The Name of God
65
Elohim
The first name God gives himself is Elohim. The first sentence of the Bible, Genesis 1:1 is most often translated, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth," the Hebrew word translated "God" is Elohim.
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I have read numerous interpretations of Elohim: the Lord is my strength, the plural nature of the word Elohim for one God, the powerful one, it seems the discussion is endless...and perhaps justifiably so. The subjects of God, the nature of God, the word of God, etc., are endless, why should one of the names of God be any less so.
And while I certainly do not intend to resolve any of the discussions mentioned above in this hub, I do want to suggest another alternative (not necessarily in place of, but in addition to, all the above).
Elohim in the Ancient Hebrew
As I have attempted to do in my other hubs, I want to look at what the ancient Hebrew pictographs that make up the Hebrew word Elohim show us. Elohim is spelled in Hebrew ALEPH, LAMED, HEY, YOD and MEM. ALEPH (the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and similar to our letter "A") in the ancient Hebrew pictographs is pictured as an ox head, and it signifies strength, or God - as in the Lord is my strength. LAMED (L) is pictured as a shepherd's staff, meaning to shepherd or lead. HEY (H) is pictured as a man with outstretched or open arms, meaning to behold or God's grace/provision. YOD (Y) is pictured as the arm from the fist to the elbow, meaning my hand or works. MEM (M) is pictured as waves of water, meaning waters or peoples/nations.
The Lord is My Shepherd
In other words, the name Elohim is the LORD is my SHEPHERD by his GRACE he provides for MY needs (I SHALL NOT WANT), he takes me by MY HAND and LEADS me by still WATERS. Sounding familiar? That's right, Psalm 23. So, while the Lord is definitely our strength, I think He primarily wants to be our shepherd.
Approximately 400 years after Moses writes "In the beginning God (Elohim)...", David, appropriately enough a shepherd, writes perhaps the most memorable and most quoted Psalm, Psalm23: "The Lord is my shepherd..." I wonder if Moses knew?
Below is the visual depiction of Elohim:
View Elohim
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I love your method of looking at the individual letters, their meanings to get such wonderful meanings! I think that is part of His magic!
Lots of valuable information in this article.....I have attempted to study the scriptures using a Strong's Concordence...and feel that to get to the truth of the Word we MUST at least look at the original language it was written in. Thanks for this info.
Thanks, debrakcarey. I appreciate you reading. Since I have started studying Hebrew, I have learned more about scripture than I ever could have without it. Keep coming back.
We do not realize the depth of the wisdom and power of the Word of God...nor of our own power when speaking or writing. Language is the means by which the universe was spoken into being....and by which the heart of the Creator is revealed...there is much to learn.
I am only beginning to realize the depth, but it would take many, many lifetimes to even begin to comprehend.
wow i'm totally blown apart...with just one name of God you break it down and i can see my salvation...the world is rich with 1000's of languages but i'm in the view that if one really understand Hebrew, one's understanding of God would be greatly enhanced...i was trying to compose a song about God thru his names and its really amazing how you present it...may God continue to enrich you with his wisdom so that you'll help pple like me knw God better..thanks so much.
There is absolutely no proof, none, what-so-ever that the Ancient Hebrew was pictogrpahic. The names which have been surmised by foreigners such as the Greek and Roman church fathers was not what the Hebrews actually named their letters. It is well known to every Hebrew who first learns the aleph-beth what the sages have taught concerning the meaning of the aleph-bet:
????? ???????! ?????? ???? ???,
????? ??? ??? ??? ?????,
???? ????? ?????????? ?????? ????? ??? (?) ?????.
??? ????? ???? ????.
Transliteration:
Ellaf binat! Gomel dal hu,wehu zan chai tuv yadoh,kaf lemad mim-nu: semokh ani pi (y) tsedeq. Qof Rosh sim taw.
Translation:
Learn to understand: God does good to the poor and feeds all living (creatures) with bounteous hand; bow (to Him), learn from Him to support the poor, and let thy mouth (speak) truth. (Thus,) on the front of the head is put a token, (as a symbol of thy covenant with the Lord)
It should especially be noted that ?? is apparently used here in the same way as in Micah 6.6: "Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself (??????) before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?", and further, that the word ???? in the Bible is used solely in the sense of "protective divine token on a man's forehead:77 "And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a token (????) upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof. And to them (scil. the angels of destruction) he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the token", ( ????? Ezek. 9.4-6), because the divine token is protecting him. (H. Tur-Sinai of the Hebrew University, Israeli; The Origin of the Alphabet, The Jewish Quarterly Review, New Series, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Jul., 1950), pp. 83-109)
MrMarmalade 4 years ago
Your knowledge is very extensive
Thank you for this briefing