The Names of God: Discovering God as He Desires to Be Known

I have never been so excited to read a book and then so disappointed in its content. There are such gross errors and false speculations in the first chapter on Elohim, that I threw the book out. How this book was so touted by other readers, and the testimonials on the back of the book, is beyond me. This book should be controversial for its false teachings. Don’t waste your money.

This book like no other I have read before explores not only the meaning of the names of God from the original Hebrew (which compared to other scholarly works can be considered only somewhat moderate) but also much more importantly (and what is much more lacking in such scholarly works which explore - or sometimes exploit & twist - the literal meanings in the original language) it explores the context and cultural use of the words/names (and especially their Biblical application), which are to be considered just as valid - if not even more valid & relevant - than mere language forensics, and shows the distinct character of each. Jukes shows, like I had never seen before, how Elohim is used in an almost exclusively covenant context (of which from my own studies I can confirm is consistant with ancient Semitic culture) and Yahweh as a righteous judge. And using his more than adequate explanation of each name he then opens up the first two chapters in Genesis with exegesis in a way I would have never thought to look at it, and shows how each of the names have distinctively unique events & themes tied to them (consistantly all throughout the Bible) and which are used in conjunction with the specific & distinct character of each name. And thus (as an example of one application he makes) he shows thematic differences illustratively from Genesis chapter 1 (which focuses on God's character as Elohim, the God who stands in covenant with His creatures) & chapter 2 (which focuses primarily on God's character as Yahweh, the one who demands righteousness) and shows His two distinct roles in creation as the gracious Covenant Ruler who blesses His creation & yet also as the Holy, Righteous Judge who demands purity in His creatures. He goes on to show how names such as Yahweh Sabaoth (Lord of Hosts) is used in connection with the theme of the failure of God's people, and God nonetheless acting on their behalf in light of/on account of the simple fact that they are still God's elect, even though walking in disobedience to God's righteous character as Yahweh (thus showing both judgement and mercy). He shows how thematically El Elyon (Lord Most High\Most High God) is seen as a distinct revelation of a God who is a God, not only of the Jews, but also of the [often unbelieving] Gentiles (a most enlightening revelation to those who notice this aspect of His character much more explicitly in the NT). I will not go into depth (nor ruin the amazing and rewarding experience you will gain only by reading it), but I highly recommend this book to those who wish to learn more about the character of our God. It will penetrate boundaries in thinking about our infinite God and deliver one from a small concept of God. It will show the wonderful and various manners (which Hebrews 1:1 mentions) in which God has historically revealed Himself to His people, and the riches with which God's character is full in the revelation of his names (His very character) to his peopl

If you teach the bible and want to know more of what it says about God in the original languages, this book will prove invaluable. I taught a 10 plus week series on the names of God using this book as the primary source and the congregation was enraptured. Jukes delves into the original Hebrew and Greek to reveal things about God that are missed in the English. After reading this book, you'll never look at Adam and Eve the same. I would call the revelations in this book "life changing." Patrick McIntyre, author of The Graham Formula.