Eloah - The Only God

Are you defending God (Eloah) by means of lies and dishonest arguments? You should be impartial witnesses, but will you slant your testimony in his favor? Will you argue God’s (Eloah’s) case for him? Be careful that he doesn’t find out what you are doing! Or do you think you can fool him as easily as you fool people? No, you will be in serious trouble with him if even in your hearts you slant your testimony in his favor. Doesn’t his majesty strike terror into your heart? Does not your fear of him seize you? Your statements have about as much value as ashes. Your defense is as fragile as a clay pot. - Job 13:7-12

There is a tendency on the part of many Christians to try to defend God. They read portions of Scripture that make God seem scary or bloody or vengeful and think to themselves, “This does not fit my view of a loving, kind and gracious God. This passage of Scripture must not be truly inspired. It was added by mere men.”

But I would like to introduce you to another name of God – Eloah. It is a name that has been used since around 2200 BC. It is God’s name when He or mankind is trying to emphasize that He is the only God – not merely the God of Israel.

Some trace Eloah to alah ("to terrify") or alih ("to be perplexed, afraid; to seek refuge because of fear"). Eloah and Elohim, therefore, would be "He who is the object of fear or reverence," or "He with whom one who is afraid takes refuge". Contradictory? Not at all. Isn’t the policeman both an object of fear to the criminal and an object of comfort to the law-abiding citizen? We must maintain a balanced view of God.

We must make sure that we do not add to the Scriptures in order to make them more “palatable.” After all, isn’t that the error Eve committed in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3)? For some reason she felt she had to add to God’s word to make it more emphatic. When the serpent (under the inspiration of Lucifer) challenged her on the addition, it of course broke down. She then began to doubt God. But it wasn’t God’s part that broke down, it was hers! We must neither add nor detract from God’s Word (Revelation 22:19-20).

Eloah is simultaneously an object of fear to those who disobey Him and a source of comfort to those who submit to Him. He does not need us to defend Him. He merely requires our testimony to be honest, impartial and complete.