Elohim (אֱלֹהִים) is the Hebrew word most often translated “God” in the Old Testament. It is plural in form — the ending -im is the ordinary Hebrew masculine plural — yet it regularly takes singular verbs and singular pronouns when it refers to the God of Israel. So the word looks plural and behaves singular. The usual explanation is that it is a plural of majesty or fullness: a way of speaking of God as complete, inexhaustible, the sum of all that deity means, rather than as one god among many. It is the word behind the very first line of the Bible, and it is the word most often paired with the divine name YHWH (Jehovah).
What does the word Elohim actually mean?
The root el carries the sense of strength, might, or power. In Hebrew, el can stand alone for God, and it appears in many compound names — El Shaddai, El Elyon, Immanuel, which means God with us. Elohim is the extended form. Its basic sense is therefore something like the Mighty One, or the powerful God.
That meaning matters because it tells you what kind of word this is. It is not a personal name in the way YHWH is a personal name. It is a title, a description of deity. When the Old Testament wants to name God as the covenant God who revealed Himself to Moses, it uses the Tetragrammaton, the four consonants usually written LORD in small capitals in English Bibles and rendered Jehovah in the ASV and KJV. When it wants to speak of God as God — as the divine being, over against the gods of the nations — it uses Elohim.
So the two words work together. Elohim says what God is. YHWH says who God is.
Why is Elohim plural if God is one?
This is the question the word raises for almost every reader. Hebrew has a true plural, and Elohim is grammatically plural. Yet the Shema says:
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. — Deuteronomy 6:4 (BSB)
The word translated “God” there is Elohim, and the word translated “One” is echad, which can mean a unified one rather than a bare numerical one. Jewish readers have always read the verse as a confession of God’s unity, and Christians have read it the same way.
The plural form is best explained as a plural of majesty or plenitude — a grammatical way of expressing greatness, not a count of persons. Hebrew uses this kind of plural elsewhere for fullness or intensity. It does not, by itself, prove the Trinity. What it does is leave room for the fuller revelation that comes in the New Testament, where the one God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Christians have often noticed that the plural appears at moments of divine deliberation:
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness…” — Genesis 1:26 (BSB)
That “Us” is not a proof text on its own. It may be a heavenly council, or a plural of majesty, or a hint of the triune life. But read alongside the rest of Scripture, it fits the God who is one and yet not solitary.
How does the Bible use Elohim for other beings?
The word is not reserved for the God of Israel. It is also used for false gods, for angels or heavenly beings, and for human judges. Psalm 82 opens:
God presides in the divine assembly; He renders judgment among the gods. — Psalm 82:1 (BSB)
Here Elohim is used twice, and the second occurrence refers to the gods being judged. The first commandment assumes the same range:
You shall have no other gods before Me. — Exodus 20:3 (BSB)
The word there is elohim again. This does not mean the Bible treats idols as real rivals to God. It means elohim is a category word: it names whatever is worshipped or exercises divine authority. The God of Israel is Elohim in the fullest sense; everything else that bears the title is either a creature, a pretender, or a shadow.
That is why context decides the meaning every time. When you see the word God in your English Old Testament, the Hebrew behind it may be El, Eloah, Elohim, or the divine name itself. Translators make a judgement call in each case, and the choice is not always obvious.
What is the difference between Elohim and Jehovah?
This is where readers of the KJV and ASV often get confused, because those translations print the name Jehovah in some verses and God in others. The distinction is real and worth learning.
Elohim is the general word for God. YHWH — Jehovah, or LORD in small capitals — is the covenant name God gave to Moses at the burning bush. When the two appear together, as in the phrase the LORD your God, the Hebrew is YHWH Elohim. That pairing is common in Deuteronomy and in the early chapters of Genesis.
This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made them. — Genesis 2:4 (BSB)
Notice what the pairing does. It ties the majestic, universal God of creation to the personal, covenant-keeping God who walks with His people. The God who made everything is the God who made a promise to Abraham. The title and the name belong to the same person.
Some readers wonder whether Elohim and Jehovah are two different gods. They are not. They are two ways of speaking about the one God of Israel, and the Bible uses them side by side without embarrassment.
Does Elohim in Genesis point to the Trinity?
Christians have long read Genesis 1 with the New Testament open beside it. John begins his Gospel with the same opening words as Genesis:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. — John 1:1 (BSB)
The Greek word John uses for God is theos, the ordinary Greek equivalent of Elohim. John’s point is that the Word — the Son — was with God and was God. The plural form of Elohim is not the argument; the argument is the whole shape of Scripture, which presents one God in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
So it is fair to say that Elohim is consistent with the Trinity, and that the New Testament fills in what the Old Testament hints at. It is not fair to say that the plural ending proves the doctrine by itself. The doctrine rests on the whole counsel of God, not on a single grammatical detail.
How should this shape the way you read the Old Testament?
A few practical habits help. First, when you see the word God in an English Bible, remember that the Hebrew behind it may be Elohim, and that the word carries the sense of might and deity. Second, when you see LORD in small capitals, remember that the Hebrew is the divine name, and that this is the God who made Himself known to Moses:
God also told Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This is My name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered in every generation. — Exodus 3:15 (BSB)
Third, read the two together. The God who is mighty enough to create the heavens and the earth is the God who binds Himself by promise to a particular people. That is the God of the whole Bible, and He is the same yesterday, today and forever.
If you want to go further, read Genesis 1 and John 1 in one sitting, then Deuteronomy 6 and Mark 12. Ask your pastor how your translation handles the divine name, and why. The words are worth the trouble. They are how God has chosen to speak of Himself.
Questions readers ask
Is Elohim singular or plural?
Grammatically it is plural — the -im ending is the ordinary Hebrew masculine plural. But when it refers to the God of Israel it takes singular verbs and pronouns, so it functions as a singular title. The usual explanation is a plural of majesty or fullness.
Does Elohim mean gods in Genesis 1:1?
No. In Genesis 1:1 the verb that follows is singular, so the sentence reads that in the beginning God created. The plural form does not make the sentence polytheistic. The same word can mean gods elsewhere, such as Exodus 20:3, but context decides.
What is the difference between Elohim and Jehovah?
Elohim is a title for God, meaning roughly the Mighty One. Jehovah (YHWH) is the personal covenant name God revealed to Moses. The two are often joined as the LORD your God (YHWH Elohim), showing that the Creator and the covenant God are one and the same.
Does the plural form of Elohim prove the Trinity?
It does not prove it on its own. The plural of majesty is a common Hebrew way of expressing greatness. The Trinity is established by the whole of Scripture — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — and Elohim is consistent with that revelation rather than a standalone argument for it.
Lexicon answers from the Bible and public-domain reference works. It is a study aid and is not affiliated with any organisation.