This study is addressing the subject of name changes in the Bible. Not all name changes are going to be examined, but (with one exception) only those where God himself has changed the name of the individual, for there are many others that had their names changed by men.

The purpose of this study is to disprove the premise that when a person’s name has been changed by God, it indicates that that person has at that point become a believer. In fact, there is no place in the Bible that I am aware of where a name change indicates a salvation experience.

As to where this belief came from, I can only speculate. Perhaps it has been handed down as an ongoing tradition, from teacher to student without challenge or investigation. Possibly because the name change of Jacob (trickster), who became Israel (prince with God), was looked upon as his salvation experience, and was then mistakenly used as a de-facto rule for all name changes. In any case, as we investigate several instances of name changes, we will see that there is indeed a pattern to be found, but not one of coming to salvation.

The first and most notable name to be changed by God is that of Abram to Abraham. Before we attend to Genesis 17, let’s see what Abram’s life was like before the name change.

Genesis 14:14 – And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
15 And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king’s dale.
18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
Genesis 14:20 – And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

The incident of Abram’s slaughter of the kings took place sometime before the birth of Ishmael. The birth of Ishmael took place some thirteen years before Abram’s name was changed to Abraham. Here we find Melchizedek, who is believed to be the pre-incarnate Christ, bringing to Abram bread and wine. It is certainly no stretch to believe that the bread and wine here represent the body and blood of the Lord Jesus, and to see that Melchizedek was fellowshipping with Abram, both blessing him, and even bringing the signs of the future Passover, and beyond that, of the Lord’s Table. All of this happened when Abram was less than 86 years old. Can we believe that Abram was at this point an unregenerate man? To believe that would be to believe that we should invite the unsaved to fellowship with us at the Lord’s Supper.

Now let’s turn our attention to the passage where Abram’s name is changed, and see why it was changed.

Genesis 16:16 – And Abram was fourscore and six years old, when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram.
Genesis 17:1 – And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
3 And Abram fell on his face: and God talked with him, saying,
4 As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations.
5 Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.
6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
7 And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee.
8 And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.
9 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
10 This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.
Genesis 17:13 – He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
15 And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.
16 And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her.

When Abram was 99 years old, God appeared to him and changed his name. In Genesis 17:5, we are specifically told why his name is changed.

Genesis 17:5 – Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee.

God said that Abram’s name is being changed to reflect his new status as the father of many nations. The name Abram means “exalted father,” but the name Abraham means “father of a multitude.” Not only is Abram’s name to be changed, but Sarai’s name is changed as well. Her name will be changed from Sarai which means “princess,” to Sarah which means “royalty.”

Genesis 17:15 – And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be.

Thus we find that as the founders of many nations in general, and of the nation of Israel in particular, God has given them names which reflect that fact. Abraham and Sarah will become the original king and queen of the nation; they will be its royalty, and a multitude shall come of them.

There are other points which we can add here as well. The text says nothing of changes which accompany salvation. Abraham was righteous before his name change. He communed with God as the two angels went to Sodom, and as the one Angel answered his request concerning the destruction of Sodom. He communed with Melchizedek, and shared in the knowledge of his sufferings. He was already a believer. And what about Sarah? She was not even present when her name was changed. Only when Abraham informed her of the change did she realize it, but when a person is saved, they know of the change without someone else having to tell them there was one. We see no hint of repentance or the turning from sins that are signs of salvation.

The next person that we are going to look at is Jacob. Let’s look at the first instance where his name was changed.

Genesis 32:24 – And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
29 And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there.
30 And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.

Here we find Jacob wrestling with God. The nature of this wrestling can be seen in the goal of Jacob: to get God’s blessing. Have not all believers wrestled with God in this way?

Luke 18:7 – And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

Jacob was in a difficult position. His brother Esau was coming in his direction, and was probably going to avenge himself for the ill that Jacob had done to him. Now Jacob needed an answer to prayer, and he would not quit until he had it. Does God at all rebuke Jacob for his actions? No; he rather commends him, and gives him his request. God also changes Jacob’s name, which means “trickster”, to Israel, which means “prince with God.” If we stopped here, we might have little to add about Jacob’s name change. Since we do not find that Jacob behaves any differently after this event than before it, we cannot say that he has repented unto salvation. He also does not believe anything different about God, nor has any outward change that would give us a clue that at this point he has become a believer. If we are going to find out why his name was changed we will have to look at the second occasion of his name being changed by God.

