Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Godhead Grammar

It is very common for students of the Bible in our modern day to misunderstand certain things from the scriptures, especially when those things involve the original Hebrew and Greek.  One particular source of confusion is the way certain plural words function in the Hebrew language. One website I saw had this to say about the plural Hebrew word for God, Elohim (אֶלהִים):

In the Hebrew language the "im" ending imputes plurality. Therefore, "Elohim" is the plural from of the word "El."
It is interesting to note that each usage of this word throughout the Bible is grammatically incorrect. It is a plural noun used with singular verbs. According to Genesis 1:1, the Creator of the Universe, Elohim, exists as a plural being.
What the author says at first about the word Elohim is true; it is a plural form.  But the author makes a serious error when he says that using a plural noun with a singular verb is "grammatically incorrect".  In English, using a plural noun with a singular verb is a huge grammatical error; but the Hebrew language functions very differently from English.  In Hebrew, there are times when a plural noun can be used with a singular verb and there is no grammar problems at all.

In English (and many other languages) there are two numerical categories: singular , which refers to only one person/thing; and plural, which refers to only multiple persons/things.  In languages that function this way there is no middle ground---if a thing has a plural form then it is numerically more than one and if a thing has a singular form then it is numerically only one.  This is not the case in Hebrew, however.

In Hebrew, there are not two numerical categories, but three.  Just like any other language it has singular and plural; but the third option stands half way in between the other two.  The intensive plural refers to only one person/thing, even though it looks plural in form.  Intensive plurals LOOK plural, but in reality they only refer to one thing; and that is why they can be used with singular verbs, predicate nouns, and adjectives.  The intensive plural form is to express greatness, hugeness, authority, or majesty; not multiplicity.

Let's look a the Hebrew word אָדוֹן (adon), the word for a master, lord, or overseer.  This word will show us that there are certain times when it is perfectly natural in Hebrew to use a plural noun to refer to only one person .

  • Singular
    When the children of Heth were speaking to Abraham in Genesis 26 they said "Hear us, my lord (אָדוֹן
    ): thou art a mighty prince among us" (v.6).  Abraham is only one person so they used the singular form of the word. 
  • Numeric Plural
    Isaiah prayed, "O L
    ORD our God, other lords (אֲדֹנִים) beside thee have had dominion over us" (Isa. 23:16).  In this verse Isaiah is talking about multiple other rulers that have controlled Israel instead of God.  He uses the plural form "lords", אֲדֹנִים (adonim); and he uses it with the plural verb "[they] have had dominion".

    In Psalm 136:3 David called Jehovah "the Lord of lords (אֲדֹנִים)".  David is saying that God is the ruler over all of the other rulers that exist; אֲדֹנִים (adonim, "lords") here is obviously numerically plural.
  • Intensive Plural
    In Genesis 42:30 Joseph is described as "The man, who is the lord (אֲדֹנִים) of the land", Egypt.  This verse uses the plural form אֲדֹנִים (adonim).  But this verse is only talking about one person; that is why the verse uses the singular word "man".  Joseph is only one person!  The intensive plural is used to show that he was a very powerful ruler.

    In Exodus 21:6 a servant's owner is called "his master (אֲדֹנִים)".  This verse is only talking about one owner, because this verse uses the singular verb "[he] shall bring".  The intensive plural is used because of the authority that a master has over his servant.

    In 2 Kings 2 there were certain men who told Elisha that God was about to take Elijah, Elisha's master, from him.  These men told Elisha, "the L
    ORD will take away thy master (אֲדֹנִים) from thy head to day" (v.3).  Elijah is only one person, so the plural form אֲדֹנִים (adonim) cannot be numerically plural and refer to multiple people.  It is an intensive plural referring to only one person, Elijah.
    These are only three.  I could list multiple other times when the Hebrew word אָדוֹן (adon) uses a plural form even when it refers to only one person.  
Understanding the intensive plural in Hebrew grammar is important because some teachers (like the website I quoted at the beginning) abuse these plural forms and use them to teach that unbiblical things about God.  Trinitarian believers teach that God is multiple persons because he is described with plural words; and this is simply not the case.

God is described with the plural form אֲדֹנִים (adonim) in scripture; but that does not automatically mean that God is numerically plural or that he is more than one being.  In Malachi 1:6 God says "if I be a master (אֲדֹנִים), where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts".  Psalm 135:5 says, "I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord (אֲדֹנִים) is above all gods".  And Psalm 147:5 says "Great is our Lord (אֲדֹנִים), and of great power: his understanding is infinite".

A teacher who does not know about (or who chooses to ignore) the Hebrew intensive plural may look at these verses and say, "See there!  These verses describe with plural words so he must be more than one!"  But notice what else the verses say.  In the verse from Malachi, God uses singular self-descriptions "I" and "my".  In Psalm 135:5 and 145:5 the Hebrew word "great" is in the singular form.  אֲדֹנִים (adonim) in these verses is an intensive plural; God is only one person, speaks like only one person, and is described as only one person!  He is described with a plural word to show how mighty, awesome, powerful, and big he is.

In closing, there is one thing that you need to keep in mind about plural Hebrew words.  The numeric plural and the intensive plural look IDENTICAL.  The only way to know if you are looking at an intensive plural or a numerical plural is to know who you are describing.  The best example of this is in Deuteronomy 10:17:

"For the LORD your God is God (אֱלֹהִים) of gods (אֱלֹהִים), and Lord (אֲדֹנִים) of lords (אֲדֹנִים), a great God".

If you look carefully at the Hebrew word for "God" and "gods" you will notice that they are identical in the original Hebrew; and so is the word for "Lord" and "lords".  How can this be?!?  It is because the first time (God/Lord) is an intensive plural; it looks plural but actually only refers to one person, Jehovah.  The second time (gods/lords) is a numerical plural; it looks plural and actually does refer to multiple other beings.
If you would like to read more about plural descriptions of our singular God, see my post These Are The Gods.  In the Bible God is certainly described in plural ways; but these plural words are always used to highlight his majesty, might, and glory.  Always remember, "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD"!!      ~CJK

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