Definition of "Name" in Scripture

In biblical times names were given in order to express something about a person, or to express something through him, and not simply to hang a convenient label round his neck. At least six motivations appear in the choice of names. … [One of which, and the most importanat relative to STOSS, is] to reveal the nature of the person, his function, or some other significant thing about him. The preeminent example of this is Jesus (Mt 1:21), named for his saving vocation. Isaiah seems to have seen his own name as significant of his message “the Lord saves” (Is 8:18).

In the Book of Genesis, God was known by descriptive labels declaring the ways in which he was known to his people; for example, “the everlasting God” (Gn 21:33; see also 14:18; 16:13; 17:1; 31:13; 33:20). But there was also another label used in Genesis, which appears in most English Bibles as “the Lord” (e.g., Gn 17:1). It was not until the time of Moses that this was revealed as something more than a label: it was a true personal name, Yahweh (Ex 3:13–15) [see I AM That I AM for more details]. The progress of revelation from Genesis to Exodus is declared in Exodus 6:2, 3, which ought to be translated as follows: “I am Yahweh: I showed myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the character of God Almighty, but as regards my name Yahweh I did not reveal myself to them.”[1]