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EL ROI (אֵל רֳאִי, el ro'iy; ὁ θεὸς ὁ ἐπιδών, ho theos ho epidōn; [LXX]). The name Hagar gives to God in Gen 16:13.
Overview
No other character in the Old Testament, male or female, confers a name onto deity. In Genesis 16:13, after God promises Hagar a son, she gives God a name. The text states: “she called the name of [or named] Yahweh who spoke with her El-Roi.”
Names often express an essential characteristic or attribute; thus, naming is a significant event in Scripture. The God of the Bible is known by many names. Some are common (e.g., El Shaddai, Adonai, Jehovah-Jireh) and some are not so common (e.g., Jehovah-Tsidkenu). It is common in the Bible for people to give names to family members, to animals, to sacred sites, but humans do not normally give names to God (Hamilton, Book of Genesis 1–17, 455).
El
El is the primary form of a common grouping of names for deity in Semitic languages, commonly taken to mean “the Strong One” and one of the most frequent terms for a god. Others in this group include Eloah (Mighty One), Elohim (Almighty One), and Elyon (Exalted One). “In Ugaritic literature El holds venerable and senior status among the many gods, although he is not the central figure in the Canaanite myths. El appears in the Semitic world generally as a particular deity, in the larger pantheon of divinity, or as a special local deity. In the Old Testament, El is used mainly to designate Israel’s God; occasionally it refers to the pagans’ god (Isa 44:17) or in the plural to their gods (Exod 15:11)” (Henry, God, Revelation, and Authority, 191).
Roi
Frequently El is juxtaposed with nouns or adjectives that express some particular divine attribute or activity. When the generic name is coordinated with a specific divine perfection the designation gains the force of a proper name.
J. A. Motyer lists six such elaborations from Scripture:
1. El Elyon (Gen 14:18, 19, 20, 22)
2. El Shaddai (Gen 17:1; 28:3; 35:11; 43:14; 48:3)
3. El Bethel (Gen 31:13; 35:7)
4. El Roi (Gen 16:13)
5. El Elohe-Israel (Gen 33:20)
6. El Olam (Gen 21:33).
The religion of the patriarchs, as Motyer notes, “revolves round the worship of EL. Their religious experience found natural expression by elaborating the term EL so as to make it express different facets of the Divine nature which were revealed to them” (Motyer, The Revelation of the Divine Name, 26).
The Hebrew root ראה (r'h) (“to see”) is used in a multitude of contexts. Some of the more significant include (Naudé, “ראה, r'h”):
1. physical sense perception with the eyes (e.g., Gen 3:6)
2. seeing in a vision, receiving a revelation (e.g., Num 24:17)
3. becoming mentally aware of, realizing, taking note of (e.g., Gen 16:4–5)
4. experiencing an activity or state (e.g., Psa 16:10)
5. the act of taking care of, looking after (e.g., Gen 39:23)
What seems to distinguish ראה (r'h) from other words referring to visual perception is that ראה (r'h) “denotes the experience of seeing as totality, in which sensation and perception merge. The experience of the visual nature of reality has as its content the meaning, character, and nature of the images perceived; this experience is the polar opposite of sensation” (Fuhs, “ראה, r'h”).
In some biblical texts ראה (r'h) is complementary to גלה (glh, “reveal”). As Fuhs explains, “God emerges from the concealment of divinity, being revealed in and through every possible form of human experience. Thus ראה (r'h) denotes the act of revelation itself, God’s self-manifestation in person and in action” (Fuhs, “ראה, r'h”).
Some uses of ראה (r'h) appear in contexts that are overtly theological in purpose. For example, sometimes the word appears in connection with seeing God or seeing God’s face. “This manner of expression embodies the ancient Near Eastern understanding of how the divine is manifested.… It emphasizes the reality of the encounter and the fact of vision as the authentication of an experience. Reflecting everyday usage, the expression ‘see (the face of) God/Yahweh’ denotes an encounter with God that emphasizes the immediacy and personal character of the encounter” (Fuhs, “ראה, r'h”).
El-Roi in Gen 16:13
Hagar’s encounter with God in Gen 16 provides an opportunity for her to express her discovery and experience of his providence. Hagar thus initiates this perception of God as “the one who sees,” which will augment other texts when God makes an appearance. She memorializes a new name for God.
There is disagreement among the texts as to how the vowel pointing should be interpreted, but it seems likely that some of the suggestions (particularly from the LXX) may have been an attempt to resolve God’s telling Moses, “You shall not see my face, for no one can see me and live” (Exod 33:20) and Hagar’s question, “Have I even remained alive here after seeing Him?” (Gen 16:13 NASB). Nahum Sarna asserts that the vocalization of El Roi “occasions a marvelous ambiguity” and concludes that “the several meanings are intended to be apprehended simultaneously” (Sarna, Genesis, 121; compare Hughes, “Seeing Hagar,” 53; Booij, “Hagar’s Words,” 6). There is significant support for El Roi being ambiguous in meaning: it may be both humankind searching for God and God looking after humankind. Some other possible interpretations include:
1. אל ראי ('l r'y) may be an abstract noun, “seeing or vision” (BDB, 909a), in which case the combination would be translated “you are El, [a god] of seeing” (Targum Onkelos).
