Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

has different names given to

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

, which are considered sacred: (), (''Adonai'' ), ('' El'' ), ( ), ('' Shaddai'' ), and ( ); some also include

I Am that I Am "I Am that I Am" is a Bible translations into English, common English translation of the Hebrew language, Hebrew phrase (; )– also "I am who (I) am", "I will become what I choose to become", "I am what I am", "I will be what I will be", "I cre ...

.This is the formulation of

Joseph Karo Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro (; 1488 – March 24, 1575, 13 Nisan 5335 A.M.), was a prominent Sephardic Jewish rabbi renowned as the author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the ''Beit Yosef'', and its ...

(SA YD 276:9).

Maimonides Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah schola ...

(MT Yesodei haTorah 6:2),

Jacob ben Asher Jacob ben Asher (c. 1270–1340), also known as Ba'al ha-Turim as well as Yaakov ben haRosh, was an influential Medieval rabbinic authority. He is often referred to as the Ba'al ha-Turim ("Author of the ''Turim''"), after his main work, the ''A ...

(AT YD 276), and

Isaac Alfasi Isaac ben Jacob Alfasi (1013–1103) (, ), also known as the Alfasi or by his Hebrew acronym, the Rif (Rabbi Isaac al-Fasi), was a Maghrebi Talmudist and posek (decider in matters of halakha, Jewish law). He is best known for his work of '' ...

(HK Menachot 3b) also included

, as do many later authorities, including

Moses Isserles Moses Isserles (; ; 22 February 1530 / 25 Adar I 5290 – 11 May 1572 / 18 Iyar 5332), also known by the acronym Rema, was an eminent Polish Ashkenazi rabbi, talmudist, and '' posek'' (expert in Jewish law). He is considered the "Maimonides o ...

(SA YD 276:9). The original lists are found in y. Megillah 1:9 and b. Shavuot 35a, with some MSs agreeing with each authority. Maimonides and followers give the number of names as seven; however, manuscript inconsistency makes it difficult to judge which are included. Authorities including

Asher ben Jehiel Asher ben Jehiel (, or Asher ben Yechiel, sometimes Asheri) (1250 or 1259 – 1327) was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, “our Rabbi Asher” or by the Hebrew ...

(''Responsa'' 3:15), the

Tosafists Tosafists were rabbis of France, Germany, Bohemia and Austria, who lived from the 12th to the mid-15th centuries, in the period of Rishonim. The Tosafists composed critical and explanatory glosses (questions, notes, interpretations, rulings and ...

(b. Sotah 10a),

Yechiel of Paris Yechiel ben Joseph of Paris or Jehiel of Paris, called Sire Vives in French ( Judeo-French: ) and Vivus Meldensis ("Vives of Meaux") in Latin, was a major Talmudic scholar and Tosafist from northern France, father-in-law of Isaac ben Joseph of C ...

(cited ''Birkei Yosef, Oraḥ Hayyim'' 85:8),

Simeon ben Zemah Duran Simeon ben Zemah Duran, also Tzemach Duran (1361–1444; ), known as Rashbatz () or Tashbatz, was a prominent Jewish scholar, rabbinic authority, and polemicist. He was proficient in various fields, including philosophy, mathematics, natural scie ...

Yaakov ben Moshe Levi Moelin Yaakov ben Moshe Levi Moelin () (c. 1365 – September 14, 1427) was a Talmudist and ''posek'' (authority on Jewish law) best known for his codification of the customs (''minhagim'') of the German Jews. He is also known as Maharil () - the H ...

, and

(SA YD 276:13), include the term

Shalom ''Shalom'' ( ''šālōm'') is a Hebrew word meaning ''peace'' and can be used idiomatically to mean ''hello'' and ''goodbye''. As it does in English, it can refer to either peace between two entities (especially between a person and God or b ...

as well. Early authorities considered other Hebrew names mere

epithets An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...

or 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 the chumras of writing "G-d" instead of "God" in English or saying Ṭēt- Vav (, '9-6') instead of Yōd- Hē (, '10-5', but also '

Jah Jah or Yah (, ''Yāh'') is a short form of the Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the personal name of God: Yahweh, which the ancient Israelites used. The conventional Christian English pronunciation of ''Jah'' is , even though the letter J here transliter ...

') for the

number A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The most basic examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...

fifteen or Ṭēt-

Zayin Zayin (also spelled zain or zayn or simply zay) is the seventh letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician ''zayn'' 𐤆, Hebrew ''zayīn'' , Aramaic ''zain'' 𐡆, Syriac ''zayn'' ܙ, and Arabic ''zāy'' . It represents the sound . It ...

(, '9-7') instead of Yōd-Vav (, '10-6') for the Hebrew number sixteen.

Seven names of God

The names of God that, once written, cannot be erased because of their holiness are the

Tetragrammaton The TetragrammatonPronounced ; ; also known as the Tetragram. is the four-letter Hebrew-language theonym (transliteration, transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four Hebrew letters, written and read from ...

