Names of God in Judaism

Judaismconsiders some names ofGodsoholythat, once written, they should not be erased:יהוה(YHWH),אֲדֹנָי(Adonaitransl. my Lord[s]),אֵל(Eltransl. God),אֱלֹהִים(Elohimtransl. God[s]),שַׁדַּי(Shaddaitransl. Almighty), andצְבָאוֹת(Tzevaothtransl. [Lord of] Hosts); some also includeI Am that I Am.Early authorities considered other Hebrew names mereepithetsor descriptions of God, and wrote that they and names in other languages may be written and erased freely.Some moderns advise special care even in these cases,and many Orthodox Jews have adopted thechumrasof writing "G-d" instead of "God" in English or sayingṬēt-Vav(טו,lit."9-6" ) instead ofYōd-Hē(יה,lit."10-5" but also "Jah") for thenumberfifteen or Ṭēt-Zayin(טז,lit."9-7" ) instead of Yōd-Vav (יו,lit."10-6" ) for theHebrew numbersixteen.

Hebrew nameof God inscribed on the page of aSephardicmanuscriptof theHebrew Bible(1385)

Seven names of God

The names of God that, once written, cannot be erased because of their holinessare theTetragrammaton,Adonai,El,Elohim,Shaddai,Tzevaot;some also includeI Am that I Am.In addition, the nameJah—because it forms part of the Tetragrammaton—is similarly protected.The tannaJose ben Halaftaconsidered "Tzevaot" a common name in the second centuryandRabbi Ishmaelconsidered "Elohim" to be one.All other names, such as "Merciful", "Gracious" and "Faithful", merely represent attributes that are also common to human beings.

YHWH

Main articles:Tetragrammaton,Yahweh,andLord § Religion

The Tetragrammaton inPaleo-Hebrew(fl. 1100BCE – 500 CE) (two forms), andAramaic(fl. 1100BCE – 200 CE) ormodern Hebrewscripts

The Tetragrammaton in theKetef Hinnomsilver scrolls with thePriestly Blessingfrom theBook of Numbers(c. 600BCE)

Also abbreviatedJah,the most common name of God in the Hebrew Bible is the Tetragrammaton,יהוה,that is usually transcribed as YHWH.Hebrew scriptis anabjad,so that the letters in the name are normally consonants, usually expanded asYahwehin English.

Modern Rabbinical Jewish culture judges it forbidden to pronounce this name. In prayers it is replaced by the wordאֲדֹנָי(Adonai,Hebrew pronunciation:[adoˈnaj],lit. transl. My Lords,Pluralis majestatistaken as singular), and in discussion byHaShem'The Name'. Nothing in theTorahexplicitly prohibits speaking the nameand theBook of Ruthshows it was being pronounced as late as the 5th century BCE.Mark Sameth argues that only a pseudo name was pronounced, the four letters YHWH being a cryptogram which the priests of ancient Israel read in reverse ashuhi,'heshe', signifying a dual-gendered deity, as earlier theorized byGuillaume Postel(16th century) andMichelangelo Lanci(19th century).It had ceased to be spoken aloud by at least the 3rd century BCE, duringSecond Temple Judaism.The Talmud relates, perhaps anecdotally, this began with the death ofSimeon the Just.Vowel pointsbegan to be added to the Hebrew text only in the early medieval period. TheMasoretic Textadds to the Tetragrammaton the vowel points of Adonai or Elohim (depending on the context), indicating that these are the words to be pronounced in place of the Tetragrammaton (seeQere and Ketiv),as shown also by the subtle pronunciation changes when combined with a preposition or a conjunction. This is in contrast toKaraite Jews,who traditionally viewed pronouncing the Tetragrammaton as amitzvahbecause the name appears some 6800 times throughout the Tanakh; though most modern Karaites, under pressure and seeking acceptance from mainstream Rabbinical Jews, now also use the termAdonaiinstead,and theBeta Israel,who pronounce the Tetragrammaton asYahu,but also use theGeʽeztermIgziabeher.

