The word “Hallelujah” originated from the Hebrew Language (הַלְלוּ־יָהּ) and originally reads as two words: “Hallelu” and “Yah”. It appeared 24 times in the book of Psalms in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible). It also appeared 4 times in the Christian Bible in the Book of Revelation.
Early Christians adopted the word Hallelujah from the Greek translation of Hebrew, and used it in Churches and prayers meaning “Praise to God” and some made it “Praise to Jehovah”. However, the meaning of the word Hallelujah was not as Christians use it nowadays.
We observe many words of one language used differently through time, in many cases the original use of words disappears, and people adopt other meanings that were not intended or not exactly meant in the original language.
The Hebrew language is an ancient language that was used by Israelis thousands of years ago, and it went through many changes throughout history. The alphabet of Hebrew also went through many changes as well as the pronunciation of many words. The language was neglected during the Middle Ages and was almost disappearing because no people in the world spoke the language except very few scattered families in the Middle East. The revival of the Hebrew language took place in Europe and the Southern Levant region during the beginning of the 20th century, through which the language's usage changed from purely the sacred language of Judaism to a spoken and written language of Israel, and it was brought to Palestine with the occupation of Israelis during 1948. The language's revival eventually brought linguistic additions to it.
I made an effort to search for the meaning of Hallelujah by searching Hebrew ancient scriptures and dictionaries from international Biblical Libraries, as well by the Grace of God I managed to get in contact with a few people who speak Hebrew and are descendants of a few families who speak Hebrew.
I came to understand the true meaning of the phrase Hallelujah, as follows:
The phrase is made up of two compound words (1) Hallelu; (2) Jah, pronounced Yah.
The meaning of "Hallelu" in Hebrew means Praise to "ALLAH" or the remembrance of Allah.
The meaning of "Jah / Yah" in Hebrew means "GREATER or GREATEST".
I was very surprised to know that the phrase does not mean “Praise to God” because the Hebrew word Praise to God is "Rabbina".
In Aramaic language is probably the same as the Hebrew.
In studying some Hebrew and Aramaic scriptures at different Biblical Libraries across the world we find the name of Allah is the eternal name of God, and we found many examples in different old scriptures that Israeli people and Messengers of God called God as Allah. In an old copy of the Hebrew Bible “Tanakh”, the first page of the Book of Genesis mentioned Allah seventeen times which was translated to God in our Bibles.
This means that the name of God in Hebrew is Allah. To confirm this, we find in Commentary in The Scofield Reference Bible – Translation of KJV, in Chapter One, Doctors of Divinity are writing regarding the name of God as follows: “The Hebrew language is Elohim, .. alternative spelled Elah or Allah”.
According to Moses, the name of God is Allah, we find in Exodus (3: 14), Moses asks what he is to say to the Israelites when they ask what the name of God is, God said: “I am Allah” as it is found in various ancient Scriptures but in modern Bibles changed to “I am I am”. This is strange that God cannot mention His name to people.
Imagine if we interview someone and when we ask the person: what is your name? if the person just says “I am” without mentioning his/her name, then everyone on the panel will consider the person foolish and stupid – how then we accept this stupidness and foolishness to our Creator our God; our True God The All-Knowing and The Wiser.
Similarly, we find in many ancient scriptures that Jesus used the name Allah to call for God. This is obvious as we find that the name of God in Aramaic Language is Allah; you can find this in any Aramaic dictionary even in any Online Aramaic dictionary when we type God, translate “Allah” in Aramaic. Therefore, the name of God in both languages Hebrew and Aramaic is Allah.
The same word Hallelu is used in the Arabic language, meaning to remember Allah. The name of God in the Arabic language and the Qur’an is also Allah.
It is the duty of every one of us to study and understand the correct meanings of phrases that were brought to us from other ancient languages. We Christians shout Hallelujah not knowing that we are actually Praising Allah as it originally meant, and many of us refuse to accept Allah as our God, but we don’t know what we praise!
In history, in ancient Judaism in the Old Testament the word Hallelujah meant Praise Allah. In the New Testament, it appears in the Book of Revelation, it was translated from Hebrew into the Septuagint (Greek version of the Bible) and became “Alleluia” in the Vulgate (Christian Latin version of the Bible) and given the meaning of “Praise God”. The early Christians adopted this expression in their worship services, and it appeared in Orthodox-Roman Catholic Anglican and Protestant Liturgies in their hymns. Later, some Christians changed the name of God to Jehovah, saying the meaning of Hallelujah is Praise Jehovah. However, Jehovah is not the name of God, it is just an English fabricated name added into the Bible very late in history, not found in any Scripture and no one has called God before.
The expression Hellalujah was then accepted by almost all denominations of Christianity, and it was not considered the original meaning of Hebrew as the Hebrew language was no longer used in Christianity, except for the translation of scriptures, in which the language barrier created many mistakes in translating religious scriptures especially when translating words from intermediate languages.
In Conclusion, the true meaning of Hallelujah is “Praise Allah, the Greatest” and Not Praise to God, as the Hebrew word Praise to God is Rabbina. It is certainly not Praise Jehovah. The name of God is Eternal, and no one has the authority to call God except what God authorized us to call Him.
We are now living in an era of open knowledge and what was not accessible in the past is now accessible, and no one has an excuse to be misled by other mistakes – we must open our eyes and our minds to understand true knowledge and the truth.
I Rest My Case..!
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References:
The Bible.
- Anonymous; Various Ancient Scriptures are found in the British Library and French Biblical Library.
- Alleluia & Hallelujah, meanings, words usage, and differences; www.study.com
- The Scofield Study Bible, Oxford University Press, 1978.
- The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Theology, Oxford University Press, 2015.
- Hebrew language: Origin and History; www.study.com
- Anonymous, Personal Interview.
The original Hebrew meaning of "Hallelujah" is "Praise God", a direct call to praise the God of Israel. It appears primarily in the Psalms (e.g., Psalm 146–150) as an exclamation of joy and reverence.
ReplyDeleteHow the Meaning Changed Over Time:
In early Christianity, the term kept its original Hebrew meaning and was used in prayers.
However, over time, especially in modern Christianity:
• The focus shifted from to a general shout of joy or victory. Many Christians today use "Hallelujah" as just an exclamation of happiness or celebration, often without connecting it to praising the name of God.
• For many Christians, it became associated with Jesus instead of God. In Christian worship, "Hallelujah" is sometimes used to praise Jesus, even though its original Hebrew form explicitly refers to God
• Some Christians have secularized the term. In popular culture and music, "Hallelujah" is often used to express strong emotions, even in non-religious contexts, losing its connection to sacred worship.
The Disappearance of the Original Meaning: Many Christians today do not realize that "Hallelujah" is a direct command to praise God, the God of Israel, rather than just a general word for excitement or joy. This happened due to:
• Translation influences: As Christianity spread and translations emerged (Greek "Alleluia," Latin "Alleluia"), the link to Yahweh weakened.
• Doctrinal shifts: The Christian emphasis on Jesus as divine gradually led to "Hallelujah" being used in reference to Him rather than God.
• Cultural adaptations: Over time, "Hallelujah" became more of an emotional expression than a theologically precise statement.
Thus, Originally, "Hallelujah" was a call to praise God, but its meaning has evolved in Christian practice, often losing its specific reference to Yahweh. Most Christians today use it without knowing its Hebrew roots, turning it into a general phrase of worship or joy.