This verse is here for background. We see in verse four that after Jacob prevailed over the Angel, the Angel found Jacob again in Bethel at a later date.

Hosea 12:3 – He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength he had power with God:
4 Yea, he had power over the angel, and prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in Bethel, and there he spake with us;

This next passage is where we find the answer to why Jacob’s name was changed. This is the second time that Jacob’s name was changed to Israel. The first occurrence was at the river Jabbok.

Genesis 32:22 – And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.

This second occurrence of Jacob’s name change took place much later at Bethel. We find that after Jacob entered into Canaan, he traveled to Succoth, where he built and lived in a house.

Genesis 33:17 – And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth.

After he had lived a while at Succoth, he traveled to Shalem, where the incident with Dinah took place.

Genesis 33:18 – And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram; and pitched his tent before the city.
19 And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for an hundred pieces of money.

Finally, God told Jacob to go back to Bethel and live there.

Genesis 35:1 – And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother.

When Jacob arrives at Bethel we find in Genesis 35:9 that the Angel that Jacob wrestled with at the river Jabbok again finds him, and again changes his name to Israel. If we did not have the testimony of Hosea 12:3, we might think that this was a flashback to the wrestling match between Jacob and the Angel. However, the passage in Hosea makes it clear that this is a separate occurrence. We are also told in Genesis 35:15 that this incident took place in Bethel.

Genesis 35:6 – So Jacob came to Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Bethel, he and all the people that were with him.
7 And he built there an altar, and called the place Elbethel: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother.
8 But Deborah Rebekah’s nurse died, and she was buried beneath Bethel under an oak: and the name of it was called Allonbachuth.
9 And God appeared unto Jacob again, when he came out of Padanaram, and blessed him.
10 And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel.

This time we are told why Jacob’s name is being changed. Just as Abraham’s name was changed because he was the father of many nations, Jacob’s name was being changed to illustrate his status as head of the tribes of Israel. Not only was Jacob’s name being changed, but his new name would become the name of the nation. God makes the connection to Abraham in his statement about Jacob’s new name, because the reasons for the change of names of Abraham, Sarah, and Jacob were all the same; they were the patriarchs and matriarch of a nation. There is nothing at all in any of these name changes to indicate that the New Birth had at that point taken place in the heart of previously unregenerate people.

Genesis 35:11 – And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;
12 And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.
13 And God went up from him in the place where he talked with him.
14 And Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he talked with him, even a pillar of stone: and he poured a drink offering thereon, and he poured oil thereon.
15 And Jacob called the name of the place where God spake with him, Bethel.

The most obvious of all questions is whether a person can get saved twice. Of course he cannot! Therefore, since Jacob’s name change occurred twice over a period of time which may be as short as several months, or as long as many years, it could not possibly indicate the point of salvation in his life. However, God is here at Bethel reiterating his covenant with Abraham, which he illustrated with a change in Abraham’s and Sarah’s names, and in changing Jacob’s name, he is giving him the same sign of the promise to come in the new name of Israel.

Of course, there are also several names that were “changed” in the New Testament, and having explored the Old Testament record, we will find it quite easy to understand those name changes as well. Peter, James, and John all had names added to them by Christ. Here are some verses where the additions are mentioned.

Mark 3:16 – And Simon he surnamed Peter;
17 And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder:

To give someone a surname is far different than actually changing their name. A surname is an addition to your name, whereas a name change is a replacement of your name.

Looking into the name addition of Peter, one glaring fact springs out at us. See if you can tell what it is by looking at the following verses.

John 1:40 – One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.
John 6:8 – One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto him,
Acts 10:18 – And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.

It seems that after Simon’s name change to Peter, he still was called Simon! Now if the name change was an indication of salvation, would he not have ceased to be called Simon? If the name of Simon denoted his unregenerate state, and Peter his regenerated state, only one of the names could be used, for you cannot be unregenerate and regenerated at the same time! After all, Abraham was not called Abram after his name change. And what of James and John? Their names were added to as well, but their new name of Boanerges is never used! Although this may or may not be the case, some say that the name Boanerges was given to James and John on account of their “fervid and impetuous temper”, and quote the following verse to illustrate it.

