Jehovahnissi
Jeho'vah-nis'si (Hebrew Yehovah' Nissi נַסַּי יהוָֹה, Jehovah is my banner; Septuag. Κύριος καταφυγήμου, Vulg. Dominus exaltatio mea), the symbolical title bestowed by Moses upon the altar which he erected on the hill where his uplifted hands in prayer had caused Israel to prevail, stated in the text to have been intended as a memento of God's purpose to exterminate the Amalekites (Ex 17:15). SEE REPHIDIM. The phraseology in the original is peculiar: "For [the] hand [is] on [the] throne (כֵּס, ? read נֵס, banner) of Jah," which the A.V. glosses, "Because the Lord hath sworn," q.d. lifted up his hand. SEE OATH; SEE HAND. "The significance of the name is probably contained in the allusion to the staff which Moses held in his hand as a banner during the engagement, and the raising or lowering of which turned the fortune of battle in favor of the Israelites or their enemies. God is thus recognized in the memorial altar as the deliverer of his people, who leads them to victory, and is their rallying point in time of peril. On the figurative use of 'banner,' see Ps 60:4; Isa 11:10. SEE BANNER.
