Berean Standard Bible
Genesis 1:16
16God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night. And He made the stars as well.
Genesis 1:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
- New International Version (NIV)God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also.
Context of Genesis 1:16
14And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to distinguish between the day and the night, and let them be signs to mark the seasons and days and years. 15And let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night. And He made the stars as well. 17God set these lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth, 18to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good.
Read all of Genesis 1Genesis 1:16 word by word
וַיַּ֣עַשׂ אֱלֹהִ֔ים אֶת־שְׁנֵ֥י הַמְּאֹרֹ֖ת הַגְּדֹלִ֑ים אֶת־הַמָּא֤וֹר הַגָּדֹל֙ לְמֶמְשֶׁ֣לֶת הַיּ֔וֹם וְאֶת־הַמָּא֤וֹר הַקָּטֹן֙ לְמֶמְשֶׁ֣לֶת הַלַּ֔יְלָה וְאֵ֖ת הַכּוֹכָבִֽים׃Read the interlinear
- Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- ·אֵת'êth · [Obj.]H853
- madeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- twoשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
- greatגָּדוֹלgâdôl gâdôl · great: largeH1419
- lightsמָאוֹרmâ'ôr mâ'ôr me'ôrâh me'ôrâh · lightH3974
- to ruleמֶמְשָׁלָהmemshâlâh · dominionH4475
- the dayיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
- the lesserקָטֹןqâţân qâţôn · smallH6996
- the nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- the stars as wellכּוֹכָבkôkâb · starH3556
Cross-references for Genesis 1:16
- Deuteronomy 4:19When you look to the heavens and see the sun and moon and stars—all the host of heaven—do not be enticed to bow down and worship what the LORD your God has apportioned to all the nations under heaven.
- Joshua 10:12On the day that the LORD gave the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua spoke to the LORD in the presence of Israel: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”
- Job 31:26if I have beheld the sun in its radiance or the moon moving in splendor,
- Job 38:7while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
- Psalms 8:3When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place—
- Psalms 19:6it rises at one end of the heavens and runs its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth.
- Psalms 74:16The day is Yours, and also the night; You established the moon and the sun.
- Psalms 136:7He made the great lights— His loving devotion endures forever.
- Psalms 148:3Praise Him, O sun and moon; praise Him, all you shining stars.
- Isaiah 13:10For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light. The rising sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light.
- Isaiah 24:23The moon will be confounded and the sun will be ashamed; for the LORD of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders with great glory.
- Isaiah 45:7I form the light and create the darkness; I bring prosperity and create calamity. I, the LORD, do all these things.
- Habakkuk 3:11Sun and moon stood still in their places at the flash of Your flying arrows, at the brightness of Your shining spear.
- Matthew 24:29Immediately after the tribulation 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 powers of the heavens will be shaken.’
- Matthew 27:45From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.
- 1 Corinthians 15:41The sun has one degree of splendor, the moon another, and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendor.
Commentaries on Genesis 1:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16And God made two great lights - Moses speaks of the sun and moon here, not according to their bulk or solid contents, but according to the proportion of light they shed on the earth. The expression has been cavilled at by some who are as devoid of mental capacity as of candour. "The moon," say they, "is not a great body; on the contrary, it is the very smallest in our system." Well, and has Moses said the contrary? He has said it is a great Light; had he…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-19Verses 14-19 - VI. The Fourth Day 14. מאור mā'ôr “a light, a luminary, a center of radiant light.” מועה mô‛ēd “set time, season.” Words beginning with a formative מ m usually signify that in which the simple quality resides or is realized. Hence, they often denote place. 17. נתן nāthan “give, hold out, show, stretch, hold out.” Latin: tendo, teneo; ́ teinō darkness has been removed from the face of the deep, its waters have been distributed in due…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-19Verses 14-19 In the fourth day's work, the creation of the sun, moon, and stars is accounted for. All these are the works of God. The stars are spoken of as they appear to our eyes, without telling their number, nature, place, size, or motions; for the Scriptures were written, not to gratify curiosity, or make us astronomers, but to lead us to God, and make us saints. The lights of heaven are made to serve him; they do it faithfully, and shine in their…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16In the surrounding pagan cultures, people worshiped the sun and moon as gods. But in Genesis, they serve God and humanity (see Psalm 136:7–9; Jeremiah 31:35). Here, this verse does not name the sun and moon. They are simply called the greater light and the lesser light. Not naming them may have reminded Israel that they were not gods. rule: Compare 1:26, 28; Psalm 136:9. the stars: The stars bear witness to God's power to create, and they declare his…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. two great lights--In consequence of the day being reckoned as commencing at sunset--the moon, which would be seen first in the horizon, would appear "a great light," compared with the little twinkling stars; while its pale benign radiance would be eclipsed by the dazzling splendor of the sun; when his resplendent orb rose in the morning and gradually attained its meridian blaze of glory, it would appear "the greater light" that ruled the day. Both…Read the comment
Topics related to Genesis 1:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Genesis 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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