Yahweh-Elohim: The Memorial Name

Simplified Edition (2026)

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Introduction
This book unfolds the meaning of the divine name Yahweh-Elohim as the “memorial name” — a name that encapsulates God’s promises and character, to be proclaimed through all generations. The author draws primarily on the work of Dr. John Thomas, who explored this name in depth in his writings Phanerosis and Eureka.
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"The One God": "Ail-Elohim"
The Hebrew word for God most frequently translated “God” in the Old Testament is Elohim — a plural noun. What does this mean? This chapter examines the Hebrew names for God: Ail (strength, power), Eloah, and Elohim, drawing on Paul’s distinction between the “gods many and lords many” of the Gentile world and the one God and Father of whom everything exists. The conclusion: eternal life is at stake in our knowledge of God.
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Spirit
God is Spirit — not confined to a place, not visible to natural eyes, yet present everywhere through his Spirit. This chapter explores the nature of God as omnipresent Spirit, drawing on the Psalms, Paul’s address to the Athenians, and other scriptures to show that all creation exists within and is sustained by the divine Spirit-power.
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"The Memorial Name"
At the burning bush, God revealed his personal name to Moses: Yahweh — “I will be who I will be.” This name was proclaimed as a memorial for all generations. The chapter traces how that name connects Moses, the Law, the Psalms, and ultimately Jesus — who came in his Father’s name — showing that the rejection of the name is inseparable from the rejection of the Son.
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Light
“God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” Every appearance of God in Scripture is accompanied by light. This chapter traces the theme of divine light from the burning bush and the pillar of fire, through the Law as illumination, to the warning that “our God is a consuming fire” — both guiding and judging according to the response of those who encounter him.
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"Yahweh—Whose Name is Jealous"
Among God’s revealed names, one stands out as surprising: “Yahweh, whose name is Jealous.” This Divine jealousy is not petty rivalry but the absolute exclusivity of the relationship between God and his people. The chapter traces how Israel’s repeated unfaithfulness provoked this jealousy, and how God’s jealousy for his own holy name ultimately motivates his promises to restore and redeem Israel.
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Judgment
“Judgment” in Scripture carries three distinct meanings: the discernment of right and wrong, the righteous statutes of God’s law, and the execution of divine wrath on the unrepentant. All three forms of judgment are committed to God’s Son — who will return “in flaming fire taking vengeance” on those who reject the gospel, yet will also bring the just and righteous rule that the Psalms celebrate.
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Record of the Name in the Wilderness
After the giving of the Law at Sinai, where God promised to meet Israel in every place where his name was recorded, Moses made a remarkable request: he asked to see God’s glory. God’s response — placing Moses in a cleft of the rock and shielding him while his goodness passed by — was a defining act for how the divine name would be understood throughout Scripture.
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"The Rock"
“He is the Rock, his work is perfect.” Moses’s great song identifies Yahweh as the Rock of Israel. Paul reveals that the rock in the wilderness that gave water to Israel was Christ himself. This chapter traces the Rock metaphor from the wilderness through the Psalms, the cornerstone prophecies of Isaiah, and Peter’s application to Christ as the living stone — the only sure foundation for individuals and communities alike.
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"Goodness"
When God proclaimed his name to Moses on the mount, he placed goodness at the forefront: “I will make all my goodness pass before you.” This chapter traces what that divine goodness means — from God’s sovereign choice of mercy, to his love displayed in the gift of his Son, to the goodness that leads sinners to repentance and warns against taking grace for granted.
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"Glory"
Divine glory has two inseparable dimensions: the moral and spiritual attributes of God’s character, and the visible Spirit-light that accompanies his presence. This chapter traces both through Moses’s experience at Sinai and the tabernacle, then shows how Paul’s treatment of the veiled face of Moses reveals the contrast between the fading glory of the old covenant and the transforming, unveiled glory of the new.
