I. Name

‘Saints’ or ‘holy ones’ translates the Hebrew qĕdôšîm: the masculine plural of the adjective qādôš ‘holy’. Qĕdôšîm occurs thirteen times in the Bible. It is used variously of people, of divine beings, and of Yahweh. The Aramaic cognate, qaddîšîn, is used in Daniel of divine beings. The root does not appear in any Israelite personal name inside or outside the Bible.

qdš is a common Semitic root referring to the quality or property of holiness, sacredness, as opposed to w…