Joel and the Lord of the Covenant

I've been greatly enjoying O. Palmer Robertson's commentary on the book of Joel, Prophet of the Coming Day of the Lord. It comes from a series of very helpful commentaries put out by Evangelical Press. This is a simple exposition of the text of Joel with practical application and a very devotional feel.

One of the most interesting, as well as clarifying aspects of this commentary is the way in which Robertson chooses to render the name of God used in the Old Testament, known as the "Tetragrammaton." This Hebrew word YHWH or "Yahweh" is traditionally represented by the word LORD. Robertson points out that while this is not a bad translation, the significance of the Hebrew word, which is so pregnant with meaning, is often missed by readers when rendered this way. In his own translation, used in the commentary, Robertson uses the phrase "Covenant Lord." As one of the foremost experts on covenant theology within Reformed circles, it is not surprising that Robertson is able to recognize this particular aspect of the name of God. He explains the decision in this way:

The translation adopted in this commentary has worked with the generally accepted understanding that this special name for God is related directly to his revelation to his people as their 'Covenant Lord'. Only to the people called out to be his own has God made himself known by this name. In association with his oath-bound commitments, God has revealed himself as 'Lord of the Covenant'.

This is a wonderful truth, that God relates to us on the basis of the special relationship found in his covenant. The terms of this covenant are set by him and fulfilled by him as well. What better arrangement could we ask for?! Not only does this rendering of God's name as "Covenant Lord" reveal to use the way in which the Hebrew's understood their relationship to God, but, as Robertson points out, it has Christological implications as well. He sees the historic difficulty of translating the Old Testament name of God to have very specific foreshadowings of Christ:

It just may be that God intended it that way for a special purpose. The revelation that came in the person of God's Son burst onto the scene of human history with the greatest brilliance because of the 400 years of divine silence that preceded it. In a similar way, the obvious blank at the place where God's name should have been heard made the way clear for the name of 'Jesus' to receive the full honour it deserved. Without a rival even from Scripture itself, it is clearly and exclusively 'at the name of Jesus' that 'every knee should bow and every tongue declare that "Jesus Christ is Lord" (Phil. 2:10-11).