ELOHIST

Elohim

Its name comes from Elohim, the term it uses for God. It is characterised by, among other things, an abstract view of God, using "Horeb" instead of "Sinai" for the mountain where Moses received the laws of Israel and the use of the phrase "fear of God"

God's name is always presented as "Elohim" or "El" until the revelation of God's name to Moses, after which God is referred to as "YHWH". E treats God as a figure capable of regret, and shows him appearing in person at events.

  it is the Elohist version of the tale of Jacob's ladder in which there is a ladder of angels with God at the top, leading to Jacob later dedicating the place as Beth-El (House of God)


 the Elohist exhibits a noticeably positive attitude to the main northern tribes—those of Joseph. Unlike the Jahwist, the Elohist contains stories of the political position of the Joseph tribes: the birth of Benjamin, and the pre-eminence of Ephraim


Elohim, rather than the more personal name, YHWH, prior to Exodus 3, and descriptions of Yahweh of a more impersonal nature (for example, speaking through dreams, prophets, and angels rather than personal appearances) indicate the Elohist source, according to the documentary hypothesis.^[11] The Elohist’s narrative does not begin with a depiction of Yahweh’s creation of humankind, but with the divine address to Abraham, the ancestor of Israel.^[12] Because both the Jahwist source and the Elohist source use "Yahweh" for God after Exodus 3, it is more difficult to discern Elohist from Jahwist source material from that point onward. E parallels J, often duplicating the narratives. E makes up a third of Genesis and half of Exodus, plus fragments of Numbers. E describes a human-like God initially called Elohim, and Yahweh subsequent to the incident of the burning bush, at which Elohim reveals himself as Yahweh. E focuses on the Kingdom of Israel and on the Shiloh priesthood, and has a moderately eloquent style. Scholars suggest the Elohist source was composed c. 850 BCE.^[3]
The theology of the Elohist focuses on four key elements: 1) prophetic leadership, 2) the fear of God, 3) covenant, and 4) the theology of history. Prophetic leadership is emphasized by building the narrative on four key ancestors (Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, and Moses) who are presented as prophets who receive revelations from God in visions and dreams.^[13] The Elohist’s concept of the fear of God goes beyond reverent awe and is the root of Abraham’s obedience to the command to slay his son.^[14] Covenant is emphasized by the Elohist on a number of occasions, notably the covenant ceremony of Exodus 24,^[15] establishment of the tent of meeting,^[16] and Israel’s rebellion at Sinai with worship of the golden calf which presents the Elohist’s gloomy view of Israel’s propensity to violate her covenant with God.^[17][18] The Elohist theology of history is focused on the nation of Israel and more inclined than the Jahwist to focus on the specifically religious aspects of prayer, sacrifice, and prophetic revelations. The goal of history for Israel is explicitly religious: to be “a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”^[19]