God is the Sovereign LORD!
“But as for me, it is good to be near God.
I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge” Ps 73:28
A name. What’s in a name? Is it really just a word or words we use to identify something? In the Old Testament a name often captured the essence of the person.1 When God tells us one of His names in the Scripture, we should be careful to glean the proper understanding of what He is telling us about Himself by using a specific name for Himself. We have studied the name Immanuel and YHWH. Now let’s take a look at Adonai.
Adonai is an emphatic form of the words “'âdôn 'âdôn” a root Hebrew word meaning to rule or be sovereign (a controller). Often this root word is translated “lord” or “master” or “owner”.2 This word can also mean “firm” or “strong” and is used to reference people with a general recognition of superiority (I.E. lord, master, prophet, priest, captain, governor, prince, and king). 3 Adonai is a derivative of this root word. This is a unique word is an emphatic form of “'âdôn 'âdôn” which is used only as a proper name of God. Often we find the word Adonai combined with the Tetragramaton for a combination of YHWH Adonai. This compound name for God is found in 291 OT verses. Of these verses 271 are found in the prophets and 210 are found in the book of Ezekiel. This compound name of God is translated by modern versions of the bible in different ways. The KJV, NASB, and ESV translate this as “Lord GOD,” which does denote in the word “Lord” the idea of master. However, the CEV translates the same compound name as “LORD All-Powerful” and the NIV translates it as “Sovereign LORD.” When we combine what we know of YHWH meaning “I am” or “I will be,” we get the meaning of “I am All-Powerful” or “I am Sovereign.”
It is interesting to note that when the Lord speaks to Ezekiel to speak on behalf of Himself to the people He says “…Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says…’” (Eze 2:4) and later “…But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says…’” (Eze 3:27). This is the name that God is calling Himself.
When we start to look at the context surrounding the name YHWH Adonai, we gain even more understanding of aspects of this name of God. Let’s look at a few together:
Ps 60:20 Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death.
Here the Psalmist sees the “All-Powerful, Sovereign LORD” as the only one who can save us and give us an escape from death.
Ps 71:5 For you have been my hope, O Sovereign LORD, my confidence since my youth.
Ps 71:16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign LORD; I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.
Here the Psalmist sees the Sovereign LORD as his hope and confidence because of His mighty acts and the perfect righteousness that belongs to the Sovereign LORD alone.
Ps 73:28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.
The Psalmist here sees the Sovereign LORD as good and as a refuge because of all the deeds the Sovereign LORD has done. The All-Powerful, Sovereign LORD is our master, our mighty one, to whom all authority is given in heaven and on earth and to whom no other power or ruler could compare.
Ps 109: 21 But you, O Sovereign LORD, deal well with me for your name's sake; out of the goodness of your love, deliver me.
Here the Sovereign LORD is entreated to deal favorably with the Psalmist because part of His All-Powerful nature is to deliver and to be good. Who would want to follow an All-Powerful bad leader, anyway? Could there be any sense of justice in such a case? Could there be any hope of benevolence toward his subjects?
Ps 140:7 O Sovereign LORD, my strong deliverer, who shields my head in the day of battle—
We can look to the Sovereign LORD for deliverance, to be strong on our behalf and to shield us when times get tough and the battle rages.
Ps 141:8 But my eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign LORD; in you I take refuge--do not give me over to death.
The dictionary tells us “Sovereign” means “having supreme rank, power, or authority; preeminent, indisputable; greatest in degree; utmost or extreme; being above all others in character, importance, excellence, etc.”4 What a beautiful description of who God is! He is supreme over all. He has all the power. He is the ultimate authority. He is the preeminent one. There was none before Him. He is indisputable. He is extreme. He is above all others in character. He is most important. He defines excellence.
The All-Powerful, Sovereign LORD is our refuge, our shield, the one who does mighty deeds, whose character is above all others, and who deals with us beneficially, who knows everything. We can take confidence in the All-Powerful, Sovereign LORD, because He will sustain us. “Sovereign LORD” – what a wonderfully powerful name!
Footnotes
1 Ryken, Leland, James C. Wilhoit, Tremper Longman III, Colin Duriez, Douglas Penney, and Daniel G. Reid. "Name." Dictionary of Biblical Imagery. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998. 583. Print.
2 Meyers, Rick. E-Sword. Strong’s Concordance entry: H113. Computer software. E-Sword. The Sword of the LORD with an Electronic Edge. Vers. 10.0.5. Rick Meyers. Web. <http://www.e-sword.net/>.
3 Meyers, Rick. E-Sword. Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Definitions entry: H113. Computer software. E-Sword. The Sword of the LORD with an Electronic Edge. Vers. 10.0.5. Rick Meyers. Web. <http://www.e-sword.net/>.
4 "Sovereign | Define Sovereign at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 11 Feb. 2012. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/sovereign>.
References
All Scriptures not specified are quoted from Life in the Spirit Study Bible (NIV). Stamps, Donald C., and John Wesley Adams. Life in the Spirit Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003. Print.