New English Translation
Genesis 1:16
16God made two great lights – the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night. He made the stars also.
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
14God 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, 15and let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.” It was so. God made two great lights – the greater light to rule over the day and the lesser light to rule over the night. He made the stars also. 17God placed the lights in the expanse of the sky to shine on the earth, 18to preside over the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. 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
Words taken from the KJV.
- And Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- 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
- and the lesserקָטֹןqâţân qâţôn · smallH6996
- the nightלַ֫יְלָהlayil lêyl layelâh · nightH3915
- the starsכּוֹכָבkôkâb · starH3556
Cross-references for Genesis 1:16
- Deuteronomy 4:19When you look up to the sky and see the sun, moon, and stars – the whole heavenly creation – you must not be seduced to worship and serve them, for the Lord your God has assigned them to all the people of the world.
- Joshua 10:12The day the Lord delivered the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua prayed to the Lord before Israel: “O sun, stand still over Gibeon! O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon!”
- Job 31:26if I looked at the sun when it was shining, and the moon advancing as a precious thing,
- Job 38:7when the morning stars sang in chorus, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?
- Psalms 8:3When I look up at the heavens, which your fingers made, and see the moon and the stars, which you set in place,
- Psalms 19:6It emerges from the distant horizon, and goes from one end of the sky to the other; nothing can escape its heat.
- Psalms 74:16You established the cycle of day and night; you put the moon and sun in place.
- Psalms 136:7to the one who made the great lights, for his loyal love endures,
- Psalms 148:3Praise him, O sun and moon! Praise him, all you shiny stars!
- Isaiah 13:10Indeed the stars in the sky and their constellations no longer give out their light; the sun is darkened as soon as it rises, and the moon does not shine.
- Isaiah 24:23The full moon will be covered up, the bright sun will be darkened; for the Lord who commands armies will rule on Mount Zion in Jerusalem in the presence of his assembly, in majestic splendor.
- Isaiah 45:7I am the one who forms light and creates darkness; the one who brings about peace and creates calamity. I am the Lord, who accomplishes all these things.
- Habakkuk 3:11The sun and moon stand still in their courses; the flash of your arrows drives them away, the bright light of your lightning-quick spear.
- Matthew 24:29“Immediately after the suffering of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will be shaken.
- Matthew 27:45Now from noon until three, darkness came over all the land.
- 1 Corinthians 15:41There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon and another glory of the stars, for star differs from star in glory.
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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