Ancient Israel was devoted to Monotheism, but was constantly challenged by Polytheistic Pagan ideas.
The Jewish Bible, or Old Testament was compiled from various historical tales depicting many Gods. Bible authors would use the term ELOHIM to refer to the God, YAHWEH (singular), and also to other Gods, deities and figures (plural).The table below lists Bible verses which use ELOHIM (Gods, plural) or YAHWEH (God, singular).
Who is YAHWEH?
Yahweh's name may have begun as an epithet of El, head of the Bronze Age Canaanite pantheon. The earliest mentions of Yahweh are in Egyptian texts that refer to a similar-sounding place name associated with the Shasu Nomads of the Southern Transjordan. Over time, Yahweh became the highest god, acquiring all the qualities previously held by other Gods and Goddesses. By the 6th century BC (Babylonian exile), the existence of 'lesser' Gods was denied, and Yahweh was proclaimed as the true, only God of the world.
Hear, O Israel: The Lord [YAHWEH] our God [ELOHIM], the Lord is one.
DEUTERONOMY 6:4
And when you look up to the sky and see the sun, the moon and the stars - all the heavenly array - do not be enticed into bowing down to them and worshiping things the Lord [YAHWEH] your God [ELOHIM] has apportioned to all the nations under heaven
DEUTERONOMY 4:19
And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord [YAHWEH] appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty [SHADDAY] God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
GENESIS 17:1
And the Lord [YAHWEH] spake unto Moses, saying ...
NUMBERS 15:37
I am the Lord [YAHWEH] your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God [ELOHIM]: I am the Lord [YAHWEH] your God [ELOHIM]
NUMBERS 15:41
And God [ELOHIM] said unto him [Moses], I am God [EL] Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;
GENESIS 35:11
For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods [ELOHIM] of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord [YAHWEH]
EXODUS 12:12
And he built there an altar, and called the place Elbethel: because there God [ELOHIM] appeared unto him [JACOB], when he fled from the face of his brother
GENESIS 35:7
Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess [ELOHIM] of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god [ELOHIM] of the Moabites, and Milcom the god [ELOHIM] of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.
1 KINGS 11:33
Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god [ELOHIM] giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the Lord [YAHWEH] our God [ELOHIM] shall drive out from before us, them will we possess.
JUDGES 11:24
Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess [ELOHIM] of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god [ELOHIM] of the Moabites, and Milcom the god [ELOHIM] of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.
1 KINGS 11:33
They sacrificed unto devils, not to God [ELOHIM]; to gods [ELOHIM] whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not
DEUTERONOMY 32:17
Now there was a day when the sons of God [ELOHIM] came to present themselves before the Lord [YAHWEH], and Satan came also among them
JOB 1:6
Who is ELOHIM?
And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the Lord, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring: That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God [ELOHIM]
DEUTERONOMY 15:39-40
In the beginning, God [ELOHIM] created the heaven and the earth
GENESIS 1:1
And the Gods [ELOHIM] 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 fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth
GENESIS 1:26
There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God [ELOHIM] came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
GENESIS 6:4
That the sons of God [ELOHIM] saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
GENESIS 6:2
The king said to her, 'Do not be afraid. What do you see?' And the woman said to Saul, 'I saw gods [ELOHIM] coming out of the earth'
1 SAMUEL 28:13
Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods [ELOHIM] and bow down to them
DEUTERONOMY 11:16
Now let my lord [ADONAI] the king listen to his servant's words. If the Lord [YAHWEH] has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. If, however, people have done it, may they be cursed before the Lord! [YAHWEH] They have driven me today from my share in the Lord's [YAHWEH] inheritance and have said, 'Go, serve other gods [ELOHIM]'
1 SAMUEL 26:19
God [ELOHIM] has taken his place in the Divine Council; in the midst of the gods [ELOHIM] he holds judgement:
PSALM 82:1
ESV BIBLE God [ELOHIM] has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods [ELOHIM] he holds judgement:
PSALM 82:1
ESV BIBLE
I have said, Ye are gods [ELOHIM]; and all of you are children of the most High [EL]. But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.
PSALM 82:6-7
Arise, O God [ELOHIM], judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations
PSALM 82:8
He who sacrifices to any god [ELOHIM], other than to the Lord [YAHWEH] alone, shall be utterly destroyed
EXODUS 22:20
You must not worship the Lord [YAHWEH] your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods [ELOHIM], they do all kinds of detestable things the Lord [YAHWEH] hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods [ELOHIM]
DEUTERONOMY 12:31
When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God [ELOHIM] shouted for joy?
