The Many Names of God –

Other Names


Genesis 14:18-22; Psalms 57:2, Luke 8:28, El Elyon, Elyon "God Most High, Most High"
Psalms 150, see also 104-106, 111-113, 115-116, 135, 146-149
Genesis 31:53a, 32:9; Exodus 3:6, 3:15-16, 4:5; Mark 12:24-27; Acts 3:13, 7:30-32, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
Genesis 31:41-53, Fear of Isaac

Isaiah 63:16, 64:8, Avinu "Our Father"
Ecclesiastes 12:1; Isaiah 40:28-31, 43:15, Boreh "Creator"
2 Kings 19:22; Psalms 71:21-24; Isaiah 5:18-23, Kadosh Israel "Holy One of Israel"
Genesis 49:22-24a, Abir Jaacov "The Mighty One of Jacob"

Genesis 49:24b; Psalm 80:1-7; Isaiah 40:10-11; Ezekiel 34:11-15, 23-24, Ro'eh Israel "Shepherd of Israel"
Genesis 49:24; 1 Samuel 7:7-17, Eben Israel "Stone of Israel"
Deuteronomy 32:4, 15-37; 2 Samuel 23:3-4; Isaiah 30:29, Tzur Israel "Rock of Israel"
1 Samuel 26:8-23; Psalms 2, Messiah/Christ (OT)

More Names of God

Copyright information, disclaimers, and sponsors
Return to homepage


Genesis 14:18-22; Psalms 57:2, Luke 8:28, El Elyon, Elyon "God Most High, Most High" (1/15/2009)

El Elyon is another one of those titles that seems to shade across into a name. We already know that El means God. Elyon means "most high." (This is a separate word; the "el" part of "elyon" isn't spelled the same as "el" and doesn't mean "God.") Unlike Sabaoth, Elyon is translated when it comes into the New Testament. El Elyon is less common than some of the other names and titles we've seen, occurring only about 40 times in the OT and five times in the NT. Interestingly enough, the only speakers to use it in the NT (3 times) are demons, who are certainly in a position to know whom they are talking to. The other two occurrences are quoting from the OT.

Notice that Abraham and Sarah were not the only people of their time who worshipped El Elyon. Melchizedek was a priest of El Elyon.


Psalms 150, see also 104-106, 111-113, 115-116, 135, 146-149, YAH (1/16/2009)

Hallelujah! We are all checked out on the seven most important names of God: El and Elohim (God), Adonai (Lord), YHWH (unpronounceable, say "Lord"), Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh (I AM), Shaddai (meaning unknown), and Tzevaot (Sabaoth = of armies). Now you are ready to sing the following hymns with renewed vigor: But wait! There's more! Hallelujah contains another name! Yah is a strange little word that is one of God's names. It is probably a form of our old friend, "I am." Halelu is Hebrew for "Y'all praise!" "Alleluia" is one Greek or English word that is transliterated from the two Hebrew words; therefore it means exactly what the Hebrew means. Unfortunately, most of us didn't learn that in Sunday School, so we end up using "Hallelujah!" to mean "I'm sure glad about that!"

Yah is used as an independent word mainly in the Psalms. It is used many, many times as a combining form in names, usually in the form "-iah" or "J-." For example, Zedekiah means God is Righteous, and Joshua means God Saves.


Genesis 31:53a, 32:9; Exodus 3:6, 3:15-16, 4:5; Mark 12:24-27; Acts 3:13, 7:30-32, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (1/19/2009)

So this guy is walking along the arroyo, see, and a voice says, "Hey, come over here!" So the guy goes over, and there's this cactus. A voice from the cactus says, "I want you to go to Washington and straighten everything out." The guy says, "OK. Whom shall I say has sent me?" The voice says, "GOD." And the guy says, "Which god?"

Unfortunately, this is not a joke. There were dozens of gods when God called Moses to the burning bush. We even know a lot of their names: Molech, Astoreth, Chemosh, Milcom, Baal, Dagon, and Diana all appear in the Bible (they get bad press, though). Osirus, Horus, Isis, and others were known to the Hebrews in Egypt, and Paul saw many of the Greek and Roman gods in Athens, although none of these are named in the Bible. Fortunately, God understood the problem Moses was having, and He identified Himself specifically: "I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." God could have named Abraham's brother and father and Melchizedek as well. In this conversation, God identified Himself by emphasizing whose God He is. Notice that Jesus chooses to emphasize whose God He is.


