There is a line in 2 Kings 19:22 where understanding holiness primarily in terms of “devotedness” (not separation—separation being the subordinate/corollary idea to the primary idea of devotedness) makes a big difference.¹

In 2 Kings 18, the messengers of Sennacherib taunt and mock Hezekiah and the people of Judah at length. They try to twist the people’s understanding of Yahweh; they misrepresent Yahweh, much like the snake in Genesis 3. Yahweh responds to Assyria through the prophet Isaiah, and in 19:22, Yahweh says,

“Who are you talking smack to and mocking? Who are you shouting at with your eyes lifted high? It’s against The One Devoted to Israel.

That last phrase is typically rendered, “The Holy One of Israel,” and that’s a fine stock English gloss, but I think the idea of קָדוֹשׁ as devoted matters here. And, at least at the level of connotation, the intention is to characterize Yahweh as devoted to Israel, not just the one within or among Israel who is devoted.

Isaiah is saying that Sennacherib doesn’t realize that he is not actually taunting Israel, but the very one who goes by a title that means, “I’m devoted to Israel.” Understanding devotedness as the core idea of קדשׁ casts a heavy, ominous light on Yahweh’s self-designation. “The One Devoted to Israel” seems more to the point than the standard “The Holy One of Israel” (קְדוֹשׁ יִשׂרָאֵל).

1. For more on the meaning of of “holy” (קדשׁ) in the OT see Peter J. Gentry, “The Meaning of ‘Holy’ in the Old Testament,” Bibliotheca Sacra 170, no. 680 (2013): 400–417. ↩