“HALLOWED BE YOUR NAME”
Throughout the centuries, no names have endured more abuse than those belonging to our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. Whether used in an epithet or curse, in casual or formal conversation, in secular or theological discussions, their names are more often treated with disrespect than with respect or exaltation. Martyn Lloyd-Jones offered this insightful perspective on how we use God’s name:
What unworthy ideas and notions this world has of God! If you test your ideas of God by the teaching of the Scriptures you will see at a glance what I mean. We lack even a due sense of the greatness and the might and the majesty of God. Listen to men arguing about God, and notice how glibly they use the term.… It is indeed almost alarming to observe the way in which we all tend to use the name of God. We obviously do not realize that we are talking about the ever blessed, eternal, and absolute, almighty God. There is a sense in which we should take our shoes off our feet whenever we use the name.1
While we may cringe and actually voice displeasure when we hear someone taking God’s name in vain, we would do well to examine our own heart attitude. Indifference and lack of respect due His name from those who love Him may be just as heinous a sin.
Unfortunately, it is this latter problem that often plagues Christianity. When believers have a low view of God, everything focuses on meeting felt needs within the body of Christ. When the church adopts such a perspective, it often offers people nothing more than spiritual placebos. It centers on psychology, self-esteem, entertainment, and a myriad of other diversions to attempt to meet perceived and felt needs.
It is essential, however, that the church and each individual believer in it understand they exist to bring glory to God. When you know and glorify God, the needs of your life will be met: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (Prov. 9:10). But many believers don’t revere God; their very actions prove their irreverence. Instead of trembling at God’s Word, they twist His truths or supplant them with worldly philosophies.
Christians actually need to be confronted by their real need—an understanding of God’s holiness and their own sinfulness—so they can be usable to Him for His glory. When we have a right relationship to God, every aspect of our lives will settle into its divinely ordained place. That does not mean we are to ignore people’s problems—we are to be just as concerned about them as God is. But there must be a balance, and it begins with a high view of God. We must take God seriously and respect Him completely.
With that in mind, you can understand why prayer is ever and always, first and foremost, a recognition of God’s majestic glory and our submission to it. All our petitions, all our needs, and all our problems are subject to Him. God is to have priority in every aspect of our lives, and certainly in our times of deepest communion with Him. Prayer is not to be a casual routine that gives passing homage to God; it is to be a profound experience that should open up great dimensions of reverence, awe, appreciation, honor, and adoration.
The Significance of God’s Name
How appropriate then that the first petition in our Lord’s pattern for prayer focuses on God: “hallowed be Your name” (Matt. 6:9). Commentator Arthur W. Pink said, “How clearly then is the fundamental duty of prayer set forth. Self and all its needs must be given a secondary place, and the Lord freely accorded the preeminence in our thoughts and supplications. This petition must take the precedence, for the glory of God’s great name is the ultimate end of all things.”2 Even though He is our loving Father, who desires to meet our needs through His heavenly resources, our first petition is not to be for our benefit, but His. Thus “hallowed be Your name” is a warning against self-seeking prayer because it completely encompasses God’s nature and man’s response to it. Jesus wasn’t reciting some nice words about God. Instead, He opened a whole dimension of respect, reverence, glory, and worship for God.
The most familiar Hebrew name for God is Yahweh, and it first appears in Exodus 3:14, where God said, “I AM WHO I AM.” The other familiar name for God is Adonai, which means the “Lord God.” Because they considered God’s name sacred, the Jews would not actually pronounce Yahweh. Eventually Old Testament Jews took the consonants from Yahweh and the vowels from Adonai to form Jehovah. While taking such great pains to honor the sacredness of God’s name, they thought little of dishonoring His person or disobeying His Word, thus making a mockery of their effort.
By focusing our thoughts on God’s name, our Lord is teaching us that God’s name signifies much more than His titles; it represents all that He is—His character, plan, and will. Certainly the Jews should have understood that, because in Old Testament times, names stood for more than just titles.
A Character Reference
In Scripture, a person’s name represented his character. While God characterized him as “a man after His own heart” (1 Sam. 13:14), David also developed a good reputation among the people: “The commanders of the Philistines went out to battle, and it happened as often as they went out, that David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul. So his name was highly esteemed” (18:30). The fact that his name was esteemed meant he himself was esteemed. When we say that someone has a good name, we mean there is something about his character worthy of our praise.
