Rev. James D. Conley, D.D., S.T.L. | Diocese of Lincoln website

In a recent installment of "Ask the Register," a reader inquired about the use of two different forms of the word "Lord" in English translations of the Old Testament. The question focused on why some passages use "LORD" in all capital letters, while others use "Lord" with only the first letter capitalized.

The explanation provided clarified that this distinction is significant and rooted in Hebrew tradition and translation practices. "'LORD' stands in as a substitute for the proper name of God; 'Lord' signifies something else," stated Dr. Vern Steiner, who teaches from his Hebrew Bible at the Emmaus Institute.

According to Dr. Steiner, "'Lord' (with uppercase L- and lowercase -ord) translates the Hebrew word meaning 'My Lord' or 'Lord of all.' This title of honor refers to God as Master or Ruler." He noted that this form appears 425 times in the Old Testament, such as in Job 28:28 and Psalms 57:9.

On the other hand, "'LORD' (with four uppercase letters) is different. It represents a convention adopted in most English Bibles as a stand-in for the proper name of God." The original Hebrew contains four consonants representing God's personal name, but Jewish scribes considered it too sacred to pronounce aloud. As a result, they substituted another word when reading scripture and omitted vowel signs from God's name to prevent its pronunciation.

Dr. Steiner explained further: "Most English Bibles follow this convention by rendering God’s proper name as ‘LORD.’ This is a good translation... but it is not an actual [translation]... LORD is a surrogate that takes the place... so as to avoid speaking God’s name."

He also addressed cases where both terms appear together: "Sometimes these two words occur together in the Hebrew Bible (315 times). Instead of reading 'Lord LORD,' most modern English publishers choose to render it 'Lord GOD,' with ‘GOD’ in all capital letters."

Dr. Steiner concluded with reflections on reverence for God's name and its significance within Christian tradition: "The reluctance of Jews even to utter God’s name should serve as a convicting reminder of the reverence that is due... The Second Commandment prohibits the abuse of God’s name in any way..."

This discussion sheds light on translation choices found throughout many widely used English versions of scripture.