Moses encounters God in a burning bush. God gives him the task to set the Israelites free. Moses is reluctant and asks God, “When I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His Name?’ what shall I say to them?” (Exodus 3:13). God answers Moses: Ehyeh asher ehyeh (“I am who I am” or “I will be who I will be”).
Ehyeh asher ehyeh is a name that does not describe God, rather it prescribes how God will interact with humanity in the future. My Hebrew name is Tuvya (“Goodness of God”). I do not believe the name describes me; rather, my name reminds me how I am to behave every day. I often ask couples who bring their child for a baby naming to explain to me who they are naming their child after and why. Often the name expresses not only a desire to remember that relative but also a hope that the child will embody the attributes of that person.
- How have the names of the Divine Presence in the Torah evolved (Elohim, El, Adonai, El Shaddai)? What traits do you attribute to them?
- What does the name Ehyeh asher ehyeh suggest to you?
- Does your name or title describe you (or an aspect of you) or prescribe a certain behavior from you?
- How does the notion of an evolving name for the Divine Presence impact how you view God?