Adonai Judaism has different names given to God in Judaism, God, which are considered sacred: (), (''Adonai'' ), (''El (deity), El'' ), ( ), (''El Shaddai, Shaddai'' ), and ( ); some also include I Am that I Am.This is the formulation of Josep ...

, El,

Elohim ''Elohim'' ( ) is a Hebrew word meaning "gods" or "godhood". Although the word is plural in form, in the Hebrew Bible it most often takes singular verbal or pronominal agreement and refers to a single deity, particularly but not always the Go ...

, Shaddai,

Tzevaot Judaism has different names given to God, which are considered sacred: (), (''Adonai'' ), ('' El'' ), ( ), ('' Shaddai'' ), and ( ); some also include I Am that I Am.This is the formulation of Joseph Karo (SA YD 276:9). Maimonides (MT Y ...

; some also include

. In addition, the name ''

''—because it forms part of the Tetragrammaton—is similarly protected. The tanna

Jose ben Halafta Jose ben Helpetha, commonly known as Jose ben Halafta () was a tanna of the fourth generation (2nd century CE). He is the fifth-most-frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah. Yose Ben Halafta is the one of two rabbis called Rabbi Yose in the Tal ...

considered "Tzevaot" a common name in the second century and

Rabbi Ishmael Rabbi Yishmael ben Elisha Nachmani (Hebrew: רבי ישמעאל בן אלישע), often known as Rabbi Yishmael and sometimes given the title "Ba'al HaBaraita" (Hebrew: בעל הברייתא, “Master of the Outside Teaching”), was a rabbi of ...

considered "Elohim" to be one. All other names, such as "Merciful", "Gracious" and "Faithful", merely represent attributes that are also common to human beings.

Tetragrammaton

Also abbreviated ''Jah'', the most common name of God in the Hebrew Bible is the Tetragrammaton, . The

Hebrew script The Hebrew alphabet (, ), known variously by scholars as the Ktav Ashuri, Jewish script, square script and block script, is a unicase, unicameral abjad script used in the writing of the Hebrew language and other Jewish languages, most notably ...

is an

abjad An abjad ( or abgad) is a writing system in which only consonants are represented, leaving the vowel sounds to be inferred by the reader. This contrasts with alphabets, which provide graphemes for both consonants and vowels. The term was introd ...

, and thus vowels are often omitted in writing. The Tetragrammaton is sometimes rendered with vowels, though it is not known which vowels were used originally. Direct transliteration is avoided in Jewish custom. Modern Rabbinical Jewish culture judges it forbidden to pronounce this name. In prayers it is replaced by saying the word (, ,

Pluralis majestatis The royal ''we'', majestic plural (), or royal plural, is the use of a plural pronoun (or corresponding plural-inflected verb forms) used by a single person who is a monarch or holds a high office to refer to themself. A more general term fo ...

taken as singular), and in discussion by 'The Name'. Nothing in the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

explicitly prohibits speaking the name and the

Book of Ruth The Book of Ruth (, ''Megillath Ruth'', "the Scroll of Ruth", one of the Five Megillot) is included in the third division, or the Writings ( Ketuvim), of the Hebrew Bible. In most Christian canons it is treated as one of the historical books ...

shows that it continued to be pronounced as late as the 5th century BCE. Mark Sameth argues that only a pseudo name was pronounced, the four letters (YHVH, YHWH) being a cryptogram which the priests of ancient Israel read in reverse as , 'he–she', signifying a dual-gendered deity, as earlier theorized by

Guillaume Postel Guillaume Postel (25 March 1510 – 6 September 1581) was a French linguist, Orientalist, astronomer, Christian Kabbalist, diplomat, polyglot, professor, religious universalist, and writer. Born in the village of Barenton in Normandy, Post ...

(16th century) and (19th century). It had ceased to be spoken aloud by at least the 3rd century BCE, during

Second Temple Judaism Second Temple Judaism is the Judaism, Jewish religion as it developed during the Second Temple period, which began with the construction of the Second Temple around 516 BCE and ended with the Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE), destruction of Jerusalem in ...

. The Talmud relates, perhaps anecdotally, that this began with the death of

Simeon the Just Simeon the Righteous or Simeon the Just ( ''Šimʿōn Haṣṣaddīq'') was a Jewish High Priest during the Second Temple period. He is also referred to in the Mishnah, where he is described as one of the last members of the Great Assembly. Biogr ...

. Vowel points began to be added to the Hebrew text only in the early medieval period. The

Masoretic Text The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; ) is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (''Tanakh'') in Rabbinic Judaism. The Masoretic Text defines the Jewish canon and its precise letter-text, with its vocaliz ...

adds 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 (see

Qere and Ketiv Qere and Ketiv (from the Aramaic ''qere'' or ''q're'', , " hat isread"; ''ketiv'', or ''ketib'', ''kethib'', ''kethibh'', ''kethiv'', , " hat iswritten") refers to a system for marking differences between what is written in the consonantal text of ...

