![]() ![]() The verb is used, for example, in the description in Exodus of the construction of the tabernacle: “They hammered out gold sheets and cut them into threads to be woven in with the blue and the purple and the scarlet material.” Similarly in the book of Numbers, the bronze censers that were used by some rebellious Israelites to challenge Aaron for the priesthood were “ hammered out to overlay the altar.” And Jeremiah speaks of “ hammered silver” that is used in the construction of idols. It is derived from the verb raqa’, which means to beat out, stamp, or spread out a solid object, usually metal, to make it thinner, flatter, and broader. The Hebrew term in question is the noun raqiya’. ![]() We should determine the meaning of the word objectively and draw our conclusions from there.) (I don’t believe that respect or disrespect for the teaching of the Bible is at stake in this inquiry. We can evaluate Schaeffer’s claims here by considering both the derivation and the usage of the Hebrew term in Genesis that English Bibles variously translate as “firmament” (KJV), “expanse” (ESV, NASB, HCSB), “space” (NLT), or “vault” (NIV). Schaeffer, Genesis in Space and Time (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1972), p. Rather what is being referred to is differentiation in the area of being-a differentiation of the openness that is about us.” Francis A. In any case, the idea that it is merely a hard covering and reflects a primitive notion of a three-story universe is in error. But it is also the place where the birds fly (v. Perhaps for our generation the word space would be the best equivalent. Firmament simply means “expanse.” It is a rather broad word, as we can see from the fact that the firmament is where the moon and the sun and the stars are (v. “Some scholars who have tried to minimize the teaching of the Bible have said that the word firmament indicates that the Jews had an idea of a brass or iron covering over the world. Here is what Schaeffer writes in his book: In his book Genesis in Space and Time, Francis Schaeffer briefly argues that the word “firmament” in Genesis 1:6 should not be taken to mean a solid dome or brass covering, but is instead best translated as “expanse.” He says it is a fairly broad word that can be understood as “space” or “air” and that the notion that the Hebrews believed that the earth was covered by a solid dome is mistaken. ![]()
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