Hallelujah
Hallelujah is an interjection. It is a transliteration of the Hebrew phrase , which is composed of two elements: and .
The term is used 24 times in the Hebrew Bible, twice in deuterocanonical books, and four times in the Christian Book of Revelation.
The phrase is used in Judaism as part of the Hallel prayers, and in Christian prayer, where since the earliest times it is used in various ways in liturgies, especially those of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, both of which use the form "alleluia" which is based on the alternative Greek transliteration.
In the Bible
הַלְלוּיָהּ is found in 24 verses in the Book of Psalms , but twice in Psalm 150:6. It starts and concludes a number of Psalms.The Greek transliteration ἀλληλούϊα appears in the Septuagint version of these Psalms, in and, and four times in
, the great song of praise to God for his triumph over the Whore of Babylon. It is this usage that Charles Jennens extracted for the Hallelujah Chorus in Handel's Messiah. This transliteration is the basis of the alternative English transliteration of "Alleluia" that is also used by Christians.
Interpretation
In the Hebrew Bible hallelujah is actually a two-word phrase, not one word. The first part, hallelu, is the second-person imperative masculine plural form of the Hebrew verb hillel. However, "hallelujah" means more than simply "praise Jah" or "praise Yah", as the word hallel in Hebrew means a joyous praise in song, to boast in God.The second part, Yah, is a shortened form of YHWH, the name for the Creator. The name ceased to be pronounced in Second Temple Judaism, by the 3rd century BC due to religious beliefs. The correct pronunciation is not known, however, it is sometimes rendered by Christians as "Yahweh" or "Jehovah". The Septuagint translates Yah as Kyrios, because of the Jewish custom of replacing the sacred name with "Adonai", meaning "the Lord".
In the Hebrew reads kol han'shamah t'hallel yah halelu-yah; the first "hallel" and "yah" in this verse are two separate words, and the word "yah" is translated as "the LORD", or "YHWH". In the Hebrew says "הללו יה halelu yah". It then says "halelu eth-YHWH" as if using "yah" and "YHWH" interchangeably. The word "Yah" appears by itself as a divine name in poetry about 49 times in the Hebrew Bible, such as in "who rides upon the skies by his name Yah" and "Yah is my strength and song". It also often appears at the end of Israelite theophoric names such as Isaiah "yeshayah, Yahweh is salvation" and Jeremiah "yirmeyah, Yahweh is exalted".
The word hallelujah occurring in the Psalms is therefore a request for a congregation to join in praise toward God. It can be translated as "Praise Yah" or "Praise Jah, you people".
Most well-known English versions of the Hebrew Bible translate the Hebrew "Hallelujah" as two Hebrew words, generally rendered as "Let us praise" and "the ", but the second word is given as "Yah" in the Lexham English Bible and Young's Literal Translation, "Jah" in the New World Translation, "Jehovah" in the American Standard Version, and "Hashem" in the Artscroll Tanach. Instead of a translation, the transliteration "Hallelujah" is used by JPS Tanakh, International Standard Version, Darby Translation, God's Word Translation, Holman Christian Standard Bible, and The Message, with the spelling "Halleluyah" appearing in the Complete Jewish Bible. The Greek-influenced form "Alleluia" appears in Wycliffe's Bible, the Knox Version and the New Jerusalem Bible.
In the great song of praise to God for his triumph over the Whore of Babylon in chapter 19 of the New Testament book of Revelation, the Greek word ἀλληλούϊα, a transliteration of the same Hebrew word, appears four times, as an expression of praise rather than an exhortation to praise. In English translations this is mostly rendered as "Hallelujah", but as "Alleluia" in several translations, while a few have "Praise the Lord", "Praise God", "Praise our God", or "Thanks to our God".
The linguist Ghil'ad Zuckermann argues that the word Hallelujah is usually not replaced by a praise God! translation due to the belief in iconicity: the perception that there is something intrinsic about the relationship between the sound of the word and its meaning.
Usage by Jews
The word "hallelujah" is sung as part of the Hallel Psalms. In Tractate Shabbat of the Talmud, Rabbi Yose is quoted as saying that the Pesukei dezimra Psalms should be recited daily. Psalms 145-150, also known as the Hallel of pesukei dezimra, are included to fulfill this requirement in the liturgy for the traditional Jewish Shacharit service. In addition, on the three Pilgrimage Festivals, the new moon and Hanukkah, Psalms 113-118 are recited. The latter psalms are known simply as Hallel with no additional qualification., ending with Halleluja, is the third and final biblical quotation in the Kedushah. This expanded version of the third blessing in the Amidah is said during the Shacharit and Mincha services when there is a minyan present.
Usage by Christians
For most Christians, "Hallelujah" is considered a joyful word of praise to God, rather than an injunction to praise him. "The Alleluia" refers to a traditional chant, combining the word with verses from the Psalms or other scripture. In the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, and in many older Protestant denominations, the Alleluia, along with the Gloria in excelsis Deo, is not spoken or sung in liturgy during the season of Lent, instead being replaced by a Lenten acclamation, while in Eastern Churches, Alleluia is chanted throughout Lent at the beginning of the Matins service, replacing the Theos Kyrios, which is considered more joyful. At the Easter service and throughout the Pentecostarion, Christos anesti is used in the place where Hallelujah is chanted in the western rite expressing happiness.In contemporary worship among many Protestants, expressions of "Hallelujah" and "Praise the Lord" are acceptable spontaneous expressions of joy, thanksgiving and praise towards God, requiring no specific prompting or call or direction from those leading times of praise and singing.