), as shown also by the pronunciation changes when combined with a preposition or a conjunction. This is in contrast to

Karaite Jews Karaite Judaism or Karaism is a non-Rabbinical Jewish sect characterized by the recognition of the written Tanakh alone as its supreme authority in ''halakha'' (religious law) and theology. Karaites believe that all of the divine commandme ...

, who traditionally viewed pronouncing the Tetragrammaton as a

mitzvah In its primary meaning, the Hebrew language, Hebrew word (; , ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment Divine law, from God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of disc ...

because the name appears some 6800 times throughout the Tanakh; however, most modern Karaites, under pressure and seeking acceptance from mainstream Rabbinical Jews, now also use the term ''Adonai'' instead. The

Beta Israel Beta Israel, or Ethiopian Jews, is a Jewish group originating from the territory of the Amhara Region, Amhara and Tigray Region, Tigray regions in northern Ethiopia, where they are spread out across more than 500 small villages over a wide ter ...

pronounce the Tetragrammaton as ''Yahu'', but also use the

Geʽez Geez ( or ; , and sometimes referred to in scholarly literature as Classical Ethiopic) is an ancient South Semitic language. The language originates from what is now Ethiopia and Eritrea. Today, Geez is used as the main liturgical langu ...

term . The Tetragrammaton appears in

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...

and occurs 6,828 times in total in the

Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia The Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, abbreviated as BHS or rarely BH4, is an edition of the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible as preserved in the Leningrad Codex, and supplemented by masoretic and text-critical notes. It is the fourth edition in ...

edition of the

. It is thought to be an archaic

third-person singular In linguistics, grammatical person is the grammatical distinction between deictic references to participant(s) in an event; typically, the distinction is between the speaker ( first person), the addressee ( second person), and others ( third pe ...

of the

imperfective aspect The imperfective (abbreviated , , or more ambiguously ) is a grammatical aspect used to describe ongoing, habitual, repeated, or similar semantic roles, whether that situation occurs in the past, present, or future. Although many languages have a ...

of the verb "to be" (i.e., " eis/was/will be"). This agrees with the passage in

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

where God names himself as " I Will Be What I Will Be" using the first-person singular imperfective aspect, open to interpretation as

present The present is the period of time that is occurring now. The present is contrasted with the past, the period of time that has already occurred; and the future, the period of time that has yet to occur. It is sometimes represented as a hyperplan ...

tense ("I am what I am"),

future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that currently ex ...

("I shall be what I shall be"), or

imperfect The imperfect ( abbreviated ) is a verb form that combines past tense (reference to a past time) and imperfective aspect (reference to a continuing or repeated event or state). It can have meanings similar to the English "was doing (something)" o ...

("I used to be what I used to be").

Rabbinic Judaism Rabbinic Judaism (), also called Rabbinism, Rabbinicism, Rabbanite Judaism, or Talmudic Judaism, is rooted in the many forms of Judaism that coexisted and together formed Second Temple Judaism in the land of Israel, giving birth to classical rabb ...

teaches that the name is forbidden to all except the

High Priest of Israel In Judaism, the High Priest of Israel (, lit. ‘great priest’; Aramaic: ''Kahana Rabba'') was the head of the Israelite priesthood. He played a unique role in the worship conducted in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple in Jerusalem, ...

, who should only speak it in the

Holy of Holies The Holy of Holies ( or ''Kodesh HaKodashim''; also ''hadDəḇīr'', 'the Sanctuary') is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where the Shekhinah (God in Judaism, God's presence) appeared. According ...

of the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. Accord ...

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

. He then pronounces the name "just as it is written." As each blessing was made, the people in the

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

were to prostrate themselves completely as 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 read (, , ,

taken as singular) during prayer and while reading the

and as

HaShem Hashem ( Hebrew: ''haššēm'') People with the given name * Hashem Aghajari (born 1957), Iranian historian * Hashem Akbari (born 1949), Iranian-American professor at Concordia University * Hashem Akbarian (1897–1971), Iranian wrestler * ...

'The Name' at other times. Most

English translations of the Bible More than 100 complete translations into English languages have been produced. Translations of Biblical books, especially passages read in the Liturgy can be traced back to the late 7th century, including translations into Old and Middle Eng ...

write "the " for YHWH, and "the God" or "the Lord " for Adonai YHWH instead of transcribing the name. The

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

may have originally used the Hebrew letters themselves amid its Greek text, but there is no scholarly consensus on this point.

Adonai

(, , , taken as singular) is the possessive form of ('Lord'), along with the first-person singular pronoun

enclitic In morphology and syntax, a clitic ( , backformed from Greek "leaning" or "enclitic"Crystal, David. ''A First Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics''. Boulder, CO: Westview, 1980. Print.) is a morpheme that has syntactic characteristics of a ...

. As with , Adonai's grammatical form is usually explained as a plural 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 the

Hellenistic period In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

, 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 of (the idea of "building a fence around the

"), the word itself has come to be too holy to say for Orthodox Jews outside of prayer, leading to its replacement by ('The Name'). The singular forms and ('my lord') are used in the Hebrew Bible as royal titles, as in the

First Book of Samuel The Book of Samuel () is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings) that constitute a theological ...

