Ethics of our Fathers (3:3) praises those that talk about Torah as it says, "two who sit and exchange words of Torah, the Divine Presence rests among them". It then quotes the prophet Malachi (3:16), "Then the G‑d-fearing conversed with one another, and G‑d listened and heard; and it was inscribed before Him in a book of remembrance for those who fear G‑d and give thought to His name". The idea of thinking about G-d's name (וּלְחֹשְׁבֵי שְׁמוֹ) is a major part of the praise. In this mishna, though, Torah is considered an expression of G-d's name. However the Ibn Ezra in his comment on the verse seems to take the word name literally, as he explains, "these are the wise of heart, those who know the secrets of the glorious and terrific name (השם הנכבד והנורא)". Similarly Psalm 69:37 states that those that love His name will dwell in Judea and Mount Zion. Likewise the Metzudat David comments, "those that love the name of the Omnipresent, may He be blessed, they will dwell there".
The word name has several definitions. A common usage is the term by which a person or object is identified. It often will be descriptive. A name can also be a title. More figuratively it can refer to reputation, renown or fame.
The holy One, blessed be He, has many names. Some of the descriptive ones are Merciful one (רחמן), Mighty one (גבור), Omnipresent (מקום), and king (מלך). These names are only considered sacred when they refer to G-d. There are ten names that are always considered holy and they also also basically have meanings. A frequently used one is אֱ-לֹ-הִ-י-ם which means powers. The idea is that God is all powerful. The use of the plural comes to emphasize that He has many powers and use of the plural is a respectful way of referring to royalty. It does cause confusion because it refers to only one God. However another name that is forbidden to be erased is אֱ-ל-וֹ-הַ which is power in the singular. It is a variant of אֵ-ל which also is a singular term for power, but it refers more to a legal or moral right as opposed to supernatural abilities.
The most holy and the quintessential name is יְ-הֹ-וָ-ה. In biblical times it was pronounced the way it is written. The problem was that it was not treated with proper respect. Consequently its use was only permitted in the Temple and later not permitted at all. When it would appear in the Chumash and liturgy the sacred name אֲ-דֹ-נָ-י was used instead. It literally means my Lords using the royal plural. Lord also is a synonym for G-d. It basically means "boss", however it was imbued with respect in days long ago.
The unpronounceable name of G-d is a form of the word "to be" (לִהְיוֹת). A popular homily is that it is a combination of היה, הוה, יהיה meaning past, present, and future. This captures the timelessness of God. The pure meaning of the word הֹוֶה is "be". In Hebrew variations of grammatical forms are used to convey an idea. Here the יוד prefix kind of puts it in the future tense and the passive form.
The idea conveyed by the essential name is that G-d is absolute existence and the source of all existence. The future tense implies that just like God presently and in the past has given the world existence, He will continue to do so in the future. This is the idea of faith. There is also the idea of kindness because the nature of a creator is to love his creation, particularly if it is an extension of himself. Also there is the idea that simply pondering the name of God will bring a person wisdom and good.
The book of Isaiah spends many chapters discussing the end of today's pre-messianic era. It starts by saying the people of Israel have done horrible things in connection to their shirking of religion. Because of this they will be punished with a cataclysmic war. Their enemies will not be righteous, rather they will attack Israel because they are the standard bearers of religion. Consequently they too will suffer harsh punishment. Those that believe and repent will survive and sing a song of thanksgiving. Part of it says that their soul has longed for G-d's name (see Isaiah 26:8). The idea is that they will be able to refer to G-d by his true name and not be required to use surrogates. This is the simple understanding of the quote from Zechariah 14:9 said at the end of the prayer Aleinu (עלינו), "And Y-H-V-H shall be King over all the earth; on that day shall the Y-H-V-H be one, and His name one".
לע"נ האמא מלכה בת חיים ז"ל נלב"ע טז ניסן תשנ"ח
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