JOB 38:7
YAHWEH is Elohim
In the 1960s, a debate emerged over the interpretation of Psalm 82:1-8 summarized by Anthony Hanson. Hanson pointed to 4 different ways the "Ye are ELOHIM" was understood. It could mean ELOHIM were:
(a) Angels
(b) Melchizedek
(c) Judges
(d) Israel at Sinai
All four interpretations are supported in Jewish traditions and attested to in Midrashic literature. 1
Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord [YAHWEH] God [ELOHIM] of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt
DEUTERONOMY 29:25
A Psalm of David. Give unto the Lord [YAHWEH], O ye mighty, give unto the Lord [YAHWEH] glory and strength
PSALM 29:1
For who in the heaven can be compared unto the Lord? [YAHWEH] who among the sons of the mighty can be likened unto the Lord? [YAHWEH]
PSALM 89:6
For you, Lord [YAHWEH], are the Most High over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods [ELOHIM]
PSALM 97:9
And David said to all the congregation, Now bless the Lord [YAHWEH] your God [ELOHIM]. And all the congregation blessed the Lord [YAHWEH] God [ELOHIM] of their fathers, and bowed down their heads, and worshipped the Lord [YAHWEH], and the king
1 CHRONICLES 29:20
And he said, Lord [YAHWEH] God [ELOHIM] of Israel, there is no God [ELOHIM] like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart
1 KINGS 8:23
So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today--to love the Lord [YAHWEH] your God [ELOHIM] and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul
DEUTERONOMY 11:13
I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God [EL] Almighty, but by my name the LORD [YAHWEH] I did not make myself fully known to them.
EXODUS 6:3
God In Islam
Say: He is Allah, the One and Only;
Allah, the Eternal, Absolute;
He begetteth not, nor is He begotten;
And there is none like unto Him.
QURAN 112:1-4
NOTES
1 https://www3.nd.edu/~jneyrey1/Gods.html
For verification on the Hebrew words, Elohim, Yahweh etc. go to biblehub.com and select the Interlinear Option
i.e. For GENESIS 1:1, view https://biblehub.com/interlinear/genesis/1-1.htm
CREDIT
https://blog.logos.com/2017/10/the-elohim-what-or-who-are-they/
https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/.premium.MAGAZINE-when-the-jews-believed-in-other-gods-1.6315810
https://www.blueletterbible.org/study/misc/name_god.cfm
https://emahiser.christogenea.org/yahweh-singular-elohim
179-gods-elohim-psalm82
| Author: Guest • Updated: 04 Sep 2026 • 30,756 views | 1 hr ago |
Explore More
What is The Bible?The Bible is a canonical collection of texts sacred in Judaism and Christianity. There is no single "Bible" and many Bibles with varying contents exist. The term Bible is shared between Judaism and Christianity, although the contents of each of their collections of canonical texts is not the same
Different religious groups include different books within their Biblical canons, in different orders, and sometimes divide or combine books, or incorporate additional material into canonical books.
The Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, contains 24 books. Christian Bibles range from the 66 books of the Protestant canon to the 81 books of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church canon.
The first part of Christian Bibles is the Old Testament, which contains, at minimum, the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible divided into 39 books and ordered differently from the Hebrew Bible. The Catholic Church and Eastern Christian churches also hold certain deuterocanonical books and passages to be part of the Old Testament canon.
The second part is the New Testament, containing 27 books: the 4 Canonical gospels, Acts of the Apostles, 21 Epistles or didactic letters, and the Book of Revelation.
Who is Elohim?Elohim in the Hebrew Bible refers to deities, and is one of the many names or titles for God in the Hebrew Bible. The word is identical to the plural of el, meaning gods or magistrates, and is used for the pantheon of Canaanite gods, the children of El, and conventionally vocalized as "Elohim". The
notion of divinity underwent radical changes in the early period of Israelite identity and development of Ancient Hebrew religion. The ambiguity of the term elohim is the result of such changes, cast in terms of "vertical translatability", i.e. the re-interpretation of the gods from 7th century BC, Judah to the emergence of monotheist Rabbinical Judaism in the 2 AD.
Who is GOD?In monotheism and henotheism, God is conceived as the Supreme Being and principal object of faith. The concept of God as described by theologians commonly includes the attributes of omniscience (infinite knowledge), omnipotence (unlimited power), omnipresence (present everywhere), omnibenevolence
(perfect goodness), divine simplicity, and eternal and necessary existence.
In theism, God is the creator and sustainer of the universe
In deism, God is the creator, but not the sustainer, of the universe
Monotheism is the belief in the existence of one God or in the oneness of God
In pantheism, God is the universe itself
In atheism, God is purported not to exist, while deemed unknown or unknowable within the context of agnosticism.
