Psalm 83:18: 'whose name alone is Jehovah'

Psalm 83:18 is the last verse of a prayer by Asaph, written when a coalition of nations had gathered against Israel. In the King James Version it reads “that men may know that thou, whose name alone is Jehovah, art the most high over all the earth”, and it is one of the seven places where that version prints the name. The verse asks for more than recognition of a word. Its request is that the nations who have plotted against God’s people should come to know that the God of Israel, who bears the name Jehovah, alone is the Most High over the whole earth. The American Standard Version and the Berean Standard Bible make this clearer by placing “alone” with the claim to supremacy. The verse is often quoted because it states plainly that God has a name; its deeper concern is that God himself be known and acknowledged, and even that his enemies might come to seek him.

One verse in three translations

Setting the three public-domain translations side by side shows both what is certain and where the wording can shift.

That men may know that thou, whose name alone is Jehovah, art the most high over all the earth.

— Psalm 83:18 (KJV)

That they may know that thou alone, whose name is Jehovah, Art the Most High over all the earth.

— Psalm 83:18 (ASV)

May they know that You alone, whose name is the LORD, are Most High over all the earth.

— Psalm 83:18 (BSB)

The Hebrew word translated “alone” most naturally belongs with the statement “thou art Most High”. The King James wording, “whose name alone is Jehovah”, is not wrong, since the name belongs to no other, but the psalm’s point is broader: there is one God over all the earth, and he is the God whose name is Jehovah. The Berean Standard Bible follows the long-standing English custom of writing “the LORD” in small capitals where the Hebrew has the name. The entry The seven places where the King James Version prints Jehovah explains why the older translators let the name stand here.

The psalm of Asaph in its setting

Psalm 83 is the last of the psalms headed “of Asaph”, a group associated with one of the chief musicians appointed in David’s time. It opens with an urgent plea.

A Song, a Psalm of Asaph. O God, keep not thou silence: Hold not thy peace, and be not still, O God. For, lo, thine enemies make a tumult; And they that hate thee have lifted up the head. They take crafty counsel against thy people, And consult together against thy hidden ones. They have said, Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation; That the name of Israel may be no more in remembrance.

— Psalm 83:1-4 (ASV)

Verses 6 to 8 then list the peoples in the alliance: Edom, the Ishmaelites, Moab, the Hagarenes, Gebal, Ammon, Amalek, Philistia, Tyre and Assyria. Several older commentators, Matthew Henry among them, connect the psalm with the alliance against King Jehoshaphat described in 2 Chronicles 20, though the psalm itself does not say so. What matters is the shape of the prayer. The enemies want the name of Israel forgotten; the psalmist prays that the name of Israel’s God will instead be known. Notice too that the enemies are called “thine enemies”. Asaph does not treat the threat as merely political. An attempt to erase God’s people is, in his eyes, an attack on God’s own honour.

What the verse actually asks

The closing verses of the psalm move from the danger to its hoped-for outcome. They are strong words, but they have a purpose.

Fill their faces with confusion, That they may seek thy name, O Jehovah. Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever; Yea, let them be confounded and perish;

— Psalm 83:16-17 (ASV)

Verse 16 is the key that unlocks verse 18. Asaph prays that the nations will be defeated and ashamed, but the stated aim is “that they may seek thy name”. The psalm holds together two outcomes that Scripture often holds together: judgement on those who persist in opposing God, and the hope that some, humbled by defeat, will turn and seek him. Verse 18 then states the goal in its widest form. It is not that Israel will win, but that the world will know who God is.

To “know” in this sense is more than to learn a fact. It is to acknowledge, to submit, to recognise that the God of Israel is Most High and that no rival god or human power stands above him. The name is the handle by which that knowledge is grasped: God is not an unnamed force but the one who has made himself known, and made himself known by name.

Why the verse is often quoted by Jehovah’s Witnesses

Jehovah’s Witnesses give this verse a prominent place. They read it as clear evidence that God has a personal name, that the name is Jehovah, and that knowing and using that name is part of true worship. Their own name is drawn from Isaiah 43:10, “Ye are my witnesses, saith Jehovah”.

Mainstream Christians share much of that concern. God does have a name; it is holy; and the Psalms call on his people to make it known. Where the historic churches differ is in what they believe the fuller revelation of the name includes. The New Testament speaks of a single name shared by Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and it is into this name that disciples are baptised.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

— Matthew 28:19 (BSB)

This site is independent and holds the Nicene faith: one God in three persons, with Jesus Christ fully God and fully man. The entry Is this site connected to Jehovah’s Witnesses? sets out the main differences respectfully.

Where Christians differ

Faithful Christians have read the harsher lines of Psalm 83 in different ways. Some read them as prayers that belonged to Israel’s particular situation under the old covenant, to be understood rather than repeated. Others pray them as appeals for God to defeat evil, while leaving the manner of that defeat entirely in his hands and hoping, as verse 16 does, for the conversion of enemies. Both readings agree that the psalm’s last word is not revenge but knowledge of God among the nations.

Christians also differ over whether to use the name Jehovah in public worship or to keep the traditional “LORD”. That is a matter of custom and conscience, not of doctrine.

For reflection

Read Psalm 83 aloud, then read it again with verse 16 in mind, and pray for those who oppose the gospel today: that they may seek God’s name. Ask that your own life, and your congregation’s common worship, would help others to know the one who is Most High. The ASV Psalter carries this theme through many other psalms, traced in The name Jehovah in the Psalms.

References

1. Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906).
2. C. F. Keil and F. Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1866–1891).
3. Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710).
4. C. H. Spurgeon, The Treasury of David (1869–1885).
5. The Preface to the American Standard Version (1901).