Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Jack Kilmon" <jkilmon AT historian.net>]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ian Goldsmith" <iangoldsmith1969 AT yahoo.co.uk>
To: "Biblical Hebrew" <b-hebrew AT franklin.metalab.unc.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2002 5:08 AM
Subject: Bara: unique?


> In the hope of distracting you from the b'reshit
> debate and so freeing up my mailbox....
>
> Is it true to say that the verb 'bara' to create is
> solely used in connection with God and that whilst man
> may 'make' or 'do' etc, he is never recorded in the
> OT as 'creating'/'bara'?

It is my understanding that br) is an Aramaic loan word related to "bear a
child" and "son."  Although it is used in the OT for separate idiom, "to cut
down" (Jos 17:15) or to "make fat" (1 Sam 2:29), "creation" is the sole
provenance of God and man creates nothing.  Even the gold that Aaron used to
"fashion" and "make" a golden calf was already created.  I would be
interested in whatever etymological trajectory led from "cutting down a tree
or forest" to "creation."

Jack