Vol 1:2 – If God’s Name is Breathed, What Does the 3rd Commandment Mean?

The third commandment of the Ten Commandments expresses, ““You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name” (Exodus 20:7, NIV). In my last post I stated that God’s name is an action, in fact it is expressed through the act of breathing (see August 12, 2025, Vol 1:1 – God’s Name is an Action!). If that is indeed the case, then how can we, do we, misuse God’s name, if the act of breathing expresses the name of God?

A few thoughts.

Breath and the act of breathing is life giving. Whenever we act in ways to foster life, enable breathing, we are aligned with the purposes of God who seeks to give and sustain life. If the opposite, withholding breath, keeping breath (life) from others, we act in ways which do not give life, nor sustain life – we act in ways not aligned with the purposes of God – as the one who is breath, whose name is expressed by the act of breathing.

When we act in ways that are overtly preoccupied with ourselves (one of the ways I define “sin” – another term that carries a lot of baggage) we withhold life breath from others by fostering anxiety, despair, heartache in them – experiences which affect the natural rhythms of breathing in others. When we seek to withhold life breath from/in others that we foster war, hatred, racism, actions that dehumanize, enslave people, minimize people. We do harm to those around us, and discover that we harm our selves as well.

Yet, when we seek to live lovingly, compassionately, seeking and offering forgiveness when we mess up or others mess up with us, helping others, we find ourselves living in ways which restore rhythms of breathing, bringing calm, joy, peace, restoring life.

Indeed, if God’s name is best described by the action of breathing, then we align ourselves with the purposes of God, and we live in such a way that does not misuse God’s name, when we live/act in ways that foster healthy rhythms of breathing that are aligned with our breathing the name of God.

Your thoughts in response?

Musings

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