, and for distinguished persons. The

Phoenicians Phoenicians were an ancient Semitic group of people who lived in the Phoenician city-states along a coastal strip in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily modern Lebanon and the Syrian coast. They developed a maritime civi ...

used it as a title of Tammuz (the origin of the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

Adonis In Greek mythology, Adonis (; ) was the mortal lover of the goddesses Aphrodite and Persephone. He was considered to be the ideal of male beauty in classical antiquity. The myth goes that Adonis was gored by a wild boar during a hunting trip ...

). It is also used very occasionally in Hebrew texts to refer to God (e.g. Psalm 136:3.)

Deuteronomy Deuteronomy (; ) is the fifth book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called () which makes it the fifth book of the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament. Chapters 1–30 of the book consist of three sermons or speeches delivered to ...

10:17 has the Tetragrammaton alongside the superlative constructions "God of gods" (, literally, "the gods of gods") and "Lord of lords" (, "the lords of lords": ; JPS 2006: "For your God יהוה is God supreme and Lord supreme"). The final syllable of Adonai uses the vowel , rather than which 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 examples

Nathan Nathan or Natan may refer to: People and biblical figures *Nathan (given name), including a list of people and characters with this name * Nathan (surname) *Nathan (prophet), a person in the Hebrew Bible *Nathan (son of David), a biblical figu ...

, Yitzchak, and

Yigal Yigal and Yigael (from Hebrew יגאל) are given names that mean "He (God) will redeem". People with those names include: * Yigal Allon (1918–1980), Israeli politician, acting Prime Minister, a commander of the Palmach, and general * Yigal Amir ...

. As became 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 word , and instead write two () in its place. The forms , , and represent

Ashkenazi Hebrew Ashkenazi Hebrew (, ) is the pronunciation system for Biblical and Mishnaic Hebrew favored for Jewish liturgical use and Torah study by Ashkenazi Jewish practice. Features As it is used parallel with Modern Hebrew, its phonological differences a ...

variant pronunciations of the word .

El

El appears in

Ugarit Ugarit (; , ''ủgrt'' /ʾUgarītu/) was an ancient port city in northern Syria about 10 kilometers north of modern Latakia. At its height it ruled an area roughly equivalent to the modern Latakia Governorate. It was discovered by accident in 19 ...

ic, 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 (, ) appears very occasionally alone (e.g. Genesis 33:20, , 'Mighty God of Israel', and Genesis 46:3, , 'El the God of thy father'), but usually with some epithet or attribute attached (e.g. , 'Most High El', , 'El of ', 'Everlasting El', , 'Living El', 'El my Shepherd', and 'El of Strength'), in which cases it can be understood as the generic "god". In

theophoric names A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or a god's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that de ...

such as

Gabriel In the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), Gabriel ( ) is an archangel with the power to announce God's will to mankind, as the messenger of God. He is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Quran. Many Chris ...

("Strength of God"),

Michael Michael may refer to: People * Michael (given name), a given name * he He ..., a given name * Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael Given name * Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...

("Who is like God?"),

Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (; March 28 or April 6, 1483April 6, 1520), now generally known in English as Raphael ( , ), was an Italian painter and architect of the High Renaissance. List of paintings by Raphael, His work is admired for its cl ...

("God healed"),

Ariel Ariel may refer to: Film and television *Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award * ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki *, a Russian film directed by Yevgeni Kotov * ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', a 1989 and 1991 ...

("My lion is God"),

Daniel Daniel commonly refers to: * Daniel (given name), a masculine given name and a surname * List of people named Daniel * List of people with surname Daniel * Daniel (biblical figure) * Book of Daniel, a biblical apocalypse, "an account of the acti ...

("My judgment is God"),

Ezekiel Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel (; ; ), was an Israelite priest. The Book of Ezekiel, relating his visions and acts, is named after him. The Abrahamic religions acknowledge Ezekiel as a prophet. According to the narrative, Ezekiel prophesied ...

("God shall strengthen"),

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

("one who has struggled with God"),

Immanuel Immanuel or Emmanuel (, "God swith us"; Koine Greek: ) is a Hebrew name that appears in the Book of Isaiah (7:14) as a sign that God will protect the House of David. The Gospel of Matthew ( Matthew 1:22 –23) interprets this as a prophecy o ...

("God is with us"), and

Ishmael In the Bible, biblical Book of Genesis, Ishmael (; ; ; ) is the first son of Abraham. His mother was Hagar, the handmaiden of Abraham's wife Sarah. He died at the age of 137. Traditionally, he is seen as the ancestor of the Arabs. Within Isla ...

("God hears/ will hear / listens/ will listen") it is usually interpreted and translated as "God". El also appears in the form ().

