Jehovah Sabaoth

Jehovah Sabaoth: What Does it Mean?

Although I’ve written about it many times in this series, it is important to get what the name “Jehovah” means. This is the personal name of God. In the original language it is YHVH. When vowels were added, it became Yahweh. The Latinized version of Yahweh is Jehovah. In most English Bibles, this personal name of God is translated as LORD written in all caps.

YHVH, Yahweh, Jehovah, and LORD all mean the same thing: THE EXISTING ONE. No beginning. No end. Always and forever the same.

But what does Sabaoth mean? Like most words, this one has different meaning. It can mean a multitude, an army, warfare, an organized group in a military sense, difficult service, or divine service. And like most words in Scripture, you understand the intended meaning by the context. Most of the time this word is translated as “host or hosts”.

The first time the word appears in Scripture is at creation:

“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.” Genesis 2:1.

Here it is clear that God created the heavens and the earth and a host of other things (a multitude of things) at the same time.

Many other places where this word is used speaks of an army in a military sense, and is translated as army:

“Now it came about at that time, that Abimelech and Phicol, the commander of his army, spoke to Abraham, saying, ‘God is with you in all that you do.’” Genesis 21:22.

Other places use the word to show a huge multitude of people:

“And it came about at the end of four hundred and thirty years, to the very day, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.” Genesis 12:41.

All these meanings help us when we focus on this name: LORD of hosts (Jehovah Sabbaoth). Remember that the names of God, describe the character of God.

This amazing name, LORD of hosts, appears many times in Scripture. When it is used as a name for God, it means He is LORD of the “heavenly host” or multitude of angels, the unlimited army of angelic beings He created. (Here are a few verses that show the angelic multitude is called the heavenly hosts: I Kings 22:19, 2 Chronicles 18:18, and Luke 2:13.)

David uses this name for God when he faced Goliath:

“Then David said to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have taunted.” I Samuel 17:45.

The prophet Isaiah was given a glimpse into heaven. He recorded that some of the heavenly hosts themselves call God the LORD OF HOSTS:

“In the year of King Uzziah’s death, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.’” Isaiah 6:1-3.

Jehovah Sabaoth is the LORD of hosts.

Carla Killough McClafferty