In this Names of God reading plan, we are learning more about God by studying the names given to Him in Scripture. Rather than having our writers share their own reflections on these passages, we’ve instead provided research-rich content to aid in your study of each day’s featured name of God, including the background of the name(s), a brief explanation of the character of God emphasized by the name(s), and a reflection question to help you dig deeper into the text.
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Lord of Armies
Yahweh Tsebaoth, Yahweh Elohim Tsebaoth, Elohim Tsebaoth (Hebrew)
Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 1:1-11, 2 Samuel 7:22-29, Psalm 80:4-7, Amos 5:14-15, Haggai 2:6-9, Malachi 1:11-14, Luke 2:13-14
Description
The Hebrew root word tsaba, or “a gathering of people,” is frequently used in the Bible to describe armies preparing for war. When paired with the name of God in Yahweh Tsebaoth, it reveres Him as being over hosts of angelic armies who gather in His name and serve at His command. All creation is subject to the LORD of Armies. “LORD of Hosts,” “God of Armies,” and “LORD God of Armies” are versions of this name.
“LORD of Armies” most frequently appears in the Minor Prophets, especially in Malachi, where almost half of the verses in the book contain this name in some form. During the time of the prophets, the people of God were living in exile in Babylon. They faced daily reminders of the presence and power of the enemy armies keeping them in captivity. They called out to God as the LORD of Armies, whose vast angelic armies could deliver them from trouble. LORD of Armies is a name that assures us of the power of our mighty God.
Emphasis
The security, power, and strength of God in the face of His enemies
Reflection
What does this name teach me about God?
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83 thoughts on "Lord of Armies"
It shows me that God and his armies are always with me
“the unclean spirit prince of the air hoovering in our city and the whole world.”
Perfect, I love it. Hoovering.
O God of hosts, restore us
And cause Your face to shine upon us, and we will be saved. – Psalms 80:7
May this be our prayer. May we be restored by the Lord of hosts.
He is mighty to save!
I know He always has my back! He has been so good all of my days even in the tragedies! He is worthy to be praised!!
God goes before me and fight for me!!!
(Revelation 7) Prayer and share to all the 7000 remnants of the elect to pray asap for our country.
I call you Yahuah Tsevaoth, the LORD OF THE ARMIES of ISRAEL to come down now and reign over every city in USA and the whole world. I am the chosen one who has the living seal of YAH. i call your four angels standing in the four corners of the earth who holds the winds to blow to the earth, seas and trees. I am the one ascending from the west, USA and with a loud shout to seize and bind now all the unclean spirit prince of the air hoovering in our city and the whole world. Seize and bind now all these unclean spirit prince of the air. This is PEter on this rock, i will build my church. i have the keys of heaven and the gates of hell shall not prevail in USA. What i bind on earth be bound in heaven. this is what I bind now all these unclean spirit prince of the air. let this be recorded in heaven at this date, at this hour and year of the LORD. PRaise the LORD Jesuis Christ of Nazareth. Amen. ( wave your palm branches as you say this prayer and you will rock heaven adn earth.) Please share this prayer to all the elect and to warn everyone to shutoff their cellsphone as the enemy is tracking every mind, heart and soul in your cellphone., Satan knows what you desire 24/7 in this sinful world. Satan becomes all knowing and to be everywhere in our cellsphone. WARN ALL the SHEEP. GOD SPEED. AMEN.
Spiritual warfare
Christina Currano, I praying for you always. When my husband died in November I was empty and I felt so alone but after a while I remembered and believed that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. ❤️ He does not leave us or forsake us. You have been emptied out because of your past experiences and you are now in a good position to hear from God. To be filled up by God. Now is the time to really press in. Read God’s word often, meditate on His word, cry out to God, pray without ceasing. Fill your heart and your soul with God filled worship music and movies. The Lord of Hosts is with you. He goes before you. He makes your path straight. Be encouraged ❤️
Kathleen I’m not sure why the NIV reads, “Lord Almighty” instead of “Lord of Hosts” or “Lord of Armies, but I get the same feeling from the Lord Almighty as from the the Lord of Armies and the Lord of Hosts. God has the victory!! He is over all!! He is awesome and mighty!! I’m seeing Amos 5:14–15
(14 Pursue good and not evil
so that you may live,
and the Lord, the God of Armies,
will be with you
as you have claimed.
15 Hate evil and love good;
establish justice in the city gate.
Perhaps the Lord, the God of Armies, will be gracious.), as a roadmap for us to follow today so that we can have hope for a better tomorrow.
