# H7706 - shaddai **Strong's:** [H7706](https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h7706/) · BLB lookup **Pronunciation:** shad-dah'-ee **Part of speech:** masculine noun (proper-name use) **OT occurrences:** ~48 (almost all in Pentateuch + Job; rare elsewhere) **Greek equivalent (LXX):** *pantokratōr* (G3841, "Almighty"); occasionally *theos* / *kyrios* ## Semantic range / etymology The etymology of *Shaddai* is **contested**: 1. **From *shadad* (to deal violently / be powerful)**, yields "Almighty" / "Powerful One" (the traditional rendering since the Vulgate's *omnipotens*) 2. **From *shad* (breast)**, yields "the Sufficient One" / "the Nurturing One"; some rabbinic / mystical traditions 3. **From Akkadian *shadu* (mountain)**, yields "the Mountain God" (some critical scholarship) 4. **From a related root meaning *self-sufficient*** yields "the All-Sufficient" (jewish-pious tradition: *she-dai*, "He who is enough") The traditional **Almighty** rendering (LXX *pantokratōr*; Vulgate *omnipotens*) has dominated Christian translation, supported by usage-context: *Shaddai* is consistently associated with God's overwhelming power and sufficiency. ## Theological force ### *El Shaddai*, patriarchal divine name *Shaddai* is most famously paired with [H0410 - el](/codex/h0410-el/) in the compound *El Shaddai*, "Almighty God" / "God All-Sufficient." This is the **principal name by which God revealed Himself to the Patriarchs**: - **[Genesis 17:1](/codex/genesis-17-1/)**, God to Abraham: "I am *El Shaddai*; walk before Me, and be blameless" - **[Genesis 28:3](/codex/genesis-28-3/)**, Isaac to Jacob: "may *El Shaddai* bless you" - **[Genesis 35:11](/codex/genesis-35-11/)**, God to Jacob at Bethel: "I am *El Shaddai*; be fruitful and multiply" - **[Genesis 43:14](/codex/genesis-43-14/); 48:3; 49:25**, Patriarchal blessings invoking *El Shaddai* - **[Exodus 6:3](/codex/exodus-6-3/)**, God to Moses: "I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as *El Shaddai*, but by My name *YHWH* I did not make Myself known to them" The **[Exodus 6:3](/codex/exodus-6-3/) statement is theologically pivotal**: God reveals progressively. *El Shaddai* is the patriarchal-relational name; *YHWH* is the Mosaic-covenant name. Both are the same God; the revelation deepens. ### *Shaddai* in Job The book of Job uses *Shaddai* extensively (~31 times), more than any other OT book. In Job's discussions of suffering, divine sovereignty, and the wisdom-of-God-versus-man, *Shaddai* anchors the awesome-power-and-mystery dimension of God: - [Job 5:17](/codex/job-5-17/), "the discipline of *Shaddai*" - [Job 6:4](/codex/job-6-4/), "the arrows of *Shaddai*" - [Job 8:5](/codex/job-8-5/), "make supplication to *Shaddai*" - [Job 11:7](/codex/job-11-7/), "can you discover the depths of *Shaddai*?" - [Job 13:3](/codex/job-13-3/), "I would speak to *Shaddai*" - [Job 27:13](/codex/job-27-13/), "the heritage of the wicked from *Shaddai*" - [Job 31:35](/codex/job-31-35/), "the answer of *Shaddai*" Job's *Shaddai* is the God of overwhelming sovereignty whose ways exceed human comprehension. ### Theological themes connected to *Shaddai* The pattern of *Shaddai*-occurrences associates the name with: 1. **Covenant blessing and multiplication**, fertility, posterity, land (patriarchal blessings) 2. **Overwhelming power**, divine omnipotence (Job emphasizing) 3. **Sovereignty in suffering**, God's right to permit and use difficulty (Job) 4. **The pre-Mosaic / patriarchal-period revelation**, God known by this name *before* the YHWH-covenant became central ### *Shaddai* in NT, *Pantokratōr* The NT does not use *Shaddai* directly (Hebrew not retained), but *pantokratōr* (the LXX equivalent) appears 10 times: - **[2 Corinthians 6:18](/codex/2-corinthians-6-18/)**, "I will be a Father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me, says the Lord *pantokratōr*" - **[Revelation 1:8](/codex/revelation-1-8/); 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 14; 19:6, 15; 21:22**, *pantokratōr* as title for God The Apocalypse especially emphasizes God as the *Pantokratōr*, sovereign over history, judgment, and the eschatological consummation. ### Christological connection While *Shaddai* itself is not directly applied to Christ, the *pantokratōr* / Almighty title in Revelation is closely associated with the Lamb / Christ: - [Revelation 1:8](/codex/revelation-1-8/), *pantokratōr* identified as "the Alpha and the Omega… who is and who was and who is to come" - [Revelation 22:13](/codex/revelation-22-13/), "I am the Alpha and the Omega" applied to Christ - This convergence supports divine-identity Christology, the Almighty God of OT / Apocalypse is one with the risen Christ ## Notable verses - **[Genesis 17:1](/codex/genesis-17-1/)**, God reveals Himself as *El Shaddai* to Abraham at the covenant moment - **[Genesis 28:3](/codex/genesis-28-3/); 35:11; 43:14; 48:3; 49:25**, patriarchal blessings - **[Exodus 6:3](/codex/exodus-6-3/)**, pivotal revelation-progression statement - **[Numbers 24:4](/codex/numbers-24-4/), [16](/codex/numbers-24-16/)**, Balaam's oracles - **[Ruth 1:20-21](/codex/ruth-1-20-21/)**, Naomi: "*Shaddai* has dealt very bitterly with me" - **[Job 5:17](/codex/job-5-17/), [6](/codex/job-5-6/):4, 8:5, 11:7, 13:3, 22:3, 22:23, 22:25, 27:13, 31:2, 31:35, 32:8, 33:4, 34:10, 34:12, 35:13, 37:23, 40:2**, pervasive in Job - **[Psalm 68:14](/codex/psalms-68-14/); 91:1**, *Shaddai* in poetic-prayer context - **[Isaiah 13:6](/codex/isaiah-13-6/); [Joel 1:15](/codex/joel-1-15/)**, Day-of-the-LORD prophetic - **[Ezekiel 1:24](/codex/ezekiel-1-24/); 10:5**, divine glory / theophany ## Patristic / scholarly note Patristic engagement: through the LXX *pantokratōr*. Christian theological tradition uniformly affirms *El Shaddai* as Almighty God. Modern conservative scholarship: - Bruce Waltke, *Old Testament Theology* (2007) - Walter Eichrodt, *Theology of the Old Testament* (1961-67) - John Sailhamer, *The Pentateuch as Narrative* (1992) - Allen Ross, *Creation and Blessing* (1988) The *El Shaddai* / *YHWH* progression in [Exodus 6:3](/codex/exodus-6-3/) has been extensively engaged in OT theology, particularly regarding progressive revelation. ## See also - [H0410 - el](/codex/h0410-el/), God / Mighty One (compound base) - [H0430 - elohim](/codex/h0430-elohim/), God (plural / intensive form) - [H3068 - YHWH](/codex/h3068-yhwh/), covenant-personal name - [H0136 - adonai](/codex/h0136-adonai/), Lord (relational title) - [G3841 - pantokrator](/codex/g3841-pantokrator/), LXX / NT Almighty equivalent - [Genesis 1.1](/codex/genesis-1-1/), Creator-God context - [Christology](/codex/christianity/), Almighty-Christ connection (Revelation) ## Notes _Lexical workspace for Shaddai._