That word "answer" here in 1 Peter 3:15 is translated from the Greek word "apologia" from whence we get our English word "apologetics." And the word "reason" is from the Greek word "logos" which is also translated "Word" with a capitol "W" 7 times in the New Testament. In each of these 7 times it refers to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is He, and He alone, that is the "hope" in the born again believer!!!

John 1:1-4: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men."

John 1:14: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

I John 1:1-3: "That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ."

1 John 5:6-7: "This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

Revelation 19:12-16: "His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

In these 7 instants of the Lord Jesus being called "the Word" we can see that He is 1) the Creator of all things, 2) that He the source of eternal life, 3) that He took upon Himself human flesh, 4) that He bears record through the Bible, 5) that He is one with the Father and the Holy Spirit, 6) that He is coming again in judgment, and 7) that He is King of kings.

THE ALEPH / TAHV OF GENESIS 1:1

Genesis 1:1 helps us to understand the Word of John 1:1 much better. In Hebrew Genesis 1:1 reads like this, except from right to left:

1          2          3        4           5           6        7

Beresheet  barah  Eloheem  ate  hashamayim vaeht haeretz 

[In the beginning] [created] [God] [את] [the heavens] [and] [earth]

The first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet are "aleph" and "tahv" respectively.  They are to Hebrew what A and Z are to English and also correspond to the Greek "alpha" and "omega".  Together the "aleph" and "tahv" are pronounced "eight".  Rabbinic scholars call this word, "the word of creation".  In Genesis 1:1 "eight" is translated together with "Eloheem" as "God".  It is one with God.  All this helps us understand John 1:1-3 and Revelation 1:8 better.

John 1:1-3:  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  The same was in the beginning with God.  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."

In Revelation 1:8 the Lord Jesus says,  "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."

Clearly the Word who became flesh (John 1:14) is found in the very first verse of the Old Testament.  Clearly Christ, the Word, is Almighty Jehovah of the Old Testament, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Also note that the "aleph" and "tahv" is the center word in Genesis 1:1 forming an Hebrew menorah of sorts.  The Menorah of the Old Testament Tabernacle and Temple had seven lamps on it.  Three on either side pointed in toward the center servant lamp that was used to light the other 6 lamps.  This gives added meaning to John 1:4-5 and Revelation 1:12-13:

John 1:4-5:  "In him was life; and the life was the light of men.  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."

Revelation 1:12-13:  "And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks;  And in the MIDST of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man...."

JEHOVAH'S MENORAH IN THE TORAH

It is very interesting that there is a five pronged menorah found hidden in the first paragraphs of the five books of Moses.  These first five books of Moses are called the "Torah" in Hebrew.  There are specific words encoded in the opening paragraphs of these five books.  By counting every fifty letters in Genesis and Exodus the word "Torah" is spelled out.  Beginning with the first "tahv" and counting 50 letters you come to the letter "vav"; then counting another 50 letters you come to "resh"; and counting another 50 letters you come to a "hay".  This spells the word "Torah" (Law) in Hebrew.  Similarly in Numbers and Deuteronomy the word "Torah" is spelled out except it is spelled backwards beginning with the "hay", then the "resh", then the "vav", and finally the "tahv".  The letters are at 50 letter intervals in Numbers, but 49 letter intervals in Deuteronomy.  It is as if the "Torah" in Genesis and Exodus are facing inward toward Leviticus, and the Law in Numbers and Deuteronomy are facing backward to Leviticus.

In Leviticus there is a different word spelled out and at a different interval.  Counting at 8 letter intervals beginning with the second letter in verse one which is a "yod" you get:  "yod", "hay", "vav", "hay" which spells "Jehovah". [1]

Here is a graphic of it:

Torah >   Torah >   YHVH   < Torah   < Torah

GOD'S NAME AND THE NUMBER EIGHT

The sequencing of the letters that spell Jehovah in the first verse of Leviticus, and  pronunciation of the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet, "aleph" and "tahv" are both eight.

Numbers in the Bible frequently have special meanings.  For example:  1 signifies unity and primacy;  2 is for division, difference, and can mean enmity;  3 shows completeness;  4 symbolizes the world;  5 means grace;  6 is the number of man; 7 is for perfection, and 8 is the number of new beginnings, resurrection, and infinity.

In Greek as well as in Hebrew the letters of their alphabets are used for numbers as well.  In Greek when the letters of the Lord's name, Jesus (meaning Saviour), are added together you get a total of 888.  Not only so, but other names and titles of Jesus in Greek are multiples of 8.  Observe: 1) Messiah = 656 [8 x 82], 2) Lord = 800 [8 x 100], 3) Son = 880 [8 x 110], 4) Saviour = 1,408 [8 x 176], 5) Christ = 1,480 [8 x 185], 6) Emmanuel = 25,600 [8 x 3200]. [2]

CONCLUSION

Coincidences?  Of course not!  The law of probability forbids that.  These are evidences that God has built into of the Greek and Hebrew alphabets, evidences as to the fact of the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, and proving that the Bible is God's true and holy Word.

A man's name is only as good as his word.  So it is with man, so it is with God.  He magnifies His Word above all His name.

Psalm 138:2:  "I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name."

What is God's Name?  It is "Jahovah" meaning I AM (the One who is form eternity past for ever and ever).    His name is God with us (Immanuel) , it is Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.   His name is Jesus (Saviour).  Jesus Christ's Name is above every name.  Jesus is the Great I AM. He said:

"I AM the living bread which came down from heaven..."  (John 6:51)

"...I AM the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8:12)

"...Ye are from beneath; I AM from above: ye are of this world; I AM not of this world." (John 8:23)

"...if ye believe not that I AM he, ye shall die in your sins." (John 8:24)

"...Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM." (John 8:58, cf. 18:5-6)

"I AM the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved..." (John 10:9)

"...I AM come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." (John 10:10)

"I AM the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep." (John 10:10; cf. Mark 10:18)

"...I AM the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" (John 11:25-26)

God cannot die.  That's why He was "made flesh" (John 1:14).  He was born so He could die (Heb 10:5-10).  "...God was manifest in the flesh..." (1 Tim 3:16)  "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh." (Rom 8:3)  The Bible says:

Isaiah 7:14:  "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his NAME Immanuel."

Matthew 1:21:  "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."

Isaiah 9:6:  "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his NAME shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

Philippians 2:5-11:  "...Christ Jesus:  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a NAME which is above every name:  That at the NAME of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;  And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Acts 4:12:  "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other NAME under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

John 1:11-12:  "He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his NAME."


NOTES:

1. J. R. Church and Gary Stearman, The Mystery Of The Menorah, pp. 34 - 37; Prophecy Publications, P. O. Box 7000, Oklahoma City, OK 73153, 1993.

2. E. W. Bullinger, Number In Scripture, pp. 203 - 204, Kregel Publications, Grand Rapids, MI 49501, 1967.

3. Henry, John, JESUS = 888

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