God fights for me
Whenever we may feel trapped, we can pray to The Lord of Armies who can deliver His people. There is nothing that our God cannot overcome.
I shall fear nothing that comes against me as long as the God of Armies is with me!
This devotion and study of this name of God reminds me of a few songs…here are some of the verses:
“The God of angel armies is always by my side…Yours is the victory!”
“This is how I fight my battles…it may look like I’m surrounded but I’m surrounded by You”
The battle we fight isn’t against flesh and blood. Everyday, we need to put on the armor of God and remember that the Lord of Armies has promised to be with us wherever we go.
Still today, the LORD of Armies is strong, vital, and in control! The amazing part is that I have a personal relationship with Him! I don’t have to “go thru the ranks” & hope to get close to Him…He is by side 24/7!!!
I really appreciate how you put that. That we don’t have to go through the ranks to have a personal connection with Him. It’s amazing to know that not only is He our protector going out before us but that He also fights right next to us.
I found myself thinking “I don’t hear/read this name of God much.” Then I read the suggested passages for this article (1 Samuel 1:11, 2 Samuel 7:26, etc.) and realized that my NIV Bible always translates that name into “Lord Almighty” instead of “Lord of Hosts” or “Lord of Armies”. Does anyone know why that is?
No foe or power is greater than God who is almighty and powerful to save. I am grateful for the God of Angel Armies who protects me and reminds me that no enemy can conquer or defeat me with God at my side.
Lord God of Armies says he has dominion over all. His angels are warriors meant to protect and slay the forces of the enemy. Lord God of Armies says He is to be praised over all else and it’s my job to seek Him out for my own battles. God is my refuge, my shield.
I know with confidence that I am protected. I may have many battles but I don’t have to have the pressure of being in charge of fighting. I have the Lord of Armies fighting them. I just really need to make that a practical reality and stop trying to fight my own battles with seeking him.
In light of the coming mid-term elections I see in these passages the God is fighting on our behalf- for our families our towns and our nations. He alone can fight these battles!
❤️❤️
❤️
I have to say I feel forgotten by God so often. I look with longing at my friends growing their families and look at my empty hands. My marriage fell apart and ended. Every relationship since then has not gone very far and all I ever see is my empty hands. After reading this I realize my hands are not empty. God has not forgotten me but I forgot Him. He is enough and what he has for my future will be more than I could ever ask for or imagine. I need to remember this in the waiting times.
Christina, I am so thankful that our Father has spoken to your precious heart through this study. You are never, ever forgotten. He will never leave you, nor forsake you! Praying that He continues to meet you where you are and reveal Himself to you in lovely, wonderful and mighty ways! Amen.
“You are not hidden
There’s never been a moment
You were forgotten
You are not hopeless
Though you have been broken
Your innocence stolen
I hear you whisper underneath your breath
I hear your SOS, your SOS
I will send out an army to find You
In the middle of the darkest night
It’s true, I will rescue you
There is no distance
That cannot be covered
Over and over
You’re not defenseless
I’ll be your shelter
I’ll be your armor
I hear you whisper underneath Your breath
I hear your SOS, your SOS
In the middle of the darkest night
It’s true, I will rescue you
I will never stop marching to reach you
In the middle of the hardest fight
It’s true, I will rescue you
I hear the whisper underneath Your breath
I hear you whisper, you have nothing left
I will send out an army to find You
In the middle of the darkest night
It’s true, I will rescue you
I will never stop marching to reach you
In the middle of the hardest fight
It’s true, I will rescue you”
-Rescue, Lauren Daigle
Georgie: God spoke to me this day through the words of this beautiful song you were kind enough to share with us. I feel so very blessed by this wonderful gift. Thank you!
This character of God supports Paul’s statement in Romans 8:31 “what, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us who can be against us?” We believe in a powerful God who loves and is for us: we have nothing to fear
Lauren Daigle has a song called Rescue that goes great with this passage.
The battle has already been won!
Amen!
I love knowing that an army of angels led by my Creator Commander is fighting my battles ❤️
God rules over, fights and defeats any and every foe, big or small, out there that I ask Him to help me defeat.
I love the visual picture given in Joshua 5:13-14
“ when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, ‘are you for us or for our enemies?’ ‘Neither,’ he replied, ‘but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.’ Then Joshua fell face down to the ground in reverence…”
Taking that image with me today as I think about God as the Lord Of Armies and also thinking about Joshua’s response. Joshua was Israel’s leader but his response was that of awe and respect. May my response to my Lord Of Armies be the same.