Elohim

A common name of God in the Hebrew Bible is Elohim (, ), the plural of (). When Elohim refers to God in the Hebrew Bible, singular verbs are used. The word is identical to meaning gods and is cognate to the found in

ic, 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 uses not in reference to God, it is plural (for example,

20:2). There are a few other such uses in Hebrew, for example ''

Behemoth Behemoth (; , ''bəhēmōṯ'') is a beast from the biblical Book of Job, and is a form of the primeval chaos-monster created by God at the beginning of creation. Metaphorically, the name has come to be used for any extremely large or powerful ...

''. In

Modern Hebrew Modern Hebrew (, or ), also known as Israeli Hebrew or simply Hebrew, is the Standard language, standard form of the Hebrew language spoken today. It is the only surviving Canaanite language, as well as one of the List of languages by first w ...

, the singular word ('owner') looks plural, but likewise takes a singular verb. A number of scholars have traced the etymology to the Semitic root , 'to be first, powerful', despite some difficulties with this view. is thus the plural construct 'powers'.

Hebrew grammar Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language until ...

allows for this form to mean "He is the Power (singular) over powers (plural)", just as the word means '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 of

Diocletian Diocletian ( ; ; ; 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed Jovius, was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Diocles to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia. As with other Illyri ...

(CE 284–305). Indeed, Gesenius states in his book ''Hebrew Grammar'' the following:

The Jewish grammarians call such plurals ... or ; later grammarians call them , , or . This last name may have been suggested by the ''we'' used by kings when speaking of themselves (compare
1 Maccabees 1 Maccabees, also known as the First Book of Maccabees, First Maccabees, and abbreviated as 1 Macc., is a deuterocanonical book which details the history of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire as well as the founding and earliest hi ...
10:19 and 11:31); and the plural used by God in
Genesis Genesis may refer to: Religion * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of humankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Bo ...
1:26 and 11:7;
Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "Yahweh is salvation"; also known as Isaias or Esaias from ) was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. The text of the Book of Isaiah refers to Isaiah as "the prophet" ...
6:8 has been incorrectly explained in this way. It is, however, either ''communicative'' (including the attendant
angels An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
: so at all events in Isaiah 6:8 and Genesis 3:22), or according to others, an indication of ''the fullness of power and might'' implied. It is best explained as a plural of ''self-deliberation''. The use of the plural as a form of respectful address is quite foreign to Hebrew.

Mark S. Smith has cited the use of plural as possible evidence to suggest an evolution in the formation of early Jewish conceptions of

monotheism Monotheism is the belief that one God is the only, or at least the dominant deity.F. L. Cross, Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. A ...

, 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 of

monolatry Monolatry (, and ) is the belief in the existence of many gods, but with the consistent worship of only one deity. The term ''monolatry'' was perhaps first used by Julius Wellhausen. Atenism The pharaoh Akhenaten, who was initially enthron ...

, 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 can also be understood as denoting abstraction, as in the Hebrew words (, 'life') or (, 'virginity'). If understood this way, means 'divinity' or 'deity'. The word is similarly syntactically singular when used as a name but syntactically plural otherwise. In many of the passages in which occurs 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

(, , ) is one of the names of God in Judaism, with its

etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

coming from the influence of the Ugaritic religion on modern Judaism. is conventionally translated as "God Almighty". While the translation of as '

god In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

' in

ic/ Canaanite languages is straightforward, the literal meaning of is the subject of debate.

Tzevaot

Tzevaot, Tzevaoth, Tsebaoth or Sabaoth (, , , "Armies"), usually translated "Hosts", appears in reference to armies or armed hosts of men but is not used as a divine epithet in the

Joshua Joshua ( ), also known as Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' Literal translation, lit. 'Yahweh is salvation'), Jehoshua, or Josue, functioned as Moses' assistant in the books of Book of Exodus, Exodus and ...

, or

Judges A judge is an official who presides over a court. Judge or Judges may also refer to: Roles *Judge, an alternative name for an adjudicator in a competition in theatre, music, sport, etc. *Judge, an alternative name/aviator call sign for a membe ...

. Starting in the

Books of Samuel The Book of Samuel () is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Book of Joshua, Joshua, Book of Judges, Judges, Samuel, and Books of ...

, the term "Lord of Hosts" appears hundreds of times throughout the Prophetic books, in

Psalms The Book of Psalms ( , ; ; ; ; , in Islam also called Zabur, ), also known as the Psalter, is the first book of the third section of the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) called ('Writings'), and a book of the Old Testament. The book is an anthology of B ...

, and in Chronicles. The Hebrew word was also absorbed in

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

(, ) and

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

(, with no declension).

Tertullian Tertullian (; ; 155 – 220 AD) was a prolific Early Christianity, early Christian author from Roman Carthage, Carthage in the Africa (Roman province), Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive co ...

and other

Fathers of the Church The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical per ...

used it with the meaning of "Army of angels of God".

Ehyeh

() is the first of three responses given to

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

when he asks for God's name in the

Book of Exodus The Book of Exodus (from ; ''Šəmōṯ'', 'Names'; ) is the second book of the Bible. It is the first part of the narrative of the Exodus, the origin myth of the Israelites, in which they leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through the strength of ...

