אֱלֹהִים2570 H0430
God (the God of Israel); gods (pagan deities); a god or goddess (individual foreign deity). The majestic plural form of eloah.
Elohim is one of the most remarkable words in any language — a morphologically plural noun that, in the vast majority of its occurrences, refers to the one God of Israel and takes singular verbs and adjectives. This grammatical paradox has generated millennia of theological reflection, from ancient rabbinic discussion to modern trinitarian readings. In its dominant sense, Elohim is simply the standard way to say 'God' in Hebrew narrative, law, and poetry: 'In the beginning God created' (Gen 1:1). But the same form also does genuine plural work when referring to the gods of the nations — 'you shall have no other gods before me' (Exod 20:3) — and can even designate a single foreign deity like Dagon or Ashtoreth. The multilingual evidence is revealing: Arabic splits cleanly between Allah (singular, the God) and alihah (plural, gods), Korean between hananim and sindeul, while Hebrew uses the same form for both, relying on syntax and context to disambiguate.
Senses
1. [split] God (of Israel) — The God of Israel — the overwhelming dominant sense at 2,502 occurrences, covering God as creator, covenant-maker, lawgiver, judge, and redeemer. Used with the article (ha-elohim), in construct chains (elohei Yisrael), with pronominal suffixes (eloheinu, 'our God'), and after prepositions. Takes singular verb agreement despite its plural morphology. Every major target language has a dedicated supreme-deity term here: Arabic Allah, French Dieu, German Gott, Korean hananim, Hindi Parameswar/Ishwar, Swahili Mungu — all singular, all capitalized or marked for uniqueness, confirming that translators worldwide perceive a sharp boundary between this sense and the plural-gods sense. 1×
AR["الإِلَهُ", "الإِلَهِ", "اللهُ", "اللهِ"]·ben["ঈশ্বর"]·DE["Gott"]·EN["Elohim"]·FR["Dieu"]·heb["אלוהים"]·HI["एलोहीम", "एलोहीम-ने", "परमेश्वर", "परमेश्वर-ने"]·ID["Allah"]·IT["Dio"]·jav["Gusti-Allah"]·KO["하나님-이", "하나님이"]·PT["'Elohim", "Deus"]·RU["Бог"]·ES["Dios", "Elohim"]·SW["Mungu"]·TR["Tanrı"]·urd["خدا", "خدا-نے"]
1. God (the God of Israel, YHWH) — Split from sense 82415. Criteria: The one true God, creator and covenant-maker: 'God said,' 'the God of Abraham,' 'our God.' Monotheistic supreme deity, singular despite plural morphology. 2354×
AR["الإِلَهُ", "الإِلَهِ", "اللهُ", "اللهِ"]·ben["ঈশ্বর"]·DE["Gott"]·EN["Elohim"]·FR["Dieu"]·heb["אלוהים"]·HI["एलोहीम", "एलोहीम-ने", "परमेश्वर", "परमेश्वर-ने"]·ID["Allah"]·IT["Dio"]·jav["Gusti-Allah"]·KO["하나님-이", "하나님이"]·PT["'Elohim", "Deus"]·RU["Бог"]·ES["Dios", "Elohim"]·SW["Mungu"]·TR["Tanrı"]·urd["خدا", "خدا-نے"]