The battle belongs to God. God fights for me and alongside me. No thing or no one is stronger and more powerful than God. I have nothing to be afraid of because no weapon formed against me shall stand. God commands His angel armies to protect me and encourage me daily.
Amen.
He is mighty, all-powerful, and just. He is Lord of all, Lord of angelic armies. And like Hannah, I still wonder at times if He sees me, hears me, remembers me. And He does.
The Lord of Armies is on my side and it is my duty to assist in fighting the enemy daily! Even when we cannot see what the Lord is doing, we have to trust that He is delivering a plan much greater than we could ever imagine!
Lord, You are strong and powerful. You are good and holy and have the ability to carry our your goodness because of Your strength. I do not have to fear that You will be defeated. You are all powerful. Praise You!
He is an “awe”some God! He is EVERYTHING!
He is faithful and therefore we can trust His Word. Even when it seems like life isn’t going in the direction we think it should…even when it doesn’t seem good or even fair. He provides security, power and strength in the face of our enemies, seldom in ways that we may be aware of. I will trust in Him!
This makes me think of the Chris Tomlin song “Whom shall I fear”. Yesterday in church, we prayed for those affected by hurricane Florence. I pray that today’s devo (and this whole study) can be a reassurance and encouragement to any of you ladies who may have family or friends there or who may even have had to evacuate yourselves. In the face of both the literal and spiritual storms of this life, it is so good to know that the God of Angel armies is always by our side. Continuing to pray for you all! <3
Amen!
Important to remember (thank you SRT for the reminder) that Israel was living in exile in Babylon during the time of the prophets. Yet this is the very time that God is most referred to as “Lord of Armies.” Imagine how hard it must have been for the people of God, in captivity and oppressed by a foreign nation, to believe that their God commanded vast angelic hosts. Do you think they asked themselves “If this is so, where are they? Why don’t they come now and deliver us? Better yet, why didn’t they prevent us from being taken captive in the first place?” Doesn’t this sound like us even today? It is easy to lift our hands and praise God as the God of Angel Armies when life is good. The challenge is to believe that He is Who He says He is when we feel discouraged, defeated, in darkness, and imprisoned by our poor choices or the choices of others. Do we believe not only that He is able to deliver but that He will? That is where our faith is tested most severely. We acknowledge He has the resources, but we so often question His timing and His purpose. He has and He can but will He and when? Like the psalmist and the Israelites of old, we honestly cry out, “How long?” I’m called to believe that God has a powerful angelic army at His disposal to will as He pleases and that, whatever His decision, He is a good and loving God. A faith/trust decision for sure. Praise God! He has a sure history of faithfulness. We hold on to that.
Amen, church mouse. It is in this question that the enemy always asks, did (is) God REALLY…? It’s in this place where it is easy to question. But may my life be lived holding onto the truth that God is who he says is. No matter what my circumstances look like. This is my burning desire. To hold fast to Truth. To not waver. God IS Lord of Angel Armies. He IS a Good Father. He IS Love and Hope and He WILL cause ALL things to work together for the good of his beloveds.
“We acknowledge He has the resources, but we so often question His timing and His purpose. He has and He can but will He and when?” I was just asking Him this question during my morning prayer time. I have to keep reminding myself that, if I am certain that He is a good and loving God, the decisions He makes are also good and loving despite any appearance to the contrary.
Such a beautiful summary of today’s name, He is LORD of armies, Amen!
You put into words the way that I have felt in the really ridiculously hard times in my life. Both asking, where are you God, don’t you care? And having the faith to believe that he CAN but he doesn’t at that time for a purpose for me. It produces much more patience, perserverance, and faith in me when these times come to an end. It is like spiritual exercise.
Amen!
That there is nothing or no one more powerful than God!
Chris Tomlin’s song “Whom Shall I Fear
That is exactly what I was thinking!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=q24z4XcJxnM
God is strong and powerful
He is “The God of Angel Armies” like the song says! We are in a Spiritual battle against the enemy on a daily basis. He has prepared His army of angelic warriors to fight on our behalf! We have but to call on Him in times of Spiritual struggle. Isn’t that wonderful? He is waiting and prepared to fight for us. He fights for us and protects us when we don’t even know it!!
Sarah D., How did your Micro exam go? I am a nurse and had to take Micro and it was the worst! Jen, How is Noah doing? I am praying for Him
This name today has become a powerful security as we fight the army of Satan against the life of our daughter who we recently learned has, by her own will, entered into a life of prostitution. She is blinded by warped reasoning that is so contrary to the Word of God and we are stunned in disbelief. BUT this God I serve is greater than any army the enemy can bring. He has won the victory and in His nightly name of Yahweh Tsabaoth, I claim the victory on behalf of my daughter and any of you who are struggling with wandering children. To the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.
