Names of God in Judaism

Judaism considers some names of God so holy that, once written, they should not be erased: יהוה (), אֲדֹנָי (Adonai), אֵל (El ), אֱלֹהִים ( , a plural noun), אֵל שַׁדַּי ( ), שַׁדַּי (Shaddai ), יְהֹוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת ( ) and צְבָאֽוֹת ( ); 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, () "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. The names of God that, once written, cannot be erased because of their holiness are the Tetragrammaton, Adonai, El, Elohim, Shaddai, Tzevaot; some also include I Am that I Am. In addition, the name Jah—because it forms part of the Tetragrammaton—is similarly protected. The tanna Jose ben Halafta considered "Tzevaot" a common name in the second century and Rabbi Ishmael considered "Elohim" to be one. All other names, such as "Merciful", "Gracious" and "Faithful", merely represent attributes that are also common to human beings. TetragrammatonYahweh and Lord#Religion Also abbreviated Jah, the most common name of God in the Hebrew Bible is the Tetragrammaton, יהוה, that is usually transcribed as YHWH. Hebrew script is an abjad, so that the letters in the name are normally consonants, usually expanded as Yahweh in English. Modern Rabbinical Jewish culture judges it forbidden to pronounce this name. In prayers it is replaced by the word אֲדֹנָי (, ʾăḏōnāy, , Pluralis majestatis taken as singular), and in discussion by HaShem "The Name". Nothing in the Torah explicitly prohibits speaking the name and the Book of Ruth shows it was being pronounced as late as the fifth century BCE.

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Tetragrammaton

The Tetragrammaton (ˌtɛtrəˈɡræmətɒn; ), or the Tetragram, is the four-letter Hebrew theonym (transliterated as YHWH or YHVH), the name of God in the Hebrew Bible. The four letters, written and read from right to left (in Hebrew), are yodh, he, waw, and he. The name may be derived from a verb that means "to be", "to exist", "to cause to become", or "to come to pass". While there is no consensus about the structure and etymology of the name, the form Yahweh is now accepted almost universally, though the vocalization Jehovah continues to have wide usage.

Yahweh

Yahweh was an ancient Levantine deity, and national god of the Israelite kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Though no consensus exists regarding the deity's origins, scholars generally contend that Yahweh emerged as a "divine warrior" associated first with Seir, Edom, Paran and Teman, and later with Canaan. The origins of his worship reach at least to the early Iron Age, and likely to the Late Bronze Age, if not somewhat earlier.

God

In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic thought, a god is "a spirit or being believed to control some part of the universe or life and often worshipped for doing so, or something that represents this spirit or being". Belief in the existence of at least one god is called theism. Views regarding God vary considerably. Many notable theologians and philosophers have developed arguments for and against the existence of God.

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