Biblical Hebrew Forum

["George F. Somsel" <gfsomsel AT juno.com>]

On Tue, 15 Jun 2004 00:38:27 +0200 "Yigal Levin" <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>
writes:
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "George F. Somsel" <gfsomsel AT juno.com>
> To: <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>
> Cc: <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
> Sent: Monday, June 14, 2004 11:26 PM
> Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] What means, "beyn mayim lamayim"?
> 
> 
> > On Tue, 15 Jun 2004 00:01:30 +0200 "Yigal Levin" 
> <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>
> > writes:
> > > > > > > In Genesis, 1:6, it says that "there was divided" 
> "among/
> > > > > between
> > > > > > > waters
> > > > > > > to/for the waters (vayihiy or viyih mav'diyl, beyn 
> mayi'm
> > > > > > > lamayi'ym.)
> > > > > > >
> > > > > > > How does this translate?
> > > > >
> > > > > Folks: might the word "mavdil" not be a noun, "divider" - 
> "and 
> > > the
> > > > > was (or
> > > > > 'came to be') a DIVIDER between water and water"?
> > > > >
> > > > > Yigal
> > > > >
> > > > _____________
> > > >
> > > > Why not?  Isn't a participle by definition a verbal adjective 
> and 
> > > can be
> > > > used as a noun?
> > > >
> > > > gfsomsel
> > > >
> > > Yes, but I was thinking of something more concrete - that God 
> reated 
> > > the
> > > earth as a physical divider between the upper and lower waters.
> > > 
> > > Yigal
> > > 
> > ______________
> > 
> > So you're suggesting that Hf)fReC is itself the RfQiYa( ?
> > 
> No, the raqiya is the divider.
> 
______________

Now you have me confused.  You said, "I was thinking of something more
concrete - that God created the earth as a physical divider between the
upper and lower waters."  Now you say "the raqiya is the divider."  How
can both be true unless the earth is the raqiya( ?

gfsomsel