When Moses went up on Mount Sinai to receive the commandments for the second time, he “called upon the name of the LORD. Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin’” (Ex. 34:5–7). The name of God is the composite of all the characteristics listed in verses 6–7.
Our love and trust of God are not based on His names or titles, but on that reality behind those names: His character. David said, “Those who know Your name will put their trust in You, for You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You” (Ps. 9:10). God’s name is esteemed in His faithfulness.
In the typical form of Hebrew poetry, God’s righteousness and His name are often typified as parallel, showing their equivalence. Thus David declared, “I will give thanks to the LORD according to His righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High” (Ps. 7:17). When the psalmist said, “Some boast in chariots and some in horses, but we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God” (20:7), he had much more in mind than God’s title; he was referring to the fullness of God’s person.
When Christ came into the world, people—especially the disciples—had the opportunity to see God’s character in person. In His High Priestly Prayer, Jesus said to the Father, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me” (John 17:6). He didn’t need to tell them about God’s name, but He did need to reveal God’s character to them. John 1:14 tells how that was accomplished: “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Christ manifested God to the disciples through His own righteous life. That’s why he told Philip, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9).
To apply the concept of hallowing God’s name to your prayers, here is a sample you could use: “Our Father, who loves us and cares for us, and who has in heaven supplies to meet our every need; may Your person, Your identity, Your character, Your nature, Your attributes, Your reputation, Your very being itself be hallowed.” To hallow God’s name is not some glib phrase inserted into a prayer ritual; it is your opportunity to glorify Him by acknowledging the greatness and wonder of His character.
It’s All in a Name
Each of the many Old Testament names and titles of God shows a different facet of His character and its expression in His will. He is called, for example, Elohim, “the Creator God”; El Elyon, “possessor of heaven and earth”; JehovahJireh, “the Lord will provide”; JehovahNissi, “the Lord our banner”; JehovahRapha, “the Lord that healeth”; JehovahShalom, “the Lord our peace”; JehovahRaah, “the Lord our Shepherd”; JehovahTsidkenu, “the Lord our righteousness”; JehovahSabaoth, “the Lord of hosts”; JehovahShama, “the Lord is present and near”; and JehovahMaqodeshkim, which means “the Lord sanctifieth thee.” All those names speak of God’s attributes. Thus they tell us not only who He is but also what He is like.
Jesus Himself provides the clearest teaching about what God’s name means: His very name, Jesus Christ, is God’s greatest name, and it encompasses His role as Lord, Savior, and King. As Jesus Christ, God drew to Himself many other names, including: the Bread of Life (John 6:35), the Living Water (John 4:10), the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6), the Resurrection (John 11:25), the Good Shepherd (John 10:11), the Branch (Isa. 4:2), the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16), the Lamb of God (John 1:29), and many more. One Old Testament passage in particular lists several names for Him, each one a designation of His nature: “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). Jesus’ life was the perfect manifestation of God’s name.
Holy Is His Name
Having looked at the significance of God’s name, we need to turn our attention to the meaning of the word hallow. It is actually an archaic English word used to translate a form of the Greek word hagiazø [
], which means “to make holy.” Words from the same Greek root are translated holy, saint, sanctify, and sanctification.
God commands His people to be holy (1 Peter 1:16), but only God Himself is actually holy. To pray “hallowed be Your name” is to attribute to God the holiness that already is, and has always been, supremely and uniquely His. To hallow God’s name is to revere, honor, glorify, and obey Him as the one and only completely perfect God. When we do, we remind ourselves of the important difference between us and Him. God lives in a different sphere than we do. He is holy and undefiled, but we are sinners. Only through His gracious provision of Jesus Christ and His payment for the penalty of our sin are we even able to approach Him. We agree with John Calvin, who said that God should have His own honor, of which He is so worthy, and that we should never think or speak of Him without the greatest veneration.3
Failure to Honor God
In spite of all the shallow trends that plague much of current Christianity, there is still nothing more disturbing than a failure to recognize the most central truth about God: He is holy. It is the only one of His attributes repeated three times in the heavenly realm (Isa. 6:3). Failure to give God the reverence and honor He so richly deserves can result in devastating consequences. The following narrative shows what can happen when even one of God’s greatest servants doesn’t treat Him with the respect due His name:
Then the sons of Israel, the whole congregation, came to the wilderness of Zin in the first month; and the people stayed at Kadesh.… There was no water for the congregation, and they assembled themselves against Moses and Aaron. The people thus contended with Moses and spoke, saying, “If only we had perished when our brothers perished before the LORD! Why then have you brought the LORD’s assembly into this wilderness, for us and our beasts to die here? Why have you made us come up from Egypt, to bring us in to this wretched place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, nor is there water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron came in from the presence of the assembly to the doorway of the tent of meeting, and fell on their faces. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to them; and the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the rod; and you and your brother Aaron assemble the congregation and speak to the rock before their eyes, that it may yield its water. You shall thus bring forth water for them out of the rock and let the congregation and their beasts drink.” So Moses took the rod from before the LORD, just as He had commanded him; and Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly before the rock. And he said to them, “Listen now, you rebels; shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?” Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts drank. But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.” (Num. 20:1–12)
Moses dishonored God before the Israelites because he struck the rock, in direct disobedience to God. Moses’ actions drew the attention of the people to himself, perhaps to make them think he had something to do with the miracle. But by stealing the glory from God and failing to honor Him, both Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter the Promised Land.
