qādôš

Semantic range

1. 1separated from common use and consecrated to God
2. 2morally pure
3. 3belonging to the sphere of the sacred

The root idea is separation, not moral perfection — though in Israel's God the two converge. Something qādôš has been cut out of ordinary use and assigned to God: a day, a garment, a vessel, a place, a people. The instruction to Israel is therefore not "be moral" but "be holy; for I the LORD your God am holy" (Leviticus 19:2) — belong to Me distinctly.

Isaiah's characteristic title for God, "the Holy One of Israel," pairs absolute separateness with covenant nearness in three words, and the Book of Mormon adopts it as a favourite (2 Nephi 9:41; 1 Nephi 22:21). The doctrine of consecration and the temple's language of setting apart both live inside this word.

See also

• ἅγιοςhagios
• שַׁבָּתšabbāt
• עֵדֶןʿēden