Jehovah-nissi

Text and Narrative

Jehovah-nissi is a name found in Exodus 17:15. After Israel's victory over Amalek, Moses built an altar and gave it this name.

After the Exodus, as Israel journeyed through the wilderness and reached Rephidim, Amalek came out to attack them (Exodus 17:8). Moses told Joshua to choose men and go out to fight, while he himself stood on the top of the hill with "the rod of God" in his hand.

Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; whenever he let it down, Amalek prevailed. So Aaron and Hur brought a stone for Moses to sit on and held up his hands, one on each side. His hands remained raised until sunset (17:11–12). After Joshua defeated Amalek, God commanded that the event be written in a book as a memorial. Moses then built an altar and called its name Jehovah-nissi (17:14–15).

Meaning of the Word

"Nissi" is formed from the Hebrew word nes with a suffix meaning "my." Nes refers to a banner, or to a pole or signal raised high. Jehovah-nissi therefore means "The LORD is my banner."

In ancient armies, the banner served both as a rallying point for soldiers and as a sign of victory. The name is thus understood as a confession that the victory came not from Israel's own strength but from the LORD. The name "Jehovah" itself is discussed in the article Names of God.

Throughout Scripture

The word nes appears in other passages as well:

• In Numbers 21:8–9, it is the word for the "pole" on which the bronze serpent was set.
• Isaiah 11:10 says that the root of Jesse "shall stand for an ensign of the people."
• The "banner" in Psalm 60:4 is the same word.

The New Testament does not use the expression "Jehovah-nissi." However, John 3:14–15 compares the bronze serpent lifted up on the pole to the Son of Man, who must be lifted up. On this basis, some Christian interpreters see the symbolism of the raised banner as fulfilled in Christ on the cross.

Interpretations and Debates

• A name of God or the name of an altar? The text states that this is the name of an altar. Nevertheless, it is often grouped with Jehovah-jireh (Genesis 22:14) and Jehovah-shalom, the name of the altar built by Gideon (Judges 6:24), as one of the "compound names of God." Some argue that a distinction should be maintained, since each of these names was given to a place or an altar.
• Moses' raised hands: Korean preaching often interprets these as hands lifted in prayer. The text, however, says only that Moses held the rod and raised his hands on the hilltop; it does not explicitly describe this as prayer. Some therefore interpret the act as raising the rod of God high like a banner.
• Jewish interpretation: The Mishnah tractate Rosh Hashanah explains that it was not Moses' hands themselves that won the battle; rather, Israel prevailed when the people looked upward and directed their hearts to their Father in heaven.
• Early church interpretation: Some early church writers, such as Justin Martyr in the second century, regarded Moses with outstretched arms as a type of the cross, that is, a shadow that foreshadowed it. They are also known to have noted that the names Joshua and Jesus derive from the same Hebrew name.
• Translation of 17:16: The meaning of the Hebrew text of the following verse, 17:16, is uncertain. The New Korean Revised Version renders it "the LORD has sworn." Some scholars and translations emend the word kes, which appears to mean "throne," to nes ("banner"), rendering the phrase "a hand upon the banner of the LORD."

In the Korean Church

In preaching, the scene of Aaron and Hur holding up Moses' arms is frequently used as an illustration when encouraging intercessory prayer for pastors and cooperation among church members. The word "Nissi" is also sometimes used in the names of church mission groups, worship teams, and similar ministries.