Genesis 31:41-53, Fear of Isaac (1/20/2009)

WARNING: Some wearers of gift jewelry may be offended by today's study tip.

Jacob was secretly taking his wives, children, flocks, and herds away from the place of his father-in-law Laban, when Laban found out about it and caught up with them. After some discussion, they agreed to separate peacefully, but not entirely trustfully. They set up a witness stone as a boundary marker and swore not to cross the boundary to do harm to one another.

My personal nomination for "Verse Most Amusingly Taken Out of Context" is "May the LORD watch between thee and me while we are apart." Usually you find this verse written on a matched pair of something, say, two necklaces. The idea seems to be, "I love you so much that I am praying that we can be together again." Now, although I have never done so, I once joked that I would give one half of such a pair to my husband. He laughed, because he knew that I meant it exactly the same way Jacob and Laban did – as a threat: "If you do anything wrong while you are out of my sight, I will call upon God for judgment!"

Appropriately enough, God is called Pachad Yitzhak "the Fear of Isaac" only twice – once near the beginning of this passage and once near the end, so the fear motif forms a little pair of bookends around the threat. (By the way, it is definitely "Isaac's fear," not "being afraid of Isaac.")

Some translations go in different directions altogether, for example, "Kinsman of Isaac," which is based on an Aramaic word. Too bad that pachad is a perfectly good Hebrew word meaning "dread." I looked at the study notes in the Jerusalem and Schocken Bibles, at Wesley's commentary, and a couple of web sites, and I have to tell you that scholars don't quite know what to make of this name. I like my bookend explanation, but if you don't, that's fine – I didn't see it proposed by anybody who actually knows anything.


Isaiah 63:16, 64:8, Avinu "Our Father" (1/21/2009)

I was reading some commentary or other recently in which the writer made the point that Jesus alone in the whole Bible calls God "my Father." I had never noticed this before, so I did some fairly careful checking, and it appears to be true. Amazing! Jesus uses this name about 70 recorded times (some of which are duplicates), and presumably many unrecorded times. He also calls God "your Father" about 20 recorded times in speaking to crowds – mostly in the plural, I think. Paul calls God "our Father" about 17 times. No one else uses "our Father" in the New Testament.

Now, this seems very strange to me, having been raised to address God as "Father," just as Jesus did. The main explanation that I can think of is that the Jews were not accustomed to seeing God as their Father, but rather Abraham. "Our Father" is used only twice in the OT as a name or title for God. Not surprisingly, it was the prophet Isaiah who had this brilliant insight that God was not only the divine and powerful Lord, but also the loving Father of us all.


Ecclesiastes 12:1; Isaiah 40:28-31, 43:15, Boreh "Creator" (1/22/2009)

After reading two creation stories and reciting "I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth" a few hundred times, you probably think that "Creator" would be a common name or title for God. You would be mistaken, however. This name is used only 5 or 6 times, three times in the Old Testament and two or three times in the New Testament, depending on how you read one text (Colossians 3:9-10).

All of these texts seem to me to have a similar flavor. They seem to be contrasting me with God, not because God is holy and I am unholy – which is my own choice, or even because God is powerful and I am weak – which is simply unfair. Instead, they contrast me with God because God is the Creator and I am a creature, which is humiliating. I think this is clearest in the first two readings, but it also comes through in the others. Even when I am (or was) young and strong, as a creature I am aware that it won't last. Strength and energy may not even last for a short time, Isaiah says. Only through the gift and intervention of the Creator is the creature empowered. Do you suppose this name for God is rare because it reminds us that we are creatures?


