Who Is God?
The Elohim Of Genesis One
INTRODUCTION
Psalms 19:1-4
1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.
The God of the Bible is known as the Self-revealing God. The psalmist points out He has presented Himself in a clear, continual and magnificent manner, regardless of language or location. God has been declared through His creation.
However, this doesn’t answer these questions:
Is the Creator God personal?
Did This Creator God ever choose to make Himself known to individuals? If so, how and why?
Have you asked these questions? Have you read the Bible for the purpose of discovering the answer to these questions? I invite you to read again the text of scripture for the purpose of seeing how This God of the Bible, The Creator, took the initiative to make Himself known. As we read and study seek to discover His reason for doing for making Himself known.
The information that will answer the questions we are asking will be easily found in the portions of scripture that tell the story of the patriarchs and prophets. As you read these Biblical narratives pay attention to the names and titles by which God self-identifies.
In the beginning God (H430) created the heavens and the earth.
— Genesis 1:1
As a background to this study I want to remind you that the word used for God, is not a self-revealing title. The Hebrew word use in scripture and translated as God (H430) is the same whether referring to the God (H430) of Creation, the God (H430) of Abraham or the gods (H430) of the nations. This is the word elohim (H430). It is like our word sheep or deer; the same word can indicate a single sheep or deer, or more than one depending on the verb tense of the sentence.
Elohim is used to refer to the singular God to whom all of creation is attributed as in Genesis 1:1. The term elohim is also used to designate a variety of others that may surprise you. At first glance you may find this disturbing if you have considered elohim as being God’s name. However, elohim is not a name at all, nor does the word elohim have any attributes connected to it. Elohim points to beings who inhabit the realm of of the spirit. An elohim is a one whose place of residence is the realm of the spirit. In the same way living beings an earth, could be referred to as earthlings. Understanding this will help us to grasp what is the Old Testament writers are communicating through the wide use of this word elohim.
The Hebrew word Elohim is used to refer to:
members of the gathering (divine council, assembly) , in the midst of the gods (H430) Psalm 82:1,6
gods (H430) and goddesses (H430) of other nations are called elohim Judges 10:6
idols are called gods (H430) Psalm 96:5; Deuteronomy 4:28
The word elohim is used to refer back to the Demons in Deuteronomy 32:17.
The deceased is also called elohim 1 Samuel 28:13
These verses are enough to help us see that this Hebrew word elohim is not used as a name or a title. Instead it refers to a being whose dwelling place is in the spiritual realm.
In Genesis chapter one we read that God (Elohim) has decided to create a new realm of life. The focus of Genesis chapter one is simply to give us a chronological account of this creation. The writer wants us understand that out a spiritual reality which existed first, Elohim created the physical-material cosmos.
The construct of Genesis One indicates that a singular Elohim created all that we see—a material, physical cosmos; and also declares this creation was good. The point is accentuated in Genesis 1:26-27 ESV:
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 heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on 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.
The grammar indicates this is One Elohim speaking to other elohim. However, as the account continues, it is clear that this singular Elohim creates man in His own image.