2. gods (pagan deities) — Pagan gods collectively — 81 occurrences where elohim functions as a genuine plural referring to the deities of surrounding nations. 'Put away the foreign gods' (Gen 35:2), 'against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments' (Exod 12:12), 'you shall have no other gods before me' (Exod 20:3). Arabic alihah, Korean sindeul, Swahili miungu, and Hindi devataon all deploy their standard plural-deity vocabulary, sharply distinct from the singular God-of-Israel terms. The syntactic markers — plural verbs, plural adjectives, and 'other/foreign' modifiers — make this sense reliably identifiable. 81×
AR["آلِهَةً", "آلِهَةٍ", "إلهاً", "اللّٰهِ", "لِ-آلِهَةٍ"]·ben["ঈশ্বর", "দেবতা", "দেবতাদের", "দেবতাদের-কে"]·DE["elohim"]·EN["elohim"]·FR["dieu", "elohim", "élohim"]·heb["אלוהים", "ל-אלוהים"]·HI["एलोहीम", "एलोहीम-की", "एलोहीम-के", "देव", "देवताओं", "देवताओं-का", "देवताओं-की", "देवताओं-को", "परमेश्वर"]·ID["allah", "allah-allah", "kepada-allah-allah"]·IT["Dio", "dio"]·jav["allah", "allah-allah", "dhateng-déwa-déwa", "déwa", "déwa-déwa", "para-allah"]·KO["신들을", "신들이", "신이", "에-신들에게", "하나님들", "하나님들을", "하나님의"]·PT["'elohim", "a-deuses", "deuses"]·RU["-богами", "бог", "богам", "богами", "богов", "божий", "элохим"]·ES["a-dioses", "dios", "dioses"]·SW["miungu", "mungu", "ya-mungu"]·TR["ilahlara", "tanrılar", "tanrılara", "tanrılardan", "tanrıların"]·urd["خداؤں", "معبود", "معبودوں", "معبودوں-کا", "معبودوں-کو", "معبودوں-کی", "معبودوں-کے"]
Gen 35:2, Gen 35:4, Exod 12:12, Exod 20:23, Exod 22:20, Exod 32:31, Exod 34:17, Deut 6:14, Deut 7:4, Deut 8:19, Deut 11:16, Deut 11:28 (+38 more)
2. gods (pagan deities, foreign gods) — Split from sense 82415. Criteria: Plural reference to false gods, foreign deities, idols: 'the gods of Egypt,' 'serving other gods.' Polytheistic referents explicitly condemned in biblical text. 147×
AR["آلِهَةً", "آلِهَتَهُمْ", "آلِهَتُكَ", "آلِهَتُكِ", "آلِهَتِكَ", "آلِهَتِكُم", "آلِهَتِهَا", "آلِهَتِهِ", "إلهِكُمْ", "إلٰهُكَ", "إلٰهِهِمْ", "إِلَهُكَ", "إِلَهُنَا", "إِلٰهُكَ", "الـ-آلِهَةُ", "الـ-آلِهَةِ"]·ben["আমাদের-দেবতা", "ঈশ্বর", "ঈশ্বরদের", "তাঁর-দেবতাদের", "তাদের-দেবতার", "তার-দেবতাদের", "তার-দেবতার", "তোমাদের-ঈশ্বরের", "তোমাদের-দেবতাদের", "তোমার-ঈশ্বর", "তোমার-দেবতা", "তোমার-দেবতাদের", "তোমার-দেবতার", "তোমার-দেবতারা", "দেবতা", "দেবতা-তোমার", "দেবতাদের-তাদের"]·DE["Goetter", "Gott", "dein-Goetter", "dein-Gott", "dein-elohim", "dein-gott", "der-Elohim", "ihr-Gott", "sein-Gott", "unser-gott"]·EN["gods", "her-gods", "his-gods", "is-your-Elohim", "our-god", "the-Elohim", "their-elohim", "their-god", "your-elohim", "your-god", "your-gods"]·FR["Dieu", "dieux", "le-Élohim", "leur-Dieu", "notre-dieu", "son-Dieu", "ton-Dieu", "ton-dieu", "ton-dieux", "ton-élohim"]·heb["אלוהיה", "אלוהיהם", "אלוהיך", "אלוהיכם", "אלוהים", "אלוהים-ו", "אלוהים-ך", "אלוהים-ם", "אלוהינו", "ה-אלוהים"]·HI["अपने-देवता-के", "अपने-देवताओं", "उसके-देवताओं-की", "एलोहीम-अपने-के।", "एलोहीम-तेरा", "तेरा-देवता", "तेरे-देवता", "तेरे-देवताओं-के", "देवता-तुम्हारे", "देवता-तेरे", "देवताओं", "देवताओं-अपने-के", "देवताओं-तुम्हारे", "परमेश्वर", "परमेश्वर-के", "परमेश्वर-तुम्हारे", "हमारे-देवताने"]·ID["allah", "allah-allah", "allah-allah-mereka", "allah-allahmu", "allah-kamu", "allah-kita", "allah-mereka", "allahmu", "allahnya", "dewa-dewanya"]·IT["Dio", "dèi", "il-Dio", "loro-Dio", "nostro-dio", "suo-Dio", "tuo-Dio", "tuo-dio", "tuo-dèi"]·jav["Gusti-Allahipun", "allah-allah-panjenengan", "allah-panjenengan", "allahipun-panjenengan-sedaya", "brahala-nipun", "dewa-dewa", "dewa-dewanipun", "déwa-déwanipun", "déwa-kawula-sedaya", "gusti-allah", "gusti-allah-panjenengan", "para-dewa-nipun"]·KO["그-의-신들", "그-하나님의", "그-하나님이시다", "그들의-신들의", "그의-신들의", "그의-신의", "너의-신들-의", "너희의-하나님", "네-신들-이", "네-신들이", "네-신이", "당신의-신이", "당신의-신이라", "신들-그들-의", "신들을", "우리의-신이"]·PT["'Elohim-teu", "deus-teu", "deuses", "deuses-deles", "deuses-vossos", "dos-teus-deuses", "nosso-deus", "o-Deus", "os-seus-deuses", "seu-deus", "seus-deuses", "teu-deus", "teus-deuses", "teus-elohim,"]·RU["Элохейха-твой", "Элохим", "Элохима", "бог-наш", "бог-твой", "бога-своего", "боги-твои", "богов", "богов-её", "богов-их", "богов-своих", "богов-твоих", "элохима-вашего", "элохимов-ваших"]·ES["dios-de-ti", "dioses", "dioses-de-ellos", "dioses-tuyos", "los-dioses", "nuestro-dios", "su-dios", "su-dios.", "sus-dioses", "tu-dios", "tus-dioses", "vuestro-dios", "vuestros-dioses"]·SW["-miungu-yako", "Mungu", "miungu", "miungu-yako", "miungu-yao", "miungu-yenu", "mungu-wake", "mungu-wako", "mungu-wao", "mungu-wenu", "mungu-wetu", "za-mungu-wake"]·TR["-Elohim", "Elohimlerinizin", "Tanrındır", "ilahinin", "ilahlarinin", "ilahların", "ilahların-senin", "ilahlarını-onların", "ilahlarının-senin", "ilahın", "ilahının", "tanrılar", "tanrılarının", "tanrımız", "tanrın", "tanrınızın"]·urd["اُس-کے-خداؤں-کے", "اپنے-خدا-کے", "اپنے-دیوتاؤں", "اپنے-معبود-کے", "اپنے-معبودوں-کے", "تمہارے-دیوتاؤں", "تیرا-خدا", "تیرے-معبود", "تیرے-معبود-کی", "تیرے-معبودوں-کے", "خدا", "خدا-اپنے-کے", "خدا-تیرے", "خداؤں-کے", "معبود", "معبود-تیرے-نے", "ہمارے-معبود-نے"]
Exod 18:11, Exod 20:3, Exod 23:13, Exod 32:1, Exod 32:23, Deut 4:28, Deut 5:7, Deut 17:3, Deut 18:20, Deut 31:18, Deut 31:20, Deut 32:17 (+38 more)
3. god or goddess (foreign deity) — A single foreign god or goddess — 14 occurrences where elohim designates an individual pagan deity by name or in a construct chain: 'Dagon their god' (Judg 16:23-24), 'Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians' (1 Kgs 11:5, 33), 'the god of Ekron' (2 Kgs 1:2-3). Arabic ilah/ilahah (singular 'god/goddess'), Spanish dios de/diosa de, and Korean sin ('deity,' singular) all select singular forms here, distinguishing this from the collective-plural in sense 2. The feminine agreement in 1 Kgs 11:33 (the 'goddess' reading) is particularly noteworthy as one of the rare places where elohim takes feminine concord. 14×
