Well, my dear friend, my thought as to your great question is that our God is so magnificent, that He reveals Himself to us using many names in order to truly give mankind a fuller sense of who He truly is. Stated another way, it is through the Scriptures, that God identifies Himself to man in so many different ways in order to demonstrate to us His many excellent attributes. The Holy Spirit brings out these attributes, or perhaps His relationships to man, depending upon what is being described in that particular portion of Scripture. But we must always remember that though He reveals Himself to us in many ways, He is yet one God. Christians today know God as revealed in three separate and coequal persons: “God the Father,” “God the Son,” and “God the Holy Spirit.”

Now, through the Scriptures, let’s take a look at some of those names we find, and I think you’ll see what I mean when I suggest that God uses many names to bring out the fullness of His many wonderful and unique qualities. In this response, I will quote heavily from the Morrish Bible Dictionary from the heading of “God.” Using that resource, the various names by which God has identified Himself to us, along with what those names refer to, include:

  • El, ‘the strong or mighty one.’ It is often used of God, especially in Job and the Psalms.
  • Eloah (Elah Chaldee), Elohim. The names most commonly used for God the Creator, the One with whom man has to do, the supreme Deity…. Elohim (which is plural, called the plural of majesty or excellency) is the word of most frequent occurrence. When it is distinctly used for the one true God the article is often added.
  • Jehovah. This is a name of relationship with men, especially with Israel, taken by God in time. It is derived from havah, ‘to exist,’ and may be expanded into ‘who is, who was, and is to come.’ God thus reveals Himself in time as the ever-existing One: that is, in Himself eternally, He is always the same. The above ‘relationship’ may be seen in the change from Elohim, the Creator, in Genesis 1, to Jehovah Elohim in Genesis 2, when man was brought into relationship with God.  It is generally represented by LORD (sometimes GOD) printed in small capitals. * There is a contraction of Jehovah into Jah… LORD… Jah signifies the absolute supremacy of the self-existing One; whereas Jehovah was the name made known to Israel, and on which they could count. “God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM,” Exedos 3: 14, where the word is Ehyeh, which is from the same root as Jehovah, the Eternal existing One; He that was, and is, and the coming One.
  • Shaddai, ‘the Almighty,’ is another name of God… At times it is associated with one of the above words, and was the name by which He was especially known to the Patriarchs, as El Shaddai, God Almighty.  
  • Elyon, ‘the Most High,’ is another name of God, which stands alone… or ‘the LORD most high.’ Psalm 7:17. It is not confined to Israel, for He is “the Most High over all the earth.”
  • Adon and Adonai, and the plural Adonim, are all translated ‘Lord’; they occur frequently, and are found in some of the following compounds:-Adon Jehovah, the Lord GOD. Adon Jehovah Elohim, thy Lord, the LORD, and thy God. Adon Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord, the LORD OF HOSTS. Adonai Elohim, Psalm 86: 12, O Lord my God: cf. Daniel 9: 3, 9, 15. Adona Jehovah, Deuteronomy 9: 26, O Lord GOD. Adonai Jehovah Sabaoth, Jeremiah 2: 19, the Lord GOD of hosts.
  • El Elohim, El-elohe [Israel, God, the God [of thy father]. El Elohim Jehovah, the LORD God of gods. El Shaddai, God Almighty.

There are many more combinations depicting the various attributes and roles of God in the Scriptures.”

But today, my dear friend, we know God as our Father if we are born again, and we know the Lord Jesus as our Lord. And even our Lord Jesus Himself has many names arising from various of the Old Testament scriptures (see Isaiah 7:14; Isaiah 9:6). Additionally, all Scriptural references to the Messiah and the Christ refer to our Lord Jesus. Again, these various names describe His deity as well as various aspects of His nature, so that we might better know Him and love Him.  (SF)  (695.2)