therefore the peoples will give You thanks forever and ever.” (Psalm 45:17). When the enemies of Israel burned the temple to the ground, they attacked the place where God’s name dwelt: “They have burned Your sanctuary to the ground; They have defiled the dwelling place of Your name” (Psalm 74:7).
In Proverbs 10:7, the word “memory” and “name” are used as synonyms: “The memory of the righteous is blessed, But the name of the wicked will rot.” The people and the temple would keep the memory of God’s work alive, as they glorified His name on a daily basis.
Next time we study this “name theology” together, we’ll look at a couple dozen passages in the prophets before we consider the New Testament teachings.
–Paul Holland
