Did you know that Jesus and Joshua have the same name? It’s true! The name “Jesus” is actually the English form of the Greek name Iesous, which is the Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name Yeshua or “Joshua.” So, Jesus shares a name with the man who led Israel into the Promised Land. This name turns out to tell us something very significant about who Jesus is.
If you look in Matthew 1:18-23, you will find the story of an angel commanding Joseph, the father of our Lord, to name his son, “Jesus” (v. 21). Not only does the angel tell Joseph what to name the child, but he also tells him why. He says, “…for He will save His people from their sins.” It is obvious, then, that this name has something to say about salvation.
The name “Jesus” or “Joshua” has two parts to it. In Hebrew, “Ye” refers to “Yahweh” and “shua” means “salvation.” So, the name shared by the son of Nun and the Lord means “Jehovah is salvation.” For Joshua, this would have been a way of praising God in the naming of a child. It is a recognition that salvation only comes from God. As the prophet Isaiah states, “I, even I, am the Lord, and besides Me there is no savior” (Isa. 43:11). However, for Jesus, this name has even more meaning.
Looking back at Matthew 1, it is told to us that the naming of Jesus fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 7:14. Matthew quotes, “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel…” (v. 23). Now, how is this a fulfillment of this prophecy? Jesus is not the same name as Immanuel. Where is the connection? Matthew then explains the meaning of Immanuel, saying, “…which is translated, ‘God with us.’” Do you see the connection yet?
What we learn from this passage is that Jesus’ name is a declaration of the fact that Jesus is God. While the name is simply a praise of Jehovah for Joshua, it is a statement of Jesus’ oneness with the Father. We read in Isaiah 43:11 that there is no Savior besides Yahweh. But the reason the angel told Joseph to name his son “Jesus” was because He would save His people for their sins. In the same chapter of Isaiah, God says, “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake…” (v. 25). These verses make it clear that the only way Jesus would be able save His people from their sins is if He is, in fact, Immanuel, “God with us.”
There are many religious groups today who deny the deity of Jesus Christ (ex: Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, etc.). But, if they understood the significance of the name of Jesus, they would repent and turn to the one true Lord who can save them from their sins. Jesus is Jehovah, and He will save, “For in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Col. 2:9).