Who was RENAMED by God?
Why did God give names to a prostitute's children?

Q. Who was NAMED or RENAMED directly by God or Jesus?

A. First, there are several people in the Bible who have been renamed by others for a variety of reasons. For example, as captives in Babylon, Daniel and his three friends were renamed when they were selected to serve the king:

"Now from among those of the sons of Judah (who were taken captive) were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.  To them the chief of the eunuchs (who was instructed by King Nebuchadnezzar to find young men to serve in his palace) gave names:  he gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar;  to Hananiah (he renamed) Shadrach;  to Mishael (he renamed) Meshach;  and to Azariah (he renamed) Abed-Nego." (Daniel 1:6-7, NKJV throughout)

The Bible does mention a few individuals who were either RENAMED, or even initially named, by God or Jesus.

God changed Abram's name to Abraham:

"When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, 'I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless. And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.'  Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying:  'As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.  No longer shall your name be called ABRAM, but your name shall be ABRAHAM;  for I have made you a father of many nations.' " (Genesis 17:1-5, NKJV throughout unless stated)

Sarai, Abram's wife, also got her name changed:

"Then God said to Abraham, 'As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name SARAI, but SARAH shall be her name.  And I will bless her and also give you a son by her;  then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations;  kings of peoples shall be from her.' " (Genesis 17:15-16)

"Then Jacob was left alone;  and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day.  Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip;  and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him.  And He (the Man) said, 'Let Me go, for the day breaks.'  But he (Jacob) said, 'I will not let You go unless You bless me!'  So He (the Man) said to him, 'What is your name?'  He said, 'Jacob.'

"And He (the Man) said, 'Your name shall no longer be called JACOB, but ISRAEL;  for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.' " (Genesis 32:24-28)

Did God give names to children born of a PROSTITUTE?

One rather unique example of God directly naming humans was when He commanded the prophet Hosea to marry a known WHORE as a sign of Israel's sin.

"The word of the Lord that came to Hosea the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.  When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea:  'Go, take yourself a WIFE OF HARLOTRY and CHILDREN OF HARLOTRY, for the land has committed great harlotry by departing from the Lord.' " (Hosea 1:1-2)

The New Living Translation, second edition, renders Hosea 1:2 a little clearer:

"When the LORD first began speaking to Israel through Hosea, he said to him, 'Go and marry a PROSTITUTE, so that some of her children will be conceived in PROSTITUTION . . .' " (Hosea 1:2, NLT)

As children were born to Hosea's "wife of harlotry" God gave each of them names as a testament against the house of Israel (northern ten tribes):

"So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.  Then the Lord said to him:  'Call his name JEZREEL, for in a little while I will avenge the bloodshed of Jezreel on the house of Jehu . . .'

"And she (Hosea's wife) conceived again and bore a daughter.  Then God said to him: 'Call her name LO-RUHAMAH, for I will no longer have mercy on the house of Israel . . .'

"Now when she (Hosea's wife) had weaned Lo-Ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. Then God said:  'Call his name LO-AMMI, for you are not My people, and I will not be your God . . .' " (Hosea 1:3-4, 6, 8-9)

Who in the New Testament got RENAMED?

Jesus gave Simon Peter a new name: "One of the two who heard John (the Baptist) speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ).  And he brought him to Jesus.  Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, 'You are SIMON the son of Jonah.  You shall be called CEPHAS' (which is translated, A Stone)." (John 1:40-42) Jesus also gave two brothers one name: "And He (Jesus) went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted.  And they came to Him.  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons:  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter;  James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name BOANERGES, that is, 'Sons of Thunder' . . ." (Mark 3:13-17)

Painting of the Apostle Paul by Rembrandt (1635 A.D.)

When did SAUL become PAUL?

The fourth person renamed in the New Testament was Saul, who got renamed to Paul. The Bible does not state if God directly renamed Saul or not. We do know, however, that he was called Paul sometime after his baptism. Acts 13:9 is the last time Saul is mentioned in the New Testament and the first place where Saul is called Paul:

"Now in the church that was at Antioch there were certain prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.  As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' . . .

"Now when they had gone through the island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew whose name was Bar-Jesus, who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man.  This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.  But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.

"Then Saul, WHO ALSO IS CALLED PAUL, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, 'O full of all deceit and all fraud, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease perverting the straight ways of the Lord? . . .' " (Acts 13:1-2, 6-10)

The name Saul means "demanded" or "death." The name Paul means "small" or "little." (Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary).