The name El Elyôn first appears in Genesis 14, when Abraham meets a man called Melchizedek, a priest of the most high God. He blesses Abraham in the name of El Elyon. Later, in the New Testament, the writer to the Hebrews makes much of the parallel that Jesus is our great high priest, a priest like Melchizedek, who introduces us to God most high.
The name appears again and again in the psalms, for example in Psalm 97: 9 - For you, Lord, are high (Elyon) above all the earth; you are exalted above all gods.
The psalmists sing praise to El Elyon, they fulfil vows to El Elyon, they take refuge in El Elyon, and sadly, they also confess how they have sinned against El Elyon.
When describing the fall of Lucifer (Satan) Isaiah says (Is 14: 14) that Lucifer's sin was to try to exalt himself as high as he could, so that he would be equal to El Elyon, the most high God.
It was probably no surprise to the Israelites when God told them that His ways of thinking and acting were high above their thoughts and actions. (Is 55: 8) They had had centuries of understanding that their God, Yahweh, was the most high God.
New Testament believers recognised that Jesus was this most high God, come to live among them as a human being. Peter preached in Acts 2: 33 that the risen Jesus had been exalted to the most high place, at the right hand of God. Paul told the Philippians that God had raised Jesus to the place of highest honour and given Him a name that is above all other names. (Phil 2: 9) The writer to the Hebrews also explained that Jesus had been given the highest place of honour in heaven. (Heb 7: 26)
So the question for each one of us who know God personally is, will we give Him the highest place in our lives or will other things be of much greater importance to us? He is already God Most High - among the nations, among the "gods," among the heavens - but how high a place, how high a priority will I give Him in my own life?
