El-Elohe-Israel
The Hebrew for El-Elohe-Israel (the name given to the altar in Genesis 33:20) is:
אֵל אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
Here’s a simple breakdown:
- אֵל (El) – “God” or “Mighty One”
- אֱלֹהֵי (Elohei) – “God of” (a possessive form of Elohim)
- יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisra’el / Israel) – “Israel”
- “God, the God of Israel”
or - “El is the God of Israel”
The Moment Behind the Name
Jacob had just come through one of the most life-altering seasons of his life:
He builds an altar.
Not a monument to himself.
Not a shrine to survival.
Jacob had just come through one of the most life-altering seasons of his life:
- He wrestled through the night and received a new name — Israel.
- He faced the brother he once feared.
- He crossed back into the land of promise.
He builds an altar.
Not a monument to himself.
Not a shrine to survival.
But an altar named:
El-Elohe-Israel
This wasn’t just theology — it was testimony.
What the Name Declares
This name is layered and powerful:
El — The Mighty One. The Strong God
Elohei - The personal God of
Israel — The one who wrestled and was changed.
Jacob is essentially saying:
“The Mighty God — He is the God of the man I have become.”
That’s stunning!
He’s no longer just clinging to the God of Abraham.
He’s not borrowing Isaac’s covenant.
He is declaring relationship.
This name is layered and powerful:
El — The Mighty One. The Strong God
Elohei - The personal God of
Israel — The one who wrestled and was changed.
Jacob is essentially saying:
“The Mighty God — He is the God of the man I have become.”
That’s stunning!
He’s no longer just clinging to the God of Abraham.
He’s not borrowing Isaac’s covenant.
He is declaring relationship.
From Struggle to Ownership
Before this moment:
- God was “the God of my father.”
- God was “the One who appeared.”
- God was “the One who promised.”
Now?
God is my God
The altar name signals maturity.
It signals identity.
It signals covenant embraced, not inherited.
Baruch Shem Yahweh
The phrase "Baruch Shem Yahweh" (בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם יְהוָה) can be translated as “Blessed [be the] Name [of] the LORD.”