El Elyon

El Elyon (Hebrew: אֵל עֶלְיוֹן) is one of the names of God in the Bible. It is conventionally translated into English as "God Most High". The name Elyon also occurs alone.

15th-century manuscript of Baruch El Elyon.

Quotes

Scripture

• וּמַלְכִּי־צֶ֙דֶק֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ שָׁלֵ֔ם הוֹצִ֖יא לֶ֣חֶם וָיָ֑יִן וְה֥וּא כֹהֵ֖ן לְאֵ֥ל עֶלְיֽוֹן׃
  • Genesis 14:18
  • Translations:
    • And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High.
      • JPS translation
    • And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
      • KJV translation
    • Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High.
      • NIV translation

• וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אַבְרָ֖ם אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ סְדֹ֑ם הֲרִמֹ֨תִי יָדִ֤י אֶל־יְהֹוָה֙ אֵ֣ל עֶלְי֔וֹן קֹנֵ֖ה שָׁמַ֥יִם וָאָֽרֶץ׃
  • Genesis 14:22
  • Translations:
    • But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I swear to יהוה, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth."
      • JPS translation
    • And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth.
      • KJV translation
    • But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "With raised hand I have sworn an oath to the Lord, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth."
      • NIV translation

• וַֽ֭יִּזְכְּרוּ כִּֽי־אֱלֹהִ֣ים צוּרָ֑ם וְאֵ֥ל עֶ֝לְי֗וֹן גֹּאֲלָֽם׃
  • Psalms 78:35
  • Translations:
    • They remembered that God was their rock, God Most High, their Redeemer.
      • JPS translation
    • And they remembered that God was their rock, and the high God their redeemer.
      • KJV translation
    • They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.
      • NIV translation

• בְּהַנְחֵ֤ל עֶלְיוֹן֙ גּוֹיִ֔ם בְּהַפְרִיד֖וֹ בְּנֵ֣י אָדָ֑ם יַצֵּב֙ גְּבֻלֹ֣ת עַמִּ֔ים לְמִסְפַּ֖ר בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
  • Deuteronomy 32:8
  • Translations:
    • When the Most High gave nations their homes and set the divisions of humanity, [God] fixed the boundaries of peoples in relation to Israel's numbers.
      • JPS translation
    • When the Most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
      • KJV translation
    • When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when he divided all mankind, he set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.
      • NIV translation

• יַרְעֵ֥ם מִן־שָׁמַ֖יִם יְהֹוָ֑ה וְעֶלְי֖וֹן יִתֵּ֥ן קוֹלֽוֹ׃
  • 2 Samuel 22:14
  • Translations:
    • The Lord thundered forth from heaven, The Most High sent forth His voice.
      • JPS translation
    • The Lord thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice.
      • KJV translation
    • The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.
      • NIV translation

Literature

• It is highly likely that Abraham's God was El, the High God of Canaan. The deity introduces himself to Abraham as El Shaddai (El of the Mountain), which was one of El's traditional titles. Elsewhere he is called El Elyon (The Most High God) or El of Bethel. The name of the Canaanite High God is preserved in such Hebrew names as Isra-El or Ishma-El. They experienced him in ways that would not have been unfamiliar to the pagans of the Middle East. We shall see that centuries later Israelites found the mana or "holiness" of Yahweh a terrifying experience. On Mount Sinai, for example, he would appear to Moses in the midst of an awe-inspiring volcanic eruption, and the Israelites had to keep their distance. In comparison, Abraham's god El is a very mild deity. He appears to Abraham as a friend and sometimes even assumes human form. This type of divine apparition, known as an epiphany, was quite common in the pagan world of antiquity.
  • Karen Armstrong: A History of God, pp. 14–15

See also

• El
• El Shaddai
• Elohim
• Names of God