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Laws of writing divine names

According to Jewish tradition, the sacredness of the divine names must be recognized by the professional scribe who writes the Scriptures, or the chapters for the tefillin and the mezuzah. Before transcribing any of the divine names he prepares mentally to sanctify them. Once he begins a name he does not stop until it is finished, and he must not be interrupted while writing it, even to greet a king. If an error is made in writing it, it may not be erased, but a line must be drawn round it to show that it is canceled, and the whole page must be put in a genizah (burial place for scripture) and a new page begun.

In English

The words “God” and “Lord” (used for the Hebrew Adonai) are often written by many Jews as “G-d” and “L-rd” as a way of avoiding writing a name of God, so as to avoid the risk of sinning by erasing or defacing his name.

In Deuteronomy 12:3-4, the Torah exhorts one to destroy idolatry, adding, “you shall not do such to the LORD your God.” From this verse it is understood that one should not erase the name of God.

The general rabbinic opinion is that this only applies to the sacred Hebrew names of God — but not to the word “God” in English or any other language. Even among Jews who consider it unnecessary, many nonetheless write the name “God” in this way out of respect, and to avoid erasing God’s name even in a non-forbidden way.

Halakha requires that secondary rules be placed around the primary law, to reduce the chance that the main law will be broken. As such, it is common Jewish practice to restrict the use of the word Adonai to prayer only. In conversation, many Jewish people, even when not speaking Hebrew, will call God “Hashem“, השם, which is Hebrew for “the Name” (this appears in Leviticus 24:11).

Many Jews extend this prohibition to some of the other names  and will add additional sounds to alter the pronunciation of a name when using it outside of a liturgical context, such as replacing the ‘h’ with a ‘k’ in names of God such as ‘kel’ and ‘elokim’.

While other names of God in Judaism are generally restricted to use in a liturgical context, Hashem is used in more casual circumstances.

Hashem is used by Orthodox Jews so as to avoid saying Adonai outside of a ritual context. For example, when some Orthodox Jews make audio recordings of prayer services, they generally substitute Hashem for Adonai; others will say Amonai. On some occasions, similar sounds are used for authenticity, as in the movie Ushpizin, where Abonai Elokenu  is used throughout.

Messiah
In Hebrew: mashiah

In all the thirty-nine instances of its occurring in the Old Testament, is translated by the LXX. [Septuagint] “Christos”
It means anointed. Thus priests (Ex. 28:41; 40:15; Num. 3:3), prophets (1 Kings 19:16), and kings (1 Sam. 9:16; 16:3; 2 Sam. 12:7) were anointed with oil, and so consecrated to their respective offices.

The great Messiah is anointed “above his fellows” (Ps. 45:7); i.e., he embraces in himself all the three offices.
The Greek form “Messias” is only twice used in the New Testament, in John 1:41 and 4:25 (R.V., “Messiah”), and in the Old Testament the word Messiah, as the rendering of the Hebrew, occurs only twice (Dan 9:25,26; R.V., “the anointed one”).

The first great promise (Gen. 3:15) contains in it the germ of all the prophecies recorded in the Old Testament regarding the coming of the Messiah and the great work he was to accomplish on earth.

The prophecies became more definite and fuller as the ages rolled on; the light shone more and more unto the perfect day. Different periods of prophetic revelation have been pointed out:

1. the patriarchal
2. the Mosaic
3. the period of David
4. the period of prophetism, i.e., of those prophets whose works form a part of the Old Testament canon.

The expectations of the Jews were thus kept alive from generation to generation, till the “fulness of the times,” when Messiah came, “made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law.” In him all these ancient prophecies have their fulfilment. Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, the great Deliverer who was to come.

(Compare Matt. 26:54; Mark 9:12; Luke 18:31; 22:37; John 5:39; Acts 2; 16:31; 26:22,23.)

Author: Matthew G. Easton.