Heal me, O Yahweh, and I will be healed. Save me, and I will be saved; for you are my praise. – Jeremiah 17:14
Meaning Of Jehovah Rapha
Throughout the Bible, God is known by many names. The most fundamental of those names, of course, is Jehovah – an adaptation of the Hebrew word for God. In Exodus 15, however, God adds onto this word to give Himself another unique name: Jehovah Rapha, translated as “I am the Lord who heals you.” In this passage, God was promising to spare the Israelites from the diseases that He had inflicted on their enemies, the Egyptians. He identifies Himself as a Healer, giving us some great insight into His nature and will.
So what can we learn?
First, we learn that healing is part of God’s character. All throughout scripture, there are accounts of miraculous healing. In the Old Testament, God heals people of various illnesses, both directly and through prophets. In the New Testament, Jesus Himself restores sight to the blind, enables the lame to walk, and even raises people from the dead. And to this day, God is still performing mighty works of healing in the lives of people everywhere. Healing is an integral part of who God is. And it provides us with a picture of God’s ability to cure not only the body, but also the soul.
When sin entered the world, so did sickness. Sickness is what happens when our bodies deviate from God’s original intention. These physical imperfections can also serve as a reminder of our spiritual imperfection. God, being Holy, cannot stand imperfection. When He is present, perfection, purity, and holiness will always prevail. And so, He heals our physical bodies to show us His divine ability to heal our broken souls.
We marvel at the stories of Jesus healing the blind and the deaf. But the greatest miracle taking place today is salvation: the spiritually dead coming to eternal life.
It’s worth recognizing that God heals not only physical wounds, but also emotional ones. In Psalm 147:3, David says, “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Some of us have scars that are invisible. Some of us have suffered childhood trauma. Some of us have been abused.
Some of us have lived with mental illness for many years. God is Healer over those wounds, too. It might not be instantaneous, but over time, God is able to destroy the darkness inside of us and replace it with His warm, loving light.
Finally, we can be comforted by God’s compassion and love towards us. He does not delight in seeing His people suffer. It grieves Him, just as it grieves us when we go through deep waters of pain and anguish.
This great love is why He identifies Himself as the ultimate Healer of both body and soul. Whenever we find ourselves in pain, whether from physical, emotional, or spiritual wounds, we can look to Jehovah Rapha: the Lord our Healer.
Bible Verses About The Lord Our Healer ( Jehova Rapha )
Exodus 15:26 – He said, “If you will diligently listen to Yahweh your God’s voice, and will do that which is right in his eyes, and will pay attention to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I am Yahweh who heals you.
Psalm 103:2-3 – Praise Yahweh, my soul, and don’t forget all his benefits, who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases,
Psalm 107:20 – He sends his word, and heals them, and delivers them from their graves.
Psalm 147:3 – He heals the broken in heart, and binds up their wounds.
Psalm 30:5 – For his anger is but for a moment. His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning.
Isaiah 30:26 – Moreover the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, in the day that Yahweh binds up the fracture of his people, and heals the wound they were struck with.
Isaiah 53:4 – Surely he has borne our sickness and carried our suffering; yet we considered him plagued, struck by God, and afflicted.
Acts 9:34 – Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed!” Immediately he arose.