. The

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English Bible translations, Early Modern English translation of the Christianity, Christian Bible for the Church of England, wh ...

of the Bible translates the Hebrew as "

" and uses it as a way to describe God. The word is the first-person singular

form of , 'to be'. Biblical Hebrew does not distinguish between

grammatical tense In grammar, tense is a grammatical category, category that expresses time reference. Tenses are usually manifested by the use of specific forms of verbs, particularly in their grammatical conjugation, conjugation patterns. The main tenses found ...

s. It has instead an aspectual system in which the imperfect denotes any actions that are not yet completed, Accordingly, can 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, (), "I am Being/the Existing One" in the

, and

Philo Philo of Alexandria (; ; ; ), also called , was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt. The only event in Philo's life that can be decisively dated is his representation of the Alexandrian J ...

, and

Revelation Revelation, or divine revelation, is the disclosing of some form of Religious views on truth, truth or Knowledge#Religion, knowledge through communication with a deity (god) or other supernatural entity or entities in the view of religion and t ...

;

, , "I am Who I am." The word is a

relative pronoun A relative pronoun is a pronoun that marks a relative clause. An example is the word ''which'' in the sentence "This is the house which Jack built." Here the relative pronoun ''which'' introduces the relative clause. The relative clause modifies th ...

whose meaning depends on the immediate context, so that "that", "who", "which", or "where" are all possible translations of that word.Seidner, 4.

Other names and titles

Baal

meant '

owner Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as ''title'', which may be separated and held by diffe ...

' and, by extension, 'lord', '

master Master, master's or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles In education: *Master (college), head of a college *Master's degree, a postgraduate or sometimes undergraduate degree in the specified discipline *Schoolmaster or master, presiding office ...

', and 'husband' in Hebrew and the other

Northwest Semitic languages Northwest Semitic is a division of the Semitic languages comprising the indigenous languages of the Levant. It emerged from Proto-Semitic in the Early Bronze Age. It is first attested in proper names identified as Amorite in the Middle Bronze ...

. In some early contexts and

theophoric name A theophoric name (from Greek: , ''theophoros'', literally "bearing or carrying a god") embeds the word equivalent of 'god' or a god's name in a person's name, reflecting something about the character of the person so named in relation to that d ...

s, it and (; "My Lord") were treated as synonyms of Adon and Adonai. After the time of

Solomon Solomon (), also called Jedidiah, was the fourth monarch of the Kingdom of Israel (united monarchy), Kingdom of Israel and Judah, according to the Hebrew Bible. The successor of his father David, he is described as having been the penultimate ...

and particularly after

Jezebel Jezebel ()"Jezebel"
(US) and

's attempt to promote the worship of the Lord of Tyre

Melqart Melqart () was the tutelary god of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre and a major deity in the Phoenician and Punic pantheons. He may have been central to the founding-myths of various Phoenician colonies throughout the Mediterranean, as well ...

, however, the name became particularly associated with the Canaanite

storm god A weather god or goddess, also frequently known as a storm god or goddess, is a deity in mythology associated with weather phenomena such as thunder, snow, lightning, rain, wind, storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Should they only be in charge of ...

Baʿal Haddu and was gradually avoided as a title for Yahweh. Several names that included it were rewritten as ("shame"). The

prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divinity, divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings ...

Hosea In the Hebrew Bible, Hosea ( or ; ), also known as Osee (), son of Beeri, was an 8th-century BC prophet in Israel and the nominal primary author of the Book of Hosea. He is the first of the Twelve Minor Prophets, whose collective writing ...

in particular reproached the

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

for continuing to use the term:

Elah

(, pl. or ; ) is the

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

word for God and the absolute singular form of , . The origin of the word is from

Proto-Semitic Proto-Semitic is the reconstructed common ancestor of the Semitic languages. There is no consensus regarding the location of the linguistic homeland for Proto-Semitic: scholars hypothesize that it may have originated in the Levant, the Sahara, ...

and is thus cognate to the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

, Akkadian, and other

Semitic languages The Semitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. They include Arabic, Amharic, Tigrinya language, Tigrinya, Aramaic, Hebrew language, Hebrew, Maltese language, Maltese, Modern South Arabian language ...

' words for god. is found in the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. ''

Ezra Ezra ( fl. fifth or fourth century BCE) is the main character of the Book of Ezra. According to the Hebrew Bible, he was an important Jewish scribe (''sofer'') and priest (''kohen'') in the early Second Temple period. In the Greek Septuagint, t ...

Jeremiah Jeremiah ( – ), also called Jeremias, was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish tradition, Jeremiah authored the Book of Jeremiah, book that bears his name, the Books of Kings, and the Book of Lamentations, with t ...

