Names of God - LORD God

Okay, so now we have El (or, more often, Elohim) and YHWH -- Jehovah. One of the earliest (and perhaps most interesting) names of God is the conjunction of the two. Genesis 2:4 references "the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens." The capitalization there is typical of many translations. Whenever you see a translation that capitalizes "LORD", it is translating the word YHWH. This term, then, is a dual term of YHWH and Elohim. Or, it is "YHWH who is God". (Remember, YHWH is His name and Elohim is His title.) (Note: There are places that the two are reversed. Those would look like Lord GOD, where "Lord" contains lower case letters and "God" is in capitals. In these cases it is typically adonai YHWH, where adonai means "lord".)

These two together are found in the Ten Commandments when God commands, "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain" (Exo 20:7). While many modern Christians fear that any irreverent use of the word "God" is a violation of this command, rationally the text is saying more literally that the name -- YHWH -- should not be taken in vain. In this approach, God whose name is YHWH needs to be honored (as opposed to simply worrying about the use of a title in a coarse manner). God (whose name is YHWH) in all that He is (which is the significance of "His Name") must not be referenced vainly. The problem in this commandment doesn't occur with the mouth; it occurs with the heart and is only expressed with the mouth. YHWH God demands and deserves respect, and we ought to supply it.

We ought to supply respect in reverence. Using God's name as a swear word isn't any worse than a flippant reference to God, like some are prone to do when calling Him "the Man Upstairs" or something like it. We ought to supply respect with our attention. Using God's name in vain can (and often does) occur in church when we mouth praises and prayers while our hearts are far from Him. We ought to supply respect in gratitude. It is a vain use of God's name when we claim to be His followers and fail to be thankful.

Jehovah is God. That's one of the common names applied to God. It has practical significance to believers. The Self-Sufficient One is the Power and Authority. He earns and demands our respect and attention.