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This particular 2013 study has been completely rewritten and expanded, but is Go to the Table of Contents to view all teachings and downloads. |
Except for "YHWH", the two most-common names/titles for God in the Biblia Hebraica (Hebrew Bible) are "Adonai", which expresses authority or the exalted position of God, and "Elohim", which expresses concepts of creative divinity. Apart from the name "YHWH", it may be argued that the titles "Adonai" and "Elohim" say more about the God of Israel than any other name. Certainly, all that the names embody deserve considerable deliberation.
Because the two words are so similar to each other and "Elohim" is sometimes used as a substitute for "Adonai", I thought it logical to study these two nouns together.
Both "Adonai" and "Elohim" Are Plural Hebrew Nouns
"Adonai" is the plural form of "Adon", meaning "my lord"; and the name "Elohim" is the masculine plural form of "Eloah".
Since "Adonai" and "Elohim" are plural nouns, some Christians have used this as a foundation on which to build the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. However, this idea finds little support among Bible scholars today. While these names are written in the plural form, they regularly employ singular verbs in Hebrew grammar and are singular in usage. Therefore, acting in usage as singular nouns with singular verbs, many Bible scholars believe instead that these names represent a plural of majesty. [More discussion on the plurality of these words below...]
"Adonai" (Hebrew: Adonay) Read as a Substitute for the Name 
and "Elohim" Sometimes Read for "Adonay"
As we learned in the previous study, the Tetragrammaton "YHWH" appears approximately 6000 times in the Hebrew Scriptures. To avoid violating the commandment "You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God [Elohim] in vain" (Exodus 20:7), the vowels of "Adonay" — "a", "o", "a" — were inserted between the letters "YHWH" to remind the reader to not pronounce the name "YHWH", but to say "Adonay" instead. In fact, the most-current English versions of the Hebrew Scriptures now use "Adonai" almost exclusively in the place of "YHWH".
Since they substituted the name "Adonay" in place of "YHWH" when reading the Scriptures, then whenever the Hebrew compound name "YHWH Adonay" appeared in the scrolls, they read it as "Adonay Elohim" ("
") to avoid the duplication of "Adonay".
And now..... several thousand years later and working only with English transliterations, we are left to sort out when "Lord" or "God" means "Adonai" and when they mean "Elohim". It would be easy to skim over this, rendering only a superficial examination of all that these two names tell us about YHWH and when/where the names have been used — as I did in the original studies I published in 2006 — but YHWH is not permitting that liberty now. He has impressed upon me His desire for me to dig deeper into these names through several Bible translations and versions I've studied, and for me to separate when "Adonai" and "Elohim" are used as originally specified and not as interpretations of other names/titles.
The Origin of the Nouns "Adonai" and "Elohim"
Adonai: The singular "adon" was used by the Phoenicians for their pagan god Tammuz and is the origin of the Greek pagan god Adonis.
The use of "eloah" in the Bible is rare, occurring primarily in poetry and late prose, mainly in Job. The word "El", however, is itself translated "God" ±250 times and frequently in circumstances which especially indicate the great power of God. For example....
lives! And blessed is my Rock [El Tzur]! And exalted is my Elohim, The Rock [El Tzur] of my deliverance." (TS98)"Elohim" is the name, or designation, of God that occurs first in Scripture in Genesis 1:1 — "In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the earth." (TS98) When God is presented interacting with His creation — especially in the Pentateuch — the name "Elohim" is used most often.
Although "Adonai" and "Elohim" are similar, the distinguishing attributes that differentiate between them is that the name "Adonai" affirms the elevated position of authority and rulership of God, whereas the name "Elohim" refers to Him as the Creator who interacts with and reveals Himself to His creation.
"Elohim" Is a Proper Name and a Designation
"Elohim" is an appellative or designation of all that the name embodies. For example, in the frequent expression, "LORD (LORD) thy God" in most English Bibles, "LORD" (or "YHWH") functions as the proper name, while "thy God"/"your God" (or "your Elohim") or "the God of" ("the Elohim of") functions as an adjective or designation defining the deity. Throughout the first two chapters of the Bible, Elohim is used most often as a proper noun/name for the Creator. After Exodus 3, however, the name begins to occur with increasing frequency as a designation. As the Sovereign Authority and Creator over all creation, the name "Elohim" denotes God as the supreme deity of a person or people.