The Tetragrammaton appears inGenesisand occurs 6,828 times in total in theBiblia Hebraica Stuttgartensiaedition of theMasoretic Text.It is thought to be an archaicthird-person singularof theimperfective aspectof theverb"to be" (i.e., "[He] is/was/will be" ). This agrees with the passage inExoduswhere God names himself as "I Will Be What I Will Be"using thefirst-person singularimperfective aspect, open to interpretation aspresenttense( "I am what I am" ),future( "I shall be what I shall be" ), orimperfect( "I used to be what I used to be" ).

Rabbinic Judaismteaches that the name is forbidden to all except theHigh Priest of Israel,who should only speak it in theHoly of Holiesof theTemple in JerusalemonYom Kippur.He then pronounces the name "just as it is written."As each blessing was made, the people in thecourtyardwere toprostrate themselves completelyas they heard it spoken aloud. As the Temple has not been rebuilt since its destruction in 70 CE, most modern Jews never pronounce YHWH but instead readאֲדֹנָי(Adonai,Hebrew pronunciation:[ʾăḏōnāy],lit. transl. My Lords,Pluralis majestatistaken as singular) during prayer and while reading theTorahand asHaShem( "The Name" ) at other times.Similarly, theVulgateusedDominus('The Lord') and mostEnglish translations of the Biblewrite "the LORD"for YHWH and" the LORDGod "," the Lord GOD"or" the Sovereign LORD"for Adonai YHWH instead of transcribing the name. TheSeptuagintmay have originally used the Hebrew letters themselves amid its Greek text,but there is no scholarly consensus on this point. All surviving Christian-era manuscripts useKyrios(Κυριος,"Lord" ) or very occasionallyTheos(Θεος,"God" ) to translate the many thousand occurrences of the Name. However, given the great preponderance of the anarthrousKyriossolution for translating YHWH in the Septuagint and some disambiguation efforts by Christian-era copyists involving Kyrios (see especially scribal activity in Acts),

Adonai

Shefa Tal – A Kabbalistic explanation of thePriestly BlessingwithAdonaiinscribed

אֲדֹנָי(ăḏōnāy,lit. transl. My Lords,pluralis majestatistaken as singular) is the possessive form ofadon('Lord'), along with thefirst-person singularpronounenclitic.As withElohim,Adonai's grammatical form is usually explained as aplural of majesty.In the Hebrew Bible, the word is nearly always used to refer to God (approximately 450 occurrences). As pronunciation of the Tetragrammaton came to be avoided in theHellenistic period,Jews may have begun to drop the Tetragrammaton when presented alongside Adonai and subsequently to expand it to cover for the Tetragrammaton in the forms of spoken prayer and written scripture. Owing to the expansion ofchumra(the idea of "building a fence around theTorah"), the wordAdonaiitself has come to be too holy to say for Orthodox Jews outside of prayer, leading to its replacement byHaShem('The Name').

The singular formsadonandadoni('my lord') are used in the Hebrew Bible as royal titles,as in theFirst Book of Samuel,and for distinguished persons. ThePhoeniciansused it as a title ofTammuz(the origin of theGreekAdonis). It is also used very occasionally in Hebrew texts to refer to God (e.g. Psalm 136:3.)Deuteronomy10:17 has the proper nameYahwehalongside the superlative constructions "God of gods" (elōhê ha-elōhîm,literally, "the gods of gods" ) and "Lord of lords" (adōnê ha-adōnîm,"the lords of lords":כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם הוּא אֱלֹהֵי הָאֱלֹהִים וַאֲדֹנֵי הָאֲדֹנִים;KJV: "For the LORDyour God is God of gods, and Lord of lords ").

The final syllable of Adonai uses the vowelkamatz,rather thanpatachwhich would be expected from the Hebrew for 'my lord(s)'. Professor Yoel Elitzur explains this as a normal transformation when a Hebrew word becomes a name, giving as other examplesNathan,Yitzchak,andYigal.AsAdonaibecame the most common reverent substitute for the Tetragrammaton, it too became considered un-erasable due to its holiness. As such, most prayer books avoid spelling out the wordAdonai,and instead write twoyodhs(יְיָ) in its place.

The formsAdaunoi,Adoinoi,andAdonoi representAshkenazi Hebrewvariant pronunciations of the wordAdonai.

