Genesis 1:1–8
Read in full context
— Genesis 1:1–8 (WEB)
1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
2 The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep and God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.
3 God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
4 God saw the light, and saw that it was good. God divided the light from the darkness.
5 God called the light “day”, and the darkness he called “night”. There was evening and there was morning, the first day.
6 God said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.”
7 God made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.
8 God called the expanse “sky”. There was evening and there was morning, a second day.
The speaker is identified in verse 1: God. The Hebrew word translated expanse is raqia (Strong’s #7549), from the root verb raqa (Strong’s #7554) — to beat out, spread out, stretch. Verse 7 states what the expanse divides: “the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse.” Verse 8 states what God called the expanse: “sky”.
Does the context of this passage identify who the speaker is?
Does the text state what the expanse divides?
Does the text state that there are waters above the expanse?
Had you ever been taught what this passage says about the waters above?
Author’s Note — Wally Gee
This passage opens my next book — a study of Genesis, day by day, word by word, in the same discipline as the first: read what is written, in full context, and mark your own answers. The book is in progress — and it is in progress for a reason I want you to know: I stopped writing it to build the tools to verify every claim in it before you ever read one. Assumption Is Not Confirmation applies to my own work first. When it is ready, this is where you will hear about it.