Librarian's Lobby
by Daniel D. Stuhlman
March 2004
Biblical Names of God
Many Biblical and modern personal names contain the name of God by the use of two or more letters from one of the Hebrew names of God. This suggests that humans, created in the image of God, attempt to put a bit of God in the newborn. The Hebrew names for God do not always translate precisely into English partly because the name of God in Hebrew is closely connected with the religion, history, and nationality of the Jewish people and partly because of changes in use of language. In English expressions such as, “Oh God!”, “My God!” and “God be with you,” the syntactical concept is the representation of the personal name. We are addressing God directly by using the word G – O – D . In Hebrew both from a theological and linguistic point of view the each name for God addresses an attribute or aspect of God. The phrase, “ה' הוא אלה-ים “ (Y is God) is meaningless in modern English. ‘Elohim is the “office of divinity.” An analogous express in English is, “Jack Goldberg is the rabbi.” You may still call, “rabbi” and Jack Goldberg will answer, but “rabbi” is the name of the office, not the person. In the human world, another person may occupy the office of rabbi. In the divine world, Y always has been and always will be God. The divinity and personal aspects of God’s names are integral to understanding the history of human and divine names.
This article is concerned with names of God that set precedence for Hebrew names. Those names are YHVH, ‘el, or ‘elohim [י-ה-ו-ה, אל, אלה-ים ] Names describing qualities such as “redeemer, Lord of hosts, and Man of War” are not part of this study.
Hebrew personal names including, the name of God are more than mere distinguishing titles. The names used for God represent the conception of the Divine nature or character or the relation of God to the people. The name represents the Deity as He is known to worshipers and stands for all attributes which are revealed to them through His activity. A new manifestation of His interest or care may give rise to a new name. An old name may acquire a new connotation or significance through new experiences of sacred relationships. Names for people represent qualities and attributes of that person.
The poetic and mythological texts which came to light in the excavations of Ras Shamra-Ugarit
in the years 1930, 1931, and 1933 refer to the Canaanite pantheon. Baal
was the god of fertility.
[1]
‘El was the head of the pantheon and recognized as the god of all Canaanite peoples. Yamm was the master of the sea.
We see from a corpus of over one hundred inscriptions with the Yod – Heh [יה
] or other forms of the tetragrammaton the scribes wrote the letters in an archaic script.
Since most of the inscriptions of these ancient dwellers were religious, their language was
viewed as a carrier of sacred knowledge and such a language has a conservative preference
for archaic forms. That is, God's name should be written in the script used by Moses. When
explaining God’s names it is difficult to separate the theological from the linguistic, grammatical,
or sociological aspects. The tetragrammaton or
שם הויה
in Hebrew represents the personal name of God. The four letters
י-ה-ו-ה
, represent the four letter Eliezer Berkovits[3] says
that the Hebrew words associated with God are difficult to translate. In his Man and God he lets the Hebrew
stand as an appreciation of the original whenever possible. When the limitations language did not allow
that he uses a “Y” to present the four
letters of God’s name when writing about the concept or philosophy of God and YHVH when dealing with the uniqueness
and personal closeness to God. He does not put the letters in bold or italics. This method works
for a book of theology, but is not satisfactory for a work dealing with linguistics and
orthography. I will use the letters in bold face when dealing with the letters or orthography
of God’s name “Y” in plain type face if writing about any other aspect of the personal nature
of God. There is a separation of the name of God from God's attributes. When
Moses is at the burning bush in chapter 3 of Exodus talking directly to God, he
is skeptical. Y first identifies himself with history,“the God of your father,
the God of Abraham …”[4] Moses was afraid but still wanted a better
way of referring to Y. Moses said that the Israelites would not believe he was
sent by God without a name. God says to Moses that His name is: Eheyeh-Asher-Eheyeh.
[5]
Moses is then commanded to tell the Children of Israel Y the God of their
fathers … has sent him and “This shall be My name forever.”[6]
God is telling Moses and the Children of Israel his personal name. What does it mean to be able to call God by His name? Berkovits says that
this and other phrases referring to God are mysterious.“Y is a man of war, Y is His name
[7]”
Berkovits suggests that Y is a man of war because Y is his name and Y is equated with war.