Praying for you and your daughter, Caralee.
Praying for you and your daughter. Praying that her eyes are opened and that she is reminded who she is, a daughter of the most high God. Praying against the lies of the enemy that are speaking in her life right now and that she be freed from that bondage.
Thank you for sharing your heart. It allows us to stand shoulder to shoulder lifting you and your daughter before our great God! As she/you come to mind I will be praying she realizes her value and “whose” she is….a daughter of the King, far more precious than she could imagine and for you to remain steadfast in praise and prayer and thru that finding peace and comfort knowing God’s working!
coming into agreement with all of these prayers and will continue to pray.
I had never put together that “host” means army. So when it says in Luke 2 the “Heavenly host” it actually means “Heavenly army” and that puts a completely different picture in my head. I’m so thankful for the powerful and warrior of a God we serve.
You are right, I had not thought about that either.
I hadn’t either – that’s so cool!
In the early 80’s a Christian music group, Harvest, had a song (that I listened to on cassette) based on Zechariah 4:6-7 that I played over and over, “Then the Angel of the Lord said to Zechariah, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel saying, “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the LORD of hosts. What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain and he will bring forth the top stone with shouts of Grace, grace…” Though not one of our readings for today, these verses are one of the many verses found in the Bible for our LORD of Hosts. I often ‘sing’ these verses in times when I am facing impossible odds and intense resistance. It is by his spirit not by my fleshy arms that my ‘mountains will be made a plain’; not by my might nor by my power, but by the Spirit of the LORD of Hosts (God’s armies). I may have to be personally involved in the work but the LORD of Hosts is the source of my strength and any deliverance, any leveling of the mountain I’m facing will only be delivered by the hand of the LORD of Hosts.
Well said, Sister … as from one who’s been there.
Reminds me of Steffany Gretzinger’s song Confidence. “I won’t win this battle with the strength of my own hands, You’re the mountain mover and only You can. I won’t build my life on sinking sand, You’re my hope forever, the Rock where I stand.”
What’s a “cassette”? :)
I love to read the post on here! To see all of the praise that is lifted to our Heavenly Father by so many. Thank you LORD for your Truth and thank you that She reads Truth! Glory to God in the Highest. He is Mighty in battle! LORD God of Armies! Yahweh Elohim Tseboath!
He is MIGHTY – he has ultimate power and dominion. Satan has nothing on my God. Because of what Christ shows us about your nature, we can trust you in this power; I can rest in you.
I love that God is so powerful – a king in charge of the largest and most powerful army and yet he uses his power to establish a kingdom of peace and light – so unlike the authority of humans throughout history and now. Praise the Lord Of Host!
I can rest in knowing that God is in control even the winds and waves obey him. He has a host of armies and he is all powerful and all knowing. Why wouldn’t I trust him?
This made me realize, how worthy God is. He is worthy of our praise. He is worthy of all our treasures in life, whether this is our money, our time, our relationships or anything else. Give it to him, because he is worthy of it. He is the king of kings and the LORD of hosts.
This name and the verses conjure up fierceness, strength, and holy protection. No one messes with my people, not even the evil one, without the Lord of Hosts allowing and controlling the situation. God’s power and might are present in this name, as well as numbers beyond our imagination! One day, the Lord of Hosts, will smother all rebellion and rule forever!
In times of despair and persecution, we have an entire army of angels on our side… what a beautiful image! The Lord of Armies is more powerful than any earthly enemy. I have security, power, and strength in Him even in times that I feel powerless and afraid. His grace and peace drive out any fear.
He is our Protector.
He is a god of action and he’s got my back!
He is POWERFUL and He is MIGHTY! I cannot forget this. I want to dwell only on His compassion, His kindness, His grace, and mercy, but He is also a powerful, mighty, and sovereign God. Nothing happens outside the realm of His control. He does not take sin lightly and neither can I. He will be glorified. His name will be great among the nations.
The other side of this is that now that I am His child this powerful and mighty God will fight for me. I just need to be still and let Him work.
“And Moses said to the people, ‘Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” Ex. 14:13-14.
This song has been going round in my head as I’ve read the passages today: https://youtu.be/R0gu0nOaFsI
It’s comforting to know we can trust in God and his power.
He is Powerful and Mighty