2 Kings 19:22; Psalms 71:21-24; Isaiah 5:18-23, Kadosh Israel "Holy One of Israel" (1/23/2009)

God is called the "Holy One of Israel," (also Holy One or Holy One of Jacob) about 40 times in the Old Testament. At least once, in Psalms 16:10, "Holy One" is taken to refer to the Messiah. Jesus is called the "Holy One of God" by a demon (Mark 1:24) and by Peter (John 6:69), who also calls Jesus the "Holy One" (Acts 3:14). We have all sung "Holy, Holy, Holy, LORD God Almighty" enough times to know that God is holy. The psalm we read today is similar in spirit; it is a celebration of God's holiness.

In Leviticus 11:44, God says, "Y'all be holy, because I am holy!" Difficulty aside, that's a little hazy on the details, which is alarming because the prophet Isaiah says that reviling, questioning, or failing to imitate God's holiness is a sin. Fortunately, Jesus is also the Holy One, and he reinforces that by saying "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. I and the Father are one." Christ's example and teaching are clear and show exactly what holiness is in a broad range of circumstances. Be Christlike. Be holy.


Genesis 49:22-24a, Abir Jaacov "The Mighty One of Jacob" (1/26/2009)

We all know about the Lord strong and mighty, strong and mighty in battle.

Another name or title of God is the "Mighty One of Jacob," which comes through in some translations as the "Mighty God of Jacob," even through "God" is not in the Hebrew. Two verses have "Mighty One of Israel" (Isaiah 1:24 and 30:29), which could either mean Jacob or the nation of Israel. Since nowhere do we see "Mighty One of Judah," I'm betting that we have a total of 7 references to God as the Mighty One of Jacob.

Why not the Mighty One of Somebody Else? I don't know, but here's something to think about. After Jacob left his father-in-law Laban, he was in a difficult position. There was not a lot of love lost between him and Laban, so he couldn't very well turn around and go back. On the other hand, the last time he heard from his brother, Esau was out for his blood. Jacob sends his family to a safe place, but then a strange thing happens. A man comes and wrestles with him all night. Before Jacob will back off, he insists that the man give him his blessing. The man says, "Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed." So maybe God is called "the Mighty One of Jacob" because He wrestled with Jacob all night.


Genesis 49:24b; Psalm 80:1-7; Isaiah 40:10-11; Ezekiel 34:11-15, 23-24, Ro'eh Israel "Shepherd of Israel" (1/27/2009)

Quick! How many of you can recite Psalm 23? Even if you know it by heart, you might be surprised to know that the image of God as a shepherd of His people is very common in the Old Testament, although the specific name or title "Shepherd of Israel" is used only once or twice. The figure of the shepherd is used in three ways. Often God is the shepherd, as in Psalm 23. Second, the Messiah is the shepherd, as shown in Ezekiel 34:23-24. Remember that Ezekiel is preaching long after the time of David; "David" is used to refer to the offspring of David, i.e., the Messiah. Isaiah 40:10-11 is also frequently taken to be speaking of the Messiah. Third, God often refers to the political and religious leaders of Israel or Judah (and the occasional foreign ruler) as shepherds, although usually God is saying that the people are like sheep without a shepherd, because the leaders aren't doing their jobs properly.


Genesis 49:24; 1 Samuel 7:7-17, Eben Israel "Stone of Israel" (1/28/2009)

God is called the "Stone of Israel" once. I admit to a little puzzlement about this title, and the references I checked were no help. One footnoted Bible passed over Genesis 49:24 with no comment on "Stone of Israel." One omitted it from the translation. One translated it as "Rock," which seems to me to be taking real liberties with the text. The Interpreter's Bible didn't comment. Here's my suggestion. Take it for what it's worth.

I didn't look at every single instance of "stone" and "rock," but the ones I did look at were consistent. An eben, "stone," always seems to be small enough for a person or two to pick up, as opposed to a tzur, "rock," which seems almost always to be more geological in size, like "Plymouth Rock" (which used to be a lot bigger) or the "Rock of Gibraltar." For example, execution was by stoning, i.e., picking up stones and throwing them at the criminal until he or she died. Surely we can't be referring to God as small and manipulable, so I think maybe the answer is in the other uses of stones. Stones, not rocks, were used to build alters. Stones, not rocks, were set up as witnesses and given names, as we saw in Genesis 31:46-47 when Laban and Jacob set up a heap of stones as a witness, and as we see today. "Stone of Israel" suggests to me that God is not only the Shepherd who cares for us, but the Witness to our actions.


