Names of God in Judaism

In Judaism , the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world . To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God , and as a means of showing respect and reverence for them, the scribes of sacred texts treat them with absolute sanctity when writing and speaking them. The various titles for God in Judaism represent God as He is known, as well as the divine aspects which are attributed to Him. The numerous titles for God have been a source of debate amongst biblical scholars. Some have advanced the variety as proof that the Torah , the main scripture of Judaism, has many authors (see documentary hypothesis ). YHWH is the only proper "name of God" in the Tanakh , in the sense that Abraham or Sarah are proper names by which you call a person. Whereas words such as Elohim (god, or authority), El (mighty one), Shaddai (almighty), Adonai (master), Elyon (most high), Avinu (our father), etc. are not names but titles, highlighting different aspects of YHWH, and the various roles which God has. This is similar to how someone may be called 'father', 'husband', 'brother', 'son', etc, but their personal name is the only one that can be correctly identified as their actual designation. In the Tanakh, YHWH is the personal name of the God of Israel, whereas other 'names' are titles which are ascribed to God.

The name of God in Judaism used most often in the Hebrew Bible is יהוה (YHWH), also known as the Tetragrammaton . Elohim (God, singular and plural form, depending on the context), and Adonai (master), are regarded by rabbinic Judaism not as names , but as epithets or titles reflecting different aspects of God. Elohim is the aspect of justice, and Adonai the aspect of mercy.

Rabbinic Judaism considers seven names of God in Judaism so holy that, once written, they should not be erased: YHWH , El ("God"), Eloah ("God"), Elohim ("Gods"), Shaddai (“Almighty"), Ehyeh ("I Am"), and Tzevaot ("[of] Hosts"). Other names are considered mere epithets or titles reflecting different aspects of God, but Khumra sometimes dictates special care such as the writing of "G-d" instead of "God" in English or saying Ṭēt - Vav ( טו , lit. "9-6") instead of Yōd - Hē ( יה , lit. "10-5" but also " Jah ") for the number fifteen in Hebrew . The documentary hypothesis proposes that the Torah was compiled from various original sources, two of which (the Jahwist and the Elohist ) are named for their usual names for God (Yahweh and Elohim respectively).

Names given to God in Judaism Hebrew name of God inscribed on the page of a Sephardic manuscript of the Hebrew Bible (1385) Judaism considers some names of God so holy that, once written, they should not be erased: יהוה ( YHWH ), אֲדֹנָי ( Adonai ), אֵל ( El transl. God , a plural noun), אֵל שַׁדַּי ( El Shaddai transl. Almighty ), יְהֹוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת ( Adonai Tzevaoth transl. Lord of Hosts ) and צְבָאֽוֹת ( Tzevaoth transl. [of] Hosts ); some also include I Am that I Am . Early authorities considered other Hebrew names mere epithets 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 ( טו , lit. "9-6") instead of Yōd - Hē ( יה , lit. "10-5" but also " Jah ") for the number fifteen or Ṭēt- Zayin ( טז , lit. "9-7") instead of Yōd-Vav ( יו , lit. "10-6") for the Hebrew number sixteen. There are <ref group=n> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ). This is the formulation of Joseph Karo (SA YD 276:9). Maimonides (MT Yesodei haTorah 6:2), Jacob ben Asher (AT YD 276), and Isaac Alfasi (HK Menachot 3b) also included I Am that I Am , as do many later authorities, including Moses Isserles (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 ( Responsa 3:15), the Tosafists (b. Sotah 10a), Yechiel of Paris (cited Birkei Yosef, Oraḥ Hayyim 85:8), Simeon ben Zemah Duran , Yaakov ben Moshe Levi Moelin , and Moses Isserles (SA YD 276:13), include the term Shalom as well. e.g. Yechiel Michel Epstein (AH HM 27) was the first major authority to explicitly disagree.

The Tetragrammaton (YHWH), the main Hebrew name of God inscribed on the page of a Sephardic manuscript of the Hebrew Bible (1385) Judaism has different names given to God , which are considered sacred: יהוה ( YHWH ), אֲדֹנָי ( Adonai transl. my Lord[s] ), אֵל ( El transl. Almighty ), and צְבָאוֹת ( Tzevaoth transl. [Lord of] Hosts ); some also include I Am that I Am . Early authorities considered other Hebrew names mere epithets 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 ( טו , lit. '9-6') instead of Yōd - Hē ( יה , '10-5', but also ' Jah ') for the number fifteen or Ṭēt- Zayin ( טז , '9-7') instead of Yōd-Vav ( יו , '10-6') for the Hebrew number sixteen. There are <ref group=n> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a template (see the help page ). This is the formulation of Joseph Karo (SA YD 276:9). Maimonides (MT Yesodei haTorah 6:2), Jacob ben Asher (AT YD 276), and Isaac Alfasi (HK Menachot 3b) also included I Am that I Am , as do many later authorities, including Moses Isserles (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 ( Responsa 3:15), the Tosafists (b. Sotah 10a), Yechiel of Paris (cited Birkei Yosef, Oraḥ Hayyim 85:8), Simeon ben Zemah Duran , Yaakov ben Moshe Levi Moelin , and Moses Isserles (SA YD 276:13), include the term Shalom as well. e.g. Yechiel Michel Epstein (AH HM 27) was the first major authority to explicitly disagree.