Where is your identity?

The kings of the ancient world desired to label the things that were theirs. Bricks were stamped with their names, their images were placed in conquered territories, and their treaties were inscribed and displayed prominently. A vassal was a showpiece of the suzerain’s grandeur. This labeling was a way to place one’s name on something, just as Yahweh placed his name on Israel. For a suzerain to extend his name to a vassal was construed as an act of favor. Both in international treaties and in the Torah, this was described as the suzerain’s love for his vassal. It has long been established that this love was not sentimental, emotional, or psychological. Instead, it showed that the suzerain had expressed gracious preference for the vassal by extending his identity to this vassal.—Walton and Walton, The Lost World of the Torah, 49