El

See also:El (deity) § Hebrew Bible

Elappears inUgaritic,Phoenician and other 2nd and 1st millennium BCE texts both as generic "god" and as the head of the divine pantheon.In the Hebrew Bible, El (אל,ʾel) appears very occasionally alone (e.g. Genesis 33:20,el elohei yisrael,'Mighty God of Israel',and Genesis 46:3,ha'el elohei abika,'El the God of thy father'),but usually with some epithet or attribute attached (e.g.ElElyon,'Most High El',El Shaddai,'El ofShaddai',El 'Olam'Everlasting El',El Hai,'Living El',El Ro'i'El my Shepherd', andEl Gibbor'El of Strength'), in which cases it can be understood as the generic "god". Intheophoric namessuch asGabriel( "Strength of God" ),Michael( "Who is like God?" ),Raphael( "God healed" ),Ariel( "My lion is God" ),Daniel( "My judgment is God" ),Ezekiel( "God shall strengthen" ),Israel( "one who has struggled with God" ),Immanuel( "God is with us" ), andIshmael( "God hears/ will hear / listens/ will listen" ) it is usually interpreted and translated as "God", but it is not clear whether these "el" s refer to the deity in general or to the god El in particular.

El also appears in the formאֱלוֹהַּ‎(Eloah).

Elohim

Main article:Elohim

A common name of God in the Hebrew Bible is Elohim (אלהים,ʾĕlōhīm), the plural ofאֱלוֹהַּ(Eloah). When Elohim refers to God in the Hebrew Bible, singular verbs are used. The word is identical toelohimmeaning gods and is cognate to the'lhmfound inUgaritic,where it is used for the pantheon of Canaanite gods, the children of El and conventionally vocalized as "Elohim" although the original Ugaritic vowels are unknown. When the Hebrew Bible useselohimnot in reference to God, it is plural (for example,Exodus20:2). There are a few other such uses in Hebrew, for exampleBehemoth.InModern Hebrew,the singular wordba'alim('owner') looks plural, but likewise takes a singular verb.

A number of scholars have traced the etymology to the Semitic root*yl,'to be first, powerful', despite some difficulties with this view.Elohimis thus the plural construct 'powers'.Hebrew grammarallows for this form to mean "He is the Power (singular) over powers (plural)", just as the wordBa'alimmeans 'owner' (see above). "He is lord (singular) even over any of those things that he owns that are lordly (plural)".

Theologians who dispute this claim cite the hypothesis that plurals of majesty came about in more modern times. Richard Toporoski, a classics scholar, asserts that plurals of majesty first appeared in the reign ofDiocletian(CE 284–305).Indeed,Geseniusstates in his bookHebrew Grammarthe following:

The Jewish grammarians call such plurals...plur. viriumorvirtutum;later grammarians call themplur. excellentiae,magnitudinis,orplur. maiestaticus. This last name may have been suggested by theweused by kings when speaking of themselves (compare1 Maccabees10:19 and 11:31); and the plural used by God inGenesis1:26 and 11:7;Isaiah6:8 has been incorrectly explained in this way. It is, however, eithercommunicative(including the attendantangels:so at all events in Isaiah 6:8 and Genesis 3:22), or according to others, an indication ofthe fullness of power and mightimplied. It is best explained as a plural ofself-deliberation.The use of the plural as a form of respectful address is quite foreign to Hebrew.

Mark S. Smithhas cited the use of plural as possible evidence to suggest an evolution in the formation of early Jewish conceptions ofmonotheism,wherein references to "the gods" (plural) in earlier accounts of verbal tradition became either interpreted as multiple aspects of a single monotheistic God at the time of writing, or subsumed under a form ofmonolatry,wherein the god(s) of a certain city would be accepted after the fact as a reference to the God of Israel and the plural deliberately dropped.

The plural form ending in-imcan also be understood as denoting abstraction, as in the Hebrew wordschayyim(חיים,'life') orbetulim(בתולים,'virginity'). If understood this way,Elohimmeans 'divinity' or 'deity'. The wordchayyimis similarly syntactically singular when used as a name but syntactically plural otherwise. In many of the passages in whichelohimoccurs in the Bible, it refers to non-Israelite deities, or in some instances to powerful men or judges, and even angels (Exodus 21:6, Psalms 8:5) as a simple plural in those instances.

