Etymology and the meaning of names



It is hard for us to imagine, but God (Yahweh) has always had a plan from the beginning.  He is God.

There is something to be said about Etymology and the meaning of names.  Today in our culture we often select a name because we just like it, it sounds good, or maybe it is a namesake after a relative. Seldom do we select a name based on the meaning and etymology of the word, but this was very important in many cultures including in the cultural study of the people of the old testament scriptures. In fact, when a significant event happened in someone's life, often a name was changed afterwards to commemorate that event-- Abram to Abraham, Jacob to Israel.

Way before there was a printing press, God put in place a few hints to tell the story of mankind's coming redemption in Jesus.  One method was stars. Stars were put into place to declare the works and Glory of God. Glory is short for glorification, and glorification in the bible is used describe the process of sins being removed so that one can be in the everlasting presence of God. The bible says that stars were put into place not only for time, days, years, but also for signs.  Remember, the magi, wise men looked into the stars to know the birth of a king...but this is another topic for another post. Another method used by God was name meaning in his chosen line of patriarchs.  Story telling was a major part of early civilizations and ancestry was very important. To know "Your Story" was to know your family and the stories of your ancestors. God is Pro-Family and he wants you to be a part of HIS family, so God gave us a story in names to identify HIS family, our family, starting with Adam:

Adam means Man
Seth means appointed
Enosh means mortal
Kenan means sorrow or lamenter
Mahalalel means the praise or glory of God
Jared means descent or come down from
Enoch means dedicated, trained, disciplined, instructor, famous bearer
Methuselah means when he is dead is shall be sent out
Lamech means humiliation in despair
Noah means rest

Name Codes

If you put all those names together and show the meaning of their names and read it
together like a sentence, you will understand that God had a plan from the beginning.


I may not know all my physical ancestry but I do know my spiritual ancestry and my spiritual family.

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