This contradicts narrow interpretations of God’s name. In some places “the name, Y” or “Your name” means giving glory or reputation. Psalm 8:2
and 10 says : “How majestic is Your name throughout the earth. “ If the universe is the creation
of God and Man is the image of God, it is logical that parents would want a piece of God’s
name in their children to always remind them of the glory of God. Another reason to use a form of
God’s name in naming your child is that the spoken name is equivalent to having the divine
presence, power, or glory in your family all the time. Since God’s name excites emotions of love,
joy, and praise (Ps. Elohim
Elohim (אלהי
ם) is a plural form
though commonly accompanied with a singular verb or adjective. This is, most
probably, to be explained as a majestic or royal plural. Compare to the similar
use of plurals of "ba'al" (master) and "adon"
(lord). The singular, Eloah (אלוה
), is comparatively rare, occurring only in
poetry and late prose (in Job, 41 times).
The word El (אל)
appears in Assyrian (ilu), Ugaritic and Phoenician, as well as in Hebrew, as an
ordinary name of God. It is found also in Aramaic, Arabic, and Ethiopic, as
also in Hebrew, as an element in compound proper names. It is used in both the
singular and plural, both for other gods and for the God of Israel. As a name
of God, however, it is used chiefly in poetry and prophetic discourse, rarely
in prose, and then usually with some epithet attached, as "a jealous
God." Other examples of its use with some attribute or epithet are: El
'Elyon (אל
עליון "most high God"), El Shaddai ( אל
שדי"God
Almighty"), El 'Olam (אל עולם "everlasting God"), El hai
(אל
חי "living
God"), El Elohe Israel (אל אלוה
ישראל "God, the God of The derivation of this name from the Hebrew root אול, "to be strong," is extremely doubtful since a
similar root has been explained from the Arabic as meaning "to be in
front," "to be foremost," "to lead," "to
rule," which would give the meaning "leader,"
"lord." The initial vowel in
‘El was originally short, as seen in such proper names as Elkanah, Elihu, and
in the Assyrian "ilu," is strong evidence against this derivation.
Because of the connection to the Canaanite god, ‘el I speculate the meaning is
connected to the concept of “strong.” However, it is necessary to admit that
the root, original source, and meaning is not known with certainty.
In the pre-Israelite Eliyahu confronts all the people and says: "If Y is God, how long will you keep hopping
between two opinions. If Y is God, follow him!" Why do we need to know Y is 'El? (Kings 18: 21)
[9]
This kind of translation is misleading. the reader to a meaning for Even using the English
word, "God" is difficult in this discussion. Relying on the English translation the reader
gets the idea that the people are wondering if Y is God. This notion is not in the Hebrew text.
After the Exodus and revelation at Sinai the people knew that Y is the one and only God.
"ha-elohim" has another kind of meaning here. The answer is in the formulation of Eliyahu's
question, "If Y is God, follow him!" "Ha-Elohim" is the one to follow. This parallels the
Canaanite god, 'El who is the leader. The god who leads is the one we follow. Eliyahu tells
the prophets of Baal in verse 24 "You will then invoke your god by name, and I will invoke Y
by name. Let us agree the god who responds with fire is the God." The names God in the Tanakh in both two streams are important for understanding names in
later Hebrew literature and society. Names that include two or more letters of YHVH
seem to be part of a parental wish to include a bit of God in the child. Names that contain
'El give the message, parents want the child to take the attribute and go toward Godliness.
In our language and culture we are much more reserved in our use of God's name than in Biblical
times. We use the name in prayers, blessing and proper names, but not in casual conversation.
Some names such as Daniel and Michael are very common, while most Biblical names are no
longer used.
[1] See Judges [2] See the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:7. While many explain this commandment means not
use God’s name falsely in an oath; others say it means never to use God’s name
in way not connected to a higher purpose. In the Talmud Pesahim 50a it is
stated that in the world to come the tetragrammaton and its pronunciation will
be one.לא
כעולם הזה
העולם הבא
העולם הזה
נכתב ניו"ד ה"י
ונקרא באל"ף
דל"ת אבל
לעולם הבא
כולו אחד ...
[3] In Man and God pages 9, 11-21.
[4] Verse 6. אנכי אלהי
אביך, אלהי
אברהם ...
[5] The JPS English translation leaves these words
untranslated in the main text. A
footnote adds that the usual translation is either “I am who I am,” “I am that
I am,”or I will be what I will be.” The YHVH
is associated with the root היה
meaning “to be.” An archaic form of the root is הוה probably meaning “to blow” or
“to breathe.”
[6] זה
שמי לעלם וזה
זכרי לדר דר 3:15.
[7] Exodus 15:3 איש מלחמה י שמו [8] This translation is temporary. The following paragraphs explain the whole
meaning and the process for figuring out that meaning.
[9] ... עד-מתי אתם
פסחים על-שתי
הסעפים
אם-י-ה-ו-ה האלהים