Shaddai

Main article:El Shaddai

El Shaddai(אל שדי,ʾel šaday,pronounced[ʃaˈdaj]) is one of the names of God in Judaism, with itsetymologycoming from the influence of theUgaritic religionon modern Judaism.El Shaddaiisconventionally translatedas "God Almighty". While the translation ofElas 'god' inUgaritic/Canaanitelanguages is straightforward, the literal meaning ofShaddaiis the subject of debate.

Tzevaot

For the Gnostic deity, seeSabaoth (Gnosticism).

Tzevaot, Tzevaoth, Tsebaoth or Sabaoth (צבאות,ṣəḇāʾōṯ,[tsvaot],lit."Armies" ), usually translated "Hosts", appears in reference to armies or armed hosts of men but is not used as a divine epithet in theTorah,Joshua,orJudges.Starting in theBooks of Samuel,the term "Lord of Hosts" appears hundreds of times throughout theProphetic books,inPsalms,and inChronicles.

The Hebrew wordSabaothwas also absorbed inAncient Greek(σαβαωθ,sabaōth) andLatin(Sabaoth,with no declension).Tertullianand otherpatristicsused it with the meaning of "Army of angels of God".

Ehyeh

Main article:I Am that I Am

Ehyeh asher ehyeh(אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה) is the first of three responses given toMoseswhen he asks for God's name in theBook of Exodus.TheKing James Versionof the Bible translates the Hebrew as "I Am that I Am"and uses it as a proper name for God.

The wordehyehis thefirst-personsingularimperfectform ofhayah,'to be'. Biblical Hebrew does not distinguish betweengrammatical tenses.It has instead anaspectual systemin which the imperfect denotes any actions that are not yet completed,Accordingly,Ehyeh asher ehyehcan be rendered in English not only as "I am that I am" but also as "I will be what I will be" or "I will be who I will be", or "I shall prove to be whatsoever I shall prove to be" or even "I will be because I will be". Other renderings include: Leeser, "I Will Be that I Will Be"; Rotherham, "I Will Become whatsoever I please", Greek,Ego eimiho on(ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν), 'I am The Being' in theSeptuagint,andPhilo,andRevelationor, "I am The Existing One";Latin,ego sum qui sum,"I am Who I am."

The wordasheris arelative pronounwhose meaning depends on the immediate context, so that "that", "who", "which", or "where" are all possible translations of that word.

Other names and titles

Baal

Main article:Baal

Baalmeant 'owner' and, by extension, 'lord','master', and 'husband' in Hebrew and the otherNorthwest Semitic languages.In some early contexts andtheophoric names,it andBaali(/ˈbeɪəlaɪ/;"My Lord" ) were treated as synonyms ofAdonand Adonai.After the time ofSolomonand particularly afterJezebel's attempt to promote the worship of the Lord ofTyreMelqart,however, the name became particularly associated with theCanaanitestorm godBaʿal Hadduand was gradually avoided as a title for Yahweh.Several names that included it were rewritten asbosheth( "shame" ).TheprophetHoseain particular reproached theIsraelitesfor continuing to use the term:

"It will come about in that day," declares theLord,"That you will call Me IshiAnd will no longer call Me Baali. "

Elah

Elah(אֱלָה,pl.ElimorElohim;Imperial Aramaic:אלהא‏) is theAramaicword for God and the absolute singular form ofאלהא‏,ʾilāhā.The origin of the word is fromProto-Semitic*ʔiland is thus cognate to theHebrew,Arabic,Akkadian,and otherSemitic languages' words for god.Elahis found in theTanakhin the books ofEzra,Jeremiah(Jeremiah 10:11,the only verse in the entire book written in Aramaic),andDaniel.Elahis used to describe both pagan gods and the Abrahamic God.

• Elah Yisrael,God of Israel (Ezra 5:1)
• Elah Yerushelem,God of Jerusalem (Ezra 7:19)
• Elah Shemaya,God of Heaven (Ezra 7:23)
• Elah-avahati,God of my fathers, (Daniel 2:23)
• Elah Elahin,God of gods (Daniel 2:47)

El Roi

Main article:El Roi

In theBook of Genesis,Hagaruses this name for the God who spoke to her through hisangel.In Hebrew, her phraseEl Roi,literally, 'God of Seeing Me',is translated in theKing James Versionas "Thou God seest me."

