Biblical Hebrew Forum

[ben.crick AT argonet.co.uk (Ben Crick)]

On Tue 29 Aug 2000 (18:45:49), lizfried AT umich.edu wrote:
> What do people who believe in the inerrancy of the
> biblical text do with the word raqi(a in vs 1:6-8? Do
> they think the sky is a rolled out sheet of metal
> strong enough to hold the rain waters?

 We have discussed this before, Liz. The most satisfactory rendering of
 Raqi(a for me is "atmosphere". It is the medium in which the (oP Y:(oWPeP
 in verse 20. The (oP could be flying insects or birds or bats or pterodactyls
 or anything else that "flaps" and flies, *in the air*.

 The Clouds hold the rainwaters. They were so thick at first that the sun and
 the moon were not visible from the surface until the Fourth 'Day'.

 Raqi(a can mean a firmament, or a platform or a foundation upon which one
 may stand: as in Ezekiel 1:22-26, 10:1. But birds do not fly on a platform,
 so I prefer the usage of Genesis 1:8, Psalms 19:1, 150:1, and Daniel 12:3,
 where it seems to be a synonym for the sky. Birds surely fly in the "sky",
 don't they?

 Shalom

 Ben
-- 
 Revd Ben Crick, BA CF
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