“Hallowed Be Thy Name”

Prayer is not something which brings God into line with our desires. Instead, our desires are to be brought into line with His through prayer. The examples of Jacob (Genesis 28:20-22) and Gideon (Judges 6:36-40) are not patterns to follow but evidences of God’s gracious stooping to their (often our) level. The pattern to follow is in Luke 11:2-5 (or Matthew 6:9-13). “Lord, teach us to pray,” a disciple asked Jesus. The Lord responded with a form of words to use. This does not require a perfunctory repetition of the words. Instead, they provide a purposeful prayer pattern. Last time we learned that the pattern begins with the address “our Father” because this describes the relationship that those who have believed and received the Lord Jesus now have with God the Father. We become His spiritual children through faith in His Son. By His grace we are welcomed into a family to which we do not naturally belong, and this adoption has implications that are spiritual, eternal, and life-changing (John 1:12-13; Romans 8:15-16). As His children, we may approach God the Father with a reverent intimacy, because without the intimacy of knowing God as your Father through faith in His Son you will not understand the absolute necessity for reverencing His Holy Name. This brings us to the second part in the Lord’s Prayer pattern.

The Petitions

Six petitions follow the address in the Lord’s Prayer, and they each instruct us as for what we should pray and how we are to offer our prayers.

“Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.”

Six sentences with a petition in each one. The first three are clearly concerned with God’s honor and glory; the last three are related to man’s needs. In his book With Christ in the School of Prayer Andrew Murray wrote:

“There is something here that strikes us at once. While we ordinarily first bring our own needs to God in prayer, and then think of what belongs to God and His interests, the Master reverses the order. First, Thy name, Thy kingdom, Thy will; then, give us, forgive us, deliver us. The lesson is of more importance than we think. In true worship the Father must be first, must be all. The sooner I forget myself in the desire that He may be glorified, the richer will the blessing be that prayer will bring to myself. No one ever loses by what He sacrifices for the Father.” (Emphasis in the original)[1]

 “Hallowed be thy name”

What does it mean for God’s name to be hallowed? The word “hallow” is not in much use today, and most people, Christian or not, are more likely to associate the word with ghosts, goblins, and candy than to Almighty God. The Greek word translated “hallowed” is hagiazō[2] and from it we get our English word “holy.” The KJV most often translates the word as “sanctify” because it refers to separating something (or someone) for God’s use. Consider the connection between this first petition of the Lord’s Prayer and the first of the Ten Commandments.

• Exodus 20:2-3 – “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”
• Luke 11:2 – “Our Father which art in heaven” corresponds to the words “I am the Lord thy God.” “Hallowed be thy name” matches the commands “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”

In other words, praying for God’s name to be hallowed is to pray that your primary desire is for God to be preeminent (superior to or notable above all others; outstanding) in your life.

“Hallowed be thy name”

Juliet asked Romeo, “What’s in a name?” The answer: quite a lot actually, especially when one is speaking of God’s name. In fact, God has many names. The names of God are important because each one describes some aspect of His nature. In the Word of God the names of God are more than just titles. They are expressions of His character. Consider Exodus 34:5-7, when Moses received the Ten Commandments for the second time:

“And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.”

The characteristics of God listed in verses six and seven correspond to “the name of the Lord” mentioned in verse 5. The children of God do not love Him just because we know His titles. We love Him because we know His character! The Psalms are full of examples of this. Psalm 9:10 is one, “And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.” God’s name is seen in His faithfulness.

Names of God

• Elohim – “the Creator God” – Genesis 1:1
• El-Elyon – “God the Most High” – Genesis 14:18-19; Deuteronomy 32:7-8
• El-Olam – “the everlasting God” – Isaiah 40:28-31
• El-Roi – “the strong one who sees” – Genesis 16:13
• El-Shaddai – “almighty God” – Genesis 17:1; Psalm 91:1
• Jehovah (Yahweh) – “the existing One” (all caps in the OT) the name by which God reveals Himself as Redeemer – Genesis 7:16; Exodus 3:14
• Jehovah-Jireh – “the Lord will provide” – Genesis 22:13-14
• Jehovah-Rapha – “the Lord our healer” – Exodus 15:26; Deuteronomy, 32:39; Psalm 30:2; 103:3
• Jehovah-Nissi – “the Lord our banner” – Exodus 17:8-16
• Jehovah-Maccaddeshem – “the Lord thy sanctifier” – Exodus 31:13
• Jehovah-Shalom – “the Lord is peace” – Judges 6:23-24
• Jehovah-Rohi – “the Lord my shepherd” – Psalm 23:1
• Jehovah-Sabbaoth – “the Lord of hosts” – Psalm 46:7, 11; 103:20-21; Isaiah 6:1-3
• Jehovah-Shammah – “The Lord who is there, is present” – Ezekiel 48:35
• Jehovah-Tsidkenu – “the Lord our righteousness” – Jeremiah 23:6
• Adonai – “sovereign Lord, ruler, master, owner, etc” – Proverbs 18:10; Psalm 9:10; 20:1, 7; 114:7; Malachi 1:6

All the above names describe God’s attributes telling us not only who He is but what He is like, but the clearest teaching about what God’s name means is found in Jesus Christ, because Jesus Christ is God’s greatest name. As one commentator writes, “In Him all other names are combined. In Him the characteristics of God are made manifest.”[3] (John 1:14; 17:6)

Hallowing His Name in Our Lives

So what? What will it mean for us to hallow the name of God in our lives? It means, at the very least, that with our words, with our worship, and with our witness we will make much of God’s name.