How the Names "Adonai" and "Elohim" Are Translated in English
As "Adonai" was and continues to be substituted for the actual Name of God () in the Hebrew Scriptures, there is some confusion/disagreement among the different Bible translations as to when "LORD" (or "LORD", "GOD", or "GOD") means "" and when it means "Adonai". And.... since the name "Elohim" was substituted for "Adonai" when the compound name "YHWH Adonai" appeared in Scripture, there is added confusion as to when "Lord" or "God" means "Adonai" and when it means "Elohim". For example, we have the following transliterations, the middle column probably representing "YHWH Adonai" and the third column most likely representing "YHWH Elohim":
Bible Translation/Version |
" |
" |
American Standard Version (ASV) |
Lord Jehovah |
Jehovah God |
Darby's Translation (Darby) |
Lord Jehovah |
Jehovah Elohim |
Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) |
Adonai, God |
Adonai, God |
Contemporary English Version (CEV) |
LORD God or LORD All-Powerful |
LORD God |
English Standard Version (ESV) |
Lord GOD |
LORD God |
Good News Bible (GNB) |
Sovereign LORD |
LORD God |
King James Version (KJV) |
Lord GOD |
LORD God |
Modern King James Version (MKJV) |
Jehovah God |
Jehovah God |
New Century Version |
Lord GOD |
LORD God |
New International Version (NIV) |
Sovereign LORD |
LORD God |
New Living Translation (NLT) |
Sovereign LORD |
LORD God |
The Message (Message) |
Sovereign LORD |
GOD |
The Scriptures (TS98) |
Master |
|
World English Bible (WEB) |
Yahweh God |
Yahweh God |
Young's Literal Translation (YLT) |
GOD Master |
Jehovah God |
Adonai"
At first glance, the above can be confounding and may even appear to be contradictory. Given that the referenced Bible versions were translated by scholarly linguists either directly from Hebrew or from Latin translations, is it any wonder there is confusion among the rest of us concerning God's name(s) and titles?! I am not a scholar of Hebrew or Latin, nor do I have access to any of the ancient writings. Thus, except by the Holy Spirit's guidance, I hold out little hope of arriving at an indisputable conclusion.
Here are what I consider to be the most logical steps to determining which English transliterations are for "Adonai" and which ones are for "Elohim":
- The one consistency I found among the English translations/versions referenced above is that the ones that do not use the name "Yahweh", "Jehovah", or "Adonai" (in the CJB) for "" all employ the same standard of capitalizing the word they've apparently substituted for "" (i.e., "LORD", "LORD", "GOD", or "GOD"). Thus, I presume that the words in all lower-case letters represent either "Adonai" or "Elohim" as they were originally written in the Hebrew Scriptures.
- In reviewing hundreds of Scripture verses in the Old Testament, different themes started unraveling and coming together to aid in identifying when "Lord" or "God" are used for "Adonai" and when they're used for "Elohim". For example...
- We have learned that "Elohim", as a designation or adjective, represents God's might, creative power, and sovereign authority over creation. We also learned that it's the name used in Genesis for the Creator and it's the name used when God interacts with, or reveals Himself to, His creation (not just humankind, but all creation). For example, Genesis 3:1 — "And the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which Elohim had made, and he said to the woman, 'Is it true that Elohim has said, "Do not eat of every tree of the garden"?'" (TS98) (emphasis added)
- We also learned that "Adonai" represents God as our Master, Sovereign Ruler, and Provider. For example, Judges 16:28 — "And Shimshon (Samson) called to , saying, 'O Master [Adonai] , remember me, I pray! Strengthen me, I pray, only this time, O Elohim, and let me avenge myself on the Philistines with vengeance for my two eyes!'" (TS98) (emphasis added)
- As I searched the Scriptures to try to determine which name/designation God revealed to us, I used a very simple pattern:
- I disregarded the references that employed the same name/title for both "Adonai" and "Elohim" (CJB, MKJV, and WEB).
- Using as a guide the Bible versions that actually employ the name "Elohim", I searched several versions of the Old Testament for additional usages of the same and marked them accordingly. (If you don't already have a computer-based electronic Bible, I encourage you to get one. Click here to download e-Sword and several different Bible versions for FREE!)
- Using the Bible versions that employ the words "Sovereign", "Master" or lower-case "Lord", I concluded that the original name for each of those words was most likely "Adonai"; and I searched the Scriptures for additional usages of the same and marked them accordingly.
- If the Bible version uses the lower-case "God" and refers to the Creator interacting with His creation, I concluded that the original name was "Elohim" and I marked all of those searches accordingly.
The simple fact is that the lesser titles "Lord" and "God" reveal so little about our Sovereign Most High God. It's only in learning what HE revealed to us and wants us to know about Himself in the names/designations He used that we can render to Him "all the glory due His name!" (cf. Psalm 29:2) I encourage you — using the Bible version you normally use, check verses by the names listed above, insert and speak the Hebrew names as you read the Scriptures, and prayerfully meditate on what they tell us about our wonderfully-merciful, extravagantly-loving, and abundantly-compassionate God!
