Bible Strands
Genesis 1:17
God set these lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — God acts during the creation narrative, positioning the celestial bodies He just formed to illuminate the earth.
The words — וַ/יִּתֵּ֥ן (va/yi.ten) translates as "and He set," while בִּ/רְקִ֣יעַ (bi/r.ki.a') means "in the expanse."
The thread — The deliberate placement of celestial bodies reappears in Psalms 8:3, which notes the moon and stars set in place. Genesis 1:18 immediately extends their function to ruling the day and night.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that God intentionally positioned the lights to provide illumination and order over the earth.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
Cross-references
- Psalms 8:3 When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place—
- Psalms 8:1 For the choirmaster. According to Gittith. A Psalm of David. O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! You have set Your glory above the heavens.
- Job 38:12 In your days, have you commanded the morning or assigned the dawn its place,
- Acts 13:47 For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
- Genesis 9:13 I have set My rainbow in the clouds, and it will be a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.