Luke 9:54 – And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?

Looking at the name changes of Abraham and Sarah gives us our best clue for the new surnames for Peter, James, and John. Note the emphasis in the following verses.

Romans 4:16 – Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,
I Peter 3:6 – Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.

Christians are called the children of Abraham, and Christian women are called the daughters of Sarah. These are New Testament truths, because they were the beginners of not only the Jewish nation, but in a sense, of the Christian realm as well. And who were the chief leaders of the Church of Christ, which the gates of hell could not prevail against?

Galatians 2:9 – And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

Of course, it was the apostles Peter, James, and John whose names Jesus added to, not to denote their salvation, but rather to emphasize their new status as the chief leaders of a new dispensation.

The name of Peter especially makes clear his new status as a leader. He was known as Simon, which was a form of the name Simeon, one of the twelve sons of Jacob. Christ gave him the name of Peter, which denotes a rock or stone, and shows us the steadfast character which he would in a future time assume as the leader of the church.

John 1:42 – And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.

In examining the text where Jesus makes the name addition, we see no signs of an unregenerate man realizing his lost condition, repenting, and becoming born again. There is no evidence that this was the time of Peter’s salvation experience. And what of the “Sons of Thunder”? I believe that this name is given them because their voices will demand to be heard. They have a message, and it must be proclaimed far and wide, not as the scribes, but as their Lord, with authority and power. What an appropriate analogy to thunder. Children of the gospel.

The last person that we will look into is one that didn’t have his name changed at all, although many assume that he did, and that is the apostle Paul. We see that before his conversion he is called Saul. Now King Saul, the first king of Israel, was a Benjamite.

Acts 13:21 – And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years.

We find also that he was the tallest of the Israelites.

I Samuel 9:2 – And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people.

The apostle Paul was also a Benjamite, and he was the son of as Pharisee.

Philippians 3:5 – Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;

When it came time to name their new baby boy, the parents of Paul chose the name of the greatest Benjamite they could find, that of King Saul. Although King Saul became an unrighteous and wicked man as he grew older, he started out well, and the memory of him was still revered by the people of the tribe of Benjamin. We know also that the apostle Paul was a Roman citizen. Only if the parents of a child were Roman citizens, could the child be born into this condition.

Acts 22:28 – And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.
Acts 22:25 – And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?

Therefore, when Paul was born, his parents gave him the name “Saul” to show his Hebrew birth and tribal affiliation. They also gave him the name “Paul” to show his Roman birth and heritage. It is an interesting point to note that while Saul was the tallest man in Israel, the name Paul actually is the Latin word for “small”. Of course, Latin was the language of the Romans. The possibility that Paul was a short person is found in II Corinthians 10:1.

II Corinthians 10:1 – Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you:

The Strong’s concordance has as one of the definitions for the word “base” as “not rising far from the ground”. We find that Paul is still called Saul by God several years after his conversion on the road to Damascus. Saul continued to use his Hebrew name because his life was centered around the Christian church, which was filled with Jewish believers. Again, it is the Holy Spirit that expressly called Paul “Saul” in this verse. This fact certainly completely disconnects the name Paul from any theory that it is connected to Paul’s salvation.

Acts 13:2 – As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

The first instance of his name “Paul” being used is when Paul was on the very first leg of his first missionary journey to the Gentiles. Some commentators have said that many Jews had Gentile names, as well as Jewish names, and that they used their Gentile names when they were among Gentiles.

Acts 13:9 – Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him,

In the case of Paul, he began to be known by his Gentile name, at least as far as the scriptural references to his name are concerned, at the very time that he began to become the missionary to the Gentiles. Thus, the scriptural pattern of a new beginning (not a new salvation) is being marked by a change of name once more. Even though he had received his “new” name at birth, Paul was the missionary to the Gentiles, and here at the very onset of that ministry, God places the name Paul in the scriptures.

One last question to be addressed is if a name change denotes salvation, does the lack of a name change denote a lost condition? The vast majority of believers never had their name changed or added to, and it said nothing of their eternal destiny. Consistency is lacking in the belief that a name change denotes a salvation experience.

Finally, this is certainly not a subject which is packed with far reaching consequences. It is just a small matter, and yet, why not get it right? Some things will never be understood in this life and we can leave those with God. Other things require very little effort to see correctly, and this is one of those things.