AR["إِلهِهِمْ", "إِلَهٌ", "إِلَهَةِ", "إِلَهِ", "إِلَهِهِمْ", "إِلٰهَ", "اللَّٰهِ"]·ben["ঈশ্বর", "ঈশ্বরের।", "তাদের-দেবতার", "দেবতা", "দেবতার", "দেবী"]·DE["Gott", "god-von", "goddess-von", "ihr-elohim", "ihr-gott"]·EN["god", "god-of", "goddess-of", "their-elohim", "their-god"]·FR["Dieu", "god-de", "goddess-de", "leur-dieu", "leur-elohim"]·heb["אלוהי", "אלוהיהם", "אלוהים"]·HI["अपने-देवता", "उनके-देवता-के", "एलोहीम", "एलोहीम-का", "देवता"]·ID["Allah", "allah", "allah,", "allah-mereka", "allah."]·IT["Dio", "dio-di", "goddess-di", "loro-dio"]·jav["allah", "allah-ipun", "dewa", "dewa.", "dewanipun", "déwanipun"]·KO["그들의-신", "신", "신-그들의-의", "하나님", "하나님의", "하나님이라"]·PT["'Elohim-deles", "deus", "deus-de", "deuses", "eloah-de", "seu-deus"]·RU["бог", "бога", "бога-их", "бога-своего", "богине", "богини", "богов", "богу", "богу-их"]·ES["Elohim", "dios-de", "diosa-de", "su-dios"]·SW["mungu", "mungu-wa", "mungu-wao"]·TR["Tanrı'nın", "ilahi", "ilahlarının", "tanrı", "tanrılarına", "tanrılarını", "tanrısı", "tanrıçesi"]·urd["اپنے-معبود", "خدا", "خدا-کا", "دیوتا", "معبود", "معبود-اپنے-کے", "معبودہ"]
Judg 9:27, Judg 16:23, Judg 16:24, 1 Kgs 11:5, 1 Kgs 11:33, 1 Kgs 11:33, 1 Kgs 11:33, 2 Kgs 1:2, 2 Kgs 1:3, 2 Kgs 1:6, 2 Kgs 1:16, Ezek 28:2 (+2 more)
4. sense 4 — Contextually ambiguous or comparative uses — 2 occurrences (Exod 29:45, Judg 8:33) where elohim appears in a construction that could be parsed as either 'God' or 'a god' depending on interpretive framework. The multilingual glosses split: some render 'as God' (comme Dieu, wie Gott) while others treat it as 'as a god/elohim,' reflecting genuine interpretive uncertainty. These marginal cases sit at the boundary between senses 1 and 2 and may represent formulaic or idiomatic uses where the referent is deliberately ambiguous. 2×
AR["إِلهاً"]·ben["ঈশ্বর-রূপে"]·DE["wie-Gott", "wie-elohim"]·EN["as-Elohim", "as-elohim"]·FR["comme-Dieu", "comme-elohim"]·heb["ל-אלוהים"]·HI["देवता", "परमेश्वर-के-रूप-में"]·ID["Allah", "menjadi-allah"]·IT["come-Dio", "come-dio"]·jav["Gusti-Allahipun", "dados-allah"]·KO["신-으로", "에-하나님이"]·PT["para-'Elohim", "para-deus"]·RU["Богом", "богом"]·ES["para-Elohim", "por-dios"]·SW["Mungu", "kuwa-mungu"]·TR["Tanrı-olarak", "için-elohim"]·urd["-خدا", "معبود-کے-طور-پر"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)G2316 1. God, the true God (1315×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
אֱלֹהִים2570 n.m.pl. (f. 1 K 11:33; on number of occurrences of אֵל, אֱלוֹהַּ, אֱלֹהִים cf. also Nesl.c.) 1. pl. in number. †a. rulers, judges, either as divine representatives at sacred places or as reflecting divine majesty and power: האלהים Ex 21:6 (Onk 𝔖, but τὸ κριτήριον τοῦ Θεοῦ 𝔊) 22:7, 8; אלהים 22:8, 27 (𝔗 Ra AE Ew RVm; but gods, 𝔊 Josephus Philo AV; God, Di RV; all Covt. code of E)…