Elyon

Main article:Elyon

The nameElyon(עליון) occurs in combination withEl,YHWH,Elohimand alone. It appears chiefly in poetic and later Biblical passages. The modern Hebrew adjective'Elyonmeans 'supreme' (as in "Supreme Court":Hebrew:בית המשפט העליון) or 'Most High'.El Elyonhas been traditionally translated into English as 'God Most High'. ThePhoeniciansused what appears to be a similar name for God, one that the Greeks wrote asΈλιονα.

Eternal One

The Eternal OneorThe Eternalis increasingly used, particularly inReformandReconstructionistcommunities seeking to usegender-neutral language.In the Torah,YHWH El Olam( "the Everlasting God" ) is used at Genesis 21:33 to refer to God.

HaShem

Biblical text on a synagogue inHolešov,Czech Republic: "HaShem (ה׳) kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. "(1 Samuel2:6)

Sign near the site of theSafed massacre,readingהי״ד(H.Y.D.,abbreviation ofהַשֵּׁם יִנקּוֹם דָּמו‎HaShem yinkom damo,'may HaShem avenge his blood').

"HaShem" redirects here. For people with similar names, seeHashem.

It is common Jewish practice to restrict the use of the names of God to aliturgicalcontext. In casual conversation some Jews, even when not speaking Hebrew, will call God HaShem (השם), which is Hebrew for 'the Name' (compareLeviticus24:11 andDeuteronomy28:58). When written, it is often abbreviated toה׳.Likewise, when quoting from the Tanakh or prayers, some pious Jews will replaceAdonaiwithHaShem.For example, when makingaudio recordingsof prayer services,HaShemwill generally be substituted forAdonai.

A popular expression containing this phrase isBaruch HaShem,meaning "ThankGod"(literally, 'Blessed be the Name').

Samaritansuse theAramaicequivalentShema(שמא,'the name') in much the same situations as Jews useHaShem.

Shalom

Main article:Shalom

Talmudicauthors,ruling on the basis ofGideon's name for an altar (YHVH-Shalom,according toJudges6:24), write that "the name of God is 'Peace'" (Pereq ha-Shalom,Shabbat 10b); consequently, aTalmudicopinion (Shabbat,10b) asserts that one would greet another with the wordshalomin order for the word not to be forgotten in theexile.But one is not permitted to greet another with the wordShalomin unholy places such as a bathroom, because of the holiness of the name.

Shekhinah

Main article:Shekhinah

Shekhinah(שכינה) is the presence or manifestation of God which has descended to "dwell" among humanity. The term never appears in the Hebrew Bible; later rabbis used the word when speaking of God dwelling either in theTabernacleor amongst the people of Israel. The root of the word means "dwelling". Of the principal names of God, it is the only one that is of the feminine gender in Hebrew grammar. Some believe that this was the name of a female counterpart of God, but this is unlikely as the name is always mentioned in conjunction with an article (e.g.: "the Shekhina descended and dwelt among them" or "He removed Himself and His Shekhina from their midst" ). This kind of usage does not occur in Semitic languages in conjunction with proper names.The term, however, may not be a name, as it may merely describe the presence of God, and not God Himself.