The catalog of others who dishonored God is numerous. The following is only a small sampling:
• Saul did not submit himself to God, but in impatience and self-styled disobedience, he failed to follow all of God’s instructions (1 Sam. 15:11), so God removed him from the throne.
• Uzzah failed to recognize the majesty of God’s holiness by daring to defy God’s instructions (Num. 4:15, 19–20). God struck him down for his irreverence (2 Sam. 6:7).
• Uzziah became proud, acted in a corrupt manner, was unfaithful to the Lord, and in an affront to God’s holiness, entered the temple to burn incense. God struck him with leprosy (2 Chron. 26:16–23).
• Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit. By sinning against the holiness of God in such a way, they lost their lives within hours of their deceit (Acts 5:1–11).
• The Corinthians ate of the bread and drank from the cup in an unholy manner during the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:27–30). As a result, many became sick, and some even died.
God does not always deal as immediately and directly in physical ways with those who fail to uphold His holy character. But there will always be some consequence. Here are a few of the main ones: It gives the enemy an opportunity to blaspheme God. That is what Nathan told David (2 Sam. 12:14; cf. Ezek. 20:39; 1 Tim. 5:14; 6:1). God’s Word is dishonored (Titus 2:5). Sin can disqualify you from further service in the King’s court. Saul is the classic illustration of that (1 Sam. 15:23). You can lose your life or well-being (Acts 5:5, 10). God may withhold spiritual blessings (Num. 20:1–12). God’s anger is invoked (Isa. 5:25). God’s Spirit is grieved (Isa. 63:10).
The Fear of the Lord Is Not an Option
The psalmist asked, “Who may dwell on Your holy hill?” (Ps. 15:1). The answer is simply, “He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness, and speaks truth in his heart” (v. 2). There is no greater need today than for believers once again to ascend the platform of fearing God.
A. W. Tozer said it well: “No religion has been greater than its idea of God.” That gem has a corollary: No church is greater than its reverent awe of holy God. He is holy and demands recognition as such. Although most believers know that intellectually, I’m afraid very few realize what that means practically.
Clearly the fear of God is not optional: “Live in the fear of the LORD always” (Prov. 23:17); “fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt. 10:28); “in all things obey … fearing the Lord” (Col. 3:22). Central to the book of Proverbs is the Hebrew word yare, which refers to fear and honor. Solomon used it eighteen times.
God has always called His people to have such a perspective of the awesomeness of His holiness:
• The fear of God pressed Manoah to expect instant death because he had seen God (Judg. 13:22).
• Upon seeing the magnitude of God’s holiness, Job repented and retracted all that he had foolishly said (Job 42:5–6).
• Standing in the presence of God’s holiness, Isaiah pronounced a curse on himself, “Woe is me, for I am ruined!” (Isa. 6:5).
• Habakkuk trembled at the voice of holy God (Hab. 3:16).
• The restored remnant feared the Lord when they heard His holy word spoken by the prophet Haggai (Hag. 1:12).
• During our Lord’s earthly ministry, the disciples often came face-to-face with His power and holiness. On one occasion when they were crossing the Sea of Galilee, a storm appeared. Although they were afraid of the storm, they feared greatly (literally “feared a great fear”) when Jesus calmed the storm (Mark 4:41). They became much more fearful of the presence and power of God than they were of the deadly storm. Stained by the sin of unbelief, Peter implored his sinless Lord to depart from him (Luke 5:8). John, James, and Peter fell on their faces and were exceedingly afraid when they heard the voice of God (Matt. 17:6).
