Jehovah Jireh
This is actually two names in one. Jehovah is the name God used to enter into covenant with Abraham. It also is seen in the Bible as Yahweh. It reveals the personal nature of God – His desire to be in relationship with His people. Jireh means to see or to provide or to foresee.
“The Lord will Provide.” is how I have seen Jehovah-Jireh translated and explained. But, I think it would be more complete to say that it means that God sees our needs – even before we know them – and then He gives us just enough when the time comes. And He does it because He promised that He would when He made a covenant with us.
Abraham
In Genesis 22 we read the story where God reveals Himself to Abraham and Isaac as Jehovah-Jireh. Abraham brought Isaac along to offer a sacrifice and worship God. Along the way, Isaac notices that they have forgotten something very important – the lamb for the sacrifice! So, he asks his father. Abraham’s response is full of faith, “My son, God will provide the lamb…”
And so, we see Abraham and Isaac work together to build an altar and to prepare for the sacrifice. But, still, there was no lamb. Isaac must have been confused and a bit shocked when Abraham bound him and raised the knife…
At just the right time, God intervenes. He calls out to Abraham to stop and provides a lamb for the sacrifice…
And Abraham called the name of the place, The-Lord-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”
Genesis 22:14
My Ways Are Not His…
If was up to me, I would not have waited as long to stop Abraham. But God knew ahead of time that Abraham was going to need a lamb. He knew that He would be able to stop Abraham. Our minds are often clouded by the temporary conditions we are living in. We are distracted by the demands of the internet and television. We are distracted by the demands of those around us who we love. Sometimes, we miss the very thing that we need the most because we go chasing after the things we think we need, but really don’t.
God knows our needs. He is not distracted by all the things that surround us. And He has promised to provide for us in the moment we are in need.