Biblical Hebrew Forum

[George Athas <gathas AT mail.usyd.edu.au>]

Peter_Kirk AT sil.org wrote:

> [...] Are there any other passages
> in the Hebrew Bible which throw light on Genesis 1:1-2? How about Job
> chapter 38, Ps 90:2, Isaiah 42:5 etc? Are these not much more
> relevant?

Job 38 portrays the creation like the building of a house. It doesn't specify 
whether
it was ex-nihilo or not. If the analogy is to put taken to the fullest 
extent, then
the creation was made out of pre-existent materials - no one builds a house 
literally
from scratch.Ps 90:2 implies that God gave birth to the universe - it doesn't 
say
anything about ex-nihilo or not. It just implies that it originated with God.
Isa 42:5 doesn't really shed much light on the debate because it doesn't 
specify
ex-nihilo or not, either.

Best regards,
GEORGE ATHAS
Dept of Semitic Studies,
University of Sydney
- Email: gathas AT mail.usyd.edu.au
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