Genesis 1:14

Linguistic Bible Translation from Source Texts

Then God said, 'Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days, and years,

📖 Grammatical Analysis

Original Text

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֱלֹהִ֗ים יְהִ֤י מְאֹרֹת֙ בִּרְקִ֣יעַ הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם לְהַבְדִּ֕יל בֵּ֥ין הַיּ֖וֹם וּבֵ֣ין הַלָּ֑יְלָה וְהָי֤וּ לְאֹתֹת֙ וּלְמ֣וֹעֲדִ֔ים וּלְיָמִ֖ים וְשָׁנִֽים׃

Transliteration

And wayyōʾmer ʾĕlōhîm yĕhî mĕʾōrōt in rĕqîaʿ the šāmayim to habdîl between the yôm and between the lāylāh and hāyû for ʾōtōt and for môʿădîm and for yāmîm and šānîm

Grammar Details

• *mĕʾōrōt*: noun, masculine plural - lights/luminaries
• *bi-rĕqîaʿ*: preposition + noun, masculine singular construct - in firmament of
• *lĕ-habdîl*: preposition + hiphil infinitive construct - to separate/divide
• *hāyû*: verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural - they will be
• *lĕ-ʾōtōt*: preposition + noun, masculine plural - for signs
• *û-lĕ-môʿădîm*: conjunction + preposition + noun, masculine plural - and for appointed times
• *û-lĕ-yāmîm*: conjunction + preposition + noun, masculine plural - and for days
• *wĕ-šānîm*: conjunction + noun, feminine plural - and years

Word Meanings

• *mĕʾōrōt*: lights/luminaries/light-bearers
• *habdîl*: to separate/to divide/to distinguish
• *ʾōtōt*: signs/signals/markers
• *môʿădîm*: appointed times/festivals/seasons
• *yāmîm*: days/periods of time
• *šānîm*: years/annual cycles

Other Translations

• claude3.7

  And said God, Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to divide between the day and between the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years.

• King James Version 1769 (Standard Version)

  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

• KJV1611 – Modern English

  And God said, Let there be lights in the sky of the heavens to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.

• King James Version 1611 (Original)

  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

• American Standard Version with Strong's Numbers

  And God{H430} said,{H559} Let there be lights{H3974} in the firmament{H7549} of heaven{H8064} to divide{H914} the day{H3117} from the night;{H3915} and let them be for signs,{H226} and for seasons,{H4150} and for days{H3117} and years:{H8141}

• King James Version with Strong's Numbers

  And God{H430} said{H559}{(H8799)}, Let there be lights{H3974} in the firmament{H7549} of the heaven{H8064} to divide{H914}{(H8687)} the day{H3117} from the night{H3915}; and let them be for signs{H226}, and for seasons{H4150}, and for days{H3117}, and years{H8141}:

• Tyndale Bible (1526/1534)

  Than sayd God: let there be lyghtes in ye firmament of heaven to devyde the daye fro the nyghte that they may be vnto sygnes seasons days and yeares.

• Coverdale Bible (1535)

  And God sayde: let there be lightes in ye firmament of heauen, to deuyde the daye fro the night, that they maye be vnto tokes, seasons, dayes, and yeares.

• Geneva Bible (1560)

  And God said, Let there be lightes in the firmament of the heauen, to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signes, and for seasons, and for dayes and yeeres.

• Bishops' Bible (1568)

  And God sayde: let there be lyghtes in the firmament of the heauen, that they may deuide the day and the nyght, and let them be for signes, & seasons, and for dayes, and yeres.

• Authorized King James Version (1611)

  ¶ And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

• Webster's Bible (1833)

  God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years;

• Young's Literal Translation (1862/1898)

  And God saith, `Let luminaries be in the expanse of the heavens, to make a separation between the day and the night, then they have been for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years,

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years:

• American Standard Version (1901)

  And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years:

• Bible in Basic English (1941)

  And God said, Let there be lights in the arch of heaven, for a division between the day and the night, and let them be for signs, and for marking the changes of the year, and for days and for years:

• World English Bible (2000)

  God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years;

• NET Bible® (New English Translation)

  God said,“Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be signs to indicate seasons and days and years,

