The Lord, Our Healer

Right after God first redeemed Israel out of Egypt and the Israelites became His redeemed and covenant people, the first specific revelation of Himself that He gave them was that of healer. This attribute is stated in Exodus 15:26, where the Lord said to Israel:

“For I, the Lord, am your healer” (NASB)

The phrase “your healer,” in modern Hebrew, means “your doctor.” The word used in Exodus 15:26 is precisely the same word as the modern Hebrew word for doctor. It has not changed its meaning in more than three thousand years of the history of the Hebrew language. The Lord said emphatically to Israel, “I am your doctor.”

Two things that do not change are the Lord’s name and the Lord’s covenant. The Lord’s position and function as the healer of His people is united with His name and His covenant. In other words, it never changes.

Many centuries later, when Jesus came to Israel as its Savior and Redeemer, thereby fulfilling the promises of the Messiah, He again manifested God as the healer of His people. The healing ministry of Jesus did not proceed from Himself—it did not initiate with Him—but it was the expression of God’s healing nature and God’s healing covenant with His people. The foundation of God’s provision of healing and health for His people is His Word, the Scriptures.

How important it is to see that God’s answer to our need is primarily in His Word! If we ignore His Word, then we really do not have any right to expect that He will meet our needs. But if we turn to His Word and seek Him through it, we will find that in His Word, He does meet all our needs—spiritual and physical.