• People in an unbelieving community begged Christ to leave their region because they feared His holy power (Mark 5:17).
• The Jerusalem church was in deep awe of God’s holiness (Acts 2:43; 5:5, 11), and throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria, the churches continued on in fear of the Lord (Acts 9:31).
• Beholding the magnificence of the glorified Christ, John fell in fear at His feet as a dead man (Rev. 1:17).
In each of those examples, God’s presence produced the “anxiety of holiness.” As I stated at the beginning of this chapter, that is an attitude largely missing in our method-oriented, pragmatic day. And it is especially missing in our prayers. To revive it, we must pursue holiness in the fear of God. That has always been God’s desire for His people: “I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy” (Lev. 11:44). Peter echoed that plea: “But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15–16; cf. Lev. 19:2). Today the challenge for Christ’s church is this: “Let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Cor. 7:1).
How to Hallow God’s Name
Hallowing God’s name, like every other manifestation of righteousness, begins in the heart. The apostle Peter said to “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts” (1 Peter 3:15). When we sanctify Christ in our hearts, we will also sanctify Him in our lives. Let’s look at some practical ways you can do just that and also make sure God is hallowed in your prayer life.
Acknowledge God Exists
Hebrews 11:6 says, “He who comes to God must believe that He is.” To the honest and open mind, God is self-evident. Philosopher Immanuel Kant had many strange ideas about God, but he was absolutely right when he said, “The moral law within us and the starry heavens above us” drive us to God.4 But that is not enough—you can believe God exists and still not hallow His name.
Know the Truth about God
Many people claim they believe in God, but they don’t hallow His name because they don’t have true knowledge of who He is. Discovering and believing truth about God demonstrates reverence for Him; willing ignorance or believing wrong doctrine demonstrates irreverence.
Some people think that taking God’s name in vain is swearing or cursing only, but that is not the case. You can take the name of the Lord in vain every time you think a thought about God that’s not true, or when you doubt Him, disbelieve Him, and question Him. The early church father Origen said in his rebuttal to the Greek philosopher Celsus that the man who brings into his concept of God ideas that have no place there takes the name of the Lord God in vain.5
Some claim that God is harsh and vindictive, accusing Him of being unloving, of indiscriminately banishing people to an eternal hell—a national ally of Israel who slaughters other nations. Job fell into that same accusatory sin when he said, “You have become cruel to me” (Job 30:21). We cannot revere a God whose character and will we do not know or care about. Even when we know and revere Him, that is still not enough.
Be Aware of His Presence
As I stated in the first chapter, if we are to be faithful believers, we must live every day of our lives in a continual state of God consciousness. Spasmodic reflection does not hallow God’s name. I am sure He is on the thoughts of many right after a Sunday morning worship service, but what about later that day and throughout the week? Those are the times you must consciously draw Him into every daily thought, word, and activity if you would truly hallow God’s name. That was David’s focus: “I have set the LORD continually before me” (Ps. 16:8). But that is still not enough to truly hallow God’s name.
Live in Obedience
Our Father’s name is most hallowed when we behave in conformity to His will. For Christians to live in disobedience to God is the ultimate in taking His name in vain, claiming as Lord someone we’re not even willing to follow. Jesus warned, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter” (Matt. 7:21).
When we disobey God, we diminish our capacity to revere His name and be a vehicle for manifesting His holiness. We will succeed in hallowing God’s name, however, when we eat, drink, and do everything else to His glory (1 Cor. 10:31). We also honor His name when we attract others to Him because of our commitment. We are to “let [our] light shine before men in such a way that they may see [our] good works, and glorify [our] Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).
When you have the right thoughts about God and live righteously, you will hallow His name. Psalm 34:3 sums up the teaching of this phrase with this exhortation: “O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt His name together.”
The next time you pray, I hope you see yourself entering the very throne room of God, a holy place, where He is to be honored. Don’t be afraid when you enter that time of solitude with the God of heaven—just be sure you approach that time with the respect due His most holy name.
Notes
1 Lloyd-Jones, Sermon on the Mount, 2:60–61.
2 Pink, Exposition Sermon, 161–62.
3 John Calvin, cited in A Harmony of the Gospels Matthew, Mark, and Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1979), 318.
4 Immanuel Kant, cited by William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1975), 1:208.
5 Origen, Contra Celsus, book 1, chapter 25.