Jesus

By He Reads Truth

Scripture Reading: Luke 1:31, John 14:12-14, Acts 4:5-12, Romans 10:8-13, Philippians 2:5-11, Revelation 1:4-7

In this reading plan, we are learning more about God by studying the names given to Him in Scripture. Each day, you’ll come here to read the description of the name we’re studying today and a brief explanation of how God’s character is seen through His name. (Remember that because the Bible was originally written in Hebrew and Greek, some of God’s names are written in the English form of His name from their original language.) You can then head to today’s passages to see how this name functions in Scripture.

JESUS: The name of the incarnate Son of God

Iesous, or “Jesus,” means “Yahweh saves.” It is the Greek form of the Hebrew word Yeshua, a shortened version of Yehoshu’a, which is translated as “Joshua.” Jesus, a common name in the first century AD, was the human name the Lord was given on earth. Mary and Joseph obediently gave the child this name because an angel of the Lord visited Joseph in a dream and told him, “you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Scripture often combines the name Jesus with the Greek word for messiah, Christos, or “Christ.” The name “Jesus Christ” joins the two names in order to recognize Jesus as the anointed Savior. The New Testament keeps Jesus’s human name and His designation as the Christ linked after the resurrection, emphasizing that He remains fully man and fully God with all authority in heaven and on earth.