(Jeremiah 10:11, the only verse in the entire book written in Aramaic), and

. is used to describe both pagan gods and the Abrahamic God. * , God of Israel (Ezra 5:1) * , God of Jerusalem (Ezra 7:19) * , God of Heaven (Ezra 7:23) * , God of my fathers, (Daniel 2:23) * , God of gods (Daniel 2:47)

El Roi

In the

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek language, Greek ; ; ) is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its incipit, first word, (In the beginning (phrase), 'In the beginning'). Genesis purpor ...

Hagar According to the Book of Genesis, Hagar is an Egyptian slave, a handmaiden of Sarah (then known as ''Sarai''), whom Sarah gave to her own husband Abram (later renamed Abraham) as a wife to bear him a child. Abraham's firstborn son, through Haga ...

uses this name for the God who spoke to her through his

angel An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...

. In Hebrew, her phrase , literally, 'God of Seeing Me', is translated in the

as "Thou God seest me."

Elyon

The name () occurs in combination with , , and alone. It appears chiefly in poetic and later Biblical passages. The modern Hebrew adjective means 'supreme' (as in "Supreme Court": ) or 'Most High'. has been traditionally translated into English as 'God Most High'. The

used what appears to be a similar name for God, one that the Greeks wrote as .

Eternal One

''The Eternal One'' or ''The Eternal'' is increasingly used, particularly in

Reform Reform refers to the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The modern usage of the word emerged in the late 18th century and is believed to have originated from Christopher Wyvill's Association movement, which ...

and Reconstructionist communities seeking to use

gender-neutral language Gender-neutral language or gender-inclusive language is language that avoids reference towards a particular sex or gender. In English, this includes use of nouns that are not gender-specific to refer to roles or professions, formation of phrases i ...

. In the Torah, ("the Everlasting God") is used at Genesis 21:33 to refer to God.

HaShem

It is common Jewish practice to restrict the use of the names of God to a

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

context. In casual conversation some Jews, even when not speaking Hebrew, will call God HaShem (), which is Hebrew for 'the Name' (compare Leviticus 24:11 and

28:58). When written, it is often abbreviated to . Likewise, when quoting from the Tanakh or prayers, some pious Jews will replace with . For example, when making audio recordings of prayer services, will generally be substituted for . A popular expression containing this phrase is , meaning "Thank

" (literally, 'Blessed be the Name').

Samaritans Samaritans (; ; ; ), are an ethnoreligious group originating from the Hebrews and Israelites of the ancient Near East. They are indigenous to Samaria, a historical region of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah that ...

use the

equivalent (, 'the name') in much the same situations as Jews use .

Shalom

Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...

ic authors, ruling on the basis of

Gideon Gideon (; ) also named Jerubbaal and Jerubbesheth, was a military leader, judge and prophet whose calling and victory over the Midianites is recounted in of the Book of Judges in both the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible. Gideon was th ...

's name for an altar (, according to

6:24), write that "the name of God is 'Peace (, Shabbat 10b); consequently, a

ic opinion (, 10b) asserts that one would greet another with the word in order for the word not to be forgotten in the

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

. But one is not permitted to greet another with the word in unholy places such as a bathroom, because of the holiness of the name.

Shekhinah

() 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 the

Tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle (), also known as the Tent of the Congregation (, also Tent of Meeting), was the portable earthly dwelling of God used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instru ...

or 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

* – 'Strong One' * – 'Great One' * – 'Master of the World' * – sometimes seen as an alternative transliteration of Elohim * - 'I am that I am': another modern Hebrew form of "" * (or ) – 'Father of Creation'; mentioned once in

2 Enoch The Second Book of Enoch (abbreviated as 2 Enoch and also known as Slavonic Enoch, Slavic Enoch, or the Secrets of Enoch) is a pseudepigraphic text in the apocalyptic genre. It describes the ascent of the patriarch Enoch, ancestor of Noah, throug ...

, "On the tenth heaven is God, in the Hebrew tongue he is called ". * – 'Father of Mercy' * ' – 'Our Father, Our King' * ' – 'The Creator' * – 'Creator of the World' * or – '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. * – 'I Am That I Am': a modern Hebrew version of "" * – 'The One Above' () * – 'Endless, Infinite', Kabbalistic name of God * – 'God the Hero', 'God the Strong' or 'God the Warrior' * – 'Truth' (the "

Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, also called "true seal" ** Fur seal ** Eared seal * Seal ( ...

of God". f.The word is composed of the first, middle, and last letters of the

Hebrew alphabet The Hebrew alphabet (, ), known variously by scholars as the Ktav Ashuri, Jewish script, square script and block script, is a unicase, unicameral abjad script used in the writing of the Hebrew language and other Jewish languages, most notably ...

. See also Alpha and Omega#Judaism) * (Hebrew); (Aramaic) – 'The Holy One, Blessed Be He' * – 'Was, Is, and Will be' * – 'Holy One of Israel' * – 'Shield of Abraham' * or – literally 'The Place', perhaps meaning 'The Omnipresent' (see

Tzimtzum The ''tzimtzum'' or ''tsimtsum'' () is a term used in Lurianic Kabbalah to explain Isaac Luria's doctrine that God began the process of creation by limiting the Ohr Ein Sof (infinite light) of the Godhead in order to allow for a conceptual spa ...

