Rishown ‘Acharone

Names of God -Part 60

The First and the Last

Better known from the Alpha and Omega passages at the beginning and end of the book of Revelation, the First and the Last as describing God has a history going back to the Old Teastament.

Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel
and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts:
“I am the first and I am the last;
besides me there is no god.”
Isaiah 44:6 ESVUK

One thing to remember at all times when dealing with the different names of God in the Bible is that God has only one name, YHWH, the rest whether said by people about God, or like here said by God through his prophets are relational, they are about how we people relate to God, and how God relates to us.

The people this was written to were exiles, living in Babylon. What God is saying in “I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god.” is that he is the only God there is, God of everything, God of everywhere. This is in stark contrast to the paganism of that time, with its councils of gods and gods of different lands. God is saying in this passage that he is the only God there is, he is the God of Judah, and he is going to bring his people home.

John, in writing Revelation, spoke of the First and the last being Jesus, Jesus cannot be separated fron God he was with God in the beginning and will be with God in the judgement. Jesus if the First and the last, he has always been God, is God and always will be God.

In the Isaiah passage the redemption of Judah was to return to their land. In Jesus redemption is returning everything that belongs to God to God, including you and me.

God is everything.

What is God to you? Is he your everything, your beginning and your end? Does anything at all come before yourself and God? Is work the most important thing to you? Or parents? Or Children? Or a sporting club? Or anything else’s? All good things, but God is the highest, God has given you all that and more, but God is to be first and last, your motivation behind what you do. Are you willing to pur God first and last?

If so pray with me.

Lord God, I thank you that you desire the best for me and wish to lead me where you want me to go. Be my first, be my last. Be all and in all to me, I rede dictate myself anew to you now.

Amen.