Who is the Lord Sabaoth?
In a Christian hymn “A Mighty Fortress is our God”, the translator of the original German version used this very wording: “Lord Sabaoth, His name, from age to age the same, and He must win the battle.”
I once attended a church service where the worshipers were told not to be confused – the Lord Sabaoth simply referred to the Lord of the Sabbath! Such statement is simply not accurate as we will see.
In Isaiah 6 we read that the great prophet heard angels call out to each other: “Holy, Holy, Holy is Adodai Tsvaot!” (קָד֛וֹשׁ קָד֖וֹשׁ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֑וֹת). The last two words make up a phrase “Adonai Tsvaot” – “Lord God Almighty", "the Lord of Hosts" or "Lord Sabbaoth” as it is sometimes translated. The very last word is “tsvaot” (צְבָא֑וֹת). The word “tsava” (צְבָא֑) means “army” and combined with the plural feminine ending “ot” (ֹוֹת) we get “of the armies.” A more literal translation of Adonai Tsvaot, therefore, is “Lord of the armies”.
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