The KJV Code System For Divine Names

If you look at the KJV text carefully, you will notice that there are various names for Deity in the Old Testament, including "God," "GOD," "Lord," "LORD," or some combination of these terms.

Different words and spelling variations were used by the King James translators to designate the various Hebrew words for God. The three primary Hebrew words for God are Elohim, Jehovah (Yahweh), and Adonai.

Elohim. This is a general Hebrew name for Deity that designates God as our Creator and the object of all true worship. It occurs 2,570 times in the Old Testament (Jack B. Scott, s.v. "elohim," in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 2 vols. Chicago: Moody Press, 1980, 1:44.). In most instances it is rendered "God" in the King James Bible, that is, with a capital "G" and with the letters "od" written in lower case.

Elohim is plural in form, however, when it refers to the true God, it designates only one Divine Being. We know this because it is consistently used with singular verbs, and with adjectives and pronouns in the singular, so that by the rules of Hebrew grammar it must be understood and translated as singular (Ibid.). Because Elohim is a general term for God, it is also used when describing false gods.

For instance, Exodus 20:2-3 declares: "I am the LORD thy God [Elohim] which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt . . . Thou shalt have no other gods [elohim] before me." Since the same word is used for the one true God and for false gods, the KJV translators simply used a capital "G "and made it singular when the context is speaking of the one true God, to prevent confusion.

Jehovah/Yahweh. This is the personal name of the God of the Bible and speaks of Him as the holy, self-existent God who hates sin but provides redemption. It is used 5,321 times in the Old Testament (J. Barton Payne, s.v. "Yahweh," in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 1:210.). The Hebrew word Jehovah is written as "LORD" in the KJV Bible. Notice that all the letters are capitalized.

In some instances Jehovah is also written as GOD. Again, with all the letters capitalized. Wherever you see the words LORD or GOD in the Bible written in all uppercase letters, you will know that in every case it is the word Jehovah (or Yahweh, as modern scholars believe it should be pronounced) in the Hebrew text.

Adonai. This word means "Sovereign," or "Master," and emphasizes the Lordship of God. It is used more than 300 times in the Old Testament as a designation for God (Robert L. Alden, s.v. "adon," in Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 1:13.). It appears as "Lord" in the King James Bible. Notice that it is spelled with a capital "L" and lower case "ord." Like Elohim, Adonai is a special plural form. In this plural form it always refers to God (Ibid.). The singular form, Adon, is used to designate men who are lords over other people. There is a rare exception where a singular form for Lord (Adonai) is used for God.

Joshua 7:6-7 illustrates how the different names for God in the Hebrew text are coded into the King James Bible:

And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD [Jehovah] until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and put dust upon their heads. And Joshua said, Alas, O Lord [Adonai] GOD [Jehovah], wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? would to God [Elohim] we had been content, and dwelt on the other side of Jordan!

Elohim

This was sent to me by a friend who was taking a Hebrew class (Thanks, Amy H.) and I thought it had some interesting implications:

The name of God in Hebrew is “Elohim.” This word comes from the feminine singular word “eloah” (el-o’-ah). By adding “iym” to the end of it, it changes it to a plural name. However, “iym” is usually a masculine ending, yet here we see it added to a feminine word.

This gives the word “Elohim” the sense of uniting both feminine and masculine qualities. The idea of combining these two attributes suggests uniting of a man and woman, which would suggest the idea of a family.

Sharing the Light

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. John 8:12

"We form a circle of hope.
We pass the flame to one another.

If my candle goes out, yours will light it.
Together we make a brighter light...

And each candle promises something of its own:
That darkness is not the last word."

David McCauley

Born Again

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:3

"We are born not all at once, but by bits.

The body first and the spirit later; and the birth and growth of the spirit, in those attentive to their own inner life, are slow and exceedingly painful.

Our mothers are racked with the pains of our physical birth; we ourselves suffer the longer pains of spiritual growth."

Mary Antin-immigrant to the US 100 years ago.

Another Prayer Request

This one comes from a book Of the Imitation of Christ by Thomas a' Kempis:

Grant me, O Lord,
to know what I ought to know,
to love what I ought to love,
to praise what is most pleasing to Thee,
to esteem what appears precious to Thee, and
to abominate what is foul in thy sight.

A Prayer Before Study

"I seek truth and do not want to be limited by my own narrow-minded conception of what it should look like.

I will open myself to new teachings with one condition: Whatever is true should enter my life and take root; whatever is false should pass through and leave no impression.

With Thy help, Father, I trust that it will be so. Let me embrace truth and deflect falsehood. "

Doctrine as the Rain

My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: Deuteronomy 32:2

Doctrine. Better, teaching, message or instruction; cf. Prov. 4: 2. The message conveyed by the Song shall, like rain and dew falling on plants, penetrate to the hearts of the Israelites; refresh, stimulate, and give birth to a new spiritual life. The Song, therefore, is not only one of warning, but on comfort also, to awaken new hope in a suffering Israel.

Distil as the dew. God’s word is as the dew which, though it falls gently and unheard, yet has a wonderful reviving power; cf. Micah 5: 6.

Small rain. The tender grass needs the small drops for its revival. Even so is the Divine teaching tempered to meet the wants of the weak and the young.

Showers upon the herb. The grown-up grass needs the strong forceful showers.

(Hertz, Dr. J.H., The Pentateuch and Haftorahs, 2nd Ed., Soncino Press, London, 1992, pg 896)