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Truth
When God renewed the covenant with Moses on the second set of stone tablets, he proclaimed a name whose third great attribute is truth. This chapter traces how truth runs through the Law, the Psalms, and into Christ — who did not abolish the law but fulfilled it, becoming justice and righteousness for all who believe. The Abrahamic covenant, confirmed by Christ, is the covenant of truth in its fullest form.
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Mercy and Judgment
The divine proclamation at Sinai — “keeping mercy for thousands” yet “by no means clearing the guilty” — runs as a single thread through Israel’s entire history. This chapter surveys that history through the prayers of Nehemiah and Daniel, the wilderness crises under Moses, and the prophetic hope of restoration. Mercy and judgment are not opposites; they are the two hands of the one God who made and keeps covenant.
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"The Water of Separation"
Covenant mercy cannot simply overlook defilement: the same God who kept mercy for thousands also appointed specific rites of cleansing for those made unclean by contact with death. The most striking was the ceremony of the red heifer — whose ashes, mixed with water, formed the “water of separation.” This chapter shows how that ceremony foreshadowed the cleansing of baptism, by which believers are separated from a world dead in sin.
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"The Waters of Strife"
At the waters of Meribah, Moses lost his temper and struck the rock twice instead of speaking to it. He was excluded from the promised land as a result. Yet water still flowed, and Israel was still refreshed. This chapter unfolds the deeper significance of the water imagery through John 4, Revelation 22, and the Psalmists — showing that the living water that flows from Christ cannot be stopped even by human failure, and that the same Christ who was struck at Calvary now speaks life to all who will hear.
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Wisdom
Where shall wisdom be found? Job’s ancient question receives its answer in Proverbs 8, where Wisdom is personified as present with God at creation — “when he marked out the foundations of the earth, I was beside him.” John identifies this Wisdom with the Logos: the one who became Jesus of Nazareth. This chapter traces divine wisdom from creation, through the Psalms and Proverbs, to Christ in whom “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” — the same eternal Word who, in the fullness of time, would enter history as Emmanuel.
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Emmanuel
The eternal Word and Wisdom of God — present at creation, speaking through Israel’s prophets — entered history as a human being: Emmanuel, God with us. This chapter traces the Gospel accounts of his birth, the angelic proclamations, his presentation in the temple, and the Old Testament prophecies that converge on him — showing that Jesus came not as a stranger but as the fulfilment of everything Israel’s Scriptures had been building toward.
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The Anointed
The word “Christ” means “the Anointed One.” This chapter traces how the ancient Scriptures — particularly Daniel’s prophecy of the 70 weeks — pointed to a specific moment when the Spirit would rest on Jesus at his baptism, anointing him as the promised Messiah. It was no ordinary anointing but the full, unmeasured gift of the Spirit, fulfilling Isaiah’s portrait of the servant of Yahweh.
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"The Temptation"
After his baptism and anointing, Jesus was immediately led by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days of testing. The three temptations — bread from stones, a leap from the pinnacle, and the kingdoms of the world — were a direct assault on his trust in the Father. His victory where Adam and Eve fell demonstrates that he was qualified to be the high priest who sympathises with human weakness, and that obedience unto death was the path to his exaltation.
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"The Word of Life and of Light"
John’s Gospel opens by declaring that the Word — the Logos — was with God and was God, and that this Word became flesh in Jesus of Nazareth. This chapter traces what it means for Christ to be the Word of life and light: he is the living expression of the Father’s wisdom and character, the bread of life prefigured by the manna in the wilderness, and the light of the world that dispels the darkness of the natural mind.
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Grace
Grace is not simply God’s favour — in the New Testament it is the whole saving purpose of God expressed through Christ Jesus. This chapter traces the grace of God from the Psalms’ “favour of life,” through Paul’s conversion and the letter to the Ephesians, to the practical responsibilities that grace places upon those who receive it: to grow in grace, and to serve one another with the gifts grace distributes.
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Glory
The divine glory traced from Sinai — that moral radiance and Spirit-light of God’s presence — is now unveiled in Christ himself. This chapter explores that glory as embodied in his teaching, his miracles as signs, the transfiguration, and his high-priestly prayer — and traces how it flows out to his people through the Spirit, producing in them the image of the heavenly man.