Deuteronomy 32:4, 15-37; 2 Samuel 23:3-4; Isaiah 30:29, Tzur Israel "Rock of Israel" (1/29/2009)

The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted! (Psalms 18:46). We saw yesterday that God is called the "Stone of Israel" once. God is called or compared with a Tzur 32 times, e.g., Rock, Rock of Salvation, Rock of Israel, and Rock of Refuge. Tzur means "rock," and most of the time the English translations say "rock," although sometimes the King James translates the same word, Tzur, as strength (a few times), God (twice), or mighty one (twice). I'm not sure why this is, and apparently neither is the standard Hebrew/English dictionary or some translators of other English Bibles, e.g., CEV, ESV, and JPS, which go with "Rock" all the time. A Tzur, as opposed to the "stone" we saw yesterday, is a cliff, a butte, or at bare minimum, a boulder. God is a figurative Rock, the strong support and foundation of His people. In contrast, the gods of the heathen nations are just rocks – idols carved out of stone. I especially like the way this contrast is made in the passage from Deuteronomy.


1 Samuel 26:8-23; Psalms 2, Messiah/Christ (OT) (1/30/2009)

Messiah = Christ = Anointed One, depending on the language; however, not every reference to a messiah or christ in the Bible, especially in the Old Testament, refers to THE Messiah or Christ. You have to pay attention to the context. The two passages we read today present an example of A messiah and an example of THE Messiah. Saul was the Lord's messiah because God had chosen him and Samuel had anointed him to be King of Israel. Even though Saul was hunting David down to kill him, David repeatedly refused to harm Saul on that grounds that Saul was God's anointed one.

Given that the entire Judeo-Christian community pays considerable attention to THE Messiah, you might be surprised to learn that the Old Testament unambiguously refers to THE Messiah by name only a few times, and ambiguously maybe a dozen times. Or maybe you wouldn't, since most English translations (including JPS; I was surprised to learn) go with "anointed one" in the OT and "Christ" in the New Testament. (Well, obviously the Jewish Publication Society Bible doesn't have a NT, but you know what I mean.)

The bulk of the 37 OT occurrences of the word are talking about A messiah, i.e., a priest or king of Israel (or sometimes of another nation). Most Messianic scriptures do not use the word, and from what I gather, most of these scriptures were interpreted to be Messianic by the rabbis and the early Christian writers. (I am not suggesting that they are wrong. I'm just saying that we must rely on Biblical scholars to determine what most of the Messianic scriptures are.) I also gather that there is considerable agreement among Jewish and Christian scholars on this topic.

So our second passage is one of the relatively few scriptures that refers to THE Messiah using the word messhiach/christos. It has been interpreted as a Messianic passage by both Jewish and Christian scholars since at least the First Century, e.g., Hebrews 1:5.
More Names of God
Names of God - Introduction
Sacred Names
Other Names
Names of Jesus - Part 1
Names of Jesus - Part 2
Names of Jesus - Part 3
Names of the Spirit

Copyright 2009, 2011 by Regina L. Hunter. All rights reserved. This page has been prepared for the web site by RPB.

Opinions expressed on this page are solely those of the author, Regina Hunter, and may or may not be shared by the sponsors or the Bible-study participants.  Thanks to the Holy Spirit for any useful ideas presented here, and thanks to all the readers for their support and enthusiasm.  All errors are, of course, the sole responsibility of the author.

Our Sponsors:
St. John's United Methodist Church, "Transforming Lives Through Christ."
 2626 Arizona NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110

St. John's Music Ministries now has a YouTube channel, bringing you free concerts and choral music. Check it out!

Traditional worship services are held Sundays at 8:15 and 11:00 a.m. in the sanctuary.  Casual worship services are held Sundays at 9:30 a.m. in the Family Life Center.  Jazz Vespers are held monthly on the second Saturday at 5:00 p.m. in the sanctuary. St. John's feels especially called to the worship of God and to the service of our neighbors through our music program.


This website is supported in part by the generosity of Mrs. J. Jordan.