“It means that, first and foremost, I desire in my life and through my life…to reveal the name of Jesus and the character of God. I am therefore supremely concerned that every detail of my life should be for His glory. Whatever service you or I may undertake, our first thought in it all [should] be, ‘Is this for His glory?” Can I write ‘Hallowed be Thy name’ over [it]?”[4]

This begins, as everything with God truly does, in the heart. 1 Peter 3:15a, “sanctify the Lord God in your hearts.” “Hallowed” (hagiazō) is here translated as “sanctify.” Hallowing God’s name begins in the heart, but it does not end there. Whatever is in our heart – good or bad – is revealed by our words. Speech reveals character: “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh,” Matthew 12:34b.

With our Words

Therefore, we hallow God’s name in our lives, first of all, by our words. “Hallowed be thy name” is the positive way of saying the third commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain” (Exodus 20:7a).

Beware of the Usual Suspects

The obvious abuses of God’s Holy name are so common – from texting lingo – OMG! – to casually (and irreverently) invoking God’s name when you run a stoplight, slice a drive, miss a lay-up, drop a hammer on your foot, forget to set the DVR, burn the cookies, etc, to what Warren Wiersbe refers to as “minced oaths”[5] – “Golly, gee whiz, Beav” – that we often fail to notice them, or, even worse, we are guilty of the offense. Don’t allow the culture to dictate how or when God’s name is used. Hallow God’s name. Don’t misuse it, because the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain. As the Psalmist said, “Let them praise thy great and terrible [awesome] name; for it is holy,” Psalm 99:3.

Beware of the “Pious” Suspects

God’s name is vainly used, not only as an oath, but also when it is invoked to illegitimately impress or influence others. Jacob illustrates this in Genesis 27:20. In the process of deceiving his nearly blind father Isaac, while dressed in his Esau costume, he was asked how the game was hunted and prepared so quickly. The liar invoked God’s name to trick his father – “Because the Lord thy God brought it to me.”

Another abuse of God’s name is employing it to justify our wrong actions. That is clearly seen in Mark 7:9-13. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for voiding the Word of God by their traditions; in this case, the specific tradition of “Corban.” By declaring their financial resources a gift for God’s use, and therefore unavailable for the support and care of their elderly parents, they exempted themselves from the Fifth Commandment.

God’s name may be vainly used when we claim to “hear from Him” but fail to crack open His Word. I’ve attended a youth fellowship/prayer meeting, where for more than an hour the students sang and earnestly prayed that God would speak to them, while nearby their Bibles were lying closed. Beware of a “God told me” (false) piety that is not rooted in and consistent with Scripture.

Two contemporary songs, one a hymn and the other a spiritual song, for which I am immensely thankful are Speak O Lord by Keith Getty and Word of God Speak by Mercy Me. Both are prime examples of God’s name being hallowed.

Speak, O Lord, as we come to You

To receive the food of Your Holy Word.

Take Your truth, plant it deep in us;

Shape and fashion us in Your likeness,

That the light of Christ might be seen today

In our acts of love and our deeds of faith.

Speak, O Lord, and fulfill in us

All Your purposes for Your glory.[6]

 

The last thing I need is to be heard

But to hear what You would say

Word of God speak

Would You pour down like rain

Washing my eyes to see Your majesty[7]

With Our Worship

This allows us to transition to the second way in which we hallow God’s name – by our worship. Both in our private and in our public worship God is the object and the audience. The test of worship which hallows God’s name is not whether we were pleased but if it pleases God. (Never forget: that which glorifies God is good for us.) If the focus of our “worship” is personality or performance then someone’s name will be hallowed. It just won’t be God’s name.

• Psalm 8:1, “O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.”
• Psalm 72:18-19, “Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.” (Psalm 100)
• Nehemiah 9:5b, “Stand up and bless the LORD your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.”
• Hebrews 13:15, “By him [Jesus] therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.”

With Our Witness

We should hallow God’s name with the words we say (and don’t say), by the worship we offer, and by the witness we provide. Do not think of these three areas as separate. They overlap. Our worship should be based on and grounded in God’s Word as it is expressed with our words, and the primary motivation for our witness is that God will be worshipped by as many people from every people group.[8]

When Ananias was fearful of going to the recently converted and still blinded Saul, God encouraged him with these words, “Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15). What an amazing and sobering thought that God purposes through us that His name will be revealed! God’s name is hallowed when we proclaim Him to others, because the Father is seeking true worshippers; those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:23).

Let us seek to live to God’s glory by remembering that in our words, in our worship, and in our witness we should seek to hallow God’s name.