Good Morning.
Whoever of the children of Israel … gives any of his descendants to Molech, he shall surely be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. I will set My face against that man, and will cut him off from his people, because he has given some of his descendants to Molech, to defile My sanctuary and profane My holy name. (Leviticus 20:2-3)
Most students of the Bible understand what is being addressed here, but just in case you’re not, the ancient Canaanites were infamous for sacrificing infant children to a nothing god called Molech. (By the way, the word Molech is closely related to the Hebrew word, melech, which means “king.”) In this instruction, God warns His people not to follow the example of the Canaanites and underscores the severity of this deed by attaching a death sentence to its commission. Needless to say, He was serious about this.
Moreover, He connects this sin with the sin of defiling His Sanctuary and profaning His name. This obviously horrendous act is regarded as unclean, unholy and worthy of death but how does it profane His name? I pose this question because, like many of you, I was always taught that to profane the Name of the LORD was to curse or to take God’s Name in vain. There are even some who believe that if we mispronounce the sacred name commonly pronounced Yahweh, then we have profaned His Name. These opinions, though noble in their intent, don’t truly arrive at the point made here in this text. In other words, more than what we say, what we do can profane the Name of the LORD.
The Hebrew word translated as “name” also means “authority, reputation.” Messiah came in the Father’s name, meaning the Father had authorized Him to speak and do on His behalf. Furthermore, the Father’s reputation among men was entrusted to the Messiah, meaning that He was to faithfully represent Him to others. Now consider that, as followers of Messiah, that same responsibility has been given us. In short, to a degree, God has entrusted His reputation to us — how we act, what we do and, yes, say — will factor into how others view Him. So then, when we act like the world, we mishandle His reputation and “profane His name.”
Actually, our lives are to do the opposite — we are to sanctify His Name. So then, how do we do that? We glorify His Name when we follow the example set before us by Yeshua. We do what He says and we refrain from those activities, attitudes and words that would discredit our testimony and bring dishonor upon His House. So then, understanding that we have been entrusted with His Good Name, let us handle it with the attention and care it requires and deserves, meaning let us live in such a way that He is exalted in the eyes of those we encounter.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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