Uncommon or esoteric names

• Abir– 'Strong One'
• Adir– 'Great One'
• Adon Olam– 'Master of the World'
• Aleim– sometimes seen as an alternative transliteration of Elohim,A'limعليمin Arabic means 'who intensively knows',A'alimعالمmeans 'who knows', the verb isA'limaعلمmeans 'knew', whileAllahummaاللهمin Arabic equals toO'Godand used to supplicate him for something.
• Ani Sh'ani- 'I am that I am': another modern Hebrew form of "Ehyeh asher Ehyeh"
• Aravat(orAvarat) – 'Father of Creation'; mentioned once in2 Enoch,"On the tenth heaven is God, in the Hebrew tongue he is calledAravat".
• Av Harachamim– 'Father of Mercy'
• – 'Our Father, Our King'
• – 'The Creator'
• Bore Olam– 'Creator of the World'
• DibburaorDibbera– 'The Word (The Law)' – used primarily in the Palestinian Targums of the Pentateuch (Aramaic); e.g. Num 7:89, The Word spoke to Moses from between the cherubim in the holy of holies.
• Ehiyeh sh'Ehiyeh– 'I Am That I Am': a modern Hebrew version of "Ehyeh asher Ehyeh"
• Eibishter/Aybishter– 'The One Above' (Yiddish:אײבערשטער)
• Ein Sof– 'Endless, Infinite', Kabbalistic name of God
• El ha-Gibbor– 'God the Hero', 'God the Strong' or 'God the Warrior'.Allah jabbar,الله جبارin Arabic means "the God is formidable and invincible"
• Emet– 'Truth' (the "Sealof God ".[Cf.] The word is composed of the first, middle, and last letters of theHebrew Alpha bet.See alsoAlpha and Omega#Judaism)
• HaKadosh, Barukh Hu(Hebrew);Kudsha, Brikh Hu(Aramaic);تبارك القدوس(Arabic) – 'The Holy One, Blessed Be He'
• Hayah, Hoveh, v'Yihye– 'Was, Is, and Will be'
• Kadosh Israel– 'Holy One of Israel'
• Magen Avraham– 'Shield of Abraham'
• MakomorHaMakom– literally 'The Place', perhaps meaning 'The Omnipresent' (seeTzimtzum)
• Malbish Arumim– 'Clother of the Naked'
• Matir Asurim– 'Freer of the Captives'
• Mechayeh HaKol;In Arabical-Muhyi al-Kullمحيي الكل– 'Life giver to All' (Reform version ofMechayeh Metim)
• Mechayeh Metim– 'Life giver to the Dead'
• Melech HaMelachim– 'TheKing of Kings' orMelech Malchei HaMelachim'The King, King of Kings', to express superiority to the earthly ruler's title. The Arabic version of this isمالك الملك(Malik al-Mulk).
• Melech HaOlam– 'The King of the World'
• Memra d'Adonai– 'The Word of the LORD' (plus variations such as 'My Word') – restricted to the Aramaic Targums (the written Tetragrammaton is represented in various ways such as YYY, YWY, YY, but pronounced as the HebrewAdonai)
• Mi She'amar V'haya Ha`olam– 'He who spoke, and the world came into being'.
• Netzakh Yisrael– 'The Glory of Israel' (1 Samuel 15:29)
• Oseh Shalom– 'Maker of Peace'
• Pokeach Ivrim– 'Opener of Blind Eyes'
• HaRachaman– 'The Merciful One';Rahman,رحمن(Arabic)
• Rachmana– 'The Merciful One' (Aramaic)
• Ribon Kol HaOlamim– 'Master of all Worlds'
• Ribono shel'Olam– 'Master of the World'. The Arabic version of this isرب العلمين(Rabb al-‘Alamin)
• Ro'eh Yisra'el– 'Shepherd of Israel'
• Rofeh Cholim– 'Healer of the Sick'
• Shomer Yisrael– 'Guardian of Israel'
• Somech Noflim– 'Supporter of the Fallen'
• Tzur Israel– 'Rock of Israel'
• YHWH-Yireh(Adonai-jireh) – 'The LORDWill Provide'
• YHWH-Rapha– 'The LORDthat Healeth'
• YHWH-Niss'i(Adonai-Nissi) – 'The LORDOur Banner'
• YHWH-Shalom– 'The LORDOur Peace'
• YHWH-Tzevaot– 'The LORDof Hosts'
• YHWH-Ro'i– 'The LORDMy Shepherd'
• YHWH-Tsidkenu– 'The LORDOur Righteousness'
• YHWH-Shammah(Adonai-shammah) – 'The LORDIs Present'
• Yotsehr 'Or– 'Fashioner of Light'
• Zokef kefufim– 'Straightener of the Bent'

Writing divine names

The Psalms in Hebrew andLatin.Manuscript onparchment,12th century.

In Jewish tradition the sacredness of the divine name or titles must be recognized by the professionalsofer(scribe) who writesTorah scrolls,ortefillinandmezuzah.Before transcribing any of the divine titles or name, they prepare mentally to sanctify them. Once they begin a name, they do not stop until it is finished, and they must not be interrupted while writing it, even to greet a king. If an error is made in writing it may not be erased, but a line must be drawn round it to show that it is canceled, and the whole page must be put in agenizah(burial place for scripture) and a new page begun.

