Here is something worth looking at:
Acts 2
14 But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: "Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words.
15 "For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day;
16 but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel:
17
'AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,' God says,
'THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND;
AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY,
AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS,
AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS;
18
EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN,
I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT
And they shall prophesy.
19
'AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE
AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW,
BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE.
20
'THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS
AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD,
BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME.
21
'AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF
THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.'
Now let me stop right there and say that Peter does a fairly decent Job of quoting Joel. Now I checked out what Joel exactly said. He said this:
Joel 2
32 "And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of
the LORD Will be delivered;
Now Joel actually said "whoever calls on the name of YHWH will be delivered" in Hebrew. Understanding (as we have spoke before) that "Adonai" became a spoken substitute title for YHWH as no one wanted to utter it, and that is why most English versions substitute "LORD" in capital letters for the Old Testament. That is to let you know YHWH is really what the Hebrew says.
So understanding that, when Peter quoted Joel to these Jews, he probably would have said "Adonai" (and in Greek that is Kurios). So all of these Jews hearing him know Peter is talking about YHWH so far. No problems... But then check this out...
36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both
Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified."
This would have stunned the Jewish audience. Peter has already establed that YHWH/Lord is the vehicle for salvation. Peter then goes on to say that Jesus, whom they persecuted, was not only the Messiah, but "Lord" and the Jews knew that meant Jesus is YHWH! This is why Acts goes on to say:
37
Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"
Paul said it this way:
Philipians 2
2:5
Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,
2:6
who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
Before Jesus became a man, He was in Heaven as a divine being.
2:7
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and
being made in the likeness of men.
2:8
Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
So the pre-existing God took on the form of humanity.
2:9
For this reason also,
God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name,
2:10
so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
2:11
and that every tongue will confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
What Paul is saying is God the Father RESTORED Jesus to His PRE-EXISTING STATUS He had BEFORE He emptied Himself and took on humanity! That is why it gives glory to the Father, because the Father is the one who restored Him by His mighty power! The Father exalted Jesus BACK to what He was previously, and this is made apparent by the Father giving Him back His "family name."
What is the name that is above every name? That should be easy. It is YHWH. Paul goes on to back this up by quoting Isaiah. Look here:
Isaiah
45:21
"Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old ? Who has long since declared it?
Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a
Savior; There is none except Me.
45:22
"Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.
So we have established that YHWH is speaking (obviously) and He says He is the savior, and there are no other gods, only YHWH.
45:23
"I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.
Now look again what Paul said:
2:10
so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
2:11
and that every tongue will confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
What Paul is getting at is what Peter was getting at. YHWH is not the name of one being, but one God. One in UNITY. Look what Paul says:
2:6
who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
2:7
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.
This is exactly what John said in his Gospel:
John 1
1:1
In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and
the Word was God.
1:2
He was in the beginning
with God.
So there are at least 2 "people" here. This is basically what Paul was saying in Philippians. Now check this out:
Isaiah 45
45:18
For thus says
the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), "I am
the LORD, and there is none else.
Lets go back to John:
John 1
1:3
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
This is further evidence that Jesus Christ was/is a "piece" of what YHWH is. Before Jesus became a man, He existed as a divine being, but was NOT a separate "god." Jesus (the Word) was an "ingredient" of what God is!
This is why the NT writers went out of their way to designate who specifically they were talking about, God the Father Jesus Christ, or the Holy Spirit.
So to put it in simple terms, yes, it could be said that YHWH is a "family name." God the Father is YHWH, and Jesus is YHWH. But they are not both the same "person" but they do make one YHWH.
Think of it this way. America is made up of 50 states, but that does not mean there are 50 USAs here. Together they make "one nation."
That said, if someone calls on the name "Jesus," they are in effect calling on YHWH, as that s His name.
So Isaiah's prophecy still stands.
