Lord

Lord translates several distinct Hebrew and Greek words in Scripture, each with different connotations. The most significant is the Hebrew YHWH (the divine name, traditionally rendered LORD in small capitals), which appears approximately 6,800 times in the Old Testament and was considered so sacred by post-exilic Jews that it was not to be pronounced, Adonai (my Lord) being read in its place. The name encapsulates God's self-existent, covenant-faithful nature, revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:14–15; 6:3). El Shaddai (God Almighty) was the name by which God was known to the patriarchs, while YHWH expressed the specific covenant relationship established at the Exodus.

The Greek Kyrios (Lord) in the New Testament serves both as a translation of YHWH and as the primary confessional title for Jesus Christ: Jesus is Lord (Rom. 10:9; 1 Cor. 12:3) became the foundational Christian creed. By applying Old Testament Kyrios texts to Jesus—such as Joel 2:32 (whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved) in Romans 10:13—Paul and other New Testament writers implicitly equate Jesus with the covenant God of Israel, making the title Lord a primary vehicle for New Testament Christology.