Questions God Asks #10: What Is Your Name?

I recently came across an interview joke that suggests the moment an interviewer asks, “Can you tell us a little about yourself,” is when you realise you don’t know yourself either. 

As uncomfortable as this question may be, it is undoubtedly one of the best and fairest questions to ask. While you may not know many things, at least you can say something about yourself. 

A question about self and identity can also be a test of honesty and ego. While an inflated ego may lead many to focus on “why they qualify to be in the room,” an honest reflection will lead to a more balanced approach. 

But how can we parade our qualifications before a Holy God? Is it not safe to focus on our points of disqualification so that He can chisel and transform us? Let us see it in the interview with Jacob. 

We’ll cover:

• Context
• A Question of Identity
• Wrestling with God and the War Within
• The Turning Point of Transformation
• God Wrestles Before We Reconcile
• God is in the Business of Transformation

Context

“So He said to him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Jacob.’ And He said, ‘Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed’” (Genesis 32:27-28, NKJV).

As the moon glimmers over the river Jabbok, Jacob is alone. He has sent his family and possessions ahead. He is returning to face Esau, his estranged brother. But before reconciliation can happen outwardly, something must happen inwardly.

That night, Jacob wrestles with a Man until daybreak. The fight is fierce and mysterious. Neither yields. And then, in the silence of exhaustion and divine encounter, comes the question:

“What is your name?”

Some questions are not meant to gather information. They are intended to confront identity.

It may seem like a simple question. But in the hands of God, it becomes a mirror; one that forces Jacob to look at who he has been, and one through which God reveals who he will become.

A Question of Identity

God’s question reaches back to Jacob’s origin story.

To answer “Jacob” is to admit a long history of grasping—first his brother’s heel, then his birthright, then a blessing. Jacob has spent a lifetime acquiring by his own cunning, never fully trusting that God would give him what He promised.

Now, with night wrapped around him and all his defences stripped away, Jacob is asked to speak his name—not just syllables, but the story that name carries. There is nothing to grab or acquire by falsehood this time. He cannot pretend to be Esau. He must confess the man he has been before he can become the man God is calling him to be.

That confession opens the door to something more profound.

Wrestling with God and the War Within

What unfolds at Jabbok is not just physical combat; it’s an inward war. Jacob’s resistance is not against a stranger but against surrender.

This mirrors our own spiritual journey. We often think we are contending with circumstances, with people, even with the enemy. But in truth, we are often contending with God, not in rebellion, but in our struggle to let go and trust Him completely.

As Ellen White insightfully writes:

“The warfare against self is the greatest battle that was ever fought. The yielding of self, surrendering all to the will of God, requires a struggle; but the soul must submit to God before it can be renewed in holiness.”
—Steps to Christ, p. 43

Jacob’s new identity begins the moment he yields. His strength is not in overcoming the Man but in holding on—desperate, wounded, honest—and refusing to let go without a blessing.

That blessing comes, but not without cost.

The Turning Point of Transformation

With confession comes renaming. And with renaming comes renewal.

“Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel.”

This name marks a turning point. Israel means “God prevails” or “he who struggles with God.” It encapsulates Jacob’s journey, not only in that one night, but over a lifetime of wrestling between flesh and faith.

Jacob’s new name is a declaration of grace. He has not won the blessing by deception or strength, but by surrender. God has conquered his heart, not crushed his will. He walks away with a limp, but also with a legacy. 

And the change doesn’t end with him.

As Ellen White reflects:

“Character is power. The silent witness of a true, unselfish, godly life carries an almost irresistible influence. By revealing the character of Christ in their own life, parents may bless their children and their children’s children.”
—Education, p. 225

Jacob’s transformation will echo down the generations. His character, reshaped by divine grace, becomes the foundation of a people.

But before he can lead others, one more confrontation must take place.

God Wrestles Before We Reconcile

What makes this night all the more significant is its place in Jacob’s story.

He is on the edge of a long-dreaded reunion with Esau, the brother he wronged, the man he fears. And yet, before he can face Esau, he must face God.

He needed to unlearn his methods of trickery and caprice.

“Many who are called to work in the cause of God need to be converted. Their minds are not under the control of the Holy Spirit. They need to unlearn the lessons that they have been learning in the schools of the world.”
— Testimonies to Ministers and Gospel Workers, p. 265

This is how God works. Reconciliation with others begins with transformation in us. God often intercepts us in our journeys of fear, not to block our path, but to bless our souls.

Before the healing of relationships, God calls us to honesty. Before the mending of broken ties, He asks: “What is your name?”

It is a question that cuts through strategy, pretence, and anxiety, and brings us back to the core of who we are and who we’re becoming.

God is in the Business of Transformation

Jacob’s story reminds us: God’s questions are not meant to shame, but to transform.

He asked Adam, “Where are you?”
He asked Cain, “Where is your brother?”
He asked Abraham, “Shall I hide what I am doing?”

Now He asks Jacob: “What is your name?”

It’s not just about the past. It is about the possibility of change. And Jacob’s answer opens the door to God’s most significant work: renaming, remaking, and redeeming.

So what about you?

• What name have you been living under?
• What striving are you holding onto?
• What would it mean to speak your name before God and receive a new one?
  

There is blessing on the other side of surrender.
There is transformation on the other side of truth.
And there is a new name waiting for those who stop wrestling to win—and start wrestling to be changed.