Jehovah Nissi: The Lord is My Banner (Exodus 17:8-16)

I enjoy studying the names of God because it makes Him more personal as I understand his character and who he is.  One such name is Jehovah Nissi, The Lord is My Banner.

Moses first used this name in Exodus 17:8-16:

“Then Amalek came and fought against Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, ‘Choose men for us and go out, fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will station myself on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.’ Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought against Amalek; and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands were heavy. Then they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it; and Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other. Thus his hands were steady until the sun set. So Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.’ Moses built an altar and named it The LORD is My Banner; and he said, ‘The LORD has sworn; the LORD will have war against Amalek from generation to generation.’”

When armies fought in ancient times, each side would hoist up their flag or banner at their respective front lines to give hope to their soldiers. When things seemed hopeless, the soldiers would look for their banner – a reassurance in a raging battle.

If the banner was still flying, they knew they still had a chance and it served as a rallying point. If the banner was down, it usually meant defeat. Their banner would ultimately be replaced by the enemy’s flag if they did not win the battle.

Satan tries to engage us in battle every day. He wants to discourage us, but we can look to the Lord as our source of strength and encouragement instead of succumbing to fear and defeat.

His banner will never be taken down and we never have to live under Satan’s flag. As long as we can see him, our Banner over us, we know the battle has not been lost.

He is the flag under which we fight, and he fights right alongside us. He will never be defeated, so we never have to worry about losing sight of him or being abandoned on the battlefield. Unlike Moses, his arms will never get tired of holding up the rod of victory.

How does knowing that The Lord is our Banner encourage you today?

Check out an earlier post by Cindy here.