βWhich name of the Lord do we have to call on to be saved?β
βFor whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be savedβ (Rom. 10:13).
The Lord had many names, but Paul is quoting Joel 2:32 here, where the name βLordβ meansΒ Jehovah. In Romans 10:13, the name we βcallβ on today (1 Cor. 1:2) is βJesus Christ our Lord.β
Calling on the Lordβs name means different things in Scripture. After God stopped speaking to men directly, as He did with Adam and Cain, βthen began men to call upon the name of the Lordβ (Gen. 4:26). That means calling on His name can mean toΒ prayΒ (Zech. 13:9) and ask God for things (1 Kings 18:24,36,37; Psa. 116:4). Or it can just mean to know Him (Psa. 79:6; Jer. 10:25).
But in Joel 2:32, we know that it meansΒ to believe the gospel, for Joel predicted that whoever called on the LORDΒ would be saved. But when PeterΒ quoted Joel (Acts 2:21), he went on to say that whoever would repent and be baptized would be saved (Acts 2:38). Paul likewise makes clear that calling on the Lordβs name (Rom. 10:13) means to believe the gospel (Rom. 10:11), onlyΒ todayΒ the gospel is βthe word of faithβ that Paul preached (10:8):
βThat if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be savedβ (Rom. 10:9). source
