And God said unto Moses, Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”
—Exodus 3:14
If you’ve never heard the phrase Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh (אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה), don’t worry, most people haven’t. But you’ve probably heard its translation: “I AM THAT I AM,” or more precisely: “I Cause Because I Exist.” This mysterious name of God was revealed to Moses at the burning bush. And like the bush, the name burns without being consumed, alive with meaning, glowing with mystery.
In Kabbalah names are never just names. They are portals into divine truth. They contain power, identity, and even maps of spiritual reality. So when God says, “Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh,” He’s not just being cryptic. He’s giving Moses, and all of us, a living revelation of how God is and how we can be. By learning the Hebrew names of God, we open our understanding of who God is by exploring the deep, rich tapestry expressed in the language. This is especially clear in Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh.
A Name Made of Movement
“Ahyeh” (I Exist, I Become, I Cause, or I Will Be): This is God speaking in the first person, in the future tense. Not “I Am” like a rock, but “I Will Be,” like a river, like fire, like breath. This tells us that God is a Being completely true or self-evident. God is not frozen in perfection, but alive in eternal progression. In other words God is always eternally and forever moving forward existing and creating. And because we are made in God’s image, so are we.
“Asher” (That, Who, Which, or Because) This little word is like a mirror, it connects the two “I Wills.” It’s the hinge in the divine doorway. In Hebrew, “Asher” can mean “That” as in: I am that I am, “Who” as in: I am the One who causes, or “Because” as in: I am because I will be or I will be because I am. Mormon Kabbalah embraces this ambiguity. Why? Because it means you get to enter the name. It means God is more than merely a noun. God is also a verb, an action and an invitation.
Put these all together:
- “I will be what I will be.”
- “I am the One who becomes.”
- “I am becoming… and so are you.”
- “I am the One Who Creates…” “I am The Creator”
In the Tree of Life
In Kabbalistic diagrams, “Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh” is often placed at the top of the Tree of Life, Keter, the Crown, the unknowable Divine Will. It also reaches downward into Tif’eret (Beauty), where, in Mormon Kabbalah, Christ stands as the expression of Divine Becoming. Then further into Malkhut (Kingdom), where the Shekinah, the Divine Presence in exile, echoes the name as she journeys back to Oneness. Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh becomes a call from the Heavens to the Earth: “I Am… and I am becoming… with you.”
You Become Because You Are
If you take just one thing away from what you are learning today, let it be this: you are not static. You are becoming. And God is with you in that becoming. Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh is a mirror and a mantra. It reminds us that we are more than what we were yesterday. God does not require you to be finished, just faithful in your unfolding. Even the Divine is in motion: creating, healing, revealing.
When Moses saw the burning bush, he saw a symbol of God’s eternal presence, and also of His (and your) eternal progression. The fire that burns but is not consumed, a being that is Becoming, and love that is always moving forward. In Mormon Kabbalah, Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh is not just what God said, it is what God is, and what you are invited to become. So next time you feel stuck, uncertain, or unworthy whisper: “Ahyeh Asher Ahyeh,” and remember that you are not finished. You are divine in progress.