- Psalm 8:1 — O , our Master [Adonai], how excellent is Your Name in all the earth, You who set Your splendour above the heavens!" (TS98)
- Psalm 109:21 — "But you, God [Adonai], Adonai [YHWH], treat me as your name demands; rescue me, because your grace is good." (CJB)
- Psalm 114:7 — "Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Lord [Adonai], at the presence of the God [Elohim] of Ya'akov" (CJB)
- Psalm 147:5 — "Our Lord [Adonai] is great, his power is vast, his wisdom beyond all telling." (CJB)
- Isaiah 3:15 — "What do you mean by crushing My people and grinding the faces of the poor?" declares the Master [Adonai], of hosts. (TS98)
- Isaiah 6:8 — "I heard the Lord's [Adonai's] voice, saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?' Then I said, 'Here I am. Send me!'"
- Isaiah 25:8 — "He will swallow up death forever. Adonai [YHWH] Elohim [Adonai] will wipe away the tears from every face, and he will remove from all the earth the disgrace his people suffer. For Adonai [YHWH] has spoken. (CJB)
- Jeremiah 14:13 — "But I said, 'Ah, Master [Adonai] ! See, the prophets say to them, "You are not to see a sword, nor have scarcity of food, for I give you true peace in this place."'" (TS98)
- Ezekiel 39:25 — "Therefore thus said the Master [Adonai] , 'Now I am going to bring back the captives of Ya'aqob. And I shall have compassion on all the house of Yisra'el, and shall be jealous for My set-apart (holy) Name.'" (TS98)
- Malachi 3:1 — "'Look! I am sending my messenger to clear the way before me; and the Lord [Adonai], whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple. Yes, the messenger of the covenant, in whom you take such delight — look! Here he comes,' says Adonai [YHWH]-Tzva'ot." (CJB)
- Genesis 2:15-16 — "Yahweh [] God [Elohim] took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. Yahweh [] God [Elohim] commanded the man, saying, 'Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat'"
- Genesis 9:17 — "And Elohim said to Noah, 'This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.'" (TS98)
- Exodus 6:7 — "I will take you as my people, and I will be your God [Elohim]. Then you will know that I am Adonai [YHWH] your God [Elohim], who freed you from the forced labor of the Egyptians." (CJB)
- Deuteronomy 5:24 — "...Yahweh our God [ our Elohaynu] has shown us His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire..."
- Deuteronomy 8:11 — "Be careful not to forget Adonai [] your God [Elohim] by not obeying his mitzvot (commands), rulings and regulations that I am giving you today." (CJB)
- Psalm 68:1 — Let God [Elohim] arise! Let His enemies be scattered! Let them who hate Him also flee before Him."
- Isaiah 45:18 — "For thus says Adonai , who created the heavens, God [Elohim],who shaped and made the earth, who established and created it not to be chaos, but formed it to be lived in: 'I am Adonai []; there is no other'" (CJB)
- Isaiah 54:5 — "For your Maker is your husband, of hosts is His Name, and the Set-apart (holy) One of Yisra'el is your Redeemer. He is called the Elohim of all the earth." (TS98)
- Jeremiah 32:27 — "'See, I am , the Elohim of all flesh. Is there any matter too hard for Me?'" (TS98)
. For there is none like You, and there is no Elohim but You, according to all that we have heard with our ears."[If using plural verbs and pronouns along with the plural "Adonai" and "Elohim", the verse would read: "You are great indeed, O Master [Adonai]
. For there are none like You, and there are no Elohim but You..."][If using plural verbs and pronouns along with the plural "Adonai" and "Elohim", the verse would read: "Stir up Yourselves and awake..."
- Sidebar: Maybe I'm too much a romanticist to fully indulge a non-subjective academic approach when striving to know God on a more intimate level. But, I can't separate God's use of plural proper nouns in the above names and His use of plural pronouns elsewhere in Scripture (cf. Genesis 1:26, 3:22; Isaiah 6:8).
Therefore, I find it highly improbable that the original Hebrew texts would employ such usage in the names "Adonai" and "Elohim" unless God deliberately intended to convey the concept of plural identities in the one God.
One Theologian points out that the use of the plural "only implies (even in the plural of majesty) that the word in the singular is not full enough to set forth all that is intended."
Thus, whether plural of majesty . . . plural of intensity . . . or implying a Triune God . . . the plural words "Adonai" and "Elohim" teach us that there are no words that can adequately define — within the limits of our mortal understanding — the infinite personality of God!
Click here to review the Scripture references used in these teachings.
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