Referenced Verses

• Ps 136:7-9 : 7 To Him who made the great lights, for His steadfast love endures forever. 8 The sun to govern the day, for His steadfast love endures forever. 9 The moon and stars to rule over the night, for His steadfast love endures forever.
• Ps 104:19-20 : 19 He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to set. 20 You bring darkness, and it becomes night, when all the animals of the forest come out.
• Ps 8:3-4 : 3 Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies, You have established strength because of Your adversaries, to silence the enemy and the avenger. 4 When I look at Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon, and the stars that You have set in place—
• Ps 74:16-17 : 16 The day is Yours, and also the night; You established the light and the sun. 17 You set all the boundaries of the earth; You formed summer and winter.
• Deut 4:19 : 19 And be careful not to lift your eyes toward the heavens and see the sun, the moon, and the stars—all the host of heaven—and be led astray to bow down to them and worship them, things the LORD your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.
• Isa 40:26 : 26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls forth each of them by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
• Jer 31:35 : 35 This is what the LORD says, the one who sets the sun to give light by day, who established the laws of the moon and stars to give light by night, who stirs the sea and makes its waves roar—the LORD of Hosts is his name:
• Amos 5:8 : 8 He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns deep darkness into morning and darkens day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the surface of the earth—the Lord is his name.
• Ps 148:3 : 3 Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him, all you shining stars!
• Ps 148:6 : 6 He established them forever and ever; He issued a decree that will never pass away.
• Job 38:12-14 : 12 Have you ever commanded the morning or shown the dawn its place, 13 that it might take hold of the edges of the earth and shake the wicked out of it? 14 The earth takes shape like clay under a seal; its features stand out like a garment.
• Job 38:31-32 : 31 Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the cords of Orion? 32 Can you bring out the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Great Bear with its cubs?
• Joel 2:30-31 : 30 I will display wonders in the heavens and on the earth: blood, fire, and columns of smoke. 31 The sun will be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.
• Joel 3:15 : 15 The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will withdraw their brightness.
• Matt 24:29 : 29 Immediately after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly powers will be shaken.
• Jer 33:20 : 20 This is what the Lord says: If you could break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night so that day and night would not come at their appointed time,
• Jer 10:2 : 2 This is what the Lord says: Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by the signs in the sky, even though the nations are terrified by them.
• Ezek 32:7-8 : 7 When I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. 8 All the shining lights in the sky I will darken over you, and I will bring darkness over your land, declares the Lord GOD.
• Luke 21:25-26 : 25 There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars; and on the earth, distress among nations, confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26 People will faint from fear and the expectation of what is coming upon the world, because the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
• Luke 23:45 : 45 The sun was darkened, and the curtain of the temple was torn in two.
• Acts 2:19-20 : 19 I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below: blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
• Rev 6:12 : 12 And I watched as the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake. The sun became black like sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon turned red like blood.
• Rev 8:12 : 12 The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them went dark. A third of the day did not shine, and likewise, the night.
• Rev 9:2 : 2 He opened the shaft of the abyss, and smoke rose out of the shaft like the smoke of a great furnace. The sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the shaft.
• Ezek 46:1 : 1 This is what the Lord God says: The gate of the inner courtyard that faces east will remain closed during the six working days. But on the Sabbath day and the day of the new moon, it will be opened.
• Ezek 46:6 : 6 On the day of the new moon, the offering shall be a young bull without blemish, six lambs, and a ram, all unblemished.
• Joel 2:10 : 10 Before them, the earth quakes, the heavens tremble. The sun and moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their brightness.
• Jer 33:25 : 25 This is what the Lord says: If I have not established my covenant with day and night and the fixed laws of heaven and earth,
• Mark 13:24 : 24 But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light;
• Amos 8:9 : 9 'On that day,' declares the Lord God, 'I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight.'
• Matt 2:2 : 2 They asked, 'Where is the newborn King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.'
• Matt 16:2-3 : 2 He answered them, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.' 3 In the morning, you say, 'There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and overcast.' Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, yet you cannot discern the signs of the times.
• Gen 8:22 : 22 For as long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease."
• Gen 9:13 : 13 I have set My bow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.'
• Job 3:9 : 9 Let the stars of its dawn be dark; let it hope for light but have none, nor see the eyelids of the morning.
• Job 25:3 : 3 Is there any number to His armies? Upon whom does His light not rise?
• Job 25:5 : 5 Even the moon is not bright, and the stars are not pure in His sight.
• Ps 119:91 : 91 By Your ordinances they stand today, for all things are Your servants.
• Ps 81:3 : 3 Raise a song and strike the tambourine, the pleasant lyre with the harp.
• Ps 19:1-6 : 1 For the choirmaster: A psalm of David. 2 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the expanse proclaims the work of His hands. 3 Day after day they pour forth speech, and night after night they reveal knowledge. 4 There is no speech; there are no words; their voice is not heard. 5 Yet their message has gone out into all the earth, and their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens, He has pitched a tent for the sun. 6 It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course.