2. Sarna cites Bekhor Shor (a commentary on the Torah by Joseph ben Isaac, 12th century, northern France) and the work of Radak (acronym for Rabbi David ben Joseph Kimḥi [ca. 1160–ca. 1235], a grammarian, lexicographer, and Bible commentator) for interpreting the phrase as “God of my seeing,” that is, “God whom I have seen” (Wyatt, “Meaning,” 143, interprets Roi as “seen,” expressing Hagar’s surprise at surviving a vision of God).
3. ראי (r'y) may be repointed as the participle ראה (r'h) plus the first-person pronominal suffix and translated “who sees me.” This is the interpretation of the LXX (“You [are] the God who looks on me”) and the Vulgate; the Samaritan Pentateuch may also imply this: “he saw,” “seeing” (Wenham, Genesis 16–50, 3). “Thus the one who looks on me is the one who pays attention to, is concerned with, provides for me” (Wevers, Notes, 225). The participial reading focuses the action on Yahweh’s seeing Hagar (Hamilton, Genesis 1–17, 455).
Theological Implications
When God sees, he cares and intervenes (compare Gen 29:32; Exod 3:7–8). Hagar says: “You are ‘the God who sees [i.e., delivers] me,’ for she said, ‘Here I truly have seen [i.e., encountered] God, who sees [i.e., delivers] me.’ ” In appearing to Hagar, Yahweh shows his care for her and becomes her personal protector. God’s entrance into such events contrasts with the irrelevance of idols, who have no relationship to people and time (Vetter “ראה, r'h”; Deut 4:28; Ps 115:5–7; 135:16–17).
When God “sees,” he shows his concern and extends his protection. When Hagar “sees,” she experiences God’s presence. This is one example of God allowing himself to be seen, disclosed, or revealed in theophanies (Exod 6:3). Those concerned “see” his action (Exod 34:10; Deut 3:21; 4:3, 9; 11:7; 28:34, 67; Isa 42:18, 20). Though Hagar calls God El Roi, the narrator calls him the Lord, Yahweh, the name of God revealed to Moses—the God who rescued Hagar in the wilderness is the one who redeemed Israel from Egypt (Wenham, Genesis 16–50, 11; Exod 3:14–15; 6:3).
Bibliography
Booij, Thijs.”Hagar’s Words in Genesis 16:13b.” Vetus Testamentum 30 (1980): 1–7.
Briffard, Colette. “Gen 16,13: Hagar a-t-elle vu Dieu?” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 122 (2010): 436–38.
Fuhs, H.F. “ראה (r'h).”Pages 208–42 in vol. 13 of Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Edited by G. J. Botterweck and H. Ringgren. 15 vols. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1974–.
Hamilton, Victor P. The Book of Genesis Chapters 1–17. The New International Commentary on the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990.
Henry, Carl F. H. God, Revelation, and Authority. Vol. 2. Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway, 1999.
Hughes, Paul Edward. “Seeing Hagar Seeing God: Leitwort and Petite Narrative in Genesis 16:1–16.”Didaskalia 8, no. 2 (1997): 43–59.
Koenen, Klaus. “Wer sieht wen: Zur Textgeschichte von Genesis 16:13.” Vetus Testamentum 38 (1988): 468–74.
Motyer, J. A. The Revelation of the Divine Name. Tyndale Old Testament Lecture 1956. London: Tyndale, 1959.
Naudé, J. A.” ראה (r'h).” Pages 1007–15 in vol. 3 of New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis. Edited by W. A. VanGemeren. 5 vols. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1997.
Nielsen, Kirsten.” To see and to be seen: ראה (r'h) in Genesis 16 and Genesis 22.” Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament 27 (2013): 22–31.
Sarna, Nahum M. Genesis: The Traditional Hebrew Text with the New JPS Translation. The JPS Torah Commentary. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1989.
Shelly, Patricia. “ ‘Hagar and the God-Who-Sees’: Reflections on Genesis 16:3–13.” Conrad Grebel Review 11 (1993): 265–68.
Vetter, D. “ראה (r'h) r’h; to see.”Pages 1176–83 in vol. 3 of Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament. Edited by Ernst Jenni and Claus Westermann. 3 vols. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1997.
Wenham, Gordon J. Genesis 16–50. Word Biblical Commentary 2. Dallas: Word, 1994.
Wevers, John William. Notes on the Greek Text of Genesis. Septuagint and Cognate Studies 35. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1993.
Wyatt, Nicolas, “The Meaning of El Roi and the Mythological Dimension in Genesis 16.” Scandinavian Journal of the Old Testament 8 (1994): 141–51.
KEVIN W. LARSEN