) * – 'Clother of the Naked' * – 'Freer of the Captives' * – 'Life giver to All' (Reform version of ) * – 'Life giver to the Dead' * – 'The

King of Kings King of Kings, ''Mepet mepe''; , group="n" was a ruling title employed primarily by monarchs based in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Commonly associated with History of Iran, Iran (historically known as name of Iran, Persia ...

' or 'The King, King of Kings', to express superiority to the earthly ruler's title * – 'The King of the World' * – 'The Word of the ' (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 Hebrew ) * – 'He who spoke, and the world came into being'. * – 'The Glory of Israel' (1 Samuel 15:29) * – 'Maker of Peace' * – 'Opener of Blind Eyes' * – 'The Merciful One' * – 'The Merciful One' (Aramaic) * – 'Master of all Worlds' * – 'Master of the World' * – 'Shepherd of Israel' * – 'Healer of the Sick' * – 'Guardian of Israel' * – 'Supporter of the Fallen' * – '

Rock of Israel The Rock of Israel (, ''Tzur Yisrael'') is a concept in Judaism that alludes to God, and in Zionism and politics, to the cultural and historical heritage of the Jewish people and the foundation of the State of Israel. The term was used in the Israe ...

' * () – 'The Will Provide' * – 'The that Healeth' * () – 'The Our Banner' * – 'The Our Peace' * – 'The of Hosts' * – 'The My Shepherd' * – 'The Our Righteousness' * () – 'The Is Present' * – 'Fashioner of Light' * – 'Straightener of the Bent'

Writing divine names

In Jewish tradition the sacredness of the divine name or titles must be recognized by the professional (scribe) who writes

Torah scrolls A Sephardic Torah scroll rolled to the first paragraph of the Shema An Ashkenazi Torah scroll rolled to the Decalogue file:Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue, Interior, Tora Cases.jpg">Torah cases at Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue, Mumbai, India ...

, or and . 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 a (burial place for scripture) and a new page begun.

Kabbalistic use

One of the most important names is that of the ( 'Endless'), which first came into use after 1300 CE. Another name is derived from the names . By spelling these four names out with the names of the Hebrew letters ( and ) this new forty-five letter long name is produced. Spelling the letters in (YHWH) by itself gives . Each letter in Hebrew is given a value, according to

gematria In numerology, gematria (; or , plural or ) is the practice of assigning a numerical value to a name, word, or phrase by reading it as a number, or sometimes by using an alphanumeric cipher. The letters of the alphabets involved have standar ...

, and the value of is also 45. The 72-fold name is derived from three verses in

14:19–21. Each of the verses contains 72 letters. When the verses are read

boustrophedon Boustrophedon () is a style of writing in which alternate lines of writing are reversed, with letters also written in reverse, mirror-style. This is in contrast to modern European languages, where lines always begin on the same side, usually the l ...

ically 72 names, three letters each, are produced (the of the source verses is disregarded in respect to pronunciation). Some regard this name as the

Shem HaMephorash ''Shem HaMephorash'' ( ''Šēm hamMəfōrāš'', also ''Shem ha-Mephorash''), meaning "the explicit name", was originally a Tannaitic term for the Tetragrammaton. In Kabbalah, it may refer to a name of God composed of either 4, 12, 22, 42, or 72 ...

Erasing the name of God

From this it is understood by the rabbis that one should not erase or blot out the name of God. The general

halachic ''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is based on biblical commandments ('' mitz ...

opinion 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 words ''God'' and ''Lord'' are written by some Jews as ''G-d'' and ''L-rd'' as 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 as (literally, 'the Name') may be substituted, or an abbreviation thereof, such as in ( 'with the help of the Name').

Explanatory notes

References

Citations

Works cited

* . * . Translated from the Spanish as ''A Dictionary of the Ugaritic Language in the Alphabetic Tradition'' (Ser. Handbuch der Orientalistik andbook of Oriental Studies Vol. 112). * . * . * . * .

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.

Names of God
��''

The Jewish Encyclopedia ''The Jewish Encyclopedia: A Descriptive Record of the History, Religion, Literature, and Customs of the Jewish People from the Earliest Times to the Present Day'' is an English-language encyclopedia containing over 15,000 articles on the ...

''
"Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh" – Song and Video of Ancient Yemenite Prayer from the Diwan
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Names Of God In Judaism Deities in the Hebrew Bible Hebrew Bible words and phrases Language and mysticism

Seven names of God

Tetragrammaton

Adonai

El

Elohim

Shaddai

Tzevaot

Ehyeh

Other names and titles

Baal

Elah

El Roi

Elyon

Eternal One

HaShem

Shalom

Shekhinah

Uncommon or esoteric names

Writing divine names

Kabbalistic use

Erasing the name of God

See also

Explanatory notes

References

Citations

Works cited

Further reading

External links