In Exodus 15, the people of Israel had left Egypt and had just finished singing the praises of God in thanksgiving, when they came to the realization that there was no water to drink and the only water they found in the wilderness was bitter. Moses cried out to God and this was God’s response:
…”and the LORD showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet. There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.” (Exodus 15:25-26)
Jehovah Rapha was the Name God called Himself by in speaking to His people. Jehovah was a name that God was referred by ever since Genesis 2, when God created man and woman, and Jehovah is a proper noun that means, “the existing One”. The people of Israel had called God by this Name for generations, but now God included a verb which describes a characteristic of Himself, “rapha” which means – to mend, cure, heal, physician, repair, make whole.
Isn’t that beautiful?
Jehovah Rapha – the existing One who is our healer, Who mends and repairs us from our broken state as our physician, and makes us whole again by the cure – Himself.
Ultimately, we know that in order to heal us, He had to Himself be broken, His body shredded as He hung on the cross for our sins to make us whole and reconciled to Him. So although this was a name of God used way back in Exodus, it still pointed to the work on the cross that would come thousands of years later. It always points to Jesus.
Other instances in which we see literal physical healing was through the prophets in the Old Testament and by Jesus Himself and later through His disciples, as read about in the New Testament.
Elijah – healed the widow’s son (1 Kings 17)
Elisha – healed the Naaman, the leper (2 Kings 5)
Jesus – healed the blind, sick, lame, leper, etc. (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John)
Disciples – healing in the early church (Acts)
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, (Psalm 103:2-4)
Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise. (Jeremiah 17:14)
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19)
As you may already know, I have chronic illnesses that doctors label as incurable. But that doesn’t stop me from daily and persistently asking Jehovah Rapha, my Healer, to heal me. He is able, so I ask that He be willing. Over the years, my perspective has shifted on this, because I used to long for healing with every fabric of myself, but now I am satisfied in whatever state He wills me to be in, whether that be functioning quite literally solely by His sufficient grace or functioning still by His grace but in a healed and healthy body. He is good regardless of what He chooses to do, and I’d rather reap the great gain that comes from choosing godliness with contentment, trusting in His sovereignty. (1 Timothy 6:6)
God has healed some of my symptoms that I was told were incurable. I used to be intermittently in a wheelchair and I haven’t been in my wheelchair for a year and half now. But before that miraculous healing, I wrote a song on this Name of God and it ended up coming from that place of resolve, that whether He heals all of my physical afflictions on this side or the next side of eternity, He is good and I trust Him. I just want to bring Him glory, whether sick or healthy because my time here is fading fast regardless. Our lives are but “a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes” (James 4:14) and I don’t want to waste the little time I have left, however long that may be_._
Are you facing any physical, mental, or emotional battles today? How long have you been suffering? How do you feel? These things matter to your Jehovah Rapha, even if you’re not healed. God knows your heart and inner most thoughts and you matter to Him! Cry out to Him, in your heart, aloud, however you want to, but talk to Him because He is near to your broken heart and regardless of any physical healing, He WILL heal your heart and reconcile you to Himself when you come to Him. And know, my dear fellow follower of Christ, that the afflictions you now face are indeed light and “preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)
Don’t lose heart.
Trust God in His sovereign will and way.
Praise God, for He is good and His steadfast love endures forever!
This is the song I wrote, and I pray that it edifies you, uplifts you, and encourages you to praise our Jehovah Rapha regardless of what afflictions you may or may not be facing today!