Midvash

אֵל בֵּית־אֵלʼÊl Bêyth-ʼÊl

god, with various subordinate applications to express idea of might

Pronunciation: ale bayth-ale' · Hebrew/Aramaic (Old Testament) · H416

Meanings

1. applied to men of might and rank (Ezekiel 31:11; Job 41:17; Ezekiel 32:21)

2. angels (Psalms 29:1; Psalms 89:7)

3. gods of the nations (Daniel 11:36; Exodus 15:11; Isaiah 43:10)

4. El (Judges 9:46; Judges 8:33; Judges 9:4)

5. as characterizing mighty things in nature (Psalms 36:7; Psalms 50:10; Psalms 80:11)

6. the one only and true God of Israel

a the God, the true God, the faithful God (Genesis 31:13; Genesis 35:1; Genesis 35:3)

b my God (Exodus 15:2; Psalms 18:3; Psalms 22:2)

c the God of Bethel, the God of heaven (Genesis 35:7; Genesis 49:25; Psalms 68:36)

d one God, a great God (Malachi 2:10; Deuteronomy 7:21; Psalms 77:14)

e God is with us (Numbers 12:13; Job 5:8; Psalms 7:12)

f El, a divine name (Genesis 33:20; Numbers 16:22; Numbers 27:16)

7. strength, power (Genesis 1:1; Genesis 31:29; Proverbs 3:27)

Same root

Where it appears

Appears 3 times in the Bible.

  • Genesis 35:7 Jacob built an altar there and named the place El-bethel (which means “God of Bethel”), because God had appeared to him there when he was fleeing from his brother, Esau.
See every passage

Source: Brown, Driver and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain; markup by unfoldingWord, CC BY (github.com/unfoldingWord/Brown-Driver-Briggs-Enhanced).