adonai
God has many names, each with a beautiful description of his character. Each name gives us insight into who he is. El Shaddai means “God Almighty”. Jehovah Jireh, “provider”. Jehovah Rapha, “healer”. Abba, “father”. I think you get the point. God has the capacity to provide for us in every way, and His names are a verbal reminder of that.
One that has recently resonated with me is Adonai. Adonai means “My Lord”, owner of all. Adonai is a form of the word “Adon” which comes from a root word meaning “to rule”. The word Adonai itself is a form of Adon that is plural and possessive. Adon was used to describe many governing authorities, teachers or mentors, oldest brothers, and employers and owners of servants and slaves in the Bible. So the word alerts the reader to someone of authority.
But Adonai uses singular pronouns when it is referring to God so we know that God is ONE master, not many. How cool is this? Rather than showing plurality, this plural ending acts as a literary device in Hebrew that emphasizes intensity. Deuteronomy 10:17 says “For the LORD (Yahweh) your God is God of gods and Lord (Adonai) of lords, the great, the mighty, and awesome God.” The possessive ending (lords) personalizes the relationship. Our relationship with Adonai is strong, personal, and two-sided!
Little sidebar: In most English translations, Adonai is translated to Lord, lower case letters, whereas Yahweh is translated to LORD, all letters are capitalized.
LORD= Yahweh
Lord= Adonai
Adonai is our master and we are His servants. It is a joy to serve him. In biblical times, it was the master's responsibility to protect, provide for, and promote their servants. Jewish servants were considered members of their masters’ households. Just as God considers us His children, members of His household. Psalm 123:2 illustrates this relationship between master and servant.
“Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the LORD our God, till he has mercy upon us.”
Psalm 86 is full of examples where Adonai is shown to be a gracious master. Psalm 86:5 says “For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon you.” This verse, as well as all of Psalm 86, gives a beautiful illustration of God, Adonai, being a loving and gracious master to anyone who calls on him.
Over the next three weeks, I want to unpack what it means to have God as the Adonai over your life, to let God be the Lord over your life. We’ll go over the lives of Abram, Moses, and Isaiah, and look at how they ceded ownership of their lives to Adonai. I’ve had such a good time studying and diving into discovering who Adonai is. I can’t wait to dive more into this with you guys!!
