Jesus taught us to pray to our Father in Heaven - not to a foreign god of any nation. There were many such gods in Jesus' day, and there are still many today in the nations where Christians find themselves.

Ours is a privileged access to this most holy God above all gods. But our knowledge of God is not to be kept private. Our desire, in line with our Father's will, is that He be known in the entire world. First we must know Him for ourselves. Then, we must witness to His true character and purpose. His Name is to be hallowed in our lives, so that others will have clear revelation of His wonderful character.

What's in a Name?

Names, biblically, convey insights into character and calling. Jacob was re-named Israel, meaning prevails with God. This name typifies the promise and character of Israel and all his descendants. Abram was re-named Abraham, because he was to be the father of many nations. Name implies character and calling.

What of God's personal name? God chose His own name, consisting of the four Hebrew consonants, yud, hay, vav, hay. No-one in our day knows precisely how to say this Name. It is traditionally thought to be Yahweh, but since we don't know the original vowel sounds to go with these consonants, even Yahweh may not be the exact way to say the name of God.

When Hebrew vowels were invented by the Masorites in Tiberius after 6 AD, the name of God was considered so sacred that it could not be spoken. As a prompt to this, the vowels for Adonai ('Lord') were attached to the four consonants denoting the name of God so that a reader would say "Adonai" or "Lord" when they came to it in their reading of Scripture.

This gave rise to the mistake by Christians, who began to read the Hebrew Bible, to think that what they read (namely 'Jehovah'), was the way to say the name of God. Jehovah is not the name of God known to Moses. Jehovah is yud, hay, vav, hay, but with the vowels associated with Adonai. So we don't really know the exact name of God.

To Hallow

Many Jews have now gone a step further to keep the name of God pure. They refer to God as HaShem – 'the Name'. One might ask: is this really what Jesus meant when he encouraged us to pray "hallowed be thy Name"? Surely the emphasis is not on the actual name of God, but on his character and purposes. After all, we are encouraged to address Him intimately as "Abba, Father". When we come to God in prayer, it is right to approach Him in humble respect and reverence, but not in fear of addressing Him directly, even as Father.

'Hallowed' means 'holy, set apart, pure, altogether other than this tarnished world, perfect'. Our Father is holy and wants to be known to the world in this way. Yet as well as the holiness of His actual name, God Himself is to be known as holy. Indeed, the implication of "hallowed be thy Name" is that this is an ongoing process, to be fulfilled – God's name is to become holy in the entire world.

How is This to Be?

How is God's name to become holy in the entire world? He is to be known for who He is, what He has covenanted and what His true character is - not just what His literal name is.

He is known fully through His Son. The angel gave His name to Joseph; before modification to Jesus it was Yeshua, meaning 'salvation'. Gabriel said to Joseph, "you shall call his name Yeshua (i.e. Salvation) because he will save his people from their sins" (Matt 1:21). His name is His calling and ministry and this is what the Father wants the world to know – He is calling all people to salvation through His Son – a most holy task.

Our Commission: To Make His Name Known

In all holiness, the character and purposes of God are to be made known through the entire world. This is what we are to mean by our prayer "hallowed be thy name". This is to be through His Son, but also through us. It is our commission to make His name known through the entire world, through our lives and our words. We are ambassadors of the One to whom we pray "hallowed be Thy Name" – honoured to be bearers of the answer to the prayer we ourselves make.

As we stand before the Father, we are acknowledging who He is in all holiness - seeking to know Him better so that His true nature will also be known through us. And through this most holy ministry, we are hoping that whenever our God and Father is talked about, He will be honoured everywhere by all people.

Author: Dr Clifford Denton