GENESIS REVISITED (1) : MYSTERY OF ʼĕlôhîym’-אֱלֹהִים Yahweh-יְהֹוָה REVEALED

​Commencing from my short stint (Fall of 1982 to Summer of 1983), in the Faculty of Divinity, at the University of Aberdeen, attaining greater clarity and experientially knowing Who, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, is, has been the consuming focus of my life.
 
It is with this Jesus lens and focus that I have revisited the GOD - 'elohiym(אֱלֹהִים)[1] and LORD GOD -Yahweh(יְהֹוָה)'elohiym(אֱלֹהִים)[2] narratives of creation, humankind and Adam and Eve, in the first 3 Chapters of the Book of Genesis.
 
I begin by presenting my personal take regarding the word אֱלֹהִים - 'elohiym(God) and יְהֹוָה – Yahweh(Lord), with hope, that all may be blessed.
 
It is written in Genesis 1:26-30: “26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” 29 And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.” And it was so.”[3]
 
In the quoted passage, the word translated “God” is the Hebrew word אֱלֹהִים - 'elohiym[4], plural of אֱלוֹהַּ[5] - 'elowahh, which is always translated as God or god (singular). In Genesis 1:1, the plural noun אֱלֹהִים - 'elohiym is followed by a singular verb.
 
However, in Genesis 1:26, although God-'elohiym, (the plural noun) is followed by a singular verb ‘said’, the next word נַֽעֲשֶׂה – noshe[6][7] “Let us make”, is in the plural form. Therefore in Genesis 1:26, there is the imputation that there is more than one Creator involved in creating Man[8].
 
This is also alluded to in the next verse of Genesis 1:27: “So God created man[9] in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female (more than one) he created them.”
Humankind was created in the image of God(plural), 'elohiym - אֱלֹהִים.
 
Humankind or humanity, according to this verse comprised of both male and female, each a true, real and whole human being. Yet, the description, understanding and reality of humanity or humankind would be incomplete, if one is without the other. In the narrative, these two, in their distinctiveness as male and female, are not only respectively truly and properly human beings, but also are jointly one as humankind. As such they respectively and jointly determine and define what humankind truly is, as well as what and how God is to be perceived.
 
For, according to these verses[10], this is God’s ('elohiym) creative expression of the image and likeness of what and who God (אֱלֹהִים - ʼĕlôhîym) is.
 
In these verses, there seem to be an allusion of relational Plurality and Oneness of Being in God אֱלֹהִים - ʼĕlôhîym, that of Oneness in Plurality and Plurality in Oneness(hereinafter referred to as Oneplural and Pluralone).
 
In Mark 12:28, when a scribe asked Jesus; “Which commandment is the first of all?”[11], he replied “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’[12]
 
The opening words of Jesus’ reply "Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the LORD is one"[13] (Hebrew:שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָֽד׃) is commonly known as the Shema Yisrael proclamation of Deuteronomy 6:4.
 
To Israel, the Lord God is always[14] one.
 
How then does one address this relational Plurality and Oneness in the Being of God, אֱלֹהִים - ʼĕlôhîym, in light of the proclamation of Deuteronomy 6:4 “the Lord  יְהֹוָה – YAHWEH our God אֱלֹהִים - ʼĕlôhîym, the LORD יְהֹוָה – YAHWEH is one.”


[1] Genesis 1

[2] Genesis 2:5

[3] Revised Standard Version (RSV)

[4] See Strong’s H430

[5] See Strong’s H433

[6] Genesis 1:26 Scripture4all Online Interlinear Old Testament Hebrew Text WLC_v (v1.1): Westminster Leningrad Codex with vowels

[7] from נַֽעֲשֶׂ – `asah  See strong’s H6213

[8] With reference to Genesis 1:26, the footnote of the Tanach The Stone Edition has it that the Targum Yonasan paraphrases; “And God said to the ministering angels who hand been created on the second day of Creation of the world, ‘Let us make Man.’”
The footnote of Genesis 1:26 continues with, “When Moses wrote the Torah and came to this verse (let us make), which is in the plural and implies ז”ח that there is more than one Creator, he said: “Sovereign of the Universe! Why do You thus furnish a pretext for heretics to maintain that there is a plurality of divinities?” “Write!” God replied. “Whoever wishes to err will err… Instead, let them learn from their Creator Who created all, yet when He came to create Man He took counsel with the ministering angels” (Miderash)”  Tanach The Stone Edition
See Strong’s H433 under item (B) of Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon [?]
and also Wikipedia on Royal-We “The royal we, or majestic plural (pluralis majestatis), is the use of a plural pronoun (or corresponding plural-inflected verb forms) to refer to a single person who is a monarch.”
My view is that there is no evidence from the Old Testament concerning this narrative that would support the above views.

[9] אָדַם ʼâdam – Strong’s H120 – humankind

[10] Genesis 1:26,27

[11] Mark 12:28 RSV

[12] Mark 12:29,30 RSV

[13] Tree of Life Version. TLV

[14] emphasis mine

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