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"Abundant in Goodness and Truth"
Christ’s earthly ministry displayed the divine goodness, mercy, and truth in action. This chapter traces the two great covenant foundations — Abrahamic and Davidic — through the prophecies of Christ’s birth and character, then into his ministry of healing, feeding the multitudes, and teaching through parables. Every act of mercy was a demonstration of the divine name being fulfilled in flesh.
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"Keeping Mercy for Thousands, forgiving Iniquity, Transgression, and Sin"
The atonement is the supreme act in which God’s mercy and truth met. This chapter traces the atonement from the covenant confirmed with Abraham by the smoking furnace and burning torch, through the Passover, the Day of Atonement, and Isaiah 53, to the apostolic proclamation in Acts and the epistles. Christ the High Priest now intercedes on the basis of his own blood, making it possible for all nations to draw near.
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"The Lord shall judge His People"
The Gospel carries within it the promise of judgment. This chapter traces the biblical testimony from Paul’s declaration that life and immortality are brought to light through the Gospel, through the apostolic preaching of repentance and baptism, to the day God has appointed to judge the world. The resurrection of the just and unjust, the gathering of the nations before the throne, and the ultimate abolition of death are shown to be the consummation of the entire biblical hope.
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The Name manifested in Glory
The opening vision of Revelation presents Christ in overwhelming, transcendent glory — white hair, eyes like flame, feet like polished bronze, voice like many waters. This chapter identifies each element of that vision in its Old Testament context, and shows how the name “Alpha and Omega” connects to Isaiah’s declarations of Yahweh as first and last, revealing that the glorified Christ manifests in himself the fullness of the divine name.
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The Throne of Glory
Revelation 4 presents the throne of God in heaven: a dazzling scene of jasper and sardine light, a rainbow like an emerald, twenty-four elders on thrones, seven burning lamps, and four living creatures. This chapter traces the imagery back through Ezekiel 1 and Isaiah 6 to show that this throne, surrounded by the rainbow covenant-sign, is the source of both the storm of divine judgment and the life-giving rain of the Spirit — a vision of absolute sovereignty and loyal love.
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"The Rainbowed Angel"
Revelation 10 presents the glorified Messiah — the “Rainbowed Angel” — leading his immortalized people. The rainbow identifies the Abrahamic Covenant; his feet of fire and sun-like face echo Revelation 1. His lion-cry recalls Joel and Hosea’s prophecies of Israel’s final deliverance, and his cloud of spirit-hosts mirrors the pillar of cloud that guided Israel in the wilderness. Together these symbols portray the Messenger of the Covenant returning to lead his redeemed people home.
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The Holy City
Revelation 21 describes the New Jerusalem descending from heaven, identified as the Bride of the Lamb. This chapter unfolds the symbolic architecture of that city — its twelve gates inscribed with the tribes of Israel, its twelve foundations named for the apostles, its dimensions and materials — showing that the holy city is not a literal metropolis but the glorified community of Christ and the saints dwelling with God forever.
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The Temple
The temple was always intended to express the indwelling presence of Yahweh with his people — from Jacob’s pillar of stone to the wilderness tabernacle, Solomon’s house, and the future age described in Revelation. The New Jerusalem needs no temple building because Yahweh and the Lamb are themselves the temple. This chapter traces that presence through the prophetic promises of a restored creation, a rejoicing wilderness, and a world at last filled with the knowledge of God’s glory.
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"The King of Kings"
The final chapter gathers the whole vision of Christ’s kingship: the eternal Son anointed with oil of gladness, enthroned in righteousness, coming in the clouds to raise the dead and judge the nations, and reigning from Zion until every enemy is subdued. The King of Kings is also the Good Shepherd of Psalm 23 and the Vine of John 15 — his kingdom is not merely power but life, joy, and the everlasting inheritance of the redeemed.