Yahweh Shammah is
a compound name of God meaning
“The LORD Is There”
or
“The LORD Is Present.”
It is the final name of God
revealed in the Old Testament
and appears as
the closing words of the book of Ezekiel.
This name declares the promise of
God’s permanent, abiding presence
with His people.
The name combines Yahweh, the personal covenant name of God, with shammah, an adverb meaning “there” or “in that place.” Thus Yahweh Shammah means “The LORD is there.”
It emphasizes God’s real, dwelling presence — not a distant or occasional nearness, but the Lord Himself being present with His people in the place He has chosen.
The name appears in the very last verse of Ezekiel:
“The circumference of the city shall be 18,000 cubits. And the name of the city from that time on shall be, The Lord Is There [Yahweh Shammah].” (Ezekiel 48:35)
This statement comes at the end of Ezekiel’s extended vision of a restored temple, a reordered priesthood, a renewed land, and a rebuilt city (Ezekiel 40–48). Earlier in the book, Ezekiel had watched the glory of the Lord depart from the temple because of the people’s sin (Ezekiel 10–11). The closing vision reverses that tragedy. God promises to return and dwell in the midst of His people forever. The city is given a new name that captures this great hope: the Lord Himself will be there.
Yahweh Shammah addresses one of the deepest longings of the human heart and one of the greatest themes of Scripture: the presence of God. From the garden of Eden, to the tabernacle, to the temple, to the incarnation, to the indwelling Spirit, and finally to the new heaven and new earth, the story of the Bible moves toward God dwelling with His people.
This name assures God’s people that exile, judgment, and distance are not the final word. The Lord who once departed will return and remain.
The promise of Yahweh Shammah finds rich fulfillment in the New Testament:
What Ezekiel saw in vision becomes reality in Christ and will be consummated in the new creation.
Yahweh Shammah is the Lord who is there. Spoken as the final word of Ezekiel after visions of judgment and departure, this name promises that God’s presence will one day dwell permanently with His people. In Jesus Christ and by the Holy Spirit that presence has already begun, and it will be made complete when God makes all things new.