John 17

John 17:10 “All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. ¹¹ I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. ¹² While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.”

What is the “name” The author was referring to?

Is His name “God”, or “Lord”, or “Yahweh”, or “Jesus”, or “Christ”, or “Yeshua”, or “Immanuel?”

I’d say it depends in the era you are in. Old Testament? New Testament? The Gospel? The early Church? The epistles? The reformation?

John 17:13“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. ¹⁴ I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. ¹⁵ My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. ¹⁷ Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸ As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹ For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.”

Who is the deity that saves mankind from sin? That is the name, you should use. It doesn’t refer to a specific personage, but its meaning is passed on by hearing the Word of God, or the Good News (Gospel).

The name Joshua is of Hebrew origin, meaning “Yahweh is salvation” or “God is deliverance.”

The name “Joshua” has Hebrew origins and means “Yahweh is salvation” or “The Lord is my salvation.” It is derived from the Hebrew name Yehoshua (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ), which combines two elements:

1. Yahweh (יהוה) – the name of the God of Israel.
2. Yasha (יָשַׁע) – meaning “to save” or “to deliver.”

The name gained significant popularity in both biblical and Christian traditions, partly because of the biblical figure Joshua, who succeeded Moses as the leader of the Israelites and led them into the Promised Land.

The name “Jesus” is derived from the same Hebrew name as “Joshua” — Yehoshua (יְהוֹשֻׁעַ), which means “Yahweh is salvation” or “The Lord saves.”

In Greek, Yehoshua was transliterated to Iēsous (Ἰησοῦς), which then became “Jesus” in English. The meaning is essentially the same as “Joshua,” but the name Jesus is particularly significant in Christian theology as it refers to Jesus of Nazareth, central to the Christian faith, believed to be the Messiah and the Son of God.

So, the name “Jesus” carries the meaning of divine salvation or deliverance through God.

John 17:20 “But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.