Kabbalistic use

One of the most important names is that of theEin Sof(אין סוף'Endless'), which first came into use after 1300 CE. Another name is derived from the namesאהיה יהוה אדוני הויה.By spelling these four names out with the names of the Hebrew letters (אלף,הא,וו,יוד,דלתandנון)this new forty-five letter long name is produced. Spelling the letters inיהוה(YHWH) by itself givesיוד הא ואו הא.Each letter in Hebrew is given a value, according togematria,and the value ofיוד הא ואו האis also 45.

The 72-fold name is derived from three verses inExodus14:19–21. Each of the verses contains 72 letters. When the verses are readboustrophedonically72 names, three letters each, are produced (theniqqudof the source verses is disregarded in respect to pronunciation). Some regard this name as theShem HaMephorash.The Proto-KabbalisticbookSefer Yetzirahdescribes how the creation of the world was achieved by manipulation of these 216 sacred letters that form the names of God.

Erasing the name of God

3 And ye shall break down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and burn their Asherim with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods; and ye shall destroy their name out of that place. 4 Ye shall not do so unto the LORDyour God.

— Deuteronomy 12:3–4

From this it is understood by the rabbis that one should not erase or blot out the name of God. The generalhalachicopinion is that this only applies to the sacred Hebrew names of God, not to other euphemistic references; there is a dispute as to whether the word "God" in English or other languages may be erased or whether Jewish law and/or Jewish custom forbids doing so, directly or as a precautionary "fence" about the law.

The wordsGodandLordare written bysomeJews asG-dandL-rdas a way of avoiding writing any name of God out in full. The hyphenated version of the English name (G-d) can be destroyed, so by writing that form, religious Jews prevent documents in their possession with the unhyphenated form from being destroyed later. Alternatively, a euphemistic reference such asHashem(literally, 'the Name') may be substituted, or an abbreviation thereof, such as inB''H(בְּעֶזרַת הַשֵׁםB'ezrat Hashem'with the help of the Name').

See also:Tetragrammaton § Written prohibitions,andG’tt[de]

See also

• Ancient of Days
• Baal Shem
• Besiyata Dishmaya
• Names of God
• Names of God in Zoroastrianism
• Names of God in Christianity
• Names of God in Islam
• Names of God in Sikhism
• Naming taboo(a similar prohibition in China)
• Sacred Name Bibles
• Ten Commandments
• Vishnu Sahasranama

References

Bibliography

• Britannica Encyclopedia of World Religions,New York: Encyclopædia Britannica, 2006,ISBN978-1-59339-491-2.
• Diccionario de la Lengua Ugarítica,3rd ed.,Leiden: translated from the Spanish for E.J. Brill as A Dictionary of the Ugaritic Language in the Alphabetic Tradition (Ser. Handbuch der Orientalistik [Handbook of Oriental Studies], Vol. 112), 2015,ISBN978-90-04-28864-5.
• "Names of God",Encyclopedia of Judaism,Infobase Publishing, 2005, p. 179,ISBN0816069824.
• The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary,Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1963,ISBN978-0310235606.
• Cleghorn, T. L.; et al. (2011),Comprehensive Articulatory Phonetics: A Tool for Mastering the World's Languages,2nd ed.,N M Rugg,ISBN978-1-4507-8190-9.
• Herrmann, Wolfgang (1999),"Baal",Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible,2nd ed.,Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, pp. 132–139.
• Pope, Marvin H. (2006),"Baal Worship",Encyclopaedia Judaica,2nd ed.,vol. III, New York: Thomas Gale,ISBN978-0028659282.
• Sameth, Mark (2020).The Name: a history of the dual-gendered Hebrew name for God.Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock.ISBN978-1-5326-9385-4.OCLC1191710825.

External links

• God's names in Jewish thought and in the light of Kabbalah
• The Name of God as Revealed in Exodus 3:14—an explanation of its meaning.
• Bibliography on Divine Names in the Dead Sea Scrolls
• Jewish Encyclopedia: Names of God
• "Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" – Song and Video of Ancient Yemenite Prayer From the Diwan
• R. Clover."The Sacred Name Yahweh"(PDF).Qadesh La Yahweh Press. Archived fromthe originalon June 15, 2007.